For the next several days, Dr. Lecter followed a routine with his charge. He kept her under the influence of sedatives and hypnotics – it made her much easier to manage. Her first full day under the drug regimen was not successful – he misestimated the dose and she was a zombie for most of the day. He changed the dosage a few times and tried different medications, so that she could still hold a conversation with him. With the drugs, she was no longer terrified of him, and the hypnotic suggestions he implanted served to reinforce her perception of him as a caring protector. He removed the catheter on the third day and encouraged her to begin walking.

In the morning, she studied the texts he had gotten her. Dr. Lecter took an interest in her medical education; she was quick, but inexperienced. He quizzed her on what they read for that day. It proved to him to be an interesting refresher on his own medical school years so long ago. Some of what he had learned was now deprecated, with more modern solutions in its place. He was chagrined at this.

He attempted to interest her in literature, but to no avail. She found Shakespeare boring and expressed no interest in any of the classics. Any of the books he offered her not specifically medical in content ended up unopened by her bed. Once she told him she would prefer to have the catheter reinserted rather than have more of these books assigned to her to read, he gave up on introducing her to literature.

She took a bit more interest in classical music. At first, she simply played CDs while she studied. Later she began to ask who the composers were and expressed more interest in them. This pleased him, and he introduced her to more Chopin and Bach, which she preferred. Dr. Lecter promised her that he would play for her the selections she liked best.

After morning studies, he would serve lunch and they would chat leisurely over whatever he had prepared. In the afternoons were her hypnosis sessions. Dr. Lecter's interest in the hypnosis was twofold: to increase his knowledge of her mind and personality, and to successfully prevent her from identifying him to the FBI. He steadily convinced her that Jack Crawford was a dangerous man, not to be trusted, and that Clarice Starling, while well intentioned, was in his service and could not be trusted with the truth either. One day, he sincerely hoped, he might be able to have Clarice and Erin at the same table, but such things would not happen for a long time.

On the sixth day, a package arrived for Dr. Lecter. He knew what it was when he saw the return address. He glanced into the sitting room, where Erin was curled up napping on the couch. In a display of good- humored rebellion, she had abandoned her studies an hour before. Proudly, she had informed him that she was going to be a slug today and did not care if he disapproved. That was for the best, he thought. He took the package into his study and opened it.

The package contained his false papers. A completely new identity – driver's license, passport, social security card, credit cards. Now he would be able to leave the country undisturbed. Canada was not far and he could catch a flight from Toronto to Buenos Aires. From then, Dr. Lecter had not decided, although he had thought of Italy more and more. Rome, perhaps, or Florence.

Dr. Lecter felt no guilt about leaving his charge. She needed to resume her own life, and from a medical point of view, she was certainly ready to go home. After a week of hypnosis, he was fairly confident that she would not be able to identify him to the police, or to the FBI. It would take a very skilled professional who knew exactly what he had done to be able to unlock the psychological locks he had put on her.

He prepared a syringe and walked carefully to the sitting room. He observed his sleeping charge before him, bent, and slipped the needle into her arm. The needle was quite thin, and she barely stirred. He had a few hours now before she woke up. Even if she woke up before he got there, the doors were still all locked, and he doubted she would try escape at this point anyway.

He went out to his Cadillac and drove to the city. He rather liked to shop. He dropped by a department store and bought the best china he could find in two place settings. He decided to stick with the cookware in the house. He was able to find acceptable silverware – not his preference, but that was regrettably a recurring theme in his life.

He then sought out a women's clothing store. Politely, he spoke with the proprietress and explained what he wanted. He told her that he wanted to purchase a dress and shoes for his niece. He provided the woman with Erin's measurements and was offered several choices. One appealed to him the most, so he chose it. After settling on appropriate shoes, he packed up his purchases and drove home.

Erin was still asleep when he arrived. That was for the best. When he woke her up for the afternoon hypnosis session, she didn't seem to notice that he had been gone.

Over dinner, he smiled across the table at her.

"I have something to tell you," he said gently.