Run: 2026-03-25-01KMJ9031DQ5HXK7RAE7X7KV8S

**Int. The Apple Perk Café – Afternoon** *Alborn’s rustic café hums with the clatter of mugs and the scent of cinnamon rolls. Marie sits by the window, her camera resting on the table. She fiddles with the lens, her brow furrowed. Across the room, *Detective Hunter* approaches, firm steps echoing. His uniform is casual but crisp—jean jacket, scuffed boots. He hesitates at her table, eyes narrowing at the camera.* **Marie:** *(starts, then forces a smile)* "Bonjour… *" (She gestures to the camera’s memory card, speaking rapidly in French.) "Rien ne va… les photos… *elles sont*… [flustered, her voice cracks.] Le… le festival, non? C’est *agaçant*!" **Hunter:** *(aversely polite)* "Ma’am. Did you hear about the orchard fire last week?" *(Pats the bench as he sits. She tenses. He points to the camera.)* "You’re the town’s… photographer, right? You got footage down by the Bluffs?" **Marie:** *(shakes head violently)* "Non, non, *non*! Pas de feu… *c’était*—" *(She mimics "taking a shot"—index finger snapping. Her eyes dart around the café.)* "Autres… *disparitions*. Les gens… *ils*— (She mimes walking away then vanishing, lips trembling.)* **Hunter:** *(sits forward, edging closer)* "You *saw* something. What time? Where?" *(His phone buzzes. He ignores it.)* "Look, I don’t have time for—*gestures vaguely*. Speak slower, okay?" **Marie:** *(whispers French, clutching the camera like a lifeline)* "C’est la nuit. *Une ombre…* Je ne peux pas…" *(Pointing at the window. Her chest heaves.)* **Hunter:** *(phone buzzing insistently. He glances at the screen—*MAYOR*—grumbles.)* "Wait. Did you say *night*?" *(She nods, wild-eyed. He stands abruptly, phone to his ear.)* "Rogers. What now?" *(Turns to Marie.)* "Stay put. I’ll be back." *He strides out, leaving the door creaking. Marie stares at the empty seat, clutching her camera tighter. A tear smudges the memory card in her palm.* --- **Direction Notes for Dialogue** - **Marie’s lines** reflect fragmented French, emotional intonation (*rising panic when describing the "ombre" [shadow]*) and manual cues (mimics, pointing). - **Hunter** speaks monotone, authoritative, but stiff in articulating foreign concepts. His patience erodes with the English-French mismatch. - The **phone interruption** underscores the communication gap—Marie’s unprocessed fear meets Hunter’s urgency, a tension held unresolved.