Chapter 26
People watching from the outside might say everything looked normal. A man was doing a light jog around the park. He wore a bright red cap with black long sleeved shirt and black pants. What parts of his hair was showing had black with bits of silver in it. He smiled and waved at people that passed him by. Perfectly normal so far.
The park was always lovely this time of year, fall was starting to set in and the leaves were dancing their way from the trees to the ground. It was perfect weather out, still warm from the edges of summer but that fall breeze kept it cool. The man's jog took him down a winding narrow path and ended at a park bench just before the woods started. He sat down admiring the views around him and waited.
About an hour later another man came jogging up the trail from the opposite direction. He was balding at the top and what little hair he had left was like a sandy brown color. He wore a white long sleeved shirt and navy blue pants. He took a seat next to the man wearing the red cap.
"How long have you been waiting here?"
"About 56 minutes. So how is he Douglas?"
"He is doing well. The transfer is in three days." They are moving him to a secure facility. Douglas held up a thermos bottle that he carried with him on his jog.
The man in the red cap took the bottle and unscrewed the lid. Inside were papers that had been placed in a plastic bag. He flipped through the pages, "Well done Mr. Douglas. You have been of the upmost help this past few weeks. Do they suspect anything about Pearsall's car?
"They think that the Starling girl is behind it all. The car and the letters that have been delivered to the asylum. So they decided to transfer him to a larger more secure facility."
"Excellent. I transferred the $250,000 dollars to your account this morning. The remaining $250,000 will be transferred when the pick up is made."
"Very good Mister….??"
"Leerson."
"Ah very good Mr. Leerson. If I may ask a question…I mean…$500,000 dollars for one criminal, is a lot. He is going to be executed anyway. So what did Hannibal do that pissed you off so badly that you want to off him yourself?"
"I am not going to kill him. He saved my life and now it is my turn to set him free."
"Wait, you plan on just releasing him? Then why not work with Starling and…"
Leerson held up his hand to interrupt, "I think it best you don't get anymore involved in these matters Mr. Douglas. And do not bring up that fool Clarice again. She has ruined him enough as it is. The only thing she is good for is taking all the blame for my work."
"Sir, if I may….I heard Ardelia Mapp is on the case to hunt you down. I have seen her in the dungeon with Lecter. I think he will be assisting her."
Leerson smiled, "That is perfectly fine. Even with Lecter's genius there is no evidence that would lead him to me."
"What makes you so confident?"
Leerson glanced over to Douglas, "Because, Mr. Douglas, Dr. Lecter believes that I have been dead now for about 50 years. Now run along to work, we don't want any suspicions to be made about our plans. If what you say is true, and the transfer is to be made in three days, then that is when we shall move to abduct Hannibal."
Douglas checked his watch, "Right. I have to be at work in 2 hours. I will head on then, but how should I reach you when the time comes?"
Leerson pulled out of his pocket a burner phone, "My number is the only one listed in this phone. You do not call me. I will call you."
Douglas worked as a supervisor at the facility that Hannibal was currently being kept in, as such he had access to all the intel Leerson needed. He was the perfect tool. Middle aged man, recently divorced, wife took everything, and no children to speak of. He works his job and then he goes home.
Leerson vandalized Pearsall's car to keep all suspicion on Clarice. The only ones who would be wiser to that matter would he Hannibal, Clarice, and perhaps Ardelia. Beyond that everything was falling into place, and it would only be 3 more days before he would have his prize.
About 3 hours later…
Hannibal sat in his cot waiting for the news today. Mapp was supposed to come today for a visit. He had hoped she could find more substantial evidence. Not that he could blame her for not, she had been under tremendous pressure from her superiors. Everything she did, had to be done discreetly. Hannibal heard footsteps approaching and stood upright, alert. These were not the steps of Agent Mapp, and it sounded like there were about four sets of footsteps approaching. The men in question finally came into view: Pearsall, Douglas, and the two assigned security guards to Hannibal.
"Good morning gentlemen."
Pearsall started, "Lecter, you are being transferred to a new facility in 3 days. This new facility will be your final destination until your execution. Mr. Douglas has arranged the transfer cars for us already. We will have FBI agents armed and ready, a van that will be carrying you to the new facility, and a few trucks to be following the van while you are in transit."
"Understood." Hannibal nodded.
"Very good." Pearsall pulled a page out of a file and showed it to Lecter, "This is the official date of your execution. Lethal injection, lights out, and that's it."
Douglas added, "Hannibal Lecter, we hope to have your cooperation in making this transfer go as smoothly as possible. Myself and the team of security guards will be here to assist."
The men continued talking for another 5 to 10 minutes. Lecter had long since drowned out the sounds. When the men were finished they left Hannibal alone. When he was sure the sounds of the footsteps had vanished completely, he called out.
"Miss Mapp, we will need to move quickly. You can come out now."
Ardelia came around the corner looking very shocked, "How did you know I was hiding around the corner?"
"Your perfume. You wear it often. I could smell in lingering in the air. I take it you hiding from Pearsall means he is still unaware of your visitations?"
"For now."
"I see."
Ardelia fumbled with the file and passed it to him, "I am sorry Doctor….I feel like at every turn I fail. This guy is a total ghost. I have no clue about anything. No prints, no cameras, no nothing…I don't know what to do."
Hannibal flipped through the files and found out very little info had been added. So instead he put the file back into the carrier and sent it back to Mapp.
"Don't fret Miss Mapp. I may have found a different angle of approach."
Ardelia lifted her head, "What?"
"This person, isn't doing this for anything more than attention and to force the FBI to make a move. Why Pearsall? Why his car? Because he knows Pearsall is in charge of the case. He obviously doesn't have the manpower to break me out of here himself. I believe he is trying to pressure the FBI into moving me. I heard from the guards this morning that this facility has received death threats if I am not freed."
"What?! Pearsall didn't tell me anything! He put me in charge of this stupid case why wouldn't he…." Her thoughts trailed off.
Hannibal frowned, "Because Miss Mapp, they don't want you to find anybody. They don't want you to find anybody because he is absolutely convinced Clarice is behind this. He doesn't want you too involved. Because of the car and the death threats, I am to be moved to a separate facility."
Mapp shook her head, "Then what the hell is the plan now?"
"I believe that someone in this facility is assisting this new character that has come into play. It seems too easy that he has been able to execute all this. I believe someone here is giving him feedback. The news media keeps circulating that I am moving in and out of facilities, yet the last threat that came to this place was two days ago."
Ardelia looked Lecter in the eye, "So there has to be someone on the inside assisting with all this and telling this person where you are. Do you think its one of the FBI members?"
"The FBI just wants me dead, and Pearsall is quick to get this over with. I believe that it is someone in this facility here. If you can get your hands on those letters, maybe we can figure this out. The mystery man may be a ghost, but if he is using someone, that is how we shall catch him."
"I only have three days to make this happen Doctor, but I will do my best. I'm gonna get going now."
Hannibal listened to the footfalls down the hall and let out a sigh. Something burned in his mind. The date Pearsall showed him, the date of his execution. For on that same day, his child was to he expected. Seemed ironic to him, one Lecter leaving this world in exchange for another.