Run: 2026-07-01-01KWEABXKH6C3QDR76S4HZ7AQE

The bell above the door of the Alborn Café jingles softly as Hunter steps inside, his eyes scanning the room until they land on Maria, hunched over her camera at a corner table, scrolling through photos with a troubled expression. He walks over, boots heavy on the wooden floor. Hunter: "Afternoon. Detective Hunter, Alborn PD. Mind if I ask you a few questions about last night?" Maria looks up, startled, her hands tightening around her camera. Maria: "¿Perdón? No... no entiendo. ¿Qué pasó?" *(Sorry? I don't... I don't understand. What happened?)* Hunter: "Right. You were at the orchard yesterday evening, weren't you? Somebody said they saw a woman matching your description near the old barn before Mr. Talbot went missing." Maria's eyes widen, and she shakes her head quickly, gesturing toward her camera. Maria: "No sé de qué habla. Yo solo estaba tomando fotos. Había algo extraño allí... una luz, y luego nada. Me asusté mucho." *(I don't know what you're talking about. I was only taking photos. There was something strange there... a light, and then nothing. I got very scared.)* Hunter frowns, rubbing the back of his neck. Hunter: "Whoa, slow down. I don't know what you just said, but you look pretty spooked. You speak any English at all?" Maria shakes her head, holding up her camera toward him, flipping through the screen to show a blurry photo of the orchard at dusk—shadows stretching unnaturally long near the barn. Maria: "Mire esto. Esto es lo que vi. No pude dormir después de eso." *(Look at this. This is what I saw. I couldn't sleep after that.)* Hunter leans in, squinting at the photo, clearly frustrated by the language gap but intrigued by the image. Hunter: "That barn... that's the Talbot place. You were right there, weren't you? I need to know what you saw, but I can't make heads or tails of what you're telling me." Maria taps the photo again, her voice rising with urgency. Maria: "¡Escúcheme! Había una sombra, algo que no era normal. Y después escuché un grito." *(Listen to me! There was a shadow, something that wasn't normal. And then I heard a scream.)* Hunter exhales, pulling out a small notepad, jotting down "orchard, dusk, camera, scared" even though he can't understand a word she's said. Hunter: "Okay, okay. I'm gonna get somebody who speaks Spanish down here, alright? Just—stay put. Don't go anywhere. You might be the only witness we've got." Maria nods slightly, though confusion flickers across her face at his tone rather than his words. She points at the camera again, insistent. Maria: "Por favor, necesito que alguien vea esto. Es importante." *(Please, I need someone to see this. It's important.)* Hunter's phone buzzes sharply in his pocket. He glances at the screen, jaw tightening. Hunter: "Dammit. That's dispatch. Look—stay here, don't touch anything on that camera. I'll be back, and we'll figure this out. Somehow." Maria watches him rise, bewildered, clutching her camera tightly to her chest as he strides toward the door, phone pressed to his ear. Maria: "Espere... ¡espere!" *(Wait... wait!)* But the bell jingles again, and he's already gone, leaving her alone with her photographs and the unsettling memory of the night before.