“What should I do?” Rozena asked Emma.

It was early the next morning, the day that Rising Star would finally announce the winner of the competition. Rozena and Emma were up and dressed, and about to go down to breakfast, and Rozena had told Emma about the meeting with the SCRAM kids.

“What do you want to do?” said Emma. She was impatient to get going, but Rozena hung back. “I don’t know. I just don’t know.”

“All you should be worrying about today, is that competition,” said Emma, opening the door. “Aren’t you thinking about that at all?”

“Of course I am,” said Rozena, as she followed Emma out the door of their hotel room. “I’m so nervous, I don’t know if I can eat breakfast at all. But this other thing …”

Down in the hotel cafeteria, Natasha came to greet them. She looked happy and excited.

“Oh,” she said, smiling. “I can’t wait for them to say who the winner will be, and at the same time I’m so scared! I wish they’d just do it and get it over with.”

She followed Emma and Rozena to get some food from the buffet, and took a seat next to them at the table, where they were chatting happily about the day to come.

“You missed it last night, Rozena,” Natasha said, buttering a slice of bread. “Melinda Gosling explained how it will work. We’re going to the auditorium again today, and they’ll film the judges’ announcement about who the winner is. For the TV show, you know. Oh, I’m so nervous!”

Rozena took a swallow of juice. She’d eaten hardly any food, feeling too tense and worried to be hungry.

“Natasha,” she said. “I have something I need to talk to you about. Could we … could we go to your room, after breakfast?”

Natasha looked at her. “Sure.” She frowned, looking concerned. “Is everything okay? I thought you looked a bit off this morning, but I thought it was just worry about the competition.”

“It’s not that,” said Rozena. “It’s just … I’ll tell you later, okay?”

When breakfast was over, Rozena caught Emma’s eye. “I think it’s best if I talk to her by myself, okay,” she whispered, and Emma nodded reluctantly.

“Yeah, sure. Just don’t be late for the bus. Remember we’re going to the auditorium again. You don’t want to miss the judges’ announcement, do you?”

Natasha led Rozena up to her room, and closed the door behind her. “So, what’s all this about?” she said.

Rozena sat on one of the beds in the room and took out her bag. She pulled out a file full of papers and pictures. She’d persuaded Zazi to give it to her last night – it was all the evidence that the SCRAM kids had gathered so far. She spread the papers on the bed, under Natasha’s curious gaze.

“What’s this?” Natasha said. “Oh, that’s uncle Bernard,” she pointed at a picture of a man holding a briefcase, walking down the street. “And that’s a friend of my fathers. Andy. Why …” She looked questioningly at Rozena. “Why do you have all these pictures? And why are you showing them to me?”

***

Tell us: How do you think Rozena feels at this moment? How will Natasha react when she hears about her father?