It was light by the time they reached their destination. After what seemed like hours of driving on the unleveled country road, Barney finally stopped the car outside an imposing mansion. Lizzie looked around. There were no other houses around, and she couldn't remember the last time she spotted one on their way there so she understood why their hosts didn't have many friends there. All she could see was trees, forests, hills, fields and nothing else. She couldn't hear anything except for the sound of birds in the nearest forest, which was not so far away. One could say that the house itself was in the woods. Well, the backyard was anyway.

"Red, who lives here?" Lizzie asked the man in front of her as they got out from the car, but she got no response from him. He only smiled and winked at her and then he changed the subject.

"Oh, Lizzie, I suggest you behave during our stay here." He told her amused.

"Behave? What's that supposed to mean?"

"I mean you try to be the best version of yourself. Try not to be too… rude." He smiled at her and she wondered if he was joking around.

"Ok, then, I'll try not to embarrass you." Lizzie told him.

Red looked at her with an amused look on his face. "Don't do it for me, my dear."

Lizzie only blinked at him. She didn't know what was going on and it was infuriating. She was about to inquire about the identity of their hosts when the front door opened and a young woman came out. She stopped just a few steps away from them.

"Red!" she almost yelled and she jumped to embrace the older man. "I've missed you so much! It gets so boring around here…"

"My dear Clarice!" he responded and they shared a long hug.

Lizzie only watched the scene in silence. The woman looked familiar to her but she couldn't remember where she saw her before. Although they were in a different country, it was clear that the woman named Clarice was an American.

"My dear, there's someone I want you to meet" Red told the woman. They broke the embrace and they turned to face Lizzie. "Clarice, this is Lizzie. Lizzie, this is Clarice. Clarice Starling".

Lizzie noticed the spark in his eye when Red introduced the woman and it was only then she remembered. Clarice Starling, the woman who seduced Hannibal the cannibal.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Lizzie!" Clarice told Lizzie.

Lizzie only stared and blinked at the woman in front of her. "Hello…" she finally managed to say, still shocked from the discovery.

Clarice must have noticed Lizzie's shock for she immediately turned her attention to the man responsible for their encounter. "How have you been, Red? We've heard rumors that you're working with the F.B.I, are they true? " she asked him excitedly. She was longing to speak to someone other than her husband or Barney and she was more excited to hear how things were going at her old work place.

"Well, my dear, there's always a hinge of truth in rumors, but we'll get into that later. Now, where is that husband of yours?" Red asked as he placed a hand on her back and started pacing towards the imposing mansion. Lizzie followed blankly while Barney was having a conversation with Dembe. "Is he treating you well?" Red also questioned in a father-like tone.

Clarice broke into laughter. "But of course!" she told him a bit later. "He's away with business, but he should be back in a few hours though. He was sad he couldn't be here to welcome you. "

"That's fine, I know he is a busy man. I'm sorry I haven't been able to visit you sooner." Red told the woman as he opened the door for her. Instead of going in himself, he waited for Lizzie who was a few steps behind and he just motioned for her to get in.

As she got near him, Lizzie opened her mouth to speak, she had so many questions for him, but he just waved her off and she entered the house. A few moments later, she heard the door close behind her and quickly after, she felt his hot breath on her skin next to her ear.

"I'll explain everything later, I promise." Red whispered just as Clarice turned on her heels to face them and Lizzy blushed when she noticed the spark in the woman's eye.

"Red, I'm sure you are all tired from the long journey. Come, I'll show you to your rooms." Clarice said and motioned for them to follow her up the stairs. He slowly pushed Lizzy to follow her.

When they finally reached the upper floor, Clarice showed them their rooms that were next to each other. "You both have bathrooms connected to your rooms. Oh and the room at the end of the hallway is our bedroom" Clarice showed them around. "I'll make sure Barney will also show Dembe to his room." Clarice informed and she smiled at Red.

"Thank you, my dear!" Red thanked and placed an innocent kiss on her cheek. "Now, if you'll excuse me ladies, I really could use a shower." He told them.

Clarice chuckled. "Sure. You'll find anything you need in there." She told him and he went away.

Lizzie and Clarice fell silent as they sat in the living room on the upper floor. Moments later, the silence was interrupted by the sound of the shower running.

"You have a lovely house, Clarice." Lizzie told her and smiled embarrassed. She tried to think of a reason to go to her room.

"Thank you, my dear. We moved in just a few months ago, but it already feels like home." Clarice happily explained.

Lizzie couldn't hold her tongue anymore; the curiosity almost killed her. "I'm sorry, Clarice, but I need to know – "she started, but the other woman didn't let her finish. She only sighed and raised her hand to stop her, but she wasn't mad, she was only amused.

"I know what you're going to ask, Lizzie. I saw it in your eyes from the moment Red introduced us in the yard. The answer is 'yes', I am indeed that Clarice Starling and although I don't know what stories are told now at the F.B.I, I assure you that most of them are false." Clarice explained friendly.

"So you and… I mean he didn't – "Lizzie tried, but suddenly she couldn't put two words together.

Clarice only chuckled. "Did Red not tell you where you were going? Who are you meeting?" Clarice asked amused.

"He didn't tell me anything." Lizzie explained.

"That's Red, always the cryptic. Not unlike someone else I know, though." Clarice said and Lizzie could swear she winked at her. "Now, my dear, I'm sure you're very tired from the trip. I'll leave you to rest and I'm sure that Red will explain everything later. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have some things to do before my husband returns." She said and returned downstairs, not leaving Lizzie the chance to reply.

Lizzie returned to her room since the shower was still running and couldn't go and question Red. When she stepped inside she realized that the bed occupied the most of the room, just like a normal guest room. She was secretly disappointed; she half expected chains and torture objects. She was in a serial killer's house after all. Lizzie paced around the room and stopped just in front of a small closet. On top of it, next to a beautiful vase of flowers, was a note.

"Lizzie, I took the liberty of acquiring some clothes for you. It's not much, and I don't know if they even fit well, but we can go shopping soon anyways. Clarice."

Lizzie stood holding the small note for a while. A million questions came to her mind and she hoped Red would finish showering soon enough. Just a few days ago, she thought that the future could only bring more cases from Red, but now, the future would bring shopping with a serial killer's… wife?

She let the note fall on the floor while she collapsed onto the bed exhausted. She would have fallen asleep if it weren't for the loud knock on the door.

"Come in." She managed to say as she got up on the bed to lean on the headboard.

"Lizzie, I trust that you're comfortable?" Red asked as he closed the door behind him.

"Red! What is this? Why did you bring me here? Is she really Clarice Starling?" she ignored his question and got up from the bed to face him.

"Lizzie! My dear, one question at the time, please." Red smiled and he lowered himself on the sofa next to the door.

"Ok, then, Why did you bring me here?" she asked as she sat next to him on the sofa. She was facing him.

"Because this is the safest choice right now." He explained as he turned to look at her.

"Safest? Red, he is a serial killer!"

"I am a killer too, Lizzie. You know that." His voice was just a whisper.

"But this is different. He… ate his victims." Lizzie tried to reason with him.

Red seemed amused at the thought. "Yes, I never quite understood that, but I still trust him. He's one of my oldest friends and while you're here, nothing will ever happen to you." He assured her as he placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Friend? Red, he's freaking Hannibal Lecter. Does he even understand the concept of friendship? I read what happened to Will Graham, to Clarice…"

"Did you, now? And what is that? What happened to Clarice?" he asked in a mockery tone.

"Her body was never found…" she told him.

"So you think the woman downstairs is…?" Red asked amused.

"I know it's her, but he must have done something to her." Lizzie tried to find the reason behind Clarice's appearance there. She couldn't understand what someone was doing with someone like him. Back home, everybody presumed he killed her then he got rid of the body because he was in love with her and she wouldn't return the feelings.

"Lizzie, I assure you, he wouldn't touch a hair on that woman's head. He loves her deeply." He tried to make her understand.

Lizzie let that go; she could never understand the situation. "Red, was he ever on the list? Was he ever going to be?"

"I think you know the answer to that question, my dear Lizzie." He told her and she knew the answer; he would never betray his friend. Lizzie couldn't help wonder how many other dangerous friends he had that weren't on the list.

"How many others?" she simply asked and she stood up, her back facing him.

"Two or three." He replied sincerely.

Lizzie sighed. She expected more, but it was possible he was lying. "How long do we need to stay here?"

"I couldn't say. We'll just have to wait and see how things develop."

"Are they… married?" Clarice asked as she remembered her referring to him as her husband.

"Yes, they are. It was a lovely ceremony. " Red smiled at the thought.

"Did you attend?" Lizzie asked surprised.

"You weren't paying attention, my dear. I told you he is one of my oldest friends. Of course I wanted to be there for him."

"Do they know who I am? What I am?" Lizzie asked a moment later, not wanting to imagine Clarice and Hannibal Lecter's wedding.

"Yes."

"Aren't they worried? Worried that I might tell somebody where are they?"

"Should they be?" Red asked slowly in his deep voice.

Lizzie thought about it. The Lizzie she remembered would have ran to the F.B.I the moment she discovered the truth, but now, she was having serious doubts. She was sure that her time spent with Red changed her way of thinking and she wasn't sure that it was a good thing.