Recreating History, Repairing Mistakes

Part 22

It's Betty who gets her hands on theevidence that exonerates him and even though she's extremely proud ofthe fact that she managed to do so, she still has everyone promisenot to ask where she got it from. She shows up with the USB driveburning a hole in her pocket, just minutes after Alice gets back fromanother visit to FP in jail and her mother looks happy enough to havebeen allowed that time, that she's unsure of ruining that mood.Because what's on that drive might help them get FP out of a murdercharge, which in turn would make everyone very happy, the actualcontent might not be happy at all.

She hasn't seen it yet, too afraid ofwhat she will look at, but the fact that it is supposed to be proofthat FP hadn't killed Jason, Betty can imagine rather vividly whatshe has in her possession. And as much as she wants to put all ofthis behind her, she is not sure if she really wants to see forherself, in great detail, what had actually happened to JasonBlossom. But there's no use in dragging this out any further. If shedoesn't go to the police with clear evidence of his innocence, FP isgoing to be charged with murder and soon, because with hisconfession, the police have stopped looking for clues and evidence.The confession paired with the gun found in his home makes this anair-tight case and there will be no waiting around for someone elseto come forward and claim responsibility.

She drags Jughead out off his bedroom,which he's been in the process of making * his * again, and Alice outof the kitchen where she's been starting on lunch because she'd knownBetty wanted to come over. Her mother and boyfriend share a look overthe blonde's head, but neither of them had any clue as to what couldbe so important. They are, of course, still waiting for anyinformation that would proof FP hadn't shot Jason, but for all theyknew, Betty had been home with Polly since last night and if neitherPolly nor Hal had confessed to actually being the killer, there is noway Betty has any evidence in that matter.

What they don't know is, that Bettyhasn't spent all morning babysitting her pregnant sister, and shewould really like for that to stay that way. In truth, she'd beenmeeting with Kevin at Pop's after breakfast who had told her that hisSerpent boyfriend wanted to talk to her. So they had met up withJoaquin and had gotten the surprise of their lives. He had told Bettywhere and how to find the security footage of the moment JasonBlossom was murdered and had begged her for an hour to get his stufftogether and leave town. She's granted him that because the boy hadbeen nothing but good to Kevin and in all honesty, she didn't believethe footage would show Joaquin committing the murder. It had takenher and Kevin half an hour to get their hands on the USB drive andthen she had sent him to look for his boyfriend. She'd given him anhour and he still had half of that time left. And when Joaquin wassafely on the way out off town, she would be waiting at her mother'sto watch the video together.

When Betty pushes the two unsuspectingpeople down onto the couch and boots up her laptop on the coffeetable she can feel the questioning gazes on her back. She ignoresthem for a while longer, pulling the USB drive out of her jeanspocket and putting it on the table next to the computer. She doesn'tdare plugging it in yet, for fear whatever video is on there willautostart and then there'll be no going back anymore. Before theywatch this, she wants everyone's agreement, nobody should have to seeit if they don't want to. Maybe, Betty thinks, it would have beenenough to just take it to the police in the first place. What do theyhave to know what's on there? As long as it gets FP out off jail itshouldn't matter. And it doesn't, but curiosity is a strange thing.

"Betty, what is going on?" Hermother reaches out to still the teen's trembling hands on thekeyboard. It's a nervous habit Alice recognizes from herself.