“Cancel the deal. IYS will not be entering a partnership with his company.” Yuvraj Suryavanshi delivered the sentence with the finality of a man accustomed to being obeyed without question. Batra looked at him from the other side of the screen like he’d just asked him to burn down the Reserve Bank. His mouth opened, closed, and then opened again.

“But sir,” Batra ventured carefully, “if we go through with the cancellation, we’ll be liable to pay a compensation of one hundred and ninety-eight million dollars.”