Chapter 83

“How would you like to stay with me tonight?”

Anna blinked and looked around. Where was she? Theater. Nutcracker . Yes, she remembered now. At least, she thought she did. She was so confused these days. She vacillated from dream to dream, never sure of what was real or not. She woke in the middle of activities, clueless about how she’d gotten there. It always happened when she danced. She ‘woke’ every morning at the studio, feeling as if she had dreamed her way there. It was very disconcerting, but as soon as she stopped dancing, she started dreaming again. Or was she dreaming that she danced and her dreams were the reality?

“Anna? Did you hear me?”

The familiar, gentle voice made her gasp. She turned to see a worried Wilhelm looking at her. “Wilhelm!” She wanted to reach out to him, to embrace him and to be held, but her body wouldn’t obey her thoughts.

His eyes widened in surprise. “Anna?”

She clasped her trembling hands together and clenched her fingers. Why couldn’t she reach out to him? She wanted to touch him, but she couldn’t make her body obey him. Tears filled her eyes as she fought against her own body. “Wilhelm...”

Wilhelm studied Anna carefully. She had looked at him the way she normally did and his heart leaped. He waited to see what she would do next, but she only wrung her hands together as if battling within herself.

“Wilhelm...” She said his name so softly he could barely hear it, but the despair in her eyes was very evident.

“Anna, what is wrong? Why are you so distant?” He reached out to cradle her cheek. “What did he do to you?”

She leaned into his cheek and closed her eyes. “I dream. I dream all the time. I don’t even know if this is real, but I like it.” She opened her eyes. He could see the internal battle raging within her. “Help me,” she whispered and then closed her eyes again and scrunched her face as if she were in pain.

He looked up to see Devin walking toward them, his face inscrutable. “Anna,” he said in a firm tone.

She opened her eyes and they were distant again. Wilhelm dropped his hand and she gracefully stood and walked to Devin’s side.

Wilhelm jumped to his feet and glared at Devin. “What did you do to her?”

Devin grinned. “I finally made her into who she was always meant to be. She’s much happier now, don’t you think?”

“Who she was supposed to be?”

“Yes, the way she would have been had your son not interfered in the bonding ritual.”

Wilhelm stared. How was this possible?

“She’s much happier now, Wilhelm. Why don’t you just let her be?”

The irony of the question wasn’t lost on Wilhelm. Devin had never let her alone. Did he really expect Wilhelm to do the same? It occurred to Wilhelm that Devin might not have seen Anna’s internal struggle. Maybe there was still hope. He took a long, deep breath to calm his rampant heartbeat.

“I would like to spend time with her while I am here.” He glanced at Anna, who watched him with a pleasant, though vacant, look in her eyes.

“You are still technically her Master. I suppose you still have a right to be with her.” He paused. “She needs to rest between performances. I will have her come to your hotel Sunday night after the evening performance. I am establishing her place in society tonight and I don’t want anyone to be confused as to who she belongs to.”

“She still belongs to me.”

“Technically, yes. But she won’t respond to you as she does to me. I am her sole Master now and she does as I want her to.”

Wilhelm had to admit the man’s words were true. Everything in her demeanor spoke of devotion and loyalty to Devin. They gave the appearance of being a couple, but Wilhelm knew better. Devin had gotten his mindless slave. But Wilhelm had also seen that the real Anna was still in there. Trapped deep inside. Maybe, with enough time, he could bring her out again.

Devin having total control over her was dangerous. If Devin was wielding that much power, the stories he’d been hearing from other Elders and on the news made a lot more sense. Even the slightly vacant look in their president’s eyes made more sense now.

He had to get Anna away from him.

“We are staying in the Ritz presidential suite. I expect her there immediately after the performance.”

Devin smiled. “Of course.” He turned and walked away with his arm around Anna’s waist.

Kurt rushed over. “Vati, what’s going on?”

Wilhelm shook his head as he watched Anna walk away, her head inclined to Devin. “He’s... made her his puppet.” He looked at Kurt. “But she’s still in there. I saw it for a short moment. She asked me to help her.” Wilhelm turned to look at the wall, his heart aching at the pain he’d seen in her eyes. He ran his hands through his hair. “I don’t know what to do.”

“She’s still there?”

Wilhelm turned to see Travis standing casually next to him with Justin. He looked as if he had just asked about the weather, except for the intensity in his eyes. “She’s not completely gone?”

“What do you know about it?” Wilhelm asked.

“He’s taken control of her. She doesn’t act like herself. I don’t know how he did it, but he did.”

“Why did you not tell me before now?”

“Because we thought she’d be gone by now,” Travis sighed. “And we didn’t want to risk... others... finding out.”

“Gone?” Wilhelm frowned.

Travis glanced at Justin, then back at Wilhelm. “Have you ever been to O’Brien’s Pub on Market?”

Wilhelm slowly shook his head, not understanding what a restaurant had to do with Anna.

“We like to go there for a late breakfast after morning rehearsals.” Justin raised his eyebrows and gave him a pointed look.

“Irish, eh?” Wilhelm said, forcing a smile. “I have an Irish son-in-law. Good food.” He glanced at Kurt. “Sounds like a good place for breakfast.”

Kurt nodded in agreement, but his brows furrowed in confusion.

Justin nodded. “You should try it.”

“We might just do that.”

“Good,” Travis said. He looked at Justin. “We should go.”

The two dancers strolled away, walking almost shoulder to shoulder. Travis leaned over and whispered something to Justin, who laughed and put his hand on Travis’ shoulder in a rather intimate way. Were they a couple?

Wilhelm watched Anna the rest of the evening as he socialized in the elegant lobby. She gave all appearances that she was completely in love with Devin, and if he hadn’t seen her up close, Wilhelm would have been devastated. But he knew Anna was still in there, fighting to survive. He had to help her, but how?

She charmed and flirted with the men Devin conversed with, and they were completely captivated by her. A few times, she walked away with a man and disappeared. Wilhelm hated to think about what she was doing.

Kurt growled next to him.

“What’s wrong?”

“That man Anna is talking to? That’s the senator that hurts her.”

Wilhelm looked across the room to see Anna smiling at a man about Kurt’s age with dark blond hair and a politician’s smile. The way he looked at her sent shivers down Wilhelm’s spine. No wonder Devin liked him.

“I don’t know how much more of this I can stand,” Wilhelm muttered and looked at Kurt. “Should we be relieved that she probably doesn’t know what’s going on?”

“You think it’s that bad?”

“Her eyes are vacant. She said she dreams all the time.” Wilhelm shook his head. “I feel so helpless.” He looked at the ceiling. “I feel like I’ve failed Alex. He entrusted me with her and she’s suffered so much while she has supposedly been under my care.”

“Vati, there’s little you could have done. Alex was the one who was supposed to be able to deal with Devin.” He paused with a pained look on his face. “I spoke with Travis and Justin a bit more.” He shrugged when Wilhelm raised his eyebrows. “I’m their age. It’s not as obvious as you talking with them.” He looked across the room at Anna. “She hasn’t shown up with bruises or anything that would show he’s abusing her. Aside from the distance, she seems okay. We need to go to breakfast tomorrow.”

“Yes, Kurt. I understood that.” He smiled to let Kurt know he wasn’t rebuking him. He was just anxious. “It’s painful being in the same room with her and yet... not.”

“I know the feeling.”