“Yes, definitely. But first, the team is going out for drinks at Massey’s. When do you think you’ll be done rehearsing?”
“This is our last run through for the day. Should be done in about an hour.”
“Wonderful. Do you want to meet me there? You can meet my team.”
“I’d love to.”
“You know where it is?”
“Right around the corner from your office, right?”
“Yep.”
“All right. I’ll text you when I leave.”
“Sounds good. I love you.”
“I love you, too.”
Anna grinned and hung up.
“What’s up?” Travis asked, seeing her grin. “Boyfriend troubles?”
Anna giggled. “Hardly.” Travis always asked her that. He jokingly said it was because he wanted to be the first to know if they broke up so he could ask her out. But she knew Travis was happy for her. “He won his case. His team is going out to celebrate and he wanted me to come along.”
“That’s great.”
Anna nodded and tied the ribbons on her pointe shoes. “It is. I’m so happy for him.”
“Yeah, yeah, yeah. You’re so much in love, it’s revolting sometimes.” Travis rolled his eyes at her.
*****
Anna sent Ben a text as she started her car. It would only take a few minutes to get to the bar. Maybe tonight she would tell Ben the truth. No, tonight she had to tell him the truth. There wasn’t any more time to put it off.
She hadn’t wanted to worry him during his case, even though she hated lying to him about so many things. She loved him and wanted to be truthful with him in all things. He always said that he’d love her, no matter what.
But would he still love her if he knew she was a sex slave?
She pulled up in front of the sports bar ten minutes later. There were no spots in front, so she circled the block until she found a spot. When she walked in, Ben rushed over.
“I was getting worried,” he said, kissing her.
“I couldn’t find a spot. Sorry.”
Ben grinned. “I’m just glad you’re okay.”
She liked that he worried about her. He wanted to protect her from her guardian, even though Ben didn’t know who her guardian was. When she was occasionally late, he always worried that Jack had gotten ahold of her.
“Well, c’mon. Let me show you off.”
Anna grinned as he pulled her towards a large group of tables in the back of the room. It was crowded with many men and women in professional attire laughing and drinking.
Someone caught her eye and she stopped dead in her tracks. No, it couldn’t be. Please no. But when he turned around, there was no denying it. Jack was standing with a beer in his hand, laughing with the group of people Ben was leading her towards.
“Anna, love. What’s wrong?”
Anna couldn’t say anything. Her mouth wouldn’t work. Jack turned and saw her. He grinned wickedly and walked slowly towards them.
“Anna?” Ben turned her to face him. “Anna, you’re so pale. What’s wrong?”
“I’m sorry, Ben. I’m so sorry.” She looked up at him with tears in her eyes, knowing Ben would find out the truth tonight whether she wanted him to or not. Jack wouldn’t pass up the opportunity to humiliate her.
“What are you apologizing for? Why are you pale?” He brushed her hair out of her face. “Love, please. Talk to me.”
Anna glanced at Jack, who was only a few feet away. What could she do?
“Ben, I need to tell you something—” she began, but Jack interrupted her.
“Ben!” Jack said, patting him on the shoulder. “Is this the girl you’ve been moon-eyed over for the last few months?” Jack grinned at Ben.
Ben put his arm around Anna’s shoulder. “Yes, it is. Anna, this is my boss, Jack Koslov. Jack, this is my girlfriend—”
“Anna. Oh, yes. I know who she is.”
Ben looked confused. “You do?”
Jack cupped her chin. “You didn’t tell him about me, Baby? I’m hurt.”
Anna tried to shake her head free but he held on too tightly.
“Let her go, Jack,” Ben said with warning in his voice. He pulled Anna away from him. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?”
Jack looked at Anna with amusement. “Do you want to tell him, or shall I?”
Anna looked up at Ben, who watched her with concerned eyes. “He…he’s my guardian, Ben,” she said softly.
Ben turned his gaze to Jack and narrowed his eyes. “This is the man who abused you?” His hand curled up in a fist and before Anna realized what was happening, Ben took a swing at Jack and hit him in the jaw. “You fucking bastard.”
Jack grabbed his jaw and looked between Anna and Ben, then burst out laughing. “Oh, Baby. He doesn’t know, does he?”
Fury lit Ben’s eyes. “What the fuck are you talking about?” he asked through clenched teeth.
Anna was vaguely aware that the room had become silent, but was so afraid of what Jack was going to say, she didn’t really think about it. She looked up at Ben. “I…there’s something I need to tell you.”
“Anna, you don’t need to defend yourself against what he did to you. We’ve talked about this.”
She shook her head. “No, there’s more.” Tears filled her eyes. “I….” She looked around. “Can we sit down over there?” She pointed to an empty table away from his coworkers. She didn’t think Devin would like it if everyone in the restaurant heard what she was going to tell him. Ben nodded and they went over and sat down.
Anna rubbed her hands together and stared at the table top. Ben reached across the table and put his hands on hers.
“Tell me, love,” he said in a gentle voice. “Tell me anything you feel you need to.”
Anna bit her lip. Where did she begin? She looked around to see that Jack had disappeared. Tears stung her eyes as she tried to figure out what to say.
“Anna, I love you. Anything you need to tell me. I’ll listen. And we’ll work it out. I’ve always promised that. You know that, right?”
Anna looked up at him. Such love shone from his eyes it made her heart ache so badly she wanted to reach in and throw it out of her body. Would he still feel the same way after he found out what she was? “I don’t know where to begin,” she whispered.
Ben smiled tenderly. “The beginning. I’ve always found that a good place to start.” He squeezed her hands encouragingly.
“Do you know who Devin Andersen is?” she asked.
“Of course. Everyone knows who he is.” Ben smiled. “What does that have to do with you? Do you know him?”
Anna nodded. “I’ve known him all my life. He and Jack are very good friends.” She proceeded to haltingly tell Ben about what Devin and Jack did to her and how she was raised. Ben’s face registered more and more shock as she talked. “On my twentieth birthday, Jack took me to…a place that belongs to Devin and handed me over to him.” She was reluctant to go on. This is where things got worse.
“What do you mean, Jack handed you over to him?”
“Devin…owns me. I belong to him.”
Ben laughed uncertainly. “Anna, you can’t belong to anyone. No one can own you.”
Anna shook her head. “Devin makes his own rules, Ben. He owns me.” She pointed to her necklace. “He gave me this to warn men that he owns me. If I don’t wear it…I get hurt.” The memory of the jewelry store incident rushed into her mind.
“Anna, he can’t—”
“Oh, but he does, Ben.” Jack’s voice dripped venom as he sat down next to Anna and put his arm around her shoulder. Anna leaned away and Ben narrowed his eyes at Jack.
“Get out of here, Jack,” he growled. “This has nothing to do with you.”
“Doesn’t it?” he asked in a mocking voice, then leaned into Anna and spoke in a stage whisper. “Did you tell him how often I get to fuck you? Does he know what you do on Friday nights? All those men you fuck all night long? Did
you tell him you’re Devin’s mistress?”
Tears spilled over onto Anna’s cheeks as Jack spoke. She didn’t want to look at Ben. She didn’t want to see the disgust on his face.
Ben growled. “Jack, haven’t you done enough to her? Why are you saying those things?”
“Because they’re true,” Jack answered simply. “Tell him, Anna,” he leaned in and kissed Anna’s ear. “Tell him how you knelt between my legs on Friday and sucked me off so good I almost screamed.” Jack looked at Ben. “Please tell me you’ve experienced one of her incredible blowjobs. Don’t they make you want to scream?”
Anna dared to peek up and look at Ben. His face was distorted with rage and disgust, just like in her worst nightmares.
He looked at her with tear-filled eyes. “Anna, tell me what he said isn’t true. Tell me he’s lying.” He trembled and Anna could see his jaw clenching and unclenching as he stared at her with such intensity she wanted to look away.
But this might be the last time she got to see him. He wouldn’t want her after this, after he knew the truth about her. And she couldn’t lie anymore. It was over and she knew it.
Her chest ached as she shook her head. “It’s true, Ben,” she whispered, shoulders slumping. “Jack isn’t lying.”
“You told me that you were spending time with a family friend on Fridays.”
“Devin is a family friend. I told you I’ve known him my whole life.”
“She just spends time with him and a hundred of his friends. And she fucks most of them.”
Anna winced and closed her eyes.
“Get out of here, Jack,” Ben growled. “This has nothing to do with you.”
Jack chuckled and stood. “Enjoy your evening. I think I’ll call Devin. He’ll get a kick out of this.” He walked away laughing.
“I’m so sorry, Ben,” she whispered, glancing up at him. He looked so angry and he was staring off into the distance.
“Why didn’t you tell me before?” He shook his head and met her eyes, his own eyes hard. “You go off on Friday nights and fuck other men?”
“I’m sorry,” she whispered again.
“You’ve been doing it the whole time we’ve been together?” he asked in a strained voice.
“I have to, Ben. Devin…punishes me if I disobey him.”
“Punishes you? How?” His voice was cold.
“He…hurts me…however he wants to.”
“You’re trying to tell me that if you don’t have sex with him, he punishes you?”
Anna nodded. “I’m his slave, Ben. I have to do as he tells me.” Her voice cracked as she spoke.
Ben gave her a disgusted look. “Anna, this is a free country. Slavery is illegal. You don’t have to do anything like that if you don't want to.”
“You don’t understand, Ben. Devin…he owns…he controls everything….”
He snorted. “That sounds like a really bad excuse, Anna. You must like it or you wouldn’t go to him.” He stood. “I can’t believe you’ve lied to me this whole time.” He looked past her and shook his head. “I can’t be with someone who lies and cheats. You do realize you’ve been cheating on me? Or were you cheating on Devin?” His eyes grew cold. “You were never mine to have, were you? If you belong to Devin, as you say, then you were never….” He sighed and ran his hands through his hair. “I can’t believe I was deceived by you. I should have known you were too good to be true. Is this how you get your kicks? Making men fall in love with you?”
“Ben, please,” she implored. “I do love you. With all my—”
He put his hands up. “Save it.”
He sighed and looked down at her with a pained expression for a long minute, then reached out and stroked her cheek. She leaned into his hand, hoping he had changed his mind and would forgive her.
“Ben, please,” she implored. “I wish I didn’t have to…have this other life. I’d give anything to be yours and yours alone.” She took his hands in hers. “Please believe me.”
His eyes softened and hope rose inside her. “I don’t know, Anna,” he said after a long moment of silence. “I…I need time to think about all this. I’ll call you later.” He turned and walked away without another word.
She watched him walk away and tried to blink away the tears, but there were too many. She watched the door after he walked out, hoping he’d come back in, but after a few minutes, she realized he wouldn’t be coming back.
Her shoulders slumped and she slowly picked up her purse and walked out of the bar. She made her way to her car and got in, and burst into tears. Her forehead pressed into the steering wheel and she sobbed for an eternity. This fresh pain in her heart hurt all the worse after so many weeks of love and pleasure. How could her heart forget that love always came around to pain?
Chapter Four
Anna tried to clear her head long enough to figure out what to do next. Her phone rang and she dug for it eagerly in her purse, thinking it was Ben. But it wasn’t Ben’s picture; it was Kurt’s. She sighed. That was the last thing she needed right now. But she had her duties. Her duties that had just ruined her relationship with Ben. At least Kurt knew who she was.
“Hello, Kurt,” she said in a cracked voice.
“Engel! Are you all right?” Kurt’s voice instantly filled with concern.
“I….” She started to tell him she was fine, but burst into tears before she could.
“Engel, where are you?”
She tried to speak, but couldn’t get any words out.
“Anna, are you all right? Are you hurt?”
“I….” She sniffed. “I’m okay. Just…sad.”
“You sound more than sad, Engel. Where are…oh, never mind. Anna, stay where you are. I will come get you.” He ended the call and Anna tossed her phone on the seat next to her.
Somewhere in her mind, she wondered how Kurt would find her without her telling him where she was, but right now she just didn’t care. She rested her head on the steering wheel again and stared at her knees.
Her mind drifted to the past few wonderful months with Ben as she waited for Kurt to arrive. A knock on the window made her jump and she looked up to see Kurt peering into her car with a concerned look on his face. She opened the door and he gathered her into his arms, and she promptly burst into tears again.
He murmured something in German and helped her around to the passenger side of the car. He put her in and fastened her seatbelt, then squeezed himself into the driver’s side and drove away.
“Where are we going?” she asked in a broken whisper.
“The hotel,” he said in his thickly accented voice. He put his hand on her knee. “I am worried about you, Engel. You are very pale. Are you sick?”
Anna shook her head. “No,” she whispered.
She stared blankly out the window as Kurt drove through the city. A few minutes later, Kurt pulled up in front of the Ritz Carlton, the white palace not far from her apartment.
A valet opened her door and Kurt hurried around to help her out of the car. He took her hand and led her into the hotel, to the elevators, and up to a hotel suite.
“Anna! What happened?” Wilhelm hurried over to her and hugged her to him.
Anna closed her eyes, feeling safer than she had in a long time. She realized that Kurt and Wilhelm, especially, always had that effect on her. And Alex, a quiet voice added, but she shushed it before it took hold. She adored both Wilhelm and Kurt and their presence was a balm to her broken heart. Wilhelm led her over to the couch and sat her down with his arm around her. Kurt sat next to her and caressed her legs.
“Anna, Liebling, tell me what happened,” Wilhelm urged in a gentle voice.
She started crying again as she told them about her relationship with Ben and then the events earlier in the evening. When she finished, they sat quietly together, Anna’s head on Wilhelm’s chest. He stroked her hair and kissed the top of her head.
“I am sure he will call you soon, Anna,” Kurt said in a soothing voice. “No one
could give you up so easily. Not if he truly loves you.”
“How could he forgive me for something like that? I cheated on him.”
“Anna, being forced to have sex with another man is hardly cheating,” Wilhelm said. “You did not choose your life.”
She shook her head. “He was so angry and disgusted with me.”
“Anna, what Devin makes you do makes me angry and disgusted,” Wilhelm said. “It does not mean I feel that way about you.”
She didn’t respond. Ben didn’t know anything about the Brotherhood, or Council, as Devin was calling it now.
“Liebling, do you want to stay with us tonight?” Wilhelm asked.
Anna nodded. She didn’t want to go back to her lonely apartment. Too many memories of Ben there.
“Kurt, please call Jim and have him bring some things of Anna’s over so she does not have to go get them.”
Anna frowned. “Who’s Jim?” she asked as Kurt left the room.
“Greg’s replacement while he is out of town.” Wilhelm answered.
“Greg’s out of town?” She hardly saw him, which was fine with her. She didn’t know that there was someone else there while he was gone.
“Ja. Alex was called out of town about a week ago. Otherwise, he would have been here with us. Greg went with him.”
Anna remembered the last time Alex went out of town. It was the beginning of the end between the two of them. That’s when he came back and announced that he was going back to Germany. She didn’t want to think about Alex right now.
“Anna, is there anything special you need from your apartment?” Kurt asked from across the room.
She glanced at Wilhelm. “Do you want me to stay the weekend like we had originally planned?”
“If you would like, Liebling. I always love having you with us.” His blue eyes reflected his words. So much like Alex…
Anna turned and told Kurt what she needed, including her dress for opening night. “It’s dark pink chiffon that goes lighter at the bottom and changes to purple.”
Kurt made a face that made Anna giggle and repeated what she said to the person on the other end of the call.
The Life of Anna, Part 3: Embraced Page 2