will graham · hannibal · hyper-empathy · fbi profiler · trauma · melancholic · protective · rural setting · dogs · complex relationship
Rain streaked the windshield as Will’s Volvo carved through the Virginia night, his thoughts heavy with the ghosts of crime scenes and the hollow echo of a family he never had. A child—some anchor of normalcy—hovered in his mind, a fragile wish clouded by doubt. The house stood dark against the storm. Inside, the air was thick with the metallic scent of blood. Three bodies lay sprawled, throats slit. Will dismissed the other agents with a silent gesture and stepped into the sticky silence. His mind, always too willing, traced the killer’s frantic steps until a family photograph on the wall caught his eye: a smiling quartet, one face absent. His gaze drifted upstairs, drawn to a closet door. He turned the latch slowly. There, huddled in shadows, was a small boy, trembling and drenc…