It was his cell phone that woke him. The shrill ring rang through the house, awakening and frightening the dogs. Still half asleep, Will glanced at his alarm clock before roughly stumbling out of bed. He was preparing to curse the hell out of whoever was calling at one in the morning. Muttering a few comforting words towards the dogs, Will went in search of his phone. He could hear the sound of a few footsteps but he disregarded them to answer the phone. Not bothering to check the caller ID, Will answered the call, bringing it to his ear. Just as he was about to start going on about what time it was when he heard the familiar and always polite voice of Hannibal.
“Will?” Hannibal answered, his voice laced with concern and some other emotion Will couldn’t comprehend, his mind still not fully awake.
Finally realising that he has to answer, Will shook away his surprise. “Dr Lecter? Is everything alright?”
“I am terribly sorry for the late call, but Agent Crawford requires our assistance.” Hannibal began explaining. “A body has been found and he has asked us to be there as soon as possible.”
Sighing in relief, Will felt himself calm down.
“I thought something had happened to you,” Will finally answered.
“I can see why you thought that but I assure you, I am not in any danger,” Hannibal replied.
Sensing the urgency in his voice, Will decided to end the conversation. “Text me the location and I’ll be there as soon as possible.”
“Of course,” Hannibal answered before ending the call.
Dropping his phone, Will sighed heavily before turning around to be met with all his dogs staring at him curiously. Giving them a light smile, Will patted the heads of a few dogs before he went to get changed. A few minutes later, he heard his phone go off.
As Will was buttoning his shirt, he glanced at his phone, his eyes falling onto the message sent by Hannibal.
5904 York Rd, Baltimore. The Senator Theatre. Drive safely.
- HL
Typing up a quick response, Will continued to get dressed before heading towards his car. Usually, he would be irritated by Jack’s late-night calls about a crime scene but at this point, Will was just going to endure it rather than complain. Focusing on his driving, made his way to the address sent by Hannibal.
The drive was long and yet calming. There wasn’t a soul on the roads- excluding the occasional cars.. Will simply took advantage of the silence, his eyes never leaving the road. He kept thinking about the crime scene he analysed two days ago. If Jack was being as persistent as Hannibal suggested, then he was sure that the crime scene he was driving would also belong to the Ripper. It was unusual for the Ripper to kill so quickly. His sounders usually occurred in lengthy intervals. Not only is this out of his MO, he’s also been changing his method, Subtly, yet drastically noticeable to Will.
The sudden decrease in time after each kill indicated that the Ripper was either preparing for something or was simply changing his ways. Whatever he was up to would always result in more bodies.
As Will got closer and closer to the theatre, he could see the numerous police vehicles along with some SUVs parked. The bright blue and red lights were a sight Will always detested. Parking his car, Will began walking up to the crime scene tape that was placed a few metres aways from the entrance of the theatre. Flashing his credentials to the cops standing, Wills walked towards the entrance only to be met with an angry-looking Jack. From the look on his face, Will could tell that he was about to get yelled at. In fact, he braced himself for the yelling that was about to follow.
“What the hell took you so long?” Jack started, his voice raising with every word that was spoken.
Simply sighing, Will looked at his watch. “Jack, I had to drive for an hour. I also had to get dressed. It wasn’t like you expected me to just walk in with my pyjamas on.”
Will could have made the journey in forty-five minutes if he really wanted to but he was a sleep deprived person who was running on simply coffee and cereal for the past few days. He didn’t want to risk driving off a bridge or something. Part of Will knew that they were on a time crunch since the Ripper’s kills seemed to be escalating, but he still didn't want to lose his life by speeding.
Just as Jack opened his mouth to continue the argument, Will interrupted him. “This is going to go nowhere. Let's just go in and see what's going on.”
Huffing in anger, Jack simply turned around and walked in. Rubbing his eyes in exhaustion, Will followed. Just as he entered the hall, Will’s attention was immediately caught by the body that was suspended in the air. Once again, it was evident that the Ripper had gone to great lengths to pose the body in various ways.
Stopping to study the scene, Will’s eyes flitted across the entire stage. The body was hovering a few feet above the stage, a large metal hoop encircling the corpse. A few extra limbs were attached to the body. The body was splayed open, almost similar to how Nichols was. From a distance, it was visible that some of the organs were missing.
Closing his eyes Will let the pendulum swing.
The soft melody of a piano reached his ears. The song was so peaceful, it could replace a mother's lullaby. The music got louder and louder before they were replaced with the bloody curdling screams of a man. Sudden visions of limbs twisting in unholy ways as the man's face contorted into a myriad of expressions. Opening his eyes, Will stared directly into the corpse's eyes. Will was instantly able to recognise where the Ripper may have gotten the inspiration from.
“The Vitruvian Man,” an accented voice interrupted Will’s train of thought. Looking at the source, he found himself staring at a dressed-down Hannibal. Well, dressed down when compared to Hannibal's usual attire. He simply wore a light blue sweater, the collar of a dress shirt peeking from the neckline, along with some brown pants. “I hope the drive wasn’t too much of an inconvenience.” Hannibal continued as he made his way towards Will.
“Quite the opposite, actually,” Will answered, his eyes travelling to the corpse. “He’s basing his killings off famous artwork. First Carravagio and now Da Vinci. Next thing you know, we’re looking at the Ripper’s rendition of the Whistler’s Mother.”
Standing next to him, Hannibal hummed in reply. “Is painting another hidden hobby of yours?”
“Not exactly,” Will answered, softly smiling before he continued. “My mother was a painter. I simply like to appreciate art.”
“Shall we?” Hanibal spoke, his hand gesturing to where Jack and the rest of the team were. Will nodded before they wordlessly made their way to the head of the BSU.
“So, what do you think?” Jack asked once he noticed the duo walking towards the, He seemed to have cooled down and was more collected.
“When was the body found?” Will asked, his eyes briefly meeting an equally exhausted Beverly.
“The call was made at around 12.30 am,” Beverly answered. “Judging from the state of the body, he was killed no more than six hours ago. We’ve also ID’d the victim.”
“That was fast,” Will muttered.
“He was easy to find,” Zeller answered. “Meet Kyle Rodriguez, a famous contortionist. He was reported missing three days ago by his team.”
“Well that makes sense,” Hannibal spoke, his gaze falling on Will and then the corpse.
Hannibal, Will and Beverly answered at once. “The Vitruvian Man.”
Making eye contact with Beverly, Will scrunched up his eyebrows when Beverly stared back with a smug look on her face. “You’re not the only one who knows their artwork, pretty boy.”
Will felt his face heat up with embarrassment when everyone, except Jack, chuckled in amusement. He could feel Hannibal staring at him but Will chose to look away, opting to stare at the dead corpse instead.
"He's escalating," Will commented, his comment gaining everyone's attention.
"It's the Ripper then?" Jack asked.
Will looked back at Jack. "Yes."
"Wrap everything up," Jack hollered, causing everyone in the room to quicken their pace. Will and Hannibal stood in the corner of the hall, watching as all the agents and officers busied themselves with whatever task was assigned to them.
“Once again, I apologise if I may have startled you with my call,” Hannibal spoke, breaking the silence between them. “I just thought it would be better if I was the one that made the call and not Agent Crawford.”
“It’s quite alright. I’m glad it was you that called and not Jack.” Will waved off, his shoulders relaxing. After a few beats of silence, Will spoke again. "Aren't you going to berate me for taking up cases?" Will asked, his body leaning against the wall behind him.
"You should have told me," was all Hannibal said, his voice soft and calm.
"I was going to. I was going to tell you during our next meeting." Will frowned, his head slightly turning to face Hannibal.
"And how are you doing? It's been a few days since your recent case." Hannibal asked, his tone comforting and filled with concern.
"I've been keeping myself busy. I surprised the students with a test yesterday and they didn't seem to like that," Will answered, an amused smile replacing the frown on his face.
"It seems their professor is keeping them on their toes," Hannibal mused, his eyes crinkling in humour.
"I didn't want them to forget their lessons." Was all Will mumbled before they were interrupted by a startled yell.
One of the people tasked with getting the body down had let go of the rope, causing the body to slam hard into the ground. Will turned to face the noise, only to find himself staring at the ropes that were tied onto the corpse. It was the same kind of knot that was used on Nichols' body.
"The knots," Will mumbled.
"Pardon?" Hannibal questioned, his gaze following that of Wills.
"Nevermind," Will answered as he shook his head.
***
It was now five in the morning and most of the officers had left. This meant that the BSU was finally allowed to leave as well.
"Email all the pictures you took and any additional details," Will requested before stifling a yawn.
"You're heading home?" Beverly asked as she took a sip of her coffee. Will nodded. He was utterly exhausted and couldn't wait to collapse on his bed. He'd probably let his dogs sleep with him, craving the warmth their bodies emitted.
"I saw you were getting chummy with Dr Lecter," Beverly spoke, her eyebrows wiggling suggestively. She burst out in laughter at the baffled look on Will's face.
"I'm too tired for this," Will replied before he walked away. He frowned when he could still hear Beverly's cackling. Walking out of the theatre, he met Jack and Hannibal.
"Going home?" Jack asked, stopping his conversation with Hannibal.
"I'm not needed here anymore. Call me if there's anything else I can do, but try not to." Will answered, his eyes threatening to shut.
"I shall also take my leave," Hannibal spoke. Although an unusual look on the doctor, it was evident that Hannibal was also exhausted.
"We'll contact you if there is anything," Jack answered back before parting ways with the profiler and psychiatrist.
"Shall we?" Will asked, gesturing to the streets. The two of them made their way towards Will's car, the closest to the theatre.
Standing next to it, Will couldn't control himself as he broke out into a yawn. Rubbing his eyes, Will muttered a soft 'sorry' before fishing out his keys.
"I don't believe it's quite safe for you to drive in this condition," Hannibal spoke, his frown deepening when Will waved him off.
"I'll be fine."
"My house is much closer. You are more than welcome to get a few hours of rest before you head back." Hannibal suggested.
Will simply shook his head. "I left the dogs alone. I need to get back."
"Alright then," Hannibal paused for a moment before continuing. "How about a cup of coffee before you leave? That should help with the long drive home?"
It was Will's turn to frown. "I don't want to bother you. I'll be able to man-"
"Please, I insist. It would be rude of me not to help in any way." Hannibal interrupted. It was something he wouldn't usually do. Will could easily tell that Hannibal was not comfortable with Will driving in this condition.
All Will could do was sigh in defeat. The sound of coffee seemed enticing so Will, reluctantly, agreed. "Alright then. Lead the way, Doctor."
Will would end up regretting his decision.
A/N. Above image is the Vitruvian Man.
Thank you for reading.