Chapter 85

Wilhelm watched as Kurt tapped the wooden table with his fingertips and stared out the window of the Irish pub. Kurt still cared for Anna, though his feelings weren’t as strong as they had been before. Wilhelm suspected Anna had done something to help his feelings fade, rather than a natural decline on Kurt’s part.

Kurt had asked if he could somehow step into Alex’s place and fight Devin himself. Wilhelm was genuinely shocked at the question. Kurt was a good man. A very good man, but he wasn’t a fighter like Alex had been. To be willing to risk his life to fight for someone else was a new trait that Kurt had picked up in the last few years. Despite Wilhelm’s uncertainty about its plausibility, they had started studying the antiquated books that Alex had consulted and sifting through Alex’s notes to see if it was possible. Kurt was making progress, but Wilhelm was afraid to hope too much, although he would never discourage Kurt in his endeavor. He was so proud of his son.

They ordered breakfast, since he had a feeling the meeting was supposed to look like a chance encounter, and it arrived a few minutes later. A few bites into their meals, Justin and Travis walked through the doorway holding hands. They looked around casually and greeted the hostess as if they frequented the establishment. She gave them a big toothy grin and led them toward a table near Wilhelm and Kurt’s.

“Kurt!” Travis grinned, and they walked over. “Took our advice, huh?”

Wilhelm smiled and wondered what he would learn that necessitated such subterfuge.

“It is good food.” Kurt grinned. “Care to join us?”

The two dancers glanced at each other and nodded. They smiled at the waitress, and she handed them menus and walked away. Kurt moved to the seat next to Wilhelm, and the other two men sat down and opened their menus.

They chatted casually until the waitress came over. The waitress seemed to know them as well and smiled brightly while she wrote down their order.

Wilhelm thought it best to let Travis and Justin take the lead on the other topic. Thankfully he didn’t have to wait long before the subject of Anna was brought up.

“She wasn’t well this morning,” Justin said. “She didn’t complain about anything, but she seemed to be...” He glanced at Travis. “Uncomfortable?”

Travis nodded. “Like she was in pain, but didn’t know it, if that makes any sense.”

“Yeah. I lifted her onto my shoulder and she whimpered, but when I asked her about it, she seemed completely unaware that she had done it.”

Wilhelm took a sip of his coffee and considered their words.

“Has she acted like this before?” Kurt asked.

“Not in a really long time,” Travis said. “The reason I assume pain is that when she had obviously been abused before, she acted the same way, though she tried to hide it better. This time...” He shook his head. “It’s like her mind’s disconnected from her body.”

Wilhelm frowned. “I would not be surprised. Did either of you know about her relationship with Devin?”

Justin frowned and Travis grimaced. “We knew she was living with him,” Travis said. “But we didn’t know she’d fallen in love with him.”

“I believe it is more of an induced feeling than actual love,” Wilhelm said. “Devin claims to have—?” He stopped and looked at Justin. “Are you a Brother?”

“Not technically, though I’ve learned quite a bit about it. My father is a Deacon in New York. I just found out about all this a few weeks ago.” He shook his head. “Things make so much more sense now.” He gave a grim laugh.

Wilhelm frowned. “New York?” Tom was Devin’s best friend. Tommy had shown concern about Anna, but what about his father?

Travis nodded. “It’s okay, Wilhelm. Loyalties have... shifted.”

Wilhelm tilted his head. Was Tom no longer loyal to Devin? By Travis’ reaction, it would appear so, but perhaps unwise to vocalize it. Wilhelm looked at Justin. “You have an older brother?”

Justin nodded. “Two.”

“Ah, and Devin does not make the connection?”

“Not that we can tell,” Travis said. “Justin’s been out here for several years and rarely goes home. Sawyer’s not that uncommon of a name.” Travis grinned. “He’s our ‘outside’ man.”

Their food arrived and they began eating.

Wilhelm leaned forward after a few minutes. “Please tell me what is going on.”

Travis nodded. “I’m going to leave out names because it’s better that way. And I want to tell you up front, the reason we hadn’t told you about anything was because we knew Devin watched you because of your relationship with Anna. He pays us little mind.”

Wilhelm nodded. It made sense.

Travis glanced at Justin, who nodded. “There are... people... that have become concerned about Devin’s treatment of Anna. At first, it was just concern over the abuse, but when he started...” He shuddered. “... the whole pregnancy thing, and Devin started getting more powerful, it became more evident that she needed to get away from him.” Travis frowned. “There were plans to get her out of the city in September, but when Peter’s grandfather died and she moved in with Devin, things got complicated. Remember how I told you I tried to get her to go out with me and she flipped out?”

Wilhelm nodded.

“I was going to take her and leave, but her bond with him is so strong, I couldn’t. She was screaming and crying. I couldn’t get her on to public transportation like that. And then he called her, wanting to know where she was. For some reason she didn’t tell him she was with me, but... Shit.” Travis frowned. “I had taken off that bracelet and her necklace. They both have trackers in them. I think he can sense her. Or he’s put something inside her.”

“He has trackers in her jewelry?”

Travis nodded. “That gold bracelet, at least. I took the necklace off just to be sure.”

“How do you know about the bracelet?” Kurt asked.

“Someone who knows told me.” He sighed. “The next weekend he got her pregnant and we can’t move her when she’s pregnant. The... person who is helping us can only shield one person from Devin’s eyes. Devin would be able to find her because of the baby.”

An Elder was helping them. No one else could provide a shield except an Elder. “Where are you trying to get her?”

“New York. Vincent already said he’d happily take her into his company. She needs to keep dancing, especially if she’s away from Devin. It will keep her from going insane.”

Wilhelm nodded. Tom was helping them. Interesting. “But if she is gone from him for too long, she will become ill.”

Justin nodded. “We know, but we’ve been assured that will be taken care of.”

Kurt frowned. “How?”

They both shrugged their shoulders. “No idea,” Travis said. “But I trust the person who told me.”

Wilhelm thought for a moment. “Is that why Aaron left?”

Travis nodded. “He wanted to be there when she got there. It was only supposed to be a few months, but now... I don’t know. The ‘powers-that-be’ are discussing it and trying to come up with a new plan. We’re just waiting and will do what we’re told.”

“Is it only you two?” Kurt asked. “Here, I mean.”

Travis shook his head. “There are two others here that are helping. One is... sometimes able to distract Devin, and can keep us posted about what’s going on, but the communication is limited because of his position.”

“Ian,” Wilhelm said without thinking.

Travis nodded. “How did you know?”

“When we were in St. Petersburg, he said some things that made me think he might not be completely loyal to Devin anymore.” Wilhelm frowned. “Devin will kill him if he ever finds out.”

“If she disappears, Devin will know Ian helped. He’s prepared to die if it means she can get free. He says it’s the least he can do after all he’s done to her.”

“He is a brave man,” Kurt said.

“Yeah,” Justin said.

Wilhelm put his fork down. “Is there anything I can do?” More than anything, he wanted Anna to be free and Devin removed from power. The only way Devin could lose his powers was if Anna were away from him. She was the source of his power.

“Actually, you’ve helped already,” Travis said. “Knowing she’s still ‘in there’ is really helpful. I made a call last night and was told that they could work with that.”

“Other than that, just play ignorant,” Justin said. “We knew you were concerned last night and wanted to let you know that there are others who feel the same way. Of course, we’ll let you know when she’s... away.”

“Thank you. Both of you. My heart is more at ease knowing I am not the only one concerned. And please, let me know if there is anything I can do.”

Justin smiled. “She’ll need a new name for her new life. Maybe you can come up with something.”

Wilhelm looked at Kurt and smiled. “I think we could manage that.”