The Other Detective - Book 3 (Riverdale Season 3)

The Red Dahlia - Part 2

They sat in the Blue and Gold, working on the case before the phone rang.

"Yeah?" Jughead asked as he picked up.

"I followed Hermione Lodge like you asked. You better get out here."

***

"Stay down and keep quiet," Sweet Pea instructed as they watched Hermione through the window of the cabin, kissing a man and pushing him down onto the bed.

"Wait. That's not..." Aminity turned to the boys.

"Is that... That can't be. Sheriff Minetta's alive?" Sweet Pea nodded. "I thought he was decapitated."

"No. From the sounds of it, he and Hermione Lodge have been having an affair for months."

"Guys," Aminity hushed them as Hermione start to talk.

"There's too many people asking questions which means our little outstanding problem, you need to take care of tonight. I've cleared the decks and use your old sheriff's gun. All signs will point to FP."

"They're talking about framing my dad," Jughead whispered.

"For what?"

"Hiram," Aminity figured out. "Hermione is responsible. She must have cleared the floor of the hospital. That's the deck. Who else would she need to shoot? Besides, everyone knows how much Dad hates Hiram Lodge."

"We have to warn him," Jughead said and they stood off, rushing back to the sheriff's station. "Wait, we need to make sure first," Jughead said and they changed courses and went to the coroner's office.

"A week ago, the torso of a Micheal Minetta was found without its head and hands," Jughead said as they walked into Dr. Curdle Jr's office. He gave him a stack of cash.

"But that torso didn't belong to Minetta because we just saw him."

"He's very much alive."

"Oh, my. Someone must have made a grave mistake," he said unconvincingly.

"Save it, Junior. Who asked you to fake Minetta's death?"

"Hermione Lodge," he admitted.

"Thank you," Aminity told him before they headed back to the sheriff's station.

"Dad, we need to talk to you," Jughead said as they burst into his office.

"There's something at the hospital-"

"No, you can't go there. It's a set up. Hermione and Minetta- Dad, he's alive."

"They're plotting to kill Hiram Lodge together and they're trying to pin it on you," Aminity explained.

"What?"

"Yes. They're going to finish the job tonight using his sheriff's gun to make it look like you did it."

"Minetta's alive?" FP asked after Jughead explained.

"Dad, there's a lot that you need to know. We just got back from the coroner's office and he told us he was paid by Hermione to fake Minetta's death. We saw Minetta and Hermione up at some secret love shake up north. We heard them talking about setting you up. She's going to try and put Hiram's shooting on you. You need to arrest them."

"I can't do that," he said as he ran his hand over his face.

"Yeah, you can. You're the Sheriff."

"Dad, there's clear evidence that they've been trying to murder Hiram Lodge," Aminity backed Jughead up.

"No. No they didn't. I shot Hiram."