Please review!

Clarice stood behind the island, watching Bella stare at the front door instead of watching the television she had turned on over an hour ago. She had pressed the power button on the remote, but hadn't bothered to change the channel as her attention was trained towards one of the two exits in their house. "Bella, honey, I think we should consider going to a hotel until Will is caught."

"We'd be sitting ducks." Bella stated.

"We're going to be that no matter where we go. At least, we can be better protected at a hotel." Clarice explained, walking around the island and over to the couch. "A hotel room has one way in and one way out. We'll have two agents outside the door and a few others standing around the floor and by the elevators. I could call your father. Maybe we could have something arranged beforehand so he can stay with us."

Bella's eyes widened. "And have us all in one place? That's exactly what he wants."

Clarice sat down and cupped Bella's face in her hands. "Baby, do you really think that we would let anything happen if Will showed up? I'll have my gun. Your father. . .well your father can really find anything to use. If we have any say in it, he's not even going to get near you."

"What if he does?" Bella asked in a near whisper, tears clouded her eyes. She quickly blinked them away, taking a shallow breath. "He was so close, Mom."

Clarice kissed Bella's forehead before forcing their eyes to meet. "I'll die before I let him touch you."


"Who's the guy who was driving?" Bella asked Clarice as they walked up to the check-in counter with their bags.

"Um, some new agent. I think his last name is Cooper. Why? Did he say something?" Clarice asked before a tall woman in a skirt suit approached her. "Hello, I'm Clarice Starling. I believe my husband left us two key cards."

The woman smiled. "Yes, let me go grab them."

Bella waited as the clerk turned and started searching a wall of cubby holes, glancing back at Cooper who was talking with another agent about the hotel's floor plans. "I think my head might've hit the mirror too hard, because he's kind of cute."

Clarice chuckled, nodding her thanks to the clerk. "We need to get you to bed. Those pain meds are making you loopy."

"Oh c'mon, we could end up together. Who knows? Twenty-five years down the road he and I could reminisce over having an enemy of ours for dinner." Bella stated dreamily, acting like a swooning damsel in distress. "Oh my God, I'm going insane."

"You're room is 1218. Your husband didn't tell us when you would be checking out though." The clerk stated, tapping on the keyboard.

Clarice handed one of the cards to Bella. "That's correct. We aren't entirely sure when we'll be leaving, but I assure you that we will give you notice as soon as we know. He prides himself on being as courteous as possible." She nudged Bella's side when she giggled. "Thank you for the keys."


"The room is all clear, Ma'am." Agent Cooper stated to Delia standing outside their hotel room.

Delia nodded and turned to Clarice and Bella. "Alright, you two are all set." She stepped back when Bella nearly plowed her over to get into the room. "You're welcome. You know, I'm only ensuring your safety." She looked back to Clarice. "Are you going to just ignore me too?"

"Thank you, to all of you, for making this work. My daughter and I both appreciate it. Now if you'll excuse me, we've both had a long day, and I need to make sure Bella is going to sleep through the night without having a nightmare of Will Graham murdering her." Clarice looked at all of them before moving to the door, noticing that Cooper was staring after Bella as she plopped her things on one of the two beds inside. "You're Cooper, right?"

"Yes, Agent Starling." He stood straight, snapping like a rubber band from the door.

Clarice smiled and patted his shoulder. "I hope your wandering eyes protect my daughter just as much as they are ogling her." She tossed her bag inside, stepping in herself, before kicking the door closed. As soon as she latched the door, Bella was looking under the beds and through the closet. "Honey, he's not in here."

Bella frowned. "Then, where is he?"

"Look out on the balcony." Clarice smirked as she peeled off her jacket. She chuckled when Bella hurried outside to the balcony and looked to her left and right and nearly jumped out of her skin when Hannibal lowered himself down from the balcony above.

Hannibal grunted landing on his feet, exhaling sharply. "I'm getting too old for things like that." He smiled when Bella hugged him, and he quickly wrapped his arms around her. His happiness was cut short though when he smelled blood. He tensed and looked down at her scalp, seeing the stitches holding together a rather large gash. "How did that happen?"

Bella laid her head against his chest, closing her eyes hearing his heartbeat. "I hit my head on the mirror in Winnie's bathroom. I'm fine."

Hannibal moved them inside, closing the balcony doors behind them, before he kissed Clarice gently. His attention returned to his daughter though, pulling her back for inspection. "What else did he do?"

"Nothing really." Bella rolled her eyes. "I was opening the door to the bathroom when she shoved it into me. I flew back against the sink and hit my head on the mirror. There was a struggle. He held me by my hair when he shot and killed Winnie's parents. When he aimed his gun to shoot her, I turned and bit his ear before stabbing the nail clippers into his eye." She sighed when Hannibal started lifting her arms, shoving her sleeves up to look at her skin. "Seriously, I'm fine."

Things weren't fine though when he lifted the front of her shirt to inspect her stomach and saw the doorknob impression bruised into her gut. His eyes widened, and he had to bit his tongue when she forced her shirt back down to cover her stomach. "Did they check for internal damage?"

Clarice motioned for Bella to sit down before resting her hand on Hannibal's shoulder. "They did a full examination. Other than the stitches and the bruise, she's in perfect health. We were lucky that's all he got away with." She handed Bella a bottle of water, urging her to drink it. "They gave her some pain meds for her head, but she didn't have a concussion. If it still hurts, they said to keep ice on it."

"The doctor also made a joke that it was a good thing I wasn't pregnant, because the blow to my stomach would've most likely caused trauma with the force behind it." Bella huffed before laying back on the bed. "I'm not looking to continue the bloodline just yet."

"I'd hope not, but speaking of that. I do believe I have figured out why Will is coming after you." Hannibal proclaimed, sitting down beside her and looking up at Clarice. "I was reminded of Bella's nightmare from the other night, and my guess is that Will is trying to destroy my familial pool, my DNA."

Clarice smirked, leaning back against the dresser. "Bella and I thought about that today at the hospital. He wants to end the line of Lecter with her. He probably wants to kill me for carrying her and having her."

Hannibal shook his head. "I believe I am no good for the two of you."

"Let's not start this crock of bullshit again." Bella grumbled before sitting back up and hugging him from behind. She rested her chin on his shoulder. "Besides, it isn't your decision. You've protected both of us, and we love you. I've spent seventeen years wanting my dad for Christmas. You aren't taking away my wish for the eighteenth."

Clarice quirked her eyebrows. "Since when do you think staying here with the FBI is better than running off with you anyway?"

Hannibal's eyes met hers, a grin forming on his lips. "That would never be better." He gingerly cupped the side of Bella's head and kissed her cheek. "I'm just speaking my observations out loud is all. I've never been one to stay away from things that are bad for me. Coming back for you certainly wasn't in my best interest to keep my freedom. But, it was what made me happy."

Bella leaned against Hannibal's side. "While we're on the subject of being happy, my head is throbbing. Is there any ice around here?"

"I believe I saw an ice machine at the end of the hallway. I'd go get some, but I believe my presence would set off some alarms with the boys outside." Hannibal stated before grabbing the ice bucket and handing it to Clarice. "I'll inspect the stitches and ensure that they are done correctly."

Clarice quickly slipped out of the room, glancing between the two agents. "Have either of you two seen the ice machine?"

Cooper nodded. "Around the corner in a small hallway on the left." He pointed in the direction that he had seen it. "There's a few vending machines there as well. Drinks, snacks, the normal things."

"Thanks." Clarice nodded before walking around the corner. It was easy to find the hallway. A large ice storage container, three vending machines, and two doors. One led to the stairwell and the other was marked for employees only and held open by a vacuum. The janitor stood just inside, his back turned to her, in a blue jumpsuit that reminded her of when she first met Hannibal.

She moved to the ice machine, lifting up the cover and grabbing the metal scoop inside. Her arm stopped mid-scoop though when the hairs on the back of her neck stood up. She turned just in time to see Will coming at her with a gun. Lifting up the scoop, she smacked it into his face, causing him to step back. It wasn't enough of a step though. His gun was raised quickly and the butt of it cracked the back of her neck, making her vision blur and her ears ring. His hands were on her back, and she was on the ground before she could realize what was happening.

That's when she heard the door slam shut. He locked her inside the janitor's closet. The metal scoop was still in her hands, but, before she could bang it against the door to signal for help, the fire alarm went off.

Please review!