Chapter 64

Anna flew back to San Francisco with only Wilhelm. Kurt had stayed home. She could see in his eyes that he had let her go, and now he could find a suitable wife. One he didn’t have to share.

Anna stared out the window and ached for Kurt. But it was for the best. He deserved to be happy. Genuinely happy. He was a kind, strong man, and he would make any woman proud to be his wife. It just wouldn’t be her. It couldn’t be her.

Wilhelm came and sat behind her on the couch and nuzzled her neck. His grief had been healed, and he was once again the strong, confident man she knew. Ilsa had thanked her before she left.

“We will be landing soon,” he said softly, running his hand down her thigh. They had made love several times during the long trip back to California. She would miss his gentle touch. Once she was back with Devin, who knew when she would have gentle touch again.

He kissed her neck and she closed her eyes and sighed. “I will miss you.”

“I’ll miss you too, Wilhelm,” she said softly, leaning back against him.

It was Tuesday afternoon in San Francisco when they landed. Wilhelm would take her to Devin tomorrow and maybe stay a few more days, depending on what Devin had planned. They would spend today getting settled back into the house. Anna was at peace with living there now, content with the memories of Alex in her heart. He would have wanted her to be there.

As they were driving into the city from the airport, her phone rang, playing Devin's distinct ringtone. Wilhelm frowned but nodded when Anna told him who was calling. “Hello, Devin.”

“Hello, Baby. I see you’re back in town.”

Anna frowned. “How did you?—?”

“I know where you are at all times. Did you enjoy your time with Wilhelm and his family?”

“Yes. I did.”

“Good. I hope you’ve gotten them out of your system for a while. Where are you heading now?”

“To the house. Alex’s—er, my house. I don’t know what had happened to the apartment and thought I might like to stay at the house for a while.”

“You thought you would like?” Devin repeated coldly. “Oh, Anna, you have grown far too independent for your own good. Stay where you’d like tonight, but as of tomorrow, you are living with me at my house.”

Anna gasped. “At your house?”

“Yes. I don’t think I get the full benefit of our relationship when you live on your own and I’m tired of coming home to an empty house every night. You will live with me. I expect to see you at my house tomorrow before lunch.”

“Yes, Devin,” she said softly and he hung up. She looked up at Wilhelm. “Devin wants me to live with him.”

“With him? What about his wife?”

“He told me a while ago that she was gone.”

“Gone?”

Anna shrugged. “She’d been having... issues since she lost a baby a few years ago.” Anna didn’t mention that it was Devin who took the baby. “Maybe she left him.”

Wilhelm frowned. “That is not good. Elders are supposed to be above reproach and respectable.”

“But what about a Chairman?”

He sighed. “There are reasons we outlawed those ways long ago. The Chairman can do as he pleases and be blunt about it. He is charismatic enough to be cheered on by the people he is supposed to be serving. But the Chairman does not serve. He takes and demands.”

That sounded like Devin, alright. “That’s why they outlawed the old ways?”

“One reason.” Wilhelm nodded. “We decided—or rather, our ancestors decided hundreds of years ago that it was better to move civilization along by encouraging its development rather than pushing it. People are more easily led if they respect their leaders, rather than fearing them. We have many examples of what happens when Elders strive for more power than is natural. The dictators in the past who have killed their own countrymen. It was not that they hated their people, but that the people tried to stand up to them and were punished. We in Germany are very aware of our past and know better than to go down that road again.”

“What will Devin do?”

“He seeks power. That is obvious. I do not know what he hopes to accomplish with his power grab, but it inevitably leads to world problems. They have started already because of him. He put poor leaders into place and your country is suffering for it.”

“It is?” Anna knew very little of what happened outside her very small world.

“Your country is collapsing economically. Devin puts weak leaders into place that he can control, but they are also selfish and seek their own gain. As long as they do what Devin wants, he does not care what else they do. If the economy collapses... Devin is in a very good position to take total control of the country. Your freedoms may become a thing of the past.”

“Oh.” Anna shivered. “And I... help him, don’t I?”

Wilhelm took her hand. “ Ja , Anna. You do.” He gave her a sad smile. “You cannot help but do so.”

Anna’s eyes welled up. “But... but, I don’t want that to happen! What can I do? Can you kill me? Would that help?”

Wilhelm cupped her cheek and gazed sadly into her eyes for a long minute, then kissed her gently and straightened. “It is nearly impossible to kill an Elder-Mistress. If I tried, your Immortals would be here within seconds to stop me. But Devin’s power is still finite. Until he is completely in control of you, he is limited in what he can do.”

“Until?”

“On your twenty-sixth birthday, there is another ritual to be performed. A finalizing of the bonding ceremony, if you will. Alex... will not be there to stop him. He will take total control of you, and then it will be impossible to stop him. You know what he did to me when he banished me and my family.”

“Oh, Wilhelm! What can I do? I don’t want that!” The idea of such a powerful Devin was truly terrifying. The night he’d banished Wilhelm had been horrible enough. What would he be like if he wielded that sort of power with the entire country? The entire world?

“I do not know, Anna.” Wilhelm looked at her with such sorrow she could hardly stand it. “I do not know. Perhaps there is someone else who can step into Alex’s shoes. Perhaps it is even Kurt.” He shook his head. “Or someone we do not yet know about. But there is always a chance to stop it, Anna. Always. We must remain vigilant in order to seize the opportunity when it becomes known.”

Anna leaned into his arms and wept. She would be the downfall of her own country. And the world. “Tell me what I can do,” she said earnestly when she had calmed. “Wilhelm, please. There must be something.”

Wilhelm cupped her cheek. “The best thing you can do right now, Anna, is to forget what I told you. If Devin suspects you know...” He sighed. “I should not have told you anything. If Devin suspects, he would lock you away for the next year and a half. We cannot let that happen.”

Wilhelm looked out the window as the town car pulled into the driveway of Anna’s house. He knew what he had to do. “ Kommen Sie , let me help you forget.”

He led her into the house, and after greeting the new housekeeper, he took her upstairs. He used everything within him to bind up what he’d told her and tucked it away, deep inside her mind, so Devin wouldn’t know she knew. It was the only thing he could do as an Elder to protect her.