Tainted | Hannibal Lecter

16. Listen to me

A few hours had past and Madison felt a lot better. Her eyes had finally dried and it was easier to smile now.

She had just under an hour until Bedelia arrives, so she put her dress on, ran her fingers through her dark hair and checked her appearance in the mirror.

She stared at the gauze that covered the wound on her head and decided it would draw too much attention, so she decided to take it off. The scar was large and had a purple tint, she had to hold the tears in when she first saw it. She tried to ignore her face and straightened out her flimsy navy dress, but the sight of her body just saddened her more. Since her parent's passing, she had no motivation to do anything, and as a result, lost a lot of weight. She quickly walked away from the mirror and gathered the courage to leave the room.

Once confident enough, she walked downstairs and into the kitchen. The first thing she noticed was Hannibal, standing behind the counter in a perfectly tailored suit. The second thing she noticed was the smell that filled the kitchen, she didn't know what it was, but it smelt amazing.

As soon as Hannibal saw Madison, he walked towards her. He thought she couldn't get anymore beautiful, but he was wrong.

"It smells amazing in here, Hannibal"
She smiles

"Thank you," He returns the smile, "I look forward to serving the meal."

Just as Madison was about to speak, there was a ring at the door. They both looked at each other. Madison felt so nervous she thought she might throw up. Hannibal could sense the tension and thrived off of it.

As he walked towards the door, Madison took deep breaths and then followed him. As a small child would, she hid behind Hannibal's tall body and waited for him to open the door.
Once he did, the women was revealed. She had bright blonde hair and blue eyes, Madison admired her beauty and elegance.

"Hannibal"
She smiled

"Bedelia, welcome."
He opened the door wider and gestured for her to come inside.

As she took a few steps forward, she noticed Madison. Hannibal took her hand and brought her in front of him.

"Bedelia, this is Madison."

Madison smiles uncomfortably but extends her arm and offers her hand.

"It's nice to meet you"

Bedelia shook her hand while analysing Madison.

"It's nice to meet you too, Madison. I've heard a lot about you."

Madison looked up at Hannibal and smiled.

"Let's move to the dining room shall we."
Hannibal said

Hannibal lead the two into the dining room and pulled out both of their chairs.
Once sat down, Bedelia took note of the longing looks that Hannibal and Madison exchanged. They seemed to be very dependant on eachother and Bedelia found this interesting.

When Hannibal had left the room to collect the food, Madison found herself desperately trying to find something to say.

"How do you know Hannibal?"
She asked

"I'm his psychiatrist," when seeing Madison's confused expression she felt the need to elaborate, "I innsisted on not coming tonight... but Hannibal can be very persuasive."

Madison didn't understand what she meant by this, so she chose to ignore it.

"You are his patient, yes?"
Bedelia says while lifting her wine glass to her lips

"I am."

Bedelia knew the extent of their relationship, Hannibal would speak to her about Madison every session. He spoke in explicit detail the things he wanted to do to her, Bedelia hated it, which only made Hannibal want to continue.