Run: 2026-02-08-01KGYX4D0181TBG7KZ0TXM77J8

# Voice Sheet — Café Scene, Alborn, MN --- Hunter: "Afternoon, ma'am. Mind if I sit down for a moment? I'm Detective Hunter Brandt, Alborn PD." Melanie: *(glances up from her camera, startled)* "Oh — hallo. Entschuldigung, ich... kann ich Ihnen helfen?" Hunter: "I'll take that as a yes. Listen, I'm investigating some disappearances around town. Were you anywhere near the fairgrounds last Tuesday evening? We're talking to everyone who might've seen something." Melanie: *(her expression shifts, eyes widening — she clutches her camera tighter)* "Die Nacht... ja, ich war dort. Ich habe Fotos gemacht, vom Sonnenuntergang über den Apfelplantagen. Aber dann — ich habe etwas gesehen. Etwas Schreckliches. Ein Mann hat geschrien, und dann war er einfach... weg. Ich wollte jemandem davon erzählen, aber ich wusste nicht, wie!" Hunter: *(leaning back slowly)* "Okay... I'm going to be honest with you, I didn't catch a single word of that. Do you speak English? English?" Melanie: *(shaking her head, frustrated)* "Nein, nein — kein Englisch. Es tut mir leid. Ich versuche es Ihnen zu erklären..." *(she holds up her camera and begins scrolling through photos urgently)* "Hier, schauen Sie — schauen Sie sich das an!" Hunter: "Photos? You took photos out there? May I — can I see those?" Melanie: *(nods vigorously, turning the camera screen toward him)* "Ja! Sehen Sie? Hier ist der Mann, er steht neben dem Zaun. Und hier — das nächste Bild — er ist verschwunden. Einfach so. Keine Spur." Hunter: "That's... huh. That's the fairground alright. And that figure by the fence — hold on, is that — I recognize that jacket. That's one of our missing persons. Ma'am, this could be important. Can you — do you understand me at all?" Melanie: *(wringing her hands)* "Ich verstehe nicht, was Sie sagen. Ich wünschte, ich könnte es. Ich habe solche Angst seit dieser Nacht. Ich glaube, jemand hat mich auch gesehen. Jemand hat mich beobachtet, als ich zurück zu meiner Unterkunft gegangen bin." Hunter: *(rubbing his temple)* "This is... this is something. I can tell you're shaken up. Whatever you saw out there really got to you, didn't it?" Melanie: *(voice trembling)* "Ja... ja, es macht mir wirklich Angst. Bitte — bitte helfen Sie mir. Ich bin hier ganz allein." Hunter: "Look, I don't know what you're saying, but I can see it in your eyes. You're scared. I'm going to help you, alright? We'll figure this out. I'll find someone who speaks — what is that, German? I'll find a translator. Just—" *(Hunter's phone rings sharply. He holds up a finger.)* Hunter: "Brandt here. ...Yeah. ...You're kidding me. Another one? Where? ...Alright, I'm on my way. Ten minutes." *(He ends the call and stands, pulling a business card from his jacket.)* Hunter: "Ma'am, I have to go — duty calls. But this isn't over. Here — take my card. My number's on there. Call me, or better yet, have someone who speaks English call me for you. And hold on to those photos. Don't delete a single one." Melanie: *(taking the card, looking at it helplessly)* "Warten Sie — bitte gehen Sie nicht. Ich... ich habe noch so viel mehr zu erzählen. Bitte..." Hunter: *(pausing at the edge of the table, voice softer)* "I'm sorry. I really am. I'll come back. I promise." *(He taps the card in her hand twice, points to the phone number, then to her, and mimes a phone call.)* Hunter: "Call. Okay? Call." Melanie: *(watching him leave, whispering)* "...Bitte kommen Sie zurück." --- *Hunter pushes through the café door into the gray Minnesota afternoon. Melanie sits alone, turning the business card over in her fingers, then looks back down at her camera — at the last photo on the screen, where a man stands by a fence in the fading light, and in the next frame, where he doesn't.*