Stolen Love, The Complete Collection: An Alpha Billionaire Romance (9 page)

“Bring her back to me. I gave you the money. That was the deal.”

“Your sister is alive, but her survival cannot be assured unless you are willing to pay us $50 million dollars more.”

“What the hell are you talking about? I just gave you $10 million. That was the deal. You can’t raise the stakes now.”

“You failed, Mr. Kensington. I can do whatever I want.”

“This isn’t right.”

“Do you want your sister dead or alive, Mr. Kensington? Time is running out.”

“Fine,” I said begrudgingly.

The kidnapper informed me of a new time and place for the additional drop off. The phone went dead as I held it in my hand. They’d asked for more money—that had been my biggest fear. They could just continue to ask for more and more, and there wasn’t a thing I could do about it. I looked toward the hallway and wondered how Brett had gotten involved in the whole thing.

No, I decided, things were going to be very different this time. I wasn’t about to be played once again. It was time to go on the offensive. I wouldn’t be paying them any more money, but I needed a plan to get my sister back alive.

And for me to be successful with my new plan, I would need an excellent thief.

Chapter Three

Mackenzie

We had been sitting at the hotel for hours, and it was starting to feel like the longest night of my life. It had become clear to everyone that the ‘associate’ was not showing up, and I couldn’t have been more relieved by that bit of information. I didn’t know what would have happened if he had shown up, but I didn’t want to find out. I needed to get the hell out of there. It had gotten to the point where the three of us were eating room service and trying to figure out our next move, all lost in our own thoughts. I already knew what Lexy’s and mine were, and I was just about to put things into play. But I needed to get James on board with my plan.

I bit into a french fry and considered my options. James was sitting at a desk, picking at his food. He was obviously very disappointed in how the evening was progressing thus far. Or maybe it was simply disappointment in the fact that his friend hadn’t shown up to help him with his ‘situation.’ I had to admit it was rather heartbreaking to watch.

“James, why don’t you just let us go?”

He looked up at me and smirked. “Why would I do that, Mackenzie? You’re like a burr in my hip.”

“And that’s exactly why you should let us go. Look, if you release us, I’ll cut you in on the money we make off the paintings we stole. They’re brilliant works of art and worth a small fortune.”

Lexy snapped her head my way, and I just winked at her. James looked intrigued, but I wasn’t quite sure I had won him over just yet.

“Interesting offer, Mackenzie, but how can I believe you? How do I even know you have paintings to bargain with? You aren’t exactly the trustworthy type.”

I laughed. “Okay, fair enough. I’m not going to give you the details of the paintings because you’re about as corrupt as the next guy, but I will tell you that Johnny Manson and Curt Davis are the two top bidders for them. They’re willing to pay me big bucks, and I’d be willing to give you a good chunk of the profits if you let us go right now.”

I could tell by the look on his face that he immediately recognized the two names I had given him. They were heavy hitters in the black market, and they had a lot of dough to throw around.

He nodded. “Okay, you have yourself a deal. Don’t go stabbing me in the back on this, either, Mackenzie, because at this point, I’m liable to cut your throat without asking any questions. Got it?”

I smiled nervously. It wasn’t every day I got a threat like that.

“So are we free to go?” Lexy asked.

He looked her up and down. “Yes. As much as it pains me to see you go, Lexy, you are no longer my prisoner. You may return home so you can get those paintings sold. I’ll be in touch.”

That was my cue to get the hell out of there. I grabbed Lexy’s hand and ushered her hurriedly out of the hotel room. Once we were in the hallway, we made a dash for the elevator, fearful that James would change his mind.

“That was quick thinking,” Lexy said, sounding relieved. “Although I do hate to give up our profits.”

“We were running out of options there, Lexy. I had to do something.”

We made our way home as quickly as possible. Not only did I want to get the paintings sold that evening and be rid of James forever, but we both needed to prepare for our next jobs. No rest for the wicked.

We walked into our apartment smiling, but our expressions dropped instantly—Jason was sitting on our couch.

“What the hell are you doing here?” I exclaimed.

“You know this guy?” asked Lexy.

“Of course she does,” he said. “Mackenzie and I go way back.”

It completely freaked me out that Jason had been able to break into my apartment. This was my sanctuary, and I didn’t want him—or anybody, really—there at all. Having my security breached terrified me. And the fact that he was there told me he wasn’t the pushover I’d thought he was.

“Get out of my apartment right now, Jason. You’re not welcome here.”

I wasn’t about to show him any sign of how much it terrified me that he was there. And my tough act usually worked. But I was having déjà vu. The scenario playing out in my front room was too reminiscent of something terrible that had happened in my past. The trauma of it is what had led me to become a thief in the first place. And I had made sure I was the best thief I could possibly be because it was part of my survival.

Looking at Jason and seeing him there inside my safe place brought the memories flooding back in waves. It was like I was back there again—trapped, unable to breathe. Those memories always made me want to curl up and die. I didn’t want to remember that place—all I wanted to do was run. But to where? My home had been my sanctuary, the one place I could go to and escape. And Jason had violated it.

“Mackenzie?” Lexy looked at me with rising concern.

She was my best friend, my very best friend. She was the only person I had ever let get close to me, the only person I trusted. I never let anyone near my heart or my home but her, and here Jason was, stepping into my life like a thief himself.

“Oh god…”

Chapter Four

Jason

I watched in shock as Mackenzie’s already exhausted features turned a ghostly, sickly white. I had never seen anything like it before in my life. It happened in seconds. Her friend appeared to be just as unnerved as I was because she started calling Mackenzie’s name but received no response, just as I had been unable to get a response from Brett.

Mackenzie’s friend turned to me with fire in her eyes that screamed violence. She was a small girl, but there was something about her that told me there was more to her than met the eye. She took a step forward, placing herself in between Mackenzie and me, and crossed her arms.

“I don’t know who the hell you are, but I would like to know what you’re doing in our home.”

I couldn’t take my eyes off of Mackenzie’s face. She appeared to be growing even paler, and I had a hard time concentrating on the other girl’s questions with Mackenzie fading so quickly. What the hell was wrong with her? Something told me she wasn’t suffering a physical ailment. Something was shutting down in her mind, and I wasn’t sure why.

But I needed to stop thinking about what was wrong with Mackenzie and start taking steps to make sure my sister arrived home alive. I wasn’t sure how much time I had left to do that, so I needed to get moving on it. I had to overlook what was going on with Mackenzie and focus on my sister’s rescue.

“I need to talk to Mackenzie. I need her help with something. It’s pretty serious.”

“No. Absolutely not. You don’t get to break into our home and then make demands. You are
not
talking to Mackenzie. Who the hell do you think you are?”

“Look, I’m aware that you’re both thieves, so I find it very ironic that you get offended when someone breaks into
your
home.”

She took a step toward me, and I sat up a little straighter. Who the hell was this chick?

“I don’t care what you find ironic. Get your ass out of my home.”

“I need to speak with Mackenzie. It’s important,” I repeated. “Literally life and death important. I need her help—I wouldn’t be here otherwise.”

“Get out.”

The girl was one tough cookie and didn’t appear to be the least bit worried that a man could possibly be violent toward her. She was fairly muscular and looked like she could take care of herself, so maybe she wasn’t concerned at all—not that I had any intent of being violent with her. But I was getting nowhere with her, so if I was going to get some help as soon as possible, I needed to talk to my thief.

I looked past the girl and said, “Mackenzie, I need your help.”

“Leave her alone! What’s wrong with you?” the girl shouted.

I ignored her. Stunned, I realized Mackenzie’s mind was gone. It wasn’t Mackenzie standing before me. I was looking at an empty shell. Considering how protective her friend was being, I knew something was up. With everything else going on, I was nearly frantic at this latest turn of events. The longer I stayed there trying to convince the two of them to help me, the further away I was from saving my sister. The very thought of screwing the whole thing up left me breathless. I couldn’t fail my sister again.

I was torn between two women. My sister’s life was most likely hanging by a thread at that point, and yet there was a part of me that instinctively wanted to grab Mackenzie and hold her tightly. My mind was screaming at me to save Mackenzie, but it seemed that I was just as helpless in that area as I was with my sister. My head felt like it was going to explode.

Looking at Mackenzie, I shook my head in bafflement. What kind of internal terror could claim a woman as strong as Mackenzie?

Chapter Five

Jason

The situation had completely gone out of my hands. I sat helplessly on the couch as I watched the girl grab a blanket and wrap it around Mackenzie. She then led her into her bedroom so she could lie down, the whole time murmuring soothing words to her friend. While all this went on around me, I felt like I had entered the
Twilight Zone
. I looked down at my hands and tried to calm my mind, but I was just too confused.

The girl returned to the living room and faced me with a ferocity and anger I was growing accustomed to.

“I think it’s time you left. You’ve certainly created a mess here.”

I sighed. “What’s your name? You’re obviously close to Mackenzie.”

She narrowed her eyes at me, and I just waited. “My name is Lexy. Mackenzie and I work together, but she’s my best friend.”

I nodded, unsure of where to go from there.

“You’re a mark, aren’t you?”

I laughed. “Yeah, I guess you could say that. But at this point, things have gotten much more complicated.”

“I hope you aren’t here to collect something back from her. Whatever she took from you is long gone, and we have no intention of returning it. So you might as well just go.”

“Believe me, Lexy, I could care less about the paintings at this point. The stolen merchandise isn’t why I’m here. And truly, she’s welcome to keep it all. I just need her help. That’s the only reason I’m here. I’m in trouble, and I have no one else to turn to.”

Her eyebrows creased, and she seemed to soften a bit. She took a seat across from me and crossed her arms over her chest, still slightly guarded.

“I see something in you. Some sort of connection to Mackenzie. You couldn’t cut it even if you tried,” she observed. “Okay, I’ll stop trying to kick you out of our place, but I need to know what it is you want from Mackenzie. As you can clearly see, she may not be able to help you at the moment.”

I exhaled sharply, feeling grateful that she would at least hear me out. “Thank you. I’ve had a hell of a week, and I’m telling you I’m starting to think I’m cursed.” Her eyebrow raised, and I told her everything—from the first phone call to Brett showing up.

“I still don’t know what happened to him because he won’t—can’t—talk to me. He either assumes that Janelle is dead when she isn’t, or she really is dead, and the kidnappers are lying to me.”

Lexy rubbed her face. “Holy shit.”

“Yeah. It’s all so messed up. I also received a weird email yesterday from an old friend saying he needed some help and to meet him at some hotel. I didn’t go, of course, because I was dealing with my sister’s kidnapping, but now I’m wondering if it’s all connected.”

Lexy’s eyes widened, and she glanced toward Mackenzie’s bedroom. It looked like she was deep in thought about something. She looked back at me and sighed.

“What did the kidnappers say?”

“They won’t return Janelle safely unless I give them another $50 million. I’m stuck between a rock and a hard place. I can’t give them the money because I don’t think they’ll stop asking now, and there are no guarantees that Janelle is coming home safely. It’s a huge mess, and I have no idea what to do. I have to rescue my sister, but I need some help. I can’t just pay them again and hope for the best. At this point, they may just kill her anyway and take off with the money.”

“Quite the mess you’re in, uh…?”

“My name is Jason.”

“So what do you want from Mackenzie?”

“Like I said, I’m not here for the paintings. She can keep them. I’ll never ask for them or tell a soul she stole them, and I won’t go to the authorities. I’ll just forget it ever happened. If she can help me, I’ll forget it all. What I need is for Mackenzie to steal my sister back for me.”

“Okay, I need to ask you a few questions first.”

“I’ll tell you anything you need to know.”

“This friend that emailed you, what’s your involvement with him?”

“We made a lot of money together a long time ago. We don’t see each other much anymore, but we use each other for big favors. He did me one a while back, and I’m assuming he was planning on asking me for a favor back. I would have been there if I could have, but I had to meet with the kidnappers. Now I look like a welsher.”

A smile formed on her face.