Author's Note: Sorry it's been so long guys. Thank you for all your support. I've been extremely busy lately and didn't have time to write. But here it is. Remember to leave comments, critiques and suggestions in my reviews.

Chapter Twenty-Nine: Rush

The helicopter had landed some time before and Micheals was driving like the proverbial mad-man down the road to the cabin. He was holding on to the hope that Ashley was still in the cabin, though in the back of his mind she knew she was gone, praying that she was still alive.

"Michaels slow down." The FBI director says as he gripped the middle console and the window. Agent Michaels kept his speed, the cabin was now in view.

"Michaels slow down!" An agent in the back seat calls, he was gripping the car with equal fright.

The calls for him to slow down only quieted when he slams on the breaks in front of the cabin. Molly and Will sat on the front porch. Molly had been crying and Will has his arm around her in an attempt to comfort her.

Michaels bursts out the car door and runs to the couple. His heart beats at an inhuman rate and his eyes are wet from holding back tears.

"Will...Will where is she?" Michaels looks around, in a state of panic.

"Ashley is gone Eddie. She's gone. Lecter was hiding in the house somewhere. He grabbed Molly at gun point and had her handcuff me. Then he handcuffed her. We heard him wake Ashley and pack all her stuff in a bag. He pulled her out of her room, she wasn't hurt." He intentionally leaves out the part of Lecter slamming Ashley against the wall for Eddie's sake, Graham would report it later when Michaels wasn't so crazed.

"Did she look okay? Did he hurt her? Did you see the car? Has she called you?" Eddie goes on and on with questions not giving anyone a chance to answer them, partly because he already knows the answer; Ashley was gone.

Director Burns walks over to Will Graham. They shake hands and talk briefly, Will tells the story and shows the director where Ashley had been pulled to a van that had been hidden in the woods. Will had followed the tracks up to the road where it indicated they had turned, but that was it, Will had never seen it, it was all up to FBI techs.

"Are you sure it was Hannibal Lecter?" Burns asks as they walked into the cabin.

"I've never been more sure about anything in my life." Will puts his hands in his pockets.

Burns and Will find Molly and Eddie standing in Ashley's old room. It was as empty as the day Eddie and Ashley had moved in. Lecter had taken everything. The only sign Ashley had ever been there was a doodle on the wall she had done of a lamb, Eddie was tracing his finger over the sketch.

A small FBI agent bursts into the room, he's out of breath and looking for the director. The group is informed that someone has tipped the press on Ashley's kidnapping and there is a news van outside as they speak. Eddie doesn't seem to mind it, maybe someone will see them. The others seem a bit pertrubed that someone had told the press, not only of Ashley's kidnapping but of Clarice Starling's death.

"Agent Michaels I need to speak with you in private...now." The director gives a stern look in the direction of Eddie though Eddie misses this look as to his attention is back upon the lamb scribbled in permenant marker.

"She drew this you know." Michaels states the painfully obvious. "I peeked in her room the first night we were here and she was sitting facing the wall. I thought maybe she was crying, I called her name and she turned around, most serious look in the world on her face." He laughs a bit, Will thinks of it as a sad laugh. "She had the marker in her hand and was scribbling this thing on the wall. I really had no idea what it meant."

Six Months Ago

"Ashley?"

Ashley turned around to face the FBI agent her Sharpie marker was still being held up of the same level, she had a bit of a surprised look to her face. An image of a lamb was starting to appear on the wall, it was obvious Michaels had interrupted her doodling.

At the time Ashley and Eddie had only spent a few hours together and Ashley really had no use for him. She didn't want to be there anymore than he did. He was a tad sour towards her, he saw it as a babysitting job verses protection.

"What are you doing?" He crossed his arms in front of him and scowled at her.

"What does it look like I'm doing?" She turned back around and started back to her doodle.

"Stop that would you? You've been doing it all day." The agent stared at her long brown hair flowing down her back.

"Stop what?" She smirked but didn't allow him to see it. Ashley had no intention of giving the man a break. Ashley didn't want to be in that rickety old cabin. She wanted to be home with Ardelia, atleast Ardelia could keep her company and make her feel like a human being. As for Agent Michaels on the other hand he treated her like a case, and to him that's all she was.

Michaels couldn't take it anymore and walked behind the girl. She sat there still doodling but fearful he would smack her or something of the sort. Instead he just yanked the marker from her hand with an angry scowl. She opened her mouth to protest but he pointed a finger at her, quieting her quickly. He walked to the door and just before he slammed it shut he scowled at her.

"Stop defacing FBI property." He slammed the door and she could hear him stop off and slam his own door. He began cursing and ranting. Ashley winced slightly and curled up under her blankets, sobbing lightly. Not only had her mother been taken away from her, she'd lost Ardelia and now she was trapped in a cabin with an FBI agent who hated her. Eddie silenced after awhile and Ashley drifted off to sleep. Eddie made a few calls to FBI headquarters, he hung up nearly an hour later and lay on his bed looking up at the ceiling, his hands behind his head.

"What am I doing here? Why did they pick me? Why do I have to do this? I'm a seasoned agent I don't need to be doing a babysitting job." He paused for a moment and wrinkled his brow. "Me, me, I, I. I'm being selfish. This girl wouldn't be here if she hadn't been through hell and back. Maybe to make this work I need to give her some room and stop being such an ass. Eddie it's time you be the adult here and give this girl someone to count on, she doesn't need another enemy." He thought, shaking his head appalled at how he'd acted towards her, embarassed and disappointed in himself really.

Eddie stood up and walked to Ashley's room. He leaned towards the door listening for sounds she was still awake but heard only soft steady breathing. His hand grasped the door lightly and opened it a peek. The light showed brightly over the teen's face. Tear tracks were still visible on her cheeks. He shook his head and before closing the door he whispered a light "I'm sorry."