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Title: Expressions of Regret
By: angstytimelord
Pairing: Will Graham/Everett Hobbs (Original Character)
Fandom: Hannibal
Rating: PG-13
Author's Note: Everett's face is Benedict Cumberbatch.
Disclaimer: This is entirely a product of my own imagination, and I make no profit from it. I do not own the lovely Will Graham or Lee Fallon, unfortunately, just borrowing them for a while. Please do not sue.

***

He could kill Lecter with no regrets at all.

Just the thought of that horrific monster made Everett clench his fists at his sides, his eyes narrowing. He despised that bastard; he hated even thinking about the man.

No, not a man. He refused to countenance Hannibal Lecter as being a man at all. After what he'd seen that predator do to Luke, he knew that they were dealing with an animal.

A rabid dog, that was how he saw Hannibal. He could almost see the froth at his mouth, the wildness of his eyes; he looked at Lecter and got the feeling that there was nothing behind those eyes, nothing but greed and a red haze, the remnants of the blood he bathed in.

There wasn't one shred of compassion in that gaze. He'd seen that when they had met, and that pathetic excuse for a human being had looked into his eyes.

He had seen nothing in that gaze but hatred -- and death. Yes, it ws more than obvious to him that Lecter was indeed the Chesapeake Ripper. It showed in those empty eyes.

Only someone with that kind of death in their eyes could commit such heinous murders.

How could anyone ever have thought that his Will could be a murderer on that scale? It was ludicrous that anyone could even begin to conceive of Will as a killer.

Anyone could look into Will's limpid blue eyes and see the compassion, the caring, that they held. In the depths of those eyes was a decent person, someone full of warmth and life.

Hannibal Lecter was an animal. He had seen proof of that when he'd come to for those few moments on the night when Lecter had killed Luke, and he'd seen the feral look on the man's face as he sawed Luke's leg off. That hadn't been the gaze of a sane person. It was the look of a crazed, rabid madman.

Even in the present day, when Lecter wasn't committing some grisly act and had just been looking at him with dislike, the empty, cold nothingness in that gaze sent a chill down his spine.

Yes, he would have absolutely problem pointing a gun directly at that hideously ugly, snakelike face and pulling the trigger, seeing that reptilian countenance explode into blood and bone.

Everett was sure that would have to happen, at some point.

It might not be himself or Will who pulled the trigger, but he knew with certainty that the only way they would ever be safe was for Hannibal to die.

Will's safety, even his very life, would be threatened as long as Hannibal Lecter still walked this earth. And Everett had no doubt that his own life wouldn't be worth much if he and Hannibal should ever meet in some dark, deserted place and no one knew that the meeting was taking place.

Lecter would kill either of them with no compunction, so why shouldn't he feel the same? And he had good reason to want that monster dead, his own personal reasons for revenge.

Everett was fairly sure that no one would argue with his reasons if they knew them. He only wished that the law would let him put a gun to Lecter's head and blow him away.

But of course, if he tried to do something like that -- if he was ever lucky enough to be in that sort of position of power -- then he would be seen as a killer, and Lecter was a victim, no matter what atrocities that animal had committed in the past. It was the way the world worked.

The law was set up to benefit the criminals, while their victims simply had to accept what was handed to them. If they found justice, all well and good, and if they didn't .... then it was just too bad.

He hated that way of looking at things, but there was nothing he could do to change it.

He'd had proof of how things worked long ago, when he first became a lawyer. He'd always hated that setup, and fought to change it, but there were too many corrupt people in power.

People who would no doubt support Lecter as some kind of victim if he was to mysteriously die, even if it came out that he was in fact the Chesapeake Ripper and had killed untold numbers of people.

There would be so many expressions of regret if their "hero" was to die unexpectedly, Everett thought, his lip curling. He had so many people fooled into thinking that he was some kind of benevolent, decent person; none of them had even though of bothering to lift the veil, to look behind the mask.

Lecter would never allow that mask to be ripped away, Everett told himself with a sigh. He kept that mask carefully in place, making sure that no one could ever see behind it to the monster beneath.

But he and Will would expose the hideousness that hid just below the surface, he vowed. They would show the world just what Hannibal Lecter was, no matter what it took.

That thought made Everett shiver as though cold water had been poured over him.

They weren't going to risk their lives to catch Hannibal. He refused to let Will do that, and he wasn't going to be stupid enough to throw himself in harm's way, either.

Yes, they both wanted to expose Hannibal's evil and put him behind bars. But neither of them should have to put their own lives at risk to bring his crimes to light and achieve justice.

Would there be any expressions of regret for either of them if Hannibal were to add them to his list of victims? Everett doubted it; he was sure that some people would express sorrow, but within a few days, they would be about their lives as though nothing had happened.

That was the main reason that he wanted to get Will away from here, to take him out of Wolf Trap and try to find a place of safety for them both, a place where Hannibal couldn't follow them.

But was there such a place in the world? Everett asked himself with a frown. He didn't think so. It would be all too easy for that monster to find them, no matter where they went.

The only way they would ever be safe from him was to kill him.

He could easily do that. He would have no problem putting a gun to that reptile's head and pulling the trigger. In fact, it would be something he'd relish doing.

It would give him closure for Luke's death, and it would cleanse the future for himself and Will. They would be able to make a new life free of any threat from Hannibal.

If only Hannibal was here, at this moment, standing right in front of him, Everett thought, his eyes narrowing. If he was, and Everett had a gun in his hand, he would shoot that bastard right between the eyes, and walk away whistling, with a light heart and a feeling of utter satisfaction.

He would have no expressions of regret, no feeling that he had done anything wrong. No, not at all. Instead, he would know that he had rid the world of a predator, and done society a good turn.

Unfortunately, that wasn't going to happen, he told himself. But one day, he hoped that he and Hannibal Lecter would be able to face each other in a final confrontation, and that he would have the upper hand.

When that happened, he would shoot to kill -- with no regrets whatsoever.

***