Chapter 44

Lila's POV:

My heart was racing as I stared at Nikita's angry face. She seemed like she wanted to tear us apart.

"Calm down everyone. Nikita, shouldn't you be giving up now?" Natalie asked as she moved forward, me cowering behind her.

"Giving up? I'm sorry, but that's not in my dictionary. Guys get them!" She ordered. That's when we saw the hefty men she came along with. If we thought we could overpower her, we might just have to think again.

They came closer as Nikita yelled another order. "Make sure you get that flash drive from her!" she said, pointing at Natalie. We panicked as we ran around the room, avoiding the hefty men.

"Not on my watch…" Another voice called out, and we turned to the door to see another group of people walk in, with a slightly older lady in front, all armed up. Thankfully, it was the police. They shot them all with tranquilizers and as they fell to the floor, Natalie's eyes beamed in recognition.

"Ariana!" She called out in excitement, rushing to hug her. They hugged fondly before separating all smiles.

"Thought you could use a little help." She said as she tilted her head.

"Came right on time." Natalie replied, and they giggled. Turning to us and looking at the people on the floor who were groaning, slightly unconscious, the new lady spoke.

"You guys should probably go on ahead. I'll finish it up here."

"We will… Come on guys, we don't have all the time in the world," Natalie said, urging us along. The police had already begun cuffing the armed men and Nikita as we left the place.

"Should we trust her?" I asked after a while.

"Don't worry, with Ariana, Nikita is in safe hands." She replied sarcastically.

"Ariana, nice name," I thought to myself.

We hurried back to the stage where, of course, they were already looking for me to count the votes. I quickly mounted the stage while Natalie went to talk with the technicians so she could get the chance to play the video.

The video got played so the entire world could see. Armed with the truth, we were able to prove beyond doubt, I was the real daughter and the rest were just imposters. Boy, you should have seen the look on Ximena's and Alya's faces as they all realized they'd been caught. They even tried running off, but the security was quick to catch them.

The dance off finished up, and I went backstage to celebrate with the rest of family and friends. If it weren't for them, we wouldn't have solved this.

Finally! Case closed.

***

(Two months later)

It's the hearing of Nikita and her accomplices. Everyone is present in the court, including Chad. He finally got discharged a few days after the dance off. When he heard of what happened that day, he was really excited. It's a good thing to know all his hard work had paid off.

The judge charged her with a bunch of things, but eventually her sentence came.

"You, Mrs. Nikita Turner, have been found guilty of all charges and sentenced to life imprisonment with hard labor and no parole." The judge announced, and I watched as the horrified look on her face brought me immense Joy. It was as she deserved. Her accomplices were also charged as well. Ximena and Alya were given seven years each for being accomplices of such a heinous crime.

Even though Nikita knew there's no way she's coming out of jail, she still threatened us, saying she'll get back at us.

"I'd like to see you try." I boldly said as she fought with the police officers so she could lay her hands on me. Seriously, that woman is sick in the head.

It's nice to see that chapter of our lives is finally closing and we can move on now.

***

(A month later)

A lot had happened this past month. The Beamer girls disbanded, since they'd already lost two members, and I went solo to prepare for my tour, which would be in a few weeks' time. Zoey and one other girl emerged as the winners from the training, and now they were both trainees under Beamlights Entertainment. Chad and Zoey had gotten significantly closer, and there was a rumor that Chad would ask her to be his girlfriend after she debuted. If it was true, then I was happy for the both of them.

Beamlights Entertainment was doing everything they could to get back on track following what happened last time. There was a new manager of the company, who had been assigned by mom, and all corrupt personnel in the industry were wiped out. It was a fresh start for everyone.

Right now, I was sitting at my father's grave, holding flowers as I wiped the tears from my eyes. I'd finally learned where he was laid to rest, and I'd promised myself that I would come visit whenever I had the time, definitely before my tour.

"Hey Dad," I greeted, sniffing. Crouching so I could drop the flowers on the stone, I continued talking.

"How are you holding up? I bet you're smiling down from heaven saying that your daughter did a good job, eh? 'Cause I did." Taking in a deep breath, I continued, "Thank you so much, Dad. Thank you for everything. I may never see you again, but I promise you'll always be in my heart. Your baby girl is going on tour in a few days. Wish me luck." I stood up.

Gazing at the tombstone one last time, I turned around and walked out of the cemetery. Outside, Dean was waiting for me. The guards immediately surrounded us as we walked back to the car.

"So…" Dean began. "How was your visit?"

"Good," I replied. "Although it sucks that I won't be able to talk to him real life, I'm glad he got the justice he deserves," I said, looking up at him.

Dean stopped and stared at me.

"Where do you plan to go from here?" he asked seriously.

"Prepare for my tour, put on a really great show, and hopefully leave a mark in the entertainment Industry."

"That's all?" he asked, wearing a surprised look.

"I think that's all. Is there something else I'm missing?" I asked, smiling.

"I don't know…" he replied, rubbing his neck. "Well, you didn't mention me. Am I in your future plan? Or are we just a temporary thing?"

"I didn't forget you…but I want us to take it really slow. There's no point in rushing if it's meant to be," I said, and he brightened.

He walked closer until our noses were almost touching.

"Taking it really slow means I can kiss you, right?"

"Well…if you want to. I'm not going to stop you."

"Whatever, I was going to do it anyway," he grumbled as he pulled me closer, and our lips met in a kiss. I should probably warn Dean that we were outside and the paparazzi could show up any minute and take a picture of us, but I decided not to.

What was the worst that could happen anyway? All was finally alright with the world.

It was time for our new journey to begin.

***

THE END