Run: 2026-02-25-01KJ95X0ED354EC6C43132Y1GQ

Okay, here is the scene followed by the dialogue as a voice sheet. *** ## The Daily Grind The cafe, "The Daily Grind," hummed with the quiet rhythm of a small town morning. Sunlight sliced through the front window, striping the worn wooden tables and illuminating the dust motes dancing in the air. At one of these tables sat Marie, a 30-year-old French student on a study abroad adventure, her focus entirely consumed by the bright screen of her DSLR camera. The scent of coffee and baked goods was a pleasant backdrop to her solitary work, meticulously reviewing the landscape photographs she’d taken the day before. The chime of the bell above the door announced an interruption. Marie didn't look up, engrossed in her images. A few moments later, a presence loomed by her table. Detective Hunter Hayes, his uniform crisp but his face perpetually etched with a grim, no-nonsense expression, stood over her. His sharp blue eyes had a way of taking in everything, and he’d noticed the student with the camera before. A tip had brought him here; someone fitting her description might have witnessed something near Miller's Creek last night, a place that had become chillingly prominent in his investigation into the town’s recent disappearances. He cleared his throat, the sound a low rumble. "Excuse me, miss." Marie finally lifted her gaze, her wide, hazel eyes blinking in surprise at the imposing figure. She met his stare, her brow furrowing slightly as she tried to decipher his words, catching only the serious tone and the questioning gesture he made towards the window, then miming holding a camera. "I'm Detective Hayes," Hunter stated, his voice direct. "I’m investigating an incident from yesterday. Heard someone might have been out by Miller's Creek, taking pictures?" He repeated the gesture of taking a photograph, emphasizing the camera action. Marie’s attention snagged on "pictures" and the clear mime. She pointed to herself. *Moi?* Then she tapped her camera, her expression clarifying. *Images.* She understood. She nodded. "Oui. Images." But the mention of the location brought a wave of unease. "Miller's Creek?" she repeated, her French accent thick as she questioned the place. Suddenly, the memory of the previous evening surged back, her face clouding over. "Oh, *non*. C'était... c'était effrayant." Her voice trembled, laced with pure French. "J'ai vu... *quelque chose*. Une ombre, peut-être? Je ne sais pas. Mon cœur... il battait si fort. J'étais... *j'étais effrayée*. Très, très effrayée." She clutched her chest, her breath catching, her gaze unfocused as the terror resurfaced. Hunter’s expression shifted from professional inquiry to bewilderment. He caught the tone, the fear, maybe a word or two that sounded like "scary," but the cascade of French was a wall. He tried again, slowing down, using broader, more universal gestures. He pointed to a hypothetical person walking, then to a car driving, then mimed an animal – a deer, perhaps. "Scary? What was scary? Did you see… a *person*? Or… an animal? A *car*?" Marie shook her head vehemently, her eyes wide with conviction. She tapped her camera again, then made a quick, darting motion with her hand in the air, as if something had moved with impossible speed. She followed this with a gesture of emptiness, an open palm indicating nothingness. "Non, non! Pas animal! Pas personne!" She tapped her camera again, then mimed something unseen, quick and gone, making a sound like wind. "*Juste*... une ombre. Le bruit... bizarre et fort." She mimicked covering her ears tightly for a moment, then made a swift, vanishing gesture with both hands. "Et puis... *rien*. Tout parti." Hunter’s jaw tightened with a mixture of frustration and determination. This was the difficult part of the job. He focused on the one tangible item: the camera. He tried one last time, pointing emphatically at her camera, then making the distinct mime of taking a photograph, his finger tracing an imaginary subject, willing her to understand. "Okay. Okay. Did you… *take a picture*? Of it? Get it… here?" A spark of understanding ignited in Marie’s eyes. She grasped the mime for "photograph" and the emphasis on her camera. The terror in her expression momentarily receded, replaced by a flicker of hope for communication. "Oui! Oui! Camera!" Her hands, which had been trembling, moved with renewed purpose as she fumbled for her camera bag. "*Je peux montrer*!" she declared, her tone earnest. Just as she was about to pull out the camera and begin scrolling for the image, Hunter’s phone emitted a sharp, urgent buzz from his pocket. He pulled it out, his eyes flicking to the screen, his jaw hardening. He held up a hand to Marie, a silent plea for patience. "Hayes," he answered, his voice immediately dropping into a more clipped, professional tone. A distorted voice crackled back. "Hunter, we've got a situation developing out at the old county road by the abandoned quarry. Anonymous tip about a vehicle matching the description from the last disappearance, heading west at high speed. Patrol car en route, but you're closest." Hunter’s gaze snapped back to Marie, her face expectant, her hand reaching into her camera bag. He hated this. He hated leaving a witness, especially one so clearly disturbed, but the lead was hot, a potential break in multiple missing persons cases that had gripped Alborn. "Understood," Hunter said into the phone, snapping it shut. He looked at Marie, his expression grim. "Miss, I... I have to go. Emergency. Someone else will be in touch. Can you... can you wait and speak to someone else later? Wait for me if you can?" He knew asking her to wait was a long shot, but he needed her testimony. Marie’s hopeful expression crumbled. The fear returned, mixed with confusion. She nodded slowly, looking utterly lost. "Go?" "Yes. I have to go. Stay here if you can. Please." He gave her a curt nod, a rare hint of apology in his stern eyes, before turning sharply and striding out of the cafe, the bell above the door jangling his abrupt exit. Marie watched him leave, her hand now frozen midway into her camera bag, clutching her DSLR. The silent screen held the potential answers, a chilling memory she couldn't yet translate. *** ### Voice Sheet **Marie:** "Moi? Oui. Images. Mais... Miller's Creek? Oh, *non*. C'était... c'était effrayant. J'ai vu... *quelque chose*. Une ombre, peut-être? Je ne sais pas. Mon cœur... il battait si fort. J'étais... *j'étais effrayée*. Très, très effrayée." **Hunter:** "Excuse me, miss." **Hunter:** "I'm Detective Hayes. I’m investigating an incident from yesterday. Heard someone might have been out by Miller's Creek, taking pictures?" **Marie:** "Non, non! Pas animal! Pas personne! *Juste*... une ombre. Le bruit... bizarre et fort. Et puis... *rien*. Tout parti." **Hunter:** "Scary? What was scary? Did you see… a *person*? Or… an animal? A *car*?" **Hunter:** "Okay. Okay. Did you… *take a picture*? Of it? Get it… here?" **Marie:** "Oui! Oui! Camera! *Je peux montrer*!" **Hunter:** "Miss, I... I have to go. Emergency. Someone else will be in touch. Can you... can you wait and speak to someone else later? Wait for me if you can?" **Marie:** "Go?"