Run: 2026-02-20-01KHXQAV0QG1W9MKYCZMN4ZTJJ

Here’s the dialogue formatted as a **voice sheet** for your cozy mystery scene, capturing the tension, language barrier, and underlying unease between Maria and Hunter. --- ### **VOICE SHEET – CAFÉ SCENE** **Setting:** *A quiet café in Alborn, MN. The hum of conversation and clinking cups fills the air. Maria sits alone at a corner table, her camera in hand, scrolling through photos with a furrowed brow. Hunter approaches, his expression serious.* --- **HUNTER** *(firm, no-nonsense, but not unkind)* "Miss? Mind if I sit?" *(He pulls out the chair across from her without waiting for an answer, his badge glinting as he sets it on the table.)* "You were at the old mill yesterday, right? Near the river?" --- **MARIA** *(startled, gripping her camera tighter, rapid Spanish with a shake in her voice)* "¿Yo? ¿Ayer en el molino? ¡Dios mío! Sí, estaba allí… pero—" *(she swallows hard, glancing toward the door)* "Vi algo. Algo… raro. Un hombre, creí que me seguía, pero entonces—" *(she cuts herself off, pressing her lips together, as if realizing she’s said too much.)* *(Her fingers tremble as she tucks a strand of hair behind her ear.)* "No hablo inglés. Lo siento." --- **HUNTER** *(frowning, leaning in slightly, as if volume will help)* "Look, I don’t know what you just said, but I need you to try. *Try.*" *(He points at her camera.)* "Did you take pictures? Of the mill? Of *anyone*?" *(A beat. He exhales sharply, rubbing his temple.)* "Damn it. *Someone* in this town’s got to speak Spanish." --- **MARIA** *(misunderstanding his frustration, her voice rising in alarm)* "¡No, no es eso! Es solo que—" *(she hesitates, then flips her camera toward him, scrolling frantically through photos. She stops on one—a blurry figure near the tree line—and taps the screen, urgent.)* "¡Él! ¡Allí! Pero cuando miré otra vez, ya no estaba." *(Her breath is shallow. She looks over her shoulder again, as if expecting the man from the photo to appear behind her.)* --- **HUNTER** *(studying the photo, his jaw tightening. He zooms in, but the figure is too distant, indistinct. He meets her eyes—she’s genuinely terrified.)* "Stay in town." *(He pulls a card from his pocket, slides it toward her.)* "You see *anything* else, you come to me. Got it?" *(His phone rings—sharp, insistent. He checks the screen, then stands abruptly.)* "Gotta go. *Lock your doors tonight.*" *(He doesn’t wait for a response, already striding toward the exit as he answers the call.)* --- **MARIA** *(whispering to herself, watching him leave, the card clutched in her hand)* "Dios mío… ¿qué está pasando aquí?" *(She looks down at the photo again, her reflection in the camera lens pale, wide-eyed.)* --- ### **NOTES FOR DELIVERY:** - **Maria:** Her Spanish should sound natural but increasingly breathless as the conversation progresses. Underlying fear—like she’s holding back something bigger. - **Hunter:** Gruff but not cruel. His frustration isn’t at *her*, but at the language barrier and the case weighing on him. The moment he sees the photo, his tone shifts—*this* is the lead he’s been missing. - **Subtext:** Maria knows more than she’s saying. Hunter senses it. The unspoken tension lingers even after he leaves. --- Would you like any adjustments to the tone or pacing? Or additional context for their body language?