Chapter 12

Hunter turned back around and took the stairs two at a time. "Detective Chambers!" he called out as the detective was about to get on the elevator. The man looked annoyed but didn't get on when the doors opened. "What happened to Maggie last night?"

He would have sworn he saw a little smirk on the detective's face before his lips frowned. "Why do you care? From what I hear, you've been a jerk to her."

Why did he care? "Because I was an idiot. I do care about her, and I'll do anything to make it up to her. Something inside me broke, seeing that mark on her wrist. What happened?"

Hunter remained calm on the outside as Detective Chambers told him about Charles Wicksmith. Since his arrest, there had been five more women who came forward to report his assaults. They'd all thought since they'd never had intercourse with Wicksmith, no one would listen to them. Well, Chambers listened and Hunter was listening as well.

"He just bailed out. His first hearing is in two weeks," Chambers told him. "Now, don't do anything that will blow the case."

Hunter put his hand to his heart, the picture of innocence. "Me? Never."

Neverhis ass. Hunter had one stop to make before returning to Shadows Landing. Luckily, Charles's condo was on the way.

Hunter knocked on the door of the modern condo complex. It seemed out of place in a historic town like Charleston.

"Yeah?" Charles asked, sullenly as he opened the door, sounding as if he had marbles in his mouth.

Hunter was going to punch him, but he saw the swollen tongue and the black eye and smiled. "She got you good, huh?"

Charles went to slam the door, but Hunter reached out and held the door, shoving it back and hitting Charles in the face. "We need to have a little chat about how you treat women."

Hunter flexed his hand as he got back into his truck. Maggie had done a good job teaching Charles a lesson. However, Hunter made sure he drove the point home.

Damn. Hunter had never been so wrong about something in his life as he had been about Maggie Bell. The woman was a constant surprise. She shot a man to save him. Not just any shot, it had been a hell of a shot most snipers would have trouble making. Then she'd knocked a man out with a bedpan. She kept her head during a shootout all while looking as if she were in the middle of a garden party and beat up the guy who got handsy with her. The contradiction of that still boggled Hunter's mind as he drove back to Shadows Landing.

Maggie had gotten under his skin the first time they met. He was so mad at the attraction, thinking Maggie was like one of his exes. Now she was under his skin because she was everything he could ever want in a woman. Except for her love of pink. But if it meant he had Maggie in his life and heart, he'd deal with the pink.

Kenzie and Gavin were waiting for him at the guest house. They had worked together to get Landry set up in the first-floor bedroom. Blythe had turned the sitting room next to the bedroom into her room. The kids would need to share rooms upstairs, but Ryker told them he'd already ordered bunk beds that would be delivered within the next half hour. Kenzie told them she'd already stocked the kitchen. Everything was now in place.

The house quieted down as Kenzie called Georgie to have the kids brought over soon. Blythe worked with Ryker to go over the strengths and weaknesses in his security as Gavin finished his exam of Landry and called Lydia over to go over all the details.

Finally, Hunter had a moment alone with Landry. The man looked exhausted and in a lot of pain. "Can you talk for a moment?" Hunter asked.

"Yeah, I have some questions for you."

"And I have some for you," Hunter said, leaning against the door to the bedroom. "What do you remember?"

"I remember only flashes of the past week or so. I remember being shot. The pain of that. I remember fighting someone. I remember waking up to you donating blood to me. That's about it. Who were they and what did they want?"

"I was going to ask you the same questions," Hunter said with a sigh before sitting down on the chair next to the bed. "Two people have been identified coming after me in order to get to you. Alexey Kotov, who was part of the Borisenko Private Army, found me in Shadows Landing and demanded to turn over what you had given me. He thought you had taken something from them."

Hunter saw the concentration on Landry's face. He was thinking hard and coming up empty. "I don't remember anything that sticks out. I don't even remember talking to anyone. I don't remember anything except fighting someone," Landry finally said.

Hunter had a feeling that's what he'd say, but disappointment hit hard anyway. They still needed to figure it all out. "The man at the hospital was Pablo Soliz. He was personal security to the former Bolivian president."

Landry frowned. "That doesn't make sense. They have nothing in common."

"Exactly. We need to figure out what they think you saw, know, or took to figure out what their move is."

Landry looked exhausted. Pain etched his face and Hunter knew their time was up. "Don't worry about it, Marine. I've got your six. You just focus on getting better."

Hunter heard a car park and then doors opening with lots of excited little voices. Landry heard it too. He smiled and looked over at Hunter. "Help me sit up better so the kids can't see how badly I'm hurt. I don't want to frighten them."

"I think you underestimate what would frighten your kids," Hunter said as he helped Landry sit up and wiped the sweat from his brow.

Landry had a smile on his face and his arms open when the Langston family swarmed the room en masse. The littlest kids leaped on the bed as Lydia scolded them to go easy on their father. Landry Jr., Lacy, Levi, and Leah stood back, giving the littles their time.

"Mr. Hunter," Landry Jr. said seriously.

"Yes?"

"I know you'll tell us the truth. How badly is our dad hurt?"

Hunter looked down at the older half of the Langston children. Their faces were set. Their eyes tense. They'd been fed the lies that Daddy was home and just needed to rest and didn't like the taste of it.

Hunter gave a little nod of his head to indicate that they should follow him out of the room. The four filed out and surrounded him. It was clear they needed to talk and Hunter would reassure them their father was going to be okay.

"No one will tell us the truth," Lacy said, sounding remarkably like her mother had in the hospital room when she'd been angry with Landry for lying to her.

"It's not my place. If your mother—"

Leah crossed her arms and Hunter suddenly felt out of his depth as the ten year old stared him down. "Miss Maggie used to babysit us. I bet she'd love to know what a meanie you are."

"I'm not mean. I can tell you stories and babysit you too," Hunter protested.

The four all wore matching expressions that gave Hunter the chills. He'd walked into an ambush. Leah pulled a cell phone from her pocket and held it up so Hunter could see the home screen as she opened her Contacts list.

"Miss Maggie," Lacy said with fake tears in her eyes, "Mr. Hunter called us stupid little brats." A tear rolled down her cheek as if on command.

Levi's lower lip wobbled. "Mr. Hunter said I was never going to make it in hockey and I should just give up now."

Hunter was being blackmailed.

"Miss Maggie," Leah said, big crocodile tears rolling down her cheeks. "Mr. Hunter said girls shouldn't play with weapons because we're not strong enough or smart enough to know how to use them."

Hunter actually sucked in a breath at that one. He turned to Landry Jr. "Are you part of this too?"

Landry Jr. shrugged. "I heard it all myself and I'll tell Miss Maggie that, too."

"Traitors," Hunter hissed at them. They only batted big, innocent, tear-filled eyes back at him. "Fine. Your father was shot in the line of duty and was unconscious for a week and underwent a long and complicated surgery to recover the bullets and patch him up. He woke up today after Maggie and I stopped two people trying to hurt him. Someone wants what he has, but he doesn't remember what that thing is. He's in danger, which is why he's hiding here. The good news is that it looks as if he'll make a full recovery if your mother doesn't kill him for lying about being a combat Marine for the past decade and not in communications."

Tears evaporated instantaneously as if they were never there. Leah tucked her cell phone with Maggie's name and number on the screen into her back pocket and smiled at him.

"Was that so hard?" Landry Jr. asked, one eyebrow lifted in a remarkably adult expression.

"You all could make the CIA break," Hunter muttered.

They all grinned in return as their mother poked her head out of the bedroom. "What's going on out here? Aren't you going to say hi to your dad?"

Lacy smiled so sweetly that Hunter had whiplash. "Yes, Mom. We just wanted to thank Mr. Hunter for helping take care of Dad while we gave the littles some time with him." Lacy beamed up at him. "Thanks again, Mr. Hunter. You're the best."

Hunter was left standing in the hall feeling very unsure about himself and what, exactly, had just happened. That's when his phone rang.

"Hello?"

"Hello, Mr. Townsend. I got your rush order done. You can pick it up anytime."

His gift for Maggie was ready. It was time to make his mistake right. It was time to apologize properly and hope that Maggie would fully forgive him.

* * *

Hunter pulled into Bell Landing and drove the long tree-lined lane to the old brick plantation style house that sat near the river running along one side of Shadows Landing leading to Charleston and the Atlantic Ocean. The house was beautiful, but right now it was hostile territory. Especially when Gage opened the door and glared at him. It was considerably easier for Hunter to face combatants than the family of the woman he wanted to date. He was not on familiar ground here.

Hunter got out of the truck, reached into the truck bed, and grabbed the gift. He squared his shoulders and marched up the brick steps to where the Bell family had gathered, minus Maggie.

"Hello Mr. and Mrs. Bell. I'm here to see Maggie."

Mrs. Bell smiled. No one else did. "Come in, Hunter."

It sounded like an invitation, but it was an order.

Hunter followed them inside to a sitting room to the right of the front door. It screamed modern antiques. The house had been modernized and updated to the latest interior design trends, but the woodwork in the house was original and several antiques sat on display or hung on the walls. There he found Revered Winston sitting with Melinda, the pastor in training. They were drinking iced tea and looked surprised to see Hunter joining them.

"Sir. Ma'am," Hunter said to them. They smiled back until they saw Gage's glare.

"What do you want?" Gage asked.

"Gage," his mother chided. "That is not how we treat a guest in our house. Even if he's been a dickhead to your sister."

It took a good ten seconds for Hunter to realize Mrs. Bell had just insulted him since she did so with such a sweet voice and kind smile.

"What's that?" Mr. Bell asked, nodding to what Hunter was carrying.

"It's a gift for Maggie, sir. To apologize for being such a . . . dickhead."

Mr. Bell and Gage didn't seem pleased. Mrs. Bell smiled sweetly.

"Is that what I think it is?" she asked as she reached down and turned it around. "Oh, Hunter." She put her hand to her chest and smiled. "You might actually get her to forgive you with a gift like this. It's very sweet and very Maggie. Isn't it, dear?"

Hunter had a feeling he might have won Maggie's mom over, and with the reluctant agreement from Mr. Bell, Hunter was feeling a little more optimistic.

"Why do you think Maggie should even forgive you? And why now? You finally saw she was an Olympic shooter and suddenly you're in love?" Gage crossed his arms and called him out without batting an eye. Pretty impressive for a man with tiny red sailboats embroidered on his shorts.

This is where Hunter would rather face enemy fire. He cleared his throat to buy him some time. He glanced at Reverend Winston and Melinda and saw them give him an encouraging nod. "I mistook Maggie for the type of woman I'd dated before, which hadn't ever ended well. I want to apologize for that because, as everyone has been telling me, she's nothing like that."

"And what kind of women were they?" Mrs. Bell asked.

Hunter cleared his throat again. "High maintenance, ma'am." She raised her brow but stayed silent. "The kind that liked the idea of being with a military man but not the military tours and the duties that came along with it. I thought a woman was beautiful, smart, kind, and into me, but the moment I had to skip a date because I was called up or when I couldn't tell her if I'd be back for the gala she wanted to go to, I was not supportive of her career or life. I was either cheated on or dumped by text."

"And you thought our Maggie was like that?" Mr. Bell asked with a bite to his voice.

"I'm sorry to say that I did, sir. She's beautiful, smart, and so bubbly that while I instantly wanted to get to know her, I put up a wall instead. I couldn't go through the disappointment and pain again."

"Hunter," Reverend Winston said, getting Hunter's attention, "did you know that every time you leave for a mission, Maggie comes to church and lights a candle for you? She comes and does it every day until you come home. That doesn't sound like someone who isn't supportive."

"She also wields a sword very well. I don't see her being the type to fear walking into a gala alone if you can't make it," Melinda added. "I'm new here, but that's the impression I've gotten of her."

"Hunter," Mr. Bell said, pulling his thoughts from that revelation that she thought of him while he was gone. "Walk with me."

Hunter got up, nodded to the room, and left, following Maggie's dad. "Yes, sir?"

"I see your knuckles are red."

"I had to see a man about how he treats women."

Mr. Bell's jaw tightened and then he gave a nod, dismissing it. "It occurred to me that you haven't seen our house before. You're new to Shadows Landing, so you might not know the history of it. See, there has been a Bell here since before the town's founding. This house started as a log cabin." They walked into an old library and there on the wall was a sketch of a log cabin and next to that a sketch of a woman. Mr. Clark stopped in front of it. "That's Mary Bell. She'd lived here in frontier days and knew how to defend herself. When the pirates settled Shadows Landing, Mary's husband, Josiah, joined them on their raids. Mary helped start the church's women's group with the first pirate reverend and retired pirates to teach them how to fight. When the wives of the pirates were left alone, Mary was one of the women who supported them being armed."

Mr. Clark stepped forward showing Hunter a portrait. "This is their son and his wife. She's the daughter of a pirate. They took the money from raiding and began to build this house. Here's how it progressed."

Hunter looked at paintings of each stage of the house. It was impressive for sure. "They further invested money in industries, which was smart. It led to long-term stability after the golden age of piracy was over. Then there was the Revolutionary War. These are the Bells who served." Oil paintings of three men hung on the wall along with an antique rifle in a display case on a table under the paintings. "While the men were away fighting, the women turned Bell Landing into a hospital. They tended wounded soldiers, defended their property, and spied for General Nathanael Greene, aiding in actions that led to the British being surrounded in Charles Town."

Hunter looked at letters that were framed giving information on the movements of the British. Military history was his passion and he could get lost in this room reading all the books and artifacts.

"Then came the Civil War, World War I, World War II, Korea, and Vietnam," Mr. Bell said, pointing to various paintings and then photographs of Bells through the centuries.

"Is that you?" Hunter asked at the last picture on the wall.

"It is. I was a pilot for the South Carolina Air National Guard."

Hunter turned to the last wall as Mr. Bell talked about his time in the National Guard. There was a side profile picture of a girl, around six years old, with her strawberry blonde hair up in pigtails, wearing a pink tutu, cowboy boots, and aiming a youth rifle. In the second half of the photo was Gage aiming a more advanced youth rifle. The photo brought a smile instantly to his face. Maggie's little face was so focused on the target and, like her, at complete odds with her outfit.

"Magnum wanted to try anything her brother did and do it better. She's all sugar and sweetness until there's competition involved. Then she's utterly merciless. Don't let the pink fool you. She'll take you down with a smile."

"I'm beginning to see that." Hunter looked over the wall of family photographs. Family vacations, shooting competitions, and graduations.

"Gage graduated with honors, so Magnum had to as well. She worked her ass off and finished in the top ten of her class. While Gage went on to graduate school, Magnum decided to come home. Running events here at the bed and breakfast had always been her dream. Not just run it but take it to the next level. You should see the parties she plans and the companies she works with for events. She has a real talent. The CEO of a huge medical company pursued her strongly."

That got Hunter's attention. "What happened?"

Mr. Bell turned and looked him straight in the eye. "She met a soldier at a wedding."

It was like a punch to his heart. Maggie had waited for him to smarten up and thank goodness she had because the protective alpha instinct to grab Maggie and carry her to his house was surprisingly strong for someone who could control every emotion.

"Sir." Hunter stood straight with his hands clasped behind his back. "I know I don't deserve it, and I know it's all Maggie's choice, but I'd like to ask permission to date your daughter."

It was the longest thirty seconds of Hunter's life as Mr. Bell stared at him as if he could see clear through to Hunter's soul. "You'll find Magnum at the outdoor shooting range. It's at the back of the property. She's practicing for the Olympics. She leaves in two weeks. Good luck, son. You'll need it. Oh, and if you distract her from her goal of gold, I'll let Gage kill you like he wants. Mean Abe will snap up any body parts thrown to him."

"I'd never get in the way of her goals, sir." No way. There was nothing Hunter wanted to see more than Maggie standing on the podium at the Olympics as the national anthem played. Suddenly her goals became his and he'd do everything he could to make sure she achieved them.

In the back of his mind, Hunter heard Damon chuckling that he'd been right and Hunter didn't care. He finally understood what Granger and Stone had been talking about when they talked about falling in love. He was on a mission to win Maggie's heart and Hunter Townsend had never failed on a mission in his life.