Page 74 of Under Fire

“You wanted to be sure Cade was all right. Now it’s your turn to give him the same peace of mind about you.”

“What about you and the other lady?” the second EMT asked. “Any injuries?”

Matt turned to Delilah. “Sweetheart?”

“I’m all right.”

He’d keep an eye on her. Adrenaline could mask symptoms of injuries. “I’ll take care of her,” he told Baldy.

After the ambulance left with Cade and Sasha, Matt grabbed his mike bag and walked with Delilah to the porch of a nearby home. He could watch the activity across the street and keep Delilah from being an easy target.

He grabbed his cell phone and called Russell.

“Yeah, Russell. Make it fast.”

“It’s Matt Rainer. The Holloway house just blew up.”

Muttered swearing reached his ear. “Where are you?”

“Across the street from the house. Ambulance just left with Cade and Sasha Ramsey. If you want to talk to me and Delilah, you better hurry. I’m not leaving her in the open long.”

“Two minutes.”

After texting Trent an update, Matt slid his phone away and wrapped his arm around Delilah’s shoulders. “I’m sorry about the house.”

“Me, too. Who would do this? What was the point?”

He didn’t say anything. She couldn’t handle the truth right now. As intelligent as Delilah was, she’d figure out the implication soon enough.

Wry laughter escaped her. “Guess I don’t have to worry about selling the house now.”

No, she’d have the headache of dealing with the insurance company. “The land is valuable. However, if you want to rebuild, you have a prime spot.”

Delilah leaned her head against Matt’s shoulder. “I hope Mom left the insurance papers in her safe deposit box or with the lawyer because I don’t think there’s anything left of the house. I’ll call the agent she used when I was in high school. If he doesn’t have the policy, he’ll know who does.”

She was quiet a while. “Did Randy do this? Did he try to kill me?”

Before he answered, a black sedan raced up the street and slid to a stop in front of them. Russell climbed out and jogged to the porch.

“You both okay?” he asked as his gaze took in the fight to save the Holloway house.

“We’re fine. Ask your questions, Russell.”

“Tell me what happened.”

Matt ran down the events of the past few minutes.

The detective grimaced. “Your friend will be okay?”

“Might need surgery, but he’ll be fine.”

“Lucky. All of you.”

So close. If Cade hadn’t noticed the bomb, they would have been caught inside the house when it exploded. He shuddered thinking how close he came to losing the woman who held his heart in the palm of her hands. “We know.”

“What were you doing in the house?”

“I wanted to see what needed to be done to prepare the house to sell,” Delilah said. “Under the stipulations of Mom’s will, Randy had to vacate the premises with only his personal belongings by this morning.”

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