"We're all on the edge of madness; deep down, darkness is within all of us and we're on guard constantly trying to avoid losing control."
In which Mickey Lodge has a few skeletons in her closet.
{COMPLETED WITH ALL SEASONS + epilogue}
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"I didn't come here for this!"
"You came for my say and I'm saying no."
"Well, I'm overriding that decision."
✿
"Mijas? Can I see you for a moment?"
Veronica stops blowing her fresh brew of coffee and places the mug on a coaster. "He has been back all of five minutes and I haven't stopped sweating," she says quietly.
"Just stick to what we agreed on and things should go smoothly." Mickey stands up to lead the way to their father's office. Even though she didn't admit it out loud, her palms are so sweaty that she has to wipe them on her skirt.
"I've been getting caught up on things," Hiram says when they walk in. "Hopefully, one of you can answer a question that's been nagging me. In the short time I was laid up, some very valuable equipment and stock went missing from my prison."
Veronica's taut look vanishes as she recites the lie they are feeding to him. "Didn't Mom say that she had to have it destroyed because of the Feds?"
"Yeah, she did." He sits down at his desk. "Tall Boy, an ex-Serpent, tried to kill me. FP, an ex-Serpent, is now sheriff. Gladys, a Toledo Serpent, is back in town after years away, and suddenly, I'm out some very valuable assets. If I didn't know better, I'd say the Joneses pulled a fast one on me." He's trying to squeeze information out of them, something that he thinks they know, but it isn't that easy.
"They strike me as opportunists, not master schemers," Veronica insults.
Mickey bites her tongue to keep herself from defending Jughead. It would be too suspicious.
"At a minimum, they would certainly need the help of someone close to me to pull anything like this off." He shrugs, "Oh, well. The truth will shake out. It always does."
✿
Mickey closes her school locker, dreading the class to come. The first thing her eyes fixate on are Betty and Jughead at the end of the hallway in deep discussion.
"You must be sick of that," Cheryl says in her sanguine tone.
Mickey rolls her eyes at Cheryl's attempt to get under her skin. "What do you want, Cheryl?"
"I want to recruit you for the Pretty Poisons. I'm sure you've noticed some of the Serpettes disappearing..."
"I have."
"Well, Toni and I have just gained another eight. We'd love to have you join. I know it'd be better than watching Jughead and Betty chumming it up."
Mickey raises an eyebrow, "Why are you doing this?"
"Because your boyfriend exiled us."
"Well, I don't want to be in the middle and trying to trigger jealousy? Wrong technique to recruit this Serpette."
