The riddle flooded through her mind as she bought a plane ticket at the airport.
"United Kingdom, please." Elizabeth said to the woman.
"Alright, here you go. First class, Miss Graham. Have a terrific flight!"
Elizabeth waited as the time passed by for her flight. She watched everyone scurry all around her for different things. She pressed the number on her phone held it to her ear.
"Elizabeth, where are you?" Hannibal asked worriedly.
"Something's happened with my father that I need to take care of, Hannibal."
There was pause before Hannibal replied, "You don't owe that man anything. Come home immediately please. For the sake of our child, Lizzie, please…"
"I know we have a complicated history together and even though my gut is telling me that it's not a good idea to go…my heart is telling me that he's still my father and I can't let an innocent die. What kind of person would I be, Hannibal if I just walked away from someone who needs my help?"
"A good mother," he answered coldly which surprised her since he was usually so polite and warm to her. His attitude and tone of voice seemed to change in that moment. "Elizabeth, he's hurt you more times than you think and yet you wish to risk our child's life-your life as well to save him."
"You make it sound like I'm a horrible person for doing this," she snapped angrily.
"You're being selfish is what I'm saying you are, Elizabeth," Hannibal barked at her. "You're risking our son's life!"
"Is that all you care about?! What about my father's life?! An innocent?!"
"You're being a hypocrite right now. Just before he came, you told me how much you hated the man and wouldn't have cared if he were dead," he reminded.
"He's still family. He's blood. Will would do the same actually for our mother even though he knows how much I despise her. Sometimes good counters out the bad, Hannibal. I did have good memories with him and yes, I love him," she confessed furiously. "I don't loving him. I hate myself for feeling this way most of the time, but I can't help it that I see the good in everyone even after all the bad that they've done and right now he's been kidnapped by someone who knows all of this. Someone who managed to fool even me"
"The Butcher has him?"
She didn't answer him, but he knew her silence was his answer.
"Don't you even think about going in there alone-"
"I'll see you soon, Hannibal," she quickly said. "I love you."
Elizabeth hung up the phone quickly, knowing that this would definitely anger Hannibal more than she could've ever realized. Elizabeth heard the speaker, saying that her flight was now boarding. She stood up with her carry-on bag and walked over to the gate, handing her ticket to the attendant. She went inside, almost regretting her decision to go since she knew that it was a trap for her specifically.
As she sat down in her seat, she stared out the window, sighing as she let her memories consume her thoughts. She held her stomach protectively in her hands as her eyes closed completely.
~BAYARD, UK THREE AND A HALF YEARS AGO~
Elizabeth Graham jogged through the pathways of the park. Her mind had been completely on The Butcher case. All those women…she thought sadly. Dead…why though?
Why were they so important to kill?
What does he want?
Scotland Yard has issued a curfew for everyone which was nine in the evening. Most complied with it, but there were the ones were very resistant.
Elizabeth had been so in the zone that she didn't see where she was going and slammed into someone causing them both to fall onto the ground. They groaned in pain as they sat up.
"I'm sorry," she mumbled with a light chuckle. "I didn't see where I was going."
"No," he replied. "It's actually my fault. I was listening to an audio book and got sucked into the story…"
She laughed as she stood up with the help of his hand. "What's the book?"
"Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde-"
"Oh God, I love that book. It's actually one of Top Five Favorite books."
"Really?" he asked in excitement. "Me too! My family thinks I'm weird because I have a top ten list."
"My brother thinks the same," she chuckled in response. "I love that book as much as I love re-reading The Great Gatsby."
"Another classic," he mused. "We seem to have a lot in common, beautiful woman who's name I don't know yet."
"Yet," Elizabeth questioned in amusement. "You're that sure of yourself."
"Not really…but with you…what can I say you bring out the best in me?" He joked and held out his hand in greeting. "Hello. I'm Roger Kane."
Elizabeth shook his hand. "Elizabeth Graham, but you can call me Lizzie."
"Okay, Lizzie."
"Okay then, Roger," she drawled out. "I have to go. It was nice meeting you."
"Yeah you too, Lizzie. Too bad I don't have a way to give you my number or something," he said charmingly.
"Hey, if we are to meet again then maybe fate will surely tell us," she suggested with a small smile.
"Fate?" He questioned. "You don't really believe in that, do you?"
"If we meet again," she started. "Then yes. I do."
Elizabeth turned around and jogged away, laughing a little.
The smile on Roger's face disappeared once he turned his back on her. He walked, not ran back towards his parked car on the street. Once he sat inside of his car, he started to laugh suddenly. His laugh sounded evil, almost mocking in a way.
This is just too easy.
~TWO YEARS LATER~
Elizabeth's eyes peeled open, she winced in pain as she moved her body around or at least tried to. She realized that she was tied to a bed-his bed. She jumped back a little as she saw him staring down at her.
"Well," he said cheerfully. "Good morning, Sleeping Beauty."
"You bastard," she muttered. "I should've known that it was you. You're The Butcher, aren't you?!"
He slowly clapped and smirked. "Finally! Good job, detective."
He walked away from her and around the bedroom as he continued, "You know for a minute there, I actually thought that you were going to catch me…that you were going to kill me, BUT then you hesitated! I wondered why then I realized it is because you LOVE me! Me! Aw, don't look so angry, detective, you can't help it. Let's face it though, we don't get to choose who we love."
"Did you ever love me? Or was it all a lie?"
He stared into her eyes as he asked, "Do you want me to lie to you or tell you the truth?"
"Lie to me."
Roger smiled. "It was all a lie."
"You fucking prick!" she shouted in rage. "When I get free and trust me, I will escape, I am going to kill you slowly."
"I would like to see you try."
"You know me, Roger," she reminded him. "I'm tenacious."
"Oh, I know that," he purred and she stiffened when he crawled on top of her, rubbing his hands all over her body. "I always liked it when we fucked, Elizabeth. You were surprisingly extremely good at it. You've got one hell of a body on you, I'll give you that."
"Shut up," she growled lowly.
She whimpered when he roughly grabbed her breast. She felt him harden against her thigh. She watched as he ripped her shirt and jeans in half. Elizabeth bit her lip to stop herself from screaming when he tore a blade through her skin from her ribs to her navel.
"Come on, baby, scream for me," he whispered in her ear.
"Get off me! Stop!"
"I'm going to fuck you bloody." He growled in pleasure, rubbing himself against her.
Blood down from her stomach and into the bed. She froze when she felt the heel of her foot above the ropes. It wasn't tight enough. She quickly yanked it free and bought her knee between his legs. He groaned in pain as he fell beside her on the bed. Elizabeth used her heel again and slammed it in his stomach and then into his throat causing him to fall over onto the floor.
Elizabeth yanked her limbs and used her teeth to untie the knot. She saw him forcing his body to stand up. Just as he stood up, her hand barely made it out of the ropes and she punched him in the throat and broke his nose right after.
He fell back onto the floor as she quickly untied her wrist and other ankle, throwing the ropes aside in disgust. Elizabeth limped over to him, her ankle broken from when he twisted it when running away from him. She brought her good foot down into his stomach and knocked him out unconscious. She padded him down for a cell phone and found one in his pocket.
Elizabeth called the police and said, "Hello, this is Detective Elizabeth Graham. I need Scotland Yard please…tell them that I've just caught The Bayard Butcher."
She looked up into the corner and smirked when she saw a camera.
"How do you know?" Her partner, Dan Sparks asked once he got to Roger's house.
"Cause he confessed to me on camera," she told him and pointed to the corner.
Dan smiled and said to the men who were handcuffing Roger, "Looks like the good guys win this round, boys!"
They all cheered since some of those women were good friends of the officers. Roger seemed to attack people others knew very well and people who were filled with kindness. They were good people, she thought. They didn't deserve what he did to them.
As the officers dragged Roger out, he shot up to his feet, getting in Elizabeth's face as he promised her, "When you think you are happy and safe, I'll be there to bring you down. Your happiness will turn into ashes in your mouth and I take away all that you hold dear to you, Elizabeth Graham. Everywhere you go, I'll be there and you want to know why? Because it is me and I am who you NEVER be free from!"
Roger started to laugh hysterically as they dragged him away from her when he shouted to her, "Remember, Lizzie! REMEMBER ME! HAHAHAHAHA!"
~PRESENT~
Elizabeth tore open the door and walked inside of the abandoned factory he led her to.
She walked forward as she saw two bodies hanging with their wrists tied with chains around them. He learned from his mistakes, she thought.
A spotlight blared on the two bodies and Elizabeth saw Klaus and Clarice hanging like rag dolls above a large meat grinder. She took a step forward towards them.
"Ah-uh," Roger's voice echoed all around her. "I wouldn't do that if I were you."
"Why not?" she called out to him.
"Have you figured out the riddle?"
She nodded. "Yes, I have. You're very narcissistic!"
"So, tell me…what is the answer?"
"The Tyger poem is about you and me…our relationship. Good versus Evil," Elizabeth answered confidently. "The riddle's answer is you. I'll never be free of you even after I killed you or I thought I had, you still plagued my thoughts. You were like my shadow…always watching me wherever I went."
She heard him laugh and he replied, "You did remember me, Elizabeth."
TBC…
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