This is the story of how Alicia Florrick broke Kalinda's heart. But don't worry Alicia wasn't the only one. The first time Kalinda got her heart broken was thanks to a girl name Amy Sleeverson. Back in Toronto, back when Kalinda was 13 years old and her name was Leela Tahiri. It all began when Leela and Amy discovered they liked to kiss each other after school.

Leela's parents sent her to an all girls private catholic school, being the kid of immigrants wasn't easy, Leela didn't have many friends, she would hang out with the other outsiders behind school, skipping classes, smoking cigarettes, thinking about vandalizing the teacher's car. The highlight of her week was visiting Amy when her parents were out. They would paint each others nails, draw hearts on their notebooks and kissed a lot. Of course Leela knew this relationship had to be a secret.

"Eww. Disgusting." Leela's mom said as she drove the kids downtown.

"What?" The girl looked up to see what her mom saw on the sidewalk.

"Don't look, they're perverts." Her mom pulled the girl's face away from the window but Leela saw the gay couple holding hands on the corner. How would her mom feel if she found out what Leela was doing with Amy?

Her dad wasn't happy about Leela spending her afternoons working on a 'school project'.

"Where were you, Leela?" Her dad was angry. "You're supposed to come home and help your mom with your brothers and the store."

"I was doing my science project."

"Still? I'm going to talk to your teacher."

"No! Come on, dad. I do my chores."

"Don't raise your voice young lady!"

It all ended with Amy, when the blonde girl in front of her popular friends, denied even knowing Leela. Leela to a certain point understood Amy's rejection, she was the quiet brown girl with the weird last name; yet, she decided to get even. She stole a bracelet from Amy's mom. What was Amy supposed to do? Admit Leela was in her house when her parents were out? That she gave her the security code? Leela hid the bracelet in her room, at night she would put it on and stared at the shiny diamonds. She was weirdly proud of her crime. One day her mom found the bracelet while cleaning the girl's room. Leela was expelled from school.

The girl left romance behind until she was 17 years old and met Remy, a 21 years old mechanic who taught Leela about cars and sex. He was her first time. Then she met Remy's sister and she was also her first time. It got ugly when the siblings realized they were both sleeping with Leela, both of them showed up to her home to confess their love to her and make her chose between them. Leela's parents were mortified and they let their daughter know how ashamed they were.

College wasn't an option for Leela, her grades weren't that great. According to her dad: "You're not stupid, you just like to do stupid things." So her family skipped her and sent Leela's younger brother instead.

Her father gave her work at the family's corner store. Leela's dad was an engineer in India but he couldn't validate his degree in Canada, so he opened at store at the corner of Gerard St and Logan Ave.

At 20 years old, Leela felt like she had hit a wall, she didn't have any plans for the future, no dreams, she was lost; then she met Nick Savarese.

"Hey!" Leela noticed the young men stuffing Hawkins Cheezies bags in their jackets. Leela grabbed the bat her dad kept behind the counter. "I saw you! Put that back!"

They laughed at her. "What are you going...? *WHACK*

Leela smacked one of them in the head, she knocked him out. Confused and angry, the other man didn't know exactly what to do next. Leela didn't know either. Swing the bat again?

"You bitch!" He finally reacted and went after Leela, she recoiled to the counter while trying to hit him, but he was ready this time, he grabbed the bat away from the girl.

"Shit."

"Hey, back off!" Then out of nowhere, Nick Savarese appeared and helped her stop him. Nick grabbed him by the jacket and slammed against the floor. Two against one, the young robber decided to run away, leaving his unconscious friend behind.

"Thank you. " Leela told him.

"No problem, dear." He winked at her.

"I should call the police." Leela pointed at the still unconscious guy on the floor. "You know, because of him."

"If you're calling the cops, I'm gonna leave. Don't get along with coppers." He said with an accent that the young woman really liked. "Helluva of swing tho."

Nick was exactly what Leela wanted it and vice versa. They fall in love and got married at city hall.

Leela's parents didn't took the news well, they decided to give her the cold shoulder. At the time, Leela didn't mind her family stopped talking to her, Nick was her world.

They were very physical with each other, Nick liked grabbing her by her waist, pulled her hair, bite her neck, kissing her hard, rough sex and Leela matched Nick's energy.

Leela knew her husband was a criminal, she knew his business was small insurance fraud and Nick was in charge of at least 10 men. She could call any of them and ask for anything and they'd oblige because she was the boss' wife. But being just a "wife" had no appeal to Leela, she wanted action. She learned how to use different kinds of guns, how to hijack a car, how to break in a house. Nick was amused by her behavior, he agreed to teach her how to fight.

"Come on, harder." Nick and Leela were sparring in their garage. "Harder."

"ARGH!" Leela hit as hard as she could.

"What are you going to do when you're in a real fight? You're tiny." Nick mocked her so Leela sucker punched him. "Woah... that's better."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah!" Nick hit her back in the face knocking her down. She wasn't sure how to react, she stood still on the floor. "See? That's how a real punch feels."

Leela's marriage with Nick took a turn for the worst, he became more violent not only to her but in his business. He decided that insurance fraud wasn't enough, he wanted to smuggled drugs and guns and that was a ruthless business. She needed a way out. Leela approached her mom.

"You shouldn't be here." Her mom told her. "Please go."

"Mom, please." Leela's voice broke. "I need..."

"No, your dad said we can't talk to you. Sorry, Leela." Her mom closed the house door.

The young woman was sad that her mom turned her away, but she was hopeful that she could get through her mom. She only need a little more time. Nick didn't give her any time.

"Where were you?" Nick was waiting for her.

"Out." Leela shrugged.

"You went to see your folks, didn't you? Why would you do that? They're bastards, they don't care about you. I care about you."

"I know."

"Do you?" Nick pulled a gun on her.

"Nick, baby, come on." Leela stepped back.

"I don't like you going to see your mum. And if you don't understand the message, I can send your mum a message."

"I understand."

He got closer to Leela and pointed the gun at her face. "You're mine Leela, and I'm yours. This marriage doesn't end until one of us dies. Until death do us part."

That can be arranged.

Leela seduced one of the lower ranks man in Nick's organization to helped her. The plan? Burning down their house and escape to the US with a large amount of Nick's money. Leela would've liked to stick around and see her house burned to the ground, but she was miles away and ready to crossed to border with a new identity. Leela Tahiri was dead. Kalinda Sharma was born.

Kalinda stayed for while in Detroit and then headed to Chicago. She liked the city and decided to stay. Once she found a place to live, Kalinda had another issue, what is she going to do for money? Nick's money wasn't gonna last forever. She found inspiration while watching tv, the movie classic channel was showing "The Long Goodbye" with Elliot Gould as private detective Phillip Marlowe. She knew how criminals work, she knew how to read people, and unlike Gould, Kalinda knew how to go unnoticed, she could sneak in in more places. It that didn't work, then her female charms could help her.

She looked into it and being a licensed Private Investigator by herself was too much trouble. But the State's Attorney office had a freelance job available. They needed extra help now that Peter Florrick was elected, 'The Hammer' as the press first called him, wanted to go all in against criminals. Kalinda was hired and hit the road running, she was good at her work and she enjoyed it. She was there for almost 3 years, until one small problem surfaced.

"There's something wrong with your credentials." Peter Florrick sat across the desk. He had called for her to his office, it was late and mostly everyone was gone.

"Is it?" Kalinda played it cool.

"There is an inconsistency with your name and your social security number." Peter said. "It could be an honest mistake...we just need to fix it."

Kalinda saw her cue, Peter wasn't accusing her of anything. He wanted a transaction. But she needed to negotiate. "Could you help me fix it?"

"I know someone who could help us straighten this out." Peter leaned back.

"I'd be so, so thankful, Peter."

Kalinda had sex with Peter in change of the 'favor' of fixing her name. It was okay, she never had sex with a man like that; he was big like a bear. Whatever, she didn't care. Of course, a month later Peter fired her, accusing her of working behind his back with Glenn Childs. Soon, Will Gardner offered her a job.

"I want you to work for me." The lawyer raised his glass. "I saw you in court, you handed over the prosecution a file and suddenly they had the key evidence to beat us. And I don't like to get beaten."

"You said it, evidence is key nowadays." Kalinda raised her glass too and sip from her whiskey.

"So why did the State's Attorney office let you go?"

Kalinda shrugged. "I don't know. It's a shame I won them all those cases against you."

"So how much?" Will asked her.

Kalinda took a napkin and wrote down a number. "This much."

Will laughed. "It's too much for in house detective."

"What? Stern, Lockhart and Gardner doesn't have money? Aren't you the one who have season tickets for the Bulls?" Kalinda told him. "Or do you have to ask permission to the old guy?"

"I see what you're doing." Will shook his head. "My ego isn't that fragile."

"Okay, then one month. Give me one month to show you results. If I fail, then you don't pay me anything."

"Like a bet?"

Kalinda nodded. "I always bet on myself."

The investigator prove to be worth the money to Will and later to Diane. She liked them as bosses. Diane was a zero nonsense person and Will was a kin spirit to Kalinda, both not interested in settling down, only focus on winning. It was a bonus that Will didn't want to sleep with her, they were friends, well as much as you can be friends with your boss. In the office they weren't equal and Kalinda didn't always had a say in the matter.

Will had summoned Kalinda to his office. The lawyer was putting on a new watch. "What do you think? Too much?"

"It looks good with your suit." Kalinda told him. "Is that why you call me?"

"What? No, no." Will took off the watch and put back his old one. "We're hiring a new lawyer. She's starts tomorrow. I'm giving the case of the retrial of the wife killing her ex husband."

"Okay."

"Please, help her out. Look through the evidence with her, you know."

"Wait. Is she a rookie?"

"Not at all. We went together to Georgetown. Her name is Alicia Florrick."

Kalinda perked up. She didn't expect to hear that name. "Peter Florrick's wife?"

"Yeah, she's having a hard time with Peter's arrest. So, l'm giving her break." Will said with a smirk. "But she's good. You'll like her."

Kalinda was cautious when meeting Alicia. No, she didn't feel guilty about sleeping with Peter, on her side it was just a transaction. Besides, Kalinda didn't believe in monogamy. But Will was right, Kalinda liked Alicia, she was smart and competent, Kalinda liked people, like that. Alicia only needed someone to helped her gain her confidence again.

Kalinda took her out for tequila shots. Alicia didn't back down, she take them like a champ.

"Thank you, Kalinda." The lawyer smiled to the investigator. "I haven't had a fun evening like this in months."

"No problem."

Kalinda's relationship with Alicia was more of a collaboration, they helped each other with their cases, there wasn't a power unbalance or like Cary who was clearly attracted to the investigator. No, Kalinda enjoyed her time with Alicia, they talked about how she met Will, Alicia told her about her kids, she met the kids, Kalinda helped her with Peter's case, they had inside jokes. Alicia noticed how Kalinda didn't share much about her past, but never pushed her for answers. They became such good friends that Kalinda wondered: what if told Alicia the truth?

Then Blake Calamari pissed all over Kalinda's parade. He was a petty, mean and vengeful man, who couldn't take Kalinda out, he couldn't beat her at being an investigator so Blake hit below the belt. Her past, her identity and sexual encounter with Peter were exposed.

"How was my husband, Kalinda? Was he good?!" Alicia cried out, she was so angry and heartbroken. Kalinda didn't know what to say, what to do. She didn't believe in God, but she was asking God to just turned back time, make it all go away please. As Kalinda cried herself to sleep that night, she swear to not make this mistake again, she shouldn't let anyone get closer, its not worth the heartache. She will let them down, or they will let her down. To make things worse, Nick maybe knew her new name and location now. Kalinda planned a couple of exit strategies as she waited for the other shoe to drop but there weren't any signs of Nick or his men in Chicago.

In the meantime Kalinda had to spend time with Alicia in the office, they couldn't avoid each other forever, they were both very discrete about their falling out but people noticed they weren't side by side anymore.

Then one day Grace Florrick gone missing. Only by chance Alicia couldn't reach the teenager, she thought the worst had happened to her little girl. Kalinda came to the rescue by simply figuring out Grace's location and picking her up.

"I really didn't know my phone was dead." Grace looked down at her feet. Kalinda was driving her back to Alicia's apartment.

"Why didn't you tell your mom you were going to get baptized?"

The teen tilted her head "She thinks its dumb...well..I think she thinks it's dumb."

"I don't think it's dumb." Kalinda said. "It's just something humans do, like rooting for the Toronto Maple Leafs. It can be fun, it can fill your life but you can't let it became everything to you. That's dangerous."

"Okay." Grace didn't know what Kalinda meant by that. Grace eventually understood it when she shared time with white christian fanatics in college.

Kalinda told Grace to not saying anything to Alicia, she didn't want to complicated the situation even more. Alicia found out weeks later and returned the favor to Kalinda's surprise. When Kalinda was arrested, Alicia paid her bail and was waiting for her outside. There was a glimpse of hope for them, it was fragile, but the hope was there.

Then Nick came around, ready to blow it all up.

Kalinda wasn't sure how to fight him, so to buy time, she joined him. It was a double edge sword, the investigator could keep an eye on him but at the same time there was a familiarity with him. Easy to be back in his arms again, for good or bad, he was her longest relationship, he knew her. But Nick was a jealous man, he wanted Kalinda all by himself and away from her work, from Cary and from Alicia. He saw them as threats, just like he saw Leela's mom as a threat. She had to act quick.

"Hey Roja" Kalinda knocked on the door of the car where Dexter Roja was waiting for Lemond Bishop's son.

"Jesus woman."

"Did I scare you?" She smiled to him.

"Nah, but you always bring bad news."

"Not this time. I got you a gift." Kalinda dropped a photo of Nick in the yank yard on Roja's lap.

"Who the hell is this?"

"The man trying to take over your territory. He's using his bright new tolling company to smuggle drugs from Canada."

"For real?" Roja raised his eyebrow. "You ain't playing games with me?"

"It's good intel." Kalinda said. "If I were you, I would kick his ass back to the north." With that Nick's fate was sealed. The investigator went straight to Alicia to assure her she wasn't in danger. Nick was gone.

But the surprises wouldn't end there. Cary and Alicia were leaving the firm and forming their own, Kalinda wasn't told. Alicia's logic was that Kalinda was loyal to Will, but Kalinda didn't see it that way, she thought Alicia hadn't forgive her for sleeping with Peter. It was too big of an obstacle, especially if Alicia was going to give it an honest try with Peter. It broke Kalinda's heart to know this, Alicia was her one 'pure' relationship and it was over for good. No more inside jokes, late night drinks, sharing a laugh before a trial. She could've took a bullet for Alicia but Alicia couldn't say the same thing anymore.

After Will's murder, Kalinda didn't look for Alicia for comfort, she instead look for it in Cary. Sex to make the world-go away, to suppress feelings. Kalinda had some feelings for Cary, she cared for him but she didn't see what could they be besides sex buddies. And because nothing went her way, Cary got arrested in connection to Lemond Bishop. In her attempt to help Cary, Kalinda got more and more involved in the drug dealer's issues.

The investigator sadly realized that she got free from Nick but she was in the same position with Bishop, all she did was postponed her fate. She couldn't do that again, Kalinda needed to change her fate. No one could save her but herself. The plan she came up with had her sacrifice her life in Chicago. But her life wasn't what used to be: Will was dead, her relationship with Cary wasn't going anywhere and her friendship with Alicia was over. She took her time to say goodbye to Alicia, back at 'their bar', back to where all began, one more shot of tequila for old times sake. They talked but Kalinda and Alicia might as well be 1,000 miles apart. The very next day Kalinda pulled the trigger and got the hell out of Chicago.

Outside the sirens stopped, the tornado warning was lifted. The rest of the workers came out of the shelter space but Grace and Kalinda stayed in the office. The former investigator had told Grace (a non specific version of) her life.

"Grace?" Kalinda saw how the young lawyer was absorbed on her thoughts.

"You're the second queer person this month that tells me how they ran away from home because they didn't feel welcome in their own family." Grace finally spoke. "So I can add that to my list of anxieties as a mom."

"I'm sure you're a good mom." Kalinda replied. "Like your mom."

"How did you testified in court?" Grace changed the subject. "Your testimonies could've been dismiss because you were lying about your identity. When did my mom find out? Weren't you in my dad's Grand jury? Did my dad knew too?"

Kalinda shrugged.

"I guess it doesn't matter now." Grace rubbed her temples, she was getting a big headache. "Why are you here? Are you here to take the fall?"

"No. I didn't kill Nick."

"You just told his drug dealers rivals where to find him."

"I didn't know they were going to kill him."

"Really? What did you expect?"

Kalinda again just slightly shrugged. "Listen Grace, this is my mess and I'm here to fix it. Do you know Dexter Roja? He was a Bishop lieutenant. He's in Stateville doing 35 to life for another murder. He's ready to confess."

"Did he kill your husband?"

"He doesn't remember." Kalinda tells her. "He says he killed a lot of people, Nick was one of them probably."

"That's...very dark and upsetting." Grace said as she looked for an ibuprofen in her purse. "What does he want in return? I don't have any pull with Illinois Prisons and no way they cut short his conviction."

"Her." Kalinda took out her phone and showed Grace a photo of a 14 years old girl. "Her name is Issa Bayer, she's Roja's niece. She's a good student, she just missed out on a scholarship, she could use some help to get into a prestigious preparatory school here in Chicago, maybe courtesy of the Peter Florrick scholarship found."

"Did she already sign up for the scholarship? Okay." Grace found the ibuprofen and she swallow it dry. Then she texted Ramona. "Done, her family will be inform tomorrow. Anything else?"

"I got something for you. For all your trouble." Kalinda gave her a thumb drive.

"What is it?"

"Here are the names and addresses of 3 different ghost companies that your dad used a few months before his murder." Kalinda said, "I'm sure if you follow the money..."

Grace took the thumb drive and tossed it on the nearest garbage bin. Kalinda was shook. "What are you doing?"

"I know who killed my father, I know why. The money, the bribes, the companies, it's a circle going no where because the man who gave the order will never admit it and the man who pulled the trigger will never be found."

"That's sad. You of all people think that way."

"Because he was my dad?"

"And because you're the State's Attorney."

"Justice is not always achievable." Grace shrugged.

"Unless..." Kalinda's mind was always working. She made an educated guess. "You kept some money...Your stepmom kept some of the money."

Grace smiled. "The Peter Florrick Scholarship Found isn't cheap."

"I see." Kalinda took a good look at Grace again, she wasn't that scared girl she drove home. The innocence was gone, something else took a hold of her. She wondered how Alicia felt seeing her daughter act like that.

"The storm is over. We can go now. " Grace said as she opened the office door. "Tell me Kalinda, after all the running, did you find a home?"

"I did."

"Good."

Kalinda step out of the cab just outside her home, the heat was humid and she immediately took off her jacket. Her house was one story high, the walls were white with a big wood door, there was a big bougainvillea bush full of pink flowers in front.

"Buenas tardes." The neighbor waved at her from her side of the fence. "Espero que le guste el pollito que le llevé ayer a su esposa."

"Si, gracias." Kalinda nodded and entered her home, a dog came running to meet her. Kalinda pet the rescue dog. "Hey, there's my girl!"

"I thought I was your girl." Lana Delaney smiled at Kalinda.

"You're my esposa, according to our neighbor." Kalinda kissed the former FBI agent. "I miss you."

"Miss you too." Lana hugged her. "Did you fix the thing?"

"I did."

"Now what?"

"Nothing.. It was the last thing tying me back to Chicago and is done."

After all those heartbreaks, Kalinda was happy.

It's always: "How was my husband?" and "Stop banging the help" but never "Wait, I think this is a pattern and my husband is abusing his power". Anyway. Fair warning, next chapter will be about an OC but its gonna be short and I swear its relevant.