The concept of telling a child they're not biologically related to the woman who raised them is one that, Jughead discovered through his personal internet study, generated a lot of mixed reviews. Mostly from reddit and Quora.

Though as December rolled into January, and the Jones family prepared to celebrate Emma's third birthday, Jughead was left sorely wishing that he would never have to broach the topic at all.

However, the consensus of social media (and Betty) seemed to agree that withholding the information from Jordan would be a big mistake on Jughead's part. There were several negative outcomes that could befall Jordan if he didn't know about his past.

Every possibility, from it being revealed to him by accident or maliciously by a relative (there were several options in that regard, be it by Cora's mother or one of her vengeful brothers), all the way down to him needing to know for his own medical history's sake pushed Jughead to consider telling Jordan sooner rather than later. There was even the possibility of him uncovering his adoption certificate or the original birth certificate Jughead kept locked away in a safe. The latter option seemed unlikely, but Betty had taught Jordan how to pick locks…

The real kicker was the advice Jughead took from Jordan's therapist. Jenna Dawson asserted that Jughead would ordinarily teach Jordan to stay away from danger. An abusive parent, Jenna had written over email, is a danger to a child. Jordan needs to understand the dangers of being alone with his birth mother. I would recommend approaching the topic in a child-sensitive manner - and had proceeded to give Jughead some practical suggestions of ways to approach the upcoming problem that involved a lot of preparation and easing into the issue with Jordan.

Jughead started with introducing all three of the kids to a book that talked about step-family dynamics.

"Can you read the title, Jordy?" Betty asked, pointing to the bright green lettering on the front of the page.

Jordan, nestled between her and Emma, slowly recited: "Blended Brandon: an ado… adop… Dad, what's that word say?"

"Adoption." Jughead responded, keeping his voice neutral.

Jordan straightened up. "Blended Brandon: an adoption story. Emma, look! He's eating a watermelon." He pointed to the little cartoonish illustration of a small boy holding slices of watermelon as he looked up at two smiling adults.

Emma clapped her hands. "Watermelon is my favourite food." She announced, grinning at the book.

Betty smirked at Jughead as she adjusted Bethany on her lap. Emma's 'favourite' fruit seemed to depend on what her parents brought home from the grocery store, and had changed from peaches to apples to dragonfruit in the space of two weeks. Jughead still couldn't comprehend his daughter's passionate obsession with something as tasteless as a dragonfruit, but the toddler had been giddy with excitement the three times Betty cut it up into slices for her.

Jordan stared up at Jughead quizzically. "Why are we reading this one?"

The silence between both parents stretched a little too long, so Jughead cleared his throat. "I heard it's a really cool story. Plus, it's good to read about lots of different people."

That seemed to satisfy Jordan, and Jughead set to work on reading through the pages (occasionally with Jordan's help), pointing out interesting illustrations along the way.

Truthfully, there was no part of the book that warranted any deep review or literary award. It had a mediocre storyline, and there was no true complication or obvious narrative. The main character, an eight year old boy named Brandon, spent most of the book in his school classroom interacting with different kids who all talked about their families. Some kids had two parents and two children in their family unit, and other kids had two mothers ("That's like River!" Jordan had said, pointing to the child-character in question), step-siblings, and adoptive parents who had brought them to the US from other countries. But the main reason Jughead chose this book in particular was the section where Brandon told his class about the time he went with his parents to court to officiate his adoption by his step-father.

Jughead almost expected a stream of questions from Jordan at the book's conclusion, but the young boy merely looked up at Jughead and asked if they could read a different book tomorrow.

Betty nudged Jordan with her elbow. "What did you think of the story?"

Jordan merely shrugged. "I like Dr Seuss better." He stated nonchalantly. Jughead thought that may be the end of their discussion, but a curious expression slowly came over Jordan's face as he pondered: "Are Juni and Dagwood adopted by Uncle Sweet Pea?"

"No, they're not adopted." Betty answered. "But Sweet Pea is their step-dad."

Jordan appeared to be considering that. He already knew, of course, as it hadn't been kept a secret from the children in the blended bunch of Coopers, Joneses, Smiths, Blossoms, and all the in-laws-between. Emma was officially bored of storytime, and slid off the couch to locate a toy (most likely the new squishy peach she got from Charles for Christmas), but Jordan remained on the couch, idly playing with the pages of the book.

Jughead swallowed before asking: "Is something on your mind, Buddy?"

Jordan nodded. "Why did Juni and Daggy's dad die?"

It had not been the question Jughead anticipated.

Thankfully, Betty took the lead in answering: "A bad person hurt him."

"Does that mean he got killed?" Jordan asked. He didn't seem distressed by the idea, merely curious, so Betty nodded.

"Yeah, honey. Someone killed him." Betty confirmed.

Jordan rested the book on the lounge beside him. "Why did they kill him?"

Jughead glanced at Betty as nerves rolled through his stomach, but she was calm and collected as she responded with: "Sometimes bad people do really bad things. When you're older, me and your dad can explain it all to you."

"When I'm twelve?" He asked, and Jughead couldn't hold in the snort that came out.

"How about when you're twenty?" He suggested.

"Daaad, that's ages away."

"You know what's not ages away?" Jughead said solemnly. "Your bedtime. Do you still want to play the X-Box before you go to sleep?"

Jordan nodded, his eyes lighting up. "Yes! Can you play with me?"

"Sure, but you have to go brush your teeth first."

Jordan sighed dramatically, but dragged himself to stand up. "Fine." He groaned, and Jughead noted Betty smiling as she bounced Bethany on her lap.

"Hey, Jordan, before you rush off…" Jughead said, and the boy paused on his noble quest to the bathroom. "You know you can talk to me and your mom about anything that's bothering you, right?"

"Yes, Dad." He said, then turned back towards the hallway.

"Wait." Jughead said, and stood up off the couch to stand before Jordan. He placed his hand on Jordan's shoulder and squeezed gently. "I want you to talk to me about things, okay?" Jordan stared up at him, and Jughead pressed on. "Like if anything happens at school that upsets you, or if anyone says something that makes you worry… tell me, or Mom, alright? And we'll talk about it."

A flicker of vulnerability came over Jordan's eyes, but he merely nodded and said: "Okay."

…

The book had served its purpose: to start the conversation on family dynamics with Jordan (and to some extent, Emma). Jughead hoped easing Jordan into the topic would get him thinking about the idea of step-parents and adoptive parents being just as much a real parent to kids as biological ones.

While the upcoming admission of Jordan's maternity consumed most of his waking thoughts, Jughead was spared from bringing the topic up to Jordan for several weeks due to Betty's preoccupation with Hiram Lodge.

Knowing she'd be able to get permission from Director Lincoln retroactively, Betty secretly moved Vern's wife and kids into witness protection in Boston. She'd achieved this by calling in a favour from the Boston FBI Director Glen Scot, who was still feeling reluctantly indebted to her for helping him secure his promotion (and possibly for the way his behaviour had ended their relationship). With the only two FBI Agents aware of Vern's children's whereabouts being herself and Glen, Betty felt confident that she could pull off a sting operation to capture the snitch and implicate Hiram Lodge, and so subsequently set a plan in motion with the assistance of Director Lincoln.

It was a covert mission, one that exhilarated her almost as much as it terrified her, and Jughead was genuinely intrigued with her efforts. She convinced Director Lincoln to continue using his phone as normal (or as close to normal as could be risked) to prevent the FBI Leak from realising they'd been discovered, and set to work on putting her plan in motion.

In mid January, Betty's plan went off without a hitch, and the FBI leak was one step closer to being successfully caught. She explained it all to Jughead the night before her sting operation was to be enacted.

"Lincoln supposedly called Director Mann, he's the FBI Director in New York, to arrange an apartment for Vern's family." Betty explained. She took a sip of her wine then placed it on the coffee table in front of her. "Of course, he was really calling Glen, who called him back an hour later with a fake address in Manhattan. Well, I guess it's technically a real address, but it'll be full of FBI Agents, all ready with handcuffs and a warrant to seize the cell phone of whatever Ghoulie shows up to kill Vern's family."

Jughead nodded and stared down into his own wine glass thoughtfully. "What are you guys going to do if nobody shows up? I mean, Vern still hasn't actually given over any information…"

Betty crossed her legs beneath her and leaned back against the couch cushions. "Well, that's the thing. Whoever is monitoring Lincoln's phone calls thinks he has, because Lincoln made it explicitly clear to 'Director Mann' that they needed to move Vern's family as part of an agreement because he'd given up information that implicated Hiram Lodge in Malachi's murder." Betty sighed. "We can't move Vern out of the Sheriff's holding cells - if he gets transferred to Lodge Detention Center we can pretty much guarantee he'll be taken out within the week by one of Hiram's many well-threatened prisoners. And I'm not comfortable with giving the man who killed Agent Ackles the easy way out. Regardless of the circumstances, he still killed an FBI Agent, and almost killed one of our key witnesses; a girl who has definitely suffered enough in her lifetime." Betty shook her head. "Six times he stabbed Sally."

Jughead wrapped his arm around Betty's shoulder. He kissed the side of her head, and felt her melting into his side.

"Jug?" She asked quietly.

Jughead looked down. She was looking up at him, a solemn expression on her face. "Yeah?"

She swallowed. "Tomorrow I'm covering for one of the agents that are currently in the New York apartment. None of them have any real idea of what they're there for, only that they're expecting to make a high-profile arrest within the next few days… but until Hiram's hitman shows up, a few agents are going to be taking rotating shifts. Both surveillance and active undercover work…" She paused as she collected her thoughts. "I want to be there when we make the arrest, and I'm hopeful that the hitman will confess. I'm not optimistic." She let out a dry laugh. "But at the very least, we might be able to use his phone to trace back to either Hiram or the FBI Leak."

Jughead nodded. "So… I probably won't be expecting you home for dinner, then?"

Betty snickered, but her eyes looked tired. "Probably not." She admitted. "But… regardless, I've been thinking that… once everything is all said and done with the FBI's case against Hiram Lodge, I'm hoping I'll be able to step away from it all." She admitted. "Completely away."

Jughead raised his eyebrows. "You mean… you want to leave the FBI?"

Betty gave him a grim look. "I've been doing this for almost ten years. I love my job - it's exciting, I'm helping bring justice to some of the country's worst criminals," her lips twitched, "and let's be honest: the pay isn't all that bad."

Jughead chuckled. "So… why leave?"

Betty sighed. "For the same reason I don't usually do undercover field work anymore. It's dangerous. And although I'm doing my job part time, the hours I work are still crazy sometimes." She reached out to pick up her wine glass. "Our kids aren't going to be little for much longer. I kind of want to enjoy them while I still can."

Jughead squeezed her shoulder. "Whatever you want to do I support you." He said. She smiled at him and leaned up to kiss him on the lips. They lingered there for a moment, before Jughead pulled away. "So, what do you want to do after the FBI?" He grinned. "Gonna open your own private investigation company? Give Charles some competition?"

Betty laughed, then took a sip from her wine as she considered. "I don't know, honestly. I'll probably want to dedicate more hours to the Register. Maybe do some real investigative journalism." She shrugged. "Or, I suppose I could… study some more. Maybe get my PhD…"

Jughead raised his eyebrows. "You want to write a dissertation?"

Betty nodded. "Yeah." She said quietly, then tilted her head to the side. "I actually got into the course at Yale, but turned it down in favour of FBI training." She said casually.

"I didn't know that." Jughead admitted, feeling a little ashamed of himself.

"It's not your fault. I didn't tell anyone about it, to be honest." She said, a serious look on her face. "I don't think I'd research the same area now. Originally, I wanted to delve into the psychology of serial killers. My grand plan was to debunk the legitimacy of the serial killer gene."

Jughead's eyes widened. "If anyone could do that, it'd be you." He said. She smiled at him as she took another sip of wine. "What would you research now, if you decided to go the grad school route?"

Betty pressed her lips together for a moment. "Maybe… the long-term effects of trauma on victims who escape serial killers." She abruptly took another sip of her wine, and when she pulled the glass away she made no attempt to continue speaking.

Jughead swallowed. "Well… you've always been good at research, Betts." He raised his glass in salute. "Whatever you decide to do, it's going to be amazing."

Betty gave him a smile. "Thank you, Juggie."

…

Despite her misgivings towards active field work, Betty was glad to be present when Hiram's hitman did show up to the decoy apartment in Manhattan. It confirmed that there was a leak in the FBI, and Betty was pleased that she'd have all the proof she needed to justify involving both the Boston and New York City FBI branches in the elaborate sting operation.

The hitman was a Ghoulie - this one a man in his early twenties, who panicked and looked close to tears as he laid down on the floor of the apartment's living room with his hands behind his back.

Betty called Glen to give him the good news, and he told her he'd standby for her update. She gave him the name she found on the Ghoulie's ID, and he assured her he'd email through any information he could find as soon as he had it - to her personal email address, of course. They couldn't risk using her official FBI employee email.

The young FBI agent who was with Betty (and who had taken the news that he was involved with an investigation into Hiram Lodge surprisingly well for someone who looked on the verge of vomiting in fear) appeared nervous as he held his gun out and pointed it at the Ghoulie's head. The Ghoulie laid motionless on the floor, his hands now cuffed behind his back as he glared mournfully at Betty's shoes.

She crouched down in front of him and looked him in the eyes. "Did Hiram Lodge put you up to this?" She asked.

The Ghoulie stared up at her, appearing to desire to uphold the right to remain silent Betty had recited to him.

Betty went on the offensive. She stood and looked at the younger FBI Agent - Abdullah, she recalled - and gestured for him to put his gun away. "Sit him up for me." She directed, and Abdullah quickly placed his gun in its holster. When the Ghoulie was in a seated position, Betty kneeled down beside him again. "How you cooperate with us will probably determine how long you spend behind bars."

The Ghoulie turned his gaze to the floor. "Prison doesn't scare me."

Betty felt her phone vibrate in her pocket. She pulled it out and scrolled through the email Glen sent her. "I'm not surprised. You've been inside… four times? That's a lot for a young man of twenty two."

The Ghoulie didn't look up.

"And you're looking at prison stay number five, if my assumptions are correct." Betty settled herself onto the floor, her legs crossed as she scanned the rest of the email. "How will your girlfriend feel about that? She's been trying so hard to get your daughter out of foster care… this will probably put a pretty massive dent in her plans."

The Ghoulie turned his gaze up to Betty. "She'll get Melanie back… what happens to me doesn't matter."

Betty shook her head. "I don't know, Garret, this little adventure of yours won't look real good to the judges in family court."

The Ghoulie - Garret - frowned. "That's got nothing to do with me now… besides, my girlfriend won't be living on the streets soon… that was why CPS took Melanie. When Trix is back in an apartment, there's no reason for them to keep her."

Betty felt herself gaining a slither of exhausted empathy for Garret. "And how can you be so certain that 'Trix' is going to be off the streets?" She asked. "Did you cut a deal with someone who promised you that they would make sure your girlfriend and kid are taken care of? You kill this family, and yours is safe?"

Garret the Ghoulie looked up at Betty in alarm. "Kill them?! I wasn't going to kill them." He sputtered.

Betty raised her eyebrows. "You came in here forcefully while brandishing a machete." She said bluntly.

Garret shook his head. "Yeah, but… I was just going to scare the wife. To keep her husband quiet…" He abruptly shut his mouth and looked down at the floor again, his cheeks reddening.

Betty frowned and stood up. She turned to Abdullah, who had a quizzical look on his face. "Can you get in contact with your partner outside?" Betty said in a rush. "Make sure he keeps an eye out for anyone acting suspiciously."

Abdullah's eyes widened. "You think another one could be…?"

"Lodge ties up all his loose ends." Betty said bluntly. Abdullah's face paled as he nodded.

Garret shifted on the floor. "Wait, what's happening?" He grunted, fear welling up in his eyes.

Betty kneeled down beside him. "Listen to me, Garret. Hiram Lodge is not going to help you." She said firmly. "Whatever deal he made with you - it's bogus. He's making you the scapegoat."

Garret's glare wavered. "I don't know what you're talking about." He said weakly, but the guilt in his expression interlocked with the fear.

Betty used it. "He told you that if you came in and scared this family, he'd help you get your daughter back, didn't he?"

Garret stared at Betty for a long time, then slowly nodded. "When I got out of prison… It was just so hard to get a job. No one wants to employ an ex-con, especially not one that runs with Ghoulies." His voice cracked. "Trix lost her job… and then our apartment got demolished. Lodge made up some bullshit reason to knock it down, and he had no right to close down the South Side's grocery store. Trix worked there for five years and never saw a rat.… we had to start living in a tent on Sketch Alley… then CPS took Melanie…" His expression lost all semblance of anger and he looked down at the floor in sorrow. "Trix was about to become a hooker just so we could eat, but I couldn't let her do that. No, I went to Hiram Lodge to give him a piece of my mind. "

Betty nodded. "And then what happened?"

Garret swallowed. "He told me he was sorry… and that if I did a job for him, he'd pay our legal fees and get us an apartment in SoDale." He looked pleadingly at Betty. "He said even if I got caught, it wouldn't matter because I'd only get done for breaking and entering. You don't go to jail for that long when it's B&E, and everyone knows Riverdale's criminals all end up in Lodge Detention Center. I'd be fine… and Trix would get Melanie back. They'd both be safe, you know?"

"Um… Agent Jones?" Abdullah interrupted. "My partner says he spotted someone lurking around the cafe up the street. He keeps doing shifty laps between there and the apartment's entrance." He lowered his voice - pointless, in Betty's opinion, because Garret could still hear them. "He ran facial recognition on him, and this guy is wanted for… a long list of crimes. He's even got connections to the mob here in New York."

Garret looked between Betty and Abdullah. Betty grimaced and faced the Ghoulie. "When you finished with this job, what were you meant to do?"

Garret frowned. "I was meant to call… a number. I don't know who it is."

Betty straightened up. "That man we were just talking about? His job is to come in after you and finish off the family that is meant to be here."

Garret raised his eyebrows. "How do you know that?"

"Garret, the FBI have been investigating Hiram for the better part of two decades. We know how he works." Betty said seriously. "Once you'd finished with your threats, what do you think the woman staying here would have done?"

Garret paused for a few moments. "She probably would have called the police…"

Betty nodded. "And whose description would she have given to them?"

Garret stared at her. "Mine…"

"So, if the police came in here and discovered that she and her four very young children had been murdered," Betty said slowly, "who do you think would have been blamed?"

Garret gulped and shook his head. "But… I wouldn't have hurt them…"

"Do you really believe anyone is going to take your word for it?" Betty pressed. "You would have been the last person known to have been with the murder victims, and with your assault priors I don't think it would take a jury much convincing to convict you." She said solemnly, her eyes piercing Garret's. "Hiram Lodge is trying to frame you for the murder of an innocent family. Do you really believe that man can be trusted to help you get your family back together?"

Garret became visibly distressed. "He promised… he gave me his word."

"Hiram Lodge's word doesn't mean anything, Garret." Betty said seriously. "But mine does. If you help us out, help us put Hiram behind bars, then I give you my word that I'll make sure you don't take the fall for his schemes."

Garret swallowed. "But if I help you… what if he does something to Melanie… or Trix. She has no idea what I'm doing right now…"

Betty placed her hand on his shoulder. "I promise you, nothing is going to happen to them. I'll make sure they're hidden somewhere until all of this mess is dealt with."

"Okay…" Garret said, nodding. "What do I have to do?"

"You're going to call that number." She said firmly. "And you're going to repeat exactly what I say…"

…

The stakes in this sting operation were even higher than Betty anticipated. Her heart raced as she directed Garret to call his contact and tell him: Yeah, I know it took way longer than it should have! This bitch went crazy, started chasing me with a knife… I think she's gonna call the cops on me, man. I climbed out the fire escape… What should I do now? Do I hide out somewhere?

Betty recorded every second of the phone call.

She let Garret out of his cuffs as a show of good will, and had him hide in the bathroom (after she'd determined he wasn't going to be able to escape out the window). Then it was a waiting game for her and Agent Abdullah; both had their guns drawn and pointed either side of the doorway.

When the mobster associate of Hiram Lodge kicked down the door, his pistol, fitted with a silencer, drawn and pointed towards the living room, Betty used the element of surprise to clock him over the head with her own gun. She felt a shrill satisfaction at seeing him collapse onto the ground.

She didn't recognise the man, but once Agent Abdullah's partner came in from the street and joined them in the apartment, he explained that the man was Arthur Adams. He'd been in and out of Lodge's favour for years; now, it seemed, he was going around doing Lodge's dirty work.

This was probably the man who decapatated Malachi's head and severed his hands from his body.

Adams was still unconscious when Abdullah and his partner dragged the man to the center of the room; Abdullah cuffed his hands behind him before they leaned him up against the coffee table. Betty told the younger FBI Agents to keep an eye on Adams and confiscate his cell phone, and to also make sure their Ghoulie friend didn't run off while she made her own phone call.

Charles answered almost immediately.

"Hey," Betty said quickly, "any chance you're with Lincoln?"

Charles paused for a moment. "Unfortunately, no. The good Director of the FBI in Riverdale is currently working, believe it or not."

Betty sighed. "Can you help me with something? I can't get the Riverdale FBI involved until we've sorted out the leak… though it technically is FBI business."

"Am I even allowed to help you? Legally, I mean?" Betty sensed amusement in his voice.

"I'm hoping I can beg for forgiveness once Lodge is behind bars for good." Betty said seriously. "I need you to go to Sketch Alley and find a woman named Trix Brennan. She has purple hair, is in her early twenties, and lives in a green tent." She explained. "I need you to hide her for me until I get back to Riverdale… Tell her that Garret cut a deal with the FBI and they're getting put in witness protection with their daughter. Kid's name is Melanie. You can give her my number, if you want, if she doesn't believe you." Betty swallowed. "Make yourself blend in, okay? We don't want to draw suspicion from the people who could be loyal to Hiram Lodge."

Charles didn't argue or ask for more details. "I'm ninety percent certain nobody living on Sketch Alley is loyal to Lodge."

"Yeah, well," Betty said quietly, "it's that ten percent of uncertainty I'm worried about."

Betty made another phone call, this one to Sheriff Keller. He agreed to have Melanie immediately transferred to the station by a social worker under the guise of being picked up for visitation with her parents. Betty made him promise not to let the child out of his sight, though he was obviously frustrated with Betty's lack of details.

The only other thing Betty could do was liaise with Glen to come up with a plan of action. She still had Hiram Lodge's actual hitman slowly regaining consciousness on the floor of their decoy apartment, and had no idea how to proceed.

"Can you have Arthur's phone calls traced?" Betty asked.

"Yes, so long as you give me the phone number and can keep the other person talking," Glen pondered for a moment, "but I can't see Lodge staying on the line long enough for a cosy catch up."

"Right." Betty said, annoyed. "And that's not going to help us find our leak."

"No, it won't." Glen agreed. "But, if you can record the phone call, it will help us prove that Hiram Lodge is connected to Arthur Adams."

Betty's eyes widened. "And therefore connected to the deaths and planned attacks on witnesses."

"Indeed." Glen confirmed. "Also, you have the Ghoulie's confession."

Betty's heart raced. "You're right." She agreed. "We have another witness… and this one isn't going to end up dead because I am not telling anyone where I'm hiding him."

"Ballsy move, Jones." Glen admitted. "Now, how are we going to handle our leak?"

Betty thought about it for a long moment. "I'm going to have one of the agents with me call Hiram from Arthur's phone and tell him along the lines of 'the job is done' - hopefully we'll get something from the recording of that phone call." Betty took a breath. "Then… in about half an hour you're going to call Director Lincoln to let him know that the family of our 'witness' has been 'murdered'. Then… we're going to have to get New York City's FBI branch to raid Riverdale's headquarters. I'll tell Lincoln to call all the Riverdale agents in for an emergency mandatory meeting on Hiram Lodge - the leak will definitely be present for that. I'll leave the details up to you, Glen."

"Probably better if you don't know what's coming." Glen agreed. "It's been… thrilling working with you, Betty. Reminds me of the old times."

Betty rolled her eyes. "Right. Thanks for your help, Glen."

…

Glen pulled through only two days later.

The NYC FBI Agents stormed into the Riverdale FBI's meeting only three minutes after all the agents were marked as being in attendance. Their guns were drawn, their bodies covered in bullet proof vests and their heads fitted with helmets. They ordered Riverdale's agents to remain in the meeting room while they searched the building for evidence, seized all their phones, confiscated their guns and handed out warrants to search the SoDale apartments for recording devices…

Betty's home was included in the raid, but she was entirely compliant with the situation. Betty let Jughead know so he could leave work and let the FBI Agents inside their house. Jughead took all their children to visit the Blossoms after school ended for Jordan while their home's search took place, and Betty took a seat beside Director Lincoln in the meeting room. The Director was calm, but Betty noted a nervous energy lingering beneath the surface of the man as they waited for orders over the next few hours.

"You're good to leave, Jones." Said one of the New York FBI Agents as he nodded at Betty.

Betty stood up, feeling her muscles protest after the distinct lack of physical activity. "Let me know if I can be of service."

The Agent gave her a wry smile. "I suspect you've already done enough, but I'll let my superiors know you're cleared for duty if the need arises."

Betty was elated, but hung back to talk to the Director after she'd collected her firearm and handbag. "It's going to be okay, Lincoln."

Lincoln gave her a small smile. "Well, if all else fails, I can always go into business with your brother."

Betty sympathised with Lincoln. He was in a risky position. Being the head of a government intelligence agency didn't leave any room for fraternising with criminals - and yet he'd risked his position in the FBI to… do whatever he was doing with Charles.

Betty only hoped it wouldn't come back to bite him.

Her phone was still in evidence, but Betty wasn't concerned as she made the walk back to her car in the FBI's underground parking lot. It would be searched for evidence that was definitely not there, and the worst thing that would happen was Betty would have to live with the fact that some poor agent in the New York City unit would see some embarrassing images in her messages of her and Jughead in various states of undress.

Less than five hours after the raid took place, Betty caught a glimpse of the RIVW on Cheryl and Toni's television. The leak had seemingly been caught - though of course the RIVW had no idea why Agent Gordon Wilson was being led to the back of a van in handcuffs, while other agents from Riverdale looked on with sneers and glares that could, if not kill, at least seriously injure the man.

Betty had Garret the Ghoulie moved into witness protection with his girlfriend and child, placing him in Boston under the watchful eye of Glen's team. Maybe they'd end up in the same suburb as Vern's family; Betty would likely never find out, but she was at peace with the knowledge that the leak had been caught, and it was now extremely unlikely that Hiram Lodge would find out where the witnesses to several more of his crimes were residing.

For the first time in years, Betty was confident that Hiram Lodge would finally answer for the erosive chaos he'd caused in the town that dreaded sundown.

…

Emma turned three, and the Joneses hosted a small party attended to with all the children in their family, the Blossom kids included. Betty and Jughead smiled proudly as Emma blew the candles out on her cake. She clapped her little hands together, delighted with the sight of her 'fruit cake' (technically strawberry sponge cake, but iced to resemble a blueberry).

Betty allowed Bethany to taste the cake. Purple coloured icing smeared her lips and cheeks as she gave her mother a toothless smile. Jughead snapped a picture of them, and would later make the image his cell phone's Lock Screen picture.

Life resembled a state of normal domesticity for several weeks. Betty enrolled Emma and Bethany in the local day care after Hiram Lodge was arrested again: this time he was refused bail by a judge in Centerville that most certainly had not been paid off by the man. The subsequent paperwork and follow-up investigations meant it was impractical for Betty to continue working part time. As a result, Betty was working six days a week instead of three, and Alice could only fit one extra day of babysitting into her schedule. Alice still worked for Charles on the days she didn't ordinarily look after her granddaughters, and Betty was loathe to ask her mother to stop working a job that kept paying the bills just to watch her kids.

The calm of their family's lives was only broken when Jughead received a message in the middle of February from Caleb Carter.

Hey Jughead, the message read, just wanted to let you know Cora's up for parole in March.

Jughead felt a numbness building inside him as he responded. Thanks for letting me know, he typed, though he already knew about it. He stared at the screen for a whole minute before he added more to the message: Do you think it's likely she'll get released?

He sent the message and shoved his phone back in his pocket and focused on his son. Jordan was doing his homework in the office; an online program set by his teacher involved a complicated (to Jughead, at least) computer program that taught the child to use keyboard commands to make a brightly coloured robot dance to a popular children's song. While Jughead tried to help him when needed, Jordan seemed confident as he typed in the codes and grinned up at his father whenever the robot wiggled its hips and waved its hands.

Jughead felt his phone vibrate in his pocket several minutes later, and pushed his computer chair away from the monitor so Jordan wouldn't be able to see the cell phone. Caleb had responded with a message that didn't exactly ease any of Jughead's fears.

Her lawyer thinks if Cora agrees to keep taking antipsychotics and regularly check in with a psychiatrist she'll be able to get parole. She'll be living with my mother for the next five years if all goes to plan.

The antipsychotics weren't news to Jughead. Betty had figured out she was on them after Cora had presented to the prison psychiatrist with 'Delusions of Grandeur'. There weren't any details about Cora's apparent 'Delusions' in the files Betty had accessed with the FBI database, but the fact that she had them in the first place told Jughead that his ex-wife's mental health could only have deteriorated during her imprisonment.

It meant that Jughead couldn't hold off on reality any longer - it was time to tell Jordan the truth. Or at least, a seven-year-old friendly version of the truth.

…

Jordan's sessions with the child psychologist continued.

Jughead kept going with him as per Jenna's suggestion, and Jordan opened up to her a little more about his fears of swimming.

Jughead was pleased with Jordan's progress, especially when Jenna started incorporating water-based scenarios into the sessions. During the second appointment, she had Jordan make up a story about ocean creatures using little models of fish and wales which she'd placed on top of a blue mat.

In the third session, they moved outside into the building's garden. There were flowering trees and shrubs lining the yard, and Jenna filled a large bowl with water and placed it on the grass. Jordan placed the model fish inside the bowl and made them swim around, a devious expression on his face any time he 'accidentally' splashed Jughead with the water.

By the third session, a pre-Spring warmth was well and truly in the air, and Jordan and Jughead came to the psychologist's office wearing clothes that were appropriate for more water play. Jenna gave them both water guns, and encouraged them to drench each other as the three of them played an every-person-for-themselves water pistol war game.

Jordan giggled as he snuck up behind Jughead and attacked him with the water gun, and Jughead enjoyed the sound of his son's shrill laughter when he uncapped his own water gun and dumped the contents over the child's head.

While Jordan changed into dry clothes in the bathroom at the conclusion of the appointment, Jenna pulled Jughead aside for a discussion of Jordan's progress.

"He's made a big step in the right direction today." Jenna assured Jughead. "Getting him to see that water can be fun is an important part of his therapy."

Jughead nodded. "I'm happy to hear that. He seemed to really enjoy his session today. It didn't even feel like 'therapy' if I'm being honest."

Jenna smirked. "That's the general idea with play-based therapy." She said. "I don't think he's ready to jump in the deep end, so to speak. But when you're at home, it would be good to incorporate water into his play time, similar to what we did today."

Jughead assented, and used the opportunity to let the therapist know he had been exposing Jordan to different types of families. "He seems to understand the concept of adoption and same-sex couples, and how sometimes parents aren't biologically related to their kids."

Jenna hummed in understanding. "It's an idea that most children are able to accept without prejudice, assuming their parents don't talk about it with any bias towards traditional family dynamics." She said calmly. "When you do unpack the topic of his birth mother, it'd be a good idea to let it happen organically if the opportunity presents itself. Don't try and avoid it because it's uncomfortable; the truth doesn't need to be scary. It's a part of his history, and children deserve to know where they came from and how they came to be."

…

To Jughead's complete shock, the opportunity to do so arrived that night while Jordan completed another round of coding homework in the office.

"Dad?" Jordan asked, effectively snapping Jughead into attention.

He gave Jordan a leveled and open gaze. "What's up, Bud?"

Jordan looked down and spun around in his computer chair. "Who's… Cora?" He asked quietly. He lifted his head to look up at Jughead, that vulnerable expression back in his eyes again.

Jughead swallowed. His immediate internal reaction was: Didthatwomantellyousomething?! TellmerightnowJordan. But he withheld the panic, took a deep breath and answered honestly. "Cora… is a woman I was married to before I married your Mom."

Jordan's expression didn't change, and Jughead wondered just how much information Cora's mother had revealed to his son. Jordan's voice was so quiet that Jughead had to strain to hear it, but his heart still sank when Jordan asked: "Is Cora my real Mom?"

Jughead took a moment to collect his thoughts. Anxiety, stress, and a sickening nausea all rolled through his body as he considered how he could approach answering Jordan. Jughead wished Betty was with him as backup, but calling her to the room now would not only disrupt Bethany's nighttime routine, it would probably make the situation seem more serious to Jordan than it needed to be. And it was already a serious enough topic as it was.

"Remember when Mom had Emma and Bethany? How she had them in her tummy for a while, and then gave birth to them?" Jordan nodded, and sat in his chair, the anticipation on his face obvious even through his silence. "Well… Cora gave birth to you." Jughead said slowly. "That means she's your birth mother. And when you were a baby, she was your Mom." He leaned forward and clasped his hands together. "But Betty, your Mom… she's your real Mom now."

Jordan swung slowly from side to side on his chair; Jughead noted he seemed to be getting nervous. "What happened to… my other Mom?"

Jughead's grasp tightened. "Do you know what divorce is?"

Jordan nodded. "Tammy's parents got divorced and now her parents live in different houses." He said, and Jughead vaguely recalled the name of a girl in Jordan's class. "But Tammy stays with her dad sometimes and her mom sometimes." He tilted his head to the side. "Did you and Cora have a divorce?"

Jughead nodded. "Yes, we did."

Some of the rigidness in Jordan's shoulders disappeared as he regained his confidence. "Why don't I ever see her?"

Jughead sighed, then leaned back in his chair. "I got divorced from Cora because she used to be really mean to me," he said as gently as he could, "and sometimes she was mean to you. That's why you can't see her."

Jordan was slowly swinging on his chair again. "Dad… you know my Grandma that visited me at school last year?"

Jughead nodded. "Yeah…" He replied cautiously.

Jordan paused for a few seconds before continuing. "She said that you and Mom kidnapped me from Cora."

Jughead showed great restraint by keeping the frown off his face. "That's not true, Jordan."

Jordan frowned. "Then why did Grandma say that?"

Jughead huffed. "I really don't know, Bud." He said honestly. "But your Grandma isn't supposed to be talking to you."

Jordan stopped swinging his chair. "Why not?" He asked.

"She didn't go about it the right way…" Jughead said, but changed his line of speech to one of more simplicity when Jordan's face showed confusion. "When I got divorced, I had to go to court. You know what court is, right…? Well, while I was there the judge decided that it was better for you if you didn't see Cora anymore, and she made it… illegal for Cora to go near you or try to speak to you." He pressed on with: "When a child gets kidnapped, the police start looking for them. Nobody kidnapped you. I took you with me when I left your… birth mother. The police talked to me about it, and they decided you had to stay with me. Your Grandmother… that's Cora's Mom. She was really angry that Cora wasn't allowed to see you, and she doesn't agree with the judge's decision."

Jordan stayed quiet for a few minutes as he thought everything over. Jughead waited patiently. "What did Cora do that was mean to you?" He finally asked.

Jughead tensed up, but answered him. "She used to hurt me."

"How?"

Jughead pursed his lips. "I don't really want to talk about that with you yet." He admitted. "Is it okay if I tell you when you're older?"

Jordan's frown deepened. "But I want to know now."

"I understand that." Jughead said. "But it's not a very nice story for a kid to hear."

Jordan looked down at the floor.

Jughead sat up straighter. "How about I make you a deal?" He asked, and Jordan's eyes shot back up to Jughead's face. "I'll tell you everything when you're old enough to know what it all means… but right now I'll show you something I have locked away in my bookshelf."

Jordan straightened in his chair. "Really?"

Jughead nodded and stood up. "Come over here." He requested, then opened the top drawer of his desk and pulled out a key. He made his way to the bookshelf, crouched down and pulled out a thick book that claimed it was the English dictionary. Jordan followed, and they both sat on the floor beside the bookshelf. Jughead handed the book to Jordan. "Open it." He encouraged, and watched as Jordan turned open the cover page.

Jordan stared at Jughead curiously. "What is it?"

Jughead passed Jordan the key. "It's a safe. It's disguised as a book so that nobody realises it has something hidden inside it."

Jordan's eyes gained a spark of excitement. "That's so cool!" He exclaimed, and looked down at the silver lock. "Can I unlock it?"

"Go ahead."

Jordan hurriedly inserted the key in the lock, turned it, and then opened up the safe with a look of wonder in his eyes. "Are these all your secrets?" He asked, turning his face upward to look at Jughead.

"Some of them." Jughead responded.

Jordan placed the book-safe between them and pulled out the first paper. "What's this one?"

"That's your old birth certificate." Jughead said, and felt some of the worry leave his body as Jordan studied the paper. "Do you see where it says 'mother'?"

Jordan nodded and read the paper. "Cora Jones… née Carter." His eyes widened as he stared at Jughead. "Carter's my middle name!"

Jughead nodded. "That's what Cora's last name was before we got married. She changed it to Jones afterwards… and when we got divorced she changed it back."

"Did Mommy change her name when you got married?"

Jughead smiled. "Yes. Her last name used to be Cooper."

"Like Juniper and Dagwood!"

"Yes, exactly." Jughead responded. He felt his smile widening as the anxiety left his body. Jordan's curiosity and excitement at discovering this new information was infectious. The young boy read out almost everything on the birth certificate, wholly interested in the contents of the paper, and becoming especially enthusiastic as Jughead explained that yes, New York Presbyterian Hospital, the place where Jordan was born, was in fact in New York City. Jordan's thirst for information and his excitement at uncovering a secret fact about his life reminded Jughead of… Betty.

Jordan pulled another paper out of the safe, scanned it quickly, then handed it to Jughead to read after he decided there were too many words.

"The Family Court of the State of New York has concluded that it is in the best interests of Jordan Jones that he should be adopted by his step-mother Elizabeth Jones." Jughead read out loud. "It is in the best interests of Jordan Jones that his name is not altered. It is in the best interests of Jordan Jones that his birth certificate be altered and re-issued to state that Elizabeth Jones is his mother, and to state that his place of birth is Riverdale General Hospital in Riverdale, Jordan's current town of residence and the birthplace of his half-sister, Emma Jones." Jughead pulled out another sheet of paper. "This is the birth certificate that the court sent me after you were adopted."

Jordan reached for it, his eyes immediately scanning the certificate. "This one is different! It says: Mother: Elizabeth Jones, née Cooper." He looked up at his dad. "Elizabeth is Mom's real name, right?"

"Right."

"And it says: Father: Forsythe… Pen — um, Pendleton Jones."

Jughead's lips twitched. "Indeed."

"Your real name is very hard to spell, Dad."

A gasp of a laugh came out of Jughead's mouth. "Yes, it is."

Jordan looked back down at the paper. "This is all very interesting."

Jughead snickered, but kept smiling. "I suppose it is interesting, Bud." Jughead placed his hand against the floor and leaned back. "Do you have any questions about all this?"

Jordan nodded enthusiastically. "What are all the rest of these papers?"

Jughead looked down into the safe, and idly moved the top few out of the way. "Your sisters' birth certificates are in there too. And mine and Mom's passports. There's also custody papers in there…" At Jordan's confused look, Jughead explained: "Custody means… well, it's what you call it when an adult is a child's guardian. And a guardian is just a fancy name for the adult that looks after a kid. So, after you and I came to live in Riverdale, Aunty Cheryl went with me to court and the judge gave us those documents that say you have to live with me."

Jordan nodded and placed his birth certificate on the floor. He yawned, then looked up at Jughead with sleepy eyes.

"This is a lot of information for one night, I think." Jughead said, and Jordan nodded in agreement. "But if you have any other questions, I promise I'll tell you the truth."

…

Betty understood why Jughead deviated from their original plan to tell Jordan about Cora together, and hugged him tightly as they fell asleep that night. But the next day they left the girls at daycare for an extra two hours in order to take Jordan to Pop's after school and let him ask them more questions. Any question he had, no matter what it was, was answered with as much of the truth as either of them were willing to give.

And Jordan had several.

"How old was I when I got adopted by Mom?"

"You were four. It was before you went to kindergarten." Jughead answered. He sat beside Betty in a booth, and Jordan was seated across from them both.

"How come I don't remember it?"

Betty took that one: "You were too little to understand. We wanted to wait to tell you until you were older."

Jordan took a sip of his chocolate milkshake before he asked the next one. "Why weren't Emma and Bethany at your wedding, but I was?"

Jughead responded. "They weren't born yet."

"Did you live with us in our old house?" Jordan asked Betty.

She shook her head. "We all moved in together after me and Dad bought the house we live in now."

Jughead had a question of his own for Jordan. "Do you remember when we lived in an apartment on the South Side?"

Jordan picked up a French fry. "Was that our house that had an elevator?" He asked before he popped the fry into his mouth.

Jughead smiled. "Yeah, that place."

Jordan chewed thoughtfully for a moment, then swallowed. "But Mom, you used to be there too."

"I used to come over to visit you both all the time." Betty said. "But I lived in SoDale, near where Uncle Charles lives."

"Oh yeah!" Jordan exclaimed. "You lived there with Toffee. And you had some weird posters on your walls."

Betty covered her mouth with her fist to hide her smirk. "That's right."

"Cool." Jordan said, picking up another fry. "Was that before you got married to Dad?"

"Yep."

Jordan shuffled in his seat as he ate the fry. "When did I meet you, Mom?"

"Oh, you were just a baby." Betty said. "You've always known me."

"That's why I can't remember?"

"Exactly." Jughead said, and Betty picked up her vanilla milkshake to take a sip from her straw. "Do you remember when we lived at Grandma and Grandpa's house?"

Jordan's eyes widened and he shook his head. "No! Did C live there too?"

"Yeah, he did. You guys used to play together every day." Jughead said. "He gave you all his toy dinosaurs. You still have them in your toybox."

Jordan frowned. "I wish I could remember that."

Jughead let out a laugh. "I'm sure Grandma has pictures of both of you lying around somewhere. Maybe you can ask her to show them to you when we visit them."

Jordan took another sip of his milkshake, then swallowed slowly. "Do you have any pictures of my birth mom?"

Jughead's hand - which had been on the handle of his coffee cup - tightened. "I'm sure I do… do you want to know what she looks like?"

Jordan shook his head. "I already know."

Jughead and Betty both stiffed, but kept their facial expressions neutral. Jughead asked: "Did your… other Grandma show photos of her to you?"

Jordan averted his gaze, stayed very still for a long moment, then slowly nodded.

Jughead took a long drag of his coffee, then settled his cup onto the saucer. "Jordan, I'm going to ask you something, and it's very important that you be honest with me."

Jordan kept his gaze on his milkshake and nodded.

Jughead took a breath before he asked: "What has your Grandma been telling you when she visits you at school?"

Jordan put one hand on his milkshake, and twisted it against the table. "She… showed me some photos of when I was a baby." He said, but didn't elaborate further.

Betty leaned forward. "Was Cora in these photos?"

Jordan nodded in affirmation. "She told me Cora was my real Mom."

Jughead leaned back against the seat. "Is that all she said?"

Jordan nodded… and then shook his head.

Jughead sighed. "What else did Grandma say?"

Jordan's face crumbled, and a sad expression entered his face. "She said… I'm not allowed to tell you."

Jughead grimaced, but Betty held a calm demeanour. "I'm very proud of you for listening to what adults say to you." She said softly, and Jordan shifted his gaze to focus on her. "You're always meant to listen to what me and Dad say, to what your aunts and uncles say, and to what your teachers say." She continued. "But, the only Grandparents you have to listen to are the ones that me and Dad let talk to you - that's Chandler's parents, your Great-Grandpa from Seaside and your Grandmother who lives in Toledo. But the Grandma that came to see you at school isn't allowed to tell you what to do."

Jordan's lip wobbled. "But… if I don't listen to her, then…" His voice cracked. "Daddy's going to die."

Both parents straightened up when Jordan's eyes abruptly filled with tears. Jughead slid out of their side of the booth and settled in beside Jordan. Jordan shoved his face into his father's chest, and the soft gasping of his cries rang in Jughead's ears as though Jordan had shouted them from the rooftops.

"I'm not going to die, Jordan." Jughead said as he wrapped his arms around Jordan's body. "I swear, Buddy. Nothing's going to happen to me if you tell me what Grandma said to you."

Jordan pulled back. His face was red, and tears were flowing down his cheeks as he asked in a small voice: "Do you pinky swear?"

Jughead nodded, and moved one arm away from Jordan's back so he could hold up his pink finger. "I pinky swear."

Jordan looked at Jughead's outstretched pinky for a few seconds before he slowly wrapped his own around Jughead's. "Okay… I'll tell you." He said quietly.

What Jordan revealed was… both terrible, and exactly Jughead's worst fears made manifest.

"Grandma said that…" He whispered, then leaned forward to say in Jughead's ear: "My real Mom is going to come and take me away to live with her."

Jughead stayed perfectly still, though his eyes flickered towards Betty to gauge whether she'd heard Jordan's confession. The way her calm expression changed into a dire look of despair confirmed that she had. Jughead swallowed and looked down at Jordan. "You know how last night I showed you your birth certificate that has Mom's name on it? And it says Elizabeth Jones is your mother?"

Jordan nodded, his eyes boring into Jughead's.

"That certificate means she is your real Mom." Jughead said firmly. "And it also means that the only people who get to decide where you live are me and your Mom, okay?" He said gently. "Nobody is going to take you away from us. Not ever."

Jordan stared at Jughead unblinkingly. "Are you sure?"

"I'm so sure." Jughead said. He rubbed Jordan's back. "Remember how I said it's illegal for Cora to come near you?" He asked, and Jordan nodded. "That means it's illegal for her to take you away. She'll go to jail if she even tries."

"Forever?"

Jughead didn't want to lie, but he also wanted to reassure Jordan. Betty chimed in before he could answer. "Even if it's not forever," she said seriously, and Jordan turned his face to look at her, "it will be for a very, very long time."

Jordan relaxed a little, and leaned against Jughead's side. "I don't want to talk to Grandma anymore."

"You don't have to." Jughead said quickly. "I told your teachers to call me if she ever comes to the school. And I'm not going to let her see you, especially if she makes you feel bad."

Jordan nodded. "Okay, Dad."

Betty crossed her arms and leaned them against the table. "If you ever see Grandma, or Cora, and me and your dad aren't around, you need to run away from them and scream really loudly, okay?" Jordan looked up at her dejectedly. "And you'll never be in trouble for doing that, alright? You go to a teacher, or another adult, and tell them what's happening." She smoothed her expression into one of compassion. "Me and your Dad will always protect you, but if we're not there, then you need to protect yourself. And I know that you're so just smart and so brave - if you ever see them, you're going to be just fine. Nothing bad is going to happen to you."

Once Jordan had settled down, he went back to asking his parents questions about their past. He was particularly interested in when they met each other, and had some questions about his Carter cousins that were harmless enough. But by the time they arrived at the daycare center to collect Emma and Bethany, all three of them were exhausted. Jughead let Jordan go to bed before finishing his homework, and assured him that the teacher wouldn't be mad at him for not doing it all.

"I'll talk to Miss Woods, alright?" Jughead said as he tucked the blankets around Jordan. "I'll tell her it's my fault, and we'll catch up on everything next week."

Jordan was happy with that, and fell asleep within minutes of asking Jughead to lay down next to him.

Betty, despite her emotional exhaustion, was livid when Jughead joined her in the bedroom. Jughead was in agreement that there was no way in hell they were going to let Cora's mother have anything to do with Jordan after what she'd told him. Jughead even considered stopping Jordan's contact with the rest of the Carters, but after a lengthy discussion with Betty, decided that as long as the two of them were there to supervise, he could have a relationship with Caleb's family at least. Carlisle's and Cainon's involvement in Jordan's life would depend on what happened if and when Cora got parole.

Which, in an unfortunate development of fate that Jughead had to admit he was expecting, she did.

Jughead listened to the automated phone call from VINE on the Ninth of March. "Cora Carter is set to be released on parole on the Eleventh of April, Twenty Thirty Five." The voice stated. "Please enter your pin code to acknowledge your receipt of this message."

He did so, and let Betty know that he'd received the official phone call, but both of them had been made aware of the development the day before from Caleb. Caleb sent a message through to Jughead as soon as he found out, and assured him that he'd keep Jughead updated.

Jughead tried to keep himself sane by writing out the final chapters of The Expatriates, but every time he went to sleep at night, he was filled with worry that he hadn't seen the last of his ex-wife.