“Anna, I want you to have your own place so you can be out from under the thumb of your guardian and Devin.”
She looked up at him with those sad eyes that made his heart ache. “Why? I’m just a slave.”
Not to me, you’re not. “You’re not supposed to be a slave and I refuse to treat you as such.”
“You keep saying that, but I don’t understand why.”
Alex stared at her for a long moment. Was it possible she didn’t know what she was? Why wouldn’t Devin...?
He felt his temper rising again. Devin had never told her. By keeping her unaware of her heritage and powers, Devin would be able to keep her feeling defeated and weak. If she knew the truth, she would be empowered. Fuck. She needed to know, but this was not the place to tell her. He needed to get her out of the Manor before he told her, otherwise, Devin would never let her out. Alex needed to be smart about this. He needed to speak to Vati before he said anything.
“Like I said before, you weren’t born here. You don’t belong here.”
She gave a slight nod and took a bite of her breakfast.
Alex sighed. This was going to be more difficult than he could ever have imagined.
*****
“Kurt said that you take ballet lessons.”
Anna nodded. “I do. Twice a week.” Though she’d missed her Thursday class this week. She’d not been in any condition to dance after trying to get her necklace. She bit her lip, remembering what Devin had told her. Had he really meant what he said about contacting Isaak, the Ballet Master of the San Francisco Ballet Company? If she was supposed to become a puppet after last night’s ritual...had he been lying when he told her that? The thought made her chest hurt.
“Anna, what’s wrong?”
“I....” She shook her head. “Nothing. It’s not important.”
“Please tell me.”
It wasn’t a command. She wondered at his interest in her thoughts. “Devin had said something about letting me dance more....” She trailed off, feeling foolish.
“What did he say?”
“He asked if there was something he could do to make up for...well, the last four years.” She shrugged.
Alex snorted.
“The first thing that came to mind was that I wanted to dance more. So, that’s what I asked. He said that he’d call Isaak....” She trailed off, her heart breaking at the realization that it probably wouldn’t happen. “Now, I don’t know if he really meant it,” she whispered, dejected.
Alex reached across the table and put his hand on hers. “I will make sure you get to take those classes, Anna.” His voice was firm.
She shook her head. “If Devin doesn’t want me to....”
Alex shook his head. “Anna, he doesn’t have sole authority over you, remember? He shares it with me now. And I will make sure you dance as much as you want.”
She stared at him. Why did he care so much if she danced? “Why?”
“Because I watched you during Sleeping Beauty. You were enthralled. If you danced with Aaron when you were twelve, and with your parents being as talented as they were...well, you must be good.” He gave her an affectionate smile.
Anna suddenly remembered their conversation at the ballet. He had said that his best friend was a principal dancer. “Is Aaron your best friend?”
He grinned. “I thought you'd have figured that out by now.”
“I hadn't connected the ideas. You were...not especially friendly when we went to the ballet.”
Alex shook his head. “I'm so sorry for the way I acted toward you, Anna. Believe it or not, I'm actually a pretty fun guy to be around.”
She smiled shyly. He did seem nice, now that she was getting to know him a little better. “Kurt said it was more fun to stay at your house than the hotel.”
He rolled his eyes. “Mein Brüder....”
Anna thought about Kurt. She’d had a good time with him. He’d been so nice. Would she be able to see him again? What would Alex expect from her?
“Is there anything I can do for you, Master?” she asked as he put his fork down on his empty plate. She wanted to make sure he was taken care of before she went to find Devin. That would be one less thing for Devin to be angry about.
“Nein, Schatzi.”
She wiped her hands on her napkin. “I should go find Devin.”
“I imagine he'll want to speak to me as well.”
*****
Alex held out his hand to Anna. “I believe I might know where Devin is.”
She reached for it timidly and he took her small hand in his big one. She gave him a smile that melted his heart. How could anyone want to hurt this precious girl?
The more he thought about the abuse that her guardian and Devin had heaped on her, the angrier he got. It was all he could do to stay in the room and not start planning an assassination of his own design. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d been so angry.
But he would kill Anna if he killed Devin. That was the only reason that man was still alive. Jack, on the other hand.... No. As much as he desired to remove the man's head from his body with his bare hands, he couldn’t without permission, and he was unlikely to get it. Jack was a Brother and had just been doing what his Elder told him to do.
Alex just had to be patient. He would get his revenge. Of that he had no doubt.
He saw Anna look at the door and hesitate. He didn't blame her for being nervous about going to find Devin. Alex wasn't especially looking forward to it either. It would take every ounce of his self-control to keep his hands off the cruel Elder.
Alex walked to the door to open it and found it locked. He glanced back at Anna, confused.
“It's always locked from the outside,” she explained. “Devin said it's to keep me safe.”
Alex turned away from her to hide his frown. How could being locked in her own room keep her safe? More likely it was to keep her contained so that Devin knew where she was.
He knocked on the door and it opened. Glancing back, he held out his hand again. He loved the feel of her skin. It was so soft. “Komm mit mir.”
She slipped her hand into his and he led her out into the hallway. They had taken only a few steps when Anna tried to pull away, but he refused to let go.
She stopped, tugging hard against him. He didn't want to let go; he liked the assurance that she was next to him.
“Master, please,” she implored in a whisper. “I shouldn’t walk with you like this.”
He pressed his lips together. She was right. She would get in trouble if Devin saw her trying to be “equal” to him by walking next to him. When she pulled again, he let her go. She let him walk ahead a few steps, then followed behind him, eyes downcast.
Alex led her to the bottom floor and to the set of double doors that led to Devin's study. He knocked once and the door opened. Ian stood in the doorway and they eyed each other for a moment before Ian stepped back and allowed them to enter.
CHAPTER FIVE
Devin sat behind his massive wooden desk, waiting for Anna to arrive. His fingers were tented and his mouth rested on his index fingers as he stared out the window, lost in thought.
Despite the wall of tall windows across from the desk, the room had a dark feel to it, which suited his mood perfectly this morning. The wooden bookshelves that made up one wall and his desk were all made from the same dark wood. The chairs and sofa that sat next to the windows were covered in dark green brocade. The floor, covered with a large, dark green rug, matched the dark wood of the rest of the room.
Devin clenched his jaw, remembering the previous evening. To say he was angry would be an understatement; he was enraged. Twenty-three years of planning had gone down the drain because of that fucking German. Damn fucking Alex for interfering in the ritual. How could he have underestimated the man? How had Alex known what to do to interfere?
His anger extended to Anna as well, although his rational side told him she had nothing to do with Alex’s actions. She couldn't have possi
bly done anything to encourage or prevent the derailing of his long-term plan. She knew nothing. Nothing of his plans for her; nothing of her true nature. Exactly the way Devin wanted it.
Devin had thought he'd been clever in having Alex participate in the ritual. Alex would have spent the rest of his life regretting the fact that he'd been right next to Anna and watched her fade away, knowing he hadn't saved her.
When Anna had told him that Alex had been cold to her, Devin had been certain that Alex knew nothing of his plans and nothing of Anna's true nature.
Devin had been wrong. Dead wrong.
How did Alex know and how did he know there was a way to interfere with Devin’s plans? Fuck! Devin had studied for decades and he'd seen nothing in the old tome that indicated a slave bonding with two Masters was possible. How did Alex know? Someone must have told Wilhelm.
Fucking Germans.
Alex's interference had even denied Devin the pleasure of fucking Anna after the ritual. He had been looking forward to having Anna in his bed, playing with her and testing her obedience and lost self-will. She'd been coming around nicely, learning that her pain gave him pleasure and getting off on it. Had he lost everything he’d been working for these last few weeks? He didn’t know because Fucking Alex had stolen her away after they'd argued.
The rest of the Gathering had been one of the most difficult Devin had ever attended. He’d had to play nice and pretend everything was fine. Making a scene would have just exacerbated the situation. Devin knew he could still fix it, to an extent. He just had to figure out how. There had to be a way. There had to be.
Since he couldn’t be with Anna last night, he'd gone into the Red Room and worked over one of his girls so badly, he was fairly certain he'd killed her. He'd taken two more to bed with him and roughed them up pretty good as well. At least one of them was still alive this morning because he'd fucked her hard and made her scream. The maids were going to have their work cut out for them, cleaning up his room.
He slammed his fist on the desk, causing Ian, who was sitting on the couch across the room, to jump. Fuck! Fuck! Fuck! Years of planning and now this! He'd have to somehow share Anna now. Fuck.
How could he manipulate the situation to gain the advantage for himself?
The bottom line was that he had to get rid of Alex somehow. Devin understood that he couldn't kill him, but maybe he could just make him disappear until after Anna’s twenty-sixth birthday, when the final bonding was to be performed. Then he could re-perform the ritual, as prescribed in the tome, without Alex’s interference and she would be his forever. But how could he make an Elder-Son disappear for six years?
This required some serious thought. And research. He had to be careful. Alex and his family were well-liked and Devin couldn't risk anyone finding out that he'd had something to do with the disappearance.
These thoughts calmed him. Having direction allowed his rage to settle into a dull simmer. Yes, he could do this. His plans hadn’t failed, they’d just taken an unexpected turn. He would step back and regroup. It would all work out. It had to.
His thoughts turned to his sweet little Anna. She was the key to making his plans work. But first, he needed to find out how much control over her he still had.
How would this double bonding affect her? She was supposed to have been turned into his mindless slave, happy to do whatever he told her to. Would that still be the case? How independent would she remain? She had to obey him...right?
Devin did not like being unsure. He would have to find out. Quickly. He had a banquet to take her to on Wednesday and he’d been expecting to take his sweet little puppet.
Someone knocked on the door and Ian stood to answer it. Devin had been expecting Anna by herself. What he got was Alex, followed by Anna. Fuck.
One look at Alex's face and Devin knew that Alex had been keeping Anna at a distance this week on purpose. Fortunately, looks couldn't kill. But Alex himself was unquestionably capable of killing; that Devin had learned last night when he saw the unmistakable ring on Alex’s pinky. For the first time since the ritual, Devin was thankful for Alex's obvious concern for Anna. Otherwise, Devin wouldn't have woken up this morning.
Devin stood and walked around to the front of the desk as they entered the room. Anna stood with her mouth gaping, looking around like a child in a candy store. Her fondness for reading would make the fifteen-foot-high wall of books in front of her look like heaven.
Devin cleared his throat and Anna looked at him with a shy smile. He frowned and pointed to the floor. Her eyes widened and she rushed over and dropped to her knees in the proper bow before him. She was trembling, and her fear pleased him. He was half-tempted to kick her in the ribs, but didn't think that would be a smart thing to do in front of Alex. The man might not be able to kill him, but Devin was fairly certain Alex could do some serious damage without breaking a sweat.
Devin stepped over Anna and walked to the seating area near the window. He motioned to Alex. “Please, Alex. Sit.” He said it as pleasantly as he could through clenched teeth.
Alex walked over, face now impassive, and sat on the couch. Devin motioned to Ian as he sat and Ian left the room.
“Anna,” Devin snapped. “Come.”
Anna hastened to her feet, nearly tripping over her dress and hurried across the room to sit at Devin's feet. Devin smiled as he saw her still trembling.
Devin stroked her hair as if to comfort her. “You didn’t brush your hair, Anna,” he said in a low voice, combing his fingers through her hair until he found a tangle.
Her hair was unkempt, but it was still silky from the night before and a tangle was difficult to locate. He yanked his fingers through it and she gasped in pain. He grabbed a fistful of hair and yanked, pulling her head back until she was looking at him upside down. She struggled for air and looked at him with frightened eyes.
“Never come to me with unbrushed hair again. Do you understand?”
She moved her mouth, trying to find enough air to form words. “Yes, Master,” she answered in a hoarse whisper.
He released her hair and her head snapped forward. She coughed and Devin would have sworn he heard Alex growl.
“Is that really necessary?” Alex asked in an icy voice.
Devin hesitated. Not knowing how the interrupted ritual had affected Anna, being a cruel master to her might backfire, especially with Alex around. She clearly wasn’t mindless this morning and she looked at him in absolute terror. If he wanted her to be the effective tool he needed, she needed to trust and love him. Otherwise, she'd be acting out of fear and wouldn't be as persuasive. She needed to believe in him.
Fuck, this was exactly why he had performed the ritual in the first place. So he didn’t have to worry about all that shit.
He took a deep breath to calm himself. “No. I suppose not. I didn't sleep well last night.” He petted Anna's hair again, gently this time, and he felt her begin to relax.
“That can happen when events progress in unexpected ways,” Alex commented, raising his brows, his eyes glinting with amusement.
“Yes. My evening certainly didn't go the way I expected it to.” Fucking arrogant bastard. “I suppose we need to discuss our unexpected situation, then. Don’t we?”
“I agree,” Alex said. “I want her to live outside the Manor. In an apartment downtown. I will gladly pay her living expenses.”
Straight to the point. Devin could respect that. The sooner they were done with negotiations, the sooner he could fuck Anna and see how she would react to him.
He considered Alex’s request. Anna living downtown had its appeal. Yes, there was a risk in her living alone, but the GPS tracker in her necklace would ensure he knew where she was at all times. She wasn’t stupid enough to go out without it again, not after her afternoon with the Russians. She certainly learned the consequences of going out without her necklace.
But did Devin want Alex paying for everything? The idea made him uneasy.
“Do you have a place in
mind?” Devin asked, curious.
“I do. There’s a two-bedroom apartment in the Sapphire that is being held for her.”
Anna looked up, subtly. Apparently, she hadn’t been informed of this.
Devin narrowed his eyes. How was it possible that he had an apartment for Anna already? Unless.... “You knew something was going to happen last night?”
Alex nodded and Devin’s jaw clenched. How had he known? Who could have told him? He glared at Alex. “How?”
Alex only arched an eyebrow and looked amused.
Fucking bastard!
He knew the building that Alex was talking about. It had a good reputation and the location couldn’t be better; only a few blocks from his office. It would be more convenient for him to visit Anna there rather than driving all the way out to the Manor. He could send men over to fuck her, or do whatever to her. Yes, this is good...even if it comes from him.
His cock twitched at the thought of being with Anna on a regular basis. Maybe he would have her come over to his house occasionally, too. That would drive Sandy crazy, seeing him with a beautiful twenty-year-old. He smiled at the vision of his wife's hurt face as he fondled Anna in front of her. It would serve her right for getting knocked up by her lover. Maybe he'd even make Sandy watch as he fucked Anna hard in their own home. That thought cheered him and he decided he would act upon it on Wednesday after the banquet.
“Agreed. But I want to pay half of her expenses. After all, I’m her Master too.”
A hint of a smile appeared on Alex’s face. “I can afford it far better than you can.”
“You mean your family can.”
Alex shrugged. “There are benefits to belonging to one of the wealthiest families in the world.”
Devin’s eyes narrowed. Was that a slam on his own personal finances? “I can afford my share.” He could. Easily.
“All right,” Alex said after a pause. “I want her to have her own car and credit cards.”
“Fine. I will notify the bank on Monday.”
“I have her car for her already.”
“Really? What kind of car do you think she should have?” Alex really had been prepared for all of this. Devin didn’t like that idea one bit.
The Life of Anna, Part 2: Entwined Page 4