Page 154 of The Life of Anna-Tenth Anniversary Edition: Act 2

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.”

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