Hello, Mr. Major General (1)

Chapter 14: Following the Vine to Find the Melon(2)

"Prepare two million-in cash-and I'll see if I can find someone to get you a bit of it." The drunk young man
grinned, his eyes rolled back. He did not appear drunk, but that he was actually under the influence of drugs.
The overweight man who called
himself "Master Ali," smiled as he bowed hastily. "Then I'll go prepare it. When will you have it?"

"Be patient, I'll give you an update in two days." The young man belched and took out his phone. He called his cousin as he waved goodbye to Master Ali and said in a drunken slur, "Sister, today it's my treat. I'm gonna celebrate you passing the interview. Come to room 518 on the top floor of
Fortune Palace. See you here!"

Arti Sinha was on the other end of the line. Her interview had been very successful that day. The 28-years old, overseas educated, Faculty of Law professor at B University, Kartik Sen
, was extremely accomplished and handsome. The thought sent her heart fluttering. She wanted to jump for joy
and share her exuberance and pride.
"Cousin, are you really holding a celebration for me?"

"Of course! You are my cousin, what kind of relationship do we have here? Hurry up! Once you get here you'll know, there's a huge surprise!"

"Ok, I'll come over now." Arti smiled and changed into a black and white dress so short that it ended on tops of her thighs. It made her legs appear even more fair and slender.

Arti Sinha arrived to the private room 518 on the top floor of Fortune Palace alone. Just as she opened the door, the dark room suddenly lit up and a waterfall of petals and confetti fell from the ceiling. Complimenting this were the pops of champagne bottles opening and sounds of party horns,
which completed the atmosphere of boisterous cheer.

"Surprise!"

A group of finely dressed men and women appeared from different corners of the private room to applaud and welcome Arti Sinha, who was still at the door. Arti's cousin walked up from behind the crowd with a giant bouquet of roses. He smiled as he handed it to her, then took her into an embrace and kissed her on the cheek
as per the Western customs. "Sister, I'm throwing this party as an early celebration for your successful admission as Kartik Sen's post-grad student in B University's Faculty of Law!"

Arti couldn't stop grinning. While the party was underway, someone took out "the good stuff", which everyone started snorting. Arti normally was not the sort of person to fool around with drugs, but she was especially euphoric that night and couldn't help giving
into her curiosity when she saw the others in utter ecstasy from it. She had no grasp of what was happening around her after she took it, feeling feverish as she continued to drink and
enjoy herself to maddening levels. The last thing Arti recalled doing was removing her clothing and embracing
someone while the party carried on.
Before the monitors in the Fortune Palace security room, a man
appearing as a security guard covertly recorded the crazed revelry of room 518, then sent it to a mysterious
account.

Soon after, Deepak received the video on the other end.

"Sir, we have the video. Arti Sinha's cousin, Bhavik Sethi, was the one who sold the H3aB7." Sidharth acknowledged the information with a firm nod, his jaw clenched. "Keep an eye on him."

Late into the night, Sidharth returned to his quarters and saw Sandeep sitting on the living room floor. A pile of his medical instruments was laid out before him and he was concentrating on extracting and purifying blood samples. "Why haven't you left yet?" Sidharth asked. He paused mid-step. "Where's Shehnaaz? Did she eat yet?" Sandeep sighed and shook his head. "She's not awake yet."
He glanced at Sidharth. "Do you realize what you've done? You were only supposed to let her get to release, but you nearly killed her!"

Sidharth stood in silence. He then crossed the small hallway to the bedroom and saw that the door was, indeed, still closed. Sidharth felt a twinge of worry and asked,"She really
hasn't woken up?" He opened the bedroom door to enter.