The Chesapeake and the Baltimore ripper | Runaways

Masquarade

Hannibal zipped up my dress for me then made himself busy picking out a tie, that were all laid out on the bed. I let out a huff while checking myself out in the mirror. I checked my stomach to see I wasn't showing yet and through the mirror, I caught Hannibal glancing up at me so I quickly played it off as checking myself out again.
"You seem nervous" he slowly walked up to me and put his chosen tie on and I went over to tie it for him. I glanced up at met his eyes then focused back on the tie.
"New place, new people. Last time we went to something like this, we found the wrong person" I whispered to him and collected my purse off our bed. For a memory run, we ran into Anthony who knew Hannibal and I were not the Fell's.
"Then I recall we dealt with the wrong person" he slanted his head at me. I just wasn't amused with this at all, I'm not even in a happy mood. Hannibal went through a drawer then turned around to face me. He presented two masks, one was black and shiny, with a golden pattern on and the other was the same except the golden pattern was white. I took the white one and stuffed it in my purse then met Hannibal's eyes.
"Grace, you can let go of that breath you are holding back. Things shall go nicely tonight" Hannibal cupped my face and leaned down to my height a little. He got a good look at my scarred, but worried, face. I analysed his neatened hair and hazel brown eyes. He looked down at my hands to see Henry's rings and I never ever take them off. He lifted my hand for a better view of them. After a few moments, he kissed my hand then let it drop. I watched him grab a blazer and enter the kitchen, leaving me in the bedroom. I fell backwards, since I knew the bed was there, and wondered if Hannibal knew about the pregnancy. I don't know what I want to do with it - but I know I have to do what I feel is right.

———

Hannibal and I linked arms as we entered the large ball. I had my mask on, so did Hannibal, and we saw people dancing, a large food and drink table. It was a jump back into time, everyone dressed so formally and it was clear this was not my crowd, but it was Hannibal's crowd.
"Ah, Mr. Myers. Pleasure to see you could make it" a man came to say to us in a french accent. He wore a red and black tuxedo and his mask was red with a shimmer on it, giving it a glass-looking texture and a large red feather sticking out.
"I wouldn't miss it" Hannibal responded with a smile on his face.
"And you must be Dr. Myers, I've heard wonderful stories about you" the man held his hand out to me and I gave him a hand. He bent down to plant a kiss on my hand and viewed Henry's rings. I raised an eyebrow at him then the man quickly snapped himself out of it and let my hand drop.
"Please, make yourself comfortable" the man quickly said and hurried off. I glanced at Henry's rings to see they're a little damaged from Henry throwing punches. There was gunpowder tucked in between a few jewels.
"Champagne?" Hannibal suddenly asked me, making me slightly jump. I shot my head up at him and Hannibal was holding a glass out to me. I gave him a smile and took it, even though I won't be drinking it.

———

I sat on one of the chairs and watched everyone dance, with my legs crossed. Hannibal was talking to a small crowd of people and I was getting sick of hearing the fake laughter and the really boring stories. I have great tales to say, but their story is quite basic. I swirled the champagne in my hands then someone sat down beside me. I glanced over to see the red tuxedo and red mask.
"Not your crowd?" He asked me with a smirk. I just chuckled and placed the champagne on the table beside me.
"Mmm no" I answered him. I let my hand hang that wore all the rings and caught the man staring at them again. He knows something.
"Hey, you're sir Antony right?" I questioned him. After a few moments, he realised I was talking to him and shot his head up at me.
"Yeah. I've heard your stories too" he replied back to me. Which part? Serial killer? Orphan? Hannibal the cannibal? Sargent?
"You've saved many lives, haven't you doctor?" He asked me. I just giggled and looked down at my lap.
"I Wouldn't want to burst my ego" I chuckled.
"Oh nonsense, you're a life saver" he promised me. I slanted my head up at him and I needed to know what he knows about me and the rings.
"Hey, it's getting loud in here. Maybe we should go somewhere quieter" I leaned forward to his face and whispered to him, looking him up and down slowly. He smirked down at me and started to walk somewhere. I grabbed my champagne glass and followed after him. I turned to the crowd I last saw Hannibal in to see him staring at me. I just ignored it and followed after the man.

He opened the door to a bedroom and once I shut the door using my back, I stared over at him. We both stood very still and I may have underestimated him.
"You got Henry's rings. Where is he?" The man questioned me. Holy fuck, did I hear that right. How many people did Grutas have? Not that I entirely care anymore, the ones I wanted are dead - because of me.
"They belong to me more than anyone else" I scowled to him, pouring the glass' contents on the wooden floor. Now, if he even dared charge at me. I could smash the bottle and use that as a weapon.
"So it is you. You're the little girl they left in the snow to die, but you killed them one by one" he slowly said to me, taking his mask off. He had thick eyebrows and a scar that ran across his nose. He ruffled his brunette hair up and tossed his mask somewhere. I took my mask off and placed it on the dresser next to me. He tilted his head at me while viewing my scars than ran all over me. He suddenly charged at me and I hit my back on the door once he grabbed me, by wrapping his arms around my waist and slamming me against the door. I kneed him in the stomach and punched him to the floor. He hit the floor and I could hear his raspy breaths. He spat blood out on the floor and I walked over him, hearing my heels click on the wooden floors. I smashed the champagne glass on the wall and gripped onto it, watching the man get up. Once he was standing, he had a nose bleed and saw the glass in my hands and the small shards on the floor. He wiped the blood off him using his sleeve.
"Come on, I'm just the little girl lost in the snow" I whispered under my breath to him. The door swung opened and Antony tried to turn around to see who was there, but Hannibal had already knocked him out with a structure. I dropped the glass and viewed Antony on the floor. I looked up at Hannibal and he didn't seem pleased with me, but I didn't care. I put my hand on my stomach while sitting down on the bed to take some breaths after the man tackled me from the stomach and I hit the door. I heard Hannibal take some footsteps towards me and I couldn't care about his lecture.
"Not sticking your neck out?" He questioned me.
"He knew something. He knew who I was. He knew who Henry was" I angrily spoke back to Hannibal. We could faintly hear the music in the background and it was most definitely time to go.
"Come on" Hannibal brushed my back with his finger tips and waited at the door for me. I got myself off the bed, feeling sick, and I walked over to unconscious Antony. I searched his pockets and found a pocket watch, it was valuable more than anything. I opened it up to see a photo of the whole crew on the boat. I few faces I recognised but Henry's face was there. His eyepatch, his muscly arms, his slick backed hair and healthy beard. There was Grentz, Milko and Kolnas.
"Grace, we must be taking our leaving" Hannibal helped me off the floor but I shook him off me. He just let out a loud sigh and I grabbed a glass shard.
"He can't talk, he can't write, he can't see. He can stay alive but he can't tell anyone of this" I exclaimed while starting to cut his tongue off.
"And where do you think you can dispose those?" Hannibal questioned me. I glanced up at him with a raised eyebrow.
"I'm sure you're starved" I replied.

———

I gipped in the toilet again and wrapped one arm around my stomach while I rested on the other arm. Hannibal came up behind me and zipped down my dress and helped clothe me into something comfier.
"Talk to me. What's wrong?" Hannibal asked me, undressing me and leaving me in my panties.
"Too much champagne" I tiredly said and gipped again. After what felt like hours, I finally puked. Hannibal rushed to grab my hair and rubbed my back while I just hurled.
"You did not drink a drop of alcohol, I saw" he told me and waited for me to finish hurling.
"Then it's just a bug" I tiredly spoke back to him. He dressed me in a oversized shirt and wrapped a blanket around me.
"What kind of bug?" He asked me.
"I don't know!" I sighed to him.