FOUND: A Hannigram Devil AU

27

"Nothing under the Olsen name."
"Okay. I'm checking Anderson."
Will and Hannibal hunched together at Hannibal's desk, each staring at their own respective screens. Will had shown up to therapy with his laptop, eyes bloodshot and tired, and demanded to spend the session researching the Minnesota Shrike. He'd been pleasantly surprised when Hannibal pulled out a tablet, wordlessly gesturing for him to sit. They'd spent close to the full hour and a half on researching Hobbs himself, but then the search turned upside down when Hannibal suggested the girls.
"He murdered the latest girl in her own cabin. Lived in it for a few days," Hannibal had remarked. "He's clearly looking for a place to stay."
"And he wants to make the most of these girls." Will nodded along. "He could be using something under one of their names."
Now, on the FBI database, they'd turned up nothing on the majority of the victims. They were all dead and buried, their legacies left behind.
"Wait." He froze, startled by the increased number of search results at the Latimer name. He sorted by recent activity, letting out an audible gasp at what he saw. Hannibal turned to look. "There's been a recent purchase under the Diana Latimer name. A cabin. Signed off with her identity."
The database didn't offer much, just a catalogue of federal purchases under the person's identity. Renting the cabin through an app had basically been an open gate for the FBI. Hobbs had slipped up.
"He rented a cabin in this dead girl's name. Doesn't he know that those apps give your data away like candy? We see all of this so easily."
"He must not know that. That, or he only plans on staying a couple of days. He did rent it, after all— temporarily."
Will grunted in frustration. "It won't tell me the dates he rented it. Only that the purchase was made two days ago."
"I bet he'd still be there. That's not a long time ago."
"We don't have a lot of time." Will stood, slamming the laptop shut. "I have to tell Jack." He began to take off for the door, but he was stopped by Hannibal grabbing his hand. Will spun, momentarily weakened by the touch.
"Will. He's not going to listen to you." Hannibal's face softened. "He never does. He doesn't want your input, anyway. You probably won't make it past the door, after your last conversation with him."
"He has to listen! This is the only information he's got." He held up the laptop.
"Jack is somehow even more stubborn than you are. He's not going to budge."
Will sighed. "What do you think I should do, then?"
"You have all of the information, right? You can see the address?"
"What? Why would I— no. No way. I can't go over there alone!" Will shook his head forcefully.
"You wouldn't be alone. I'd go. And why not? The information's all there. Go to him. If Jack won't listen, go to him yourself. I own a gun— we can take that. You've got access to cuffs, tasers, anything you could need."
Will was perplexed by Hannibal's sudden intensity. He'd never been this insistent over something. "No, Hannibal. I've already broken enough rules."
"And it's never bothered you before."
     "I've got too many eyes on me. They're already gonna find my DNA in Elliot's barn, and..I don't know. I don't know what to do." His voice cracked, and he didn't notice the tears in his eyes until they were running down his cheeks. Hannibal's face softened.
     "Talk to me, Will. What's wrong?"
"What's wrong? I'm scared!" Will blurted, his face turning red. He averted his gaze and lowered his voice so much that Hannibal had to lean in to hear. "I'm..I'm scared of what I'll do to him."
"Will—"
"I'll kill him." Will's heart hammered in his chest. "I'll kill him the moment I see him." He squeezed his eyes shut, trying to calm his breaths. "I've always thought about it."
"That's okay, Will. That's normal."
"No. You made me that way."
"I don't believe I've changed you. I simply exposed what you've been hiding away from the world." He stepped closer. "You hide your true desires."
     "I don't have any true desires! I just want to be happy." He ran a hand across his face. "I don't want to be a bad person."
     "Will, you're not. You're not a bad person. But you do conceal parts of yourself." He placed a hand on Will's shoulder. "You empathize with these killers because, in reality, you share their desires on a fundamental level."
     "I liked killing them." His voice quivered.
     "Yes. And it's always been there. Someone just needed to help you bring it out."
"There's something that I can't get out of my head. And..I can't tell you about it until I know the truth."
He hoped with all of his heart that he wasn't right. He couldn't handle the consequences, couldn't handle what it meant for him if he was right. What it said about him.
Hannibal studied him, running his thumb along the back of Will's hand. They couldn't let go of each other. There was a silent exchange of glances, a promise of trust. A promise to forgive.