Page 323 of The Life of Anna-Tenth Anniversary Edition: Act 2

Seth chuckled, and they walked the two blocks to their building. She hugged him hard and went inside, greeting the doorman as she made her way to the elevators.

She hesitated at the door to the condo. After taking a deep breath, she pushed it open and walked inside.

All the lights were off except in the library at the far side of the living room. She kept her shoes on, wanting to alert Alex to her presence with her steps on the hardwood floor. She didn’t want to startle him. Was he in there?

She peeked inside and saw him slouching on the brown leather couch. He was still in his tuxedo, though his shirt was unbuttoned and his hair was a mess. A short glass filled with ice and amber liquid hung from his fingers. He slowly lifted it to his mouth, took a long sip, and dropped his arm back into place. He stared blankly at the lit fireplace.

“Alex?” She was careful to keep her voice soft.

“I didn’t think you’d come home,” he said in a low voice. His voice was slurred, making his Russian/‌German-accented-English even harder to understand.

Anna inhaled sharply. “Did you not want me to come home?” Tears burned her eyes.

“I didn’t think you’d want to.” The hopelessness in his voice broke Anna’s heart.

She hurried over to him and kneeled at his feet. She grabbed his empty hand and gazed up at him. “Why would you think that, Alex? Why did you leave?” Her voice squeaked on her last word.

Alex gripped the glass in his hand tighter. “I thought you’d prefer it if I wasn’t there.”

“Why on earth would you think that? I was crushed when you left.”

Alex finally looked at her with bloodshot, sorrow-filled eyes. “I saw you... when you were dancing with Hugo... you love him.”

Anna gaped at her husband. “Alex... no...” She sat up on her knees. “This is where I want to be. With you.” She held his big hand with her two much smaller hands as her eyes filled with tears. “Is that why you left? Because you thought I’d rather be with Hugo?”

Alex nodded slowly and the tears spilled over onto Anna’s cheeks. “Why, Alex? Why would you think that?”

She saw the tears in his own eyes and he blinked rapidly. “I saw how you looked at him... how he looked at you. You... I could feel your emotions.”

Anna shook her head. “Alex... no...” Never in her wildest dreams could she ever have imagined Alex being so insecure. The tears in his eyes made her own flow harder.

A hard thought hit her square in the face. Devin had done this to him. Devin had made the most confident man she’d ever met, insecure.

Rage oozed through her veins. She knew what Devin had done to her, but she hadn’t realized the full extent of what Devin had done to Alex.

Until now.

Alex wasn’t exactly drunk, but he wasn’t exactly sober either. He’d been sitting here for hours, imagining Anna dancing and laughing and enjoying the gala, thankful that he’d left. The thought broke his heart. But if she’d rather be with Hugo, he didn’t want to stop her.

When the condo door opened and he’d heard her footsteps coming closer and closer, he’d braced for the terrible unknown. What would he see in her face? Disdain? Disgust? Hatred? He didn’t even want to look at her.

She hadn’t responded to his accusation that she’d rather be with Hugo and he felt even more defeated.

Her hands suddenly clenched into fists and she began to shake. He looked up and gasped. Her face wasn’t filled with disgust, but anger. No, not anger. Rage. Pure, unadulterated rage.

“Anna?” he whispered. He exhaled sharply when her pupils began to disappear. “Anna!” The glass slipped from his fingers and crashed to the floor as he grabbed hold of her shoulders.

“Devin...” she growled. “Devin... destroyed you...” She leaned her head back and let out an inhuman scream. Alex jumped to his feet and stared down at her.

She was going into a rage, like she had the night she’d killed Jack. There was little comfort in the fact that she wasn’t angry at him.

Shit. What had the tomes said about this? He fought the alcohol-induced-fuzziness in his mind and thought hard. He... he needed to get control of her. Theoretically, it would be easier if he caught her before it completely took hold.

He sat back down and took her head in his hands, turning her face toward his. “Anna. Anna, look at me.”

She jerked, trying to get free.

“Anna, Schatzi, look at me. Devin will pay. Devin will pay, I promise. Don’t lose control, my love. Please.”

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