Chapter 9: Rally or Not, Here I Come

"No, no! Those go over there," Veronica objected, watching as two attendants placed speakers where the hors d'oeuvres table should be. She sighed and walked toward the stage in the town hall as the workers ambled away, the speakers in tow. Archie was leaning on the edge of the stage tuning his guitar, and he paused as Veronica strolled up to him.

"We're an hour out and everything is going smoothly for the most part." She checked off a box on her list and smiled at Archie. He smiled back. "Where's Jughead?"

"He'll be here. He left after school and said he had something to check on first, whatever that means." Archie pulled the strap over his shoulder and placed his guitar gently on the stage. "Do you think we made the right decision?"

Veronica frowned and knit her eyebrows. She had been wondering the same thing, knowing full well the two of them had lied to Jughead. "I think so. I mean, you said yourself that he would just be upset seeing us together."

"What? That's not what I'm talking about." Veronica raised her eyebrow. "We haven't told him about your dad, Ronnie."

She winced. He was right. She wasn't sure why since it was mostly good news – he had nothing to do with Betty's disappearance - but they had managed to calm Jughead down that day, and, well, it didn't seem right to bring up anything else regarding that issue.

She sighed. "I know, but it just didn't feel right after we got him smiling again." Archie looked at her with worry in his eyes. "It's okay, Archie, it's going to be fine," she added.

"Veronica, Archie!" Veronica turned around and saw Cheryl walking towards them. "I thought I would find you here already. Listen, I would love it if you gave me the chance to perform tonight."

"Uhh…" Veronica began, staring at Cheryl's enthusiastic smile. "Archie is already performing, and Val and Melody agreed to play with him-,"

"Perfect! We'll have a full band then." She whipped her head toward Archie. "What's on the setlist, Archie? I can learn quickly."

Veronica exchanged a look with Archie, who just shrugged his shoulders.

"Cheryl-,"

"I am not being left out of all this. Let me help, please. I've been itching to perform again, anyway."

Veronica looked her up and down. "Oh... okay. Yeah, you're right." She relaxed, as did Cheryl. "This is all about getting support behind Betty's cause, and you really came through when we needed you before. Yes, you can sing."

Cheryl lit up and bounced up onto the stage. She started to rearrange the already placed instruments.

Veronica turned back to Archie and smiled, "Hope you don't mind some company on stage."

Archie shook his head, "No, actually this is okay. She can fill out some of the harmonies. I really am a bit rusty." He plucked an off-tune strum and goofily smiled back up at Veronica.

She grinned back then looked around; volunteers were shuffling around setting up chairs and tables, and Cheryl's adjustments on stage echoed around the room.

"Tonight is going to be perfect. We'll make it perfect." Veronica found herself repeating the words she had spoken to Archie on the opening night of his community center. She hoped the words would ring true this time.

Jughead sat back in the metal chair, staring half-heartedly at the large board in front of him. Orange candlelight flickered around him, casting hazy flashes across the walls of the bunker. Shadows from the pictures and string bobbed in the glow, flickering in Jughead's eyes.

He had tacked some of his pictures from the Sisters of Quiet Mercy to the middle of the board, next to them two index cards. One simply stated, "Charles," the other boasted the question, "Connection to Chic?" A red string traced down to a corner of the board where Hiram's picture hung.

He leaned forward and pulled the "Charles" card off of the board and stared apprehensively at it. Was Archie right? Had he only been so focused on Charles because of his projected grief? He raised the card back to the board, his other hand hovering a tack above it. He wavered and instead tacked the card to the top corner of the board instead of the middle.

Jughead gazed across the rest of the board, his hand over his mouth in thought. Another card was stuck in the bottom left corner, sporting a few crossed-out names and more question marks, one of which said, "Penelope – Chic connection and motive."

There had to be more connections amongst all this. There had to be. He stared doggedly at one of the pictures from the Sisters – the crude graffiti compass - and ran a hand over it. He didn't want to admit it, not even to himself, but he was directionless.

But all that was going to change tonight.

He felt it. Something was going to go right tonight. They were going to get an answer - or at least a direction - and they were going to get closer to Betty.

Jughead let out a deep breath and swiped his speech notes from the table in front of him. He stuffed them in his pocket and tramped to the metal ladder, climbing up into the undulant swell of blue moonlight streaming down into the quiet bunker.

Betty panted as she fiddled with the lock on the front door of the cabin, twisting and prodding in the keyhole with her makeshift lockpick. She had taken an hour or two - she couldn't even tell the time anymore - to regain her strength and was now trying to unlock the front door. The wire was not as thin and bendy as she had hoped, making the unlocking process longer and more tiring than she had originally anticipated, but she persisted, already feeling as though she had wasted too much time on her earlier break.

Her knees were growing uncomfortable under the hard, wooden floor, and her arm itched under the ticklish fabric from the rip in her jacket, drops of dried blood still visible around the edges. A few beads of sweat formed on Betty's forehead as she furrowed her brow, concentrating harder on the fickle lock.

Pop!

"Yes!" Betty hissed, her heart fluttering. She turned the knob and pushed, the door catching hard on the outside padlock. Betty pressed herself up against the door, propping it open to keep the now-visible chain taut. She reached a hand out through the thin open space and spun the padlock toward her, revealing the second keyhole, and plunged the wire inside.

She jimmied the wire around, feeling for the tumblers. Betty stuck out her tongue and huffed; this one was a bit more challenging. She pushed herself harder into the door and closer to the lock, the chilly afternoon air reinvigorating her sudden want – her need – for freedom.

Betty pried the wire deeper into the lock, suddenly feeling a click.

She turned the wire, accidentally tumbling onto the porch as the chain and door gave way. She sat up, collecting her breath, and looked around, taking in the wilderness around her. She pulled herself to her feet and stepped away from the open door, surveying the outside of the cabin for the first time. A ramshackle porch swing hung lopsided to the right, and a wraparound banister surrounded the front porch, both matching the shoddy white of the front door. Thick bushes and trees encircled the cabin, creating a fence of greenery that placed the cabin in its own little thicket.

"How on earth did Edgar even find this place...?" Betty muttered, bounding down the small steps and onto the soft grass. She looked around at the forest in front of her, noticing a few small trails leading away into the woods.

Her heart pounded in her chest - this time in exhilaration instead of fear - and she cast one last spiteful glance back at the cabin before jogging down one of the small trails toward the galvanizing sound of flowing water.

FP walked into the already crowded town hall, an arm wrapped around Jellybean. He looked around and smiled at the setup Veronica had managed to arrange seemingly overnight. Pop's had a stand in the back and was handing out samples and appetizers, and the walls and stage were decorated with smiling photos of Betty and her friends. A particularly nice one of her and Jughead was propped by the door.

He saw Veronica and Archie near the stage and walked over. "Veronica, this is amazing. Thank you so much for setting this up."

"Thank you, FP! That means a lot. We hope it means a lot to Jughead, too."

"Yeah… speaking of that, have you seen him? I know he stayed with you over the weekend, Archie. Thank you for that."

Archie shook his head. "No, I haven't seen him since school ended. I'm guessing he hasn't come home yet?"

FP stifled a deep sigh and instead just shook his head. "Not yet."

"Don't worry, he'll come around, Mr. Jones," Archie said, "he cooled off a lot this weekend."

FP stared at Archie and Veronica, the latter of whom nodded enthusiastically back at him. Maybe space was just what they needed. He didn't always know what to do or say in tough situations and he was thankful that Jughead had such supportive friends.

He let his gaze fall over the expansive crowd gathered in the hall. Despite turning their back on certain issues in the past, the town had indeed grown into an actual community in his eyes. Not only were all of these people here for Betty, but he felt as though they were here for his son as well. His eye caught a blonde man against the back door.

"Hey, JB, how about you go save our seats? I'll grab us some food." Jellybean nodded and walked into a row towards the front, casually stepping over already-seated people. He turned back toward Archie and Veronica, "I'll see you guys later," then walked over to the back of the room.

"Charles, thanks for coming."

"Not a problem, FP," Charles said, straightening up as FP approached. "Have you and Jughead talked?"

FP shook his head. "No, he hasn't been home the whole weekend. I figured I would let him talk when he's ready instead of pushing it."

"You were just trying to protect him. If anything, this is my fault. I should have never left it-,"

FP's stomach dropped. "No, no, Charles. This is my mess, don't try to cover for me. I broke our trust."

Charles nodded and crossed his arms, still looking concerned. "How should we go about this? Should I try to talk to him?"

"No." FP waggled a hand at Charles. "No, let me handle this. Archie and Veronica said he cheered up over the weekend. That's good, that gives me room to talk. I'll apologize first and foremost, and we'll just have to go from there."

"FP?" Veronica had come up behind them and was nervously looking at him. "Sorry to pull you away, but we are getting started in about ten minutes and I would love it if you would come backstage so we could talk over the schedule."

FP glanced at Charles, who nodded. "It's okay, FP, go. I'll hang around here until the end. I'll keep on eye on things down here, make sure everything goes well."

FP nodded and turned around, following Veronica to the stage. He hoped everything would go well, too.

A bubbling stream trickled slowly over rocks and fallen foliage, gently snaking in between the lush trees of the forest. Betty had been following the path of the stream hoping it would lead her somewhere into civilization, but she was now afraid she was only going deeper and deeper into the woods, as the forest around her had grown darker. The canopy of trees had grown thicker, but she could still see a few patches of the sunset sky above her.

She trudged along the sandy bank, staring longingly into the water. She wanted desperately to stop and drink, to ease her parched throat, but she was afraid that if she stopped, she'd drop right then and there. And then there was also no telling if Edgar was around. She flinched at every crunched leaf and snapping branch, waiting to see his eerie white figure stalking her from the shadows. But so far, all that Betty had found around her were the palliative rustles of the forest waking to the coming night.

After a few more minutes stumbling through the forest, Betty noticed what appeared to be a small yellow orb in between the trees ahead of her. She squinted; the warm glow of a small lamp was shining at her. She broke into a faster jog, bounding towards the light as fast as her weakened legs could take her.

Betty rounded on what appeared to be a ranger outpost, the homey orange light coming from a fluorescent lamp over the door. A wooden sign read, "Station 17." She cautiously swung open the front door and found the inside dark and deserted, but the outside light illuminated the inside just enough for Betty to make out a few things around the room. Maps and charts covered the walls and a large transistor board sat on the desk. Betty's heart fluttered as she scrambled over to the radio and picked up the transceiver.

This must be a communications post, she thought, which probably put her in some sort of national park or conservation area if they had ranger stations this far into the woods.

She fumbled with the dials and buttons, realizing she'd never actually used a radio like this. She turned one of the knobs and the radio crackled to life.

"Hello? Hello is anyone there?" she called into the transceiver, "My name is Betty Cooper, I need help."

She pulled back and listened to the static. Her eyes moved up to the largest map hanging above the desk as she waited. Blotches of green forest and parks dotted the map, crisscrossed with trails and mountain paths. The bottom corner of the map announced that she was in an area called "Cornwall."

So her suspicions were right, she wasn't in Riverdale. This must be where Edgar had moved The Farm, but she wasn't familiar with the town name. Her eyes drifted further down, reading the smaller location line and her heart nearly skipped a beat.

Ontario.

Her breathing hitched as her mind filled with a new wave of anxiety, a cold tingle running down her back.

She raised the transceiver back to her mouth with a trembling hand and repeated her message. This time a broken hiss spouted across the airwave and a crackly voice rang into the cabin.

"Is someone there? Can you repeat that?"

Betty's eyes widened and her heart leapt at the response. "Yes! Hello! My name is Betty Cooper. I'm from Riverdale. I need help… I was kidnapped and I've been trapped out in these woods for weeks. I managed to escape but there's a man after me. Help, please!"

"Is that right? Alright, stay calm, kid. What station are you calling from?"

"Station 17."

"Alright, Betty. Stay put, okay? We'll send someone to get you right away!" the crackly voice assured over the radio.

"Thank you! Oh, thank you," she breathed into the mic. Betty leaned her forehead into the transceiver and let out a deep sigh, a tear running down her cheek.

She was going home.

Jughead pushed through the large crowd, ignoring all the calls and beckons aimed at him and ambled into the backstage area. He headed to the small group consisting of Archie, Veronica, FP, and, to his confusion, Cheryl.

"Jughead, where have you been?" Veronica chided, shoving a tie into his face. "Put this on."

He shimmied his coat off, hanging it on the back of a chair and folded the tie over his neck. "Sorry, I had some business to attend to," he replied, casting an uneasy glance at FP before shooting Cheryl a confused look.

"I'm singing tonight," Cheryl admonished, "I told you I wanted to do my part."

Archie and Veronica shrugged at him. "Okay…" he said, turning away and looking at his dad. FP gave him a timid smile and wave.

Veronica watched the interaction and anxiously checked her watch. "We have to get started everyone! I'm giving opening remarks, FP will be giving a rundown about tips and the hotline, and then it's all you, Jughead."

Jughead nodded, holding his notes in his teeth as he finished up with his tie. He pulled them away and began wringing the paper as Veronica took the stage. Jughead peeked around the curtain and out into the crowd. He could see Jellybean sitting close to the front. A few rows behind her he could see Mayor McCoy and Tom Keller, along with Pop Tate. Toni, Sweet Pea, and a few others from the Poisons and Serpents lined one of the walls. He grimaced when he saw Kevin leaning against the back wall.

"Welcome everyone, we are so humbled and inspired by all of you here tonight…" he heard as Veronica began the evening.

Jughead pulled away from the curtain and crossed his arms, falling in line with his father.

"Jug, hey, I heard about what happened and I am really sorry," FP whispered. "You have to know, I was just trying to protect you. That's the only reason I didn't tell you."

"I…" Jughead began, deciding his words. "I know. But you could have at least warned me you had other evidence. Finding a concealed file on my half-brothers' computer was not very pleasant."

Archie and Cheryl had shuffled nervously away from them. Archie was fiddling with his guitar and Cheryl was looking aimlessly around the alcove. Jughead could tell they were only pretending not to listen.

FP leaned back against the fly rail and wrapped his thumbs in his belt. He nodded slowly, "Yeah, I can see how bad that probably looked. If you still need to process any of it, I'm here now, okay?"

Jughead blew out his nose and reached a hand into his pant pocket, gingerly wrapping his fingers around the necklace he carried with him. After having that gritty footage replay in his head all weekend, he had to admit that he understood his father's logic. "Why didn't you at least tell me?" His voice came out in a pained whisper, looking up at FP.

FP looked back at Jughead with a sad frown, his face slightly obscured in the dimly lit bay. "There are tough lines to draw in these situations, Jug, especially now that I'm the sheriff. I have to be careful about what is personal and what is professional. And-," he swallowed, "I wanted to actually get the job done as the sheriff this time. I didn't… I didn't want you kids to take everything on and solve it without me. I wanted to do a good job."

Jughead could feel a lump rising in his throat. He fought back the urge to cry and looked at his dad square in the face. "And you are, Dad. You are. I'm so sorry about what I said the other day, I didn't mean it."

FP slowly nodded. "I know. I know." He placed a hand on Jughead's shoulder, "We've both had our selfish moments, but-," he waved his other hand toward the crowd, "from the looks of this here tonight, coming together can result in some amazing things. We need to work as a team from now on, okay?"

Jughead felt tears welling in the corner of his eyes. No, he couldn't get emotional yet. "Yeah, that sounds good, Dad."

FP pulled him in close, and Jughead wrapped his arms around his dad. Space had been good, and he could tell FP thought the same. His dad was really trying and that conversation had gone smoother and easier than he thought.

Jughead could hear the crowd clap and Veronica's voice came back to his ear. "And now, please welcome Sheriff Jones as he walks you through updates into the investigation and how you can help."

FP pulled back but kept a hand on Jughead's shoulder. "I love you, Jug."

"I love you too, Dad," he said as FP walked onstage. Veronica bounced back into the alcove and shuffled over to Archie. The two of them gave him tentative looks. Jughead gave them a small smile and a thumbs up. They smiled in return.

He turned his attention to Cheryl, who had still been absentmindedly staring at the wall. "Cheryl, I'm sorry, too. I'm glad you're helping."

Cheryl looked at him and replied, "Thank you, Jughead. Maybe there really is a heart underneath all that impudence."

Jughead rolled his eyes. Maybe one day he would see some of that true tenderness Toni kept talking about.

He stepped forward and crept to the edge of the curtain to listen to FP speak. He was talking about hotlines and where to hang posters to get the most traffic. Jughead slipped his hand back into his pocket and brushed against the cool metal chain, rubbing it between his fingers.

"Thank you very much. Now, I'd like to invite someone very special out to speak. Jughead Jones is Betty Cooper's boyfriend and he would like to say a few words to you all. Help me welcome my son to the stage."

The crowd clapped loudly as Jughead sauntered toward the podium. FP gave him one last encouraging nod before he vanished back into the bay. Jughead set his crinkled notes down on the podium and swallowed, squinting out at the dark crowd obscured by the bright stage lights. Jellybean gave him a reassuring smile as he began.

"Hello, everyone, I know that you're probably tired of everyone thanking you for coming tonight, but I will again – thank you for managing to pause your binging of the latest episodes of the Bachelor. I know how hard it is to pull away from the suspense of the rose ceremony."

A chuckle coursed through the crowd, and Jughead gave a faint smile. He looked down at his scribbled notes and let a more somber expression form.

"Many of you know my girlfriend and know just how influential she is in this town. Betty is a loyal friend, a caring daughter, and a brilliant writer, and I wish the story that we have to bring you tonight was happier, but unfortunately, it's not. Today is October 28th - ten days ago, late on Friday, October 18th, she was abducted right here in Riverdale and so far we have no leads and no direction. Now, statistically speaking, Betty's odds aren't great: the chances of finding a missing person go down considerably after the first 72 hours, and we've used up a bit more than that." Jughead glanced to the side stage and caught Veronica and Archie's eyes. They both had red faces, and no doubt were attempting to hold back tears. "But personally speaking," he continued, a steely resolve fortifying itself on his face as his voice steadied, "Betty's never much been one to listen to the odds."

"About 2 years ago, Betty stood on this stage and reminded us of what Riverdale is all about. Of the people that make up Riverdale. But there was one person she forgot to mention and that was herself. Betty Cooper is Riverdale. She's been on the frontlines fighting for this town and for the truth ever since it began spiraling into calamity." He swept his gaze slowly across the room, attempting to make eye contact with distinct persons in the audience. Toni gave a sympathetic smile while Sweet Pea raised a fist in solidarity toward him. Jellybean beamed up at him, as did a few other students scattered around the room, but Kevin ducked his head as soon as Jughead made eye contact. He felt a small tic pull at the side of his mouth.

"Tonight I'm asking that we take up the fight and carry the banner for her. To all of you here, first, I again say thank you, and second, I urge each of you to join me in the fight for hope and justice. To not just walk away and go back to our everyday routine of inobservance, but to keep a candle burning and stay vigilant."

He drew in a deep breath and continued, "Unfortunately, Betty couldn't have any familial representatives here, so I ask that we can all become her family tonight. A community united in the charge to bring one of their own home."

Jughead watched Kevin run a hand through his hair and scurry toward the exit. Tom Keller noticed as well and was wading through the seats to catch up to his son.

"And to Betty, wherever you are, this is a promise - we will find whoever did this, and we will bring you home. Keep holding on."

Jughead pulled away from the podium as a small stream of tears escaped his eyes. The room erupted into applause. Veronica and Archie wrapped him in a hug as he entered the side stage.

"She'd be so proud of you," Veronica quietly acknowledged, pulling away.

"Thank you, Veronica." Jughead smiled between the two friends. "Both of you, thank you for setting this up."

He turned and looked back out on the stage, to the large picture of Betty smiling back at him. His hand shifted to his pocket. "She'd be proud of all of us."

Jughead grabbed a small tray of sliders and proceeded to hang in the back of the room, watching Archie take the stage from a distance. He had left backstage to try to find Kevin and see what was going on, but both the Keller men had disappeared. So he decided to just hang in the back, surrounding himself with the comforts of Pop's and a moment of silence, hoping that his retreat encouraged people to pay attention to Archie's words now instead of trying to gobsmack him with encouragements and consolations.

"That was a very heartfelt and inspiring speech, young man," a chipper voice called out.

So much for that moment of silence.

Jughead turned to find a tall man with glasses standing nearby, hovering by the food table. "Do you recommend the sliders?"

"Uhh, yeah, they're pretty good," Jughead stammered, casting a quizzical look at the man. "I'm sorry, do I know you?"

"Indirectly." The man gave Jughead a warm smile and reached out a hand. "Hello, Jughead. My name is Michael Glass. I'm Betty's therapist."

Oh.

Jughead gently set down his tray, wiping his hands quickly on his pants before reaching out for the handshake. "Nice to meet you, Dr. Glass. Betty has said good things about you. Thank you for helping her."

Dr. Glass nodded. "I'm sincerely sorry about everything that has happened. Betty has already lived through so much, I'm afraid we'll have to take a few steps back when she comes back to sessions."

Jughead perked his head up and drew in a shaky breath. This was the first time someone other than his friends had really acted as if Betty was alive. "You think she's okay? That she's coming back?"

"Very much." He smiled, leaning beside Jughead. "She's very strong. If anyone can find their way back home, it's her."

"Aren't you, like, not allowed to talk about clients? You know doctor-patient confidentiality and all that?" Jughead raised an eyebrow, although he truthfully was curious as to what knowledge Dr. Glass had about Betty.

"I can't talk about what happens in sessions, but it's no secret Betty has a lot of strength and courage. And it's evident she loves you very much."

It felt as though Jughead's heart was twisting in his chest. He suddenly felt the surge of a sob jumping into his throat but coughed it back. "The last thing she said to me was not to worry about her, and I didn't. I didn't stay up and wait for her, even though she always does for me. And that led to us being completely oblivious to the fact that she was missing. How is that loving?"

Dr. Glass gave Jughead a sympathetic look. "Jughead, you can't blame yourself. There's only one person to blame and that's whoever did this to her. We have to accept that we can't control everything in our lives, so don't try to place fault on yourself."

Jughead turned his eyes away from Dr. Glass, a mixture of anger and sadness bubbling behind them. He could see Dr. Glass shuffling his hand in his pocket.

"Here." He handed Jughead a business card. "In case you ever need a safe place to talk."

Jughead took the card and flipped it in his hand. "Thank you," he said quietly. Dr. Glass started walking back into the crowd.

"And Jughead-," he turned around briefly, "this is a wonderful thing to do for Betty. Trust that she is fighting her own battles. You can't fight them all for her." With that, he walked away.

Jughead could feel his hands start to shake and he quickly shoved them into his pockets. He turned to the stage just as Archie was stepping up to the mic.

"Once again, thank you so much, everyone, for coming out tonight, it means a lot to us, and we know it means so much to Betty. Remember that if you have any information, or see anything unusual, please report it to the police." He smiled and looked directly at Jughead. "We have one last song for you all. And in the spirit of what Jughead said earlier, we encourage everyone to keep holding on. This one's for you, Betty!"

Archie stepped back and shot a quick glance at Cheryl and the Pussycats behind him. He strummed a slow melody on his guitar and sang into the microphone:

"You're not alone, together we stand, I'll be by your side, you know I'll take your hand…"

Jughead drank in a deep breath and felt someone walk up beside him. FP and Veronica were flanking him on either side.

"And when it gets cold, and it feels like the end, there's no place to go..."

Betty paced anxiously around the small outpost. She shivered and shoved her hands into her jacket pockets. She was surprised when one of her hands wrapped around something plastic. She pulled out an FBI badge, a small tear rolling down her cheek. Her breath caught in her throat as a barrage of thoughts tumbled through her mind.

She was going home. Someone finally knew she was out here. She coughed a strangled laugh. And once the police got here, she would call her brother and find her mom - she had to be close to The Farm. She'd get her mom back, maybe Polly - her family would be reunited and they would go home together. She would sleep and eat properly. She would see Archie and Veronica. She would see Jughead.

She smiled and laughed. Finally, the nightmare would be over.

"You know I won't give in, no, I won't give in."

She quickly shoved the badge back into her pocket and turned her head as two flashlight beams came into view outside the station window.

"Hello?" she called as the door swung open. "Oh! Thank you so muc-," The word caught in her throat like a shirt snagging on a thorn. Two men stood in front of her, both wearing park ranger hats. But both also wearing dusty and crumpled white outfits, accompanied by exaggerated smiles. One had a still-chattering walkie-talkie clipped to his belt.

'A bit far from home, aren't you, kid?" One of them said, tossing his hat aside as he stepped into the room.

"Found her," the other called into the radio.

"No… no," Betty's eyes grew wide, her heart freezing.

"So far away, I wish you were here, before it's too late, this could all disappear."

"Mr. Evernever wasn't too happy when he heard you were out. Don't you know not to go into the woods after dark?" One chided as he reached out strong arms toward her, the other mumbling something into his radio.

She panicked and looked around the tiny room. There was nowhere to go, the two men were blocking the doorway. She frantically grabbed for the chair but felt a hand wrap around her ankle first and jerk, knocking her to the ground.

"Keep holding on 'cause you know we'll make it through, we'll make it through"

Betty scraped desperately at the floor, her nails digging shallow grooves into the wood, but there was nothing to hold onto. She kicked her legs wildly, but the man's grasp on her ankle was too firm and she couldn't make a connection. The black spots had returned to her vision, and apparently to her mind as well as all she could think to do was scream.

"Just stay strong 'cause you know I'm here for you,"

Archie closed his eyes as he belted out the chorus. His song drifted over the crowd and Jughead could feel tears prickling at the corner of his eyes. FP slung an arm over his shoulder and pulled him close, the lights gleaming out of the cloud of haze that had settled on the stage washing over them.

"I'm here for you."

"Now, now, kid. There's no need for that. We're taking you home, that's all." The other man soothed as he grabbed Betty and slung her carelessly over his shoulder. She pounded on his back, but it was no use and she knew it; he was too strong and she was too tired.

The men trudged out of the outpost and began walking back up the bank of the stream through the darkness, back in the direction of the cabin. Betty whimpered, watching through swimming eyes as the outpost, and any chance of freedom, bounced out of sight.

"Nothing's gonna change, nothing's gonna change destiny, whatever's meant to be will work out perfectly. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah!"

The men threw her down roughly outside of the cabin. She held out her arms, the world spinning as she landed brusquely on the ground. Through her shaky vision, she could see two shoes planted in front of her.

"Betty, we were making such good progress." Edgar's piercing gaze glared down at her. "I've told you, you can't run away from your destiny. It'll only keep finding ways to drag you kicking and screaming back into its control." He looked up at the two men above her. "Get her back inside." He turned his eyes slowly back toward Betty. "I need to deal with everything she broke."

Betty let out a faint cry as a set of arms wrapped around her once more, dragging her back to her feet. As she was pulled past, Betty looked at Edgar; he had thrilled malice hanging behind his blue glare. She quivered through her pressing fatigue.

There was no playing along anymore.

There was not any modicum of control left.

She was completely and utterly at the mercy of her enemy now.

"So keep holding on 'cause you know we'll make it through, we'll make it through."

Archie pulled away from the microphone as he finished the song, his face red. He and Cheryl exchanged small smiles as the crowd cheered. Veronica placed a hand on Jughead's shoulder and he looked over; she was crying too, and that made three as he could feel his tears release as well.

Please keep holding on, Betty. Jughead thought as Archie climbed down from the stage, Dr. Glass's counsel ringing in his ears. Keep fighting until we get there. Please.

People began rising from their seats and making their way to various exits when a deputy strode up to the podium and tapped the mic. Jughead looked over at FP and Veronica, but both of them looked confused as well.

"Hello, everyone!" the deputy spoke into the microphone. "So sorry, I know that we're finishing up, but we just got word that Riverdale PD received two generous donations to put towards Ms. Cooper's case!"

FP gawked and gave a singular hearty clap. Jughead looked over at Veronica who returned his surprised stare.

"One of the donors wished to remain anonymous…" the deputy's voice began to fall to the back of Jughead's mind.

He looked around the room to see where Archie went and glanced toward the door, his eyes instead falling on someone else entirely. "Wait, what…?"

He said it louder than he had anticipated and FP stepped next to him. "What is it, Jug?" His dad followed his gaze and let out a startled gasp. "No… geez, not now."

"There are my two favorite boys!" Gladys called as she strolled over to Jughead and FP.

"Mom?" Jughead balked, the shock mixing with his already heightened emotions.

"Mom?" Veronica hesitantly echoed Jughead's question.

Jughead felt frozen on the spot. He just stared blankly at his mother with his mouth twitching.

"And the second donation comes from Lodge Detention Center. Both donations will aid us in acquiring more time and manpower to put toward the open investigation, as well as provide updated equipment for the police station!" The deputy's words barely registered in Jughead's mind, but he heard a name, and now turned on Veronica.

She looked baffled, and her eyes darted between Jughead, Gladys, and the crowd. FP was still staring at Gladys and Jughead decided to turn his attention to the floor. His mind was swept up in the rapids, all of the anger and confusion that had melted away earlier now rejoining the flood. And unfortunately, all the peace and optimism he had gained just moments ago was now sinking under the weight of what looked like a whole new set of problems.

Author's Notes: Oh boy. Sorry that I pulled all my characters – and probably you all – through the wringer of emotions with these last two chapters. But also not sorry.

I'm trying to take care of them, but they have found themselves in some precarious situations, here.

And if you are curious, the song at the end is Avril Lavigne's "Keep Holding On." (I enjoy the Glee version, too) If you listen to it while reading the last scene, it adds even more depth.

Anyway, hoped you liked my two-fer! Thank you all for sticking with me through this story! I've been really encouraged by all the follows and reviews! I'm working a bit more clear-headed through the next chapter (these last two really put me through the wringer as too!) and hopefully, will get that one out within the next two weeks.