Run: 2026-04-25-01KQ2HNV8AH7FMAQQYHZVRFJG5

**VOICE SHEET – SCENE 4: THE CAFE AT ALBORN** **INT. MAIN STREET CAFE – DAY** *The cafe is warm, smelling of coffee and cinnamon. MARIA (30, Spanish, dark hair pulled back) sits alone at a corner table. Her camera rests in her hands, the screen glowing with a photograph of the town’s gazebo at dusk. She traces the edge of the lens, her brow furrowed. HUNTER (35, crisp jacket, badge clipped to his belt) steps through the door. He spots her, hesitates, then approaches.* --- HUNTER: *Pulls out the chair opposite her, sits without asking.* "Excuse me. You’re the girl with the camera, right? I’m Detective Hunter. I saw you at the apple festival yesterday. Did you happen to photograph anything unusual? People arguing, someone leaving alone?" *Maria looks up, startled. She doesn’t understand the words, only the intensity in his voice. Her hands tighten on the camera.* MARIA: *Nervous, speaking quickly.* "Lo siento, no hablo inglés. No entiendo. ¿Qué ha pasado? ¿Hay alguien herido?" *(I’m sorry, I don’t speak English. I don’t understand. What happened? Is someone hurt?)* HUNTER: *Blink. Leans back, rubs his jaw.* "Uh. No. No habla…" *He waves a hand vaguely.* "English? You don’t speak English at all?" MARIA: *Shakes her head, eyes wide. She points at her camera, then at the window.* "La foto. La plaza. He visto algo raro anoche, pero no sé si debo decirlo." *(The photo. The square. I saw something strange last night, but I don’t know if I should say it.)* HUNTER: *Scoffs lightly, more at himself than her.* "Great. Just great. Okay, look—" *He mimes taking a picture, then points at the screen.* "Can I… see? The camera? Lo siento, I don’t know the word for ‘please’ in Spanish." MARIA: *Hesitates, then slowly turns the camera toward him. Her finger trembles as she points to a shadowy figure in the background of the gazebo shot—a person half-hidden behind the apple crates, facing away.* "Ese hombre. No se movía. Todos se iban, y él se quedó mirando." *(That man. He didn’t move. Everyone was leaving, and he just stood there watching.)* HUNTER: *Squints at the tiny screen. His demeanor shifts—softer, more concerned.* "That’s… that’s him. Or someone like him." *He looks up, meets her eyes.* "You saw this? You saw him?" MARIA: *Shrugs helplessly, tears pricking at her eyes.* "No entiendo sus palabras. Pero sí, lo vi. Y tuve miedo." *(I don’t understand your words. But yes, I saw him. And I was afraid.)* *Hunter lets out a frustrated breath. He pulls out his phone, types a message, then shows her the screen—a translation app, the sentence typed: “I need to talk to you. Wait for an interpreter.”* MARIA: *Reads it. Nods slowly. A single tear escapes, and she wipes it away quickly.* "Vale. Esperaré." *(Okay. I’ll wait.)* *Hunter’s phone buzzes. He glances at it, his jaw tightening.* HUNTER: *Stands abruptly.* "I have to go. Another one just turned up missing." *He taps her camera gently.* "Don’t delete that photo. Don’t leave town. I’ll find someone who speaks Spanish, I promise." MARIA: *Watches him stride toward the door. She whispers, more to herself than to him.* "Tenga cuidado, detective." *(Be careful, detective.)* *Hunter pauses at the threshold, looks back. For a moment, the hard mask slips. Then he pushes through the door and is gone.*