Author's note: Did any of you who follow Cole on Instagram see his latest post where he is showing products on Amazon being sold about him? God, I died laughing. At 230 in the morning while sitting outside and smoking a cigarette. My apologies to neighbors who heard me laughing ridiculously hard. Anyways, new chapter for you.
Jughead and Sweet Pea pulled up to the police station and dashed inside immediately upon parking, Jughead trying not to shove people out of his way to get to Betty and Emma as they did so. Ethel had just dropped two different bombs – the truth about who killed Polly and the fact that she had been working with Glen for a while apparently. He knew Betty well enough to know that she'd be in the mindset of interrogating her and then she'd crash when the waves of guilt hit her. Jughead didn't want her by herself for that. Looking around wildly, he spotted Tom Keller hurrying towards him.
"Jughead, Betty and Emma are in an interrogation room with Ethel Muggs that I secured for them once Betty called. You and Sweet Pea can be in there with them as long as both Betty and Emma are comfortable with it," the sheriff said. Jughead nodded.
"They will be," he said, letting Keller lead him and Sweet Pea both to where the three women were at. Pausing just outside, Keller tapped his knuckles against the door, and it opened a moment later, Emma appearing looking frustrated as hell. Her features softened when she spotted Sweet Pea and Jughead.
"Come on, Betty's in here. Prepare yourselves; we're not playing by the rule book," Emma said, and Tom Keller cleared his throat.
"I'll just pretend like I didn't hear that," he mumbled and Sweet Pea nodded.
"Wise decision, Sheriff," he said, before both and he and Jughead followed Emma into the room. Taking in the scene, Jughead spotted Ethel sitting in a chair, hands cuffed in front of her and Betty leaning against the back wall, arms crossed against her chest as she stared at the other woman. She didn't look up at the sound of the other three entering; eyes never straying from Ethel's face with such open hostility Jughead knew he'd have to check her palms later that evening.
"Has she said anything?" Sweet Pea asked, jerking his head towards Ethel, who chuckled.
"She has a name and is sitting in the same room, Sweet Pea," Ethel said politely. "Please don't pretend otherwise."
Jughead couldn't help the infuriation that was rolling off him in waves. Ethel had admitted to killing the love of his life's sister and for what? So she could have the approval of some psychopath more psychotic than her? Fuck that. Fuck that.
"You know who else had a name, Ethel?" Betty said, tone calm and demeanor relaxed. "Polly. My sister. The woman you murdered without a second thought and for what? Because Glen told you to?"
"His name is…," Ethel began in a hiss, but Betty moved to the table and leaned down in front of her, placing her palms on the table top.
"His name is Glen. He isn't a god to look up to. He murders innocent women – kidnaps and tortures them – something you knew, by the way. You knew about my personal hostage experience – warned him that I'd cause "undue stress". So no, we're not going to be calling him by his moniker. Say his fucking name," she said, tone calm and eyes burning.
Ethel chuckled and Emma smiled slightly. "Something funny, Ethel?"
"Not really, Emma," she replied.
"Didn't give you permission to call me that," Emma said casually, flicking something off her blazer nonchalantly. "You still don't have the permission."
Ethel shrugged and looked towards Sweet Pea. "Your girl is fun."
His expression hardened. "I'd be wise about what you said, Ethel. You're not sitting in a good position."
"Oh, I'm sitting just comfortably, thanks for worrying," she smiled, and Jughead watched her features carefully before speaking up.
"He wasn't," he said indifferently. "Worried." Watching her once more, he didn't miss the way her eyes flashed and he looked at Betty, who nodded discreetly and pulled out the chair in front of her, taking a seat as she studied Emma.
"How'd you meet Glen?" Betty asked, tone cold.
Ethel smiled that same serene smile. "I met him traveling after college. I was drunk – had gone out with a few girls from college who had travelled at one point with me – and he was there."
"Glen?" Emma asked and Ethel looked at her like she was an idiot.
"Obviously," Ethel snapped before continuing. "I was being harassed by these awful men and he stepped in and helped."
Emma and Betty exchanged a look before Betty turned back to Ethel, matching her smile head on. "So, he saved you?"
"Yes," she breathed. "He loves me. He'll always save me."
Betty chuckled a bitter chuckle, shaking her head as Emma moved to pour her a cup of coffee and bring it to her. It was only after she had taken a sip did Betty look at Ethel. "Ethel, Glen isn't capable of love. And, he sure as shit doesn't love you, make no fucking mistake about it."
"You always did think you were better than me," Ethel laughed quietly. "I mean, Jughead fell for you, didn't he? He never once paid attention to me. And then you came along, and he had no eyes for anyone else."
"Just going to take a guess here, but it might have had something to do with the fact that I didn't force an unwanted kiss on him," Betty said.
"No, you just kissed his best friend," Ethel replied calmly. "Which is worse?"
"The unwanted sexual approach, by far," Jughead said, voice hard as he spoke up. He was definitely going to let Betty and Emma control how things played out, but he'd be damned if Polly's murderer hurt Betty even further.
Ethel's eyes flickered to Jughead and he wasn't surprised to find them cold. "She can't give you what I would have been able to. She wouldn't be able to know how to."
"Her name is Betty," Jughead snapped. "And, you fucking murdered her sister. Even if I didn't love her, I would never love you."
Betty held up a hand, bringing the attention back to her. "I thought you loved Glen, anyways. Why are you concerned with Jughead?"
Ethel laughed and the sound was a maniacal sounding as ever. "I do love Glen. And, he loves me. Although, I could have lived without seeing you two fucking."
The crass words jarred Betty but Jughead seemed to be the only one to see it as she slid her mask of indifference back onto her face. "You're the one who put the cameras into my apartment?"
"Yep," Ethel said calmly. "You honestly think that he had that done when you were in the hospital, Betty?"
Betty looked at her and nodded with a slow smile, before looking at Emma who nodded as well. "Agent Morrison and I need to step outside. Get comfortable. You're not going anywhere."
They ducked out of the room with Sweet Pea and Jughead following after Betty ensured there were two officers inside with Ethel. Turning to Emma, she spoke. "You catch that?"
"The fact that she either accidentally or on purpose let slip that you had cameras in your apartment before the kidnapping?" Emma asked. "Yeah, I caught that."
"Question is, why did those need to be placed in the first place? The kidnapping hadn't happened yet."
Jughead felt a sinking pit form in his stomach as the two women spoke, one Sweet Pea felt as well, based off the look on his face.
"Glen, the prick, installed the cameras before ever kidnapping you?" Sweet Pea double-checked, and Betty nodded, biting her lip as she looked to be contemplating something. Turning to Emma, she spoke once more.
"Glen was who hired me on at Quantico. What is his hiring process? Is it the same for all the agent hopefuls?" Betty asked.
"He does normal protocol, but he was interested in you because of…," Emma trailed off and Betty nodded.
"Hal and Charles, I know," she muttered. "Wanted an agent with a prolific ability to recognize a serial killer. Sure he's got his morbid humor running high at the fact that it took me so long to figure out who he was."
Sweet Pea hissed. "He's a fucking dick. A fucking jack off who gets himself going by hurting innocent women. And no, I'm not talking about Muggs. He may have manipulated her at one point, but she lost all my fucking sympathy when she killed Polly. I hold her with no less contempt than I do Glen."
Betty nodded, absentmindedly, and Jughead knew she was trying to sort through things in her mind; to analyze everything before going back to looking for a final answer.
"Why did he choose her, though? Why Ethel as his righthand? I mean, I understand she's easily susceptible to someone claiming they love her, making it easy to bend her to their whim – but why Ethel? Nothing about him being wherever she was that night, with the other men harassing her, seems coincidental to me."
"You're thinking pre-meditation?" Emma asked, watching Betty closely. "Did you ever mention Ethel to Glen for whatever reason? No offense to anyone present at the moment, but you never talked about life in Riverdale at Quantico."
"None taken," Jughead said, as he too watched Betty.
"I didn't mention anyone, least of all Ethel," she said, eyes narrowing as she thought. "It's as if the answer is right in reach and I just can't grab it."
Just then, Emma's phone rang, and she pulled it out, looking at the screen for a moment before answering it and putting it on speakerphone.
"Nick, what do you have?" Emma asked.
"Hacked Ethel's phone – her last outgoing call, all six of them, have been to an unknown number but it's Glen who has answered," Nick said. "Sick fuck is fucking with everyone. How does this Ethel woman not see that?"
"She's got a good old case of daddy issues," Betty replied. "Her father tried to kill himself in high school and if I had to make a guess, she's looking for any form of a male figure to save her from those painful memories. She always liked feeling secure and important."
"That the angle you're going to work to get however much information you can?" Nick asked.
"Yeah," Betty sighed. "Not happy about it because I don't want to fuck with her mental health."
"She killed Polly, Betty," Sweet Pea reminded her quietly and Betty nodded.
"Okay, Nick, we need to send agents out to her apartment here in the next hour," Emma said. "Can you stay on standby and be ready to have anything technological related emailed to you so you can start looking for where the connection goes back to?"
"Locked and loaded in already," Nick said. "Just waiting for you guys to tell me when you need me."
"Be ready," Betty said. With that, they disconnected the call and Betty walked back in, looking at Ethel. "You have one chance to truly come clean about how many murders or kidnappings you partook in. Why you held me hostage, a federal agent, and why you didn't tell anyone about Glen in the first place. Talk to us and we can see how easy the DA can go on you."
Ethel just smiled that same, creepy smile that sent Jughead's skin crawling and replied.
"Betty, you can get fucked for all I care," she said.
Betty nodded at Emma and they walked out, Sweet Pea and Jughead at the door already. It wasn't until Ethel spoke up one last time did Betty snap.
"She cried out for you. Polly. She asked for you as she took her last breath," Ethel said. Betty turned on her heel, leveled Ethel with a glare before walking towards her and punching her in the nose. The rapidly pouring blood and Ethel's cry of pain told Jughead Betty had broken her nose. He wasn't the least bit sorry about that.
"Don't you fucking dare ever put my sister's name in your mouth again, you worthless piece of shit," Betty hissed, grabbing her by her hair and forcing Ethel to look at her.
"Bitch, you broke my nose!" Ethel cried.
"Be fucking thankful you still have your life," Betty replied. "You know, the life you took away from Polly. My sister. Alice's daughter. The woman you got close to. I swear-to-God Ethel, I'll have fun watching you be destroyed piece by piece and by the time all of this is over, there will be no man to protect you from me; no Glen. You've made your bed; you get to lie in it now."
With that she left the room, Jughead and the other two hurrying after her.
Author's note: Enjoy! Thoughts lovely per usual! I proof-read but if there are errors, forgive me, please. It's early as fuck and I've already been up for a while.