A/N: Hi guys! This obviously isn't a new story, I've posted it on here before, but I was reposting it on AO3 and decided to rearrange some of the chapters and such, and to keep it consistent, I decided to repost it on here. :)

The pistol cracked against Jughead's cheekbone, spraying blood across his face, as well as the basement wall several feet away. The teen did his best to withhold any sort of facial expression as to not give the masked criminal what he was looking for: a reaction. At this point, so many different parts of his body were throbbing that his face simply blended in with the rest of the pain. And he thought his Serpent initiations had been bad; at his estimation, he was nursing at least three broken ribs, a broken wrist, and a potential concussion. Actually, post-pistol whipping, he was certain he had a concussion.

"Why don't you just kill me?" Jughead asked, spitting out blood and meeting the green eyes of his assailant. "Like you did all of the others. What makes me different?"

"You know why," the masked man snapped, staring down to where he had the young journalist tied to a plumbing pipe.

"I'm afraid I don't," Jughead challenged, glaring up at the Black Hood. He swallowed and the nauseating taste of iron ran down the back of his throat. "None of your other victims showed any sign of abuse or torture, only fatal or near-fatal wounds. Do tell, what has earned me this distinct privilege?"

"Betty Cooper has been ignoring me," the serial killer responded with a low growl. "Ever since she reconnected with you and the Lodge girl, she hasn't been reporting to me. She has been ignoring phone calls and breaking the rules I clearly set for her. I needed to get her attention, and what better way than through you, her star-crossed love?"

"Ah, lucky me," Jughead groaned as he shifted and a particularly painful throb radiated through his ribcage; it hurt terribly just to breathe. He could now feel blood running down his cheek and neck from his most recently acquired injury as well. "So glad I could be the middleman for the two of you. In case you hadn't heard, nobody likes being the third wheel."

The masked criminal swung forward and delivered a swift punch to Jughead's abdomen. "Be quiet, or else I'll kill you and use the Lodge girl as bait instead."

"Noted," Jughead wheezed. He closed his eyes, fighting back tears. There was no way in hell he could give this jackass the satisfaction of seeing him cry. The teen heard footsteps growing softer, as well as a door opening and closing, and knew that he had been left alone for the time being.

And to think only a few hours before, he had been the happiest he could remember.

Jughead collapsed on the mattress next to his girlfriend, both of them breathing heavily. He wiped the sweat from his brow and turned to smile at Betty, who was now lying on her stomach and watching him with an unreadable expression on her gorgeous face.

"What?" he asked, running a hand over her bare shoulder. "You're okay, right?"

"Yeah," she smiled, blushing slightly. "I'm okay. More than okay, actually."

"Good," Jughead replied. He had a hard time preventing himself from grinning too wide. "You're sure it didn't hurt too badly or anything? You're sure you're fine?"

"Yes," Betty laughed. "I promise you, I'm absolutely, one hundred percent more-than-fine. It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be." She paused before adding, "I'm really happy, Jug."

"Me too," Jughead murmured, leaning over and placing a kiss on his girlfriend's lips. If someone had asked him how his day would end, it definitely wouldn't have been this manner. He thought over the events that led up to this moment: the race between the Serpents and the Ghoulies, Betty's admission that she had been forced to break up with him at the Black Hood's bidding, and the arrest of Mr. Phillips. None of those events screamed 'hey, guess who is finally getting laid tonight?'. Hell, even his and Betty's hangout earlier had almost felt plutonic, with her reading on the couch while he wrote his exposition of the Sugarman's arrest.

"Do you think you can stay the night?" Jughead asked. He scooted closer to his girlfriend when he noticed chills running over her flawless, fair skin. He wrapped his arms around her and drew her in. This felt so perfect; he wasn't ready to let her go, even if he would see her the next day.

"Are you kidding?" Betty asked, snuggling back into his chest. "My mom almost skinned me alive when I accidentally slept over on your couch, fully clothed. If only she could see me now."

"Thank God she can't," Jughead snorted. "You could tell her you're spending the night at Veronica's," he added hopefully, burying his nose into the sweet scent of her hair.

"She would see right through it, Jug," Betty replied sadly. "Believe me, I wish I could. There is nowhere else I'd rather be than here with you. But I do need to get going. I'm pretty sure my curfew passed while we were…busy."

"I'll give you a ride home," Jughead said reluctantly. He gave Betty one more squeeze before straightening up and looking around for his boxers. Once he found them, he glanced up at the naked form of his girlfriend, also searching for her clothes, and he found himself wondering how on earth he had gotten so lucky to have her as his.

Once situated on the bike, Betty wrapped her arms around his waist. He navigated the deserted streets of Riverdale smoothly and dropped Betty off, kissing her at the door and telling her he loved her. Once she was safely inside, he turned around, hopped on his bike, and headed home.

During the drive, Jughead allowed his thoughts to wander to easier times, when Riverdale didn't have a killer on the loose and everything was more relaxed. Back then, Betty could have told Alice she was sleeping at Veronica's without a second thought and she could have stayed the night with him. Now, everyone in the town was paranoid, keeping their children at home within reach just in case. Except for him, of course. Per usual, he was fending for himself.

Jughead shook his head, not allowing his self-pity to ruin his fantastic mood. Hell, he had just exchanged virginities with the most amazing girl on the face of the planet. Smiling, he turned on the last road before reaching Sunnyside Trailer Park.

And that's when it happened.

Out of nowhere, a gray sedan ran a stop sign and plowed into the side of Jughead's bike. The teen went flying through the air and landed in a grassy ditch on the side of the road. He stuck his arm out in an attempt to catch his fall, and upon contact with the ground he felt a sickening crack and intense pain began radiating from his wrist.

"Fuck," Jughead groaned, clutching his right arm in his left hand. He cursed the negligent driver, whom he was sure had been on the phone or texting.

Suddenly, a strong pair of hands scooped Jughead up from under his shoulders and roughly pulled him out of the ditch. Jughead lashed out and fought back, but with one arm down and being dazed from his fall, his attempts at escaping were futile. He found himself being thrown into the backseat of the sedan and locked in.

The man who had abducted him got into the driver's seat of the car and turned around, and Jughead found himself unsurprised to see his assailant had a black mask covering his face.

"I was wondering when you and I were going to cross paths," Jughead said quietly, doing his best to downplay his paralyzing fear.

"You and me both," replied the Black Hood, putting the car into drive and speeding away from the scene of the crime.

And that was how he got here. Beaten, bruised, and bleeding, Jughead groaned as another throb radiated up from his arm and into his shoulder. He was certain his wrist was broken; it had been black and blue before they had arrived at their destination, and he had zero interest in seeing what it looked like now. The fact it was tied to a pipe and moved every time he shifted his weight only added insult to literal injury.

How long could he stay here before the Black Hood would kill him? How long would it take Betty to figure out where he was? By his estimation, it had to be the middle of the night. There would be at least another few hours until Betty woke up, never mind how much time it took her to realize he was missing.

"God Betty, please hurry," he whispered.

Betty woke up to a frantic tapping on her bedroom window. Smiling sleepily, she rolled over, expecting to see Jughead at the top of the ladder outside. Instead of her raven-haired, beanie-clad boyfriend, she found a distressed Archie Andrews peering in. Ignoring the fact she was wearing nothing but Jughead's gray "S" t-shirt and underwear, she jumped out of bed and ran to the window, throwing it open; something was amiss.

"What is it, Arch?" Betty asked, stepping aside and letting Archie climb in.

"Betty, it's Jughead," Archie rushed. Betty could see stress emanating from her best friend's brown eyes and her stomach lurched painfully. "They found his bike on the side of the road. It's completely totaled."

"What?" Betty asked, her mind going completely blank. Her heart was in her throat. "Where is Jug? Is he okay?"

"That's the thing," Archie said slowly. He ran a hand through his red hair, looking helpless. "They can't find him anywhere."

Betty allowed herself a moment to process this information before beginning to construct a plan of action.

"Okay," she said slowly, gathering her thoughts. "The area of the accident has been canvassed completely? They searched all around?"

"Yes," Archie replied. "Sheriff Keller stopped by my house to see if he was with us after they checked his trailer, he thought maybe after the wreck he walked here to get help, but we haven't seen him. I came up here to see if he was with you, but obviously not."

"He dropped me off last night," Betty whispered. "He must've wrecked on the way home. Oh, Arch, this is all my fault! I should have just stayed with him and dealt with my mom later."

"Don't be ridiculous, Betty," Archie said. "We've been telling him not to ride that bike for weeks now. We just need to start thinking about where he would go."

"Did you ask Sheriff Keller if they had checked the White Wyrm?"

"They did check there, no dice," Archie replied. "None of the Serpents had seen him either, they said he missed a meeting last night, so it sounds like you've seen him more recently than they have."

Betty blushed a deep crimson. She hadn't realized Jughead had missed a meeting with the Serpents when they had their evening together the night before.

"What is it, Betty?" Archie asked, studying his friend's strange facial expression. "Do you know where he might be?"

"Oh, no, I'm- uh- just thinking," Betty replied, blushing an even darker red. She wasn't quite ready to disclose the news of her lost virtue with her friends. Suddenly, a terrible thought occurred to her, halting her thoughts, and all of the color in her cheeks disappeared. "Archie, do you think the Black Hood could have anything to do with this?"

"Let's go talk to Sheriff Keller," Archie replied, refusing to answer the question he had already been suspecting himself.

Once Betty was dressed and ready, the blonde and the redhead made their way to the police department. She walked straight past the front desk to Sheriff Keller's office, where they found the detective sitting at his desk on his computer.

"Hey guys," the Sheriff greeted them, looking up from his work and leaning back in his chair. "I assume this isn't a social call."

"Sheriff Keller, I think the Black Hood has Jughead," Betty said by way of greeting, sitting down in front of the older man.

"Whoa now," the cop said, holding his hands up. "Slow down, I think you're jumping to conclusions here, Betty. My guys have been working this case all morning and we have no evidence that suggests that Jughead's disappearance has anything to do with the Black Hood."

"Sheriff, with all due respect, I don't feel as though your guys have put a ton of effort into finding Jughead or the Black Hood case," Archie began, but the Sheriff cut him off.

"Hold it, Andrews," Keller interrupted. "I know the two of you have no respect for me or my force, but I can guarantee you we have put all of the effort we can into both of these cases. Think about it, you two. This isn't the first time Jughead has disappeared. He tried to run off to Toledo right after we arrested his dad, and I can't tell you the number of times his parents have come in here looking for him when he was younger. The kid is flighty. He probably wrecked his bike, got upset about it, and took off."

"He wouldn't leave me," Betty said forcefully, glaring at the man sitting before her. However, at the same time, she couldn't stop herself from thinking over hers and Jughead's recent conversation at Pop's, where he told her he wanted the two of them to run away from Riverdale and never look back. The two of us, together, Betty reassured herself. Not just him.

"I don't know what to tell you, Ms. Cooper," Sheriff Keller said. He looked sympathetic. "If I hear anything at all, I'll get in touch with you right away. But he hasn't been missing forty-eight hours yet so I can't open a full investigation."

Betty stood up, completely demoralized. "Forty-eight hours could be the difference between Jughead living and dying, Sheriff Keller," she said quietly. She turned and left the office with Archie in tow.

"Okay, what's the next step?" Archie asked once they were outside.

"I don't know, Arch," Betty moaned. She put her face in her hands. "What if Sheriff Keller is right? What if Jug did run off? It wouldn't be totally out of character."

"Betty, don't be ridiculous," Archie said firmly. He placed both hands on Betty's shoulders and stared at her straight in the eye. "You said it yourself. Jughead wouldn't leave Riverdale without you. Not now. He's head over heels for you, Betty."

"I know," Betty replied, rubbing her face with her hands. All of the emotions from the past hour welled in her chest and tears began streaming down her face. "But I don't even know where to start looking for him, Archie. Not if he's not at the trailer, the Wyrm, or either of our homes. And if the Black Hood does have him, I haven't had any contact with him since I started ignoring his calls."

"Let's go get Veronica," Archie replied. "Three heads are better than two. We're going to get him back, Betty. There's no doubt in my mind."

Across town, the Black Hood delivered another swift kick to Jughead's side. The Serpent shouted out in pain, drawing away from his assailant and cowering best he could, considering he was still tied to the rusted pipe.

"I told you to control your smart mouth," the Black Hood growled menacingly.

Jughead didn't reply. He had no control over the tears that were streaming down his face; he didn't know how much more of this torture he could take. He coughed, attempting to regain his breath, and a sizable amount of blood dripped down his chin. The Serpent gagged at the distinct taste of iron that now coated his mouth, as well as the back of his throat.

"Just kill me," he whispered, staring at the concrete floor.

"Where's the fun in that?" the Black Hood asked menacingly. "Now that you're a little more humble, why don't we give your girlfriend a call? I think it's about time that I regained her attention." He shoved a dialing phone to the side of Jughead's face, reopening the cut from the pistol whip that had finally closed.

Betty's phone rang, "Unknown" showing across the screen.

"Archie, it's him," Betty gasped, clutching her cell. They were outside of the Pembrooke at this point, going to retrieve their friend.

"Answer it, Betty," the redhead encouraged.

Betty swiped across the screen, her heart racing like it never had before. She pressed the screen to turn the speakerphone on. "Hello?" she asked timidly.

"Hey Betts," came the voice of a very weak Jughead Jones.

"Jughead," Betty sobbed, covering her mouth. Archie wrapped a supportive arm around her hunched shoulders. "I knew he had you. Are you okay? Please tell me you're okay."

"I've been better," Jughead wheezed through the phone. The last kick to the ribs had done him in. "I don't know where I am, but you have to-"

"-I think that's enough talking with him," the Black Hood interrupted. "Do I have your attention back, Betty Cooper?"

"What do you want?" Betty asked, angry tears spilling down her face.

"You," the Black Hood responded simply. "I feel as though I have made that painfully clear. This recent defiance of yours is unacceptable. I will give you your boyfriend's location as long as you vow to return to my service. And I guarantee that if you continue to ignore me, this will happen again, but next time, I will not be kind enough to spare him."

"Got it," Betty said, tight-lipped. "I won't ignore you again. Please just tell me where he is. He needs to get to a hospital."

"Don't fail me, Betty Cooper," the Black Hood said ominously. "He's where I showed you your true identity. Come alone, or else there will be blood. Or, more blood, I suppose I should say. Your boyfriend has already spilled enough. You might want to hurry. He's starting to not look very good." With that, the phone line went dead.

Betty fell to her knees, ignoring the sting of the concrete, with her face in her hands. Archie quickly knelt down in front of her.

"Betty, look at me," Archie said, his hands on her shoulders once again. "You have to keep it together right now. Jughead needs you."

"You're right," Betty replied, taking a deep breath and regaining her composure somewhat. She tightened her ponytail and met her best friend's gaze. "This has to stop once and for all, Arch. We need a plan."

"A plan, what do you mean a plan?" Archie asked, his hands still on Betty's shoulders. "We go tell Sheriff Keller where Jughead is being kept so they rescue him."

"No. You heard him, Archie. If we involve the cops, he's going to kill Jug. We have to figure out a plan for me to get Jughead out of there and get rid of the Black Hood for good," Betty said determinedly. "I can't keep in contact with him anymore. It's going to be the end of me. Riverdale needs to be safe again, and the only way we are going to do that is get rid of him."

"I understand that, but first things first, Betty," Archie responded. "I'm all for coming up with a plan to get rid of the Black Hood, believe me. I've been there, remember? But he has Jughead, and Jug sounds really hurt. You said it yourself; we need to get him to a hospital. I'll help you come up with a plan, but not until after Jug is safe and sound. Deal?"

"You're right," Betty said softly, now realizing how reckless her thoughts had been. She wanted to cry. "Sorry, Arch. I can't believe I was that selfish."

"No, you weren't," Archie replied evenly. "This is a high-stress situation, neither of us are thinking clearly."

"And what, pray tell, are my boyfriend and best friend doing kneeling in front of my apartment building?" came a familiar voice from above Archie and Betty.

"Oh, V!" Betty said, jumping up and giving her best friend a hug. Tears pricked the backs of her eyes. "We have so much to tell you, but we have to hurry. The Black Hood has Jughead!"

"What?!" Veronica exclaimed, her dark eyes wide. "I need to know everything, and I needed to know ten minutes ago."

Once in the more private location of Veronica's bedroom, Betty and Archie filled Veronica in on Jughead's kidnapping. They explained the circumstances regarding the Black Hood's approved rescue plan and let the city girl absorb all the information they bestowed upon her.

"So, what are we waiting for?" Veronica asked, standing up from where she was sitting on her bed. "Let's go get Jughead."

"I have to go alone, Veronica," Betty said, swallowing nervously. She glanced at the outraged expression on her best friends' faces. "Seriously, guys. He said he would hurt Jug if I came with anyone else. And from what it sounded like on the phone," she paused, blinking back tears, "…from what it sounds like, Jug can't take much more."

"Keep your phone on you," Veronica said slowly, her eyes narrow. "We will be tracking your location the entire time."

"As long as you stay away from the abandoned house, I don't care what you do," Betty said. "Except call the cops- you can't involve the police in any way. That's been one of his rules all along and I'm not taking any chances. Not when Juggie's life is at stake."

"Stay safe, Betty," Veronica said, her usually tan complexion looking pale.

"Of course," Betty said, gathering her wits. She tightened her ponytail and looked at Archie. "I'll bring him back, Arch."

"I know you will, Betty," Archie replied. He pulled her into a hug, which Veronica quickly joined, and with that, she left the Pembrooke and began her trek across town to the abandoned house.

Jughead groaned as he struggled to take in a breath. His chest felt heavy, and it was making breathing increasingly difficult. He coughed and felt the now-normal sensation of blood coming up his throat. Though his knowledge base typically favored the realm of the arts, he was relatively certain at least one of his science classes had taught him that coughing up blood was not a good sign.

"Your girlfriend is late," the Black Hood muttered as he paced in front of the injured teen. "Much later and I think she will be too late to save you."

"I already gave you the option to kill me, buddy. No take backs," Jughead said, spitting blood onto the cement floor. He moaned as his restraints pulled against his wrist and another spasm of pain radiated up his limb.

Luckily for the sake of Jughead's remaining health, the killer seemed too preoccupied to respond to the comment. He continued his pacing back and forth across the basement, waiting on his guest to arrive.

Jughead's thoughts became progressively fuzzier and disorganized. The ground beneath him seemed to sway back and forth, making him both nauseous and dizzy. He kept experiencing random spells of being uncomfortably hot or uncomfortably cold, which caused a perpetual layer of cold sweat to cling to his skin. Whether this was being caused by too many hits to the head, or too much blood loss, Jughead was unsure. At this point, the only thing he knew for certain was that Betty could not get there soon enough.

Once the abandoned house came into Betty's line of sight, she couldn't help but break into a sprint. The cold spring air stung her lungs as she ran through the house's yard and through the front door. Like the last time she had stepped foot in the building, there were no signs of life. Walking through, she looked for clues regarding her boyfriend's or his keeper's whereabouts. She crossed into the back portion of the house, where she had not explored previously, and her eyes quickly focused on a heap of gray knit fabric on the floor. Gasping, she knelt before it and picked it up. It was Jughead's beanie, and much to her horror, it was soaked with blood.

"Oh God, Jug," Betty moaned, clutching the hat to her chest. "Please be okay."

Looking up from the hat, Betty noticed an open door with descending stairs. She swallowed, doing everything in her power to slow her racing heart, as she stood up and slowly approached the doorway. Dim light was emitting from the basement, and in that moment she was convinced she found where Jughead was being kept. She crept down the stairs and looked to the back of the poorly lit basement, where the crumpled form of Jughead Jones was restrained against an old rusted pipe.

"Juggie!" Betty gasped, leaping down the few remaining steps and sprinting across the vacant basement to her boyfriend. She engulfed him in a hug, but quickly withdrew when she saw him flinch away from the contact.

"Hey, Betts," Jughead said weakly. "You're a sight for sore eyes."

Betty did everything she could to prevent her expression from telling Jughead exactly how bad he looked. It was worse than she thought. His usually pale skin was completely void of color, and bright red blood was around his mouth and had dripped down his chin. His typically sharp blue eyes were unfocused and he appeared dazed. It was a sight directly out of a horror film, and it hit so much harder being someone Betty loved and cared about.

"Shh, don't talk," Betty whispered. "Don't use your energy. I'm going to get you out of here."

"I know," Jughead wheezed quietly. "I love you, Betty Cooper."

"I love you too," Betty replied, cupping her hand around Jughead's swollen cheek.

"Look who finally showed up," came a voice from behind the pair.

Betty whipped around as the Black Hood stepped out of the shadows of the basement. He was exactly as Archie had described, average in high and stature, but with piercing green eyes that showed clearly through his mask.

"I came as fast as I could," Betty said defensively. She was certain if her heart were beating any faster she would go into cardiac arrest. "I'm going to take Jughead with me, and I'll do whatever you need me to once I get him to the hospital."

"Not so fast," the Black Hood said, slowly approaching the blonde. "I think you and I need to have a bit of a chat first, to make sure that you never defy me again. In fact, I think you owe me a favor."

Chills ran through Betty's body. "That's not what you said on the phone," she challenged, her words sounding substantially braver than she felt. "I thought you were all about keeping promises."

"Plans change," the killer said smoothly. He continued to approach Betty like a jaguar after its prey. "And I'm presuming you want to get your boyfriend out of here as fast as you can. So, fighting what I have in mind will do nothing but delay his arrival to the hospital."

"What do you have in mind?" Betty asked slowly, backing up as the serial killer continued to narrow in on her. To her horror, her back hit the wall of the basement, and the Black Hood had her cornered.

"Oh, I have several options," the Black Hood said, reaching out and stroking the side of Betty's face. "I just need to decide on what exactly I want."

"Get away from her!" Jughead roared, pulling against his restraints as hard as he could. He ignored the intense pain radiating through the entirety of his body. "I'll kill you! If you touch her, I'll rip you to shreds."

"Mr. Jones," the Black Hood responded without turning around. "I think you should do yourself a service and relax. I did your girlfriend a favor by not killing you when I really wanted to. Now she owes me a favor, if she wants to get you out of here alive, that is."

Betty swallowed, tears sliding down her cheeks. Her body was trembling uncontrollably. This could not be happening; not now, not in front of Jughead. She drew in a shaky breath, doing her best to stall the situation at hand. "What do you want from me?" she whispered.

The Black Hood reached out to grab the front of her shirt, but before he could do so, a crow bar cracked against the side of his head, and he crumpled to the floor.

Betty stood, still pressed against the wall, stunned at what had just happened. A panting Archie Andrews stood behind the unconscious killer, his hands on his knees, and his brown eyes wide.

"Did he touch you?" the red head asked. He did his best to keep his tone neutral and calm, but he failed miserably.

"No, not really," Betty said, hunching over and hugging herself. She glanced up at her concerned best friend. "Thank goodness you got here when you did, Arch."

Suddenly, a groan from across the room snapped her back to attention. Stepping over the body of the Black Hood, she ran across to Jughead and began untying him, doing her best to avoid touching his clearly mangled arm. At this point, his lips had turned an unsettling blue color, and his body was shaking from head to toe.

"You're safe now, Juggie," Betty whispered as Jughead put his head forward on her shoulder and let out a muffled whimper.

"I think I may need to go to the doctor, Betts," Jughead slurred into her chest. And with that, he promptly lost consciousness.