Run: 2026-03-11-01KKFM9WB8D5SERWHA6TG0QSKV

# A Conversation in Alborn The morning light filtered through the gingham curtains of **The Apple Basket Café**, casting warm patterns across the wooden tables. Selvi sat alone in the corner booth, her camera resting on the table beside her untouched chai latte. She flipped through the LCD screen, studying the shots she'd taken at dawn — the mist over the cornfields, the old water tower silhouetted against a pink sky. Her dark eyes moved methodically from photo to photo, though her jaw was tight and her hands trembled slightly. A pair of worn boots stopped at her table. --- **Hunter:** "Mind if I sit down? Detective Hunter Cole — I'm investigating the recent disappearances around town. I've been told you were near Miller's Pond yesterday afternoon." *He pulled out the chair across from her without waiting for an answer, placing a small notebook on the table.* **Selvi:** *She glanced up, startled. She stared at him for a moment, then shook her head quickly.* **Hunter:** "I'm sorry — I didn't mean to startle you. I just have a few questions. You're the photography student, right? Staying over at the Hendricks place on Birch Lane?" **Selvi:** *She nodded slowly, her fingers curling around the strap of her camera.* **Hunter:** "Good. I'm looking into a missing woman — Margaret Holloway, sixty-two, last seen near Miller's Pond two days ago. You were in that area yesterday. Did you see anything unusual? Anyone out of place?" **Selvi:** *She blinked, clearly understanding something about his tone but not the words. She hesitated, then spoke in a rushed, trembling voice.* **Selvi:** "मैं... हाँ, मैं वहाँ थी। लेकिन भैया, मुझसे अंग्रेज़ी में मत बोलिए — मुझे नहीं आती। मुझे डर लग रहा है... कल शाम को मुझे कुछ अजीब लगा वहाँ पर। एक छाया... झाड़ियों के पीछे... और आवाज़ भी आई थी, बहुत अजीब सी। मैं बहुत डर गई थी।" **Hunter:** *He leaned forward, pen hovering over his notebook. He caught fragments of urgency in her voice but understood nothing. His brow furrowed.* **Hunter:** "I'm sorry — I don't understand. Can you try English? Even just a few words?" **Selvi:** *Her eyes widened with frustration. She touched her own throat and shook her head vigorously.* **Selvi:** "अंग्रेज़ी नहीं... नहीं आती। मुझे समझ नहीं आया... बस — अजीब... बहुत अजीब था।" *She pointed emphatically toward the direction of Miller's Pond, then made a shape with her hands — a figure, hunched, moving behind something.* **Hunter:** "You saw someone? A person?" **Selvi:** *She nodded hard, her dark eyes wide.* **Selvi:** "हाँ! हाँ — इंसान! बहुत बड़ा इंसान... छिप रहा था।" **Hunter:** "A large person? Hiding?" *Selvi nodded again, pressing her hands flat on the table, as if grounding herself.* **Hunter:** "Did this person see you?" **Selvi:** *She hesitated. Then, very quietly:* **Selvi:** "शायद... हाँ। मुझे लगता है कि उसने मुझे देख लिया। मैं बहुत डर गई थी। इसीलिए मैं वहाँ से भाग गई।" **Hunter:** *He caught the word that sounded like a clear "haan" — yes. He made a note: "Witness believes she was seen."* **Hunter:** "Okay... I think I'm following. You saw someone hiding near the pond, and you think they noticed you?" *He mimed being watched — pointed two fingers from his own eyes toward hers.* **Selvi:** *A shiver passed through her. She pulled her camera closer to her chest like a shield and nodded.* **Selvi:** "हाँ... बहुत डर लगा।" **Hunter:** "That's very helpful. You've been very brave. Can you tell me what time this was? Was it dark?" *He held up his wrist, pointing to his watch, then cupped his hands around an imaginary fading sun.* **Selvi:** *She understood the gesture. She held up five fingers, then pointed to the sky and drew a slow descending arc with her hand.* **Selvi:** "शाम... पाँच, छह बजे के आसपास।" **Hunter:** "Evening. Around five or six. Good." *He scribbled it down. Selvi watched him write, her fingers still trembling against the leather of her camera strap.* **Hunter:** "One more question — do you still have photos from that area? Yesterday's photos?" *He gestured to her camera.* **Selvi:** *She hesitated, then slowly turned the camera toward him and began scrolling through the images. She stopped on one — a wide shot of the pond at dusk. In the far background, half-obscured by brush, there was a shape that might have been a figure.* **Selvi:** "वो देखिए... यहाँ।" *She pointed at the screen, her finger shaking.* **Hunter:** *He leaned in close. His eyes narrowed. There was definitely something in the background of that photo — a form, dark and ambiguous, pressed against the tree line.* **Hunter:** "Selvi — this is important. I'm going to need to—" *His phone buzzed sharply on his belt. He glanced at the screen and his jaw tightened.* **Hunter:** "Cole." *He listened for a moment, his expression hardening.* **Hunter:** "When?... Where exactly?... I'm on my way." *He pocketed the phone and stood abruptly, pushing the chair back.* **Hunter:** "I have to go — another situation's come up. But I need you to keep that photo safe, okay? Don't delete anything. And stay near the main roads after dark." *He pointed firmly at her, then at the ground beneath her — **stay here, stay safe.*** **Selvi:** *She looked up at him, understanding the urgency if not the exact words.* **Selvi:** "ठीक है... मैं समझ गई।" **Hunter:** "I'll find someone who speaks Hindi to come talk to you properly. Hang tight." *He placed a card on the table — **Detective Hunter Cole, Alborn PD** — and was already halfway to the door.* **Selvi:** *She picked up the card, studying the English words she couldn't read. Then she looked down at her camera, at the dark figure lurking in the background of her photograph. She pulled the camera close again.* **Selvi:** *(whispered to herself)* "यहाँ कुछ गड़बड़ है..." --- *[End of scene.]*