THE LEGAL BIND

Chapter: 6 - First Case.

Revika Shastri

I left from the restaurant to go and meet the victim of the sexual harassment pro - bono given to me. She had sent me her home address earlier and now I was standing in the middle of the road waiting for my cab to arrive. I was looking out for one and kept glancing at my wristwatch at the same time. I tapped my foot on the cemented ground as I impatiently waited for my ride.

I was about to cancel my cab and take the bus when I heard a honk and a car stopped right before me. I bent down slightly to see Mr. Randhawa and that jerk from earlier in the front seat. Mr. Randhawa slightly smiled as he asked me, "Revika, why are you standing her all alone? That too, during office hours?" I sighed slightly thinking about the late cab as I told him, "Actually, I was going for a meeting with the victim and my client in the case you have assigned me, I am currently waiting for my cab, but it seems that its late."

Mr. Randhawa shared a look with the other guy and he looked pissed right after, then, Mr. Randhawa looked backed at me and offered me a ride. I politely denied at first, but, then he insisted saying I would not look professional if I arrived late at the first meeting, I thought about it for a while and eventually agreed. I sat at the back and we took off to the address I provided.

We arrived in about 15 minutes and I thanked them as I left for the meeting. I was standing in front of the house that was mentioned in the address. House no. 12, I rung the bell and stood patiently. A few seconds later I heard some rustling and the door opened revealing a young, but, gloomy looking girl. She looked up with her tired eyes and said, "You must be the lawyer?" I nodded and she let me in. we settled on her couch and I gave her my card as I said, "I am Revika Shastri, your attorney. I need you to tell me everything about the case and allow me access to some of your personal handles." She nodded slightly and took a deep breath.

"Mere saath bahut bura kiya hai unhone. Mere boss, woh bahut hi gande kism ke insaan hai. Mene bachelors karke hi job join Karli thi kyuki hume paiso ki zarurat thi, Mera experience kam hone se mujhse kaha ke abhi ke liye mujhe boss ke secretary ki position milegi aur ek baar me kaam sikhlu fir mujhe sab ki tarah kaam milega. Mene inkaar nahi kiya kyuki bahut si companies me interviews deneke baad mujhe ye company hire karna chahti thi, shuru ke mahino me sab achha tha, mein sikh rhi thi aur boss bhi bahut hi ache the. Phir achanak ek din unhone mujhse request ki ke mein overtime karu aur unki madad karu kuch presentations aur files banane me, mene haa kardi kyuki unki secretary hone ke naate ye mera kaam tha aur mujhe laga isse mera experience badhega, mujhe aur bhi sikhne ko milega.

Uss din hum dono unke office me kaam kar rahe the, mein couch pe bethi thi aur laptop pe presentation bana rahi thi, mujhe correct karne ke bahane se, he leaned over my shoulder and, uske baad woh.. She took a breath and held in her tears. I sat next to her and rubbed her back as a way to encourage her to speak. She calmed down and resumed, uske baad unhone apna haath mere kandhe pe rakha and mujhe wese chua, mujhe pehle laga mera vehem hai but then he slid hid hand downwards and I stood up abruptly, I asked him what he was trying to do aur unhone kaha ki woh wahi kar rahe hai jo hum dono chahte hai. I denied and told him I didnt see him that way, but, it seemed his ego was bruised and he moved closer and closer and tried to force himself on me, I pushed him and kicked him between his legs and threatened to expose him as I ran out the office and came back home."

I nodded and she took another breath before she continued, "fir me jab dusre din office gayi apna resignation dene tab unhone mujhe terminate kardiya tha aur kaha ke jo mahine ke salary hai woh nahi denge and mujhe promise kiya tha for a bonus kyuki mene bahut extra kaam kiya to woh bhi nahi denge. Meri family ko paiso ki zarurat thi, humare karze bahut the joki utarne ke liye hi mene job join ki thi, agar mujhe meri mehnat ke paise nahi mile to me kese utarungi sare karze? Unhone mujhe ek recommendation letter bhi dene se mana kardiya, isiliye nayi job dhundna bhi mushkil hai. Because I was abruptly fired, they had to give a reason and they gave one saying I was careless with my job and that was affecting the companys performance. Please help me get my hard-earned money. I need it. Please."

She pleaded with her hands joined. I put her hands down and asked her to calm down. I told her that I would do my best to win her case and get her justice. I tried my best to assure her and then left for the office to further work on the case.

Vardaan Singh Rajput

We took Gurmeet's car; we were headed out to a meeting regarding our plan to bring the Chauhans to ground when Gurmeet stopped the car. He looked out the window and was talking to the girl I met at the elevator, he called her 'Revika'. I didnt pay much attention to their conversation, but that lasted only till I heard him offer her a ride. I was annoyed that he did, we were already running late to the meeting and now we had to drop this girl on our way.

I gave him a look, but he obviously didn't pay heed to my clear warning and insisted she ride with us. Eventually, she agreed and placed her petite self in the back of the car. I glanced at her from the rearview mirror. She was engrossed in a file. A small pout formed on her lips as she went through the details of the content in the file. I didnt like how much concentration she had on that damned file. It couldn't be that interesting.

It was annoying me and I looked ahead, just then I got a text from my agent and it was the life history and details of the same girl sitting right behind. I went through the details of her life and was mortified with the amount of suffering she went through, that too as a child. Her father was a disgusting person, I cant believe there was a father in this world, worse than mine. I now knew why she put up a strong front, why she has those walls. Her step - mother seemed to be just as cruel and disgusting as her father. Oh! So, she is arranged to marry that playboy Aakash, Step - mother played well for just 30% of the company.

I didn't like that she had to marry that motherfucker Aakash, just because of the company, but who knows what she has in it, she could have a personal gain out of it which was none of my business. I smirked as I looked at her one last time before I focused ahead. I didnt know why but she didn't look like a girl with such a nature. I felt it in my bones. Suddenly there was this overwhelming sense of protection I felt for her, I wanted to make sure she wasnt in this façade due to her step - mother, and if she was that step - mother is going to be learning good life lessons soon enough.

There was this newfound sense of protection in me for her. I wanted to shield her from any bad thing. She was just a fragile flower and I wanted to be the thorn that protected her.

"Hai yahi irada, tujhe chahun khud se zyada, Dil se hai ye vada, Main hu saath tere.