Run: 2026-02-20-01KHYAVNYBGBN9KH3HPZJ9KTDQ

**Title: *Whispers in the Apple Orchard*** --- **Scene: *The Morning Café in Alborn*** *(The sun spills golden light through the stained-glass windows of *The Orchard Café*, casting patterns across the wooden tables. Selvi sits at a corner booth, her camera resting on the table, its lens pointed toward the rustic brick wall. She adjusts the strap, her fingers brushing the warm metal. Outside, the scent of fresh-baked bread and cinnamon fills the air.)* --- **Hunter** *(approaching, arms crossed, his marine boots scuffing the linoleum)*: "Morning, Selvi. You look like you’ve seen a ghost." *(Selvi freezes. Her breath catches. She glances up, her dark eyes wide with something unreadable—fear? confusion?—before she lowers her gaze again. She doesn’t speak English. Not yet.)* **Selvi** *(quietly, in Hindi, her voice trembling)*: "Yeh… *kya* hai? *(What is this?)*" *(Hunter’s jaw tightens. He’s heard enough Hindi to know the word for "disappearance" is *ghum ke raha hai*—but that’s not what she’s saying. He tilts his head, waiting. The café’s chatter fades into the background.)* **Hunter**: "Selvi… you’re from India, right? You’re studying here?" *(She nods, her fingers tightening around the camera’s strap. She doesn’t answer directly.)* **Selvi**: "*Main*… *albaarn* mein… *phir*… *(I’m… in Alborn… again…)* *(A beat. Hunter’s eyes flick to the camera. Then to her face. Something in her posture—shoulders hunched, hands clenched—tells him she’s not just talking about the town. She’s talking about *them*.)* **Hunter**: "Selvi… you’ve been here before. You know this town." *(She exhales sharply, her breath visible in the cold morning air. She looks away, toward the window where the first leaves of autumn are turning.)* **Selvi**: "*Aaj*… *kya*… *(Today… what?)*" *(Hunter’s phone buzzes. He pulls it out, frowns. A text from his partner: *"Need you at the orchard. Something’s not right with the missing list."*)* **Hunter**: "Sorry. Got to run. But Selvi… you ever seen anything strange in this town?" *(She doesn’t answer. Just watches him, her camera still in hand, as if waiting for him to leave.)* **Hunter** *(gritting his teeth, stepping back)*: "Alright. Just… be careful. And if you see anything—*anything*—call me." *(He turns, strides toward the door. The café door swings shut behind him. Selvi exhales, her shoulders relaxing just a little. But her camera stays where it is, its lens still trained on the wall—waiting for the next mystery.)* --- **End Scene.**