KIRAZ MATHUR
"The court hereby announces Mr. Rahul Thakur guilty of unlawful practice of law under Section 141 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023."
Judge Dhananjay Rathod announced, making the courtroom, along with me, release a long sigh of relief.
Rahul Thakur had been practicing law without any degree for the past ten years. In other words, he was a fraud. That was until he came to fight a case against me and I got to know this not-so-little secret of his. And being myself, I collected every possible piece of evidence against him and was now happily bidding him goodbye by sending him to jail.
"Congratulations, Ms. Mathur. You won yet another case," my associates and paralegals said happily.
I thanked them and proceeded to finish the remaining paperwork. Instructing them to go to the firm and get the remaining due diligence done by the end of the day, I bid them goodbye.
As I started to move out of the courtroom, my phone rang inside my bag. It was none other than my sister, Riddhima. As soon as I picked up, her impatient and enthusiastic voice came through.
"Congratulations, Di!"
"Arrey, how can you assume that I would have won the case? I could have lost it given the circumstances," I asked, unable to understand her confidence.
"Di, you are the goddess of law who hasn't lost a single case since the beginning of her career. And also, the fact that you're my sister."
"Wow, talk about buttering someone up and you'll have a whole paragraph ready," I said as I reached my Mercedes-Benz and started placing my bag, files, and lawyer's coat on the passenger seat.
Riddhu giggled from the other side.
"Well then, don't forget to bring Almond Dutch Pastry on your way home tonight. Bye, I gotta go."
I smiled.
"You always remember our ritual, huh? And yeah, I won't forget. Bye."
I hung up the call and started driving towards home.
Riddhima and I have a ritual where every time I win a case, we celebrate by eating pastry. To be honest, it's just her way of satisfying her sweet tooth. I wasn't surprised at all when she came up with this idea.
She is like a wildflower in our lives, second only to our pet dog, Tara. She is the kind of person who can find hope even in hopeless situations.
I picked up the pastry from Mumma's bakery and started driving home again.
My eyes wandered towards the file which had the name of my firm, "MS Legal Corporation," printed on it.
It was built by me and my two other partners. The M stood for Mathur, my surname, whereas the S stood for Sehgal, the surname of the other name partner.
We had built this firm in our early twenties by investing every ounce of our savings, hard work, dedication, and passion into it. Today, we are one of the top three legal firms in India.
My firm and partners have given their days and nights to make this possible, and I am completely obsessed with continuing our legacy.
I turned left to make my way home when a car sped past mine, forcing me to slam on the brakes.
Before I could even register what had happened, the speeding vehicle struck a boy crossing the street and threw him several feet away.
Rushing out of my car with my phone in hand, I ran towards him. Making sure not to disturb the scene, I quickly took a few photographs before kneeling beside him and checking his pulse.
Thank God.
It was there.
"Hey... hey... stay with me, buddy. Hey, stay with me."
My voice came out breathless as I dialled 112.
"Hello, you have reached the emergency medical line. Please tell us your emergency."
"There's been a road accident," I said quickly. "Young male victim. Conscious but bleeding. We need an ambulance immediately near Raigad Marg, at the turning point towards the Zudio commercial store."
"Do not panic, ma'am. The ambulance will reach you within three minutes. Keep the victim conscious and talking. Follow our instructions until help arrives."
I wasted no time following what she said.
Keeping the boy awake and talking to him, I waited beside him until the ambulance arrived.
The paramedics immediately began treating him and moved him into the ambulance. They instructed me to report to the Municipal Corporation office and provide all the information regarding the accident. One of the officers accompanied me while I followed in my own car.
Fortunately, the manager at the Municipal Corporation office knew me, making the process much easier.
He assured me that all necessary assistance would be provided and began collecting my statement.
After giving them every detail I knew, I informed them about the dash cam installed in my car, which could help identify the suspect and clear me of any involvement in the accident.
Once everything was reviewed, they allowed me to leave.
Damn.
It had been one hell of a day.
All I wanted was to go home.
I only hoped the boy would get the help he needed.
With that thought in mind, I got back into my car and drove towards home.
By the time I reached home, it was already late in the evening.
After parking the car in the garage, I made sure to cover the blood on my cloth by wearing the suit on before taking a long sigh. I moved towards the front door and unlocked it.
The fresh aroma of palak paneer filled my nostrils, and I saw Riddhu standing in the open kitchen with a spatula in her hand, inviting me to taste it.
I crossed the living area and moved towards her. After tasting the curry, I made the classic Indian "nice" hand gesture, making her smile happily before I headed towards my room.
After finishing my shower routine, I decided to do a little skincare before joining my sister for dinner.
My phone rang.
It was Anita.
"The car belongs to one of the multimillionaires of the state, and the owner's son was driving it. You know what? I think you should stay out of this. Making enemies out of people like them and wasting your time on this isn't going to do you any good," she said.
" I think I will do whatever I can without meddling into their life and how is that making any enemies?"
"No, it's just that the victim's father got your information from the Municipal Emergency Line and wanted to meet you to thank you. When I told him that it wasn't necessary and that he should focus on taking care of his son, he said he wasn't going to do anything further because he doesn't have the money. He also isn't going to file any complaint against either the owner of the car or the son who was driving it because he simply doesn't have the means to afford the court procedures and legal expenses," she continued.
"Well, I think I am capable of handling this, and you don't need to worry. I appreciate the concern, but you don't need to worry about me, Anita."
"That's not what I'm worried about. That man is none other than Mr. Singh, the one who helped the firm a few years back. He isn't a headache you should deal with. He isn't worth the trouble, Kiraz," she said, trying to make me understand her point of view.
"Well, he didn't help the firm. He helped one of the partners, and for the record, it wasn't me. And talking about expenses, I think I'll use the Ragini Justice NGO as one of the sources to deal with the court procedures and costs."
My voice came out stronger than even I intended.
"If that's all..."
I cut the call.
Turning the lights on, I walked towards the balcony and opened the sliding doors.
I took a long sigh and stared at the sky.
Life is so fucking unpredictable and uncomfortable sometimes. This was supposed to be just any other day, but I guess Bappa had another plan. I couldn't help but think about the ways by which I can face Mr. Singh tomorrow.
Just then, Tara came bounding into my room and started nuzzling against me. I bent down to pet her and let her lick my face.
She was a walking tornado sometimes.
By the time we were done cuddling, I started getting ready to go downstairs.
As soon as we finished dinner, along with her gossiping about everything from her friend group to the plants she was looking forward to growing this week, we wished each other good night and retired to our rooms.
Before calling it a day, I picked up my phone and dialled Anita's number. She picked up on the third ring."Tell Mr. Singh I want to meet him in my office tomorrow morning," I ordered.
"And tell Mr. Verma to meet me tomorrow morning along with Mr. Singh. Let him know I'll look into this matter first thing in the morning."
"Good night, Anita."
I ended the call.
I could already feel the headache waiting for me tomorrow.
Mr. Singh was never good news.
He was simply a pain in the ass.
I know the chapter is too short, but I assure you they will be of 3000 words once this writer gets the response.
How was the introduction to our female lead? describe her in three words!
Meanwhile please feel free to share your thoughts in comments. I would love to read and respond to them.
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