Title: Followed
By: angstytimelord
Pairing: Hannibal Lecter/Will Graham
Fandom: Hannibal
Rating: PG-13
Author's Note: Sequel to "Into Thin Air."
Disclaimer: This is entirely a product of my own imagination, and I make no profit from it. I do not own the lovely Hannibal Lecter or Will Graham, unfortunately, just borrowing them for a while. Please do not sue.
***
"He follows me wherever I go, Jack."Will knew that he sounded defeated, but he couldn't help it. It was beyond frustrating to not know where his nemesis was, to be so close and yet so far.
When he'd gotten that letter from Hannibal, he'd had high hopes that they would be able to track the man down, that this would finally be over and he would get the closure he needed. But that obviously wasn't going to happan, not for a long time.
Hannibal wasn't in Switzerland, of course. He had disappeared without a trace, and no one they had talked to even recalled seeing a man who looked like him.
Will wanted to scream out his frustration, to pound the walls, to do something, anything, to get his feelings out into the open. How was he supposed to deal calmly and quietly with this? It was impossible. He had to vent.
Jack was sitting there at his desk, looking at him, giving him the chance to vent -- but he didn't know what to say. He was beyond words.
He couldn't articulate what he was feeling, not in mere syllables.
What he felt went too deep to be expressed in mere words, and he didn't think that Jack would understand, anyway. Nobody could possibly understand how he felt.
Nobody else had suffered what he had at Hannibal's hands. Nobody else had been played the way he had, been used in the same manner.
That was what got to him more than anything else, wasn't it? he asked himself. The fact that he had been used and tossed away when Hannibal was through with him, like a used tissue that had been crumpled and forgotten about as it was thrown into the trash can.
"You mean the memories, don't you?" Jack asked, his gaze never leaving Will's face. "We all have thoe, Will. None of us will ever be free of them."
Will nodded slowly, exhaling and forcing himself not to clench his hands into fists. "Yeah. The memories. They'll follow me for the rest of my life."
Or at least until Hannibal was safely behind bars. Then, and only then, when he knew that monster wasn't going to be able to harm any more people -- himself included -- would he be able to let go of those horrible memories and feel that he'd achieved closure.
Until then, Hannibal Lecter was going to haunt his thoughts and his dreams, following him through every step of his life, even though he wasn't around.
He would never get rid of the sense of being followed, not as long as Hannibal was out there somewhere and could pop up in his life again at any time.
That fact had been proven when he'd received that letter.
Hannibal would constantly follow him unless he managed to catch the monster and put him behind bars, to exorcise him for good.
That feeling of being followed wasn't simply going to go away. As long as Hannibal remained free, Will knew that he would always wonder if the bastard had somehow slipped back into the country, if he was in Wolf Trap, in Baltimore, if he was being watched.
His nemesis was good at being cover. Hannibal could be keeping tabs on him right now, and he would have no way ot knowing it until it was too late.
But somehow, he didn't think that was the case -- at least, not yet. Hannibal wouldn't be stupid enough to come back here now, so soon after he'd left, when everyone now knew that he was a killer. Even he didn't have that kind of hubris. He would opt for self-preservation.
Or would he? Will thought, his brow furrowing. Was his obsession with Will, his need to win at any game he played, enough to bring him back already?
Maybe they should intensify their search -- and start it at home.
"You're thinking of something," Jack told him, leaning forward, his eyes narrowing. "I can always tell when you have an idea, Will. Spit it out."
Will wondered momentarily if trying to do a thorough search of the area he lived in was worth it; would Hannibal actually think that he could come back here and covertly watch him without being found out? Still, it was worth a try. And it was a good place to start.
He nodded, taking a deep breath before speaking. "Yeah, I've got an idea. Not sure if you'll go for it, but it's the best thing I can come up with at the moment."
"Try me." Will smiled at the words, and began to outline his plan.
***
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