Biting back a curse, Hunter palmed his phone, already turning it on as the plane landed. The flight attendant could kiss his ass.
As soon as the little device lit up, he saw a text from Deke. They’d found Kata at her office. She was fine. Attacker in custody. Detectives on scene. Thank God! Profound relief poured through him, and he sagged into his seat.
As soon as the gate opened, he strapped on his backpack and ran into the terminal to grab a taxi. Perched stiffly in the backseat of the musty-smelling vehicle, the need to hold her battling with an urge to kill the gunman, Hunter barely saw the Lafayette landscape whiz by.
Someone had tried to kill his Kata, probably for no other reason than she’d done her job and reported a criminal who’d failed to live up to the terms of his probation. Goddamn scum had f**ked with the wrong man’s woman. If the bastard tried to touch one hair on Kata’s head again, Hunter swore he’d bypass the police and demonstrate to the ass**le every way he’d ever learned to kill painfully.
The ten-minute ride to her office seemed to take two hours. Finally, the taxi pulled up in front of a nondescript office building crawling with myriad police cruisers, a pair of unmarkeds, and an ambulance. Hunter threw money at the taxi driver and bailed out at record speed.
“Sorry, sir.” A uniformed officer stopped him at the perimeter. “This is a police investigation. You’ll have to stay behind me.”
“Someone tried to kill my wife. I’d like to see her.”
The youngish cop frowned. “I know Kata. She’s not married.”
“She is as of last night, and I’m not playing this game with you anymore.” Hunter dipped under the tape, dropped his backpack, and jogged off in search of Kata.
There. In a chair, she sat with her head between her legs, trying not to faint. The late afternoon sunlight glinted off the rich red and brown strands of her hair. Tyler knelt beside her, hand on her knee, pressing a bottle of water into her grip. A detective barked questions at her. Everything about the scene set Hunter’s protective instincts off.
He jogged his way to Kata and cupped her shoulders, dragging her against him. She lifted her face, and he tried not to curse. She looked pale, shocked, exhausted, her mouth set in a grim line. Her eyes said she’d endured too much for one day.
“Hunter.”
Even her voice shook.
“I’m here, honey. I’ll take care of you.”
“You’ll have to back away, sir. I’m questioning the witness,” the detective insisted.
Hunter got up in the idiot’s impassive face. “My wife is in no position to be questioned right now. Have you goddamn looked at her? She’s either going to faint or give out. She may be in shock. I don’t want you saying another word to her until medical has checked her out.”
“I’m right here, Hunter.” She looked annoyed. “I can speak for myself.”
The steel in her tone surprised him, though he guessed it shouldn’t. That combination of strength and softness was one of the things that made him so hard for her. He would find other qualities that drew him to her, and once he knew her better, he’d add those to the list and fall deeper. For better or for worse . . .
“You don’t have to,” he offered softly.
“I want to. And I refused medical. I’m fine.”
Was she f**king serious? One look at her, and he knew better. “Except that you’re having trouble staying upright.”
She glared at him, clearly not liking his sarcasm. “Look, it’s been a really eventful twenty-four hours. I’m grateful that you sent Tyler and Deke. But I don’t need you in my face, barking at me. I just want to finish up here, so I can go home and get some sleep. It’s already stressful enough that this stranger won’t admit why he tried to kill me or who hired him.”
Hunter froze. “It wasn’t Villarreal?”
“Not that he’ll admit.” Kata shrugged. “The police will figure it out. I’ll be fine. I just need rest. I know work is going to be a bitch tomorrow, so—”
“Work?” Oh, hell no. “If you’re on someone’s hit list, then you’re not coming here or going anywhere out of my sight until I figure out how to put a stop to this shit.”
Kata bolted to her feet—and immediately had to brace herself on the chair.
Beside her, Tyler stood quietly, shaking his head. “Shit’s gonna hit the fan now . . .”
Hunter and Kata both ignored him.
Drawing in a sharp, steadying breath, she looked her husband in the eye as she pulled herself to her full height—which meant the underside of his chin. But she didn’t let that deter her.
“Ben told me what you’re into, but I’m never going to be the meek little woman. That should have been clear in Vegas. I won’t ask anyone’s permission to do what I want, Hunter, especially not to go to work. One incident won’t keep me from a job I love. As soon as I get some sleep, I’ll be fine. I get that you’re worried about me. That’s sweet, but I’ve been trained to defend myself. This office will be full of people tomorrow, and I have folks I can call for backup, if necessary. But I fought this thug off today by myself. I got away with my brains, my gut, and my determination to fight back.”