Beca ensures a fair trial; Aubrey and Chloe take charge to bring justice to the tenants
Beca's scary when she's serious, but you know what? I think it's justified.
The final showdown for the tower! Which will it be? Will it remain Barden Tower? Or will it become Babel Tower Residences?
I don't own pitch perfect.
Lilly adjusted her chauffer's hat accordingly to cover her face as she watched Judge John Smith leave the highly exclusive restaurant he had dinner at alongside Pieter Kramer from DSM. The two were all chummy as they awaited for their cars to pick them up, other guests still ahead of their cue.
Once the car in front of her left, Lilly pulled up to where the two were standing driving Judge Smith's car. His actually driver was currently hanging out in a tree somewhere completely knocked cold.
Not to worry though, Lilly made sure he was nicely snug and tied up on a sturdy branch.
Pieter opened the door on the back passenger seat. "You take care now!" she heard Pieter say as he said his goodbyes with the judge, the two clearly drunk and still laughing about whatever they were talking about. Once the door was shut. Lilly drove off. The judge didn't even realize his driver was no longer the same man was before.
Time to go for a ride.
The judge had dozed off, creating no problems for Lilly as they took a detour from his route home and onto the docks where Beca, in a pristine white suit and black button down, hair neatly tied up, was waiting for them in front of her SUV.
Lilly wasted no time in getting out and grabbing her katana from the trunk. She then opened the passenger's side of the door and started gently poking John Smith on his belly with the sheathed bladed weapon to wake up.
Judge Smith woke up with the jumped, startled by her presence, before finding Beca smiling at him from where she stood. "What's the meaning of this?" he demanded. Lilly slightly pulled out the blade of her katana to make a show that it's real before the judge complied getting out.
He walked on ahead to meet Beca, with Lilly right behind him, hands ready on her blade. He started to give out a speech of indignation at her boss, complaining about their behavior and how they would get in trouble with kidnapping a judge. "Do you even know who I am?" he went on to say. "Who do you think you –"
But Beca didn't let him finish. Lilly watch as her boss pulled out her gun, complete with a silencer, and pressed down the nozzle on John Smith's own tongue. The length of the silencer partly in his mouth.
"I know who you are," Beca calmly answered. "I don't care who you think you are and what that means. I'm sure you remember who I am too, nod if you do."
Judge Smith did as he was told, even raising his hands in surrender.
"Good," Beca then said and smiled. "I hear we're about to be reacquainted again in an upcoming trial, so let me tell you a story."
John Smith nodded once more, the gun pointed at him still pointed in his mouth. His eyes focused on the finger Beca kept on the trigger. Of course, he doesn't know Beca didn't load any bullets. She needs him alive for the trial after all, that and then some.
"When I was growing up, my adoptive father told me a story, about a corrupt judge in ancient times. The king who found out his treachery and deviousness saw fit to punish him and had him killed," Beca then started to say. "He appointed a replacement, the old judge's son, and the king had gifted him a seat for his court, one made from the skin and carcass of his late father, so that he may never forget what happens to corrupt officials like him. Do you see where I'm getting at?"
Beca took out the gun from his mouth and John nodded his head vigorously. "You can expect a proper and fair trial. Promise, cross my heart, hope to not die, please don't kill me," he rambled on whimpering.
"Good, or else wasps would be the least of your problems," Beca then said cooly, reminding him of what happened the last time he tried to work with Babel.
"Am-am I free to go?" he asked while Beca was still pointing her gun at him. Lilly kept her hand on her blade as well, in case the honorable judge gets any funny ideas.
But John seemed to be mostly just scared.
"One more thing," Beca said. "Chicago Walters, I want him out of prison once the trial is over,"
"But… I'm confused… Isn't jail where you want him to be?" the good judge asked. "Besides, he admitted to the charges."
"Get him out, I don't care how. You'll hear from me when the time is right," was all that her boss gave out as a reply.
Judge John Smith did not need to know what she had in store for Chicago after all.
The judge nodded once again. "Understood," he verbally agreed and Beca smiled. She put her gun away, looked at Lilly, and nodded over to her car.
It was time to go, leaving behind the hapless judge who better keep his word.
Or else.
It was a good day for justice.
Or at least, that's what Aubrey firmly believed.
The day of the trial had finally arrived. She and Chloe were sat on their side of the court, all documents, and evidences neatly prepared.
Behind them in two rows were the Barden Bellas, game faces on, all prepared to deliver their own testimonies when called up to the stand. Especially the Trebles who are all but eager to spill the details of their earlier involvement to the illegal acquisition of the tower. Luke was also there to corroborate their testimonies of his accident, abduction, and blackmail. The only one missing was Beca, who had asked them to go ahead when they arrived, something having caught her eyes.
On the other side of the court room was team Babel/DSM led by their fearless leader, the Kommissar. Pieter was seated in one the front row of the pews on their side, despite now being a chief prosecutor. They have their own impressive stacks of paper. Aubrey was almost amused. Boy, they have no idea how useless all those would be.
Chloe bumped her shoulders with Aubrey to catch her attention, a light smile on her face as she handed her phone over to show the latest piece of breaking news. Senator Rapko's corrupt dealings all leaked online, and the kingmaker's credibility was now in shambles thanks to a certain hacker setting up scheduled posts and emails to news outlets and social media sites all together, and criminal mastermind with an incredibly powerful file, teaming up together to get back at Rufus Tseng's attack at the tower.
Aubrey let out a chuckle. Today was their day, she was sure of it.
Beca soon entered the court room and took her seat next to Amy. A few minutes later Theo arrived, with all of DSM's lackey's standing up to greet him and offering them their seat on their side. Theo asked them to sit down and sat next to Beca, earning confused stares from Pieter and the Kommissar just as Theo complimented Beca's blue and white suite ensemble. Beca, in turn, fixed his tie for him.
The judge arrived shortly, with everyone standing up to greet him. All except the tower residents. One by one they leaned back, crossed their legs, and remained seated, starting from the last row they occupied, and up to Beca. Aubrey and Chloe remained seated as well, even Theo, who nearly got up, sat back down immediately.
The judge simply took this in stride and gave Beca a light smile before ordering the court to settle down. The Kommissar and Pieter exchanged looks but nevertheless shrugged things off. Probably excusing Theo's behavior for their perception of him as the dumb brother, and the judge being nervous due to the shenanigans that occurred the last time they were at court.
But this was serious business.
Chloe smiled next to her, eyes filled with determination as their side was asked to make their opening remarks. Aubrey couldn't help but be feel the same.
The time for fun and games was over sure, but Aubrey also knew with certainty that this was going to be a fun trial.
Luisa was on guard. They've learned from their mistakes before, she was prepared and ready this time to handle any and all craziness that may come from her enemies this time. She knows now just how well unpredictable Beca Bella can be.
And yet, despite her confidence, despite this time not underestimating her opponents and being prepared, she was still being trapped into a corner. From the start, no move was wasted in this game of chess, and it frustrated her, especially as she watched Chloe Beale take the lead into a seemingly effortless checkmate on court.
One by one, their pieces fell, and slowly but surely Luisa's confidence crumbled. Not that she would ever admit to it.
It started innocently enough with Theo acting like a buffoon seating next to Beca Bella and the judge surprisingly being calm about the disrespect the residents showed him. She figured that Judge Smith was just biding his time before using his seat to bring their opponents down and help out Babel.
But no, that was not the case.
Chloe called on their first witness, already using their ace. The Kommissar thought this would be their fatal mistake, already calling Beca this early. Beca stood up and delivered her testimony well. She was interested in buying the tower, and Luke was her friend. She was also interested in helping the former residents settle in a new one if needed. But now she wants to fight for it for them, seeing its charm, and the warmth of the people living there, and whose livelihoods were tied to the tower. The judge looked incredibly moved, but that didn't worry Luisa much.
What did was the video evidence Beca provided them that she objected to but the judge had allowed to admit to the court. The video of the event and a video recording of a party Chicago hosted in his home, bribing the same officials with the golden toads. Luisa wasted no time in trying to come up with a way out of that but she was quite distracted and unnerved to see that her face, Pieter's, Chicago's, and Theo's were all blurred.
"Why aren't they implicating us?" Pieter asked in a whisper, leaning over the railings that separated the pews from where Luisa's team sat.
"It's a message," she then said, her throat feeling rather dry as she remembered Beca's haunting words from the night her father died. "We're as good as dead so why bother sending us to prison for our crimes."
Pieter swallowed down a whimper as best he could, completely shaken. Luisa did her best to retain her cool, but the events that followed did not allow for it.
The Kommissar felt like cross-examining Beca would do them more harm than good, so she passed up on the chance.
When the time came for witness accounts from their former allies, the ones indicated in the video, they all turned on Babel. One by one, from the state senators to the chief of police, had all stated that they only attended those events to gather evidence and act as moles, investigate babel themselves. That this was the chief of police's own idea, and that they had no intention of actually collaborating with Babel and their corrupt practices.
Aubrey handled the cross-examination perfectly after that.
Luisa was speechless.
The Trebles accounts and Luke's own testimony were additional nails to their coffins. The judge's amicable behavior towards their opposition did not help them either.
Still, though, no evidence surfaced to directly implicate Chicago, Theo, Pieter, or Luisa herself. The lack of such things further unnerved her. Beca was subtle, but the message was clear.
This trial was more of a formality, something for the residents.
The real battle with her was something else entirely.
She was personally coming for them. And the light smirk on her lips as she kept her eyes on Luisa and Pieter the entire time only got under her skin even more.
Luisa hated losing, and while the verdict will not be given until a few days later, she already knew how this trial would end.
The tower was least of concerns now. She needed to figure out a way to help Chicago take down Beca Bella for their own lives.
Beca stood silently and studied the meticulous details of tiny bits of extravagance Chicago had commissioned for his model of Babel Tower. The tower was in the study of his currently empty home. Security was rather laughable, with how easy she gained access to it, but then again she shouldn't be surprised. Chicago was all style, no substance.
The trial had gone on smoothly. Just like Chicago, DSM was all for show. Sure, that may be enough to intimidate the weak-willed, spineless, and corrupt politicians and judges they deal with, but not Beca. Not the residents anymore either. They learned the ways of the mafia, after all.
Their efforts will always be in vain to those who cannot be bought or intimidated by a display of violence. There were demons and beasts and then there are the cunning devils.
They were not in the same league as the cunning, manipulative devils Beca grew up with.
The Kommissar looked distracted and shaken from the message Beca had sent through the trial. Pieter was shaking in his seat too. Even Theo was worried for a second, so much so that he had asked her during their dinner if she intended to kill him too. The answer was no. She could see how sincere Theo was with his desire for change. The fact that he recognized his own contribution to Chicago's rise to power was more than what other, much smarter, people around him could even say and do. Theo held himself accountable, and earnestly worked with them.
But she had to protect him from Chicago's allies of course, so include him with the message she did.
As for Pieter, he also looked pretty shaken. He seemed to be keeping in his own lane for now. Beca wasn't even sure what she'd do with him. All this time, the ones she dueled with were Luisa and Chicago after all. For now, she leaned towards leaving him to his fate, one befitting a spineless traitorous coward. It's her thanks for putting Chicago in time out for now, she had asked him to subtly suggest and nudge him towards the idea he was safe in jail while she sorted out the trial. Made sure he wouldn't do anything disruptive or reckless, making sure he was one less variable to worry about until she was ready to deal with him.
The politicians, the prosecutors, all of them will be left to their fates. Once the Guillotine File is returned to the CIA, Jesse had vowed to deal with those who had helped Babel. Time would tell if they succeed, but Beca's made back up plans with Stacie too. Ones that would tank their future careers with all the dirt they discovered about them.
One special prosecutor though, she deserved Beca's special treatment. Kimmy Jin was talking with the Kommissar outside the courtroom before the trial started. Already securing her promotion as chief prosecutor at a different district with all her efforts at trying to derail the trial, she told Luisa it was time to cut ties with them after Luisa suggested she do something for them in case things go south.
She didn't seem interested in helping them anymore, but she did pose a considerable challenge to even getting the trial scheduled in the first place. Beca had to reward her efforts.
She followed Kimmy Jin into the restroom just before the start of the trial. The prosecutor jumped upon seeing her, after she had dried her hands. "What do you want?"
Beca smiled. "It seems congratulations are in order," she had said.
"You can act smug all you want, but once things settle down, I hope you're ready. Because I am coming for you. All the minor inconveniences you think you've caused are laws broken and bent," Kimmy Jin had replied.
"Oh, so you're back to being an honorable prosecutor, huh? Shame," had been Beca's reply.
"I did what I had to do. And we both know this trial is a farce. At the end of the day, Babel bought the tower. At the end of the day, I had to protect the best choice we have as president, and politicians serving this country."
Beca had to laugh at the irony of that. Corruption was at an all time high, and that's her belief, really?
Kimmy Jin bumped her on the way out, and in one swift motion Beca returned the favor by grabbing her hand and slamming her against the wall. "You better not do anything more than what you've done for Babel with this trial, if you want to enjoy the remaining days you still have. I've warned you, but you couldn't help yourself, can't you?"
"Attacking a public prosecutor in a court house is mighty bold of you! You're not getting away with this!" Kimmy Jin replied.
Beca had released her. "You've helped criminals stay free and inflict pain and chaos and you still think you're a bastion of truth and justice, unbelievable," she had said before turning to leave. "Whatever helps you sleep at night, I guess, well, for your remaining nights at least."
She didn't see Kimmy Jin after that.
Perhaps Beca would start with her. The prosecutor who had the power to turn Chicago in and keep him in jail for life. The prosecutor who could have ended it all before he had tried retaliating against Beca… before she lost her father…
Now that the trial was over, it was time to clear house. Barden Tower will undoubtedly remain with the residents. Babel losing was just a taste for what's to come. This wasn't the culmination of Beca's work, not anymore. This was just the beginning.
Everything was falling into place.
And the first thing to fall was the vision of a tower Chicago had. One that put his arrogance and the sick corruption of this country on full display with how he had intended to build it.
The Tower of Babel in the bible symbolized human pride and disobedience. Of wanting to be equal to that of God himself, until he destroyed the tower. Beca clicked the button on the small device in her hand and watched as the tiny explosive she planted in the model tower completely demolished it.
Chicago had been playing God for too long.
And while Beca was no god, or false prophet acting on his behalf, she will bring him down on his knees and make him pay.
She will make all of them pay.
It was time to deliver her justice.
We're winding down to the end of the fic, but there's more action to come.
Who's excited? I know I am.
The next chapters are more action and less convo though…
UPNEXT: The result of the trial! A Bechloe moment! And Chicago's Next Move?