Run: 2026-02-20-01KHXPCC6JZ1YJN30PJVDH0EJH

**Voice Sheet: Café Conversation** *(Melanie sits at a small outdoor table, her camera resting in her lap. She flips through the photos on the display, her expression troubled. Hunter approaches, his detective badge clipped to his belt, his posture rigid but not unkind.)* **Hunter:** *(clears throat, speaks slowly)* Excuse me. Mind if I sit for a minute? **Melanie:** *(startled, looks up, then nods hesitantly)* Ja… natürlich. *(Yes… of course.)* **Hunter:** *(pulls out the chair across from her, sits)* Thanks. I’m Detective Hunter. I’m looking into the recent… well, the things that’ve been happening around town. *(pauses, watching her reaction)* You’ve been around the festival grounds a lot, right? Taking photos? **Melanie:** *(frowns, shakes her head slightly, then speaks rapidly in German)* Ich verstehe nicht. Was meinen Sie? Ich war nur beim Festival, um Fotos zu machen—die Äpfel, die Leute, die Landschaft. Aber dann… *(I don’t understand. What do you mean? I was only at the festival to take photos—the apples, the people, the scenery. But then…)* *(she trails off, her fingers tightening around her camera)* **Hunter:** *(leans forward slightly, trying to parse her tone if not her words)* Ma’am, I’m not sure what you’re saying. But you look… upset. Did you see something? Near the orchard, maybe? **Melanie:** *(shakes her head again, voice rising slightly)* Ich habe *etwas* gesehen. Etwas Seltsames. Ein Mann—nein, zwei Männer—die sich im Wald gestritten haben. Und dann… *(I saw *something*. Something strange. A man—no, two men—arguing in the woods. And then…)* *(she swallows hard, her eyes darting toward the tree line beyond the café)* Der eine ist einfach… verschwunden. *(One just… disappeared.)* **Hunter:** *(frowns, rubbing his temple)* Okay, I’m gonna need you to slow down. You’re saying you saw a fight? And someone vanished? **Melanie:** *(nods vigorously, then switches to broken English, stumbling over the words)* Ja. Fight. In woods. One man… gone. *(mimes a poof with her hands)* Weg. *(Gone.)* **Hunter:** *(eyes narrow slightly, processing)* You got photos of this? **Melanie:** *(hesitates, then nods, flipping through her camera. She turns the display toward him, pointing at a blurry shot of two figures near the trees)* Hier. *(Here.)* **Hunter:** *(studies the photo, then looks back at her)* This is… not much to go on. But it’s something. *(pulls out a notepad and pen, holds the pen out to her)* Can you write down what you saw? In German is fine—I’ll get it translated. **Melanie:** *(takes the pen, scribbles quickly on the notepad, then hands it back. Her hand trembles slightly.)* Bitte. Seien Sie vorsichtig. *(Please. Be careful.)* **Hunter:** *(tucks the notepad into his pocket, then stands as his phone buzzes. He glances at the screen, then back at her)* I gotta take this. But I’ll be in touch. *(pauses, then points at her camera)* Don’t delete those photos, okay? **Melanie:** *(nods, clutching her camera to her chest)* Ja. Danke. *(Hunter gives her a curt nod, then strides away, already answering his phone. Melanie watches him go, her expression still troubled, before turning back to her camera and flipping through the photos again.)*