Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Association
Association
Reid
ASSOCIATION
CHAPTER 1
situation still hadnt hit her. The men looked at each other
uncomfortably as if it wasnt appropriate to accept. Rebecca
noticed the look then realised something was seriously wrong.
Im DC Moran, said the old officer who had done all the
talking so far. He stepped towards Rebecca. Im here to arrest
you. Im arresting you on suspicion of perverting the course of
justice in the case of Suri Lee and further arresting you on
suspicion of assisting Raj Lee to put money from drug dealing
into cars and property. I have to caution you. You do not have
to say anything but it may harm your defence if you do not
mention when questioned something which you later rely on
in court. Anything you do say may be given in evidence.
OK, Rebecca replied slowly, not quite believing what
was happening to her.
You dont look very shocked, were you expecting us?
one officer commented snidely. Rebecca just looked at the
officer and said nothing. Nothing was registering. It was as if
she could see what was happening but could not feel any
emotion about it. She couldnt cry, she couldnt scream, she
couldnt even think of anything to ask.
Where is all your paperwork on Raj Lee? asked the
officer who had made the earlier comment.
Paperwork? I dont have any. We broke up years ago,
she managed to reply. She was confused. Why would she have
any paperwork on Raj Lee? What was going on? What did the
police think was going on?
The officers began to disperse around the house looking
through any draw, box or cupboard they came across. DC
Moran told Rebecca to go and get dressed. She would have to
come to the station.
She walked upstairs and asked the female officer standing
at the top of the stairs, who had been assigned to supervise
her, if she was allowed to brush her teeth. It probably seemed
like a ridiculous question but Rebecca remembered clients
telling her that they were taken straight to the station and not
allowed to get changed or washed beforehand. Strangely,
CHAPTER TWO
Rebecca heard the postman at the door. She ran down the
stairs and picked up the bundle of letters from the floor behind
the door. As she shuffled through the letters she spotted one
addressed to her with a London postmark. She just knew it
was it. It was exactly what she had been waiting two weeks
and 3 days for...every morning. She sprinted upstairs and left
the other letters on the dining room table as she passed. She
jumped on her bed, letter in hand, took a deep breath and
opened it.
Dear Miss Turner, I am pleased to inform you that you
have a place at The School of Law beginning September 2001.
Rebecca screamed and read on.
You will be taking a full time place on the Bar Vocational
Course.
Rebecca had always wanted to be a barrister. Since she
could talk everyone had always said she could argue black
was white. Her dream was finally coming true. All the hard
work was beginning to pay off. The countless essays, days and
days of study and hours of revision and exams. The School of
Law was the best law school in the country and was regarded
highly by all the reputable barristers, QCs and judges. It had
been the only school to run the bar course for many years and
was where most of the more established barristers were
trained. Rebecca knew that her family, especially her mum
and dad, would be so proud of her. They encouraged her to go
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focus on the fact that she had just pushed past so many people
queuing. Be friendly and chat, that was her plan. She had
never seen this man before which was quite unusual in the
town. He must be here for the opening night she thought to
herself. He smiled at her and she smiled back. He was a tall
Asian male about 62 with dark hair and dark features.
Rebecca liked him almost immediately. She felt drawn to him
somehow. They chatted while they waited for their drinks. No
uncomfortable silences. Of course this could have had
something to do with the alcohol she had consumed but
Rebecca felt it was more than this. The man told her his name
was Raj. After Rebecca had bought the drinks for her friends,
she took them over... Just chatting to a hottie!!! She laughed
as she returned to Raj who was waiting. They spent the night
chatting, laughing and joking. She had a good time with him.
There was a definite connection between them. A chemistry
that just couldnt be described. As the night came to an end
Raj asked for Rebeccas number. Why not? she thought, We
got on well - what harm it could do? How wrong could she
be?
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CHAPTER THREE
Rebecca was running around trying to find the top she wanted
to wear. Raj was picking her up in ten minutes for their first
date. They had been texting and talking on the phone for over
a week and had finally made arrangements to meet up. She
had no idea where they were going but she felt a bit nervous.
She had butterflies in her stomach. She heard a car pull up
outside and heard a beep. She looked through the window and
saw a dark blue car with Raj sitting behind the wheel. She
shouted goodbye and ran out to the car.
Hi. She giggled as she got in the car.
Where do you want to go? he asked. They decided to go
for a drink in the city. On the journey Rajs phone rang with
friends asking him what he was up to. He told them he would
be around later on in the evening to play pool. Rebecca
thought he must have been expecting a short date as it was
already late afternoon. That doesnt sound promising she
thought. They went into a bar and chatted over a drink. Raj
told her he bought and sold cars for a living. He had his own
business and seemed to know what he was talking about.
Rebecca told Raj about her plans to become a barrister and her
dream to work in criminal defence. They chatted for what
seemed like minutes. When Rebecca looked at her watch she
saw they had been in the bar for hours.
Dont you have to meet your friends? she asked.
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like in her studies. He would tell her things were none of her
business. Rebecca knew other Asian families in the local area
who were similar in their values and so didnt think anything
of it. He was just a very private person. She accepted that. He
wasnt a gossip and wouldnt really talk about other people.
Raj once told Rebecca that his sister had had a baby, but he
had never even mentioned that she was pregnant. This was
typical of Raj and Rebecca got used to it. It was just the way
he was. She put a lot of it down to his culture and how he had
been brought up. Just like the fact that he couldnt tell his
family about her, it was just the way it was. The cultural
differences didnt seem to be a real problem at the beginning
but as time went on they became more obvious. This was
mainly in respect to their morals and values.
Raj kept his friends almost completely separate from
Rebecca; he also didnt mix with her friends. Rebecca was
only twenty-two and this suited her. She was happy to go out
with friends at the weekend and leave Raj with his friends.
They never mixed in couples. Rebeccas friends didnt really
get to know Raj because of this and his friends did not get to
know her. There were a couple of friends of Raj that Rebecca
realised she knew before they got together. She got on well
with them but saw them rarely and only when Raj allowed
them to mix. Rebecca was happy with things being separate, it
suited her lifestyle. She was a social butterfly who was always
out with friends and family. She liked that Raj wasnt needy
and dependent on her and had his own life to deal with.
After about six months together problems began in the
relationship. The first flush of love and excitement was over
and reality was beginning to settle in. Raj had started to
become depressed. He would be quite off with Rebecca at
times and they started seeing each other less and less. A few
times a week they would meet up for a few hours but Rebecca
always felt that she irritated him and he did not enjoy the time
they spent together. Doing things together had become more
of a chore and she sometimes dreaded seeing him. She never
knew how he would be with her from one day to the next.
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forgetting it all for just a second and then it all came flooding
back. It felt like it had happened all over again. No one could
really understand how she felt unless they had been hurt like
that themselves.
Things carried on with Raj and Rebecca for the next few
weeks with them getting on well just like at the beginning.
Marie wasnt so fond of Raj. She couldnt really forgive him
for hurting her sister. She had had to live with Rebecca during
those few weeks and had seen with her own eyes how much
he had hurt her. Her feelings towards Raj just made Rebecca
push her away. She stopped talking to her sister about her
relationship as she didnt want her sister to hate him.
After a few weeks things started to deteriorate between
the couple again. Raj once again became distant and Rebecca
felt more of a nuisance than a girlfriend, asking when she
would see him next and hearing his reply... Not two days in a
row. She used to feel angry that he could be jokey and happy
in front of all his friends and then was quiet and miserable
with her. He used to tell her that was how he really felt all the
time and that he could be himself with her. Lucky her, she
thought. He was depressed again. Sure enough Raj told
Rebecca he didnt want to be with her any more. She felt that
same pain again. He told her it was for good and said maybe
they should see other people. She said she didnt want to. The
thought of him doing that made her feel physically sick. Once
again Raj wouldnt swear that it was over for good. This
meant Rebecca always had a slight bit of hope that they could
reconcile.
Contact stopped from that day. Rebeccas friends and
family once again had to see her cope with her heartbreak and
struggle to carry on with her studies and part time job. Sure
enough two months on Raj turned up again, just as Rebecca
was starting to feel herself again. He came with his sorrys and
his excuses that he was depressed. He said this time he needed
to get help and wanted Rebecca to be there with him. Rebecca
agreed; she put the way he was acting down to his illness. He
said he couldnt feel emotions about anything or anyone.
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CHAPTER FOUR
she couldnt leave him when he had come to her at his most
vulnerable. Im just not myself, he explained, but I love you
and have really missed you. Rebecca accepted what he was
saying just like she always did. He never really had to work
hard to get her back. He used his health and vulnerability. She
didnt have the heart to cut him off no matter how many times
he had done it to her.
Rebecca set about trying to find names of consultants that
Raj could be referred to. She had a feeling that Raj needed her
and she had to stand by him no matter what he had put her
through.
So the pattern continued, month after month, year after
year. They spent as much time apart as they did as a couple.
Rebecca was dropped and picked up whenever Raj felt like it.
He had no regard for how it was affecting her or how
traumatic it was every time. Even at their best times, Raj
never made Rebecca feel loved. She started to feel insecure
and was constantly on egg shells always waiting for the next
time he would leave her. Raj never showed her any affection.
She put this down to his culture, where it would be unusual
for his family to hug or tell each other that they cared. Most
men Rebecca had dated did not talk about their emotions but
Raj was on a different scale.
From one day to the next Rebecca did not know how he
felt about her. His actions suggested that he did not care. He
prioritised his friends and did not seem to enjoy the time they
spent together. Despite all this Rebecca could not leave him.
He had a hold over her that she simply could not break. She
justified this to herself by saying that she could trust him
100% and that he would never cheat on her. Rebecca
rationalised that that would be the worst thing he could do to
her. As Raj paid no attention to other females Rebecca
strangely felt that she was lucky to have him. It was perverse
but she couldnt see it.
Raj frequently put her down so that her confidence was
low... Fat little shit, look at your chipped tooth. He would
laugh at her. She never wanted him to see her not looking her
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best so always had her hair and make-up done whenever she
saw him. It wasnt the real her but she couldnt bear him to
see her naturally. She wasnt confident enough. He never paid
her any compliments... she just felt unattractive all the time.
He used to talk about how attractive he was and that just made
her feel worse. Im punching way above my weight here, she
thought. Hes way out of my league. He had completely
managed to manipulate her. He had changed her from a
strong, independent, bubbly individual to an insecure,
unhappy girl. She barely recognised herself but couldnt seem
to get herself out of it. It was indescribable.
One evening Raj had reluctantly agreed to drop Rebecca
and her friends off to a club out of town. He had picked them
all up from Rebeccas house. They were all so excited about
going somewhere new. Rebecca was wearing a brown suede
skirt that she had bought to wear with her boots. She was
excited about Raj seeing her dressed up. She hoped he might
even say she looked nice. As she got into the car she could tell
he was not happy. He was quiet all the way to the club and
pulled away when she tried to touch his hand. He didnt say
anything until Rebeccas friends had got out of the car. What
are you wearing? he spat with disgust.
Er, my new skirt? she stuttered.
Youre a slag wearing that, youre embarrassing me. Get
out, its over. He looked away. Rebecca did not know what to
do. She felt desperate. She felt a lump in her throat and she
fought back tears. She couldnt leave her friends and go home
to change when they had travelled together so far out of town.
She tried to reason with him but he repeatedly told her to get
out. She got out of the car in tears. Her night was ruined and
her relationship was over yet again.
Raj wouldnt like Rebecca wearing skirts or dressing up
when she went out. He would put her down and threaten to
finish with her if she dressed like that. He was slowly
controlling every aspect of her life.
Issues continued to occur between the couple. Raj had
humiliated Rebecca publicly so many times that it just became
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the norm for her now. She worried that people would be
laughing at her behind her back. She knew that people must
think she was stupid to put up with it. It was damaging her
relationships with her friends. They told her home truths that
even though she knew herself deep down, she wasnt ready to
hear from other people. She reacted by distancing herself from
everyone. She stopped telling them when Raj had made her
cry or let her down.
Rebecca always wanted to spend birthdays together but
Raj wanted to be with his friends. They were his priority.
Rebecca managed to persuade Raj to let her come out with his
friends. The friends that Raj was so eager to spend his
birthday with Rebecca had never met before. They had been
dating for the past two years and she still found out new things
about him every day.
Once they got into Menzies Rebecca took everyones
orders and went to the bar. She was really trying with Rajs
friends. She wanted them to like her. Maybe he will let me
come out more with him if we all have a good time? she
reasoned with herself.
Her phone rang. It was Anita. Where are you? she asked.
Im in Menzies with Raj, Rebecca replied cheerily.
Raj is in here, replied Anita confused. Anita was in
another local club round the corner. Rebecca felt humiliated
and angry. Right, Im coming there. She could not believe
that Raj had just left her in a nightclub on her own. Why had
he done that? Everything was going well? She didnt
understand.
She stormed into the club and saw Raj straight away near
the bar. She marched up to him and screamed, I hate you!
Why did you just leave me? He just laughed at her as she was
pulled away by her friends. The door staff told her to calm
down. She looked like the crazy one. She looked like she was
the one in the wrong. She felt completely humiliated again. He
had obviously persuaded his friends to leave with him,
knowing she had gone to the bar to get them all a drink. He
did not care about her feelings at all.
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