"Do you really think you're going to get away with this?"
The man laughed, but kept his gun pointed firmly.
"And why not? My boss has gotten everything taken care of. After this, I'm collecting my reward and getting the hell out of this god awful town," he answered. "Besides, who would believe you? What would you even begin to tell the police? 'A man pretended to my brother and then held me at gunpoint to write an article for him?' Get back to typing."
Betty shifted her gaze downward, letting her eyes stop on the pink blotches on her leg, which would without a doubt turn black and blue. Only now was she aware of the pain that resulted from her attempt to escape. She didn't mind it, though. It distracted her. And at least she didn't have to resort to her usual habits, she thought as she surveyed her palms, which had dried blood caked around the familiar four crescent moon shaped markings.
If only she had been able to get to the gun faster, she knew she would be in a totally different situation. Only now, she was back at the computer, trapped by an an imposter who was holding her at gunpoint.
She faced the familiar mix of guilt, dread, and anger as she let her fingers lightly skirt across the keyboard, barely paying attention to the words that she was typing.
It wasn't until she felt the gun shift slightly that she realized the doorknob was moving. She looked over at the man, whose expression changed in the blink of an eye. Betty didn't have any time to react before the door swung open, revealing Jughead and Archie.
"Betty!" Jughead called out.
He and Archie froze when they noticed the gun in Chic's hand, which was pointed at Betty. Betty's eyes widened in horror as she felt the gun's aim move from her shoulder up to her friends.
"Get out of here," Betty urged with tears in her eyes. "Just leave. Please."
Jughead ignored what she was saying, instead turning to Chic with anger in his eyes.
"What the hell is this?" he asked, not deterred by the weapon that threatened him.
"Your boyfriend needs to learn some manners, Betty," the man said pointedly, not even bothering to address the question.
"No, you need to tell us what you're doing," Archie asked with determination, taking a few steps forward.
"Take one more step, and I'll shoot."
Archie stopped, obeying the orders. Jughead discreetly held his phone in his pocket, hoping he would be able call for help before Chic noticed. Before he could enter in the number, the phone began to vibrate with Veronica's caller ID on the screen.
"Both of you, hand over your phones," Chic ordered as he heard the phone vibrating. "Now."
Archie gave Jughead a hesitant look, but in a matter of seconds he dug his phone out of his pocket, ready to hand it over. Betty noticed something in Archie's eyes. She didn't know what it was, but it definitely wasn't fear.
While Archie got out his phone, Jughead glanced at Betty, who was sitting at the desk uncomfortably. She met his eyes with a fearful expression. Whatever was happening here with Chic, it wasn't good.
"You too," Chic said to Jughead after taking Archie's phone.
Out of the corner of his eye, Jughead saw Archie preparing for something. He just didn't know what. To keep the man distracted, Jughead waited a few seconds before pulling out his phone, reluctantly handing it over.
When the man turned back around, Archie swung a textbook at his head with all the force he could muster. Immediately, the man stumbled backwards, both in pain and disoriented from the strength of the blow.
Before he could come to his senses, Archie lunged at him, tackling him to the ground. Jughead followed close behind, scrambling to the gun that Chic had dropped. Betty watched as Archie landed a few punches on the man's face. Jughead began to make his way over to Betty, who watched Archie swing his bloody fist over and over again.
"Stop!" Betty yelled, taking everybody in the room by surprise.
Archie halted and looked down at Chic, who was unconscious, and most likely would be for a while.
"Betty," Jughead said as he reached her. "Are you hurt?"
She stared straight ahead, not bothering to answer. Jughead followed her gaze, which was focused on the computer in front of her. He read the first few sentences, but eventually resorted to shutting the lid of the computer.
"Hey," he said, trying to get Betty to meet his eyes. "Look at me."
She shook her head, tears trailing down her cheeks.
"If that had been published…," she said tearfully.
"It doesn't matter," Jughead said, trying to calm her down. "It's a stupid article. They need real proof."
Betty tried to slow her breathing, but that only made it worse. Everything was too much to handle. Her hands shakily made their way up to her ponytail, where she fumbled with the hair tie, eventually letting her hair fall to her shoulders, out of its usual style.
"We should call the police," Archie said, picking up his phone from the ground.
"No," Betty said as her expression hardened. "Not yet."
"Betty…," Jughead said he saw her rise from the chair, making her way over to the cabinets. She frantically opened and closed drawers, trying desperately to find what she was looking for.
"Betty, he's going to wake up soon," Archie said.
"That's why we need this," she said as she turned away from the cabinets, holding up several extension cords. "Help me get him in a chair."
"Come on, Betty," Jughead said as he started towards her. "Put those down."
When he reached for the extension cords in her hands, she jerked away, clutching them tightly. She pulled out a chair and struggled to lift the man's body into it. To her surprise, Archie came up beside her and helped her sit the unconscious man in the chair. As he was being moved, he stirred. He was going to wake up.
"Betty," Jughead said as she used the extension cords to tie his wrists tightly to the arms of the chair. "Please."
Betty ignored his pleas.
"Archie? Please don't tell me you think this is a good idea," Jughead said.
Archie looked back at him with an serious, but slightly unsure expression. The man in the chair let out a groan. Everybody stood in silence as his eyes fluttered open.
Almost immediately, after realizing what was going on, he struggled to break free from the extension cords that kept him planted in the chair.
"What the hell?" the man said to himself.
"I guess the tables have turned," Betty began, her voice hollow. "And now, you're going to do something for me."
Jughead watched as Betty picked up the gun that had been sitting on the desk.
"Betty, what are you doing?" Jughead asked.
"What I have to," Betty answered as she pointed the gun at the Chic's head.
The man was trying hard to keep his composure. Nevertheless, it was easy to see the fear in his eyes.
"You're going to answer some questions for me," Betty said. "Starting with what your real name is."
A flash of hesitation appeared on the man's face, but a few seconds passed before he answered "Alex Walker."
"So, Alex Walker, why did you decide to carry out this plan? What was the point?"
"I already told you… I needed cash."
"Who are you working for?" Betty demanded, taking a few steps forward.
Alex's eyes widened, but even as Betty pressed the gun against his head, he kept his mouth shut.
"Answer the question," she said louder.
No response.
"Were you the one who broke into the school and destroyed my computer? Was that you all along?" Betty asked, more frantically this time. She needed answers, for Jughead and his father's sake.
Archie gave Jughead an urgent look. They needed to stop Betty before she did something she would regret.
"No," Alex replied. "I don't know what you're talking about."
Betty sighed in frustration.
"Tell me who you're working for, or I swear, I'll shoot," Betty said as she pressed the gun more firmly into his head.
"Betty," Archie said. "It's enough. He's not going to tell us. Put the gun down before you do something you're gonna regret. We can call the police and all of this will be over."
"No," Betty said. "I need to find this out. I can't let anybody else get hurt."
Jughead took a few steps up to Betty, who had tears in her eyes. He carefully moved her arm downwards, wrapping his hands around the gun that she was holding. It took a few seconds before Betty released the weapon, letting Jughead take it out of her hand and put it on the desk behind them. She could only maintain her composure for a few seconds before she crumpled to the ground, hysterically sobbing.
Jughead kneeled down and wrapped her in his arms, prepared to stay with her for as long as she needed.
Author's Note: Thanks for reading! I wanted to include some dark Betty in this chapter because I have a feeling we'll see some of that in season two. Hope you enjoyed, and let me know if you want to see more dark Betty in the future.