FOUND: A Hannigram Devil AU REWRITTEN

Chapter Fourteen

Using the GPS coordinates found in the file, Will and Hannibal began the long drive to Elliot Budish's barn. The route involved a lot of long, winding country roads. Will loved living in the country, as he could have as much privacy as he wanted, but it was much more threatening in the dark. Something unknown lingered in the silence, stalking under the stars. They were alone, driving along a thin road with no light to guide them through the night.

They'd come up with a plan during the drive: Will was responsible for subduing Elliot and speaking to him, while Hannibal would hide on the outskirts and record the confession. Once that was settled, once they had enough evidence under their belt, Hannibal would come in and take charge. He had the power to make Elliot do anything they wanted; even better, he could knock the man out long enough to return him to the FBI.

The motel was hours away from the barn, which was the next mystery Will was trying to solve. "Budish is a truck driver," he commented as he flipped through the file. "Maybe he was on the job and couldn't control himself any longer."

"Another relapse, maybe? Or perhaps he found a way to locate the criminals on that list, targeting them specifically?"

"He can't distinguish between reality and illusion. Logically, traveling a long distance without a break would have made his illness worse."

"That likely doesn't matter to him. He may be hallucinating, which would amplify his suspicion toward other people. Rather than feeling a typical level of anxiety around a suspicious person, he begins to hallucinate that they are terrible sinners in need of healing."

Will bit his lip at the prospect of walking into the lair of a paranoid schizophrenic who was not afraid to kill. "What are we about to walk into? Be honest."

"Possibly an empty barn."

"If he's there," Will replied, exasperated. "What happens if he's there?"

"If he is there, it may be a good idea for me to keep away from him."

"Shit. Yeah. Maybe you need to stay outside." Will laughed to himself. "He won't like you very much, will he?"

"I'll watch what's going on. You'll need backup, but I don't want to overwhelm him. Risk him snapping."

Will retrieved his pistol from his car before they left. He knew better than to approach a situation like this unarmed. "You'll make sure he doesn't kill me, right?"

"Not on my watch, Will. He draws a weapon, and I'll have us out of there as soon as I can." Hannibal sounded sure of himself. "We don't even know if he's going to be there."

Will worried away at the skin on his fingers. Hannibal, noticing this and wanting to distract him, cleared his throat.

"I apologize for my behavior yesterday, Will."

It worked. Will glanced up.

"It was immature of me to toy with you like that. I should have realized you had your reasons behind ignoring me, and those reasons were valid. There was no reason, however, for me to act the way I did."

Will inhaled, taken aback. "I...thank you. It wasn't that big of a deal." He stared at the dashboard. "I'm sorry I ignored you in the first place."

"I understand why you did. You learned information that greatly changed your opinion of me."

"You did me a big favor, Hannibal," Will said, waving the file. "Thank you."

Hannibal smirked. "It may have been for selfish purposes as well. Anything to inconvenience Jack Crawford makes me happy."

About fifteen minutes later, they reached the dirt road leading to the barn. Outside was a beaten-up dark blue car that had seen better days around thirty years ago.