Up in London Tipton's penthouse suite, the heiress and her friend Cody were both trying very hard to comfort a distraught pop singer.

"I can't believe this," Mikayla sobbed. "I'm only sixteen and my life is over!"

"It can't be that bad," London offered. But Mikayla's tears continued to flow freely.

"I know it looks bad now," Cody said. "But things will get better."

"You don't understand," the singer said. "I've lost everything. God...where am I going to live?"

"What about your family?" Cody asked, which caused even more tears.

"They're the reason I don't have anything!" Mikayla exclaimed. "I don't even have a family anymore!"

London and Cody looked at each other, equally shocked. Then, as gently as they could, they coaxed the singer to explain her situation.

The story she told made Cody's blood boil. Mikayla's parents had groomed her to be in show business for as long as she could remember. When her first record contract was signed and the money started to pour in, her parents both quit their jobs and let Mikayla's income support them. They never treated her like a daughter. To them, she was just a meal ticket.

"But there are laws to protect underage performers," Cody said. "Most of the money you earned should have gone into a trust fund for you."

Mikayla laughed bitterly. "My parents hired lawyers to exploit every loophole they could. Technically they didn't do anything illegal, but they did manage to control where my money was invested. They put it in funds that allowed them to take cash out for emergency use. You'd be surprised how many 'emergencies' they managed to have."

"That's horrible," London said.

"I complained to my manager...my ex-manager, Margo, about it," Mikayla went on. "And she and my parents got into a big argument. I took Margo's side. The next thing I know, I'm suing my parents. Then they sued me back. Eventually, Margo advised me to be legally emancipated from my parents."

London didn't understand what Mikayla was talking about, but Cody was shocked.

"Legally emancipated? You're kidding!"

Mikayla nodded sadly while London turned to Cody.

"What does that mean?" the heiress asked.

"It's a rarely used legal procedure," he explained. "It's like a divorce, except instead of a husband and wife splitting, it's a child splitting from his or her parents. Legally, Mikayla is now an adult and her parents have no authority over her."

The singer wiped some of the tears from her eyes. "The court settlement got me away from my parents. As part of the settlement, they got to keep all they'd already brought with my money, and the old accounts they'd already emptied. I'd have complete control over all that I earned from that point on. I didn't ask for anything else in exchange for them not talking to the press. We managed to get all the lawsuits resolved and not one word about it ever made the news. Margo helped me find a nice apartment and I thought everything would be alright after that."

"But it wasn't," London observed.

"Just as the lawsuits were wrapped up, my career started to slump," Mikayla explained. "My label dropped me. Then the movie that was supposed to jumpstart my career was shelved. The only money I was making was from performing at clubs, and that was barely enough to cover my rent. Margo tried to put together a concert tour for me, but we couldn't get enough sponsors."

Wanting to help, London spoke up. "I could ask Daddy to sponsor your concerts."

"Thanks for offering," Mikayla said. "But even if I were prepared, no concert of mine would make any money. I haven't had a hit since If Cupid Had A Heart. I'm a washed-up one hit wonder."

Cody tried to think of something to say as Mikayla began to cry again. He was sympathetic to her career worries, but he was far more concerned about the fact that she was all alone with no family to turn to.

"I don't know what I'm going to do," Mikayla sobbed.

"I do," Cody spoke up. "At least I know what you're going to do tonight."

The singer looked at him questioningly.

"You're going to have dinner with my family," he said. "I bet you haven't had a home-cooked meal in a long time."

To be continued...