Protecting Rose (4 page)

Nate laced up his boots, stood, and grabbed a shirt from the closet. He slammed the closet door shut with such force it bounced back and stood open. With a curse, he turned toward the door. Thank god she was alive. He retrieved his Glock from the dresser, ran out the door, and jumped into his car.

He should never have left her. It was something that wouldn’t happen again because he wasn’t leaving her side again until he knew she was safe. She was going under his protection.
Mine!
He found her. She was his to protect.

Nate exited the hospital elevator and stormed over to where J.D. stood outside the woman’s door. “What the hell happened?”

J.D. grimaced. “The attacker took out our guy first. We found him in the men’s room with his throat slit and his body stuffed into a stall.

Nate’s stomach dropped. “Dammit.”

“He left behind a wife and two kids,” J.D. said with barely controlled fury. “We need to get this guy!”

“That’s the plan,” Nate assured him. “What about the woman?”

“Her attacker came at her with a knife. She sustained injuries to her hands and some cuts and bruises, but she’s alive.” J.D. snorted. “She’s a lot tougher than she looks.”

“We need to find out what we’re dealing with here.” Nate’s eyes narrowed. “Who is this guy, and how did he find her in the hospital? That information was withheld from the public for a reason.”

“I’ve already spoken with Rick about that, and we suspect a leak. We have our best people checking into it. I swear to god, we’re gonna nail this bastard.”

“Bet your ass we will,” Nate growled, glancing toward her room. “As soon as she’s able, I’m taking her out of here. Until then, double her guards. Don’t let anyone in without my approval.”

The sound of Nate’s voice filtered into her room from the hallway. She glanced at the clock. It was nearly six a.m. Every muscle in her body was sore, her hands ached, and she was angry at her own helplessness. If only she could remember something. A man had died to protect her, and her heart hurt at the thought. She needed to know why. She looked up when the door opened. Her eyes filled with tears and spilled over when Nate stepped into the room. He was her port in the storm.

His gaze met hers as he covered the distance to reach her. Although his eyes were hard and his brows furrowed, his touch was gentle when he wiped the dampness from her cheeks. Taking her hands in his he turned them up to inspect her palms. A shallow cut on the inside of her left palm required nothing more than ointment and a band-aid. Her right palm, however, had taken five stitches to close the wound left by the serrated edge of the knife and covered by a gauze pad.

His brows drew together.

“It doesn’t hurt.” She placed her hands back on her lap, blinking away tears.

Nate studied her for a long moment. A muscle ticked at his jaw, his eyes flashed. “Listen, sweetheart. As soon as the doctor releases you, I’m moving you to a safe place until we can figure things out.”

She bit her lip. The questions that had tortured her all night spilled out in a rush. “Why am I in the hospital? Do I know you? Do you know why someone wants to hurt me?”

“Hey, hang on. Slow down.” He placed a finger over her lips. “One question at a time,” he said with a low chuckle.

She blinked, and stopped talking.

“All right then. First, you were in a car accident. I saw the accident and pulled you from the car.” He paused and gave her a quick smile. “Question number two. No. I don’t know you. But I promise...I
will
protect you.”

Her heart did a funny little flip-flop at his vow of protection. “Do you know why someone wants to hurt me?”

Nate crossed to the window and looked outside before he turned back to her. “No, I’m afraid I don’t. Not yet. But you should know this isn’t the first attempt on your life.

“What?” Her voice shook.

Nate returned to her bed and placed his warm hand over hers. His touch sent a tingle of awareness through her. Confused by her reaction, she snatched her hand away.

“I’m sorry, but you needed to know.”

She averted her eyes to shield her emotions from his penetrating appraisal. He had obviously misinterpreted her startled reaction.

Nate continued. “After I pulled you from the car, someone took a shot at us.”

She chewed her bottom lip. “I don’t understand why this is happening.”

“My team is working on it. We’ll figure it out.”

“Your team? Who exactly are you?”

“I’m a detective with the Milwaukee Sheriff’s Department. My partner is running down leads to determine your identity. Once we have that information, we should be able to figure out who’s trying to harm you.”

“The man who died, did he have a family?”

Nate placed his hand under her chin and tilted it up until her eyes met his determined gaze. “I know it’s tragic, sweetheart. But he was a police officer and knew the risks. What happened is not your fault. Okay?”

She nodded, although she knew the guilt would live with her forever.

“Now,”—he brushed his thumb across her damp cheek—“I think we need to give you a name.”

“Yes, of course...of course,” she repeated. She searched frantically in her mind for a name and came up with...nothing.

“Hey, don’t fret,” he said with a grin. He retrieved a vibrant red rose from a vase off the ugly white dresser by her bed.

“Rose,” Nate decided. He took her hand and placed the rose into her bandaged palm. “It suits you.” He lifted a strand of her hair and their eyes locked. “With your long red hair and gorgeous brown eyes, you remind me of a beautiful Rose.”

She managed to nod as the charged air between them crackled to life with awareness. When Dr. Anderson entered the room a moment later, Nate stepped back and took a seat in the chair by her bed.

The doctor nodded at Nate. “Officer, I need to talk with the young lady about her condition. Do you need to be present for this?”

“Yes, with Rose’s permission, of course. I would like to stay.” He gave her a smile of reassurance. “She might remember something that would help with the investigation.”

Dr. Anderson raised an eyebrow as he studied Rose. “So, you remember who you are?”

Nate shook his head. “No, she hasn’t remembered. But we decided everyone needs a name. For now, her name is Rose.”

“Fair enough,” Dr. Anderson said as he picked up her chart. A nurse entered to stand near the doctor.

“Please, I would like him to stay,” Rose whispered.

“All right,” Dr. Anderson said with a smile. “First, young lady...I mean, Rose. I need you to understand the trauma you’ve been through. Physically, you are well enough to be discharged. However, you need to know all the details of your injuries before you’re released.”

Nate watched her with shadowed eyes. A muscle twitched at his jaw and his nostrils flared. She turned her attention back to the doctor with a frown, giving a curt nod of agreement. “Yes, of course. I understand.” The tension in the room was palpable.

“You received multiple injuries, a concussion, and minor cuts and bruises. It does not appear however that all of the injuries were the result of the accident.”

Nate took her hand and held it between his, with a smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes. His body seemed tense. Why? What didn’t she know? The doctor flipped the chart. She glanced at the nurse, who gave her a comforting smile. Exactly
what
had happened to her?

“Many of your injuries occurred before the accident. It appears you were beaten.” He paused, glanced at Nate, and returned his gaze back to her. “Rose. It also appears that you may have been sexually assaulted.”

Rose gasped. “No, that’s not possible.” She glanced at Nate. She could see from his grim expression he had already known.

The doctor continued. “Please understand there is only evidence of an attempted assault. We don’t have conclusive evidence the act was completed. Only you can tell us what happened when your memory returns. And we have every reason to believe your memory will return, in time.”

She closed her eyes, sank back onto the hospital bed, and turned her face away from them. It was too much. It was just too much for her to deal with. “Please, go away. I don’t want to talk about it anymore.”

Someone sighed and the sound of footsteps sounded across the tiled floor. The door clicked shut behind them as they left. But she knew Nate was still there.

“Rose, look at me.” His voice was low and gentle.

She bit her lip.

“Rose?”

With a sigh, she met his concerned gaze.

“I promise, we’ll find out what happened to you.” Nate cupped her cheek with his hand and looked deeply into her eyes. “And I won’t leave your side until this guy is caught.”

Rose blinked the tears away with a soft sniffle. “What...are you my personal protector?”

He studied her for a long moment. “Yes, I am. Now you try and get some rest. I need to make arrangements for a safe house.”

Ok, Brett thought. That sure as hell hadn’t gone the way he’d planned. He should have just shot the bitch from the door.

She was a fighter. He shouldn’t have forgotten that. A burst of lust shot to his groin when he remembered her hot little body. The feel of her trembling mouth under his as he took what he wanted had been sweet. He laughed darkly. She had fought like a wildcat. He seriously liked it when a woman put up a fight. Made the game all the more exciting.

All humor left him and he scowled when he recalled her escape. A woman had gotten the better of him! He would track her down and finish the job. Teach the little bitch a lesson before he killed her.

The cops would move her to a safe house soon, and he had no choice but to call Larsen. He was the only one with the inside contacts who could locate the new safe house. Shit! Twice now he’d lost her. How many more chances would he get?

Larsen slammed the phone down with a curse. He wondered if Brett could even get the job done. How hard could it be to kill one small woman? He turned to glare out the window. Taking a deep breath, he silently counted to ten.

Brett had never failed him before so he was inclined to give him one more chance. His informant would be able to provide them with the location when they moved her. And Brett had better not screw it up next time.

Time was of the essence. If she managed to regain her memory before they could take her out, he would be finished...ruined!

Taking potshots at the cop had been a stupid thing to do. Now he’d have the entire police department crawling up his ass. And time was running out fast. They only had a few days left before she turned twenty-five. After that, it would get a hell of a lot more complicated.

He needed her eliminated before she ruined everything he’d worked so hard for. Larsen admired the view of the city lights from his Chicago penthouse, filled with a sense of satisfaction at the power and wealth he’d accumulated.

He had spent the last eight years buying political favors from Chicago all the way to Washington to fund his enterprises, both legal and illegal. It was astounding how cheap political favors cost these days, how little it actually took to have someone look the other way.

He picked up the phone to place a call. If Brett failed him again, he needed to have a back-up plan.