Page 268 of The Life of Anna-Tenth Anniversary Edition: Act 2

Anna huddled on the couch, hugging a pillow to her chest. Her mind was hazy... unfocused... as if it were being scrambled from outside forces. She was freezing and feverish at the same time. Her body shook uncontrollably. She couldn’t put a coherent thought together to even try to figure out what was going on.

Something vibrated next to her and she stared hard at the plastic rectangle. What did she do with that? Press the green button.

“Anna? Anna?”

She heard Wilhelm’s voice faintly. “Wilhelm?”

“Pick up the phone, Anna. Put it to your ear.”

Anna did as she was told. “W-Wilhelm?”

“Where are you?” His voice was clearer now.

“In m-my a-apartment,” she said in a shaky voice.

“Go into your bedroom and shut the door. Lay down on your bed and stay there until I call you back.”

He ended the call and Anna stared at the floor, sucking in desperate breaths. No matter how deeply she tried to breathe, she couldn’t seem to get enough oxygen.

Bedroom. Anna staggered to her feet, her knees shaking as if she’d never walked a day in her life, then stumbled into her room, barely remembering to close the door after she walked inside. She fell onto her bed and curled into a ball.

Devin is coming.

Chapter 135

Aaron walked in front of Devin and Tom, praying for a miracle.

“I can’t believe you didn’t know she was here, Tom,” Devin growled.

“I’m not as powerful as you are. I can barely keep track of the millions of people that live here, let alone the millions that visit every year.”

“You should have known.” He growled again. “I can still feel her. She hasn’t left yet.”

Aaron prayed that Hugo had gotten a hold of Wilhelm, and that somehow Anna wouldn’t be at the apartment when they got home. Stalling was the only thing he could think of to give her more time.

“Ow! Shit!” He hopped on one foot, like he’d stepped on something. He stopped and brought his foot up to his knee, taking his shoe off.

“What the hell?” Devin snapped. “Why did you stop?”

“I stepped on something.” Aaron peered at the bottom of his foot and ran his hand over the sole, as if searching for something.

“You’ll live. Get moving.”

“Hey, these feet are how I make a living, man. Just give me a sec.” He ran his hand over his foot again and picked at an invisible splinter, stalling for as long as he could before sliding his foot back into his shoe. Even a few seconds could make a difference.

Devin huffed. “How far away is it?”

Aaron straightened and pointed to the tall glass building a few blocks away.

“Then let’s go.” Devin took off and Aaron fake-limped slowly behind him.

Anna could hardly breathe. Sweat trickled down her forehead, and her whole body shook. Her teeth were chattering so violently that her jaw throbbed with pain. After being away from Devin for long, the darkness that swirled around her was suffocating her and she feared it would kill her before anyone could save her. She buried her face in the pillow, as if it could filter out the darkness from the surrounding air.

Then, suddenly, a glow of warmth rushed over her body, banishing the darkness like the sun appearing after a thunderstorm. Her lungs loosened, and she sucked in a deep, cleansing breath. The warmth seeped through her pores into her very soul and she relaxed. She knew Devin was coming—he was so close now—but the fear was gone.

The apartment door opened. Male voices echoed in the hall. One voice definitely belonged to Devin. She would never be able to forget the rage that filled his voice when he was angry. And still, the fear couldn’t grab hold of her. All she could do was watch the door with curiosity. How would he not see her once he walked into her room?

The warm feeling grew stronger. She felt enveloped by tenderness, as if love itself had manifested into a soft blanket and wrapped around her.

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