Page 112 of The Life of Anna-Tenth Anniversary Edition: Act 2

She told Gavin what she saw.

There was a pause. “Go through the west door.”

Anna looked around. West door? But something told her that the door right in front of her was the proper door, and she walked to it, squeezed her eyes shut, and walked through. This one was harder to walk through and she groaned as she pushed, but at last, she was free and opened her eyes to look around.

She stood in a long, very wide hallway with thick blue carpeting on the floor. The walls were covered in rich wooden paneling, and chandeliers hung from the ceiling at intermittent distances. Tall doors lined both sides of the hallway.

“What do you see?”

Anna spoke of what she saw as she moved forward. At last, she came to what looked like a huge entryway. The carpeting ended at a large, round black marble floor and a huge wooden door with beautiful decorative ironwork along the back of it. A wide, polished wooden staircase circled the room that led to the upper floor. Windows and glass doors along the back of the wall let in the afternoon sun, and she could see a large, grassy yard outside with tall hedges in the distance.

“Keep going.”

She walked across the entryway and jumped when a door to her right opened. Vlad froze, looking at her, or at least, she assumed he was looking at her. She froze and stared as well.

A troubled look came over his face. “Why are you here?” he asked in a hushed voice.

“I—‍” She swallowed nervously. “Wilhelm . . . he wanted?—‍”

“Wilhelm? He knows you dream?” Vlad looked around. “You cannot be here. Devin will—Devin will find out. You must leave.”

“Devin?”

She heard a voice calling in the room behind Vlad.

“Please, Anna, go!” He reached out and touched her shoulder and the image faded.

Anna collapsed forward onto the floor. What had just happened? Why hadn’t she seen Alex? Where was he? Why was Vlad in her dream?

“Anna?” She felt a gentle hand on the back of her head. She looked up to see Wilhelm crouching next to her. “Anna, what did you see?”

“Vlad... Vlad was there, and he said that Devin would find out, and that I had to go. He looked very upset.” She paused. “But Alex wasn’t there. I didn’t see him.”

Wilhelm’s shoulders slumped and he ran his hand through his hair. “I am sorry, Anna. You did very well. Thank you.” He helped her to her feet. “Let me take you back to your room and I will have someone take you to the Gutshaus.”

“You’re not coming?”

“Nein, I need to speak with the Elders for a while.”

Chapter 63

Wilhelm didn’t return for dinner that night. As far as Anna knew, he wasn’t home before she and Kurt went to bed either, though he was at breakfast the next morning. His face was very pale and gaunt, and he looked as if he hadn’t slept. Ilsa watched him with worried eyes.

For the next few days, Anna only saw him a few times, and each time his face was pale and full of a sadness she’d not seen in him before. He rarely left his study, and when he did emerge, his eyes were red and had dark circles beneath them.

The night before she was to return to San Francisco, she knocked on his study door. He responded in a sharp voice, speaking in German. She slowly opened the door and poked her head in.

He growled and threw something at the door that shattered like glass. Crying out, she slammed the door shut and ran down the hallway to the back staircase that led to the library. She sat on the bottom step, rocking herself with her arms wrapped around herself, staring at the floor. She’d never seen Wilhelm lose his composure, and he had been upset for many days. What had happened?

A few minutes later, she heard footsteps coming down the steps and someone sat behind her. “I am sorry, Anna. That was you at the door, ja?”

Wilhelm. “Yes, Wilhelm. I’m sorry I disturbed you.” She stood and turned around. His face was etched in grief, his eyes were bloodshot. She’d never imagined he could look so miserable. “Wilhelm, what’s wrong? Did I upset you?”

“Nein, Liebling. I did it to myself.” He sighed. “Anna... your dreams...” He looked up at her with tremendously sad eyes. “Your dreams had given me hope that Alex might still be alive somewhere.”

Anna’s jaw dropped at his words and hope bubbled to the surface of her aching heart. “Oh, Wilhelm!” She clapped her hands. “I hated to dream, but they kept coming and I couldn’t stop them, and?—‍”

He gently grabbed her hands and shook his head. “It was a false hope, Liebling.”

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