The Bodyguards

Meghan Mulherin, 29
My dad has a world map on the wall in the family room with pins in it, so he can follow me wherever I go. There are those who come to Protective Detail from law enforcement or military, and then there are oddballs like me. I'm a piano player. I'm from St. Louis. I'd never fired a weapon before. I was never in a fight. I'd never left North America. At first the gun feels like a brick on your right side, but I got used to the weight on my hip. When I take it off, it feels like something's missing.

Stacey Berg, 29
A normal person goes into a restaurant and looks at the menu. I see four ceiling sprinklers, six light switches, and that you can exit five different ways.

You have to be ready for an emergency. In Pago Pago, at a ceremony for the secretary, a man dancing with tribal tattoos and a palm-frond skirt suddenly let out a war whoop and lunged toward her. He had a 10-foot pointed pole aimed directly at the secretary. My heart jumped and my stomach dropped to my feet. In that split second, your brain figures out: Is this real? You don't even move. It's more mental than physical. [It was part of a dance.]

Nicole Deal, 33
It's all in the attitude. It's the look: the don't-mess-with-me look. I'm standing post and I'm thinking, I should never have to pull this weapon, but I'm prepared if I have to. That's me, the planner. At the gym, I work on upper-body strength in case I have to pull someone out of danger. When I go on vacation, I send everyone an itinerary. Attached is weather, Google Maps, suggested clothing, and all our events, down to our rest time. When we went to Las Vegas, my friends said, "Hey, where's the room for spontaneity?" I said, "It's in the schedule; three hours planned for fun."
Becky McKnight, 30
I'm 5'3", a lot smaller than the guy agent who's 6'3". I'm worried crowds won't move out of the way for me as quickly—I pull my hair back so people see my earpiece.

With shift work, it's hard to maintain friendships. On a first date, I say, "I'm gone every other week." If they want to stick around, great.

Katie Farrell, 25
Guys can be weird about it. At a Christmas party with friends from home, a guy said, "Are you packing heat?" He was patting me down: "I'm seeing if you're carrying."

In Kiev, the local presidential security kept offering me chairs, trying to get me to sit down. They were shocked to see women do security.

Natasha Diamond, 28
I'm a legacy kid. My dad was on Secretary [George] Shultz's detail. It's exciting to follow in his path. When my dad retired, he gave me his holster and magazine pouch. He said, "I don't need these anymore. Your turn." A lot of people were shocked that I'm on the Detail. They said, "Really? You want to run around carrying a gun?" I said, "Yeah, it's exciting. I live on pressure."

My brother is an agent too. In training, we would shoot next to each other. He's the proud brother, and I'm trying to beat him. When we were in ground-fighting class, he wouldn't want to hurt me, and I'd be like, "This is for the last 20 years. Ha!" After class, the other guys said, "We're not going out with you if you wear a tank top; the waitresses will think we beat you up." I said, "You did beat me up."

I consider myself a girly girl. When I'm off work, I like manicures and pedicures. I like to dress up. I like jewelry. I like shopping.

Karyn Grey, 37
Feminine qualities help. It's the whole mama-bear thing, protecting her cubs. Your whole goal is to take someone down—with a brachial strike, or with a weapon you're firing center mass.

I was an attorney before. Shooting and tactical driving were really new to me. In Haiti, at the airport, people were standing there staring in awe. First of all, you're a woman, and second of all, you're holding a gun. Jesse Jackson landed. We were trying to get him to the car. He started peeling off money from his wallet. We were holding people back. Later, I was like, Wow, this is so different from my last job!

This Is A Developing Story

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