Chapter 7

Dr. Hannibal Lecter was now in California. He was planning on leaving out first thing in the morning to travel to Japan. He had spent many long hours in and out of vehicles and airports constantly relocating and changing identities. He kept up with the FBI, but discovered they had made no advancements in their investigation. Dr. Lecter, however, did not believe this. No, he believed the FBI was hiding information.

"I wonder if a new player has joined our game."

He sat at a local café drinking away at his tea. He dressed in black shirt, black trousers with sunglasses on. He looked sleek as ever. His hand was healing nicely. He had just come off of a plane 9 hours ago where a little boy had eaten part of Paul Krendler's brains. Lecter had told him it was important to always try new things. Yes, the boy had reminded him a lot of his sister. Very inquisitive and full of energy. When he landed in California, he changed his disguise and ditched the sling.

He wondered when Starling was going to make the first step at contact. It excited him, no it pleased him, to know that she was on the run and in hiding just as he was. He had already assumed she would most likely write a message in a column hidden somewhere in a paper. He was sure she would try to communicate via the National Tattler. The same piece of tabloid trash that fantasized their love life while stomping on her career.

"How fitting." He mused.

He picked up a copy of the National Tattler at a local street vendor and went back to his hotel. Here he flipped through the pages and stumbled across a very interesting piece in the personal section by a Louis Friend.

Dr. Lecter smiled devilishly, "Your anagrams are showing my dear."

Will Graham had arrived at Quantico and immediately got to work. He told Pearsall that he wanted to keep everything under wraps. He did not want anyone to know that he was assisting in the investigation. Will made sure he was unseen with the exception of a select few that were assigned to him for the case. The entire flight over he studied Lecter and Starling's relationship. He read over all the files Pearsall could provide and dedicated them to memory. He was fascinated that there was a woman alive that could tame such a monster. Will wondered if she was just as terrifying a monster as Lecter. He walked into the old Hannibal House as it was dubbed to find three agents sitting in chairs waiting on him. Pearsall walked in just behind Will and began the introductions.

"Hello everyone, this is Will Graham and he will be heading this investigation. He was the first one to capture Dr. Lecter which is why he has been chosen for this position. Graham, this is Agent Mitch Hill, Agent Samuel Augustus, and Agent Gina Thacker."

Will nodded, "Hello."

They all nodded in turn.

Pearsall continued, "All of them are good at their research that they do and they are the best agents we have."

Will sighed, "It doesn't matter how good you all think you are, Lecter is better. But I will take all the help I can get. Can I get someone to check every single one of these over the past five days since the two have gone missing." Will pulled out a slip of paper with 5 distinct newspapers on them.

Agent Thacker looked at the paper, "Sure can, But why do you need these?"

Graham sat down on a desk and began speaking, "I believe they will have to meet if they haven't met up already. These 5 newspapers all put Clarice Starling to shame and spread rumors of their love for each other. It seems fitting that they would make the perfect platform to start up a conversation. I want all of them on my desk by this afternoon please Agent Thacker."

She nodded, "I will get to it right away."

She left the room. Agent Hill and Augustus were staring at Will, most likely sizing him up to see if he was really the famed man that took down the monster all those years ago.

Graham looked to Agent Hill, "You were there that night at Krendler's summer home weren't you?"

"Yes."

"Run me through what all happened in your own words."

"Well I wasn't around to get a look at Starling or anything. I was inside taking photographs and bagging evidence. There isn't much to tell. A lot of blood. Paul was sitting in a wheelchair with his brain exposed and a towel was thrown over his head. Upstairs there was night stand by a bedroom where Clarice Starling's clothes were. Her gun was also there, loaded. We found some medical supplies in the bedroom with a bullet that looked like it had been surgically removed."

"Great, thank you." Will looked toward Agent Augustus, "I would like it if you and Agent Hill could look for any local doctors in the area that Dr. Lecter had been known acquaintances with prior to his incarceration. If he was injured badly, he would need their help. Get to it."

Agent Augustus nodded, "You got it."

They all got to work, about 3 hours later Agent Thacker showed back up with all the copies he needed. He sat at his computer desk and began reading through them. He read through the Buffalo Bill occurrence again and again. He had to be well quipped with the two. If she was going to reach out to him, it would be in a code only they would understand. The next day Graham had finished reading through all of the columns and found one that interested him. He felt confident it was Starling reaching out. He picked up the phone and called Pearsall who came downstairs immediately.

"You got something?"

"I think so. Look at this."

Will flipped through the Tattler until he came across the personal columns. "Read this Pearsall, and tell me what you think."

"You were always fond of games. Maybe you can come over for dinner and we can play one. I can even cook for you…..and….wait what do all these numbers after and shit mean?"

"It's a code. Usually the first number represents a Page, then paragraph, sentence, and the letter. It would have to be a book though that she has that he knows about. But never mind that! Look who it's from."

Pearsall glanced down, "Louis Friend. Who the fuck is that?"

"The fake name that Lecter gave for Buffalo Bill during the case. It's them. We need to decipher what these codes mean. I think it is their meeting location."

"Let's get to it. But what book is she using?"

Will glanced around the room at all of photos and files containing information on Lecter, "When she was suspended, what did she take with her?"

"A box full of whatever was hers personally. There was a few things she had gotten from Barney Mathews. Some of Lecter's personally effects that she took from him."

"Could that have included a cook book?"

"Cook book?"

Will grabbed the paper again, "Right here there is a comment made about maybe I can cook for you. I think what she has is a cook book of his."

"I will check the files and see what she brought in exactly."

Pearsall started towards the exit.

"Pearsall."

He turned around, "Yes?"

"If we are going to catch them, this might be our only chance. We have to do it now, before they both disappear. Just one of them alone is dangerous, but together, they might be impossible to catch."

"Right, we do this now."