Hello everyone! Finally got this chapter completed and I hope that you all enjoy how this story is continuing to unfold. This whole global pandemic has got me writing like a madwoman but this chapter was still over 8200 words so, yeah, it took a hot second. I have decided to take this time of social distancing to try and churn out as many chapters as possible and I am hoping to complete some of my other works while stuck at home. It would be awesome to get some completed ones under my belt given that I already have ideas for at least 6 more lol.
Anywho, that being said (just as some other chapters), this chapter has some dark moments and there are descriptions of a crime scene in this one. Also, as in most chapters, there is also smut ? So just be warned...
Lastly, I would like to thank KittiLee for being so awesome and volunteering to beta this work for me! It helps me with my OCD and not have to obsessively read it repeatedly! Thanks for the help dear, you are awesome! ?
Well, without further ado, enjoy!
-Bina ?
Jughead woke up slowly the next day to the sounds of birds singing outside their bedroom window and the soft sounds of snoring beside him. He looked down at his girlfriend, sleeping serenely, and felt his throat tighten at remembering the fight they'd had. How he had felt his world crumbling when he thought he had lost her for a second time. He wasn't lying yesterday when he said if she had walked out on him for good, he would have allowed that dark part of himself to take over and swallow him whole.
He shuddered as he remembered the person that he was back before he'd crawled out of the pit he'd allowed himself to wallow in. He hated who he was back then, and his darkness was reflected in his writings from those times. He angrily journaled every day for the first two years, spilling all his sorrow and anger and despair into his words. He wrote about all of his one night stands, all of his drunken rages - that he remembered - and all of the times he just wanted it all to end.
Once he finally sobered up, he used his journaling as a therapeutic tool, chronicling his journey back from the brink and his search for his missing love. However, he had kept those journals of the first two years as a reminder of what he was back then, what he no longer wanted to be. He was ashamed to know what he had done, the things he allowed to happen all out of self-pity and anger. He hated the things he had done in his past and here he was keeping those things secret from Betty, even after he swore to always tell her the truth.
You know what you need to do, now man up and do it before she finds out anything else about your seedy past and runs away again from you... Jughead thought to himself as he heard Betty whimpering slightly and snuggling further into his chest, planting small kisses to the place over his heart.
"You're thinking too loud, Juggie. Now let's go back to sleep and then when I wake up, I'll make it worth your while," she purred, nipping at his collarbone before running her tongue along the hollow of his throat. He groaned, already feeling himself stirring, but gently pushed her away to look down at her. Betty's eyes fluttered up, squinting at the brightness of the morning as he stared at her. She noticed the pained look on his face and leaned up, her brow furrowing.
"Juggie?" she whispered, cupping his cheek tenderly. He leaned into her touch, sighing heavily before kissing her palm. Tears pierced his eyes, threatening to spill over as all of his emotions hit him at once.
"Betts, you know how sorry I am about everything, right? About Sweet Pea and lying to you and our break up and not being there for you with JJ and- fuck, just everything? Right? Christ, I can never apologize enough to you for everything that happened between us or for all the pain I've caused you over the years. Fuck, I blamed you for what I became for a long time and I didn't even realize it until I started getting myself together that really, our entire break up and my fuck up's were my fault. I did this to us, and now I am still causing you pain and I don't want that to be how our lives are. And I thought a lot about what you said. I don't want there to be any secrets between us either, but I feel like we've only just reached the tip of the iceberg that was my fucked up existence for all those years you were gone. I did... a lot...of things. Let's just say I'm unfathomably ashamed of the person I was before I got myself out of that hole. I've been feeling like since we talked about sharing everything, all our secrets, maybe it would be a good idea for you to read my journals from back then. I put everything into them and kept them to remind me of how fucked up my life was, but if you want, I will let you read them so-," Betty pressed her fingers to his lips to stop his ramblings.
"Juggie, hey, hey...shhh baby, just slow down and breathe. You're spiraling." She leaned forward, pressing a soft kiss to his forehead before pulling back to caress his cheek and wipe away the tears he didn't even realize had stained them.
"First of all, I want you to know that I accept your apology and let you know that I believe you when you say you are sorry and we are good. Secondly, about your journals, I appreciate the thought and the courage it took for you to share that part of your past with me. I know exactly how hard that is to do for someone; to open yourself up like that, essentially stripping yourself bare and letting them rummage through your soul. It's scary. But baby, it's really not necessary. I believe you when you say you've told me all the important parts of your past without me. So unless you have a gaggle of baby Jones' out there or you're secretly married, I don't need to know everything. All I need to know is that you are done with that part of who you were and that we can move on from both of our past mistakes, together," Betty said, stroking his jaw softly as she spoke. Jughead felt tears building in his eyes before he tried to object.
"I know, but-," Betty shook her head.
"No, Juggie. No 'buts'. Those journals are yours to do whatever you want with for yourself alone, and I have no reason to open up that part of who you were. We both went through dark times while we were apart, but we are here now and we are starting over together with our son. That is all that matters, okay?" Jughead finally deflated at her words, feeling the tension leaving his body as he allowed himself to forgive his own actions.
"Okay, Betts, you're right. Our family is all that matters: me, you, and JJ. Nothing else matters. God, you know I love you so damned much, right?" he asked her quietly, resting his forehead against hers.
"I love you too, Jug. I always will. And I forgave you a long time ago, just know that. Now, why don't we put this behind us and I spend some time showing you just how much I love you?" Betty rasped, pushing Jughead onto his back while she leisurely kissed and licked her way down his naked chest.
His head fell back against the pillows as he screwed his eyes shut, her kisses making him grow harder by the second. He looked down when he felt her nibbling on his hip bones and almost came from the lustful gleam in her eyes as she watched him. She licked along his lower abdomen as she slid her fingers into his pajama bottoms, silently asking for permission to continue. She grinned wickedly as he nodded, pulling his pants and boxers down his thighs while trailing kisses behind them.
Once Jughead was completely bare for her, Betty parted his legs, her eyes staring hungrily at his throbbing cock as she positioned herself between his thighs. She sat back on her knees for a moment, pulling her shirt off of herself quickly, revealing that she was completely naked underneath. His dick bobbed in anticipation, watching spellbound as she licked her pink pouty lips and slowly took him in her mouth.
Jughead groaned as she swirled her tongue around his head before plunging him all the way into her mouth. He fought the urge to thrust up into her, tentatively running his hands into her hair and tugging at the strands. She pulled back slowly, moving off of him to lick a stripe up the underside of his heavy cock before flicking her tongue against his slit to gather the precum that beaded there.
"You know, Juggie..." she whispered in a sultry tone as she flicked her tongue against him, her lips already swollen from working them around his member, "...you can fuck my mouth if you want..." He growled lowly, his hands gripping her hair tighter.
"Is that what you want, babygirl?" he questioned, his stare filled with unbridled desire that made Betty shiver with need.
"Very much so. I want to feel you fuck my mouth until you can't stand it anymore. I want to feel you come deep in my throat and then, when I get you hard again, I want you to fuck my pussy until all I can scream is your name. Pretty please, Juggie?" Betty begged him as she continued to run her tongue along his erection, her free hand slipping between her legs to work her throbbing clit.
"Anything for you, baby," he rasped, positioning her head over his arousal. She opened her mouth wide for him and he moaned as he plunged into her mouth. She hummed around him repeatedly, spurring him on as he surged into her harder.
Betty held onto his hips to keep herself grounded as he lost himself to their passion, thrusting deeper into her throat. She could feel tears pricking her eyes every time he hit the back of her throat, each thrust making her even wetter than she already was.
"Fuck, Betts. I love that dirty little mouth of yours, babygirl," Jughead groaned as Betty swallowed around him, driving him insane. He could feel a tingling sensation in his groin starting to spread up his spine and knew he was getting close, "Betts, I'm- I'm gonna come, baby." Betty hummed in reply and bobbed her head faster, swirling her tongue around him every time she dragged herself up.
Without further warning, he bucked into her, a guttural moan leaving his lips as he filled her mouth. Betty greedily swallowed it all, lapping up every last drop. When she was finished, he pulled her up to meet his mouth, pushing his tongue inside to tangle with hers. He could taste the saltiness of his climax on her tongue, but he didn't care. He was still hard as a rock and he needed to feel her, needed to fuck her like she asked him to.
Betty pushed him down and swung her leg over his hips, her cunt hovering over his shaft for a brief moment before she completely sheathed herself on him. She cried out as he filled her, her hands finding purchase on his chest while she steadied herself. Her lust-blown eyes met his as she began to rock her hips forward, whimpering every time her clit rubbed against his pelvic bone. His hands flew to her hips, helping her find a rhythm that drove them both wild in no time.
"Juggie..." she sighed wantonly, her head falling back when she started to ride him harder. Jughead's breathing hitched and he sat up to capture her taut nipple in his mouth, hitting the sensitive spot inside her. "Yes... Yes, Juggie- Fuck, you make me feel so good, baby."
"Come for me, Betts. I wanna feel you come around me, soak me, baby." His dirty talk was enough to push her over the edge, crying out as she shattered into pieces. Jughead clamped his mouth over hers to muffle her screams of ecstasy while her walls pulsed tightly around his member, pulling him closer towards his own release.
Once her orgasm waned, he flipped them over and dove into her again, his lips latching on and sucking the sensitive skin of her neck. Betty arched her back, digging her nails into his shoulders while her legs wrapped tighter around him. She could feel herself building again, breathing heavily as she hovered just on the precipice of another orgasm. She fell apart suddenly when he bit into her shoulder, filling her as he came undone as well.
Betty clung to him as Jughead collapsed on top of her, spreading tender kisses along her neck and jaw while whispering words of love and affection to her. After a few moments, he rolled away from her, grabbing her discarded shirt to gently clean her off before wiping off his softening member.
"That...was...amazing..." Betty panted, rolling over and lying prone on the bed.
"That's...putting it...mildly, Betts. God, I love you...so much," he hummed, kissing her temple and pulling her to his chest while he tried to catch his breath.
"I love you too, Juggie."
After they finally got up and showered, Betty and Jughead happily dressed for the day and headed downstairs to grab a bite to eat. Their peaceful bubble burst, however, when they saw their parents - as well as Archie and Veronica - sitting in the living room, all staring at them as they descended the stairs. Betty felt a strange sense of deja vu overcome her while she looked around the room at everyone.
"What happened now?" Betty pleaded, her voice cracking slightly as they walked to where Veronica was sitting with a frightened look on her face. Jughead knelt in front of the heavily pregnant woman who was like his sister and grabbed her hand, looking up at Archie with a questioning look in his eye.
"We- uh, we had a tape left on our doorstep this morning. It's... it's bad, Jug." Archie replied while rubbing Veronica's back. "We thought you guys needed to see it, but I'm gonna take Ronnie home. She doesn't need to see that thing again, not in her condition." Veronica huffed, lightly waving him off as she sat up straighter.
"I'm fine, Archie. I want to be here for my bestie, in case she needs my support."
"But Ronnie-"
"No, Archie. I am not leaving, and that is final. FP, is Lizzy going to be okay in the rec room for a bit longer?" Veronica asked, worrying her lip between her teeth.
"Yeah, I put on her favorite video and put her in her playpen with her favorite toys. I think she'll be alright but I'll stand by the door so I can keep an eye on her, just in case," FP reassured her, leaning against the wall leading down to the basement. Betty sat down beside Veronica and took her free hand while Jughead grabbed the tape from Archie and put it in the VCR, pressing play as he sat beside Betty.
The video started out as nothing more than static before a black screen appeared, flickering every so often, and the sound of a creepy sounding music box started to play. When images finally appeared on the screen, they saw video footage of the cat that was nailed to her wall, of Betty and Jughead roaming through the house, recordings of the two of them standing outside the house to wait for Charles.
"He put cameras in my house!" Betty gasped in horrified anger, her fingers threatening to curl in on themselves until Jughead slipped his hand in hers. He paused the video and turned to face her to make sure she was doing alright. "You know what this means, Juggie?"
"Yeah... Either Adam is posing as the Black Hood or whoever the Black Hood really is, he's working with Adam. This has to be proof, it can't be a coincidence that he just so happened to put those cameras up and caught all this footage without knowing what was going to happen. Dad, I think we need to call Charlie and Kevin. They need to sweep her house in Greendale and check for cameras and bugs. This fucker is pulling out all the stops to invade her privacy and we have gotta get ahead of him before he gets any closer to her," Jughead demanded, his eyes never leaving Betty's.
"On it, Jug. Texting him now. Told him we got another tape and they need to come pick it up for evidence."
"Okay, you ready to see what else is on this thing?" he asked her quietly. Betty nodded, swallowing thickly as she turned back to the screen.
She watched aghast at footage of the two of them kissing and talking outside of the parlor, cutting to video of her walking all alone crying while the person filming followed her at a distance, then there was video of her going into the Black Cat alone from the night before filled the screen. The most disturbing part were the scenes from movies and snuff films of blondes being strangled or murdered intercut with footage of Betty over the last few weeks. It sent a shudder down her spine as she forced herself to watch the video, even as bile filled her throat and tears stung her eyes.
Eventually, it got to be too much and Alice pulled the remote from Jughead's hand, shutting the TV off. "That's enough! None of us need to see any more of that- that- whatever the hell that was..."
"This has to stop. We have to stop him, Jug. I can't live like this anymore. I-I-I..." Betty's voice broke before she shook her head violently. She would not let him break her, she was gonna catch him and put him away for good. "I want him to pay for what he is doing to me... what he is doing to our family. He needs to pay for this."
"Don't worry, B, he will. We will make sure he doesn't get away with this. Full dark, no stars, remember?" Veronica whispered assuredly, lying her head on Betty's shoulder and letting out a staggered breath before glancing up at Jughead. "So, Jug what is your next move?"
"Now, we go back and look at the Black Hood murders and see if we can figure out what the link is between those murders, Adam's stalking, and Sweet Pea's behavior. We already have significant evidence that Sweet Pea is his partner, now we need to see how this all links together and end this," Jughead replied, matter-of-factly. He stood up, going over to their murder board and staring at the pegs. "We're missing something, I just know it. Betts, do you think you are up for this right now?"
Betty stood, brushing the front of her ripped skinny jeans and pulling down the hem of her tee-shirt. "Fuck yeah, I'm up for this. Lead the way, Holmes."
"Not without you beside me, Watson."
"Anything jumping out at you, Betts?" Jughead asked, sipping his third cup of coffee while digging through the case files his dad brought to them to look through. They had been searching for any clues that they could find to link this all together but, so far, they were no closer to putting the puzzle pieces together.
"Nothing conclusive yet," Betty sighed heavily in frustration and rubbed her temples, fighting off the headache she was getting from eye strain. She reached for her own cup and sipped her cooling coffee before she spoke again. "Although, I did have a thought I wanted to run by you," Betty stated, pulling out the file containing Joseph Svenson's autopsy report. Jughead walked around the table, leaning over her shoulder to look at the paperwork with her.
"Okay, shoot. What's going on in that head of yours, Betts?"
"Right, so we know that the first two Black Hood murders and attacks were more straightforward and clean-cut, no extreme passion to them - well, with the exception of his obsession with me. Then with Svenson's death, it's like he lost his cool and went berserk. We have shooting victims and a strangulation but then Joseph Svenson was stabbed repeatedly - in a frenzy, no less - before he was strung up in a tree and eviscerated? Doesn't this seem, I don't know, way more violent than the rest? It seems like overkill to me, almost like this person knew him on a more personal level?"
Jughead leaned further forward, looking at the report from over her shoulder as he listened to her before a thought came to him and he finally spoke, "You mean like Jack the Ripper?"
"What?" Betty asked, looking up at him in confusion.
"You know, Jack the Ripper. Whitechapel, 1888. Slaughtered a bunch of prostitutes during the fall of 1888 and allegedly disappeared to never be heard from again?" Jughead explained, amusement in his eyes when he saw her huff in annoyance.
"Yes, Forsythe. I am well aware of who Jack the Ripper was, but what the hell does that have to do with Svenson's murder?" Betty questioned, rolling her eyes at him. He walked over to the whiteboard they had set up beside the table and grabbed a black dry erase marker, proceeding to write down names: Mary Ann Nichols, Annie Chapman, Elizabeth Stride, Catherine Eddowes, and Mary Jane Kelly.
"Well, for one, while his first four victims were murdered and mutilated in grotesque ways, they were all extremely similar: killed in the streets, throats slashed, certain vital organs removed - with the exception of Stride who had her guts intact but they believed that was because he was interrupted before he could finish the job with her. Regardless, they were all the same... all except Mary Kelly," Jughead explained as he typed into the search bar of his laptop, pulling up an informational article with photos of Mary Kelly's crime scene.
"Jesus Christ," Betty murmured, leaning forward to get a better look at the grainy black and white photos on the screen.
The scene before her was horrific: blood splattered along the walls, pooling on the bed and floor surrounding the bed she lay on. Her body was positioned after death and she was flayed open, her organs - as well as various other body parts - removed and spread out around her corpse, chunks of her flesh sitting on the side table of her room. Her limbs were covered in knife wounds and her face was bludgeoned beyond recognition. It was one of the most macabre things Betty had ever laid eyes on and she had to close the screen, holding her hand over her mouth as bile rose in her throat.
"For fuck's sake, I definitely didn't need to see that, Jughead. Why the hell would you show me something like that?!"
"Sorry, Betts, but I did it to illustrate my point. See, there is a long-standing theory that Mary Kelly was actually The Rippers intended victim all along and the other four murders were just to throw the police off of the real killer's personal connection to Kelly. But there was also another theory that stated that The Ripper had an accomplice and that the accomplice was who actually murdered Mary Kelly," Jughead clarified.
"So which do you think fits for the murder of Mr. Svenson?" Betty asked, her stomach still churning as she stared down at the crime scene and autopsy photos from Svenson's murder.
"Neither... Both? I really don't know right off hand with what evidence we have to work with, but I can tell you with confidence that whoever killed Joseph Svenson, it was personal. One way or another, his murder had to have a connection to him somehow. I think now would be the time for us to look further into his past and see what we can find," Jughead said, turning to his computer to reboot it and clear the gruesome photos off of his browser before pulling up another search window.
"Alright, so we already know that Joseph Svenson was actually born Joseph Conway and we know that - according to the information Archie and Veronica found out - after his family was slaughtered, he was sent to live at the Sisters of Quiet Mercy Orphanage. What information we don't know is what happened between the time he left the convent and the time he started working for Riverdale High as the janitor?" Betty wondered.
After another fruitless hour of searching, they were startled from their investigation by a loud knock on the front door. Jughead looked to Betty in confusion, shrugging as he went to the door to see who was there. It wasn't even 4 pm, so they knew that everyone else besides Veronica and Archie were still at work, so they were not certain who would be stopping by right now.
Jughead was surprised to see a worried and desperate looking Fangs standing on the front steps, his eyes darting from side to side like he was afraid of being seen by someone. "Fangs? What- Is everything alright? What's wrong?" Jughead asked quickly, concern for his friend flooding his veins.
"I- um, I need to talk to you and Betty. Alone... There's something I should tell you... That I probably should have told you way sooner, really. I-I just didn't want to think too far into it but-" Fangs said meekly, his hands trembling as he ran one of them through his hair.
"Come in, man." Fangs walked inside and saw Betty sitting by the kitchen table, paper and files strewn about, their murder board covered in sticky notes and blood-red yarn linking different points on the board. Fangs swallowed hard when he saw Sweet Pea's picture with a sticky note underneath questioning whether he was the Black Hood. He shook his head and turned away from the board, giving them both a strained smile,
"Wow, that's- uh, that's some set up you've got here," Fangs said with a nervous chuckle.
"Come have a seat on the sofa, Fangs. What exactly is it that you needed to tell us?" Jughead asked, holding his hand out to help Betty from the kitchen chair and walking with her to sit in the two high back chairs across from Fangs. He bounced his legs nervously, his hands clenched together as he tried to gather his courage.
"I'm worried about Sweet Pea." Betty and Jughead both winced at his name, worried about how Fangs might react to what Sweet Pea had done. "I can't get him to text or call me back, he's not at the trailer but all his things are still there. I know that there was some sort of argument between you guys. He told me you were buying him out and he had to leave Riverdale, but that he was planning something to show you that he was telling the truth, whatever the hell that means. But now he's gone and I am so fucking worried about what might happen now or what stupid thing he is planning, but I-I can't-," Fangs trailed off, his voice cracking as he choked back his emotions, hiding his face and trying to stay composed in front of the couple. Betty rose from her seat, walking over to Fangs to console him. She could tell that there was something more to his relationship with Sweets than he was letting on.
"Fangs, is Sweet Pea more than just a friend to you?" Betty asked softly, kneeling down and placing her hand on his bouncing knee. He looked up to meet her gaze, his eyes glassy with emotion as he nodded. Betty pulled him into a quick hug and asked, "Want to talk about it?" He pulled away and nodded a second time.
"Well, the thing is... Sweets and I have kind of been fooling around for a while now. I mean, it's kind of been a 'friends with benefits' thing. We were both single and needed to relieve stress, so we would-" Jughead held his hand up, stopping his thought. He didn't want to have to subject Betty to more of what Fangs was going to say. Honestly, he was too concerned that his relationship with Sweet Pea was still a sensitive subject for her.
"We get the idea, Fangs. Alright, so you and Sweet Pea have been seeing each other. Why not say something before now?" Jughead asked. Fangs looked away, swallowing thickly before turning back to meet Jughead's gaze again. He had a curious look in his eyes as he spoke.
"Because I know he has feelings for you, I've known for years. Hell, I knew even before he told me about that night in your- shit..." Fangs screwed his eyes shut and sighed deeply, "...I wasn't supposed to know about that. Dammit- I'm sorry, Jug. I swear, he never said what exactly happened, but I know that something did happen because after that he was different. Then when he started to show me that kind of attention, I was surprised but was completely okay with keeping things casual and just getting what Sweets was willing to give. But lately, he has been so different. Weirdly secretive. He'll come see me and after we'd finish - well, you know - he would wait till he thought I was asleep and make these weird phone calls. He never said your name when he was there but, I swear, I didn't know he was talking about you, Betts. I would have said something sooner if I had figured it out before," Fangs implored, eyes pleading for her to understand that he was telling the truth.
"It's okay, I believe you Fangs. We were already pretty convinced Sweet Pea has been working with my stalker for a few days now. I'm sorry Fangs, but there's even evidence that he may have had something to do with the Black Hood murders back when we were in school," Betty explained, her heart clenching when she saw the despair on Fangs' face at the knowledge that the man he cared about was more than likely a psychopath.
Betty walked over to Jughead and placed her hand on his shoulder. "Jug, we need to get to the station as soon as possible so we can talk to FP and Charles about this. They need to know that we may have a witness who has more evidence that points to Sweet Pea being Adam's accomplice."
Jughead nodded in agreement. "You're right Betty. Let me text Charlie really quick. I need to let him know what's happening and tell him that they should wait for us to get there before they do anything else.", Typing quickly on his phone, he received a notification almost immediately. "Okay, he said they will wait for us at the station. Let's go."
They locked up the house tight and the three of them jumped into Betty's car, backing out of the driveway and heading towards downtown. They were just passing Pops when Jughead's cell phone chimed again and he grimaced, "Shit."
"What's wrong?" Betty asked nervously, glancing at him briefly before focusing on the road again.
"Charlie said he is sending some investigators out to search the tattoo parlor and he needs someone to meet them out there to let them in and hang around while they comb through everything," Jughead replied reluctantly.
"So why is that an issue? You and Fangs can go in and talk to Charles and I'll meet his guys over at Black Betty's. Once they are finished, I'll head back over here to pick you guys up."
"Betts, I don't think that's a good idea," Jughead said firmly, shaking his head at the idea. Betty rolled her eyes as she pulled into the parking lot of the sheriff's station, cutting the engine before turning to face him with her eyebrow raised.
"Jug, you know I will be there with trained investigators who will more than likely be armed, right?" she argued, understanding his concern but not seeing how it would be so bad. She'd be with the FBI, after all. What's the worst that could happen?
"Yes, but I don't like the idea of you being there by yourself," Jughead countered, his voice strained from trying to contain his emotions.
"I won't be alone, Jughead! Trained in-ves-ti-ga-tors," she asserted, sounding out each syllable sarcastically.
"But-"
"No, Jug! I'm a big girl and I will be fine. I won't be alone, I will be with FBI agents who I am sure our brother would do great bodily harm to if anything happened to me," Betty huffed, not wanting to argue with him about this anymore. She could understand if she was with anyone else or completely alone, but they will probably beat her to the shop at this rate, so she wouldn't even have to sit out there and wait for them.
"Um, guys? I'm gonna-" Fangs pointed towards the station, "I think I'll just wait out front for you, Jug," he said hurriedly, exiting Betty's car uncomfortably and leaving them alone.
Jughead pinched the bridge of his nose, knowing she probably thought he was being overprotective but he had a bad feeling about her going there alone. He finally relented and nodded his head, knowing that logically, she would be fine with a group of FBI investigators.
"Okay, you're right. I know you'll be okay. You'll have back up and I know they will keep you safe. But, for my sake, promise me you'll be extra careful, please? Maybe take Harvey with you while you wait for Charlie's guys to get there if they haven't already?" Jughead begged before he kissed Betty goodbye, holding her to his chest for as long as she would allow before letting her go. He was worried about her going to the Southside without him, at least until they found out where Sweet Pea was hiding, but he knew he had to tell Charles about what Fangs had told him.
"I'll be fine, Juggie. Don't worry. I will be careful, I promise."
"I'm serious, Betts, take someone with you. I don't want anything to happen to you-" his voice broke. "Sweets and Adam are out there somewhere just waiting for the chance to get you alone. I just need you to be careful," Jughead pleaded, cradling her face in his hands.
"I promise, Jug, I'll be extra careful. I'll take precautions and make sure I keep on high alert. And if all else fails, I have mace." Betty chuckled, smiling softly at him.
"Well, here. Take this too." Jughead reached into his pocket, pulling out his folding knife and placing it in her hand. "All you have to do is flick your wrist for the blade to quick open. It'll make me feel better knowing you have this, just in case Harvey can't go with you. That said, I would feel better if you waited for him so you could go together."
"Alright, Juggie. I'll call him and see if he can book it over here from Greendale. Now get in there and tell Charles and FP what you guys found out. I love you, baby," Betty said, kissing him one last time before he got out of the car and headed towards the steps to the sheriff's station where Fangs was standing, hands in his pockets and a cigarette hanging from his lips.
"Hey, can I bum one of those? I left mine at the house," Fangs handed Jughead a cigarette, lighting it for him with his zippo before flicking the ashes from his own. Jughead inhaled, feeling the delicious burn in his lungs as the smoke-filled them. He blew out his drag and took another before he spoke.
"So, Fangs. You and Sweets, huh?"
"Yeah, it's been a low key thing for about six months now, but ever since Betty came back he's- well, frankly, he's not been himself. He's just been angry. Distracted. Borderline obsessed with your relationship with Betty. It took me a while to figure out why, but then he let something slip about a one-night thing..." Jughead stiffened as Fangs trailed off.
Jughead turned to see his friend staring at the ground as he shuffled his feet. He knew exactly what it felt like to think the person you loved most in this world loved someone else. He hated to think that his one-night stand had led to Fangs' pain in any way.
"And what did you figure out?"
"Well..." Fangs paused, looking into Jug's eyes,"...I don't know exactly what happened between you two, but I know something happened. And you don't have to tell me if you aren't comfort-"
"Sweets and I fooled around one night about three years ago. I was extremely drunk and it was the second anniversary of Betty's disappearance and... things happened. The next day I freaked out, I had no memory of anything we did at the time and I was ashamed of taking advantage of him like that. I never wanted that with him, I guess I was just so lonely that..."
"That you needed any sort of affection?" Fangs finished his sentence for him, placing an understanding hand on his shoulder.
"Yeah, something like that. That was the night I realized I had to get my shit together if I was ever going to get her back. Apparently, Sweet Pea didn't take it well when Betty came home and we got back together. He- I'm sorry to bring this up again man, but that night he freaked out and trashed his trailer, he kissed me and confessed that he was in love with me. Needless to say, he didn't take it well when I rejected him." Jughead didn't want to hurt Fangs more, but he deserved to know the whole truth of what happened.
"It's okay, man. This thing we have been doing was mostly just a sex thing, at least for him. I may have caught some feelings, but I have kept them in check. I'm not delusional enough to think he feels that way about me," Fangs shrugged, burying his cigarette butt into the sand of the ashtray outside the station.
"I don't know, Fangs. I think there might be something there on his side too but he's just confused about his feelings for me. I think he wanted the idea of what he could have with me, not actually me, and it became an obsession. I still don't want to believe he could do something like this but I think he is sick and needs to get some help. Professional help..." Jughead tried to reassure Fangs, but the man simply nodded his head and smiled sadly.
"It's a nice thought, but I was never that special to him. You're right though, he needs help and I want to make sure he gets it." Fangs replied. Jughead finished his cigarette, discarding it into the ashtray before clapping Fangs on the back.
"Come on, let's go talk to my brother and try to find Sweet Pea."
The two men walked inside the station, expecting to see FP or Charles, but neither was anywhere to be found. Jughead went up to the reception desk to ask the officer on duty if he had seen them, only to be told that the two men were currently speaking to a witness and that they'd informed the clerk to have Jughead wait in the lobby until they were done if he came in.
After another hour of waiting, Jughead finally saw his father and brother leaving an interrogation room with someone Jughead hadn't seen much of since high school.
Dilton Dolley.
"Dilton? What- why are you here? Dad, does this have to do with Betty's case?" Jughead asked in confusion.
Dilton looked around between the men nervously before he finally met Jughead's stare and spoke, "I came to talk to your Dad... Um, I-I'm really worried about Sweet Pea. I think he may have gone full Section 8 and I don't know what he might do. He called me a few hours ago and asked if I knew of any Army surplus places in Greendale where he might get tactical gear and if I knew of an easy way for him to get an unregistered gun. He said going through his Serpent connections was too risky. I don't really know what he is planning to do, he just kept saying 'That bitch is gonna pay'. I'm not really sure what he meant, but I think someone may be in danger."
"Fuck. Do you know who he was talking about? Was it Betty?" Jughead asked in a hurry, glancing between the three men in front of him.
"Honestly? I have no idea. But he has been asking me a lot of weird questions and the last month he has just unraveled further." Dilton admitted, twitching nervously.
"What kind of weird questions?" Jughead asked, an icy chill running up his spine and making the hairs on the nape of his neck stand on end. He didn't know what it was Dilton was going to say, but Jughead knew it wasn't going to be good.
"Yesterday, when he called, he wanted to know how to spoof a phone number, whether it was possible to send a text message using someone else's number without people knowing. I told him there was, but I never gave him the intel on how to do it. Although, if you search the web enough, you can find out how to do it."
"Dammit... Alright, okay... Um, Dad, Fangs needs to give a statement too. Charlie, I'm going to text Betty and see if your guys made it there okay-" Charles froze at Jughead's words causing him to lose all color in his face. Jughead's heart began to race as his brother looked at him in confusion.
"Jug? What are you talking about? What guys?" Charles asked.
"The investigators you sent to search the tattoo parlor, the ones you told me about when I texted you to say we were coming?" Charles shook his head, glancing at a worried FP before stepping up to his brother.
"Jug, I didn't send any investigators. The last message I sent was telling you to come up and that was it... Oh, shit... Could Sweet Pea have-" Charles trailed off, quietly muttering a few expletives as he took off running towards his coat and pulling his phone out of the pocket. "Fuck... Dad!"
"On it, Charlie. Carlos! Send a unit over to Black Betty's, RIGHT NOW! Charlie, your guys?" FP shouted, rushing to his desk to grab his jacket and hat.
"I got a few of my guys on the way as well, Dad. Jug, text Betty. Tell her not to get out of her car for anyone and to get here asap! Now, Jughead! I'm calling Kevin," Charles shouted at Jughead, who watched the whole scene playing out as if it were a movie slowly passing him by.
In his fog, he faintly registered that Dilton and Fangs were no longer beside him, seemingly vanishing before his eyes. He came back to himself when he felt a slight slap to his cheek and looked up to glare into his father's concerned eyes.
"Boy! Get it together and get a hold of Betty, right now!" FP shook him until Jughead finally nodded and shakily began typing out a message.
Jughead: Betty, listen to me and stay calm. Stay in your car and drive to the station asap. Don't stop for anyone, not even the cops. In fact, call me. Right now, Betts. CALL ME! 911!
As she pulled up in front of Black Betty's by herself, Betty was worried about just how mad Jughead would be that she didn't push harder for Harvey to come with her. She knew that if Jughead found out he would probably blow a gasket, but she also knew she would be meeting with FBI investigators so she didn't see the point in having Harvey leave Kari at work alone just to babysit her until they got here. After all, she carried a knife, as well as mace, and she knew how to defend herself now, so she should be fine to wait for some trained professionals for just a few minutes.
Betty sat in her car and listened to music, daydreaming about what her life would be like if she had never left Riverdale. After a while, she looked at the clock and realized she'd been sitting here for nearly an hour. It was already starting to get dark outside and she hadn't heard anything else from Jughead and she wondered if she should message him. Or maybe she could go inside the shop and wait? Ultimately, she decided it was probably safer to wait in her car like Jughead told her. That way she had the means to make a quick escape if she was met with any trouble. She'd keep the engine running and if something looked suspicious, she would leave straight away and book it to the safety of the sheriff's station.
Honestly, at the moment, she was more worried about Jughead and how he was handling all of this mess with Sweet Pea and Adam.
Rationally, she knew he was okay and he wouldn't try anything reckless. He was at the station with his Dad and Charles trying to figure out where Sweets could have run to, but a part of her was worried that he'd try to find Sweet Pea himself and get hurt somehow.
They both had a tendency in the past to run headlong into danger for the people they loved, consequences be damned. Only, this time things were different. They had a child now and they had to think about him, they couldn't do anything stupid that could leave him without one of his parents. Especially not since he finally had them both now.
Just as Betty heard her phone chime with a text notification, she was nearly blinded by the headlights that pulled up behind her. Squinting to see the government issue tags on the front plate she sighed, realizing that it was just the forensics crew coming to meet her. Betty turned off her engine, leaving the keys in the ignition, and hopped out of the car.
"Hey! I'm Betty, Charles said you needed someone to- ughhh," Betty screamed as she felt something pierce the skin on her chest, shooting a raging thunderbolt through her limbs and making them seize up. The current of electricity finally stopped after what seemed like an eternity, leaving Betty twitching on the ground as she was approached by her attacker. She lay there, dazed and disoriented, but hearing two very familiar voices discussing what to do next.
"Check for her phone and hand it here. We need to send that snake of hers a message, but we don't need that brother of hers trying to ping her phone afterward."
Adam.
No. No, no, no. It can't be! Someone help me, please! Someone save me! JUGGIE! JUG, HELP ME, PLEASE! Betty screamed in her head, trying desperately to speak but only being able to push incoherent moans from her lips. Adam stood over her and grinned at her frozen body, leering at her and licking his lips.
"Did you miss me, baby? Cause I sure as hell missed you. We are going to have so much fun before I send you back, piece by piece, to that little house of yours. But not before I come for your little bastard that you have tucked away, and kill him in front of you. I want you to hear his pleas for his mommy to save him as I slowly bleed him dry. Or, I could fuck you right in front of that baby daddy of yours, make you scream and watch his face as I come inside you," Adam cupped Betty's sex as he spoke, forcing tears to leak from her eyes as she tried to regain her mobility.
"Hey asshole, that's not our deal and you know it. I get Jug all to myself and you get to do whatever you want to his whore." Betty heard the other voice somewhat clearer as she was starting to come back to herself. She looked above her to see the figure handing her cellphone to Adam. Her eyes widened, trying to focus on the other attacker, before slamming shut as the flash of a camera blinded her temporarily, causing her to groan and try to roll away from the light.
She felt hands gripping her tightly, pushing her roughly into the pavement. She blinked, seeing black spots in her vision and making it impossible to get a good look at her second attacker. Betty blinked rapidly, trying to clear her sight when she finally heard the voice above her head. She froze and her breath quickened as recognition took over, finally realizing who was standing over her.
How- that's impossible! No! How did we-... Betty's thoughts were cut off by the voice above her addressing her, "I have been waiting for this moment for a long time, you selfish bitch... You will rue the day we ever met when I'm through with you. I can't wait to finally fuck Jughead. Don't worry, I'll take good care of him once you and that brat are out of his life again. Nighty Night, Elizabeth."
Betty felt a pinch in her neck followed by a strange tingling sensation as her eyelids drooped. She felt her limbs getting heavier and heavier before she felt herself being lifted off of the ground and placed into the back of Adam's vehicle. The last thought she had before the darkness engulfed her was: I'm sorry, Juggie...