Thanks so much everyone, for all of your reviews and support! I really appreciate all of your feedback and it's good to know that you enjoy reading this as much as I enjoy writing it. Again, thank you!
-I felt like it was time to have a more Will-centered chapter, so that's what we have here. Enjoy!
The guard retrieved Will from his cell at six AM, then escorted him to Doctor Chilton's office. He seated Will in the chair across from Chilton, who sat languidly eating a succulent breakfast of grilled sausage and fried eggs while appearing to read this morning's paper. The smell of such rich food made Will's stomach churn. He'd become accustomed to the bland prison diet of bread, beans, and the occasional slice of fruit. Chilton didn't look up when the guard left and closed the door. Will smirked.
"You woke up this early just for me? Should I be honored or worried?" He was feeling significantly better since his meeting with Carmen. He always felt revitalized after seeing her, ready to stand up and fight the world, reminded that he was no longer alone. Chilton did not speak until his plate was empty, which left Will enough time to read most of the front page, which detailed the alarming increase of the homicide rate in Baltimore over the last month.
"It appears as though my incarceration hasn't affected the frequency of murders." Chilton released a long, exasperated sigh before setting the papers aside and folding his fingers over his chest.
"I'm glad you're feeling so talkative today. I hope you'll keep it up, we have a long day ahead of us."
"That's right, you're finalizing my psychiatric report."
"Yes, that's true. But this morning, I thought we could talk about something different. More particularly, someone different." Will raised an eyebrow.
"Shouldn't I be the subject of my own report?"
"You should know as well as anyone that the people around you shape you just as much as you shape yourself."
"You mean you want to talk about my friends."
"That is exactly what I mean." Will was quick to respond.
"I don't have any friends left." Chilton acted as though this surprised him.
"Oh? What about Carmen Banks?" Will's prior confidence evaporated immediately. That was what this was about. Of course.
"You're on far more familiar terms with her than I am. She's been in here almost every other day. So tell me, what is your impression of her?"
Will tried to hide his hesitation before speaking.
"She's a gifted writer."
"Have you read her work?" Chilton was trying to make eye contact with him now. He shouldn't look down, that would be perceived as submission or dishonesty. Instead he looked at the spine of the book directly behind and to the left of Chilton's ear.
"Yes, they're the most accurate criminal novels I've ever read. She captures the atmosphere of the field perfectly. Except for the endings, of course."
"Of course. But actually, I was referring to her most recent work."
"She's discussed it with me in great detail."
"You see, I happen to be somewhat of a fan myself. She honored me with a rough draft of the first few pages, but there was one thing I couldn't figure out for myself. Since she's discussed it with you in such great detail, you should have no problem answering my question." Chilton paused, glancing behind Will before resuming attempted eye contact.
"Is your character the hunter, or the fisher?"
"You're essentially asking me whether I believe myself to be fundamentally good or fundamentally evil."
"Both characters are murderers."
"Yes, but one murders for sustenance and the other murders for sport. It's a thinly veiled metaphor."
"Not so thinly veiled. You're avoiding my question."
"I believe I am the fisher."
"If you believe that, then who do you believe is the hunter?"
"I'm not having this conversation with you again." Chilton sat up abruptly, planting his feet on the floor and towering over Will.
"We will have whatever conversation I want to have. Who do you believe is the hunter?"
"My answer hinges on whether this is going to be included in the psychiatric report."
"No." Will searched his face. He was lying. If Will told him the truth, that Carmen had expressly told him that the hunter was Hannibal and Will was the fisher, then Chilton could add paranoid delusions and violent intentions to his ever-growing list of reasons to never let Will Graham out into the public. So Will lied in response.
"The hunter is the fisher's alter ego. His second face, the darker, primal side that he has no control over and is forced to endure during the unconscious delusions." Chilton grinned. His grin never failed to make Will shudder. It was the single slimiest, most viperous expression he had ever witnessed.
"I knew it. The hunter is Hobbs, isn't it? The persona of Hobbs that you assumed when you committed the murders."
"I guess you could interpret it that way." Chilton sat back down and leaned back.
"Now that that's cleared up, we can move on to other subjects. What exactly have you two discussed over this last week? I want specifics."
"She's asked me about my childhood. I told her about my parents, school, everything you already know."
"More specific."
"She asked me how many friends I can remember having. If I had any pets, what I did in my free time, where I went, what my favorite books were."
"What else?"
"She wanted to know my memories. My interpretations of events, circumstances that shaped my life. She said she was trying to figure out what made me, what ingredients went into the building of my psyche." When Will finished, Chilton was quiet. He leaned forward and pressed a single finger to his chin, once again attempting to grasp Will's eyes in his, unsuccessfully.
"You two have a very strong relationship. A truly unique bond. I don't expect to be able to sever it until I determine what exactly makes it unique. I would have never thought you'd get this attached to her. You're absolutely fixated." Chilton spoke ardently, losing himself in his own words, as if this were some fantasy of his own. Will was unsure how to respond.
"What are you asking me?"
"Do you desire Ms. Banks sexually?" For a moment Will's walls shattered, pure shock shining through for a blink of a moment before he raised them back from the dust.
"I don't understand-"
"Romantically, then?"
"Are you trying to get me to lie? I admit that she's attractive. And you know, maybe if we met before all of this, somewhere far away from here—I mean, I suppose we're compatible. But the only exchanges I have with her are question and response. There's not much of a relationship that can be formed out of that."
"And what do you see in her eyes?"
"I see-"
"So you've looked her in the eye. In all of your time here, with all the times we've shared, you still won't look me in the eye."
"Yes. I looked her in the eye, when I thought she wasn't looking back."
"And did you look away?" If there was one thing he had to give Chilton credit for, it was detecting lies. Will had tried different tactics of lying over and over again, but Chilton never let one slip by, so Will stopped trying.
"No."
"Did you look closer? Did you try and get inside her head?" Chilton was smiling widely now and Will could feel heat prickling at his fingertips.
"Yes. Alright, yes. I tried. I did."
"And what did you see? What was she like?"
"Do you remember when you finally got me to describe what I saw in you?"
"Yes. I believe you said something about rotting vegetation, in your exact words." Chilton said it so bitterly that Will almost laughed.
"Yeah, that was part of it. I said that your insides reeked of lies, of rotting vegetation coated in a bottle of the strongest, cheapest, cologne purchasable in a conveniences store, and that it still wasn't enough to cover up the stench."
"That was a little harsh."
"Not really."
"And Carmen? What did you see in her head?"
"What I saw in her—she was clear. I once had a dream in which I was standing on a glacier moments before it crumbled, staring at my distorted reflection in the perilous ocean below. When I was in her head, when I became her, I was put back on top of that glacier, but when I looked down, the water was perfectly still, and I could see myself clearly, and I wasn't scared of my reflection anymore. And even though I was on an iceberg, I wasn't the least bit cold. I was the warmest I'd been in months, like all the frost I'd accumulated through this process was just—washed away. She had secrets and lies of course, but they weren't buried under anything. They were set out in the open, so that anyone who cared to know could reach out and attain the truth."
"Would it be fair of me to guess that it's not often you find the inside of people's heads so pleasant?"
"I guess so."
"And would it be fair of me to guess that you'd like to go back?"
"I don't like getting in anyone's head."
"But if you had to pick one?" Will sighed.
"Then hers, yes. Sure."
"Romantically, then." It wasn't a question, it was a prodding, urging him to lash out and deny it so that Chilton could go on tearing him down. Will didn't dignify him with a response. Chilton smiled.
"Well, that was a refreshing little warm-up. Now are you ready to get down to the real work? I was thinking we could start with you describing every murder to me in as great of detail as you can imagine. I want you to describe every bloodstain, and laceration, and every word that went through your mind as it happened. Your description should be nauseating. If I don't feel a little queasy, then you're not doing your job. We have all day. Let's begin at Hobbs."
Will braced himself before speaking. He had to try. He'd been through worse. He could make it through this. Tomorrow, he would see her again, and it would be alright.
He just had to hold on.
The next update should be up in 2-3 weeks, and it won't be long now until Carmen meets Hannibal for the first time. Thank you so much for reviewing, liking, and following, all feedback and support is greatly appreciated.