The Other Detective - Book 3 (Riverdale Season 3)

Bizzarodale - Part 2

"Let's cut to the bone, Mason," FP said as they sat in an interrogation room at the station. "Are you the Gargoyle King?"

"There was no poison in those chalices. I was just... scaring them."'

"Right. Scaring them straight. You set out to abduct and terrorize your own kid? What about my daughter?"

"I wasn't planning on having her there. The cadets found her and it made sense to keep her there. More children of the original midnight club, the better."

"How'd you talk your cadets into helping?"

"I made it a quest. The Gargoyle King told them their brothers needed help. When you are weak, I am weak. The RROTC was the same way when Tom Keller and I were in high school. Back then, us cadets did everything together and no one was closer than me and my best friend, Tommy Keller. Until I tried to kiss him. When my parents found out about my inclinations, they sent me to the Sisters to get help for my weakness of character. That's where I first met the King and where I started playing Gryphons and Gargoyles which I later learned Tommy played too with his Midnight Club. The Sisters cured me of impure thoughts. I became strong as I have been all these years. But then I heard that Tom and Sierra were getting married just as my own son, Moose, told me he was seeing Tom's boy, who looks just like Tommy did when I..."

"You wanted to destroy what you couldn't have. The Sisters scared you with the Gargoyle King, so you'd thought you'd do the same to Moose and Keven." FP sighed. "Man, the Sisters did a number on you."

***

"Tall Boy was using the costume to sell drugs, but Major Mason to what? Scare his kid?" Jughead whispered as they sat at the table, Aminity finally having fallen asleep on the couch.

"We keep taking down Gargoyle Kings and they keep popping up again. It's like playing whack-a-mole."

"It doesn't make any sense. If he was scaring them straight, why go after Aminity? She has a boyfriend."

"Right place wrong time. The cadets grabbed her and Mason went along with it because it would add to the authenticity," FP sighed, running a hand over his head.

"Yeah, but the true Gargoyle King, if there even is an true King, is still at large."

FP sighed, leaning back. "She okay?" he asked, looking at Aminity.

"I think so. She doesn't seem hurt. Just a little shaken up. Her pills seem to work though. She didn't go into a full attack."

"That's good."

"She's strong. She'll be okay."

***

Jughead sat up at the sound of screams, racing out of his room and to Aminity who was panting on the couch having woken herself up.

"You okay?" he asked quietly, sitting next to her and trying to put her hand on her arm, but she shifted away in fear. "Hey, hey. It's just me."

She panted before nodding. "Sorry about waking you up."

"It's okay." He hesitated. "You want to talk about it?"

"It was some messed up version of tonight. One where we didn't make it out."

"But you did. Everyone's okay. A little scared, but no one got hurt."

"That's not necessarily true."

"What are you talking about?"

She hesitated before pulling up her sleeve, showing the mark on her shoulder. "It's the same symbol as Archie's. And the same one that Joaquin had when he died."

"Oh God, Aminity."

"They came out of the wood, attacked Oliver first," she said as tears came to her eyes. "They knocked him out and then two grabbed me. Another told them to stop and tried to come at me. I kicked and managed to get his mask off, but it only made him mad. The two holding me didn't know who he was. He said he had another quest. He took out his switchblade and carved it into my shoulder. I think the cadets kind of freaked out, but he said some nonsense about the king and left it at that."

"Where did he go?"

"I don't know. He just ran off somewhere and then the cadets took me to the circle where you found me."

"Why did he go after you?"

"I don't know. But he's still out there... and now I think I'm marked for death."