Run: 2026-05-01-01KQHRVHWBEXFWQDT2DJYD2FG4

**Scene** In the warm glow of The Apple Orchard Cafe, where the scent of cinnamon cider hung in the air like a comforting blanket, Maria sat tucked in a window booth. The quiet college student from Spain slowly clicked through the landscape photos on her camera, her usual peaceful expression replaced by trembling hands. The annual apple festival should have been perfect for her photography project. Instead, it had become something else entirely. Heavy footsteps approached. Detective Hunter, broad-shouldered and radiating his usual no-nonsense Marine bearing, stopped at her table. He’d noticed the young woman always clicking away with that camera and hoped she might have stumbled across a clue about the latest disappearance. The conversation that followed was… not smooth. **Voice Sheet** Hunter: "Excuse me, miss. I'm Detective Hunter. I understand you've been taking a lot of photographs around the apple festival. Did you see anything unusual last night? Another person went missing near the cider tents." Maria: "¡Ay Dios mío! ¡Lo vi todo! Había una sombra extraña detrás de los árboles y el hombre simplemente... desapareció. ¡Estoy tan asustada todavía! No puedo dejar de ver las imágenes en mi cámara." Hunter: "I'm sorry, I didn't catch a word of that. Do you speak English? English? We have several missing people and your pictures might be important." Maria: "No entiendo nada de inglés. Solo sé que algo malo está pasando en este pueblo. Las fotos... miré las fotos y hay algo borroso que no debería estar ahí. ¡Tengo mucho miedo!" Hunter: "Camera. Photos. Can I see? I need to know if you witnessed the disappearance. This is the third one this month." Maria: "Tome la cámara, por favor. Pero no borre nada. Creo que capturé a la sombra... o lo que sea esa cosa. ¿Qué está pasando aquí? ¿Por qué nadie me entiende?" Hunter: "I still don't understand you, but I can see you're upset. If those photos show anything, anything at all, it could break this case wide open. Just nod if you saw the man vanish." Maria: "Sí, sí, desapareció. Como tragado por la oscuridad. Sigo temblando cada vez que lo recuerdo. Por favor, ayúdeme... aunque no sé cómo decírselo." Hunter: "This isn't getting us anywhere. I need a translator. Stay in town. Don't go near the festival grounds alone." Maria: "No se vaya todavía. Las últimas fotos... hay algo en ellas que no es normal. ¡Mire, mire la pantalla!" Hunter: "Hold that thought. This is Hunter. Yeah... Another disappearance? I'm on my way." **End of Voice Sheet** Hunter gave Maria one last frustrated but concerned look, then strode out of the cafe, leaving her alone with her camera and her untranslated fears. The cozy little town of Alborn was growing colder by the minute.