FOUND: A Hannigram Devil AU

3

     The smell of the autopsy room was always unbearable to Will. Metallic, rancid, a mixture of chemicals and cleaning solutions and decomposition. He stood as far away from the table as he could, his hands shoved in his pockets, listening to Beverly speak.
     She, Price, and Zeller communicated in their own language. Medical terms and theories were swapped between them, throwing around everything that they know happened and what could have happened. Will had zoned out slightly, until a word he recognized popped out— liver.
     "The liver was removed, then subsequently put back in." Beverly furrowed her brow. "Like he wanted it, then he didn't want it."
     "He's already mounting them on hooks," Will replied, pushing off the wall and taking a reluctant step forward. "Maybe he's taking trophies. Something wrong with this one?"
     Zeller took another look inside, then his head snapped up in shock. "..She has liver cancer," he said.
     Will pondered. Liver cancer shouldn't affect the look or preservation— in fact, it would be rather hard to keep a liver preserved even if it was healthy.
     People didn't keep liver. People ate liver.
     He felt a sudden wave of nausea. "What if.."
     The specialists turned towards him, eyebrows raised in expectation. He felt a lump in his throat, an acidic burning that he had to swallow down. Wordlessly, he pulled out his phone and dialed Jack.
     "Hey, Will."
     "He's eating them."
     "..I'm sorry?"
     "The guy who's killing all these girls. He..he's eating their organs."
     The specialists stared at him with wide eyes, Zeller turning slightly pale at the words. They exchanged worried glances as Will began to pace.
     "Are you sure? That's a bold statement."
     "Jack, he tried to take her liver. He put it back because the meat wasn't good enough. She's got cancer." Will rambled, clutching the phone tightly. "He's..fucking eating them." His voice caught in his throat.
     "You with Katz and company?"
     "Mhm."
     "I'll be right there."
     Jack hung up, leaving Will to listen to silence on the other end. He pressed his lips together, feeling the blood drain from his face.
     He couldn't be in there anymore. Not with Elise. She'd been in his room so much the past few weeks that she was like a housemate— he couldn't be there to see her decompose in person.
     He turned around and walked out of the lab.
——————————————————————————
     "Same height. Same weight. Same eye and hair color. Same age." Will pointed to each photo of a missing girl, all of them smiling up at him like nothing was wrong. He wished that were the case. "There's obvious intention here. He's looking for the perfect someone. Lusting after her. Maybe he knows who his golden ticket is, and he's waiting to get to her last?"
     "Will, I don't think I'm equipped to discuss official FBI cases. This is your first session. We're supposed to talk about you."
     Doctor Lecter stood across from him a few days after the incident at the lab, studying the pictures on his desk. He'd been keeping up with the case, but he wasn't officially involved in solving it. Despite his words, he seemed very interested in what Will had to say— his gaze remained on the photos.
     Will slammed his hand down onto the picture of Elise. "This..this is what I am now, Doctor Lecter. I'm focused on nothing but these girls."
     "You don't have to be so formal, Will. We're friends."
     Will chose not to comment on that. "These girls have become part of me. I can't let go of this."
     "Why not?"
     "Because they won't leave my room!" Will cried suddenly, startling both him and Hannibal. He buried his face in his hands, letting his heavy eyes close for just a moment. It felt so good.
     "Why don't you sit down?"
     Will took the offer, sinking down into one of the leather chairs. Hannibal took a seat across from him.
     The office was large and dimly lit, and it contained an entire upper section with a library's worth of bookshelves and a movable ladder. Hannibal kept it meticulously clean— Will hadn't seen a single thing out of place. He sighed.
     "You've been having more visions," Hannibal said.
     "Every night. And every night, a new girl from that list shows up." Will pointed to the desk. "There's only four right now, but I can't handle there being nine of them. If it gets to that..."
     "It very well might. You have to be prepared for that."
     "I'm not prepared for anything anymore."
     "You said that this man is cannibalizing his victims? That's certainly a haunting concept."
     "Yeah, and they're not happy about it. They scream at me."
     "What do they say?"
     Will felt chills run up his arms. "..'He found me.' That's what they say."
     "Do you believe that if you catch this man, they'll leave you alone?"
     Will fought the urge to shake his head. There would always be at least one ghost haunting him, and she would never go away. She would be latched onto him until the day he joined her— not out of malice on her part, but out of necessity on his. That wasn't something he wanted to disclose, though, not yet.
     "Will? Your silence is saying something, but I can't exactly tell what it is."
     "I think we'll just have to let it speak for itself for now."
     Hannibal quirked an eyebrow, intrigued. "I trust you'll tell me at some point. Therapy is for getting things off of your chest."
     "I need these dead girls off my chest, and then we can talk."
     Hannibal gave a slight tilt of his head. He remained silent, watching Will to the point where he had to avert his gaze. He didn't want to risk another episode.
     "..I know you're trying to get me to fill the silence."
     "I never said that."
     "You never said I was crazy, either, but I know you're thinking it."
     Hannibal's expression turned serious. "I'm not thinking that, actually." He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. "There are ghosts on you, Will. I see them."
     Will perked up at that.
     "I see them in the way you hunch your shoulders, your fearful eyes, the way you keep your cards close to your chest." The look in his eyes was intense. "You are indeed haunted. By ghosts, and by something else. I hope you'll reveal to me soon what that is."
     Will leaned back in his chair, speechless. He could count on one hand the amount of people who even knew his eye color, let alone his specific mannerisms and traits. Hannibal was strikingly observant, enough to make Will feel encroached upon. And he'd met this guy, what, twice?
     "What do you do when the ghosts come?"
     "Ignore them. At least until they try to hurt me."
"Do you feel their bodies? The pressure, the touch?"
"Yes."
"Can you move?"
"Most of the time."
Hannibal finally leaned back. "So it's not sleep paralysis. Nor is it night terrors..it seems that there really isn't a wide range of explanations. Do you believe in God?"
Will hesitated, taken aback. It wasn't a light question. "Do you?"
"Wholeheartedly." Hannibal crossed his legs. "That doesn't mean I choose to worship Him, though."
"Don't think I've ever come across that viewpoint before."
"If what you're telling me is correct, and these innocent spirits truly are roaming, then I don't respect a God who allows that to happen. Denies them their entry into Heaven for any reason."
"So do you believe me?"
"Absolutely. I never said I didn't." Hannibal folded his hands. "I'm simply intrigued as to why they chose you."
"I wish they hadn't."
It was then that Will's phone began to ring. He glanced over at it quickly, prepared to shut it off, but he stiffened when he saw the name on the screen.
"It's Jack."
Hannibal gave a half-hearted flick of his hand. "Please."
Will, almost embarrassed, answered.
"Hey, I'm at my session. What's—"
"There's been another murder."
Will closed his eyes, letting out a harsh sigh. "Minnesota?"
"Yes. I need you at my office no later than oh eight thirty tomorrow. We're flying up there."
"We know who she is yet?"
"No. I've seen the photographs, though— this is brutal, Will. She's been impaled. I hate to think what he's done to the other girls we haven't found."
"I'll be okay. I'll be there tomorrow."
Jack hung up once more without a goodbye. Will threw his head back and closed his eyes, letting the information seep into him. Impaled..God. He could fall asleep right here, he was so tired.
"Everything alright?"
Will didn't move. "I have another ghost."