Run: 2026-02-16-01KHM5QGWA5EQCBCVJRCGN4ZAN

**VOICE SHEET** **Location:** A small, quaint cafe on the main street of Alborn, MN. The smell of fresh coffee and baked goods is in the air. **Maria:** (Sitting alone at a small wrought-iron table, she stares intently at the digital display of her camera. Her expression is pale and troubled. She zooms in on a particular photo, her hand trembling slightly.) **Hunter:** (Approaches the table, his posture straight and official. He flashes his badge briefly, though his tone is deliberately calm.) Excuse me, miss. I’m Detective Hayes. I’m speaking with everyone who was downtown during the Apple Festival setup yesterday. Did you happen to see anything unusual? Anyone acting strangely? **Maria:** (She looks up, startled. Her eyes are wide with lingering fear. The words tumble out in a rushed, anxious flood of Spanish.) *¡Dios mío! Sí, vi... vi algo. En el bosque, al borde del estacionamiento. No era una persona, no exactamente. Era más como una... una sombra, moviéndose entre los árboles. Pero rápido, demasiado rápido. Y el sonido... como un crujido seco, pero fuerte. Tomé una foto, pero en la pantalla solo se ve... esto.* (Oh my God! Yes, I saw... I saw something. In the woods, at the edge of the parking lot. It wasn't a person, not exactly. It was more like a... a shadow, moving between the trees. But fast, too fast. And the sound... like a dry crunch, but loud. I took a picture, but on the screen it only shows... this.) (She turns the camera toward him, pointing at a blurred, dark streak amidst the foliage.) **Hunter:** (His brow furrows deeply. He leans in to look at the camera but clearly doesn't understand her words. His voice takes on a hint of frustration, mixed with concern.) I’m sorry, I don’t... I don’t understand. Did you see something? Can you point? (He makes a vague gesture toward the window and the town outside.) **Maria:** (Shakes her head, becoming more agitated. She taps the camera screen insistently.) *¡La foto! ¡Mire la foto! Algo está allí. Algo tomó a esa mujer, la de los periódicos. Lo vi, o casi lo vi. ¡Tiene que creerme!* (The picture! Look at the picture! Something is there. Something took that woman, the one from the newspapers. I saw it, or I almost saw it. You have to believe me!) **Hunter:** (He holds up a placating hand, his jaw tight. The language barrier is a solid wall.) Look, it’s okay. It’s okay. I just need to know if you... (He mimes ‘seeing’ with his fingers pointing from his eyes, then points to her camera.)... anything. For the report. **Maria:** (She slumps back in her chair, defeated and exhausted by the failed communication. She whispers, more to herself than to him.) *Nadie entiende. Y ahora esa cosa... está en mi foto.* (No one understands. And now that thing... is in my photo.) **(Hunter’s phone rings abruptly, a harsh, electronic buzz. He pulls it from his pocket, his expression shifting to sharp focus as he reads the caller ID.)** **Hunter:** (He holds up a finger to Maria, a ‘one second’ gesture.) Hayes. ...What? Where? ...Under the old bridge? I’m on my way. Secure the area. (He pockets the phone, his previous frustration replaced by urgent professionalism. He looks back at Maria, the confused witness he can’t question.) **Hunter:** I have to go. Stay in town. Please. (He points firmly at her, then at the ground, hoping the meaning is clear. He turns and strides quickly out of the cafe, leaving Maria alone with her terrifying, untranslated evidence.)