Rising From Betrayal Reborn As The Family Outcast (Alicia Delaney) novel Chapter 13

Chapter 13

Bianca looked puzzled, a suspicion flickering in her mind, though she quickly brushed it off as impossible.

Felicity, standing behind, got pissed off just seeing Alicia act like that.

She glared at Alicia, demanding, “What do you mean by ‘giving us what we’ve been wishing for? Say it straight.”

Alicia shot her a look. “I’m quitting the group. I’m not playing along with you guys anymore.”

Since she’d already ended her contract, of course she’d quit LUMIA too.

Felicity’s eyes went wide in disbelief. “Are you serious? You’d really quit?”

Alicia just rolled her eyes. “Why would I even miss it? You guys give LUMIA way too much credit. I really don’t care for it at all.”

Felicity’s face darkened. “You’re just putting on a brave face.”

She sneered, “Without LUMIA, you won’t even get dragged all over the internet. The company’s just going to blacklist you and make you disappear.”

Alicia raised her eyebrows. “You’re overthinking it. Starlight isn’t even in a position to blacklist me.”

Alicia didn’t bother with any more words. She just turned around, grabbed her box, and walked out.

After dropping those bold words and strutting off, Alicia left Felicity absolutely fuming.

To the other four members, LUMIA had been dragged down by Alicia.

Now, Alicia was acting like she was above them all, and it was just infuriating.

‘Who does this useless loser think she is?‘ Felicity fumed inwardly.

She turned to Nicolas, unable to hold back. “Nicolas, Alicia’s so full of herself. Shouldn’t someone put her in her place?”

Felicity thought, ‘Nicolas has already been embarrassed by Alicia earlier, and as Starlight’s heir, he’s known for his bad temper. No way he’ll let Alicia walk all over him like that.

Nicolas’s face, already dark, grew even colder at her words.

He shot Felicity a blank look. “Who the hell do you think you are? You think you can put her in her place? Her business isn’t for you to butt into.”

He let out a cold laugh. “Let’s see how far your group goes without Alicia. Don’t come running back when you realize what you’ve lost.”

He’d already looked into things last night. The other four in LUMIA had only gotten anywhere by stepping on Alicia.

Without Alicia as a clout attracter and Haley backing them up all the time, they were nobody.

With that, he turned and walked out.

Nicolas’s words made Felicity feel pretty humiliated.

But she didn’t dare talk back, let alone risk getting on his bad side.

She was already kicking herself for speaking up so rashly.

After he left, Felicity turned to Bianca, worry in her voice. “Did we just get on Nicolas’s bad side?”

Bianca thought to herself, “This has nothing to do with me. I didn’t say a word.

‘But judging by Nicolas’s attitude, whatever was going on between him and Alicia definitely wasn’t like the rumors online.

‘Could they really be childhood sweethearts or something?

‘If that was the case, I’d have to change how I treat Alicia in private.‘

Bianca put on a worried face. “I don’t know. He looked pretty pissed off to me. Why don’t you ask Haley about it?”

That way, she could also find out if Alicia really did quit the group.

Felicity nodded. “Yeah, I’ll ask Haley right now.”

She pulled out her phone and called Haley.

Haley didn’t pick up, which had both of them guessing that something might be wrong.

But it didn’t take long for them to get their answer.

After Alicia left Starlight Entertainment, Thomas went with her to Lucent Media to sign her contract.

After signing the contract, Jason looked at Alicia and asked, “So, are you planning to go on a reality show first, or jump straight into dramas?”

Alicia didn’t answer right away. Instead, she shot back, “What’s your take?”

Jason replied, “I think you should start with a reality show to fix your reputation, then take on some drama roles.”

He’d never managed any artists before, but he single–handedly built Lucent Media into what it was today, so he got a pretty good handle on how things worked in showbiz.

Alicia was already public enemy number one online. There was nothing left for people to criticize her for, so it was not like her reputation could tank any further.

He handed Alicia a folder. “Here’s the rundown on the show’s concept and how it works.”

Alicia was his one and only artist, so he let her make all the calls. Whatever she wanted, she got.

Alicia chuckled. “Thanks.”

She said with a grin, “Then let’s really shake things up.

“Since I’m already the internet’s favorite punching bag, why not have another scandal–ridden celeb bring me onto the show?”

She pulled out her phone, opened up X, and searched for a name.

Then she handed the phone to Jason. “He’s had it rough too. Just like me, his company sucked him dry and then threw him under the bus. His reputation’s in the gutter.

“But he used to be pretty popular. He’s still a second–tier actor, and honestly, he’s still pretty controversial online.”

She added, “He’s a solid actor and a genuinely good guy. If Lucent Media moves fast while he’s still feuding with his old agency, you could totally poach him.

“And if we leak that both of us are joining the show, trust me, other stars will be scrambling to get in on it.”

In her last life, the movie that almost landed her the Best Actress award? That guy was the leading man.

After working with him, Alicia realized all the online hate was just a bunch of lies. None of it was real.

He was just another scapegoat, used by his company as a stepping stone for their rookie idols.

That film was his shot at bouncing back, after ditching his old agency for good.

Since they’d both been through the same mess, they ended up pretty tight.

But Nicole pulled some strings and deliberately tanked the movie, making sure it missed its best release window and lost out on all the big awards.

He got caught up in her mess, and in the end, he never managed to bounce back.

But he never blamed her. He was actually the one comforting her, telling her not to beat herself up about it.

Alicia always felt bad about it and wanted to make it up to him by backing a movie and giving him the lead role.

But before the project could even get off the ground, she died.

This time, she could pull him out of that mess before it was too late. She’d help him escape his crappy agency and make sure he wouldn’t waste any more of his prime years.

Besides, teaming up with another high–profile celeb who’d been dragged through the mud online would be a wild twist that would have everyone glued to their screens just to see what would happen.