68. The Testimony #2
"Especially when a witness has already testified that Miss Olivia Kingsley was involved with Mr. Adhvait Raizaada during the same period."
Mr. Malhotra smiled.
"That's precisely my point, Ms. Arora. If I cannot prove my allegation through these photographs alone, then neither can you prove yours through a witness statement alone."
He spread his hands.
"So perhaps we should stop assassinating each other's clients characters and focus on the actual dispute before this court."
A few heads in the courtroom nodded.
For a brief second, it looked like he had managed to corner her but then Ms. Arora smiled.
Not a nervous smile. The kind that usually meant somebody was about to regret something.
"But who told you I can't prove anything, Mr. Malhotra?"
The smile instantly disappeared from his face.
Ms. Arora picked up a pen drive from her desk and held it between her fingers.
"I was merely waiting for you to provide some proof so that I make everything clear but since you don't have any proof, it's the right time to show the truth to everyone."
A strange silence spread through the courtroom.
Even Mr. Kingsley straightened in his chair.
Ms. Arora looked towards the court staff.
"My Lord, with your permission, I would like to present evidence that directly proves the relationship between Miss Olivia Kingsley and Mr. Adhvait Raizaada, along with the timeline of their communication."
The judge nodded. "Permission granted."
Ms. Arora handed over the pen drive.
"This contains chat records between Miss Olivia Kingsley and Mr. Adhvait Raizaada which prove their affair began long before the contract between Mr. Edward Kingsley and Mr. Yugant Raizaada. Along with that, there are records of their numerous hotel visits in America, CCTV footage, entry details,
hospital records of Miss Olivia Kingsley, their personal conversations, and..."
She paused briefly. "There are also chat records and evidence of Mr. Ruben Kingsley blackmailing my client Mr. Yugant Raizaada's sister, Ms. Dhrithika Raizaada."
The moment Dhrithika's name echoed through the courtroom, Yugant's grip tightened around my thigh. His head snapped towards me. So did Ishaan's. Daadu's and Vedika's as well.
Almost everyone.
Whispers spread across the courtroom like wildfire.
And if I said the fear I felt while standing in the witness box was the worst feeling of my life, it would be a lie.
Because what I was feeling right now was far worse.
My heartbeat was so loud that it felt like everyone around me could hear it.
My throat went dry. My stomach twisted painfully.
Every second felt heavier than the last because I knew what would happen if this truth came out.
"Blackmailing Dhrithi?" Yugant looked at me in confusion. "What did Ms. Arora just say? We never discussed anything like this before the hearing."
"Yugant..." I whispered. "Stay calm and look ahead."
"But Dhrithi-"
"She is absolutely fine. Trust me. Just focus ahead," Bhai said firmly.
Yugant didn't look convinced at all. He immediately turned towards Ishaan. "Go and check on Dhrithi. Right now."
Without questioning him, Ishaan stood up and left the courtroom.
My eyes followed him for a second before returning to the front.
Ms. Arora requested the judge to review the evidence directly on the laptop instead of displaying it on the projector.
For that, I was thankful. The last thing Dhrithika needed was her personal trauma being displayed before an entire courtroom.
A few moments passed.
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Then suddenly...."Are we making jokes here?" The judge's loud voice echoed through the room.
The entire courtroom fell silent. "This drive is empty."
"Empty?" Ms. Arora frowned. "No, that's not possible."
She immediately walked towards the laptop and checked it herself. Her brows furrowed and I understood that the files were gone. Slowly, my eyes moved towards the Kingsleys.
They were smirking. Those pieces of shit.
They had done something. I knew it.
"I have another copy-" Yugant started standing up.
"No! Not that one."
I stopped him immediately. His copy didn't contain the evidence against Ruben.
And if today ended without Ruben being exposed, I would never forgive myself.
Bhai quickly handed me another pen drive.
"Here is another copy of the evidence, Ms. Arora. Use this one."
I had kept it with me after handing over the first copy to Ms. Arora because I remembered she had made three backups of the first copy and as I handed her this one at the last moment I knew she would not be able to make its copies, so I did that thing before.
For a second, surprise flashed across her face. Then a slow, dangerous smile appeared on her lips.
She took the pen drive and connected it herself. A few seconds later, folders appeared on the screen.
Ms. Arora's smile widened. Without wasting another second, she forwarded all the files to the judge.
The courtroom remained silent as he started going through them one by one.
Nobody spoke. Nobody moved. Minutes passed.
We had only one video recording of him blackmailing Dhrithika. The sensitive parts were blurred, and along with it we had attached all the chat records where he threatened and manipulated her. The judge carefully reviewed every single document.
Then he slowly closed the laptop. A heavy sigh escaped him. The judge remained silent for a moment before speaking.
"This court cannot immediately declare these documents genuine without proper verification. All the digital evidence submitted by the defence shall be sent for forensic examination and authenticity verification."
He looked towards both legal teams.
"However, based on the material presently before this court, there appears to be sufficient prima facie evidence regarding the allegations made against Mr. Ruben Kingsley."
The entire courtroom fell silent.
"Therefore, this court directs the police to take Mr. Ruben Kingsley and his things which may contain those sexual videos of Ms. Dhrithika Raizaada into custody immediately for investigation."
Ruben immediately stood up.
"Your Honour, I-"
"Sit down." The judge's voice was firm.
"Considering the nature of the allegations and the possibility of influencing witnesses or tampering with evidence, no interim bail shall be granted at this stage."
The colour drained from Ruben's face.
The judge then turned towards Mr. Kingsley and Olivia.
"All of their passports should be seized so that they won't be able to leave the country and as for the remaining evidence, if the submitted records are verified and found to be authentic, this court shall initiate appropriate proceedings for suppression of material facts, misleading the court,
abuse of legal process, criminal conspiracy, intimidation of witnesses and any other offences that may be established during investigation."
He closed the file. The courtroom erupted into whispers as two police officers immediately started moving towards Ruben.
A sigh escaped me as the weight of fear and helplessness that had been crushing me since morning finally eased a little.
?????
We stood outside the court waiting for Ms. Arora to come out. Yugant wanted to thank her for keeping her word and fighting for us.
Okay, I wanted to thank her too.
But I didn't know how.
Maybe because too many things still remained unresolved between us. Maybe because a simple "thank you" felt too small after everything.
Soon, we spotted her coming out of the courthouse. She was walking down the stairs while talking to Mr. Malhotra. A soft yet professional smile rested on her face, and the afternoon breeze gently moved a few strands of her hair.
As they approached us, Mr. Malhotra looked towards Yugant and extended his hand.
"Congratulations, Mr. Raizaada, for winning the case."
Yugant shook his hand. "That's not a win."
Mr. Malhotra chuckled. "It absolutely is. I saw this coming from miles away the moment I found out about Olivia's affair with your brother."
Yugant frowned. "Wait. Does that mean you didn't know those details before taking the case?"
"Not at all." He shook his head. "They never told me. If I had known, I would've never taken it. No sensible lawyer would. And on top of that..." He glanced towards Ms. Arora and laughed. "I had Ms. Arora standing on the opposite side. There was no chance I was winning this one."
A small smile appeared on Yugant's face.
"Well, we're really glad we hired her. Right, Dhwani?" His eyes shifted towards me.
I simply nodded.
My gaze remained fixed on Ms. Arora.
She briefly looked at me before looking away.
Mr. Malhotra excused himself and walked towards the parking area, leaving us standing there in an awkward silence.
As always, Yugant was the one who broke it.
"Thank you so much, Ms. Arora. I genuinely don't know how to thank you for what you did today."
A faint smile touched her lips. "No need. I was paid to do my job."
"Still."
She shook her head. "You don't have to worry anymore. Within a week we'll have the verification reports, and after that the Kingsleys will face the consequences of their actions." Her eyes hardened slightly. "And as for Ruben Kingsley, I'll personally make sure he doesn't walk away from this."
Yugant immediately looked towards me. That look alone was enough to tell me he hadn't forgotten about Dhrithika.
And I knew the moment we reached home, a storm was waiting for all of us. But right now my attention remains on Ms. Arora.
I wanted to thank her. She had kept her promise.
She had stood beside me when I needed her. For the first time in seven years. But the words refused to come out.
So I just stood there beside Yugant, completely silent.
"Alright." She adjusted the file in her hand. "Enjoy your life. I'll inform you about the next date. But honestly, I'm confident about the outcome."
"Yes." Yugant smiled. "I trust you."