Heart Still Intact

6. Blood On White Tiles

The next time Will woke up, he was jerked awake when he felt a hand on his shoulder. Looking around, he found Hannibal backing away, a neutral expression on his face. Will then realised that they had stopped moving.

"We're here," Hannibal spoke as he stepped out of the vehicle. Will watched as Hannibal crossed to Will's side of the vehicle. Hannibal opened the door and Will's cuffed hand was pulled along, taking him by surprise. Surprising Will even further, Hannibal reached for the cuff, unlocking it and letting Will's hand go. There was a nasty bruise forming on Will’s wrist. Hannibal ached at the sight.

Will simply sat inside the vehicle, waiting for Hannibal to speak.

"Shall we?" Hannibal asked, speaking as if he hadn't drugged Will three times within the last 48 hours. Not wanting to anger Hannibal, Will nodded, getting out of the vehicle.

Will was ambushed by the cold breeze. If Will had to guess, he would say that it was now nighttime. Meaning, it's been almost 2 days since he was first drugged. He didn't want to use kidnapped, since he had willingly walked into Hannibal’s house like some sort of lamb being led to slaughter.

Just as Will stepped out, he didn't expect his legs to be weak as he buckled. The cold gravel bit into his barefeet. He would have crashed straight into the ground if it weren't for Hannibal's grip on Will's shirt. It was then that Will realised that he hadn't showered in the last 48 hours, not even changed his clothes, while Hannibal seems to have changed his clothes every time Will saw him.

"I apologise," Hannibal spoke, bringing Will closer. Holding almost all of Will's weight, Hannibal began walking towards the house.

It was as grandiose as Hannibal's previous place. In fact, it was definitely much bigger than Hannibal's previous house. Turning his head, Will noticed the large forest that surrounded the house. It seemed to shroud the place in complete darkness.  The darkness made it difficult to see but the forest seemed to stretch on forever.

Within no time, Hannibal had brought them inside the house. The interior of the house was an earthy tone, complementing the land surrounding them. The walls were painted a dark brown, accented with a forest green. The lights gave a warm look to the house, highlighting all the dark corners of the house. The furniture matched the interior, showing that Hannibal clearly put thought into the decor. Assisting Will into a room that looked like a living room, Hannibal gently placed Will on the couch. Placing a hand on Will's forehead, Hannibal checked for any sign of a fever. Some primal instinct in Will wanted to nuzzle against Hannibal's cold hand yet his dignity forced him to shy away from the touch.

"Stay here," Hannibal murmured, pushing Will to lie on the sofa. With no resistance, Will went down. He was disgusted by the way he went down without a fight. The way he simply followed Hannibal like he was some sort of puppet. At this point, he was tired. He was too tired to fight back. He'll try something soon. Later. For now, he will simply do what Hannibal says.

While Will was down, Hannibal used this time to unpack the things from the vehicle. Due to the ill timing of his identity being discovered, Hannibal didn't have enough time to pack everything. Most of his belongings were left behind. Luckily, Hannibal kept a truck prepared for the things he might need in case of a quick getaway. He had purchased a house under a different name, making sure to keep it fully stocked and prepared for a quick hideout.

After meeting Will, Hannibal had always wanted to make plans to include Will in his life. He wasn’t sure if the profiler would go along with such plans. It didn’t bring Hannibal any comfort in forcing Will to do things yet, he was left with no choice. Sure, the current plans weren’t perfect but they would make due until Hannibal came up with something better.