Collector's Item by Denise Golinowski Read Free Book Online Page A

through her lashes. His brown eyes narrowed with strain as he watched her through the bars. With his back to the others, he adjusted the padlock, banged it against the frame and then left it hanging. From her position, KT could not be certain, but she told herself it was not fully locked, just positioned to look that way. That was the plan.
    He looked at her again, the question clear in his eyes. Could she keep it together? She gave him a short nod and closed her eyes. He waited a moment and then his footsteps moved away.
    Lying on her side, she chanced another look around. Massey stood off to one side with two men while jump-suited mechanics bustled in and out of her view. Most wore grey jumpsuits with some kind of logo, but several wore different uniforms of dark blue. Private crew, she guessed. Wooden crates, tall metal toolboxes, and portions of parked jets filled the rest of her view.
    The man closest to her had his back to her. A ll she could see of him was sandy blonde hair, cut short, above a nicely tailored grey suit. She guessed he was Massey’s contact; she didn’t have to guess about the second man.
    Darkly tanned, with thick black hair, Douglas Torne stood in profile to her, but she’d know him anywhere. She’d met him several times while accompanying her father to political gatherings. Her skin crawled, remembering his cold stare above his magazine-cover smile.
    She barely heard Massey over the pounding of her pulse. “…enough, Parker.”
    “Not enough?” the blond man, Parker, said.
    Massey began to tick off his reasons on his fingers. “She’s Alpha Female of the Marant Line. She’s in perfect physical condition. And she’s a fighter. She’s probably trained in more forms of martial arts and self-defense than I can name.”
    “Yeah, she put up quite a fight,” Peyton added as he joined the group. He stopped just behind Massey and crossed his arms; hired muscle, expression stoic, gaze distant but alert.
    “I wondered.” Parker’s voice carried a note of amusement. “Got the drop on you, eh?”
    Massey bristled. “Lucky hit. Bitch.”
    “Do you know they call her ‘Little Anton’? A chip off the sire’s block,” Douglas Torne said. He turned and KT closed her eyes. “Poor Anton’s having a bad month. First, his sister-in-law disappears and now his daughter. And to think, they’ve both found their way to me.”
    KT’s stomach churned at the satisfied tone in his voice. So, he did have Patricia! For years, the paranormal community had heard rumors that Torne trafficked in abducted paranormals, but no one had found any proof.
    Until now.
    “Freeze! Hands up!”
    The words shot into the air and KT’s eyes flew open. Everyone froze for a precious second before scattering, the airport employees scrambling in confusion for any shelter, the hired guns seeking cover and better lines of fire. Two of the dark blue jump-suited mechanics yanked guns out of their suits and fired a shot or two while they sought cover.
    Men in buff-colored uniforms poured in through the doors of the hangar, guns up, eyes raking the interior of the hangar. Their bullet-proof vests read, “Alliance.” KT slumped against the metal floor of her cage with a surge of relief. Alliance Rangers. The cavalry’s here.
    Torne popped up from behind a man-high tool chest and fired three shots. One Alliance man went down. Another dragged him behind a stack of tires while the rest of the team took cover and returned fire.
    Time to get out of this thing . KT sat up and snapped the ties at her wrists and ankles. Andi tried to claw herself free of KT’s control. KT nixed that idea. I need hands, not claws.
    Through the bars of the cage, KT glimpsed Peyton grappling with Massey before the two men disappeared behind stacks of tires and boxes.
    She lunged for the door of the cage. Her fingers scrambled to turn the lock. Andi crouched just under her skin, becoming more and more agitated by the action outside the cage. Scents,