Under Fire and Undercover

One Day at a Time

Archie Andrews was on trial for the murder of Cassidy Bullock, and no matter how many people showed up in that court room to support him, only one mattered. Hiram Lodge. And he wasn't there for altruistic reasons, he wanted Archie Andrews dead. Prison would suffice for now though.

Alice Cooper and FP Jones sat in the second row of the courtroom, behind their children, rooting for the young red head. Between their children's relationship with Archie and theirs to Fred and Mary, they wanted nothing more than to see Archie found not guilty. The closing arguments of the trial were polar opposites, and Mary delivered hers fiercely. As a mother, Alice's heart ached for her. As much as she wanted to reach for FP's hand in that moment, she knew there were too many people around. Betty and Jughead were just feet away. She settled for inching her knee closer to his until they just barely touched. He glanced her way knowingly as she made the connection. After all these years, he could still read her like a book. When the judge called for a recess, he pulled her into the staircase.

"This is all so crazy. I can't believe Hiram has the power to take things this far." FP said, placing his hand on Alice's shoulder.

After putting Jughead in charge of the Serpents, FP showed up at Alice's door with a bottle of tequila for her and takeout from Pop's for himself. He ordered extra on the off chance that she could be coerced into eating. Of course, she could not, and he gorged himself to resist the urge to down the bottle of liquor sitting on her coffee table. He didn't ask her about Hal, and they didn't dare speak of Charles. He just sat with her head in his lap while she drank herself to oblivion and he rambled on about the Serpents and Hiram. When she finally fell asleep, a luxury she hadn't taken part in since Hal's confession, he carried her up to the guest bedroom, the only evidence of his presence being the two painkillers and glass of water sitting on the bedside table.

She showed up to the trailer three days later, her first outing since going to see Hal in prison, and this time, FP's lips had more important things to do than talk.

This became a habit. One of them turning up at the other's house when they knew the kids were out, which was often. These visits began as lustful trysts, just sex (not that it was ever just sex between the two of them). Eventually they found themselves spending an increasing amount of time together. Sometimes just keeping each other company, foregoing sex to curl up on the couch and watch a movie on especially long days.

"Where does he get off thinking he's the of Robert De Niro godfather of Riverdale? I mean, we're talking about Archie's life here." Alice took hold of FP's other hand and drew him closer to her, snaking her arm around his back. The temperature in Riverdale was reaching a record high this summer, and she could feel the dampness on the back of FP's shirt. He pulled her close, keeping a lookout for prying eyes.

"He's the town mobster, always has been. Couldn't stay on the straight and narrow in high school either. Not that any of us really could." They both chuckled, thinking back to the days when they walked the halls of Riverdale High.

They heard the doorknob to the stairway turn, instantly putting a foot of space between them.

"They're calling everyone back to the courtroom." Jughead said, holding the door open for the adults. Alice gave FP a glance that said they needed to be more careful in public. They were just a foot away from being caught by none other than FP's son.

***

Archie Andrews accepted a bogus plea deal and made his way to the juvenile detention center, but Alice Cooper and FP Jones had more pressing matters to tend to. Dilton Doiley had committed suicide in a scene all too familiar to the couple. Ben was in the hospital, having failed his attempt at ascension.