Chapter 1
Chapter 1 – The Missing Students
A few days ago, three film school students went missing. Their families grew worried and filed a missing case. The investigation was assigned to Inspector Vinod and Head Constable Ramu.
During the inquiry, the police learned that the three students were last seen in Amovaram village. With little to go on, Vinod and Ramu set out for the remote settlement to investigate.
The villagers were reluctant to talk. Some admitted they had seen the students filming around the village. One man swore he saw them enter the Amovaram cave the day before they vanished.
Vinod and Ramu went to the cave, searching its surroundings for clues. But the earth gave up nothing—no signs of the students, no evidence of their presence.
Disappointed, they started back toward the village. That’s when Ramu spotted something unusual: a surveillance camera, mounted high on a tree deep in the woods.
“Sir… who would put a camera out here?” Ramu asked, his brow furrowed.
Vinod narrowed his eyes. The jungle was no place for electronics, much less surveillance. They carefully retrieved the camera and carried it back to the Amovaram police outpost.
Vinod handed it to Ramu. “Check the footage. If you find anything, call me. I’ll go speak to the villagers again.”
While Ramu began examining the camera, Vinod walked into the heart of the village. He stopped at a tea stall, asking questions, searching faces for any flicker of recognition. But every answer was vague, every gaze evasive.
Frustration grew in his chest. Then, as he turned to leave, he noticed a little girl watching him from behind a tree.
He approached slowly, his steps gentle. The girl tried to run, but tripped and fell, crying softly. Vinod picked her up, brushed the dust from her dress, and offered her a chocolate from his pocket.
“Thank you,” she whispered, her eyes still wet. “My name is Sita.”
Vinod smiled warmly. “That’s a beautiful name. But tell me, why were you hiding? Why run when you saw me?”
Her face lowered, her voice barely audible. “He told me not to talk to you.”
Vinod’s pulse quickened. “Who told you that, Sita?”
The girl leaned close to his ear and whispered, trembling:
“The man in the dark.”
Before Vinod could ask more, she wriggled free of his arms and bolted, vanishing between the huts.
Vinod stood frozen, confusion and unease pressing against his chest. Then his phone rang—it was Ramu, his voice urgent.
“Sir, you need to see this footage. Now.”
