Chapter 26 · Arrival of the Audit Team

Chapter 26

Arrival of the Audit Team

Arrival of the Audit Team

Monday morning.

The atmosphere in the office was completely different.

Everyone was busy.

Because an external audit team was coming today.

Manager Rajat Dutta had been instructing the staff since morning.

— "No one is to say anything unnecessary in front of the auditors. Answer only what they ask."

Everyone nodded.

The remark felt strange to Meghla.

At half past ten in the morning, three auditors arrived at the office.

Their team leader was Amitabha Chakraborty.

An experienced man with a calm temperament.

He said right away,

— "We haven't come to prove anyone guilty. We're just here to check the accounts. So everyone, please stay relaxed."

One file after another began to be examined.

The audit file Meghla had prepared was also placed before them.

Amitabha babu began examining the papers very carefully.

Suddenly he stopped at a bill.

— "Where is the original copy of this bill?"

Rajat Dutta answered at once,

— "That is the original copy."

The auditor said again,

— "Strange! The color of the paper and the print date don't match."

Rajat Dutta faltered for a moment but composed himself.

— "Maybe it was reprinted later."

The auditor said nothing more.

But he wrote something down in his notebook.

Meghla was watching everything from a distance.

Hope stirred in her heart.

After noon, the auditors began speaking with staff members individually.

Ananya was called too.

She spoke only about work.

She made no complaint.

Because she was afraid.

Finally, Meghla was called.

Amitabha babu asked,

— "Did you prepare this file?"

— "Yes, sir."

— "Do you think any changes were made to the file?"

Meghla stayed silent for a few seconds.

She knew—

making an accusation without proof would not be right.

So she only said,

— "The documents I started working with — some papers seemed different later. But I'm not certain, so I don't want to make an accusation."

Amitabha babu looked at her for a while.

Then he said,

— "Good. It's right not to accuse without being certain."

Hearing this answer, Rajat Dutta breathed a sigh of relief.

He thought,

"The girl has no proof."

But as he was leaving, Amitabha babu did something strange.

He went and took a look around the storeroom, the corridor, and the record room.

His experienced eyes seemed to be searching for something.

Standing at a distance, Kamala Devi was watching everything.

She thought to herself,

"This gentleman isn't like the others. He's looking for the truth."

That day, before the office closed, Amitabha babu said just one thing to Meghla—

"The truth can be hidden, but it can't be suppressed forever. If you ever have any information, don't be afraid to share it."

For the first time, hope stirred in Meghla's heart.

She realized...

this auditor might just be the one to one day open the first door to the truth.

To be continued...

Chapter 27

A Cup of Tea

A Cup of Tea

The second day of the audit team.

There had been a suppressed tension in the office since morning.

Rajat Dutta kept reminding the staff again and again,

— "Answer only what the auditors ask. There's no need to say anything extra."

Though everyone nodded, there was a strange worry on Kamala Devi's face.

Around noon, chief auditor Amitabha Chakraborty stood alone in the corridor looking over documents.

Kamala Devi came to bring tea.

As she was leaving after serving the tea, Amitabha babu called out—

— "Could you wait a moment?"

Kamala grew frightened.

— "Yes... sir?"

— "How many years have you been working here?"

— "About twelve years."

— "Then you must have seen a lot about this office?"

Kamala stayed silent.

Amitabha babu smiled.

— "Don't be afraid. I don't want to get anyone into trouble. I only want to know the truth."

After staying silent for a while, Kamala's eyes welled up.

She said, slowly,

— "Sir, a poor person has nothing but their job. That's why everyone stays quiet."

— "What kind of girl is Meghla?"

Hearing the question, Kamala didn't hesitate even a moment.

— "Sir, even if my own daughter were alive, I couldn't have been this sure about her character. I haven't seen a girl as honest as Meghla in this office."

Amitabha babu was listening carefully.

Kamala said again,

— "Everyone is slandering her. But I've seen with my own eyes that she has never done wrong. In fact, she has never bowed her head to injustice."

This time Amitabha babu asked in a low voice,

— "Do you know of any specific incident?"

Kamala hesitated a little.

Then he said,

— "That night, the manager sir and P.A. Sanjay went into the storeroom. The file that later caused so much trouble..."

She didn't finish the rest.

Amitabha babu took out a small notebook and wrote down a few things.

Then he said,

— "Don't tell anyone what you've told me, not yet. And if anyone tries to threaten you, let me know."

For the first time, Kamala felt a surge of courage.

Sanjay was watching this scene from a distance.

He hurried to Rajat Dutta's cabin and said,

— "Sir, there's trouble!"

— "What happened?"

— "The auditor has been talking with Kamala for a long time."

The color drained from Rajat Dutta's face.

He said through gritted teeth,

— "I knew that woman would cause trouble one day."

After thinking for a moment, he said coldly,

— "Kamala needs to be taught a lesson today so she never opens her mouth again."

Meanwhile, Meghla was working at her desk.

Suddenly, a single message came to her phone from an unknown number—

"Save the first witness to the truth. If you delay, it will be too late."

Meghla's heart trembled.

"First witness"—did that mean danger was closing in on Kamala di?

She didn't wait a moment longer.

She got up quickly and rushed out to find Kamala Devi...

To be continued...

Chapter 28

The Transfer Order

The Transfer Order

Meghla ran down to the ground floor.

But Kamala Devi was nowhere to be seen.

Just then, a small crowd of staff had gathered in front of the HR department.

The sound of crying drifted out from inside.

Meghla went closer and saw—

Kamala Devi was standing with her head bowed.

There was a letter in her hand.

— "What happened, Kamala di?"

Kamala couldn't answer.

She handed the letter to Meghla.

The letter read—

"For administrative reasons, you are being transferred to the company's distant warehouse effective tomorrow."

Meghla understood.

This was no ordinary transfer.

This was a plan to remove her.

Just then, Rajat Dutta came and stood there.

A smile of fake sympathy on his face.

— "What happened? Why are you crying?"

Kamala said nothing.

Rajat Dutta said,

— "This is the company's decision. You have to go wherever the work is assigned."

Meghla spoke up bravely,

— "Sir, Kamala di has been working here for so many years. Why a sudden transfer?"

Rajat Dutta said coldly,

— "Are you going to run the HR department now too?"

Meghla fell silent.

In the evening, after the office closed, Kamala Devi sat at the bus stand.

Meghla went and sat beside her.

The two of them stayed quiet for a long time.

Then Kamala said,

— "Dear, don't ruin your own life for my sake."

Meghla said firmly,

— "You spoke the truth against injustice. That's not a crime."

Kamala wiped her tears and said,

— "I have something. I haven't shown it to anyone all this time."

She took out a small pendrive from the end of her sari.

Meghla looked at her, astonished.

— "What's this?"

Kamala said slowly,

— "My son used to work in the IT department of this office. When he left the job, he said — 'Mother, if you ever see injustice, give this to an honest person who will fight for the truth.'"

Meghla took the pendrive with trembling hands.

— "What's on it?"

Kamala shook her head.

— "I don't know. I never opened it to look. I only know my son said — 'One day this will be badly needed.'"

Right at that moment, a black car was parked across the street.

From inside the car, Rajat Dutta was watching everything.

He saw clearly—

Kamala Devi handing something to Meghla.

Rajat Dutta's eyes narrowed.

He immediately called Sanjay.

— "A pendrive has gone into that girl's hands. I don't know what's on it. But somehow, I want it in our hands before tomorrow morning."

Sanjay said,

— "What if I can't get it?"

Rajat Dutta answered coldly,

— "Then it has to be destroyed."

Meghla still didn't know...

the small pendrive in her hand might expose the entire circle of corruption.

To be continued...

Chapter 29

The Missing Pendrive

The Missing Pendrive

Half past eight at night.

Meghla returned home.

She entered her small room in the storeroom and shut the door.

She took the pendrive out of her bag and stared at it for a long time.

Kamala Devi's words kept coming back to her.

"One day this will be badly needed."

There was an old laptop in the room. It had been her father's.

Meghla was about to plug in the pendrive but stopped.

Suddenly she thought—

"What if someone is tracking this? What if there's a virus? I should look at it carefully first."

She wrapped the pendrive in a small piece of cloth again and hid it inside the wardrobe.

The next morning, Meghla was getting ready to go to the office.

Just then, her sister-in-law Sheela cried out.

— "Meghla! Why was your room door open?"

Meghla said, astonished,

— "I was sure I locked it before sleeping!"

She was stunned when she entered the room.

All the clothes in the wardrobe were in disarray.

The drawer was open.

Papers were scattered on the floor.

But strangely—

nothing had been stolen.

Things had only been ransacked.

Meghla's heart trembled.

She quickly reached into the wardrobe and checked...

the pendrive was still there.

She let out a sigh of relief.

She thought to herself,

"So someone was looking for something!"

As soon as she reached the office, Sanjay came and stood in front of her.

There was a strange smile on his face today.

— "What's up, madam? Slept well last night?"

Meghla looked at him, surprised.

— "Yes... why?"

— "Just asked, no reason."

Saying this, he walked away.

Meghla's suspicion deepened further.

At noon, the head of the audit team, Amitabha Chakraborty, came to the office again.

After looking at some documents, he told Meghla,

— "If you have any information or documents related to the company's accounts, keep them safe. No evidence should be allowed to be destroyed."

Meghla was startled.

Had he guessed something?

She only nodded.

That evening, on her way home, Meghla decided—

she would look at the pendrive that very night.

She had to know the truth.

But she didn't know...

a motorbike was slowly following her.

The man sitting on the bike said on the phone,

— "Sir, the girl still hasn't gotten rid of the pendrive. I'm keeping an eye on her."

From the other end came Rajat Dutta's voice—

"We need to find out tonight whether she's opened it or not. No mistakes."

Meghla still had no idea.

The small pendrive inside her bag seemed to be waiting silently...

to reveal an explosive truth.

To be continued...

Chapter 30

The Mystery of the Pendrive

The Mystery of the Pendrive

That night, after everyone fell asleep, Meghla locked her storeroom door from the inside.

She drew the window curtains.

She turned on the old laptop.

Her hands were trembling.

She slowly plugged the pendrive into the USB port.

A single folder appeared on the screen.

"BACKUP"

As soon as she opened the folder, several sub-folders appeared.

Accounts

Bills

Audio

Scan Copy

Meghla's heart began pounding.

She opened the Bills folder first.

There were hundreds of scanned bills.

Many of them bore the name—

"Madhumoy Sweet Shop"

As soon as she opened one bill, she was startled.

The paper was just like the bill she had seen in the audit file.

But here the amount written was—

Rs. 48,750

whereas in the office file it was—

Rs. 4,98,750

Meghla opened another bill.

The same thing had happened there too.

Rs. 72,500 had been changed into Rs. 7,25,000.

Sweat gathered on her forehead.

These were not ordinary mistakes.

This was deliberate fraud.

She then clicked on the Audio folder.

Inside were many recordings.

But most of the files were password-protected.

Only one short audio played.

A conversation between two people could be heard.

One person was saying—

"Keep the original bill separate. A different copy will go for the audit."

The other replied—

"Don't worry, sir. Everything will be taken care of."

The recording was only twenty seconds long.

The voices weren't clear.

No one could be identified for certain.

Meghla understood this alone wasn't enough proof.

Just then...

Knock... knock... knock...

Someone banged loudly on her door.

Meghla's heart trembled.

It was her sister-in-law's voice.

— "What are you doing this late? Not asleep yet?"

Meghla quickly shut the laptop and removed the pendrive.

— "I had some office work. I'm going to bed right now."

Sheela left without saying anything more.

Meghla took a deep breath.

She realized—

this pendrive held important information.

But not the whole truth.

Many files were still locked with passwords.

Without the password, half the mystery remained in the dark.

She carefully put the pendrive back in her bag.

Not in the wardrobe this time.

She would keep it with her at all times.

The next morning, as soon as she reached the office, she saw—

Kamala Devi hadn't come.

Ananya came over with a worried face and said,

— "Have you heard?"

— "What happened?"

— "Kamala di's phone is switched off. She hasn't joined her new workplace today either. No one can find her."

The bag nearly slipped from Meghla's hand.

She thought to herself—

"Does that mean... something has happened to Kamala di?"

Right at that moment, Rajat Dutta, sitting in his cabin, smiled faintly and said,

"Now watch how the truth disappears when there's no witness."

To be continued...