Betty Jones couldn't help feeling nervous as Jughead, her husband, kissed her goodbye. He, too, seemed anxious - though he was doing a significantly better job at hiding it behind an optimistic smile.
Jughead's two weeks of paternity leave went by in an instant, and Betty found herself on the cusp of being alone in their house with three young children for the first time. It was the source of both their nerves.
"We'll be fine." Betty assured Jughead as he readjusted his laptop bag on his shoulder. "Jordan's probably going to be in bed all day anyway…" Their six year old son had been up all the previous night coughing and competing with his sisters to see who could keep their parents awake the latest, so Betty decided to keep him home from school and let him rest. She nodded to herself and squared her shoulders. "And besides, if it gets too much… I'm sure Mom will come over in an instant." Assuming, of course, that she's not already helping Polly wrangle her toddlers… Betty mused silently.
Jughead gripped the strap of his bag. "You can also call me, too… I can leave school early if I have to."
But Betty merely shook her head. "Nope, I'll be fine. Besides, I'm sure your Seniors have been missing their favourite teacher. Remember how stressful it was for us trying to cram everything into the last few weeks before finals?"
Jughead sighed. "You have no idea how many panicked emails I'm about to go back to…"
"See? I'm sure you'll be way busier than me today." She tilted her head to the side and smiled up at him. She leaned up on the tips of her toes to give him one final peck on the lips. "Go. Remind all your students why English is the best subject in the world."
He gave her a smirk. "Well, someone has to." He said as he turned to open the door and leave the house.
Betty returned to their bedroom and laid down on their bed. Her youngest child was still sleeping in the bassinet beside her, and Betty closed her eyes as she revelled in the complete silence in her household and shifted her body against the soft mattress…
Betty was almost in a deep sleep when the baby beside her began the tell-tale whimpers that signified her impending cry. Betty's eyes whipped open as she sat up, and gently lifted her newborn out of her bassinet before she could wake up the rest of the household.
"Shh," Betty whispered as she held the baby against her chest. She rhythmically patted her back and tried to soothe her, but Betty was fast learning what this particular cry meant. There was only one thing that would stop the newborn from screaming down the house.
Ten minutes later, Betty was laying back against the pillows while her infant hungrily fed, when she heard her phone buzzing from beside her. She reached out with her free hand to swipe open her phone and answer the call.
"Hi, JB." Betty said with a grin.
Jellybean's voice was wildly exuding enthusiasm. "I just saw Jughead's message - you finally named her?!"
Betty let out a laugh. "What do you think? Do you like it?"
"First of all, I'm honoured that her middle name is Forsythia. Second of all - are you still high on pain meds? Why the fuck did you make her middle name Forsythia?!"
Betty snorted. "Jughead thought it would be cute because Emma's middle name is my first name. It's like this baby is named after him too, as well as you and your dad."
"I knew this was his fault. He took advantage of your post-birth hormones! If you want me to intercept the birth certificate, I know a guy."
Betty laughed. "Aww, Jellybean. I like her middle name. It's a family name." She looked down at her baby, whose blue eyes were softly closed. "Besides, it's only fair since her first name is Bethany. Although in my defence, that was also Jughead's idea."
"What is with the Jones men and obsessively naming their children different variations of the same name?!" Jellybean asked in frustration. "Seriously, he already has an Emma Eliza beth. Why was Beth any necessary?"
"Well, he also liked that the name starts with the same letter as Betty." Betty mused. "Honestly, at this point I'm just glad I don't have two babies named Jugheadrina."
Jellybean snorted. "Sickeningly sweet as that all is, I'll admit that… I really do like her name."
"What was that?" Betty joked. "Did I just hear you admit to liking the name Bethany Forsythia?"
"I'll put my hand on the Bible and wilfully deny it if I have to - assuming of course that I don't burst into flames first."
Betty laughed. "How's it going over in sunny California?"
"Oh you know, plenty of sunlight and hot half-naked women running around… definitely struggling to get up in the morning."
Betty grinned. "Sounds awful."
"Oh, it is." Jellybean said wistfully. "I have to spend my long and painful days convincing Britta to stay in bed and take my mind off it…"
Betty's shoulders shook with mirth. "What a woeful tragedy."
"I have to agree with you there." Betty could almost hear the grin on Jellybean's face.
Betty opened her mouth to speak, but became distracted as she felt the phone vibrating against her cheek. She pulled it away to inspect the screen, and noted that a private number was calling her. "Hey, JB, can I call you back? I'm getting another call… it's probably Riverdale Elementary wondering why Jordan isn't at school."
Jellybean acquiesced and Betty quickly answered the next phone call. It indeed was the school's secretary, a bubbly but stern woman named Janine Withers who took her job extremely seriously.
"Good morning Mrs Jones." She said melodiously.
"Good morning. My apologies, I was going to call later to let you know Jordan's sick and won't be in today." Betty said quickly.
"Ah, so that's what happened." Janine mused. "Jordan's grandmother arrived to pick him up, but he hadn't been signed in yet. I'll let her know he's still at home… I assume there's been some sort of miscommunication."
Betty readjusted Bethany against her chest and sat up straighter. "I'm sorry… his grandmother is there?" She asked curiously.
"Yep." Janine said brightly. "In future, we'll need you or Mr Jones to add Grandma's name to the list of people who have permission to take Jordan home. It'll save you a lot of hassle, and we won't need to call you to double check each time she comes to get him."
Betty's head started spinning. She was still recovering from childbirth, but she was certain that this wasn't some sort of postpartum hallucination. "I'm sure I put my mom's name down already…"
"Oh, sorry, this is Jordan's other grandmother. I don't believe we have her name anywhere on our system…"
"Right." Betty said, swallowing. She knew, in fact, that Gladys Jones' name wasn't on the list, because she lived several hours away and there'd likely never be a need for her to pick Jordan up from school. Aside from her and Jughead, only FP, Alice, Polly and Juniper were on the list of people who could sign Jordan out of school - and Juniper was only on there in case her and Dagwood ever needed to walk Jordan home when no other adult was available. Jughead was strict with the school, nervous that someone in Cora's family would try to take Jordan, so his teacher waited with him at the gate every day with several other first graders until she saw one of Jordan's approved relatives and let him walk outside to meet them.
Why would Gladys be trying to pick Jordan up? Betty thought, her mind still swirling. Did Jughead organise something with her without telling me? I didn't know she was even in town this week…
A bad, bad feeling came over Betty, and her heart raced in her chest as she asked: "I'm sorry, this is going to be a strange question, but… would you mind describing Jordan's grandmother to me?"
There was a long pause on the other line and Betty clutched Bethany closer as she waited for Janine to respond. "Um, I'm sorry, it looks like she left… but if I recall she was a blonde woman, a bit older… maybe in her sixties?"
Betty knew instantly who the woman was. "Thank you for calling me." She braced herself and took a deep breath. "That woman is not allowed to pick Jordan up. Ever. Is there something we can do to make sure nobody ever lets him leave with her?"
…..
Almost one year earlier, Betty had joined Cheryl and Toni for breakfast at Pop's.
She'd slowly perfected the intrinsic art of holding Jordan's hand to keep him close to her while she carried Emma, and made her way into the diner feeling more than a little proud of herself for wrangling the two kids inside with minimal effort. Emma was over one year old now, and if Betty wasn't careful, she'd have two children running around aimlessly.
It was a Saturday morning, and Jughead was still in New York. His latest session with Visionary Publishers had gone well into the night, so Betty encouraged him to stay at a hotel rather than risk driving home tired. It would be better for him, too, that he wouldn't be driving while he no doubt over-thought the release of Deadbeat Dad.
He'd wanted to release it, really he had, but it had been written four years previously, and giving the draft a final read through unlocked a lot of dark emotions. Likewise, he was fearful of the backlash, and Betty couldn't blame him. There were no obvious similarities to the divorce of the fictional Fredrick Johnson and Jughead's own, and yet, he knew people were going to compare them.
He knew his audience would read into every subtle indicator of abuse from Fredrick's ex-wife. That his critics would claim he was trying to profit off of his own ex-wife's imprisonment, or worse, make a mockery of domestic abuse, or even sympathise with adulterers.
It wasn't his intention when writing it - he'd been suffocating in his first marriage, and only now with the benefit of hindsight realised that he'd written Deadbeat Dad as an escape. No part of Jughead would ever consider cheating on a wife - not even Cora, who'd made his life a living hell.
And yet… Fredrick Johnson didn't have all the same moral qualms that befell Jughead. If Fredrick's wife ever hit him, verbally abused him, or kept him trapped inside the house with their daughters… he was free to seek solace in the arms of the step-sister who had once been his high school girlfriend - before a string of bad decisions had placed him behind bars…
Jughead was completely aware that marrying Betty had raised more than a few eyebrows on social media. Jughead hated that his new marriage was being discussed and dissected online, but he couldn't ignore the speculation surrounding all the leaks about Deadbeat Dad and the similarities of Jughead's first marriage and divorce proceedings.
He hated even more when YouTube gossip channels wondered if that was the reason Cora Carter had snapped. Had she found out Jughead was cheating on her with his step-sister? Was she merely a distraught woman who accidentally drove off a bridge while crying about how much he hurt her? Did FPJ3 make false claims against his ex-wife, and was she wrongfully placed behind bars?
It was infuriating, and Jughead was almost too stressed to stir the metaphorical pot even more by releasing a book on a worrisomely similar topic.
And yet, despite his hesitance, it was Archie who'd convinced him to finally publish the book.
"Men can be victims too, Juggie." Archie had said solemnly when Jughead told him Sam was pressuring him to release the novel. "Not enough people talk about it. Not enough people write about it. Domestic Violence is all too common, and if you've created a powerful artwork that'll make people think, then isn't that worth the backlash?"
Deadbeat Dad was a novel that made him feel exposed, and vulnerable… but when Visionary Publishers posted the link on Twitter to pre-order the book, it had sold so many copies that they'd had to order reprints before it even hit the stores.
It was the very reason Jughead was currently in New York; he had an important meeting with Sam and hundreds of books to sign before they were shipped out to the awaiting readers. He never allowed the publishing company to ship them to his own house. Call it being overly cautious, or just straight up paranoia, but he had refused to give out his address to anyone in New York, and Sam was supportive enough of his 'millennial eccentricities' to allow it. Most of their correspondence was online anyway.
There were just too many people in New York who might try and track him down… and he had a family to consider.
Betty was still thinking about Jughead's New York work trip as she made her way over to Toni and Cheryl's booth. They sat on one side of the table, River and Blossom wedged between them sharing a carton of crayons as they scribbled on a children's placemat.
In the aisle was a large stroller, and after Betty gave the small group a greeting and settled Jordan and Emma into the booth, she sat beside them and turned to smile down at the babies in the stroller.
Maya Topaz and Marjorie Blossom were fraternal twins that looked equal parts identical and absolutely nothing like the woman who had given birth to them. Cheryl had used IVF and Toni's eggs this time when conceiving, and had told Betty more than once what "an honour it is to be carrying the next generation of Uktena in my entirely unworthy womb."
Betty had no idea how to respond to that piece of information. In any case, Toni stared at Cheryl adoringly throughout the whole pregnancy, and their two older daughters were thrilled to have more baby sisters.
(Well, River was thrilled. Blossom seemed to still be confused about the tiny babies.)
The twin girls weren't the only new babies in town. Polly and Sweet Pea had not long welcomed their own set of twins into the world, bringing their child tally up to a grand total of five. Juniper and Dagwood were still excited, but Azalea was struggling to come to terms with no longer being Polly's 'baby'. The almost two year old had become clingy with her mother and spent a lot of her time whinging to be picked up.
Having three babies under the age of two was proving to be overwhelming for Polly, and once Sweet Pea went back to work, Alice spent a lot of her time helping her daughter care for the twin three month olds. Not that Alice minded; she was obsessed with all her grandchildren, and doted on them anytime she was asked to babysit. It seemed, for all intents and purposes, to be one of the greatest joys of Alice's life - aside from, of course, the knowledge that her children and step-children were thriving.
Betty had to admit, interacting with Ivy and her twin brother Sage had reignited her own desire for a baby. Emma was getting older, slowly becoming more independent, and Betty knew in her heart that she wasn't finished having kids. Jordan and Emma were the best things in her life, and she knew Jughead would be thrilled to add another one to their ever-growing family.
She'd just need to figure out what to do about the pesky problem of her career…
It was one of the topics Cheryl brought up as Betty cut Emma's waffle into smaller pieces. She politely asked if Betty was planning to have any more babies, and seemed excited to hear Betty's confirmation.
"I just don't know what to do about work." Betty admitted. "I love my job, don't get me wrong… but leaving two babies with my Mom three days a week just doesn't seem… practical."
Toni raised her eyebrows. "Are you considering giving up work?"
Betty sighed. "Maybe… I don't know. I'm the head of Violent Crimes, but considering how quiet things have been since we took down the Highway Killer, most of my work has just been going through mountains of paperwork with the White Collar Crimes department to try and find something that will implicate…" she paused before she accidentally said Hiram Lodge. "Our wanted criminals."
Cheryl rolled her eyes. "Right. And I'm sure there's one criminal in particular that we'd all love to see you putting in handcuffs."
Betty raised her eyebrows and took a sip of her coffee.
Cheryl tilted her head to the side. "You know, it's the twenty thirties. If you did want more kids, maybe Jughead could be the stay-at-home-parent. It doesn't need to be you who stays home. Have you guys considered switching up the traditional parental roles?"
Betty laughed. "As nice as that sounds, I think I would miss the baby too much. Besides, Emma is used to having me at home most of the week… I don't want to disrupt her routine."
But what Betty didn't want the girls to know was that she also didn't want Jughead to feel pressured into becoming a stay-at-home-dad.
He'd been a stay-at-home-dad when Jordan was a baby; partially because he made just enough money from book sales to live off and contribute to the household funds, and marginally because he didn't want to put the baby in daycare - but mainly because Cora had used her controlling traits of manipulation and guilt-trips to force Jughead into remaining home with Jordan all the time. She wouldn't let him get a higher education and become a teacher. She was unsupportive when he tried applying for other jobs - and yet, she used all his employment rejections against him and made him feel worthless.
Finishing his teaching degree had meant a lot to Jughead, and Betty knew that it was liberating for him to be working a job that fulfilled him and made him feel worth something. Cora had been ruthless, and four years later he still sometimes questioned his own abilities as a father.
Even though he'd taught Betty so much about parenthood, he still thought that she was the better parent. Even though both Jordan and Emma adored their father, sometimes he'd still lay awake at night and wonder if he was doing the best he could to raise them and provide for them.
Sometimes Jughead became nervous when telling Betty of his plans to see Archie or Sweet Pea after work. But Betty knew that always needing permission from Cora to do anything outside of exclusively worshipping her had left emotional scars deep inside Jughead's mind. In the first few months of their marriage, Betty had more than once told him gently that he didn't need her permission to go out, she was just glad he gave her a heads up so she could put his dinner in the fridge. She reminded him often that she had nights where she hung out with Veronica, Polly or Kevin, and he never complained about it. It wasn't like either of them were neglecting their parental duties - their "friend" hang outs were few and far between, and Jughead had slowly become more comfortable with socialising with his friends; but still the anxiety that he was going to upset Betty, or that he was neglecting his wife and kids, lingered in his mind.
Betty was glad he talked to her about his anxieties, and her comforting words of encouragement both built him up and eased his mind. She was glad that with each passing day Jughead became more sure of himself, and seeing him loving his job and coming home each day looking happy and excited for the future made Betty feel warm inside.
He'd even used teaching at Riverdale High to help her. Hiram Lodge had made it impossible for them to rent any property to re-open the Riverdale Register, and so Jughead had come up with a solution; the Register became an online newspaper, and Jughead let his students who wrote for the Blue and Gold write more controversial articles and opinion pieces that could be published in the Riverdale Register.
It meant the budding young adults at Riverdale High had a writing outlet that wouldn't restrict them to the 'safe' topics Weatherbee demanded to keep in line with Hiram Lodge's strict rules for the school. It also meant that a lot of the workload wasn't left to Betty and Jughead.
Alice, too, often wrote articles more specifically aimed at dragging down Hiram Lodge - but she had the knowledge and journalism experience to ensure nothing she wrote could get Betty and Jughead sued by the mayor.
This made things immensely easier for Betty when she returned to the FBI part time. Jordan was now in kindergarten throughout the school days, and Alice was more than happy to take Emma on the three days a week that Betty and Jughead were both working. Those were the nights that Jughead attempted to cook, though more often than not they'd end up eating microwave dinners or take-out on Jughead's nights. Not that Betty minded - he managed to keep Emma and Jordan occupied after he spent all day at work, and Betty could focus on her job knowing that her kids were in safe hands with their father.
Betty felt overall that she'd found a healthy balance between her work and family responsibilities. And yet… more and more she yearned to stop working completely and focus on the kids. It was a startling thought; she'd been working for the FBI for almost ten years, had trained so hard to be in her current position, and she was just as desperate to bring down the criminals that lurked within her home town as the rest of the Agents.
But sometimes she looked down at Emma's bright green eyes and adoring smile, or listened to Jordan's giggles as he recounted a joke he'd said no less than thirty times, and she thought there was something even more worthy of her prime years than hunting down criminals…
Almost on queue, her phone rang, and she lifted it up to her ear. "Jones."
"Hey Betty," said Director Lincoln, "I'm so sorry to disturb you on your day off, but I have a situation only you can resolve." Lincoln had been appointed as Riverdale's new FBI Director after Garrickson was officially fired. He had a significantly more laid back approach to dealing with his team, and rarely used the deeply ingrained professional titles that Betty found a sense of comfort in. She loved how organised and meticulous things were in the FBI - she liked Lincoln, but sometimes his 'chilled' methods left Betty feeling bewildered.
She sighed. "What happened now, Director Lincoln?"
"Betty, I've told you so many times we don't need to be so formal." He mused. "Surnames are fine." He cleared his throat and continued. "I think we have a new lead on Lodge, but it's been difficult to get the witness to talk."
That piqued Betty's interest. "Hold on." She said, then looked up at Cheryl and Toni. "I'm sorry, guys. I have to take this. Do you mind…?"
Toni shook her head furiously. "We can watch them, Betty. Don't stress."
Cheryl nodded enthusiastically. "Indeed, cousin. These darlings love spending time with Aunty Cheryl, right Emma?" She directed the question at the little black-haired girl before her. Emma just looked up at her quizzically.
Betty took the phone call in the parking lot. "What's going on?" She asked.
Lincoln started talking. "A few weeks ago, a woman who was jailed for prostitution was released from Lodge Detention Center."
Betty was already on high alert. "Did she find something we can use?"
"That's the problem. We don't know."
Betty rubbed her forehead. "Then why are you even calling me about it?"
"Because we got a… tip, of sorts." Lincoln said.
Betty's eyes narrowed. "What kind of 'tip' are we talking about here?"
"While this woman was locked up, she claimed that one of the prison guards sexually assaulted her." He said, and Betty's stomach dropped. "We have a written report from the social worker who dealt with her when she re-entered society, and she's the one who called us. The woman tried to get help from another guard and was allegedly denied. She claims that she saw a doctor while in the prison, but… there aren't any records to prove it." Lincoln sighed. "Look, this social worker was adamant that she believed this woman. The problem is, she won't talk to law enforcement. She absolutely won't talk to FBI. But if she's telling the truth, then that means, at minimum, Lodge has failed to protect his inmates, and we can get him on that, or at most, has ordered the tampering of evidence, and we can get him on that."
"Or worse…" Betty said, pondering the situation. "This isn't the first time something like this has happened, and if Lodge knows about it…"
"Well, as much as I hope nothing like this has happened before…" Lincoln said quietly. "It wouldn't surprise me."
Betty let out a long sigh. "So what exactly do you want me to do?"
"I want you to talk to her."
Betty frowned. "You just said she won't talk to the FBI."
"True. But, she might talk to the agent who went undercover with street sex workers to take down the serial killer who preyed on them." Lincoln said hopefully.
She pinched the bridge of her nose. "I don't go undercover anymore, Lincoln."
"I know, Betty, and I hate to ask this of you… but you wouldn't need to go undercover, you can just be Special Agent Jones. We need to follow up on this lead, though, Betty, and I genuinely believe you're the only person who can do it. It's the only one we've had for so long. Lodge can't keep getting away from us…"
Betty closed her eyes and took a steadying breath. "I need to talk about it with my husband."
"Thank you, Betty."
"That wasn't a yes." She said, exasperated.
"No, but, your husband hates Lodge even more than you do. I can't see him getting in the way of you working this case."
Betty phoned Jughead an hour later when she took her kids to the park. When he answered, she could hear the static in the background that signified he was driving.
"Hey Betts." He said happily. "How's life in the SUV?" He teased.
Betty groaned. "It is taking all my willpower not to think about the fact that I'm driving around in a car fit for a soccer mom. I hope you're looking after my baby…"
Jughead let out a laugh. "I have to admit, the Mustang is… a great ride. And there certainly are perks to driving down long and empty stretches of road without any small humans in the backseat." Betty laughed with him this time, and Jughead added: "Are you looking after my babies?" in a joking tone.
Betty smirked as she shook her head. "We're at Picken's Park right now. Jordan is showing Emma all the secrets of the new playground." Betty eyed the way Emma slowly toddled behind Jordan, who pointed out toddler-friendly sensory walls and showed her his favourite part of the sand pit. "Remind me to thank Archie for sponsoring this place. It looks amazing now."
Jughead chuckled. "Maybe you can thank him in the next issue of the Register. Publically, you know… where unsuspecting mayors can see just how much the community appreciates it when somebody gives even a little bit of a fuck…"
Betty snickered. "Great plan." She kept her eyes on Jordan and Emma - the two were sitting in the sand pit merely three yards away from her, and she lowered her voice an octave so they wouldn't overhear her. "Speaking of our mayor… the FBI needs me to follow up on a lead."
Jughead was silent for a moment. "Anything… dangerous?" He asked nervously.
"I don't think so." She said honestly. "I meant what I said, Jug… I'm not putting myself at risk on the field while the kids are still so young."
Jughead still stayed silent for a moment, then let out a long gust of air. "Anything the Register can report on?"
Betty felt a little of the tension leave her body. "Maybe. Maybe not. I'll have to get back to you on that."
Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed an older woman taking a seat on a bench near the sand pit. She eyed the woman wearily, and took in her blonde hair and deep scowl. She wasn't looking at Betty or the kids, merely staring off into the distance. Betty followed her gaze and noted several other children playing on the larger pieces of equipment, and came to the conclusion the woman must be supervising one of them.
Jughead's next sentence caught Betty off guard. "While I was on my way to visit Dean last night… I had a run-in with one of Cora's brothers."
Betty tore her eyes away from the old woman as she let out a gasp. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah, it was nothing… physical. And it wasn't Cainon or Carlisle, it was the oldest brother - Caleb." Jughead said dejectedly. "I didn't end up going to a hotel… I should have, I should have known someone in the Carter family would get wind of my presence. But I figured if I was in New York anyway I may as well meet up with Dean and I ended up crashing there. Caleb must have waited for ages outside of his apartment to see if I'd show up, or maybe he followed me from work… I'm not sure. But I would have called you and told you where I was but I figured you would have been asleep and I didn't want to wake you and—"
"Jug! It's fine. I get it." Betty cut off his rambling. "What happened with Caleb?" She asked worriedly.
Jughead let out a long gust of air. "He asked to see Jordan."
Betty's chest squeezed tightly. "What did you say?"
"No, obviously." Jughead said in a rush. "But then… he started telling me about how his kids keep asking him where their cousin went… before all the drama with Cora happened, I got on well with Caleb. He wasn't as… intense as her other brothers."
Betty swallowed. "Do you want Jordan to see them?"
"No… I don't." Jughead said slowly. "He already has a family. But… am I being selfish by cutting him off from his other relatives? He has seven cousins on Cora's side - maybe even more now - and they all adore him… is it even fair of me to deny him a relationship with them?"
She sighed. "Juggie… maybe we should talk about this when you get home." Betty glanced back over at the kids. They were still in the sandpit, and she vaguely noted that the old woman was still idly seated nearby. She was gazing at Jordan and Emma with a slightly softer look than she had earlier, and Betty assumed this meant that, like many adults often did at the park, she was watching them because they were cute.
Betty didn't get time to think it through much further because Jughead said: "Yeah… I just, I also don't want the Carter family undermining you."
Betty's throat tightened. "Jug…"
"You're Jordan's mother whether they like it or not." Jughead said frustratedly. "You're the one who looks after him when he's sick, you take him to play dates and keep up with what happens at the school… you're loving and affectionate with him, and he trusts you." Jughead grumbled the last part: "If they can't accept you as Jordan's mother, I have half a mind to print an A1 sized copy of his adoption certificate and leave it on their mother's doorstep…"
Betty sighed as she rubbed her right eye with her palm. "Let's not get too hasty with retaliation… Just come home, and we'll have a relaxing movie night with Jordan, then when both of the kids are asleep we can talk about how to handle the Carter family."
Betty heard Emma let out a cry, and she lifted her head back up and put her hand down so she could check on the toddler. She heard the vague sound of Jughead bidding her 'goodbye,' and reflexively told him the same before pocketing her phone, then crouched down to catch Emma as she ran over to her.
At first, Betty didn't realise what had set the toddler off, but as she stood up straighter with Emma in her arms, and slowly rubbed her back, she lifted her head back up to the sandpit. She tilted her head to the side and realised that the woman was no longer seated - she was standing up, towering over Jordan despite her petite frame. She didn't look angry, or malicious - merely curious as she spoke to the young boy.
Betty frowned and walked closer to Jordan; the woman noticed her, said something quickly to Jordan, and turned to scurry away. "Excuse me!" Betty called out to the older woman, but she ignored Betty and hurried onto the sidewalk as she rushed towards a white corolla.
It was only as she arrived at the sandpit, Emma still sniffling against her shoulder, that she realised that Jordan was crying too.
"Jordan, Buddy… what happened?" Betty asked, and crouched down beside him. "Did that woman say something mean to you?"
Jordan just stared up at her with tear-filled eyes. "Can we go home now, Mommy?"
Betty's heart lurched. Emma stopped crying and lifted her head towards Jordan, but remained quiet. "Yeah, we'll go home… but, you're not going to get in trouble if you tell me, okay?"
Jordan's eyes followed the white corolla as it sped off down the street. Betty grimaced as she watched the car make a sharp jerk around the corner and disappear.
"I don't wanna talk about it." Jordan said stubbornly, and Betty withheld a groan.
With her free hand, she brushed some of the hair off of Jordan's face. "Okay. Okay… hey, Dad's nearly home. Maybe we can set the living room up for movie night. Does that sound good?"
Jordan gave her a tiny smile that didn't quite reach his eyes, but he sounded genuine when he said. "Okay Mommy…"
Several hours later, well after the sun had set and both her kids were sleeping soundly in their rooms, Betty collapsed on top of Jughead; her chest heaving, breath still coming out in pants, and her body still warm and tingling from the climactic high he brought out of her.
Jughead smirked as he wrapped his arms around her bare back and kissed her parted lips. She leaned into him, and closed her eyes as he nudged her nose with his own. He rolled them over so they were cuddled together, side by side, and leaned his head back. "I missed you." He said softly.
"Me too." Betty smiled. "Plus, Friday nights aren't the same for Jordan without Daddy to help him make deformed pizzas."
Jughead laughed and held Betty closer. "They're still better than Little Cicceros."
"Not arguing with that." Betty let out a single laugh and shifted her head more comfortably on top of her pillow. "Hey… did Jordan seem off to you tonight?"
Jughead nodded. "A little… Did something happen at school yesterday?"
Betty shook her head. "No… today, at the park. There was this older woman sitting near them in the sandpit. She seemed harmless enough, but Emma came screaming and running over to me, and when I looked up the woman was talking to Jordan. She took off before I could confront her, and Jordan was crying when I spoke to him. But he wouldn't tell me what she said to him."
Jughead frowned. "Maybe she was just a crazy old lady who freaked them out a bit…"
"Maybe…" Betty said doubtfully. "She wasn't really that old though. Older than our parents, yes, but not elderly."
Jughead rubbed the side of Betty's arm. "I'll talk to him in the morning. See if I can get any information out of him."
Betty relaxed. "Thanks. Poor little guy… it must have been creepy. He was so clingy with me all day after that, and wouldn't let me out of his sight until you got home."
Jughead sighed, and ran his fingers through a strand of Betty's hair. "I'm hoping whatever it was, I can talk him around… and, speaking of talking people around… how do you feel about Caleb and his family seeing Jordan?"
Betty sighed. "I'm not really sure how to feel, to be honest… I'm not overjoyed by the idea… but, I can see where they're coming from. Let's say hypothetically, Polly got imprisoned and Sweet Pea stopped me from seeing their kids - I'd be upset about it. I'd want to try and convince him to let me have a relationship with my nieces and nephews." She reached her arm around Jughead's waist. "Jordan is Cora's only kid… he's the only thing they have left of her… I'm sure they get how bad she was with him now, but… it's not Jordan's fault, and it's not their fault either."
Jughead's eyes were glassy as he looked at Betty. "So you think I should let them see him?"
Betty shook her head. "It has to come from you, Juggie. Everything you've done has been to protect Jordan. Removing him from that environment was necessary at the time. And you needed to distance him from that family to help him adjust. But… Cora's still in jail, she can't hurt Jordan. But maybe… Jordan could meet with some of his other family?"
Jughead closed his eyes for a moment and sighed before reopening them. "I don't know how we can even explain the Carter family to him… I mean, what do we even say to him? He doesn't even realise you're not his birth mother. I know he's going to find out one day… I just hoped one day was when he was a lot older than this…"
"Hey, we don't have to tell him everything just yet." Betty said, putting her hand on Jughead's cheek. "He's only five… he doesn't need all the details. He's not old enough to understand genetics, anyway."
Jughead nodded. "Baby steps… that's what we need to take." There was a thud that echoed through the house, and Jughead chuckled. "Speaking of…" he groaned as he untangled himself from Betty and searched through the sheets to find his boxers. Betty leaned over the side of the bed and retrieved Jughead's discarded shirt; she pulled it over her body and slid back under the covers with her husband just in time for the echo of little footsteps to arrive at their bedroom door.
The handle creaked as the door slowly opened. "Daddy?" Asked a quiet, cautious voice.
Jughead sat up. "What's wrong, Bud?"
Jordan opened the door wider and took a few steps into the room. He was rubbing his eyes, and his voice wobbled as he spoke again. "I had a bad dream."
Jughead tapped his hand on the mattress beside him. "Come over here."
Jordan walked the rest of the way and climbed up on the bed beside Jughead. He wiggled under the sheets, and tucked his head into Jughead's side. Betty smiled at Jughead and rolled over, and Jughead closed his eyes as he heard both the other occupants of the bed slow down their breathing.
"Dad…" Jordan's voice startled Jughead out of his near slumber. "Is Mommy…" He stopped himself mid sentence.
Jughead kept his face neutral as he looked down at Jordan's worried face. "Is Mommy what?" He asked calmly.
"Is Mommy… a monster?"
Jughead swallowed back the surprised laugh that wanted to come out, purely because Jordan looked so horrified. "Is that what your bad dream was about?"
But Jordan shook his head, and Jughead's eyebrows furrowed. "A mean lady at the park said Mommy was a monster."
Jughead turned onto his side to face Jordan properly. "It sounds like this lady might have been a little crazy, Bud." He said softly. "Sometimes people say odd things… there are some weird people out there."
Jordan visibly relaxed as he snuggled into Jughead. "What's a… child snatcher?"
Jughead stiffened. "Where did you hear that?"
"From the crazy lady." He said simply. "She said Mommy was a child snatcher." Jordan frowned. "She also said Mommy… isn't my Mommy." His face softened. "I know that's not true. But it's a mean thing to say."
Betty rolled over and faced Jughead. He spared a glance over his shoulder at her - both their eyes were wide, and Betty had a slither of fear in her expression. Jughead swallowed. "Don't worry about anything this woman said to you, Jordan. She's a bad woman, and we don't listen to bad people."
Jordan nodded and leaned his head against Jughead. "Night Night, Daddy."
"Night…"
After Jordan fell asleep, Jughead and Betty searched the Carters' social media pages until they found a photo of Cora's mother. Betty grimly confirmed it was her who spoke to the kids and the park, and both parents laid awake for hours as they discussed what on Earth they were going to do with the information.
It wasn't their last encounter with Mrs Carter. The formidable woman showed up again at the park several months later, but she didn't get close enough to the kids before Jordan came running over to Betty; he'd spotted her first, and Jordan wasted no time in fleeing from the 'crazy lady'.
Jughead finally called Caleb back, merely to tell him to get his mother to lay off on their family. But as a result of that conversation, Jughead finally agreed, after much discussion with Betty, to let Jordan meet his older cousins.
They chose to do so in New York. It was convenient for Jughead; he had things to sort out with Sam, and Betty took the kids to Central Park while Jughead attended a short interview for an online literary magazine.
The meeting itself started tense for the adults, but Caleb and his wife Maria were polite, and kept their promise of avoiding the topic of Cora. Jordan was curious about the older children - there were three of them, all of them with the blonde hair common amongst the Carter children, the eldest of which seemed to be the same age as Chandler.
The kids ran around the playground in Washington Square Park, giggling as they climbed the jungle gym. Emma stayed latched to Betty's leg, but Jordan seemed to be genuinely enjoying himself. Everything seemed, for all intents and purposes, to be going smoothly.
And then Betty gripped Jughead's hand as her eyes widened. "Jug." She said in a warning tone.
Jughead followed her gaze, and his stomach clenched. Standing outside the fenced-off playground less than ten yards away was Mrs Carter. She stared wistfully at her grandchildren as they played, and Jughead watched as her eyes narrowed in on Jordan.
"You promised." Jughead hissed, his eyes flashing dangerously at Caleb.
Caleb turned around to follow Jughead's eyes, then he stiffened and turned back, an apologetic expression on his face. "I didn't think she'd come… Jughead, I'm sorry, I know she can be intense… but Jordan is her grandson."
"I don't want to hear it." Jughead said gruffly, then stormed closer to the playground's entrance. "Jordan! Jordan, come down from there. We're leaving."
Jordan slid down the slide and looked at Jughead curiously as he stood up straight. "But I don't wanna leave."
"Do as you're told, Jordan." Jughead said in a rush. He chanced a glance at Cora's mother, and noted that the woman was glaring at him from across the park. "Come here. We need to go."
Jordan huffed dramatically, but obediently walked towards his father. He turned his head back to his cousins and waved. "Bye guys! See you next time!"
There won't be a next time at this rate… Jughead thought glumly as Jordan made it to the entrance. Jughead reached down and gripped his hand tightly as he led him back towards Betty.
And then he heard the grating voice of Mrs Carter coming from behind him. "Are you seriously going to keep my grandchild away from me?!" She shrieked.
Caleb hurried towards her. "Mom, please, don't do this here…"
"You're a coward!" Mrs Carter yelled. "You're disgusting. You completely tore our family apart! How dare you keep Jordan from his family?! What gives you the right—"
Jughead handed Jordan off to Betty, who reached for him and held him close to her side. Then Jughead turned his furiously growing anger towards his ex-mother-in-law. "If you want someone to blame, go and talk to your daughter. Now, stay the hell away from my son."
Her eyes narrowed. "You can't hide him forever. I can find out where you live."
"Is that a threat?" Jughead laughed humourlessly. "You're trying to convince me to let Jordan spend time with you, and you're threatening me? You're lucky I haven't called the cops yet!"
"Because calling the police on women and making false claims of abuse are what you're best at, right?" She practically growled her words. Caleb frowned at her and told her to stop, but Jughead had heard enough.
He picked Jordan up and carried him the rest of the way to their car.
Jughead hadn't recovered from the ordeal as he drove his family back home to Riverdale. There weren't many cars on the highway, and the drive would have been peaceful had he not still been so wound up.
Emma and Jordan were both napping in their car seats, and Betty reached over to take his hand from where it hung loosely on his lap.
Jughead let out a sigh. "We're not doing that again." He said determinedly.
"I support whatever decisions you make." Betty said, giving his hand a squeeze.
Jughead frowned. "I don't trust that woman in the slightest. She's unhinged."
Betty nodded. "I agree… she hasn't even tried to go about this the right way…"
Jughead gripped the steering wheel with his other hand. "I don't want Jordan anywhere near that woman… I can't trust her to be reasonable when she can't even ask me to see him." He lowered his voice. "What if I let him visit her and she took him to the prison to see Cora…"
"She's not that crazy." Betty said firmly, then her hand squeezed him again. "Right?"
Jughead honestly wasn't sure.
…
A year later, as Jughead hurried into the front office of Riverdale Elementary, he thought he might finally have his answer.
Betty stood up out of her seat as he approached. She'd tied her hair up, and she was dressed in clothes that could have been appropriate for an office day at the FBI. She was slowly rocking Bethany back and forth in her arms, and Jughead could tell that the baby was sleeping soundly.
"Where are Jordan and Emma?" He asked nervously as he reached out to pull Betty into a hug.
"They're at home - I called Archie, he's going to watch them until we get back." She said quickly as she pulled away to look at his face. "He took Linda over with him. For all the kids know, this is just a regular play date."
Jughead let out a long breath. "Good. We don't need to freak them out."
At that moment, the school's Principal came out of the office door. "Mr and Mrs Jones. Thank you for coming in." She said, a concerned look on her face. "Please, come into my office, we should discuss this in private."
She led the nervous parents down a series of hallways until they reached her office door. She commented on how beautiful Betty's new baby was, and apologised for the inconvenience it must be to be bringing the newborn out of the house.
"It's fine." Betty assured her. "We urgently need to come up with some safeguards, and I'm happy to do so in person."
The principal sighed and took a seat behind her desk. She indicated to the chairs opposite, and Betty and Jughead sat down. "First of all, I wanted to apologise to both of you for the incident this morning. I also wanted to assure you that even if Jordan had been at school today, his grandmother wouldn't have been allowed to take him home without your permission."
Jughead nodded. "What worries me is that she even tried to get to him."
"I understand that. And I can assure you that we are taking this seriously." The principal said in earnest. "If you have one, we'd like a photo of his grandmother to hang up in the office. If she shows up again, we'll make sure you're informed."
Betty and Jughead shared a glance. "That sounds like a good plan." Betty said. "Could we organise a new routine with his teacher? We'll walk him to his classroom and collect him from there at the end of the school day." She sighed. "I know it's a bit extreme, but…"
"No, that sounds perfectly reasonable, Mrs Jones. I'll let Miss Tetra know." The principal turned her gaze to Jughead. "Are there any court orders against your mother? We want Jordan to be kept safe, and having as much information as possible will be extremely helpful." She said, and Jughead felt his insides freezing over. "If there are protection orders, we can alert the authorities if she tries to come onto school grounds."
Jughead felt Betty's hand resting on his knee, and he covered her hand with his own. "Actually… this woman isn't my mother. She's… my ex-wife's mother. Jordan's… biological grandmother."
The principal's eyebrows rose. "Oh, I'm sorry… I didn't realise…"
"No, it's my fault. I shouldn't have assumed everyone in Riverdale knew our life story." He said grimly. "Jordan's biological mother is in prison right now… she tried to kill him when he was a baby." The principal's face drained of color, but Jughead pressed on. "We have court orders against her, but her family are… a different story. His grandmother has approached him a few times in public, and he's terrified of her. She's… a harsh woman. And she's determined to have a relationship with him - my biggest issue is how she intends to do this."
Betty continued. "We're scared that she might try to snatch him from the school." She admitted. "We don't let Jordan out of our sight in public, but here… we can't be here twenty-four/seven, and she's… sneaky. We've already called the police, but there's nothing they can do because so far she hasn't actually done anything."
The principal cleared her throat. "That must be frustrating. I'm very sorry… I'll inform my staff of Jordan's situation. Please, let me reaffirm that we take these issues with the utmost seriousness."
Jughead's shoulders slumped. "Thank you."
For now, it was all the parents could hope for, because little did they know, an even greater danger to their child's safety was lurking around the corner…