Protecting Rose (12 page)

Joe looked sheepish as they neared the bottom floor. “I’m sorry, man. Whoever it was knew how to bypass all the new security features. Only someone with deep insider connections would have had access to that information.”

“Fortunately for us, they didn’t know about the dining room stairwell,” Nate growled. “Or we’d both be dead right now.”

They exited the building into the underground parking structure. Sirens blared along with the sound of the firefighters that fought the blaze.

“Joe, I need you to get us out of here without being seen. Do you think you can do that?”

Joe nodded. “Follow me.” He walked over to a dark blue Lincoln Town Car and opened the back door. “Climb in and stay low.”

Rose glanced at Nate. “Where are we going?”

“Get into the car. I’ll explain everything later.” He gently pushed her onto the car’s backseat and crawled on the floor next to her.

Joe opened the trunk and lifted a blanket out, handing it to her. “Here, lie down and cover up with this.”

Rose crinkled her nose at the blanket’s musty odor as she covered her head and lay down on the seat.

She whispered to where he lay on the floor. “Where are we going?”

The car started to move.

Nate reached up to grasp her hand. “In a minute, sweetheart, let’s get out of here first.”

The car moved slowly through the crowd. The sounds of the firefight faded as they pulled away and picked up speed.

“Okay, it’s clear now,” Joe informed them.

Rose threw off the filthy blanket with a sigh of relief and sat up. Nate pushed himself off the floor and sat next to her on the backseat of the car.

He reached out and ran his hands down her arms and back up to clasp her shoulders. “Are you sure you’re all right?”

“Yes, I’m fine.” Rose pushed her bangs off her face.

He leaned toward the front seat to speak with Joe.

“Try to find a secure spot to pull over.”

He turned back to Rose, but spoke loud enough for Joe to hear. “As far as anyone knows, we died in the fire. By the time they figure out the truth, we’ll be in a more secure location.”

“So they’ll stop looking for me?”

“For a while anyway.”

The car slowed and veered into the back of a truck stop along I-94. Joe steered behind a couple tractor-trailers, blocking the view from the highway.

Nate opened the door and climbed out of the car. He held out his hand and helped her from the backseat. Joe already stood next to the still running car.

“Joe, call Rick. Let him know what happened. Tell him to go along with the story that Rose died in the fire. It’ll buy us some time. Use that time to figure out what the hell is going on. We need to find that damn leak! I’ll contact him as soon as we reach a safe location.”

“Okay. Good luck.” Joe gave Rose a smile and nodded. “Miss.”

Rose tried to wrap her mind around the fact that someone had been in their condominium while they were in Chicago and had planted bombs. She shuddered. What had she done that caused someone to want to kill her so badly?

“Joe, was anyone hurt?” She was still reeling from the death of the police officer and didn’t want another death on her conscious.

“There were some injuries, broken bones and minor burns. But none appeared to be life-threatening,” he reassured her.

Nate took her arm. “We need to go.” He guided her to the passenger side of the car and opened the door.

“What about Joe? Are we just going to leave him here?”

Joe laughed. “Don’t worry about me. I’ll call a friend for a ride.”

“Later, Joe,” Nate said.

Nate got in the car and they drove away.

Rick pushed his car door open and leapt to his feet. With his hands fisted at his sides, he glared at the building. The damn thing was lit up like a bonfire. Had Stone and the woman made it out? He’d tried to call him, but it had gone straight to voicemail.

“Sonofabitch,” he muttered. He spotted J.D. by a firefighter and hurried over to him. “J.D., do we have any idea what the hell happened?”

“Well, it seems some folks heard an explosion from the top floor. It’s hard to say for sure until we can examine the scene. But it sounds suspiciously like someone set off a series of bombs.”

Rick nodded with a dark scowl and furrowed brows. “Any sign of Stone and the woman.”

“No.” J.D. glanced up at the top floor. It still burned bright in the night sky. “Nothing yet.”

“Dammit,” Rick growled and shook his head. “I’m sure they got out okay. It would take more than a few bombs to take Stone down.” He glared back up at the building with narrowed eyes.

“I’m sure you’re right, Rick.” He scowled. “I’m sure you’re right.” There was short pause. “Any luck with the woman’s identity?”

“Not yet,” he said with a slight shake of his head. “Contact me as soon as you know anything here. I’ll be at headquarters.”

Rick headed back towards his car. His cell phone vibrated and he flipped it open. “Rick Smyth.”

“Hey, Rick, this is Joe. Are you at the safe house?

Rick snorted. “What’s left of it.”

“Yeah, well, just thought you’d want to know both Nate and Rose made it out of the building. Nate said he’ll contact you as soon as they’re settled into a safe place.”

Rick sighed with relief. “Do you have any details on what happened?”

“Someone bypassed the new security measures and put a bomb in Rose’s room and then took out the exits. Fortunately, it seems they were unaware of the bookcase exit.”

Because the dining room exit was a new addition to the building and only a few key personnel knew of its existence, Rick could at least rule those people from his list of suspects. “Were they injured?”

“No, they both appeared to be fine. Nate did want me to tell you to keep the fact they survived under wraps. He wants to use the fire as an opportunity to smoke-out the bad guys.”

“Thanks, Joe. As always, we appreciate your help.”

“Sure thing, anytime.”

Rick hit the end key as he pulled away from the scene, then punched in the speed dial for headquarters. He wanted the records of everyone involved with the safe house. He was tired of pissing around and was determined to flush out the traitorous bastard working against them.

Nate headed for his parents’ vacation property near Montello. An old farmhouse in the country his stepfather had inherited from his parents. As far as Nate knew, Tom was still the only party listed on the deed. It would be hard to track them to that location any time soon. Better yet, it was only accessible by a one-mile long gravel road that ran in front of the property and offered them some privacy. He should be able to hear any cars that approached long before they reached them. The property consisted of seventy acres of woods and a small swimming pond.

Rose stared out the window and chewed on her fingernails.

“Hey, give your poor nails a break,” he said teasingly.

She studied her jagged nails. “So, I wonder if I’ve always chewed my nails, or if it’s something I just started.”

“It’s hard to say, but from the looks of ‘em, I would say you’ve been at it for a while anyway.”

Rose laughed ruefully. “Well, it stops today.” She wrinkled her nose. “It’s a bad habit.”

Nate smiled. She was cute when she wrinkled her nose up like that. She had a cute nose. Small and graceful, just like the woman.

“How do you think they were able to find us?”

The slight tremor in her voice brought out his protective instincts. Which were never too far from the surface where she was concerned. She was terribly frightened, even though she tried to hide it. He fought the urge to pull the car over and kiss away her fears.

He scowled. That probably wasn’t the best idea. Right now, she needed a protector more than a lover. He had to keep his distance from her until they got the situation under control. The last thing he wanted was to send her into another panic.

The memory of her curled in the corner still ate at him. The guilt he felt for his part in her meltdown was never far from his mind. He needed to focus on her safety and nothing else.

“Only someone with insider information would have been able to bypass the safe house security systems,” Nate said.

“What do you mean insider information? You think a cop set the bombs?”

“No. Not set the bombs. But someone inside sure as hell gave your location to the bad guys.” He gripped the steering wheel tight. The thought that someone on his team had betrayed them was hard to take. But there seemed to be no other explanation.

“So, we’re going someplace where they can’t find us?”

“Yes, until Rick is able to shut down the leak. He’s the only person I trust with our location. It’s not an official safe house, so it will be harder for them to trace us when they figure out we survived.”

“How much further?”

“A couple hours yet. Why don’t you try to get some rest?”

“Okay, that sounds good.” She leaned her head against the seat and closed her eyes.

They had been driving about twenty minutes when she stirred next to him. When he glanced over, he was amused to see her lean down and place her head in his lap. She’d managed to unsnap her seatbelt and was trying to get more comfortable. She pulled her legs up onto the seat and nestled her hands under her cheek. Her hands were only inches away from where he wanted her touch the most.

Nate groaned.

Then he chuckled.

Damn, she was cute. To take his mind off the beautiful woman sleeping so close to his groin, he picked up his cell and called Rick.

“Stone, it’s about time you called, buddy.”

“Hey, Rick. Heard about the bombs?”

“Yeah, I talked to Joe.”

“Okay, here’s the deal. Let them think we died in the explosion. That gives me time to get Rose to a secure location before they figure out otherwise. You can also use that time to bait a trap and see who bites.”

“Sounds like a plan,” Rick agreed. “Once we’ve ousted the traitor, it should be a short road to identify the shooter.”

“Right,” Nate said. “In the meantime, I’m moving Rose somewhere safe on a need-to-know basis. If you need to know, call me. You’ve got my number.”

“All right, good luck. If anything new turns up, I’ll contact you.”

Nate clipped his cell onto the visor above him and glanced down at Rose. He scowled and traced his thumb over the fading bruise on her cheek. A reminder of the abuse she’d endured.

The sweet earthy scent of woman filled his nostrils and worked its way to his heart. A sudden surge of affection for her hit him hard. He knew his heart was in some serious jeopardy with her. Everything about her set his temperature rising. The strength of his desire for her clouded his judgment.

When he’d seen the bomb in her room, his only goal had been to get her to safety. The thought of her dying in a bomb blast, her beautiful body torn apart and her sweetness extinguished forever, had hit him like a ton of bricks and nearly broke his heart.

He had dated many women over the years, and there had been a few special ones. None of them had ever caused his heart to soften with just a touch, or to race with fear at the thought of losing her. He’d also learned tonight that he needed to tread lightly where she was concerned. He needed to remember that without her memories to guide her, Rose was like a babe in the woods. The last thing he wanted to do was to move too quickly and frighten her again.