contemplation

Raj, Sathya, and Deepthi gathered at Deepthi's house, preparing for the day ahead. Deepthi, filled with determination, announced, "I'm going to file a police case now."

Sathya, standing by her side, nodded firmly. "I'm with you," he said, giving her a reassuring look. "We'll do this together."

Raj, raised a cautionary point. "If we file a case, people will start looking at us. They will try to halt our search."

Sathya countered, "But if we don't file a report soon, the case will go cold, and we won't have the public support we need. In cases like this, where political power is involved, public pressure is crucial. They even fabricated the autopsy."

Raj thought for a moment and then suggested, "We should file the report, but I'll gather evidence independently. As a new face here, not many people will remember me. From now on, I won't be in direct contact with you publicly."

Deepthi, touched by Raj's commitment, said, "Thank you, Raj, for doing so much for us."

Raj smiled warmly. "We're friends," he replied simply.

With the plan set, they made their way to the police station. Deepthi was visibly nervous, but Sathya's presence bolstered her confidence. They filed the report, detailing Kiara's disappearance from her hostel , the suspicious circumstances, and the subsequent discovery of her body.

After filing the report, they parted ways. Raj set off on his mission to gather evidence. He decided to start with the college, aiming to dig deeper into the activities of the chairman, PK, and the hostel warden. He suspected that they were key players in the cover-up.

Raj first visited the area around the college, speaking to students and staff discretely. He learned that PK had a reputation for being unscrupulous, often using his influence to suppress any negative information about the college. The hostel warden was known to be his loyal aide, someone who would do anything to maintain PK's favor.

Raj's next step was to find out more about Kottai Veeran, the local gangster mentioned by Geetha. He knew that approaching someone with such a dangerous reputation required caution. Raj decided to use his connections in the underworld, reaching out to Rajen for assistance. Rajen, who had his ear to the ground, might know a way to get close to Veeran without raising suspicion.

Meanwhile, Deepthi and Sathya focused on rallying public support. They spoke to local media, sharing Kiara's story and highlighting the injustices she faced. The media coverage began to gain traction, and soon, there was a public outcry demanding justice for Kiara.

Daya, determined to get to the bottom of Kiara's murder and the fabricated autopsy report, decided to confront Veeru Bhai's brothers. He knew where they lived and headed to their house, hoping to gather some useful information. As he approached the house, he could hear the loud sounds of laughter and drunken banter from inside.

Daya knocked on the door, and after a moment, Ravi, one of Veeru's brothers, opened it, his eyes bloodshot and reeking of alcohol. Recognizing Daya, Ravi invited him in with a slurred greeting. Inside, Mani, Vamsi, and Sundeep were sprawled on couches, all equally drunk and rowdy.

"What brings you here, Daya?" Ravi asked, his voice thick with drink.

Daya wasted no time. "I need to know why Veeru fabricated that autopsy report. What's going on?"

The brothers burst into laughter, exchanging amused glances. Mani, still chuckling, spoke up, "Oh, you mean that? It's a funny story, really."

Ravi, leaning closer to Daya, started to recount their tale. "After we got thrashed by that bastard Sathya while he was escaping Visakhapatnam, we needed something to take the edge off. So, we went to buy some drugs. But just our luck, we got caught without Veeru around to bail us out."

Sundeep chimed in, "Yeah, and you, Daya, were our savior. Remember? You got us out by making one of your officers burn the F.I.R. against us. We owe you one for that."

Daya's face hardened, but he let them continue. He needed all the details.

Ravi continued, "Then we heard about our brother getting arrested. We were furious and wanted revenge. We stormed over to Deepthi's house, but when we saw Sathya there, we got cold feet. That guy had beaten us up before; we weren't ready for round two."

Vamsi, laughing, added, "But then we remembered Deepthi had a little sister in college. We contacted PK, who was more than happy to help. He delivered the girl to us at Hotel H.W."

Ravi's eyes gleamed with malicious delight. "We drugged her, raped her all night, and killed her in the morning. Then we discarded her body near the sewer line. It was the perfect revenge."

The brothers erupted into laughter again, the sound echoing off the walls. Daya's blood ran cold. The sheer brutality and callousness of their actions were staggering. 

As the realization of his complicity in Kiara's torment hit him, Daya felt a heavy weight settle in his chest. He had unknowingly facilitated the horrific events that led to her death. His mind whirled with guilt and self-recrimination, questioning his moral integrity and the choices that had led him to this point.

He was still standing there, lost in thought, when Ravi stumbled over, a bottle of liquor in hand. "Come on, Daya," Ravi slurred, "forget about that girl. Let's party. Have a drink and enjoy."

Ravi's casual dismissal of Kiara's suffering and death snapped something inside Daya. His guilt and anger boiled over, and before he knew it, his fist was connecting with Ravi's jaw. The bottle of liquor shattered as Ravi fell to the ground, stunned.

The other brothers, seeing the altercation, rushed toward Daya, but he was ready for them. Fueled by his rage and self-loathing, Daya took them on one by one. Mani charged first, but Daya sidestepped and delivered a powerful punch to his stomach, doubling him over. Vamsi and Sundeep tried to flank him, but Daya grabbed a chair and swung it in a wide arc, hitting both of them and sending them sprawling.

Ravi, recovering from the initial blow, came at Daya again. Daya caught him by the collar, slamming him against the wall. "You think you can just dismiss what you did to Kiara?" he snarled. "She was an innocent girl, and you destroyed her life!"

Ravi's eyes widened in fear as Daya's grip tightened. "Daya, we didn't mean—"

"Shut up!" Daya roared, throwing Ravi to the ground. "You and your brothers are scum. You're going to pay for what you did."

The room fell silent, the brothers groaning in pain on the floor. Daya stood over them, chest heaving, fists clenched. The realization of his own guilt and the depth of the brothers' depravity had pushed him to his breaking point.

With one last look of disgust, Daya stormed out of the house. He needed to do something to atone for his actions and bring justice for Kiara. As he walked away, he knew he had to find Raj, Sathya, and Deepthi and tell them everything. This was the only way he could start to make things right.

Daya pulled out his phone and called Raj. "Raj, it's Daya. I need to talk to you. I know what happened to Kiara, and I need your help to bring those bastards down. Meet me as soon as you can."

He hung up and took a deep breath, his resolve hardening. He had a mission now: to make sure Kiara's killers faced justice, no matter what it took.