Run: 2026-03-25-01KMJ7T2E3JGQYKAZR5W1391SP

**Voice Sheet – Café Scene in Alborn, MN** *(Sound of gentle café chatter, coffee machine steaming, leaves rustling outside the window. Melanie sits at a corner table, reviewing photos on her camera, her brow furrowed. Hunter enters, wearing a trench coat despite the mild weather. He approaches with calm authority.)* **Hunter:** Ma’am? Mind if I ask you a few questions? **Melanie:** *(Startled, looks up. She fumbles with her camera, voice trembling.)* Ich… ich verstehe nicht. Ich spreche kein Englisch… Was… was ist passiert? **Hunter:** *(Frowning slightly, leans forward but keeps tone even.)* Sorry. I don’t speak German. You… English? **Melanie:** *(Shakes head rapidly, eyes wide.)* Nein. Nein, ich… ich habe nur Deutsch. Ich war im Wald… gestern… bei den alten Apfelbäumen. Da war… da war etwas. Nicht normal. **Hunter:** *(Leans in, interested now.)* Wait—you were in the woods? Near the old orchard? **Melanie:** *(Nods quickly, pointing her camera toward him as if to show a photo, but hesitates.)* Ja! Ja, dort. Ich habe… Bilder gemacht. Etwas… im Nebel. Eine Gestalt. Aber… als ich hinging… nichts. Kein Mensch. Nur… Kälte. Und diese Stimme… Flüstern. Auf Deutsch. Meinen Namen… **Hunter:** *(Eyes narrow. He takes out a small notebook.)* You heard whispering? In German? Saying your name? **Melanie:** *(Clutching her camera to her chest.)* Ja. Wer weiß meinen Namen? Ich kenne niemanden hier… Es war kein Zufall… Ich habe Angst. Etwas stimmt nicht mit dieser Stadt. **Hunter:** *(Trying to sound calming, but urgency in his voice.)* I believe you. I don’t understand your language, but… I believe something happened. *(His phone rings—sharp, insistent. He answers with a curt "Hunter.")* **Hunter:** Yeah? … Where? … The old mill? … Got it. On my way. *(He closes the phone, looks back at Melanie with regret and concern.)* **Hunter:** I gotta go. But I’ll come back. Stay safe. Don’t go back to the woods. **Melanie:** *(Standing slightly, desperate.)* Bitte… verstehen Sie mich doch! Diese Stadt… sie versteckt etwas! Ich habe Beweise—hier, in meinen Fotos! **Hunter:** *(Softly, stepping back.)* I know. And I’ll find someone who can help me understand. Stay here. Be safe. *(He turns and walks out. Melanie watches him go, then slowly flips through her camera gallery, pausing on a blurred figure in the mist—just visible beneath the gnarled branches of an old apple tree. The wind chime at the café door tinkles as the scene fades.)*