Run: 2026-05-10-01KR91737XNWY6GY6JE87DPEST

The bell above the door of The Cider Press café chimed, cutting through the low hum of mid-morning chatter. Marie didn't look up; her focus was entirely on the small digital screen of her Canon, scrolling through the crisp shots of the Alborn orchards she’d taken at dawn. Hunter stepped inside, his heavy boots thudding rhythmically against the wooden floor. He looked out of place in the cozy, cinnamon-scented atmosphere, his shoulders too broad for the delicate bistro chairs and his expression far too grim for a town celebrating its annual apple festival. He spotted the young woman with the camera and headed straight for her table. He cleared his throat, leaning one hand on the edge of her table. "Excuse me. Miss?" Marie blinked, startled. She looked up, her eyes wide and bright, but she didn't smile. She gripped her camera a little tighter. "I'm Detective Hunter," he said, skipping the pleasantries. "I saw you out by the north creek earlier this morning. You were taking photos near the old bridge. Did you see anything unusual? Any vehicles or people out that way?" Marie’s breath hitched. She looked toward the window, her gaze darting as if she expected something to emerge from the morning mist. Her face paled, and her voice came out in a hurried, trembling rush. "Je ne sais pas si je devrais le dire... C'était horrible. J'ai vu quelque chose près de l'eau, mais j'ai eu tellement peur que je n'ai pas osé bouger. Je ne me sens pas en sécurité ici." Hunter stared at her, his brow furrowing into a deep V. He waited for a beat, then a second, expecting a translation that never came. "I... sorry. I don't speak French. Do you speak English?" Marie shook her head slowly, her eyes shimmering with unshed tears. She pointed toward the creek, then made a sweeping motion with her hand, miming something vanishing. Hunter sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. He tried again, slower this time, using hand gestures. "Did... you... see... person? Bad person?" Marie looked at him, frustrated and clearly shaken. She pointed to her camera, then to the direction of the woods, and whispered, "L'ombre... l'ombre qui bougeait sans faire de bruit." "Look, I can tell you're upset," Hunter said, his voice softening just a fraction, though his stance remained rigid. "But I need to know if you saw anything that could help with the disappearances. Anything at all." Marie reached for her camera, her fingers trembling as she tried to show him a specific photo of the treeline, but before she could find the right image, Hunter’s phone erupted in his pocket with a sharp, jarring ring. He pulled it out, glancing at the caller ID. His expression shifted instantly from confused to professional stone. "I have to go," he said, nodding curtly to her. "If you find any more photos... or if you remember anything... please, find someone at the station. Or just... stay in the light." He turned on his heel and strode out of the café, leaving Marie alone with her camera and the haunting images of a town that felt much smaller and more dangerous than it had an hour ago. *** **Voice Sheet** Marie: "Je ne sais pas si je devrais le dire... C'était horrible. J'ai vu quelque chose près de l'eau, mais j'ai eu tellement peur que je n'ai pas osé bouger. Je ne me sens pas en sécurité ici." Hunter: "I... sorry. I don't speak French. Do you speak English?" Hunter: "Did... you... see... person? Bad person?" Marie: "L'ombre... l'ombre qui bougeait sans faire de bruit." Hunter: "Look, I can tell you're upset. But I need to know if you saw anything that could help with the disappearances. Anything at all." Hunter: "I have to go. If you find any more photos... or if you remember anything... please, find someone at the station. Or just... stay in the light."