Chapter 21: The Third Man

Now that Alice Cooper was helping out at the Blue and Gold, Jughead was starting to see a lot more of her. He wasn't overly worried about it - after all, it appeared that even though she knew bits and pieces of Jughead's tumultuous relationship with his father, she wasn't going to the police to report it, and for that he was more than thankful. They'd had more than a handful of conversations, especially in the Blue and Gold's office, but she hadn't really asked him anything personal ever not since that day at the Cooper's house when she'd seen firsthand the work of FP's belt. He still hadn't even returned to Betty's place after that time - now that he was staying at Archie's, she'd just come over or they'd chill at a booth in Pop's.

The status quo was completely dismantled the week of Homecoming. After Alice's request, Jughead found Betty in the gym, setting up for the dance.

"Hey you," he called up the ladder.

Betty looked down at him with a smile and descended to his level.

"Why didn't you tell me about the dinner?" Jughead asked, a little warily.

"What?" Betty frowned.

"Your Mom basically tackled me in the hall to invite me over to dinner before the dance," Jughead explained. He couldn't help the instinctual search of her eyes to see if she was going to lie to him - it was a bad habit but being constantly in fear of FP had helped him in reading people. "Did you not know?"

"No, no, of course," Betty replied quickly. She looked nervous, which made Jughead nervous but he pushed the anxiety away forcefully - this was Betty for God's sake. "I've just, you know, got so many plates spinning. I'm a little terrified about the social experiment of it all, but I think it's good for you to get to know my family a little more, I suppose."

Jughead couldn't help the nervous swallow but he nodded.

"You look terrified," Betty said softly, placing her hand on his shoulder. She didn't miss the slight shudder that moved through his body at her touch but she gazed into his light green eyes trying to make him feel more secure. Make him feel safe.

"I...I kind of am," Jughead whispered back to her. "Is your Mom...is she going to...she's not going to ask about my Dad right?" he finally got out.

"No!" Betty replied then in a calmer voice continued, "No she would never. I'll make sure of it."

Jughead nodded, mulling it all over for a brief moment before looking up at her. "Alright Betty Cooper, just this once."

"Thank you Jughead Jones," she replied, leaning forward to land a kiss on his lips.

"I know what you're doing Mom," Betty said, striding into the kitchen with purpose.

"Whatever do you mean?" Alice asked, not looking up from her work, "I'm making peach pie for our guest."

"No, you're laying out some sort of scheme, trying to make Jughead tell you what's going on with his father," Betty countered.

"On the contrary Betty, I just want to make sure that boy of your's gets a proper dinner - I've seen pizza get delivered next door far too often."

"So you're not going to question Jughead about his father? Or about the murder then?" Betty asked.

"Only if it comes up in casual conversation," Alice replied.

"I'm not playing this game with you Mom," Betty said, "and neither is Jughead, not after I tell him what you're planning here."

"Are you sure that's a good idea, Betty?" Alice sighed at her daughter. "When I invited Jughead, he looked so excited. Like it really meant a lot to him that I want to get to know him more. That's all I'm after, honey."

"I don't want you asking him about FP," Betty said firmly.

"I'm sure the topic of Jughead's father won't even come up at dinner," Alice promised before going back to the latticework on top of the peach pie.

Betty retreated from the kitchen to her bedroom, her mind going over every word her mother had said. While Alice was her mother, she was still the most formidable journalist Betty had ever come across. She wouldn't think twice of inviting Jughead over to the lion's den and then grilling him with questions about his father. And she'd probably start by breaking down his resolve with questions about FP abusing him and then following up with a complete interrogation surrounding FP's potential involvement in Jason's murder. It's what Betty would have done if it was her in the interviewer's seat. Even though Betty had never told her mother any details about how Jughead had been hurt, she knew her Mom would have figured it out one way or another.

The last thing she wanted though, was for Jughead to endure the patented Alice Cooper third degree over peach pie.

"Super delicious, Mrs C.," Jughead said, tucking into the lamb roast that Alice had lovingly slaved over all afternoon - at least that's what she told Betty who told Jughead later.

"I figured it might have been a while since you ate something that wasn't...delivered," Alice replied, choosing the last word carefully.

"I suppose it has been," Jughead replied after a moment and Betty could tell he was getting nervous.

"So you used to work at the Drive-In, is that right?" At Jughead's nod, Alice continued. "It's a shame that it's closed down now. Have you found a new job?"

"Uh, not yet, no," Jughead answered. The only real reason he'd been working at the Drive-In was so he could buy his own food and have a place to sleep when FP got completely unmanageable. Now that he was at Archie's he didn't have to worry about that anymore.

"Ah, you can focus on your studies more then," Alice suggested.

Jughead looked up at Betty, his heart warming. She looked so beautiful tonight in her silver dress. She smiled at him, giving him the courage to keep sitting there, enduring Alice's questions, instead of bolting for the door.

"And your father? How is he doing?" Alice asked, before taking a sip of her wine.

Jughead almost choked on the forkful of salad he'd just swallowed before swallowing roughly and looking up at Betty's Mom. "Uh...he's fine, I guess."

"When was the last time you spoke to him?" Alice asked, her face a picture of innocence.

"Mom, I don't think Jughead-"

"Betty, Jughead can answer for himself, I'm sure."

Jughead's mind instantly went back to the garage at Archie's place when his father 'surprised' him for his birthday and left him with a split lip.

"Archie's birthday party."

"Ah yes, that was quite the party, wasn't it?" Alice replied with a chuckle.

"It sure was," Jughead said softly.

"Do you get on well with your father?" Alice asked.

"Mom, I don't think Jughead's here to be interrogated," Betty warned.

"Betty, it's okay," Jughead said. He knew exactly what Alice was doing, fishing for inconsistencies or lies. He knew half the town thought that the Serpents were behind the murder of Jason Blossom or had something to do with it. Alice was only doing her job as an extremely morally-void journalist. "No, I don't get on well with my father. We have...very different opinions on a lot of things."

"Things like what?"

Jughead sighed and put down his cutlery. "Most things."

"Do you think he had anything to do with Jason Blossom's murder?"

"Mom, that's enough!"

"Do you?" Alice pushed.

"I don't know," Jughead said finally, relenting.

"You don't know or you don't want to know?"

"Honestly?" Jughead asked, at Alice's nod he continued, "I honestly don't know. The Serpents have their fingers in a lot of pies and the drugs in the getaway car were most probably from them. I don't know if my Dad had anything to do with it. And yes, I'd want to know if he did."

So far the Homecoming dance had been fairly mundane, run-of-the-mill. Archie and Veronica had sung 'Kids In America', Fred Andrews had managed to arrive not just with his estranged wife, Mary, but also with Hermione Lodge and Cheryl Blossom was being her typical obnoxious self. Everything changed when Jughead walked out of the gym and into the hallway, looking for where Betty had gotten to and finding the whole gang staring at him as in shock.

"Betty, what's going on?" he asked, his eyes flickering from one of them to the next, trying to discern what had gone down. "Why do I feel like I'm suddenly left out?"

"Do you want to tell him or should I?" Betty asked, she seemed angry.

"Tell me what?"

"We went to your Dad's trailer to-"

"To search it Jughead," Veronica finished, cutting Archie off.

"Why would you guys do that?" Jughead asked, frowning.

"My Mom put them up to it," Betty explained, looking guilty as hell. "She was convinced he was hiding something about Jason. We were wrong."

"All of us," Veronica added, "we didn't find anything."

"And Jug," Archie said, "we were only doing it to prove that-"

"That my Dad wasn't a murderer?" Jughead interrupted, his heart dropping and his stomach rolling. He started to feel physically ill at what he was discovering. "You went behind my back Archie?"

"How did you...when did you guys know to go to my Dad's trailer?" Jughead questioned. Although he was starting to feel like he already knew the answer.

"Betty's Mom told us she'd called him, asked if she could meet him near the Sweetwater River," Archie said haltingly. "She also invited you..."

"She invited me to dinner," Jughead said, shaking his head. "So I wouldn't be able to warn him."

"I didn't know she did that, Jug," Betty implored, her blue eyes glassy. But Jughead was having a hard time believing any of them right now.

"There they are!" The group turned to see Kevin Keller on his way with Archie's parents, Veronica's Mom and Betty's Mom in tow. Jughead dropped his gaze to the floor, he wasn't quite sure he trusted himself not to pounce on Alice Cooper if he was given half the chance. "My Dad just told Mayor McCoy about your Dad," Kevin said.

"What about my Dad?" Jughead asked. What now, he thought, feeling a pit of ice in his gut.

"He was just arrested. For the murder of Jason Blossom," Fred Andrews said sadly.

That was all it took for Jughead's unbreakable exterior to finally shatter. He pushed past the group and ran out into the frigid night air, his suit jacket no match for the bitingly cold wind that whipped past his face. He could take the beatings and the underground fights. But now that FP was arrested? What the hell was supposed to happen to him? It was exactly what he'd been trying to prevent for months now, lying to doctors and nurses in the hospital, making Betty, Archie and Veronica and by extension Fred Andrews and Alice Cooper keep quiet about what FP had been doing to him. And it was all for nothing. Now FP was being arrested for murder. There was no hiding his lack of a proper parent or guardian from Child Services now.

He'd turned a corner, heading instinctually for the Greyhound Bus depot to buy a ticket to Toledo or wherever he could get to when a dark coloured van rounded the corner as well. It slowed and then jerked to a stop right next to him. The sliding side door was pulled back and Jughead snapped his head to the side when three guys in balaclavas jumped out.

"What the-" Jughead tried dashing past them but one of them caught his arm, pulling him back and slamming him down onto the road. He landed heavily on his side, his face hitting the asphalt but he was still completely conscious and was still definitely not in the mood to get into that van with these mystery men. He immediately pushed one of them away and struggled to his hands and knees.

"Not so fast," came a voice that sounded ever so slightly familiar. One of the men grabbed his collar and punched him across the face.

Jughead gasped, his vision blurred and he didn't even see the second punch.

The men gathered up a now-unconscious Jughead Jones and dragged him back to the van, throwing him inside. Two of them got in and the third took one look up and then down the street. The buildings, mainly offices and stores were shut up and dark and the pavements were empty. No one had seen them. The third man got into the van and it slowly pulled out from the curb and coasted leisurely down the street, away from the High School, away from anyone who could've helped Jughead get out of whatever situation he didn't even know he was in right now.

{Cliffhanger! Sorry about that. The next few chapters are literally the entire impetus for writing this fic. I totally didn't think it would take over 20 chapters to get there but I'm really happy it's followed the actual series. I'm hoping I can keep the story going over the rest of the hiatus and then pick it up and follow the second season too! Anyways, let me know what you think and hit that review button. Let me know what you want to see too. I might just be able to add it in for you...}