VOICE SHEET – "Café Encounter in Alborn" [Interior: Sunny Side Café, Alborn, MN – Late afternoon. Soft chatter in the background. Maria sits at a corner table, reviewing photos on her camera. Hunter enters, approaches her with a notepad.] Hunter: (calm, professional) Excuse me, miss. I’m Detective Hunter. I’m looking into some recent happenings around town — specifically, the night of the Apple Festival. Were you around then? Did you see anything unusual? Maria: (startled, looks up. She fumbles her camera, then speaks quickly, voice trembling) ¡Dios mío! Sí… sí, estaba ahí. Pero… no fue normal. Nada fue normal. Vi… luces extrañas sobre los árboles, como si algo flotara. Y luego… luego la gente… desapareció por unos minutos. ¡Como fantasmas! Nadie más parece recordarlo. ¡Yo no estoy loca! Hunter: (furrows brow, confused) Uh… I’m sorry, I don’t understand. Do you speak English? Maria: (panicked, switching back but not realizing he still can’t understand) ¿Qué? No, yo no… ¿Tú no hablas español? ¡Esto es importante! Algo pasó en el festival. Algo raro. Yo lo vi. Tengo… tengo fotos. ¡Aquí! Mira. (She shows him her camera screen — a blurry image of glowing orbs above the trees.) Hunter: (leaning in, voice cautious) Whoa, okay… You’ve got pictures? That’s… that’s good. But I need you to slow down. I don’t speak Spanish. At all. Can you… try English? Just a little? Maria: (frustrated, gesturing at the photo) No… no inglés. ¡Español! Mira — ¡luces! En el parque. Durante la fiesta. Gente… aquí… y luego… (she makes a sweeping motion with her hand)… desaparecieron. Hunter: (scribbling notes, half to himself) Lights… park… people gone… Huh. Look, I can’t follow everything you’re saying, but I get the gist. You saw something strange at the festival. And you have pictures. Is that right? Maria: (nods urgently, pointing at her camera) ¡Sí! Fotos. Yo no estoy mintiendo. Algo pasa en este pueblo. Alborn… no es normal. Hunter: (nodding, more serious now) I believe you’re telling the truth. I don’t know what’s going on yet, but… I’ll look into it. Do you have more photos? From that night? Maria: (tapping screen, showing another image — blurred figures near the orchard) Aquí. Gente… borrosa. Como si no estuvieran del todo aquí. Fue a las nueve. O nueve y media. Con el ruido del fuego artificial. [Hunter’s phone rings. He steps back, answers.] Hunter: (into phone) Hunter. … What? The Henderson kid? Where? … The orchard again? I’m on my way. [He hangs up, turns back to Maria, tense.] Hunter: I’ve gotta go. But I want to talk again. Can you stay in town a while longer? Maria: (shaking head, confused) ¿Qué? ¿Te vas? Pero… necesitas ver todas las fotos. ¡Hay más! Hunter: I’ll come find you. Tomorrow. Same place? Can you… meet me here? Maria: (hesitant, but nods) Sí… vale. Aquí. Mañana. Hunter: Good. Stay safe. And… thank you. [He gives a curt nod and exits quickly. Maria watches him go, clutching her camera tightly.] [FADE OUT]