Run: 2026-03-11-01KKFEC8ZJ1E8YNDHFA88Q6M4V

**"The Café on Birch Street"** Maria: "...¿Disculpe? ¿Quién eres tú?" Hunter: "Ma'am, I'm Detective Hunter. I'm with the Alborn Police Department. Mind if I sit down?" Maria: "No entiendo... lo siento, no hablo inglés. Hablas español, por favor?" Hunter: "...Spanish? You're... okay, you don't speak English. Great. That's just— okay. Um... ¿yo... necesito... hablar con—" Maria: "¿Policía? ¿Tú eres policía?" Hunter: "Ah! Yes! Policía. Sí. That one I know. Okay, so maybe you can help me. There have been some disappearances in town recently. People vanishing without a trace." Maria: "¿Desapariciones?" Hunter: "Right. Disappearances. Have you seen anything... unusual? Anything suspicious around town?" Maria: "...Hay algo que— mira, mira esto." Hunter: "What am I looking at? That's your camera?" Maria: "Sí, cámara. Mira las fotos. Tomé estas imágenes en el bosque, cerca del lago. Hay personas... sombras... alguien me siguió, detective. Estoy asustada." Hunter: "I don't understand a word of what you just said, but you look shaken up. Something scared you." Maria: "No me siento segura aquí. Creo que alguien me observa. Las fotos... hay figuras en las fotos." Hunter: "Figuras? Are those... in the forest? By the lake?" Maria: "Sí, sí. El bosque. El lago." Hunter: "Okay, so you took photos near the lake and you saw something. Or *someone*. Was this at night? During the day?" Maria: "Ayer por la noche. Oí pasos detrás de mí. Cuando giré, no había nadie. Pero... cuando miré las fotos después, había personas de pie entre los árboles. No eran normales, detective. Algo estaba mal con ellas." Hunter: "Last night? So this happened last night?" Maria: "Sí. Anoche. Estaba haciendo fotos del lago bajo la luna. Fue hermoso al principio, pero luego... un frío horrible. Como si algo se acercara." Hunter: "You were scared. You felt someone following you. Did you get a look at them? A face? A vehicle?" Maria: "No pude ver sus caras. Eran como sombras. Pero tengo las fotos. Aquí, en la pantalla, puedes ver— la luz de la luna las atrapó, creo." Hunter: "Those do look like... are those people standing there? That's gotta be a dozen of them. And you said no one was there when you turned around?" Maria: "Nadie. Solo el silencio. Pero las fotos no mienten, detective." Hunter: "No, they sure don't. Okay, I need to take a closer look at these. I'll have someone from the station who speaks Spanish come down and take a proper statement from you. Do you have somewhere safe to stay tonight?" Maria: "¿Seguro? Sí, creo que sí. Vivo cerca de la universidad, en la residencia." Hunter: "The university dorms. Good, that's in town. I want you to stay in populated areas, okay? Don't go back to that lake alone. Can you understand that much?" Maria: "Entiendo. No vuelvo al lago. Pero, detective... las desapariciones de las que hablaste... ¿crees que tienen algo que ver con lo que vi?" Hunter: "I don't know what you just said, but I have a feeling it's an important question. I'll get someone down here who—" *Hunter's phone buzzes loudly.* Hunter: "Hold on, I've got to take this. ...Hunter here. ...What? ...When was this? ...On the north side of the lake? ...I'm on my way." *He turns back to Maria, grabbing his coat.* Hunter: "I'm sorry, ma'am, I have to go. Another one's missing. Sit tight and don't go anywhere alone. I'll have someone from the station here within the hour." Maria: "¿Otro? ¿Otra desaparición? Detective, por favor, ten cuidado." Hunter: "I don't understand you, but... yeah. I'll be careful." *Hunter rushes out. Maria clutches her camera to her chest, staring out the café window at the tree line beyond the town.*