Run: 2026-02-20-01KHXPEX0W9BS4AQX7BE3JZCGD

**Voice Sheet: Café Conversation** *(Selvi sits at a small outdoor table at the café, her fingers tracing the edges of her camera. The late afternoon sun casts long shadows across the cobblestone street. Hunter approaches, his expression serious but not unkind. He pulls out the chair across from her and sits without waiting for an invitation.)* **Hunter:** *(leaning forward slightly, hands clasped on the table)* "Excuse me, miss. I’m Detective Hunter Cole. I was hoping I could ask you a few questions about the other night—near the old mill?" *(Selvi looks up sharply, her dark eyes wide. She clutches her camera tighter, her knuckles whitening. Her breath hitches, and she shakes her head, speaking rapidly in Hindi.)* **Selvi:** *(Hindi, voice trembling)* "Main wahaan nahi jaana chahti thi… woh aawaaz… woh chehra… maine socha tha main safe hoon, lekin phir… phir woh hua. Mujhe nahi pata tha ki woh itna khaufnaak hoga. Main abhi bhi usko dekh rahi hoon jab main aankhen band karti hoon." *(Hunter frowns, tilting his head slightly as if that might help him understand. He holds up a hand, trying to slow her down.)* **Hunter:** *(gentler, but still firm)* "Whoa, whoa—slow down. I don’t… I don’t speak Hindi. Can you try English? Or maybe…" *(He gestures vaguely at her camera.)* "Show me something?" *(Selvi blinks, then nods quickly. She flips open the screen on her camera and scrolls through the photos, her hands shaking. She stops on one—a blurry shot of the mill at dusk, the trees around it casting eerie shadows. She points at the screen, then at the woods beyond the café, her voice rising in urgency.)* **Selvi:** *(Hindi, mixing in a few frantic English words)* "Wahaan! Mill ke paas! Main theek tha, lekin phir… woh aadmi… uske haath…" *(She shudders, wrapping her arms around herself.)* "Dark. Bahut dark. No light. Sir, please—" *(Hunter’s phone buzzes sharply in his pocket. He pulls it out, glancing at the screen, his jaw tightening. He stands abruptly, cutting her off with a raised hand.)* **Hunter:** *(grim, distracted)* "Look, I’ve gotta take this. But stay here, okay? Don’t go anywhere near the mill. I’ll be back in ten." *(He hesitates, then adds, slower.)* "And… try to calm down. You’re safe now." *(Selvi nods, but her eyes are still wide, her fingers gripping the edge of the table. Hunter strides away, already answering the call, his voice low and clipped. Selvi watches him go, then turns back to her camera, her breath coming in shallow gasps as she flips through the photos again.)*