Run: 2026-02-16-01KHM5J779H3YEY2G6G8NJC69X

**Voice Sheet - Scene: The Café** **SETTING:** A small café in Alborn, MN. The air smells of apples and coffee. ISABELLA (30, Italian) sits at a small wrought-iron table, her camera open on her lap as she scrolls through photos on the LCD screen. Her expression is focused, but there’s a subtle tension in her shoulders. HUNTER (35, detective) approaches. He’s dressed in a simple, functional jacket and has the weary, observant eyes of a former marine. **ISABELLA:** (Muttering softly to herself in Italian, not noticing Hunter) *Mamma mia, questa luce… era perfetta. Ma quel rumore… cos’era?* (Goodness, that light… it was perfect. But that noise… what was it?) **HUNTER:** (Clears his throat, standing a polite distance from her table) Excuse me, miss? **(Isabella jumps slightly, looking up. Her eyes widen, startled.)** **ISABELLA:** *Ah! Mi ha spaventata.* (Ah! You scared me.) **HUNTER:** (Gives a small, tight, apologetic smile) Sorry. I’m Detective Hunter. I’m investigating some… incidents around town. I was hoping to ask you a few questions. You were out by the old mill creek last evening, taking pictures? **(Hunter gestures to her camera. Isabella’s face pales. She glances down at a specific photo on her camera—a beautiful shot of the creek at dusk, with a blurry, dark shape in the distant tree line.)** **ISABELLA:** (Voice trembling, the words tumbling out in a rush of Italian) *Il torrente… sì, ero lì. C’era un silenzio, poi… non lo so. Ho sentito qualcosa, come un grido soffocato. Ho scattato la foto e sono corsa via. C’era qualcuno là fuori, qualcosa di sbagliato. Non dovevo andare lì da sola.* (The creek… yes, I was there. There was a silence, then… I don’t know. I heard something, like a muffled cry. I took the picture and I ran. There was someone out there, something wrong. I shouldn’t have gone there alone.) **(She looks up at Hunter, her eyes pleading for understanding, clearly shaken. Hunter stares, completely lost. He leans in slightly, his brow furrowed.)** **HUNTER:** I… I’m sorry, I don’t understand. Do you speak English? *English?* **ISABELLA:** (Shakes her head, frustrated and scared) *No, no inglese. Mi dispiace. Guardi!* (No, no English. I’m sorry. Look!) **(She thrusts the camera toward him, pointing insistently at the photo with the dark blur. Hunter takes the camera, squinting at the image.)** **HUNTER:** (Tone softening, trying to be gentle) Okay, okay. I see the picture. It’s… a nice picture. Look, was there anyone else there? Did you see a person? A car? *Person? Car?* **(He mimes driving a steering wheel. Isabella just shakes her head again, more emphatically.)** **ISABELLA:** *Solo il rumore. E la sensazione… la sensazione di essere osservata.* (Just the noise. And the feeling… the feeling of being watched.) **(She wraps her arms around herself. Hunter rubs the back of his neck, exasperated. This is going nowhere.)** **HUNTER:** Right. Listen, I’m going to need to find someone who can… help us talk. **(Suddenly, Hunter’s phone buzzes loudly in his pocket. He holds up a finger to Isabella—“one second”—and answers.)** **HUNTER:** (Into phone) Hunter. …Where? …Understood. I’m on my way. **(He hangs up, his expression turning grim and urgent. He hands the camera back to Isabella.)** **HUNTER:** I have to go. Stay… *here*. (He points firmly at the ground, then at her.) *Safe*. Capisce? I’ll… find someone. I’ll be back. **(Isabella just stares, confused and still frightened, clutching her camera to her chest. Hunter gives her one last, searching look, then turns and strides quickly out of the café, leaving Isabella alone at the table, staring at the haunting photo on her screen.)**