Looking for something substantial or intelligent? This isn't it! You've been warned.
The usual applies; I own no one or nothing pertaining to this story.
If You Love Me, Let Me Go
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Dr. Hannibal Lecter stood on his balcony, overlooking a beautiful sunset on Lake Tahoe. He never cared for the casinos or the tourists, but the view was breathtaking.
As he stood watching the sun drop from the sky, his mind drifted back to his decision. And a very painful decision it was.
A month had passed since he had spoken with her. She had appeared so adamant, that he felt there was no further course of action that could be taken.
He would let her go.
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After the incident with Krendler, the Bureau had dropped Special Agent Starling like a hot rock. Since they were unable to apprehend Dr. Lecter, they had to blame someone and she was it. At first she was devastated by their decision to dismiss her, but in time she grew to be grateful. For now her life had truly begun, or so she hoped.
Clarice had moved to Lake Tahoe, Nevada and taken a job as Head of Security
with Harrah's Casino. Not the most glamorous job, granted, but she was finally starting to get some fun out of life. The job consisted of babysitting a handful of supervisors, four dozen officers and keeping the department under budget. Nothing she couldn't handle with ease.
The perks were great. Free meals and shows and five weeks of vacation a year. The pay wasn't great, but the fact she had got to meet Bill Cosby her first week on the job almost made up for that.
Clarice had rented a modest two-bedroom home, with a huge rock fireplace. She turned the second bedroom into her office, filling it with budget charts, schedules and other work related nonsense. The only thing she had kept from her previous life, as she liked to refer to it, was a single photograph, a photograph of him. She had tried to throw it away several times, but she just couldn't bring herself to do it.
The picture hung on her wall, pinned, eye level, just over her desk. She talked to it frequently, giving her some kind of strange comfort.
Men no longer held her interest, knowing there would never be anyone who could compare, or even come close to him. No one could ever hope to know her, understand her, or trust her so completely as he did.
So she resigned herself to her work, as before, never realizing history was repeating itself, only in a nicer location.
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It hadn't taken long for Dr. Lecter to track down the object of his affection.
When he had discovered her new location, he felt it only proper to give her time to settle in before turning her world upside down.
Dr. Lecter had been watching Clarice for several weeks. He especially enjoyed it when she would go to the beach to read. Although she wore a one-piece bathing suit, she literally took his breath away. She was a diamond that only need be polished.
When he determined enough time had passed, he made plans to call on his little Starling.
He watched as she left for work, wondering what her reaction would be to seeing him again. He would know soon enough.
As her Jeep turned the corner, he exited his vehicle, making his way to her home.
The house wasn't totally secluded, but the trees made for very nice cover.
He picked the lock on the front door with ease. Upon entering, he stood still, eyes closed, breathing deeply, taking in the scent that was only Clarice.
After a few moments, he opened his eyes. Her home was pleasant, comfortable, very much her.
He walked throughout the house finding nothing out of the ordinary until reaching her office. As soon as he walked through the door, he was quite surprised to see a picture of himself, staring back at him.
A smile that reached all the way to his eyes covered his face. He knew she hadn't forgotten him, but he was quite pleased that she wasn't even trying to.
The picture was old and worn, one from his days down in the dungeon. It had been handled a great deal over the years. He unpinned it from the wall, bringing it closer, he could smell her scent all over it, her fingerprints covered the photo. He wondered how many times had she held it and thought of him.
He sat down at the desk, finding a pen, he turned the picture over and began to write.
When he had finished, he pinned the picture back to the wall and went into the living room, making himself comfortable on the sofa, he would rest awhile. He had several hours to kill before Clarice would return home. For now, he would rest and wait.
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Starling had been with Harrah's a couple of months. Everything was working smoothly.
No major problems had occurred since her arrival, and she was starting to become familiar with the in's and out's of casino life. She didn't gamble much, so she spent most of her free time on the beach reading a book or just relaxing at home. She was looking forward to winter, she thought she might try her hand at some snowboarding.
The day had gone by quickly. Clarice was looking forward to getting home and taking a nice long bath. She stopped on the way home and bought a bottle wine. She usually bought wine because she liked the way the bottle looked. That system didn't always work out so well. This time the clerk helped her pick out a nice vintage, not to expensive. She thanked him for his help as she paid, then continued home.
It was about 6:00p when she got home. It was late September and the nights were already starting to get pretty cold. She thought she might light a fire tonight. She loved sitting by the fireplace just watching the flames dance. It was very calming. She didn't know how much calming she was going to need until she opened the front door.