Elizabeth Crawford, 19, is the adopted daughter of Jack and Phyllis Crawford. She has everything she ever wanted: loving family, a promising education, and her future career. Her world is turned upside down when she meets Hannibal Lecter, a forensic...
I wake up in what looks likes an interrogation room, handcuffed to the table and floor. I groan in annoyance. I can't believe it. I was under arrest. Fuck my life. I then try to remember what happened. The last memory that I have is of Beverly using her taser on me. That traitorous bitch. My thoughts are interrupted when the door opens up, and my father walks through the door. Dad walks over to the table and takes a seat. I look down at the table and close my eyes. I was ready for his yelling and screaming, but instead, he tells me,
"Hannibal has decided not to press charges on you for fear that if he does, that he'll ruin your future career prospects and your scholarships. I am astonished and ashamed of your behavior, and I expect and demand an apology from you to Hannibal for the commotion you caused at Will's home."
This statement caused me to open my eyes and look up at my father with a menacing stare.
"I need to fucking do what?" I say through my gritted teeth.
"I said you need to apologize to Hannibal for your behavior."
My heart began to race. I was getting angry again. I slam my hands on the table with all of my strength, which caused Dad to jump in his chair.
"ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME?!" I yell loudly.
An officer comes in with his Taser drawn.
"Go ahead and shoot. I'll wait for you to switch it to an actual weapon." I say with sarcasm to the officer.
Dad gestures for the officer to leave the room.
"I'd rather be dead than to offer that egomaniac bully an apology. Did he tell you what he was saying to me before I knocked his lights out?" I asked with anger.
Dad looked down at the table and then says to me,
"Hannibal told me that he was explaining to you that Will was sick, and he said to me that you freaked and punched him. Without an explanation or reason."
Even though Hannibal isn't in the room, I still have the urge to seek him out and punch him in the face. Maybe do even more permanent damage.
"Dad, how can you believe him? For fuck's sake, Dad, he punched me in the face as well! You would rather stick up for Hannibal rather than your daughter! What the fuck is wrong with you?!" I scream, with tears rolling down my cheeks.
I laid my head down on the table and said to Dad,
"Get the fuck out of here, before I attack you next, Jack."
Dad gets up from the table, walks around to the door, and says,
"When you are ready to apologize, make your phone call to me, and I'll come to pick you up. Until then, you will remain in custody, and maybe you can reflect on your actions."
I then hear the door slam shut, and I begin to cry. I can't believe that Dad chose to believe Hannibal rather than me. As I was sitting there, I contemplated calling Hannibal and apologizing, but I will stand my ground. I wasn't going to give in. My mind was bouncing back and forth like a tennis ball on the court as to if I should relent, but again, I refuse to apologize for fighting back. I am not going to take this lying down.
An Hour Later
I haven't moved from the table since Dad visited me. I mean, how can I? I'm chained like King Kong was taken to New York. I felt that I was going to be stuck in here for days until an officer in a gray uniform walks in and says to me,
"Good news, Crawford. You're going home. Your uncle has come to get you out."
I say nothing, and the officer uncuffs my chains from the floor and table. He still places my hands behind my back and puts some handcuffs on for precaution. As we walked towards the front door, I was hoping and praying to God that if Hannibal was posing as an uncle, I want lightning to strike me dead. As the cell doors opened, it wasn't Hannibal, but someone that I hated equally.
"Oh, you got to be fucking shitting me," I mumbled under my breath.
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Chilton was smiling menacingly at me, with the satisfaction that he was the one who bailed me out. After the officer took my cuffs off, I signed some papers and was given my stuff back. I walk towards Chilton, and we walk towards the front door in silence. It wasn't until we got inside of Chilton's vehicle that he began to laugh.
"What is so fucking funny, gimpy?" I sneer at Chilton.
"I'm laughing because you punched Hannibal. That is priceless!" Chilton shrieks as he cannot contain his laughter.
"Shut up, asshole," I say. Chilton starts the car and drives from the jail and onto the main road, back to my home.
"Great. Now my name is in the goddamn system, and the FBI won't hire me." I say sadly.
Chilton then says to me,
"You were never booked. No fingerprints or pictures were taken. You were only detained at the orders of your father. He is the most important man at the FBI, and of course, local law enforcement would have listened to him. So, you're fine. You can still work at your precious FBI."
I breathed a sigh of relief. My life would've been over if I had been booked properly. Chilton then stops at a light and asks me,
"Would you like to have dinner with me? I imagine that with you heading home, it would be awkward with your mother and father waiting at home, and they would probably want to talk to you concerning what had occurred."
I sighed and said,
"No, Frederick. I want to go home and starting packing to go to another place."
Chilton turns to me and says,
"Where would you go? If you need a place, I got plenty of room, and no, I would never charge you rent since you only-"
I stop him in mid-sentence and ask him,
"Why are you suddenly being nice to me? What's gotten into you all of a sudden that you want to extend your healing persona?"
Chilton then replies,
"I am in your debt for you saving my life with Abel Gideon, and I don't trust Hannibal either. He gives me the creeps, and he is an insufferable know-it-all that takes obvious pleasure in psychologically hurting others. With our skill sets, we can catch him in the act and possibly, bring Hannibal to justice and for the courts to release Will. Come on. What do you say?"
I stare out of the car window and contemplate what I want to do. Chilton would make a great ally. I lost my faith in Dad, and maybe I can talk to Beverly and try to reconcile our friendship. I look at Chilton and say,
"You got yourself a partner, Fredrick. Come for me tomorrow, and I'll move in with you. Try anything with me, and I'll cut your dick off and feed it to the cows."
Chilton smirks and says,
"Yes, ma'am."
We continue to drive to my house and discuss what will happen tomorrow when I leave my parent's house to start building a case against Hannibal.
