Hey lovelies! I'm back with chapter 2 for you all!

I will put a slight TRIGGER WARNING at the start of this chapter, as it does dive into my interpretation of Betty's kidnapping, so please be warned that there is some violence, mentions of blood, and kidnapping obviously.

However, I do hope you enjoy this chapter, and that it gives you some of that Bughead fix that we aren't receiving from the show at the moment! I just keep expecting them to team up again, but they never do, and I need my Bughead investigative duo back together! So, here's hoping we get some more of them, and the core four scenes soon!

Anyway, onto the disclaimer: I do not own the show, or the comics which it is based upon, and therefore do not own the characters, or previous/ongoing storylines from the show. However, I have used some of these storylines and adjusted them to my story.

Chapter 2:

As Jughead sat at the kitchen counter, and Betty poured coffee into two mugs, uncomfortable silence once again fell over the pair. Jughead, a self-proclaimed loner and weirdo, usually preferred the silence, actually found himself getting upset about the current situation. Betty had always been the one person he could talk, and open up to without struggle, and suddenly he felt like there had never been more distance between them. But I guess that's what six years does to you.

Setting the mugs down, Betty leaned against the bench opposite Jughead, "So, serial killers and the FBI huh? I thought you would be an expert in at least the former by now." She spoke quietly, a teasing lilt to her voice.

A brief smirk graced Jughead's lips, and he couldn't help the slight chuckle that escaped, glad that she was trying to cut the tension in the room. "Yeah, you'd think so, but I can only pull from personal experience so many times before the readers start demanding more. Figured, your typical serial killer hunting FBI agent, might tickle their fancy."

Betty raised an eyebrow slightly at his comment, "Since when have you ever written anything typical Jughead Jones?"

With a smile gracing his lips, Jughead shrugged slightly. "Oh, I don't know, I guess if you call the FBI agent getting kidnapped and the serial killer getting away typical, then that would be now", he chuckled lightly. But the way Betty froze, coffee mug halfway to her lips, and face as white as a ghost, stopped his quiet laughter abruptly.

"Betty? Betts? Are you okay?" he asked, startled.

Taking a deep breath and shaking her head slightly to rid the nightmares from her mind, Betty placed her well-practiced smile on her face and looked back up at Jughead, "Yeah, of course!"

Quirking his eyebrow and levelling her with a hard look, Jughead spoke, his voice full of concern, "Did you forget who you're talking to Betty? It may have been six years, but you seem to have forgotten that we were together for a long time before that, and I know what your forced smile looks like. So, do you want to try that again?"

Sighing deeply, Betty made her way around the bench to sit beside him, "There was this serial killer, we dubbed him the Trash Bag Killer because he would cut up his victims and wrap their body parts in trash bags."

Jughead sat quietly, listening, and nodding along as she spoke.

"Well, we eventually caught up to him and found out where he was operating from. I was the first one at the scene, and I was told to wait for backup, but I knew that he already had another victim, so I made a decision and went in alone. I know it was stupid Jug, I know I shouldn't have done it. But I just kept thinking of the Black Hood, and I thought of all the terrible things he did, and I still felt like I needed to atone for them you know?"

Her voice broke, and Jughead reached out and clasped her hand giving it a slight squeeze, "I know Betts."

She sniffed, but continued to speak, "And then I thought of that poor woman, and I thought that if I could save her, maybe it would be okay? And I've caught serial killers before, I was catching them in high school, so I thought I could do it, I thought I was invincible." She sniffed again blinking rapidly, willing the tears not to fall as Jughead continued to hold her hand in comfort.

"But I was too late Juggie! She was already gone." This time the tears slipped out, and she swiped at them furiously, while Jughead tightened his grip on her remaining hand.

"So, I'm just standing there staring at this dismembered body and I can feel the nausea start to take over and I turn around to puke, and he's there Jug. The Trash Bag Killer is standing there, a twisted smile on his face, and before I can even lift my gun, he's shoving a rag in my face and the world goes black."

The tears are leaking down her face at this point, and Jughead can't bear to see her in so much pain. Reaching out, he wraps his arms around her shoulders, holding her tightly to his chest, "It's okay Betts, it's okay. I'm here", he whispers gently into her hair.

Shaking slightly, Betty takes in a deep breath, his scent engulfing her nostrils and surprisingly calming her down enough to continue on, "I woke up to searing pain in my left side, and he was smiling at me Jug. He was smiling at me as he cut me. He was enjoying it. I couldn't do anything but scream. I tried, I really tried to stay quiet, but he kept cutting me, and there was so much blood and I couldn't stop him. So, I just screamed until I blacked out."

Jughead's sharp intake of breath, stopped her for a second, but as he pulled her closer into him and he started to stroke her hair, she couldn't help but feel safe in his arms.

"The next time I woke up, I was at the bottom of a pit and he was laughing from the top. I tried for days to climb and claw my way out, but it was hopeless. Eventually the days all ran together, and I just hoped that I wouldn't starve or bleed to death. It was two weeks before they found me, and by then the Trash Bag Killer had disappeared again." She had stopped crying by this point, and her voice had become eerily calm, as though she had detached herself from the story.

Looking down at her, Jughead could see her face was now blank, void of any emotion. Sighing, he pulled her back into his arms and without thinking, placed a light kiss to the top of her head. He had never seen her like this before, so closed off and emotionless, not even after the horrors of the Black Hood, or the night of their Junior prom. He couldn't even comprehend how terrible of a situation that must have been for her.

"Betts," he sighed, "I am so sorry that you had to go through that," he pulled her even closer to him, needing to know that she was safe and, in his arms, "I'm so sorry that my story has brought all of this up for you. I understand if you don't want to do this. I can get my research from somewhere else, and I'll change the premise of my story."

Pulling out of his warm embrace, Betty quickly shook her head, "Don't you dare do that Jughead Jones!" She spoke firmly, "I'm alright, I promise you. This is your story, and you deserve to write it. Besides, who better to give you real insight into what it was like than someone who has actually lived through it?"

The briefest of smiles crossed her lips as she spoke, and Jughead knew that she would be okay. He could see the Betty Cooper fighting spirit in her, and it brought a smile to his own face.

"Plus, since I'm stuck on desk duty, this will give me something interesting to focus on. Especially since they won't even consider any of my theories about a migrating serial killer," she sighed frustrated.

Jughead's ears perked up at this, "Migrating serial killer?"

Nodding quickly and grabbing his hand she led him into her office, "Look at this Juggie," she spoke as she turned around a board covered in articles, photos, and drawings, "tell me that you don't think I'm right!"

Analysing the board, he started to notice a few consistencies, "So, you're thinking the murders that happened in Odessa, Texas are linked to the ones here, in Fargo, North Dakota?" He asked as he pointed to some of the pictures on the board.

Betty nodded vigorously, "Exactly! If you look at the information given you can see that the victim profiles match, along with the methods used for the killings. Plus, they started up two months after the ones in Odessa suddenly stopped, even though that killer was never caught! I know there's a connection here Jug! I just have to figure it out", she said, turning back to scrutinise her murder board.

Studying her carefully, Jughead could tell that this was important to her. But he also knew that if she was left to her own devices then she could very easily end up spiralling, and it was that thought that compelled him to say the next words out of his mouth, "Then let me help you Betts."

She turned back to him startled. He couldn't be serious? She had gotten so used to people telling her she was crazy, that it was hard to believe that someone was trusting her theories. But when she looked up and saw sincerity in his eyes, she couldn't help the wide smile that graced her lips, or the way her arms flung out to pull him into a tight embrace.

"Thank you Jug!" She spoke into his chest as his arms wrapped around her slim frame and pulled her closer to him. He knew he probably shouldn't be enjoying this as much as he was, she had a boyfriend for goodness sake, but for this moment right now, he was going to take what he could get.

The pair were pulled apart by the sound of the front door banging open, and the sound of feet running on the tiled floor. Moving quickly out of the study, Betty found herself nearly barrelled over by the little blonde girl running towards her, yelling "Mummy, I'm home!"

So, there you go! I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and the little plot twist at the end! I do have a couple more chapters written, so will look to update again soonish, however, I do have about three stories in the works at the moment that I want to get finished so hopefully I can get them all updated soon!

Shoutout to some lovely reviewers from the first chapter:

MyChihuahuasrock3: Thanks for reviewing! I'm glad you like it so far, and hope you enjoy this chapter as well!

egymgirl: Aw thank you! I'm so happy you enjoyed the first chapter, and hope this one satisfies your need for more!

WizardingBughead: Thank you so much, you are so sweet! I'm really happy that you think I captured their personalities well, and that you like where the story is going! I hope this new chapter is just as good! Also, thank you so much for your support on my other stories, it means a lot to me!

Also, a shoutout to AngelaSTAR, MyChichuahuarocks3, and fotbollssusse, for following this story!

So, once again please continue to comment and review, I always read them and really appreciate them! As always, stay wonderful! xo