Protecting Rose by Cheryl Yeko

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