# Voice Sheet: The Café Encounter --- **Setting:** *A small café on Main Street in Alborn, MN. Maria sits alone at a corner table near the window, scrolling through photographs on her camera's display screen. A half-finished coffee sits beside her. Hunter enters, notices her, and approaches. The bell above the door chimes softly behind him.* --- Hunter: "Excuse me, ma'am. I'm Detective Hunter Graves with the St. Louis County Sheriff's Office. Mind if I sit down for a moment?" Maria: *looks up from her camera, startled* "¿Perdón? No... no entiendo." Hunter: "I just need to ask you a couple of questions. Were you in town last Tuesday evening? There was an incident near the fairgrounds — a woman went missing." Maria: *her eyes widen, and she sets the camera down on the table with trembling hands* "¿Una mujer? Dios mío... Yo estaba allí. Estaba tomando fotos del atardecer cerca de ese lugar. Vi algo... algo que me asustó mucho. Había un hombre, y una camioneta oscura, y escuché gritos. Quise ayudar, pero no sabía qué hacer. No conozco a nadie aquí. No sé cómo explicarlo..." Hunter: *stares at her for a long beat, then shifts in his seat* "I'm sorry, I — do you speak English? English?" Maria: *shakes her head slowly, frustration and fear mingling on her face* "No hablo inglés. Lo siento. Soy de España. Estoy aquí estudiando. Por favor... lo que vi esa noche... fue horrible." Hunter: "Okay. Alright. Uh — you were there? At the fairgrounds?" *He points in the general direction of the fairgrounds, then mimes looking around.* Maria: *nods vigorously, then picks up her camera and begins scrolling back through her photos* "Sí, sí, mire. Estuve allí. Tengo fotos." *She turns the camera screen toward him, showing a series of landscape shots — golden hour light spilling over the fairgrounds, the treeline, the gravel lot.* "Mire esta. ¿Ve? Ahí, en el fondo..." Hunter: *leans in, squinting at the small screen* "Wait — is that a truck? Back there by the trees? Can you... can you zoom in on that?" *He pinches his fingers together, miming a zoom gesture.* Maria: *understands the gesture and zooms in, her hands still shaking* "Sí, la camioneta. Estaba ahí cuando escuché los gritos. Fue espantoso. Me escondí detrás del edificio. Tenía mucho miedo." *Her voice cracks.* "El hombre... no le vi la cara, pero era grande. Alto. Llevaba algo en los brazos." Hunter: *rubs the back of his neck, clearly frustrated by the barrier* "I can see you're upset. And this photo — this could be important. Really important. I just... I can't understand a word you're saying." *He pulls out a small notebook and writes down his phone number, sliding it across the table.* "Detective Graves. That's me. Phone number. ¿Teléfono?" Maria: *takes the paper, studies it, and nods* "Teléfono. Sí, entiendo. Pero necesito que alguien me ayude a hablar con usted. Necesito un traductor. ¿Hay alguien aquí que hable español?" Hunter: "I'm guessing you're asking about a translator? I'll see what I can do. We've got to have someone in the county who speaks Spanish." *He gestures between the two of them, then waves his hands in a talking motion.* "I'll find someone. Help. Ayoo-da?" *He winces at his own attempt.* Maria: *a faint, sad smile crosses her lips despite herself* "Ayuda. Sí. Necesito ayuda. Y esa mujer... la que desapareció... también necesita ayuda. Lo que vi esa noche no era normal. Algo muy malo está pasando en este pueblo." Hunter: "Look, I can tell whatever you saw shook you up pretty bad. Just hold onto those photos for me, okay? Don't delete anything." *He mimes holding the camera carefully, then makes an X with his fingers.* "No delete." Maria: *clutches the camera to her chest* "No voy a borrar nada. Esto es evidencia. Lo sé. He visto suficientes películas para saber eso." *She lets out a nervous laugh.* "Pero tengo miedo. Si ese hombre me vio a mí..." Hunter: *notices her fear, softens his expression, and speaks more slowly, as if that might somehow help* "You're safe. I'm going to help you. Safe." *He places his hand flat on the table in a calming gesture.* Maria: *meets his eyes, and though she doesn't understand his words, something in his tone steadies her* "Creo que le entiendo. O al menos quiero creerle. Gracias." Hunter: *opens his mouth to respond, but his phone buzzes loudly in his jacket pocket. He pulls it out and glances at the screen — his jaw tightens.* "Graves here." *He listens for a moment, his expression darkening.* "Where? ...How long ago? I'm on my way." *He stands abruptly, pocketing the phone.* Maria: *looks up at him with alarm* "¿Qué pasó? ¿Se va? Pero todavía no hemos..." Hunter: *holds up a hand apologetically* "I'm sorry — I've got to go. Something's come up. But I'll be back, alright? I'll find a translator, and we'll go through everything." *He taps the notebook paper on the table — the one with his number.* "Call me. Teléfono. If anything — if you see anything, if you feel unsafe." *He draws a phone shape with his hand against his ear.* Maria: *nods, gripping the slip of paper* "Teléfono. Sí. Tenga cuidado, detective. Hay algo muy oscuro en este pueblo. Lo siento en los huesos." Hunter: *pauses at the door, turns back one last time — something in her voice, the gravity of it, transcends language* "Yeah. I'm starting to feel it too." *He pushes through the door and disappears into the gray afternoon light. Maria watches him go, then looks back down at her camera. She scrolls to the photo of the dark truck by the treeline. In the deepest shadows of the image, barely visible, there is the unmistakable shape of a figure watching her.* *She hadn't noticed it before.* *Her blood runs cold.* --- **[END SCENE]**