30."8.4 Million Yonis"

As we released Bobby from the chair, he stood up, rubbing his wrists. "If this is a game, then who told me about the dead body on the railway track? I'm confused," he said, his tone laced with frustration.

Athreya's eyes suddenly lit up with an idea. He stepped closer to Bobby, his gaze intense. "What did you just say?"

Bobby looked bewildered. "That I'm a detective."

Athreya shook his head impatiently. "No, no, after that."

Bobby frowned, trying to recall. "I was going home."

Athreya's impatience grew. "No, no, what did you say at the end?"

Bobby finally got it. "A dead body was found on the railway track."

Athreya touched his forehead, deep in thought. "Venkatachalam, Venkatachalam," he muttered, piecing something together. Suddenly, he looked at me, his eyes wide with realization. "Krishna, did you understand?"

I was momentarily confused but then it clicked. "Wait, you mean the body at Venkatachalam was found near the railway track, the body at Kawali was also found under a railway bridge, and..."

Athreya completed my thought, "And Bobby's body was also found near the railway track."

Vamsi looked puzzled. "So what?"

Athreya, energized by his revelation, began dialing a number on his phone. Bobby, still trying to grasp the situation, asked, "It means what?"

I turned to Bobby, explaining, "It means someone might be throwing dead bodies from trains. But it's just a guess for now."

Before we could delve further, Athreya's call connected. "Shirish, do you have the list of places where unidentified dead bodies were found in the past year?" he asked urgently.

Shirish's voice crackled through the phone. "Yes, I have it."

"Can you send it to me right now?" Athreya requested.

"Okay, I'll email you," Shirish replied.

"Thanks," Athreya said, ending the call.

We waited in tense silence, the weight of our discovery settling over us. Bobby, now freed but clearly intrigued by our conversation, stood nearby, his earlier bravado replaced by genuine curiosity.

As we waited for the email, Athreya lit a cigarette. The smell immediately filled the room, irritating me. "Hey, Athreya, I don't like the smell of cigarettes. Don't smoke in front of me," I said, waving my hand to disperse the smoke.

Athreya looked apologetic and quickly stubbed it out. "Sorry about that."

A minute later, the email notification pinged on Athreya's old computer. Sneha sat down at the desk, her fingers flying over the keyboard. "Guys, Shirish has sent the list of the unidentified bodies," she announced.

We crowded around her as she printed out the document and handed it to Athreya. He scanned the list, a triumphant smile spreading across his face. "We were right, Krishna. We were right."

He moved to the blackboard and began writing feverishly. We sat down in the chairs facing the board, eager to see his conclusions.

After a minute, Athreya stepped back, revealing his notes. "In the last six months, 52 unidentified dead bodies have been found in our state. Out of these, 24 bodies were discovered near railway tracks or under railway bridges." He paused, letting the information sink in. "Look at these locations: Kakinada and Tada. All the bodies were found between these two stations. Some were in Ongole, some in Nellore. All of them were near railway tracks. These cases are not separate. All these cases are connected."

Hearing this, Sneha furrowed her brow. "But how can you be so sure that those bodies are being thrown out of a train that runs on this route?"

Athreya looked at Vamsi. "Sir, we found a body near Venkatachalam. What was the cause of death?"

Vamsi replied, "Natural death."

"Right," Athreya continued. "Then how did the body reach the railway track?"

He paused, letting the question hang in the air before answering it himself. "Another point. The places where these bodies were found don't have roads leading to them. How did the dead bodies reach spots with no road access? It's definitely that the bodies are being thrown out of a train."

Bobby interjected, skepticism evident in his voice. "But if dead bodies are transferred by train, they'll get caught."

I turned to Bobby, considering the logistics. "What if it's a goods train?"

Sneha chimed in, "Why can't it be a passenger train?"

I couldn't help but shake my head at the suggestion. "Don't ask stupid questions. Only an idiot would transport dead bodies on a passenger train."

Sneha nodded, looking a bit embarrassed by her question. I softened my tone and continued, "This can't be done in broad daylight, even from a goods train. I'm sure it's done at night, at a time when everyone is sleeping. It means after 10 PM and before 5 AM."

Turning to Bobby, I gave him a task. "Bobby, find out the goods trains that pass through the Kakinada-Tada route after 10 PM."

Bobby nodded, determination replacing his earlier confusion. "Okay," he said, standing up and heading for the door.

As he left, Athreya continued to outline our next steps. "We need to identify the patterns in these train schedules. If we can pinpoint the trains that travel during those hours, we might be able to narrow down the suspects."

Athreya turned to Sneha and said, "Sneha, open the map." She quickly unfolded it on the table, and we all gathered around.

Just then, a realization struck me. "Those bodies are being smuggled from Tamil Nadu," I blurted out.

Vamsi looked skeptical. "How can you be sure they are coming from Tamil Nadu?"

Athreya nodded thoughtfully. "No, Krishna is right." Pointing at the map, he explained, "Look here. This is Tada, right on the Tamil Nadu-Andhra border. The train likely travels through Tamil Nadu and enters Andhra Pradesh through Tada. As soon as they cross the Tamil Nadu border, they dispose of the bodies wherever they want in Andhra Pradesh. The jurisdiction changes with the state border."

He paused to let the implications sink in. "This way, the police fail to establish a connection between these dead bodies. The bodies are coming from another state, making it nearly impossible for the local authorities to identify them."

Athreya turned to Vamsi with a sense of urgency. "Find out if you have any reports of unidentified bodies being found in places beyond Tada that fall in Tamil Nadu."

Vamsi nodded. "Sure," he said, and left the room to make the necessary inquiries.Then I asked, "Sneha, which stations come after Tada?"

Sneha quickly scanned the map. "After Tada, there's Arambakkam and then Gummidipoondi. Beyond that, it's the areas near Chennai."

I nodded, and Athreya wrote the names on the board. A minute later, Bobby entered the room, looking excited. "A goods train goes to Delhi from Chennai every week," he announced.

Athreya's eyes lit up. "Yes?"

Bobby continued, "The train stops at a signal near Arambakkam around 10-10:30 PM to allow a superfast train to pass."

Athreya's face broke into a wide grin. "Yes, yes!"

Just then, Vamsi returned to the room. I turned to him eagerly. "What did you find out?"

Vamsi shook his head. "No unidentified bodies were found between Tada and Chennai."

Athreya's happiness was palpable as he started to jump up and down. "Yes, yes, yes!" He turned to us, excitement spilling over. "This train stops at Arambakkam station for 30 minutes. The culprits know this. They put the bodies inside the train during this time and throw them randomly after crossing the state borders."

Sneha, still skeptical, asked, "How can you be sure this happens at this particular station?"

Before Athreya could respond, I stepped in. "The stations before Arambakkam fall under Chennai's jurisdiction. It's not feasible to do this at any major station. They need a small, less monitored station for this. That station is Arambakkam."

A moment of silence followed as we all absorbed the information. "We need to go to Arambakkam to find out the truth," I said firmly.

With a unanimous nod, we left Athreya's office and headed out to the car. As I started the engine, the determination in our group was palpable. The road ahead to Arambakkam felt like the path to unravelling a critical part of this dark mystery.

As we drove through the night, the city lights gradually faded, replaced by the quiet solitude of rural roads. The hum of the car engine was the only sound, each of us lost in our thoughts, piecing together the fragments of this grim puzzle.

Athreya, sitting in the front seat, stared ahead, his mind clearly racing. "If we're right, we might can get something tonight," he said, almost to himself.

Then Vamsi's phone rang, breaking the tense silence. He took it out of his pocket, saw it was Aditya calling, and put it on speaker. "Yes, tell me, Aditya," he said.

Aditya's voice crackled through the speaker. "The fingerprints of the dead body found in Venkatachalam match those of a murder suspect in Gujarat."

Athreya and the rest of us were shocked. "What? What?" Athreya exclaimed.

I turned to Vamsi. "Ask him when the Gujarat murder happened."

Vamsi nodded and relayed the question. "Aditya, can you tell me when the Gujarat murder happened?"

There was a brief pause before Aditya replied, "Hold on." After a second, he continued, "It happened five days ago."

I quickly asked, "When did the man whose body was found in Venkatachalam die?"

Aditya answered, "Ten days ago."

"Thank you," I said, and Vamsi cut the call.I started to laugh. "Hahaha, so I was right, huh?"

Athreya looked at me, puzzled. "What do you mean, right?"

"How can a man who died ten days ago kill anybody five days back?" I pointed out.

Everyone's faces showed dawning realization. Athreya connected the dots first. "Why did I come to this case, Athreya?" I pressed.

"Because someone is smuggling fingerprints in the underworld," Athreya muttered, then his eyes widened as he understood. "So that's the whole thing."

The others looked confused, and Bobby asked, "What are you talking about?"

Athreya explained, "If you take out organs from a body, it's easily noticed. But you can steal something from a body without getting caught: fingerprints. These people need the fingerprints, not the dead bodies."

A heavy silence filled the car. Bobby broke it, asking, "What will they do with these fingerprints?"

"Too many things, Bobby," I said. "These fingerprints can be planted at any crime scene. They can mislead an investigation. They can create a database of fake fingerprints and sell it to criminals. In the Venkatachalam case, the fingerprint of the dead body was planted on a crime in Gujarat. The investigators will assume the person whose fingerprint was found is the criminal. But they won't find out whose fingerprints they actually are. Even if they trace the person, he'll be found dead. The case will be shut, assuming the criminal is dead."

The atmosphere grew tense. "It's a dangerous plan to mislead crime investigations," I continued. "But that's not all. New voters can be registered with fake fingerprints, rigging elections. Terrorists can use fake fingerprints to get passports, easily entering countries to attack. They only need fingerprints."

Bobby frowned. "If they need fingerprints, they can take them from any dead body."

Athreya shook his head. "It's not easy to get fingerprints from a dead body, Bobby. After death, the blood and oxygen supply stops. It's difficult to get usable fingerprints once this happens. But I'm sure they have a way."

We all sat in silence, absorbing the gravity of the situation. The scope of this operation was immense, and its implications were terrifying.

After traveling for hours, we finally reached Arambakkam. The sky was already dark as I parked the car. We made our way into the station office, where a man sat behind a cluttered desk. Vamsi approached him, flashing his badge.

"Hello, sir. I'm a sub-inspector from Nellore. I need some information," Vamsi said.

The man looked up, curiosity mingled with weariness. "Okay."

"A good's train passes through this station at 10 PM, heading to Delhi," Vamsi continued.

The man nodded. "Yes, so?"

"When the train halts here, have you ever noticed any illegal activities?" Vamsi inquired, but before he could finish, the man cut in.

"Who would come here for illegal activities, sir? I've been the station in-charge for years. The good's train stops here for half an hour, but I've never noticed anything suspicious."

As the conversation went on, Athreya's eyes wandered to a series of photographs on the wall. One photo, in particular, caught his attention—Gopalam's. Athreya stepped closer and pointed to the pictures. "Sir, whose photos are these?"

"Sir, these photos were clicked at a railway function five years ago. There's a popular theater group in the next village. They're artists from that group," the man replied.

"Theater group?" I asked, intrigued.

"Yes, sir," the man confirmed.

"Where's this theater group located?" I pressed.

"It's been closed for a long time," the man responded.

"Where can we find him?" Athreya asked urgently.

"I don't know, sir," the man said, turning to another staff member. "Sir, do you know?"

The other man nodded. "I know he lives 30 kilometers from here."

Athreya's face lit up with a determined smile. "Let's go."

We hurried back to the car, the night air thick with tension and anticipation. As I drove, the weight of our mission pressed down on us. The moonlit road stretched ahead, a path to uncovering the truth.

As we neared the place, I parked the car a little distance away, cloaked in shadows. We quietly got out, making our way towards the small, run-down house. Approaching, we saw a man talking on the phone. His voice carried through the still night air.

"They're not in Nellore. Kill Gopalam."

"Okay, I'll do it," the man replied.

As he cut the call, I moved swiftly, clamping a hand over his mouth and snapping his neck with a quick, practiced motion. His body slumped silently to the ground. Without a moment's hesitation, we continued towards the house.

Standing before the door, we saw Gopalam in a drunken stupor, mumbling incoherently. He looked up at us with bleary eyes. "Who are you?" he slurred.

"We're the police," Vamsi said curtly. He grabbed a nearby jug of water and threw it in Gopalam's face, shocking him into semi-awareness. We quickly tied him to a Pilar with some rope. As the cold water jolted him fully awake, he stared at us in confusion and fear.

"Where am I, sir?" Gopalam stammered.

Athreya grabbed him by the collar, anger flashing in his eyes. "Who are you? Tell us, you Fucker!"

Gopalam's eyes darted around wildly. "Give me a small drink, and I'll tell you everything," he pleaded.

Vamsi's hand shot out, delivering a hard slap across Gopalam's face. "Do you want a drink now?" he growled.

The slap seemed to sober Gopalam up completely. He took a deep breath, his demeanor shifting from defiance to resignation. "I didn't have any work three years back."

As Gopalam continued, his words unraveled a sinister scheme. "But one day, we understood the game. Followers of Hinduism believe that if the ashes of the cremated bodies are immersed in the Ganges, the soul rests in peace. People believe that if a dead person is cremated on the banks of Kashi, the soul goes straight to heaven and is freed from the cycle of birth and death. Some people believe these things deeply but don't have enough money to take the body to Kashi for cremation. Those people who couldn't go to Kashi were targeted by them."

As Gopalam revealed the truth after truth, I felt an overwhelming surge of emotion. Tears began to fall from my eyes, and an uncontrollable rage built up inside me I don't know how. As Gopalam finished speaking. Without warning, I lunged at Gopalam, punching him with all the fury I had been holding back. Shocked, other tried to pull me off.

"Krishna, what the hell are you doing?" Vamsi shouted. "If you keep punching him like that, he could die!"

Ignoring their pleas, I continued my assault, shouting at Gopalam, "You bastards! Do you understand what you're doing? You're playing with people's emotions, their beliefs, and their religion. Do you know how much pain a soul feels when it stays in our realm? Do you understand how long it takes to get a human body? We have to be born in 8.4 million yonis (Species) before we get a human body! 8.4 million! And you bastards are treating it like it's nothing!"

My fists pounded Gopalam until his face was covered in blood and he fainted. Finally, I stopped, breathing heavily. Athreya placed a hand on my shoulder, his voice calm but firm. "Calm down, Krishna. I understand what you're feeling, but is it really worth becoming this emotional over it?"

"You don't understand because you don't believe in it," I replied, my voice shaking. "But I know more than you can think, Athreya. I can understand."

Athreya sighed and nodded. Vamsi suggested we leave, and we made our way to a nearby tea stall. As we arrived, I washed the blood from my hands and face. We sat down and ordered tea, the warmth of the cups a small comfort against the cold reality of our investigation.

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