The Independent Girl (Sample)

Chapter 16 - Waiting

Dhiren held Sandhya's shoulders and tried to pull her up. "You are hurt!"

She wouldn't budge. Instead, she stared at the sofa in front of her in a trance, her breathing fast.

"Where is the first aid kit?" he asked with urgency.

She did not reply. Frustrated, he looked around the living room. Not finding it there, he ran into the bedroom and opened her closet door hastily. He found the first aid kit on the top shelf and ran back to her. Seeing that the gash in her arm wasn't deep, he cleaned her wounds, applied medication and tied a bandage around her arm. Her breathing returned to normal but she sat still. Worried, he opened the windows to let the cool breeze in. He needed her to get back to behaving normally. Suddenly, she sat upright; her fists tightened as she wiped her mouth with her arm, her eyes gleaming with determination. With a sharp force, she got up and stormed towards the door, ignoring Dhiren's cries behind her.

He caught up to her on the porch steps, held her arm and pulled her back.

"Where are you going?"

She halted and looked at him. "To the police station," she replied aggressively, shrugging him off.

"Stop—listen to me, Sandhya. You need to calm down first; don't do anything in haste without thinking it through," he pleaded.

She glared at him as if he was mad. Guilt flashed within Dhiren but he was sure that reporting this to the police would do her more harm than good.

"Please? Come inside and listen."

The determination in her eyes faded a little; her face became troubled as she swallowed and dragged her legs back inside. She sat on the sofa, and covered her face with her hands.

"The police in this village have a huge nexus with the political party in which Varun is involved. He'll most likely get off scot free despite you and me trying our best to prove the truth."

"What are you talking about? The police put Gajanan behind bars within no time," she retorted.

"That's because Gajanan is a nobody here; he's not wealthy nor does he have the backing of any politician. Plus, I heard that Akash Rai, the architect guy—he apparently turned a lot of levers to get him behind bars as quickly as they did."

Sandhya raised her eyebrows in surprise; Akash had never mentioned all this to her.

"This is the election season. Everyone is trying to outdo everyone else. These politicians will try to make use of your issue to gain the advantage over each other. They won't care about your justice—only their advantage. Think about this. What would you do if Varun pressed charges against you? What if he claims that you played him for the trip to Ooty, that you trapped him for your own advantage?"

A dumbfounded Sandhya opened her mouth and closed it.

"They might put you in jail, Sandhya. I have seen too many injustices like these here. I would suggest consulting a lawyer at least, someone that we can trust, before you file a complaint," Dhiren said.

"A lawyer?" Sandhya muttered. She only had enough money to support herself for a couple of weeks. How could she afford a lawyer? Akash would help but could she wait till he returned?

"And..." He hesitated before continuing, "You are a young girl at a marriageable age. This will lead to a public scandal and impact your marriage prospects." He hated himself for saying that but unfortunately, that was the truth in the community that they lived in.

Slowly, Dhiren's words sank in for Sandhya. Akash had wanted to keep her away from the police station. Perhaps he didn't trust the police either. She only needed to wait for one more day and Akash would guide her. The last thing she wanted was public attention. No, she didn't want to be humiliated with questions in public. And, she couldn't risk being held back here and losing her job in Mumbai.