The Other One | Hannigram |

Chapter 8

 
 
Jack texted him to check the Johns Hopkins Hospital. Eldon couldn’t return back to the pharmacy, so he would have to find somewhere else to get new victims for his mushrooms. Johns Hopkins was the closest so Will could see the point. Alana and Margot planned to take Abigail out for lunch right after clothes shopping. Although he wasn’t there, he believed she could act when being given human food. 
 
There were diabetics at hospitals, so it would be a perfect place for Eldon to head to. Will was counting on him being there somewhere. When he arrived, he headed towards the endocrinology wing of the hospital. If anyone wanted to know who he was, he would take out the badge Jack gave him. Now that he was working for the FBI, he needed his credentials.
 
He passed a few doctors and nurses who were confused to see him. He pulled out his credentials and gestured at his gun before they scurried away. Will continued through the hallway to peek inside the rooms to make sure no one was missing. When he entered room 408 and saw the bed was empty. 
 
Eldon.  
 
Will ran back to the front desk of the wing to see a woman stare back at him. “Where are they? The patient in 408. Where are they?”
 
“They took her for tests.” The woman answered cluelessly. 
 
“Who took her?” Will asked patiently. When he didn’t receive an answer, he repeated, “who took her?!” 
 
The woman stuttered in fright. “I-I don’t know!” 
 
Will groaned and turned away to head further into the hallway. He was on his own for now until he apprehended Eldon. He kept a tight grip on his gun, showing it to nearby doctors and nurses. They didn’t stop him when they noticed he was dashing to get somewhere. 
 
He went through a door to lead him downstairs. He hurried down the stairs, knowing that he couldn’t let Eldon get away, not this time around. 
 
Once he went through the next door and exited, he spotted Eldon, dressed in scrubs, with the patient. She would never understand what the psychopath would have made her endure and luckily, she wouldn’t ever have to. 
 
“Hey!” Will called out. He stopped in his tracks and aimed, a bullet hitting Eldon’s upper right arm. Eldon grunted in pain and dropped his gun, as he leaned into the wall. 
 
Will approached the man, kicking his gun far away so he couldn’t reach for it. He checked on the girl before turning his attention on Eldon, keeping his gun pointed directly at him. 
 
“What were you gonna do to her?” Will asked. Now with Abigail in his life, he had the misfortune of overthinking things. What if that girl was Abigail? What if she became a victim of a psychopath? 
 
Eldon explained. “We all evolved from mycelium. I’m simply reintroducing her to the concept.”  
 
“By burying her alive?” 
 
“The journalist said you understood me.” Eldon said in a betrayed tone. 
 
Will declared. “I don’t.” 
 
“We, you would have. You would have.” Eldon said assuredly, as if Will was wrong. “If you walk through a field of mycelium, they know you are there. They know you are there! The spores reach for you as you walk by. I know who you’re reaching for. I know.”
 
Will shook his head in disbelief. He fished out his phone and called Jack while keeping his gun pointed at Eldon. The psychopath remained cooperative as Jack and his team came in to arrest him. The girl was brought back to her room and the doctors thanked them. 
 
They caught the psychopath.

~ Hannigram ~

“Freddie Lounds was approached by Detective Pascal after he was suspended from work at her motel. Since Eldon read about you on TattleCrime and she gave him information she got from Pascal.” Jack informed him when he headed back to the BAU.  
 
Will held his jacket in his arms. “Pascal told Freddie all about me?” 
 
“She tricked Pascal by saying she was a parent of one of the parents of the boys that found the bodies. Pascal was shot in the head by Eldon though.” Jack explained, seeming depressed to mention Pascal’s death. 
 
Jack was glad that they had captured another psychopath. It was a plus for them. “You’re free to go, Will, sorry for interrupting any of your plans you may have had.”
 
“I had a free schedule.” Will could see Jack’s concerns vanish into thin air. “I’ll see you later, Jack,” he bid goodbye to his boss. 
 
He couldn’t wait to see Abigail and see how much Alana and Margot spoiled her.  
 
Will made sure to notify the two that he was off work so they could hopefully meet up at the motel. Alana, Margot and Abigail were both carrying shopping bags that had fancy floral patterns. He noticed there was plenty. 
 
He hurried up the stairs, his eyes resting on Abigail’s sparkling eyes. “Before I mention how much you spoiled her, I want to say thank you for watching her.” 
 
“It was fun!” Margot exclaimed, resting a hand on Abigail’s shoulder. “You enjoyed it, right Abigail?”
 
Abigail nodded joyfully, carefully placing the bags down and running to her mother. Will engulfed her in a hug and pecked her cheek before glancing up at the two women. He noticed Alana’s guilty eyes. 
 
“Look Will, I’m sorry for referring to Hannibal or not confiding in you first. I know you’re not comfortable with it. You don’t have to meet with Hannibal if you absolutely don’t—”
 
Will interjected. “It’s okay, Alana, really. I forgave you right after I called.”
 
Alana smiled hopefully. “Promise?”
 
Will couldn’t resist smiling back at her either. “I promise, Alana.” Margot was delighted to see the two best friends had made up. 
 
“Well, this was a super fun day. We’ll have to do it again.” Margot cheered, smiling at Abigail. She glanced up at Will, “maybe next time you’ll join us, Will.” 
 
Will rolled his eyes. “You’re hoping to get me, a flannel and button up shirt guy, into elegant suits, Margot?”
 
Margot faced Alana. “You’d look stunning, wouldn’t he, Alana?” 
 
“Abi and you would be matching, both dressed formally and elegant. We’ll have to take pictures.” Alana agreed with Margot. “Next time we’re definitely spoiling you too, Will.”
 
Will couldn’t argue with either of them once their minds were set. “I suppose,” he helped Abigail take the bags. “Thank you again,” he thanked the two as they headed downstairs. 
 
Once the mother and daughter were inside of their motel room, Will helped Abigail fold all the dresses neatly. From what he saw, they were cute and formal dresses that he knew looked stunning on Abigail. The many accessories and shoes in addition would complete the look too. 
 
Out of the blue, while holding Artemisia Gentileschi and sitting on the bed, she asked, “Did you see the other wendigo today?” 
 
Will paused for a moment. The memory played in his head. No doubt, if he turned to steal one last look at the alpha, he would see sadness and maybe a hint of betrayal. 
 
Everything Hannibal mentioned was true. He understood now what he felt when being around the alpha. He did feel safe with him, which was why he was soothed by his scent and even him in general. It was the exact same effect he got when he thought of Abigail. 
 
Home. 
 
You found home in your loved ones. It wasn’t the house that you were raised in that mattered, it was the people that surrounded you that loved you. Will loved his small house back in Wolf Trap, but what it home was his dogs and later Abigail. 
 
Hannibal and he were mates. It would be weirder when he said it aloud. He nearly wished that he would have accepted Hannibal’s offer. It would have been nice to know more about this, but he couldn’t. 
 
“I did.” Will answered, imagining the questions Abigail would ask next. 
 
Abigail beamed at her mother’s response. “Cool! You two can be friends like Marissa and I.”
 
Unfortunately, Marissa isn’t a wendigo like how Hannibal and I are, Will thought, seeing Abigail’s eyes when she brought up her human friend. 
 
“It would be nice.” Will replied.  
 
Even if he wanted to, he couldn’t escape Hannibal. What was he to do? He couldn’t move back to Wolf Trap. He had already uprooted Abigail and he would be doing the same to their dogs. It would be horrible of him to do it again. 
 
Baltimore was their new home. It would stay that way for a long time. 
 
He didn’t want to imagine Hannibal rejecting Abigail. It was all that came to mind though. He needed to protect Abigail and if Hannibal ever got the urge to harm her, Will wouldn’t let his mate do such a thing. 
 
“It’s cool that there’s another wendigo in Baltimore. At least we’re not the only ones, right, Mommy?” Abigail asked innocently, fidgeting with Artemisia Gentileschi’s dress. “We’re not alone,” Abigail said, looking up at her mother.
 
Will pecked Abigail’s forehead, wrapping his arms around her protectively. He would have expected her to be confused by the sudden embrace, but she wasn’t. Instead, Abigail placed Artemisia Gentileschi next to her and wrapped her arms around him. 
 
Abigail meant everything to him. She was also his home. He would always choose her. 
 
It was hard for him to think of rejecting the mate, who was apparently destined for him. He couldn’t believe his father skipped that lesson. Will understood why though. Obviously, his parents were mates, and his father couldn’t handle the topic because it made him think of the loss of his mate. 
 
Even though it brought ache to his father’s heart, Will was disappointed. It would have been nice to know that. Then again, he would know from the spot that Garret wasn’t his mate. His heat had still been triggered, so perhaps it wouldn’t have changed anything? 
 
“Mommy?” 
 
“Yes, love.” Will could feel his eyes go watery. What for? Did the omega in him feel the pain of the possibility of having to reject their mate? 
 
Abigail pulled away and gazed up. “Who is Hannibal?”
 
Will’s eyebrows elevated; his attentive eyes set on Abigail. “Where did you hear that name?” 
 
“While I was changing, I heard Auntie Alana and Margot mention the name. They mentioned you too, so I thought maybe you knew Hannibal?” Abigail clarified without any clue that she was talking about the alpha wendigo. 
 
Will wrangled over whether to tell her or not on his head. Would it matter? “Hannibal is the alpha wendigo.” 
 
Abigail goggled at her mother, putting the two pieces together. “Maybe when we get a house and bring the dogs here, we can invite him to dinner?” 
 
It sounded like a nice idea. A perfect one even. The three of them, wendigos in Baltimore, feasting together over human meat. It made it sound like they were a family. 
 
That would be nice, Will thought despairingly. 

~ Hannigram ~

There was an anguished tone that erupted from the harpsichord. His head hung, shoulders hunched, and his jaw was clenched while his thoughts were clouded. With a downcast gaze, Hannibal played the harpsichord beautifully. It was a song of an aching heart and love. 
 
Inconsolable, he was. The tears that took their time to cascade down his cheeks and fall into his trousers were a big clue of his heartbreak. His chin trembled. 
 
Rejection. Betrayal. Forlorn. All these emotions within him with the addition of a bleeding heart. Will hadn’t said he rejected him, but it felt like he had done so. He simply declined his invitation when they were to talk further about them being mates. 
 
Hannibal didn’t know why Will wouldn’t stay. It felt like he had gotten close with providing information. If she wasn’t dead, Bedelia would be perfect for him to hash out this woeful event. 
 
Too bad she thought of exposing me, Hannibal thought. He reminisced eating her leg while she sat at the other end of the table watching. 
 
Upon meeting Will, he thought his life would finally be complete. The happiness shared between his parents, or between his uncle and Lady Murasaki, he would get that too. He yearned for it even at a young age. Hannibal was pleased to know there was one person in the whole world who was specifically for him. 
 
Could you imagine how it felt to meet that person just to be without them as if you never met them? 
 
He couldn’t accept it though. Hannibal could always seek out Will. The omega had done so today, it wouldn’t be bad for him to do the same. Will didn’t know a thing about mates, perhaps he needed to be reminded of what it meant? Hannibal wouldn't mind showing his mate that he truly cared for him. 
 
The alpha no longer felt overcome with sorrow now that he had a plan. He stopped playing the harpsichord and thought how he could show his mate he was worthy. 
 
Hannibal could bring food to Will. It would show that he was good at hunting (it was expected that all wendigos should be regardless) and that he could provide for Will and the family they would have together. 
 
Yes, this plan seemed perfect! 
 
As he had intended from the beginning, Hannibal was going to have his mate. Fate was known to bring obstacles on everyone’s path, and this happened to be one. Hannibal wished to be with his mate, and he would do whatever it took to have Will. 
 
They were mates and this meant they were meant to be together forever. Hannibal knew it would all work it. It had to.