The sharp ringing of her alarm pulled Gauri out of sleep.

She groaned softly, turned to her side, and reached for her phone.

7:00 AM.

She switched off the alarm lazily and squinted at the notification bar.

One unread message.

From her boss.

Still half-asleep, she opened it.

"You are fired!"

For a second, her brain refused to process it.

Then she bolted upright.

"What—?"

Her heart began pounding.

"No... this must be a mistake."

She rubbed her eyes and read it again.

"You are fired."

Her throat went dry.

"Might be a typing mistake... yes. It has to be a typing mistake," she muttered to herself, panic rising. "She can't just fire me like this."

Without wasting another second, she dialed her boss's number.

The call connected after two rings.

"Good morning, Gauri," her boss said calmly.

Gauri forced steadiness into her voice.

"Good morning, ma'am. I... I received a message from you. I think there's been some mistake. I just wanted to confirm."

There was a brief silence.

"No, Gauri," her boss replied, her tone shifting slightly. "The message is correct."

Gauri felt like the ground slipped beneath her feet.

"W-what?"

"You can't work here anymore."

Her fingers tightened around the phone.

"But why, ma'am?" Her voice trembled despite her effort to control it. "Did I make a mistake in any project? I can correct it—"

"It's not about your work."

"Then what is it?"

Her boss exhaled softly.

"Please understand, Gauri. I cannot risk my own position by keeping you here."

Gauri froze.

"I didn't fire you on my own," her boss continued. "This is an order from upper authority."

Upper authority.

The words echoed in her mind.

"Who?" she whispered. "Who gave the order?"

But the line had already gone dead.

She slowly lowered the phone from her ear.

Her chest felt tight.

Upper authority.

There was only one person powerful enough to influence her small company so easily.

One person who had looked at her calmly yesterday and said—

Sign toh tumhe karna padega...

Her jaw clenched.

"So this is your way, Mr. Shekhawat?"

The anger that replaced her shock was new.

Raw.

He didn't threaten.

He acted.

Gauri stepped out of her room.

Kishori was in the kitchen, humming softly.

"Beta, get ready fast. You'll be late for office."

Gauri stood there quietly.

For the first time in years—

She had nowhere to go.

And somewhere in his office, Hriday Singh Shekhawat was already at his desk.

Waiting.

The next thing Gauri did—

She stormed straight into Hriday Singh Shekhawat's office.

The cabin door banged open loudly.

"Why did you do that?!"

Her voice echoed across the glass walls.

Two employees standing in front of Hriday froze.

Hriday didn't.

"You both may leave. Work on the further terms," he said calmly, not even looking at her.

They nodded quickly and stepped out. One of them shot Gauri an irritated glare.

She ignored it.

Hriday leaned back in his chair lazily.

"Take a seat, Miss."

"No."

He tilted his head slightly.

"Okay... Miss Pressure Cooker."

A faint smirk appeared on his lips.

Gauri's eyes widened in disbelief. "Don't call me that!"

"What did I do?" he asked innocently. "You entered my office like you were about to explode."

"What you did that my boss threw me out of the office?"

She marched closer to his desk.

"That," Hriday replied coolly, "is none of your concern. What concerns you is this."

He tapped a file placed neatly on the table.

"You should sign it as soon as possible."

"Why would I listen to you?"

"Because I'm saying so."

"You are not my owner that you'll order and I'll obey."

A slow, dangerous smile curved on his face.

"But I am the owner of the property you want."

Silence.

"So yes... you have to listen, Miss."

"It's Gauri Podder," she corrected firmly.

He glanced at her from head to toe.

"Typical."

"Excuse me, sir. You can't disrespect me like this."

She controlled her tone carefully. She refused to show weakness.

"Do you even have any respect?" she added.

"As a human, you should respect other humans too."

Hriday gave a dark chuckle.

"Human?"

"Yes, sir. Or... don't you consider yourself one?"

His jaw tightened.

"What the hell are you implying? What do you think I am?"

She looked at him straight in the eye.

"You look like an ichthyosaur."

Silence.

"...What?"

"An ichthyosaur."

His brows furrowed.

"Didn't you study about dinosaurs?"

His ego twitched instantly.

"I was a gold medalist. Don't you dare question my qualifications."

She didn't nod.

That irritated him more.

He picked up the glass of water and drank the whole thing in one go.

Gauri watched him quietly.

"So," he said after placing the glass down, "where was I?"

"You were talking about your qualification," she replied calmly.

He glared at her.

Then pushed the file toward her.

"This is your last option. You will sign it."

"I have a meeting. I'm giving you one hour to take your final decision."

And just like that, he walked out.

Gauri sat alone in his huge, luxurious office.

Everything around her screamed power.

Money.

Control.

Influence.

She looked at the contract again.

Three months.

Personal cook.

Live-in arrangement not required. Only daily service.

Salary — surprisingly high.

Her hands trembled slightly.

"What should I do... Durga Maa..."

She leaned back in the chair.

"No job. No income. Maa's medicines. Rent..."

Her throat tightened.

"If he's giving me work, I should accept it. It's only three months. After that, I'll find another job."

Her jaw set firmly.

"I am not weak."

Decision made.

The door opened.

Hriday walked in, removing his coat casually.

"So?" he asked. "What have you decided?"

She flinched slightly at his voice but quickly composed herself.

"I will sign the contract."

"Good decision."

He sat down.

She stood still.

He raised an eyebrow.

"Pen."

"Oh."

He handed her his expensive fountain pen.

She closed her eyes for a brief second.

A silent prayer.

Strength.

Dignity.

She opened her eyes.

Signed.

The scratch of ink on paper felt louder than it should.

She pushed the file back toward him.

He glanced at the signature and nodded once.

"Congratulations. You start tomorrow."

He leaned back.

"You already know my address."

A faint, unreadable smile appeared.

"See you tomorrow, Miss Pressure Cooker."

Gauri turned to leave.

But something inside her whispered—

This wasn't just a job.

This was war.