Contractually Mine (Mine Series, Book 1)

Chapter 1: Long live the Saheb

Shaivi's POV

I could hear the pandit chant away the mantras, but my eyes were focused on the sight before me. The dead body of Raichand Singhania is covered in a white cloth and adorned with flowers. Baba, my baba, was no more. The coroner deemed it a heart attack, but we all knew it was a lie. My baba was killed by someone in cold blood, I wouldn't stop until I had their hea-

"Beta, Pandit Ji is asking for you."

Sharma Ji's voice broke my chain of thought. He looked like he hadn't stopped crying ever since he got the news and knowing the amount of devotion he had to Baba, it probably was the case. I looked around at the men and women present there in varying stages of grief, all here to pay their respects to the dead and most importantly, to pledge their loyalty to me, the new Saheb. All eyes were silently judging me, weighing me to see if I was worthy of the title.

I followed him to where the pandit sat. I followed his words as he instructed me, but on the inside, I couldn't feel it. I was numb. All I could think about was how I was going to end the one who dared to do this.

I saw the faces around me, judging them silently. For now, all were suspects. Some were new, but most had been with Baba since before I was born. They were all loyal to Baba, I knew, but would they display the same loyalty to me? Besides them, were the other mafia families. The four major kingpins in the Indian mafia game. The Nair family from Cochin, The Das family from Kolkata, the Khan family from Jammu, and us, the Raisinghania family from Mumbai. My uncle, Chirag Raisinghania, sat in a corner, muttering something to his son, Akanksh. All had the motive, the means, and the resources to get it done. The real question was, who dared to disrupt the peaceful diplomacy my baba had created?

"Beta ji, please pay attention here." The pandit muttered, and I looked back at him.

"Ji, sorry," I mumble, turning my attention back to the puja.

The rituals went on for what felt like an eternity and mere seconds at once, and then, it was time to head to the crematorium.

As soon as they lifted Baba's remains, a lone voice shouted,

"Long live the Saheb!"

Soon enough, those chants filled the air, along with sobs of agony as Baba's remains were carried out to the crematorium.

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A few hours later

By the time the rituals were over and my baba had been reduced to mere ashes, I was done with everything. A part of me wanted to run back to London, but a bigger part of me wished to bring Baba justice. And to do that, I needed to assume the title of the 'Saheb', or the mafia leader. And that meant staying back in Mumbai and assuming the reins.

I walked over to Baba's study- or rather, my study. It felt like I belonged in there. The soft smell of camphor hit my nose as soon as I sat in his chair. 'Baba, what mess have you landed me into?' I mutter to myself, looking at the ceiling. My peaceful time is interrupted, however, by a knock on the door.

"Come in," I command, watching Sharma Ji come in with a plate of food.

"You haven't eaten a morsel for the whole day, beta. This won't do. You need your strength to run the mafia." He scolded me, putting the plate in front of me.

"Sharma ji, I can't-"

"No excuses. Rai saheb must be looking at me from above, wondering why I haven't taken care of his precious Sherni."

"But-"

"No 'ifs' or 'buts' Shaivi, or I will feed you from my own hands."

The use of my first name shut me up. Sharma ji rarely used it, for the times I had messed up badly. His tone also booked no opposition. I hold one hand in surrender and begin eating with the other. Sharma ji gives me a tired smile, before taking a seat in front of me.

"Beta, if you don't mind, can I ask something?"

"Sure, go ahead."

"Are you sure you can do this, beta? Saheb had a lot of enemies, which you have inherited along with the mafia. And a few of them won't hesitate to look down on you for being a woman." He looked genuinely concerned for me. I pause, looking him dead in the eyes.

"I will, Sharma ji. For Baba, for my family legacy. And for those who oppose a woman in power, it's time to show them what this Sherni is made of."

"That's what I thought." He ruffled my hair playfully. "Now if you need anything, anything at all, I will be here for you, always."

I took a deep breath. Come what may, I was going to be my father's daughter and run this city, by hook, or by crook.