Page 196 of The Life of Anna-Tenth Anniversary Edition: Act 2

“Is he home?”

“I don’t know.” She tapped the answer button on the screen. “Aaron? What’s wrong?”

“Where are you?” He sounded upset.

“Outside the apartment.”

He didn’t say anything else, but a moment later the door opened and he looked between her and Hugo. “Something’s... happened.”

Anna didn’t like the look on his face. “What?”

Aaron looked hesitantly at Hugo and back at her. “Tom’s here.” He looked back at Hugo. “I’m sorry, Hugo. But I really need to talk to Kat alone.”

Hugo looked a little bewildered as he nodded.

Anna bit her lip. “I’m sorry.”

Hugo offered a weak smile. “It’s okay.” He leaned forward and kissed Anna on the cheek. “I’ll see you tomorrow.” He and Aaron shook hands, and then Hugo turned and walked to the elevator.

Aaron pulled her into the apartment, closing the door behind her.

Tom sat on the couch, elbows on his knees, head hung. He looked up as Anna walked into the room. “Did you tell her?”

Aaron shook his head and then turned to Anna. “Hon... it’s Jenna. She’s—‍” He swallowed and looked up at the ceiling. “Devin took her a few days ago and said if you didn’t come home that he’d kill her.”

Anna stared at Tom. “A few days ago? Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Because you would have gone home or gotten in touch with him.” Tom stood and walked over to her. “We can’t let Devin have you back.”

“Is... Jenna okay?” Her heart sank at her own question, afraid she already knew the answer.

Tom shook his head. “No. He killed her.”

Anna struggled for breath as she stared at him. She could barely speak over the lump in her throat. “You let him kill her?” She glowered at Aaron. “I could have stopped him and you didn’t tell me?”

“If I’d have told you, you would have contacted him.” Aaron put his hand on her shoulders. “Anna, he would have found you.”

“So what?” she shrieked, slapping his hands away and taking a step back. “She would still be alive. You should have let me make the choice. It’s my life!”

Tom shook his head and spoke in a soft but firm voice. “No, Anna, it’s not just about protecting you. It’s much bigger than that. He’s using you to take over our country. He’s eroding our democracy. He’s got control of the president, for God’s sake. Even you should realize that’s not good.”

Anna turned to walk away, but Tom grabbed her by her shoulders and turned her back around to face him. “He wants control of the country, Anna. If you return to him, there is nothing we can do to stop him. He will continue to grow more and more powerful, and then he will control everything. Freedom—what you’re just beginning to taste—will be gone. Do you want everyone in this country to be Devin’s slave?”

Anna paused, chest heaving. “That’s what he wants?”

“Yes.”

Being Devin’s slave... she wouldn’t wish that on anyone. She took in a shaky breath. “Why didn’t you stop him earlier?” she asked softly.

“We didn’t realize what he was really trying to do. I never took his ideas that seriously. We thought... we just thought he knew better. He’s a smart guy and our politicians are pretty dumb. But when he came back from Vitaly’s funeral, his plans escalated, and we realized he was trying to become Immortal. Yes, we should have done something earlier. We know that now... We should have listened to the Germans.”

“Can you still stop him?”

“If you stay out of his reach, yes.”

She stared at him for a long time and then gave a slow nod. “Okay.” She trudged to her room and closed the door.

Poor Jenna... poor Matt! Matt had lost two loved ones by Devin’s hand.

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