Bloodlust: A Hannibal AU

Chapter One

The body lay cold on its slab in the chilling morgue. Detective Beatrice Carver took a deep breath and shoved her hands back into the pockets of her trench coat. She looked to the fiber analyst to her left. "So, what do we have here, Bev?" Beverly Katz stood straight, and she wore a look of frustration.

"There's something I'm not seeing here." Bev took her gloves off with a THWACK and threw them into the bin by her feet.

"Of course you can't see it." Came a deep, booming voice from the doorway. Beatrice turned with a start to see Agent Jack Crawford, arms crossed and a smirk plastered on his face. "That's because you need a special kind of person to see it." Jack came into the room and stood next to Beatrice. "Trixie Carver, it's been a long time." He gave a hearty laugh and wrapped an arm around her.

"Yes, it certainly has, Jack." Beatrice returned the hug. Beverly looked on with a cocked brow. "His wife, Bella, used to babysit me as a kid. Jack's the reason I pursued the FBI."

"Well, as much as I hate to break up this reunion, there's a dead man on this table." Beverly said. "And do you mean who I think you mean?"

"Will Graham."

Beverly's eyes grew wide. "I don't think that's a good idea, Jack."

"Never heard of him." Beatrice said, shrugging. "Is he good?"

"Well, you can be the judge of that." Jack said as he looked at Beatrice with a smile.

"Why do you say that?"

---

The ride to the FBI Academy wasn't long, though Trixie found herself wishing it was. It was nice to catch up with Jack, someone she always looked up to as a child, and she was glad to see he seemed proud of the young woman she had become.

They walked the halls to a large classroom, the screen showing various deceased victims of crimes past. The man at the center of the room rambled on about the case he was showcasing. "Can anyone guess what this killer's motive was?" The classroom remained silent. "How about what gender the killer was?" The classroom was quiet as the grave.

"Female." Beatrice responded as she walked into view. The man looked at her strangely, then he quickly averted his gaze.

"And the motive?"

"She's killing her mother over and over again. You can tell by the age of the victims, plus they've all got red hair, which was the color of the mother's hair." Beatrice held out a hand toward the man. He looked at it, then back to her eyes.

"And how could you possibly know that from looking at two slides?"

"It was my case." Her hand remained in the air for a moment, but was left alone. She took the hint and dropped her hand. The man, Will Graham, spied Jack Crawford standing behind Beatrice.

"Class dismissed." He shouted to the room, and they scattered like roaches. "You're Detective Carver?"

"Beatrice Carver, at your service." Will pushed past her toward Jack.

"What are you doing here? I told you I was done after Hobbs."

"Beatrice and I need you." Jack said, keeping his darkly calm demeanor. "There's something you'll want to see."

"Dr. Lecter says I need a break. And I agree with him. I just want to teach."

"I've already spoke with Hannibal. He says you're the only person that can help break this case."

"I'm not doing it, Jack. I'm not." Will looked behind himself to the detective. "I'm sorry, Beatrice." And with that, Will Graham was gone.

The office waiting room of Doctor Hannibal Lecter was dim, yet cozy. There was a calming atmosphere to the room, and though Beatrice sat in the same demeanor as the room, Jack Crawford paced back and forth. Finally, after quite a long wait, the office door opened. Beatrice stood instinctively.

The older man, Hannibal, stood in the doorway, one hand on the door, the other at his side. He averted his gaze from Jack to Beatrice. He looked her up and down. "Jack, you've brought a friend." His accent was thick, yet it flowed smoothly from his lips. Beatrice found herself charmed by him immediately.

"Cut the crap, Hannibal. We need to talk." Jack pushed past the man and into the office. He gestured for Beatrice to enter.

"Good afternoon, I'm Detective Beatrice Carver." When she held out her hand, Hannibal took it in his and kissed her wrist lightly. Something surged inside her, but she repressed it and followed Jack in.

Jack began to shout, his anger toward Hannibal was obvious. "How could you ask Will to take a break? People are dying because you told him to go back to teaching."

"What I speak about with my patients is in confidence. Jack, I ask you take a breath."

"Wait, Jack," Beatrice interrupted. "You lied to Will about speaking with this guy?" Jack looked down in shame.

"I did what I had to. We need Will Graham." Jack went to sit on the couch, feeling defeated.

Hannibal took a seat on the chair opposite from Jack. He gestured to the seat, indicating that Beatrice should sit. She obliged. The two of them sat quietly as Jack placed his head in his hands.

"Just tell me you'll talk to him, Hannibal. Please?" Jack Crawford asked him. Beatrice took note that the case didn't seem this desperate from the little knowledge she had of it. She had only just been given the case the week prior, and this was the second body in relation to it.

They were both the same: male in his mid to late 30s, blonde hair, strangulation marks on the throat, various cuts post mortem, but the curious thing was that both men had recently had sex.

"I have a better plan." Hannibal chimed in with a devilish smile. "Send Detective Carver to speak with him." Beatrice looked toward Hannibal.

"Why me?"

"Well, it is your case. And though Will trusts me, I am sure he would know that Jack came to see me, and to ask that I convince him. Knowing Will, it would make him more stubborn in his decision. Miss Carver, on the other hand, is a stranger. He does not know her. Her desperation for his help may be enough to sway him." Hannibal smiled at her. The curl of his lips was like a spider's web, cleverly weaved to catch something, but what?