by Alex Howell
Benton smiled, “What’s the matter Mason? You look like you’ve seen a ghost!”
Benton’s nickname from their SEAL days was actually “Ghost”, and as the smirk on his face indicated, the pun was fully intended.
Mason laughed, “Ha… funny… Right… Real funny Matt…”
Benton was in the process of trying to think up another funny rejoinder, when he caught sight of Clara being led into the sanctuary. He elbowed Mason to get his attention as he told him, “Check it out Mason—I don’t think your going to want to miss this.”
Mason then looked up and felt his heart begin to melt as he saw his little Clara walking down the aisle in a beautiful cream-colored dress. It was a dress that his soon bride to be Raina Martin had helped her to pick out, and she looked absolutely stunning in it. Mason couldn’t help but think that his deceased first wife Bree would be proud.
As he watched Clara briefly looked up at him and caught his gaze. It was only for a brief second or two, but it was a moment that left an indelible impression on Mason’s mind. And one that he knew he would cherish for the rest of his days.
A quick jab of Mathew Benton’s elbow to his ribs pulled him out of his revelry, as the Ghost suddenly asked, “Geez Mason, how in the world did you get us into the National Cathedral? I thought they only reserved this place for a freaking head of state? Not us low level grunts!”
Benton of course, was absolutely right. Normally the National Cathedral isn’t exactly a place you can just book online. Being able to use the hollowed grounds of this national monument wasn’t an easy request. But Mason had an ace up his sleeve in the form of the well-mannered, well rounded, and well-traveled Luke Simon.
Mason motioned toward a smiling Luke, as he informed Benton, “Let’s just say that Luke over here was able to pull some much-needed strings with the archdiocese.”
Prompting Luke to admit, “Let’s just say that me and that particular holy father go way back.”
“Way back?” Benton asked
Luke grinned, “Yeah… All the way back to our fraternity days at Yale.”
Benton chuckled, “Uh—Luke, why do I suddenly get the feeling that the archdiocese was one of your old drinking buddies?”
Luke smirked, “Well—let me put it this way. If you ever hear that somebody spiked the communion that priest won’t be far behind.”
At this point their conversation was interrupted when the Bishop in charge of the wedding ceremony—a man whose 6-foot 250-pound frame, to Mason seemed rather big for a priest—came barreling down from the platform to where Mason stood by the altar. The Bishop looking increasingly nervous cleared his throat as he told Mason, “Shall we proceed?”
Mason, looking like the Navy SEALS version of James Bond, all decked out in his tuxedo, nodded to the eager bishop as this esteemed member of the clergy began to literally set the stage for his wedding. Mason watched as the man put down a large portrait of his former wife Bree, on the altar next to him which read, “In remembrance of me”.
As unreligious as Mason was, even he realized that the words “In remembrance of me was classic church speak for “in remembrance of Jesus Christ” harkening back to the first biblical communion in which Christ extolled his disciples to drink and eat in remembrance of him—but still, staring at Bree’s photo which seemed to cry out for his recollection, the words “in remembrance of me” seemed perfectly fitting. Mason very much wished to keep his former wife’s memory alive even as he set off to marry a new woman.
It was actually Raina’s idea to have the photo set up in this manner, and as Mason watched the priest carefully center the picture on the altar, he couldn’t help but smile in gratitude at the great gift Raina had given him. Raina was generously allowing him to remember his deceased wife even while starting a new life with her. Mason knew that it took a big person to be able to do that and he wouldn’t soon forget it.
MEANWHILE, ON THE OTHER SIDE OF TOWN
Even while Mason Walker was enjoying his day of happiness with his bride to be, on the other side of DC the wife of one of his former comrades in arms from the SEALS was being held hostage by a group of terrorists. She sat with her two terrified daughters and young son on the couch. A man dressed in jeans, t-shirt, and camouflaged jacket addressed the frightened woman, “You probably wonder why you are here?”
Feeling completely hopeless and defeated the woman didn’t respond, and instead chose to look at the ground. The man was not one to be ignored however as he walked over in front of her, grabbed her by the hair and jerked her head up to look at him. The woman cried out in pain, “Ow!! Your hurting me!”
To which the man slapped her across the face and shouted, “That’s the whole point!” The man then turned toward one of his associates who had just filmed the whole incident on his cellphone, and laughed, “Oh! Did you get that on tape? Good! I think her husband would love to see it!”
Sobbing, the woman asked in trembling voice, “Why---why are you doing this?”
The man’s face darkened as he explained, “I’m not evil… but I have had many evil things done to me. This is merely recompence.”
Still gripping the woman by her hair forcing her to look up at him, he continued, “Your husband the former Navy SEAL—he helped to make my life a living hell many years ago. Now, I’m just repaying the favor.”
The woman realizing that her abductor was not of the rational variety, let slip, “Your crazy…”
This only enraged the maniac even further however causing him to slap the woman again, this time making her mouth bleed as she wailed, “Please! Stop!”
It was at this point that the lady’s 4-year-old son—unnoticed by all had gotten off the couch to take matters into his own hands. Tired of seeing his mom being abused—in imitation of one of his favorite super heroes, he saw on TV, the child thought he could dispense justice and take down the bad guys.
Sneaking right up behind the assailant he kicked him in the back of the leg. Despite his small size, he managed to hit him in just the right place—behind his kneecap, causing the man to lurch forward in pain. Temporarily losing his grip on the woman the suspect let out a startled, “What?!”
Turning to see the little boy he was both shocked and infuriated as he shouted, “You stupid son of a bitch!”
The boy then took off down the hall as the man gave chase shouting, “I’ll get you!”
The mother unable to see her son be hunted down in this manner attempted to get up as she yelled, “Leave him alone!” but the other guard who was standing nearby grabbed her by the arm and easily yanked her back down to the couch as she cried, “My baby! Don’t hurt him!”
For a four-year-old, the kid was quick on his feet and before his pursuer could catch up, he found his way into the hallway where he saw just the right place to hide—a walk in closet. Inside the walk-in closet was various old coats and shirts hanging from the rack and underneath an old box filled with Styrofoam confetti.
Playing hide and seek with his sisters had prepared the child for just such a contingency and he knew a good hiding place when he saw one. And so, diving right into the box he covered himself with the Styrofoam, concealing his presence.
Just seconds later the hostage taker came upon his hiding spot but, after one cursory glance inside and only seeing a box filled with Styrofoam, he automatically discounted the chance of the boy being in there. Instead he went down the hall and into a bathroom where he found the small bathroom window to be open.
As fate would have it—the window was left open moments earlier by one of his associates during a smoke break. But the deranged man couldn’t put two and two together, and instead jumped to the erroneous conclusion that the child had escaped out the window.
Thinking as much he slapped himself right across his own face and bellowed, “Shit! The freaking kid escaped!”
2
Here Comes the Bride
Mason stood at full attention with full anticipation, as the band Mathew Benton had hired, sudd
enly broke into a lively rendition of the traditional wedding song, “Here Comes the Bride. The group was a jazz and blues outfit popular around the DC area. It was while they jammed out their improvised wedding march beat that all eyes turned to Raina. Her hair, makeup, and dress were all impeccable.
Her gown was long and sleek—at least long for her diminutive frame. And although the gown wasn’t too tight, as she walked, it gently hugged her hips. Her auburn hair was only partially concealed by her veil with the rest of it pouring over her shoulders like honey blond rays of sunshine. As captivating as all of this may have been however, her greatest charm was her smile.
She had a huge grin on her face the whole time she made her progress up the aisle, and the smile said it all. The smile said, ‘Finally—we made it.’
Their courtship certainly wasn’t a smooth one, besides their own emotional ups and downs, their dangerous line of work had often put the process in severe jeopardy. On two separate occasions Mason’s enemies had actually targeted Raina as a means to get at him. But in the end, they were able to overcome it all. And here they were, preparing to seal their union together. Raina was happy just to be there, living in the moment.
As Raina sidled up next to her husband to be, he voiced the same exact sentiment as he grasped her hand and told her, “Raina sweetheart, we did it—I can’t believe we finally made it to the altar!”
Raina, referencing all the times that Mason had stood her up or held back his hesitant emotions in the past couldn’t help but poke fun at his choice of words. She laughed playfully, “Well Mason—I’m just amazed that you didn’t leave me at the altar!”
Mason laughed, “Okay—okay. Point well taken.”
He then gazed into her eyes, and one thought seemed to take ownership and override all others as he told her, “You look beautiful.”
Like a magnet drawn to metal Mason couldn’t help but be close to her and before he knew what he was even doing, he leaned in to kiss his soon to be bride. But he was interrupted when he got a tap on the shoulder.
He turned to see the Bishop with a mock stern expression on his face as he sarcastically chided him, “But Mr. Walker! You have to wait for me to say ‘You may now kiss the bride’!
The Bishop actually forgot he had his mic on when he said this, and the whole church managed to pick up on what had happened, as the building erupted in laughter. Mason not always the best at taking a joke or being laughed at, bristled a bit in embarrassment as he looked to Raina and moaned, “Oh great—just what I always wanted, getting laughed out of the church on my wedding day.”
Raina tried to console him, “Oh Mason—it’s alright. They’re not laughing at you—they’re laughing with you.”
Her words sounded like something a mother would say to a child trying to fend off the schoolyard bully. Mason chuckled as he played along, “And I’m rubber and they’re glue right?”
The bishop meanwhile, scurried off to the other side of the platform as if he were looking for something. In reality he was looking for cover. Mason watching him take off, grumbled, “I feel like I was just subjected to a hit and run—the bishop dropped a bomb on me onstage and then he just takes off…. Where is he going?”
Mason then looked over to the pews where some of the people were still chuckling and whispering amongst each other from the commotion, causing Mason to hiss, “Shit… it’s not that funny.”
Raina squeezed his hand and told him, “Don’t worry about it. Weddings always make you feel like you’re in a zoo.”
Mason raised an eyebrow, “In a zoo?”
Raina nodded, “Yeah like some kind of matrimonial specimen being observed by spectators…”
Mason laughed, “You sound like you’ve been to the altar a lot!”
Rain who had actually never been married blushed at the mention, as she admitted, “Well… Only as a bridesmaid, never a bride.”
Mason turning his attention back to their recent embarrassment muttered, “Geez… I’ve had nightmares like this—of a whole church laughing at me on my wedding day. I just didn’t know that it would happen for real.”
Raina inquired, “Really? In your dreams the church laughed at you?”
Mason nodded, “Yeah except in all my dreams it’s because I suddenly realize I’m standing at the altar naked.”
Raina couldn’t help but laugh, “What?”
Mason nodded, “Haven’t you had dreams like that? Where you are in public and you suddenly realize that you forgot to put your clothes on?”
Mason chuckled to himself, “You know…like for example…you dream that you are riding in a busy subway or something....and everything is fine… until you suddenly look down and think, ‘Oh shit… where’s my clothes?’”
As Raina chuckled at the thought, Mason exclaimed, “Well I had freaking nightmares about being so befuddled that I forgot to dress for my own wedding day!”
Raina eyeing Mason’s designer tuxedo reassured him, “Well, Mason honey. At least you didn’t do that.”
The priest trying to regain his composure after his slipup, came running back to the altar and nodding to Mason whispered, “Are you ready?”
Mason pushing down his previous irritation, grunted, “Yes sir.”
The priest then went into his oration, “Dearly beloved we are gathered here today to see this man, Mr. Mason William Walker—wed this woman, Ms. Raina Marie Martin as his lawfully wedded wife.”
The Bishop then looked to Mason and asked him, “Do you Mason Walker take Raina Martin to be your wife through good times and bad, through sickness and in health, through poverty and in wealth…”
The Priest then paused as he squinted his eyes at the freshly printed vows he had placed on the podium before him, he silently mouthed, “Oh okay…”
He then cleared his throat and continued, “And through special ops and not so special ops, so help you God?”
Raina couldn’t help but laugh as she quietly hissed, “Geez Mason…. you went all out for these vows, didn’t you?” Unable to respond to her inquiry, Mason just quietly smiled and told the priest, “I do.”
The priest then turned to Raina and repeated the vows in their entirety, “And do you Ms. Raina Martin take this man to be your lawful husband through good times and bad, through sickness and in health, through poverty and in wealth—through special ops…” The Bishop wanting to ham it up again for the audience, shrugged as he finished in an exaggerated, mock voice, “A-a-a-and through not so special ops?”
This garnered a few more laughs from the audience before the comedic priest continued, “So help you God?” Raina looked intently into Mason’s eyes and without flinching, she answered “I do.”
The Bishop then glanced knowingly at the audience and back at Mason before telling him, “Now… now you may kiss the bride.”
Mason joked, “I thought you would never ask.” The remark causing the audience, with the previous gaff still in their memory, to once again erupt in laughter.
But as Mason took Raina into his arms, and pressed his lips to hers, the audience’s laughter dissolved into cheers and applause as the entire church erupted in sheer joy at the powerful union that they had just witnessed come into being.
3
The Wedding Crasher
For the newly christened, Mr. and Mrs. Walker, things seemed to go by pretty fast after saying I do. It was as if Mason and Raina had ridden a tidal wave of pure love and excitement that spilled out of the sanctuary and on into the reception area. As they took their seats at the banquet table one of Mason’s best men; Mathew Benton, raised a glass to toast his newly wed friends.
To everyone in attendance he declared, “For those of you who know Mason and Raina and for those of you who do not—just looking at this radiant couple tells you basically all you need to know about them. Just one glance and you can see that these two were made for each other.”
Raina blushed and squeezed Mason’s hand as she intoned, “Aww…”
They looked on as Benton co
ntinued, “They are both dedicated and determined individuals who have both served in the heat of battle together honorably….”
Mason then abruptly gave a sly wink to Mason, and ended his toast with, “Now let’s hope they serve just as well in the heat of love!”
This provoked immediate laughter from those assembled and the fact that Benton quickly sat down afterwards, abruptly ending his speech on this awkward note, made it even funnier, prompting a few people to hoot and howl their mirth.
A wide-eyed Raina looked at Mason as she softly repeated, “The heat of love? Really?”
Clara on the other side of Raina then remarked, “Oh my gosh… I really thought he was going to say something profound for a minute there.”
Mason meanwhile just shook his head, as he muttered, “Okay Benton. I see you tried hard with that one.”
Mason knew that his friend most likely did have more to say, but knowing how Benton hated making public speeches, his nerves probably got the better of him and had him abort his lengthier message in favor of quickly ending it on a humorous—if not incredibly awkward note.
At any rate, the festivities were rapidly progressing, and the next thing they knew the hired DJ announced, “Alright everybody, our bride is getting ready to throw her bouquet—if you are feeling lucky ladies, now’s the time to step on over to the back of the sanctuary to see if you could make the catch of a lifetime!”
Upon hearing of which, Clara excitedly grabbed Raina’s arm as she told her, “That’s your cue! Come on let’s go!”
Clara led Raina out in front of the crowd of women that had gathered before she stepped over and joined the crowd herself. Raina was so nervous she almost forgot protocol and began to raise her arm to throw the flowers, while she was still facing the group. That is, until Clara hastily shouted, “Turn around!”
Raina not quite understanding, asked, “What?”
