“The Beast of the Black Highway” It was 11:55 PM. The highway was almost empty. Dark clouds covered the sky. Lightning flashed occasionally, and for a split second the world became visible—then everything sank back into darkness. A white car sped along the lonely road. Behind the wheel was Amit Chaudhary, 42 years old. In the passenger seat sat his wife, Sandhya. At the back were their two children — 12-year-old Rohan and 8-year-old Pari. They were returning to the city after attending a wedding in their ancestral village. Before leaving, an old villager had warned them: “Do not take the forest highway at night… strange things have been happening there.” Amit had laughed. “Superstitions,” he had said confidently. But that night… he was about to learn that not every warning is meaningless. The Silent Stretch As soon as they entered the forest section of the highway, their mobile network disappeared. The road was narrow. Tall trees leaned inward as if trying to swallow the as...