04

--※※--It Begins--※※--

Author's POV

The air inside S&M Consultations carried the sharp scent of freshly printed reports and brewing coffee, but for Gauri Deshmukh, the weight of the file in her hands overpowered everything else. Malhotra Industries: Internal Audit Investigation—the bold letters stared back at her, a silent reminder of the magnitude of the case she was about to take on.

She had dealt with high-profile clients before, but none carried the sheer power and mystique of the Malhotra name. An empire built on hardwork and sweat, on ambition and ruthlessness.

A soft chime from her phone snapped her out of her thoughts.

Meeting in five minutes. Conference Room A.

With a deep breath, she squared her shoulders and made her way to the glass-walled conference room, where Siddharth Mehta, the CEO of her firm, stood waiting. Several senior consultants were already seated, flipping through their copies of the same ominous file she carried.

"Gauri," Siddharth greeted with a nod. "Take a seat."

She slid into the chair beside Rohan Khanna, her colleague cum friend and occasional rival. He smirked, tapping a pen against his file. "Looks like we've landed in the lion's den."

Gauri arched a brow but didn't respond. If he thought she'd be intimidated by this assignment, he didn't know her well enough.

Siddharth cleared his throat, bringing the room to order. "Malhotra Industries has requested a full audit of their financial records following reports of internal sabotage. The inconsistencies are minor but persistent—small amounts vanishing, unapproved transactions, unusual vendor payments. Someone inside the company is pulling the strings, and they expect us to find out who."

A tense silence settled over the room.

"We'll be granted complete access to their financial records," Siddharth continued. "But make no mistake—this is not a standard audit. This is about trust. Raghav Malhotra doesn't take kindly to outsiders prying into his business. Any misstep, and we'll be shut out before we can get to the truth."

Gauri flipped open the file, scanning the summary. The numbers spoke of careful manipulation—too small to draw immediate suspicion, yet strategic enough to hint at something deeper. This wasn't simple embezzlement. It was a game of patience.

She looked up. "When do we start?"

Siddharth's lips curled into a knowing smile. "Day after tomorrow. But before that, there's something else." He slid an envelope across the table, its gold-rimmed edges gleaming. "The Malhotra Gala. A personal invitation from Anjali Malhotra herself."

Gauri's fingers hesitated before picking it up. "A gala? For an audit team?"

"Networking," Siddharth said simply. "The Malhotras want to assess us just as much as we want to assess them."

Rohan chuckled. "Or intimidate us."

Siddharth ignored him. "Gauri, you,Rohan and a few senior consultants will attend. This is an opportunity to understand their inner circle. Watch their interactions, their tensions. Numbers don't lie—but people do."

Gauri nodded, already feeling the weight of what lay ahead.

The audit had just begun, but the real battle would unfold far beyond the balance sheets.

__________________________________________________________

Raghav stood by the floor-to-ceiling windows of his office, watching the sea churn restlessly below. The city stretched beyond it, glittering under the evening sky, but his mind was focused elsewhere.

Aditi, his assistant, stepped inside, placing a neat stack of files on his desk. "The final guest list for the gala, sir. Your mother wanted you to have a look."

Raghav turned, flipping through the pages without much interest. The gala was a tradition—an extravagant display of power and unity among Mumbai's elite. He had long since stopped caring about such affairs, but his mother insisted. Appearances matter, she often reminded him.

"Anything I need to be concerned about?" he asked, skimming through the names.

"A few new faces," Aditi replied. "Some high-profile investors. And a team from S&M Consultations."

His gaze stilled. "Consultants?"

"Anjali ma'am extended the invitation. She believes it's good to foster relationships in the business world."

Raghav's expression remained unreadable, but something about the addition unsettled him. He didn't like surprises.

"Fine," he said, placing the list aside. "Make sure everything is in order. I don't want any unnecessary disruptions."

Aditi nodded and exited, leaving him alone with his thoughts.

The Malhotras never entertained outsiders without a reason. If consultants were attending, it meant something was brewing.

And Raghav intended to find out exactly what.

____________________________________________________________

Gauri's POV

By the time I stepped into my apartment that evening, exhaustion clung to me like a second skin. I tossed my bag onto the couch and sank into the armchair, staring at the Malhotra Industries invitation resting on the coffee table.

A gala.

I had spent years proving myself in boardrooms, letting my work speak for itself. And now, before I had even started the audit, I was being pulled into the Salian world—their wealth, their power, their rules.

With a sigh, I picked up the invitation, running my fingers over the embossed lettering.

I had read about Raghav Malhotra in business magazines—an enigma in the corporate world. Regal, calculating, and relentless. A man who had inherited an empire and shaped it into something even more formidable. He was known for his sharp mind and sharper instincts, the kind of man who saw through deception before it even formed.

I wasn't intimidated.

But I wasn't foolish either.

People like Raghav Malhotra didn't invite outsiders into their world without a reason.

A notification lit up my phone.

Siddharth Sir: "Dress well for the gala. First impressions matter."

I exhaled, shaking my head. This wasn't just about numbers anymore.

This was a game. And I had just been invited to play.

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