The lanky young man opened the files carefully to avoid staining them from food residue scattered on the table of
“Establish a united front and i will defend you.”
“Dude, you can charge your fees but get the organization registered- it’s the only thing remaining.” “Alright. In that case, I accept your case.” Exclaimed the Devil bringing relief to Espana. “Good. Here is an advance of Rs. 2000. See you next Saturday on the farms!” Espana threw a wad of cash before the Devil like a pampered princess throwing gifts at her servants and walked out planning her next move. “She does that when she is excited.” I explained her actions to a bewildered Devil as i hurried behind the girl. “Wait.” Whispered the black devil clasping my shoulder.
“I am fresh out of college with no experience and you are dragging me into a high court case.” “You are a bright and wise man Devil. You can handle this.”
i petted my own back for getting the black devil to accept Espanas case.
I had interest to defend in Durga Developers. Getting Espana’s case to an inexperienced lawyer would ensure she lost the case. But giving her the idea of filing a petition and giving her a lawyer would improve my image in Espana’s eyes. It was a good game but Espana’s next move complicated my position.
***
“Since when did you start giving preference to your great news channel over your family business JJ?” The Jackal asked in voice devoid of emotion. “What are you talking about?” “Don’t act like you don’t know. Your news just jeopardized our budding business deal.” Having no clue of what he was talking about, i told the Jackal i got no time to watch our great news channel and i would get back to him after verifying what had happened.
What had happened gave me the shock of a lifetime.
The news of the said land grabbing had made it into the day’s headlines on our great news channel. That was not the problem. The revelations made in the news would affect the reputation of Durga Developers. That wasn’t the problem too! The script of the news item was written exactly the way i would write it. My style, my words but not my news. In an ingenious maneuver Espana had as always put me in soup while avoiding getting caught herself.
I was back on the phone trying to explain the jackal that i was not behind the news. “Then who is?” “i cant say. We’re not allowed to expose the names of script writers.” I replied. “But I can tell you there will be a series of follow up stories on the issue so prepare yourself for a huge setback.” “hmmm.” The jackal hummed like a tiger growling under its breath. “Thanks for the vital piece of information JJ, I will stop the follow up stories.”
And stop they did -with direct orders from the editor. Durga Developers had offered the channel a hot advertising deal worth Rs.50000. the deal was simple. Stop the negative publicity and we’ll make your purses overflow.
“Damn! looks like the builder guy has noticed our activities” Espana coolly reacted to the events. “The good news is, our farmers club has been registered and we’re filing the litigation now!”
***
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