Adoration || Sweet Pea [2] [DISCONTINUED]

||TWENTY-SIX - THE RED DAHLIA||

Jayda's POV

Sweet Pea and Fangs called us back to the bunker, so here we were, standing in front of them, waiting for answers.

"Sweet Pea, Fangs. Why did you bring us down here? You know we're on a case; we can't be bothered at the moment." Jughead says.

"Did something happen?" I ask, clearly more concerned than Jughead was.

"I heard the Gargoyle Gang is riled up. They're looking for Tall Boy. And as long as his body's down here, it's a ticking time bomb." Fangs points out.

"Yeah, well, it's too hot to move him right now." Jughead responds, frustrated. Sweet Pea lets out a sigh in frustration. 

"Hey. Let's not lose our heads. Okay?" I say to them. "Fangs, I need you to stay here with Tall Boy, just a little bit longer. It'll all be over soon, I promise. But, in the meantime, make sure this place is completely locked up, so we have no unexpected visitors."

Fangs nods, and I turn to my boyfriend.

"Pea, I need you to follow someone for me." I tell him.

"Anything to get me out of this disgusting bunker." He responds. I smile at him, and kiss him before I leave with Jughead.

-----

"Who's this blonde bombshell the two of you are tracking?" Betty asks us, as the three of us walk down the hallways of the Five Seasons.

"Hiram's side chick." I answer. "He broke things off with her, so she may want revenge."

"Concierge tipped me off about the floor, but I wish they'd given me a room number." Jughead complains.

"Well, maybe there was no room number to give." Betty points out, and diverts our attention to the door near us. There was no number, just a maple leaf where the number was meant to be.

Jughead stepped forward and knocked on the door. No answer.

"Thanks for coming with me, by the way." He says to Betty.

"My pleasure. My investigation is on hold until I hear back from Dr. Curdle Junior." Betty responds. "Turns out, there was no autopsy on Claudius. Penelope had him cremated before he could perform one. But I'm hoping there's something in Clifford Blossom's autopsy report."

"No one's home. Let's move on." Betty says, glancing at the door.

"Nah, I'm getting this door open." I tell her, stepping forward. I pull out the lock-picking kit that I always carry in my pocket for some reason.

"You just have that with you?" Jughead asks me, confused.

"Yes, because I always lock myself out, and don't want to wait on the steps of the trailer for you or Dad to come home." I reply. I move the doorknob, only for the door to open. "What the hell?"

"What kind of hotel room is unlocked?" Betty asks, as we walk into the room. The hotel room was entirely in red and black, and there was French music playing through some speakers.

It looked oddly like a prostitute house, then I saw a girl wearing just a corset and choker, which a whip in hand, I knew that it was.

"And now apparently there's a not-so-secret sex club in Riverdale." Betty says. We heard a whipping noise, and I moved the curtain to see a woman whipping a man, while holding grapes in his mouth.

Jughead walked over to her, as Betty and I looked around the hotel room.

"Excuse me." Jughead says to the woman, making the man run away. Betty and I walked up to the two. "What is this place?"

"I think it's kinda obvious, Jug." I mutter under my breath.

"It's The Maple Club." The woman responds. "A safe place, as long as you know the safe word." 

Jughead held up a picture of Hiram and his mistress, showing the unknown woman.

"Have you seen this woman?" Jughead asks her. "She ever come in here?"

"You just scared off one of my clients." She replies. I roll my eyes at her, and Jughead hands her some money. "She doesn't work here, but I see her around. Try Room 311."

"Laura, why did Mr. Arklight leave in such a rush?" A voice asks, coming around the corner. Penelope Blossom. She stops when he sees the three of us.

"What are you three doing here?" She asks us, angrily. "You know this is a private club, get out."

"You mean a brothel?" Betty questions.

"By the way, does the new sheriff know there's a red light district in Riverdale?" I ask Penelope, folding my arms over my chest.

-----

After we questioned Penelope a bit, we left, and soon after, Betty got a phone call from Dr. Curdle Junior. So, she left, leaving me and Jughead to our mission.

We were now in Room 311, going through some files on a desk. What we were doing was very illegal, breaking into someone's hotel room. But, now that our dad was the sheriff...

Jughead looked through some of the files, whereas my eyes were locked on a Glamourge egg that was on her desk. It looked an awful lot like the one I got off of Toni and Cheryl.

I picked it up, and held it up to the light to get a better look.

"What are you doing in my room?" A voice asks us. We slowly turn to face them, and see that it's Hiram's mistress from the photos. Oh, and she's pointing a gun at us.

"That's a good question. Here's another one. Why's a water inspector carrying a gun?" Jughead asks her. We hear the gun cock.

"We only wanna talk, Ms. Mulwray." I tell her.

"Who the hell are you two? And how do you know my name?" She asks.

"This is a Glamourge egg, right?" I question her. "If you shoot me I'll drop it." She lowers her gun down to the side.

"You know, I've seen one of these before. Hiram Lodge likes to give them away as gifts." I say, twisting around the egg, getting a better look. "Or maybe, in your case, payment."

"And it costs more than you two will make in a lifetime put together. So put it down, before you break it." She threatens.

"Based on the things we've found in your room, here's what I know about you." I start, and then I throw the egg into my other hand. "You're a Health and Sanitation inspector. It must pay quite a bit, for you to afford a place at the Five Seasons. Unless Hiram put you up."

"But I'm no kept woman." She responds. "I do a job, and I get paid for it."

"Report says you were sent to investigate Riverdale's water supply. Specifically, Sweetwater River and Reservoir." Jughead continues for me, as I continue to toss the ball into each hand. "Why?"

"Young women in town were having seizures." Ms. Mulwray answers. "I was sent in to help."

"Brought in by Hiram Lodge, I can only assume." I say. I continue to throw the egg, which keeps the woman nervous that I'm going to drop it.

"He also make you write that letter to Governor Dooley, advising him to support a town-wide quarantine?" Jughead questions her. "You see, I'm confused, because the letter says the water is dirty, but the report says the water is clean." 

"So, you're either lying to the Governor, or you faked that report. Or both." I finish for him.

"You know what? Break the egg if you want. I don't care. Just get out of my hotel room, before I call hotel security." She threatens us.

"Come on, Jug." I say, throwing the egg up into the air, walking forward. Ms. Mulwray gasps, and steps forward to grab the egg.

I laugh in amusement, and Jughead and I step out of the hotel room.