Miles to Go

CHAPTER NINE - MONSTER'S BALL

The week went by in a blur. There wasn't much to do at the station, since there were no major attacks from the Black Hood. There were only a few scares where a couple of townies came in crying and holding letters saying that they would be attacked for their sins. Turned out it was either only an imposter or just a couple of teenagers playing a prank. Most of the focus was on finding Joseph Conway. The kids spent their time after school pouring through old yearbooks and school records to track down the missing survivor, but with no luck. It was only relief that Keller hadn't hounded them over it, or tried to figure out what they were up to.

But Alice only had one thing on her mind - one person, to be exact. She never imagined that she could one day be a mistress to a millionaire, but that was before she met Hiram Lodge. He charmed her, and she liked it. Throughout the week, they met for brief amounts of time either at Pop's or when he would "happen to be stopping by the neighborhood" during his morning runs to sneak in a few kisses. He even joined Alice and Chic one night at Pop's to aid them in researching the missing Conway child, and the two were able to passionately kiss while Chic was in the bathroom. There was no sex though - it was too risky and their time together was too brief. But Alice didn't feel the guilt or the shame that she did with Hal. She enjoyed Hiram's company and he made her feel good, although she still hated having to sneak around with him.

They weren't able to see each other over the weekend - Hiram ended up having to work most of the time due to the upcoming SoDale gala, and Alice had made plans to spend time with FP researching in Riverdale High's library. But the two did periodically check in with each other via text, so that seemed to brighten her mood. FP would tease her about it once every so often during lull moments. She would snark at him but wind up laughing.

She appreciated that FP could keep a good secret and help them hide their affair. She was grateful for him, all in all. He had done so much to help her, physically and mentally. She owed him a big one, but how? What could she do to thank him for being the best friend she could ask for? She started to think about his family.....his children. She wanted to help him get back to his children, or at least find a way to allow FP some time to visit them in the future. By the time Tuesday night rolled around, Alice sat down at her laptop with her reading glasses on, and she began researching for family-oriented lawyers in the area that could help FP. Chic was out with Joaquin and the other teen Serpents as they looked into Southside High's records, so Alice had the house to herself. She adjusted her glasses as she read through reviews from clients. It was a mixed bag of positives and negatives. Skeezy and well-worth-the-money. There had to be someone out there.

A knock on the back door leading out to the backyard made Alice scream. She debated on whether or not to grab a kitchen knife. Was it FP? Was it the Black Hood? A text popped up on her phone and Alice glared at it.

From Hiram: Let me in? :(

Scowling with some form of a smile, she strided over to the back door and opened it to find Hiram leaning against the door frame.

"What's happening, gorgeous?" he smirked at her.

"You son of a bitch." she grinned at him and pulled him in through the doorway. Their lips crashed together and she clung onto him. She broke off the kiss to go shut the door.

"Did anyone see you?" she peered out to her backyard, making sure none of the neighbors were in sight.

"I made Andre drop me off at the end of the street so I could walk through the back." Taking one last look, she slammed the door shut and leaned against it, smirking at him. She gestured for him with her finger mouthing "Come here". His body pressed her further into the door as they kissed. She wrapped her arms around his neck and his hand held onto her hips. After a few moments, his lips found her neck.