Chapter 232 - Enjoy your evening everybody…

Naren who was about to pounce on Shreya in spite of her warning was actually stopped by the iron grip of Abishek holding him back.

"If you really don't want to die on your birthday, you better stay put. If you are looking to have a really gruesome death, then you can try and take a swing at her by all means. But I would really not advise you on that." He warned in his rusty voice as he looked at Shreya.

"Somebody with some common sense at last," Shreya smirked and walked away at last. "Enjoy your evening everybody…" She said to everyone else in the hall and walked out with Srinivas hot on her trails.

As soon as she walked out, her car was waiting for her. None of the reporters dared to even breathe in her direction as she got into the car and drove away.

The whole hall was still in stunned silence when the doors opened from one corner of the hall and Dharsh walked in not really knowing what had happened. He just casually walked in when he noticed the odd silence in the hall.

That is when everyone came back to their senses. They all looked at each other bewildered for a second before leaving their booze glasses and scrambled from their places. After all, they can't really afford to offend the Sri corp. Only half of them actually bothered to excuse themselves, others did not even bother to do that.

Within minutes, the bustling hall was emptied.

Only Dharsh, the bodyguards, and the serving staff were left in the hall except for Naren, Abimanyu, and Abishek.

"Where the hell were you?" Naren flared on Dharsh pushing him harshly almost making Dharsh on his butt.

Dharsh, who had long gotten used to this treatment just answered him calmly, "You were the one who sent me to drop off those foreign clients in the airport. There was traffic on the way." He did not even ask what happened here… after all, he saw Shreya walk out just as he entered.

And he also saw the looks on all the guests… they looked as if they had seen a ghost or something. And as far as he knew, only Shreya was capable of bringing such a look on so many people all at once. And even otherwise, Naren was not really someone he could ask questions to anyways. He was someone who treated people like expandables rather than as a person.

"Naren, calm down now. What exactly did she tell you? And why the hell did you punch her?" Abimanyu enquired.

"Nothing concrete. Just something about a birthday gift tomorrow… with regards from her parents'…" Naren said. Even he himself did not know how the hell she actually provoked him the punch her. So, he did not elaborate on it. He just took the glass on the table beside him and downed the alcohol in frustration.

"Look after your company…" Abimanyu advised keeping an arm over Naren's shoulders and left the hotel.

Abishek did not even bother to do that much. He just left quietly leaving him to drown in alcohol.

In the car, Abimanyu made some calls the try and keep the news of today's spectacle contained… but it was really to no avail since the video of what had happened had already started circulating in the mass media a long while ago… and the internet was already exploding with people cursing them three for bully a little orphaned girl all because they felt threatened of her status.

No matter what they say now would be of no use. And he could already see his companies fate going to hell as soon as the market opened tomorrow.

He quickly called Malini. She was actually supposed to be here with him when everything happened, but then she called in at the last minute and canceled it saying something urgent popped up in the company.

"Hey, dad. Aren't you supposed to be partying at this time?" She asked pleasantly.

Abimanyu let out a sigh started talking, "No… I am already on my way to the company. Something happened at the party. Our shares are going to drop tomorrow morning… I will send you some account numbers. Use the money in there and try to stabilize the company for now. I have to meet up with other clients and shareholders. You deal with the finances…"

Malini hummed and cut the call as she viewed the screen in front of her with wide eyes.

The screen had an email… more like a threat. She knew it was Shreya. All it had was a single question.

"Have you made your decision yet? You are running out of time…"

And attached to the mail were photos… surveillance photos of each and every member of her family… including herself… all taken in the last 24 hours. The meaning behind them cannot be more clearer than this. This was so like Shreya… conveying her intentions without the need to actually say anything.

This mail was the whole reason why she never made it to the party this evening. She received this email right after lunch and from then on, all she could do was stare at it.

But after hearing Abimanyu, Malini did not think she really had any option now… because she understood how fast her time was running out.

She fidgeted and paced around in her office for a long time before sending a reply mail.

"I need a face to face meeting… in a secure location. Tomorrow… Bring your tech with you…"

It was short and precise to point just like the once Shreya had sent.

Somehow, the uneasiness she had been feeling all this while subsided as she sent that mail.

Malini was experiencing what felt like literal hell from the time she had raided her father's study. She really wished she hadn't done it but a part of her is also glad she did. It was as if she was being shuttled between two points constantly for the whole of this week.

She was really shocked by what she had found in her dad's study. Well, actually shocked will be an understatement. What she found actually paralyzed her… flipped her damn world.

At last, she understood what Shreya told her about her not really having much of a choice in the matter except to help her. But her goody-two-shoes side of her really ate her alive from both the sides.

One side, she could not digest the things her father had did and on the other hand, she couldn't accept that the only way she could save him and her family was to actually betray them.

The last time she had met with Shreya was the last day she had actually had any decent amount of sleep. She couldn't bring herself to actually shut her eyes without thoughts bombarding her like a damn meteoroid explosion.

Everyone in the company can see her exhaustion but no one dared to come and ask her. And her own dad had been busy with some foreign delegates the whole week to notice anything amiss in his study or Malini. For which she was really grateful actually.

She had been such a mess in the whole week that she was not sure she could have hidden it from him successfully if he were to actually confront her face to face.

On the other side of the city, Shreya was, at last, getting some shut eyes as the car steadily drove through the roads to her apartment.

Her phone chimed bringing her out of her thoughts.

Srinivas got rid of the driver and was personally driving while two other cars followed them just in case. Even though it was unlikely for them to actually target her this evening, Srinivas was not at ease… so she just let him do as he pleased.

Shreya opened her mail and after carefully reading it, her lips twitched into a smile.

Srinivas gave her a peculiar look and asked, "What happened?" After all, she wore a really grave expression since they walked out of the hotel. Seeing her smile, he got curious.

"Malini wants to meet. Arrange a quieter place this time… Tomorrow first thing in the morning, I will go to meet her." Shreya instructed and went back and closed her eyes. She pulled her hoodie over her head and pushed back her seat to the maximum and snuggled in. After a while, her soft breathing filled the air as she went into sleep.

After all, she really had one hell of a day. She had been running around from morning. And she had been running her mind nonstop too on top of it. So, if she did not get tired, she wouldn't really be human.

Srinivas just quietly drove them both to her apartment while simultaneously keeping a sharp eye on the road around.

By the time Shreya blinked her eyes open, they were already parked on her apartment parking lot.

She let out a yawn and stretched her hands lazily.