Run: 2026-05-01-01KQHR0HR95TM4M1RF5TQ1SDE9

**Scene** The afternoon sun filtered through the large windows of *The Daily Grind*, the only café in Alborn, Minnesota. Melanie sat at a corner table, her half-empty latte growing cold beside her. She scrolled through the photos on her camera, brows furrowed. The last few shots from yesterday’s apple festival still haunted her — something in the background of one particular landscape photo didn’t belong. The bell above the door chimed. Hunter strode in, his leather jacket still carrying the scent of pine from the woods he’d been searching all morning. His sharp eyes scanned the room until they landed on the young woman with the camera. He’d heard there was a foreign exchange student in town who’d been photographing the festival. Worth a shot. He approached her table. **Voice Sheet** Melanie: *scrolling through her camera, not looking up* „Die Bilder von gestern… da war etwas. Ich habe etwas gesehen. Jemand ist einfach verschwunden. Es war direkt hinter dem großen Apfelwagen. Ich glaube… ich glaube, ich habe einen Schrei gehört.“ Hunter: *pausing, clearly not understanding a word* “Ma’am? I’m Detective Hunter with the Alborn Sheriff’s Department. I was told you were taking pictures at the festival yesterday. Mind if I ask you a few questions about what you might’ve seen?” Melanie: *finally looking up, eyes wide and troubled, voice shaking* „Es tut mir leid, ich spreche kein Englisch. Nur Deutsch. Das war schrecklich. Die Frau war plötzlich weg. Einfach… weg. Und niemand hat etwas bemerkt. Außer mir.“ Hunter: *rubbing the back of his neck, visibly confused* “Right. Okay. I don’t… I don’t speak whatever that is. German? Look, I’m trying to find out what happened to Mrs. Aldridge. She disappeared during the festival. If you saw anything — anything at all — I need to know.” Melanie: *leaning forward, speaking slower but still in German, clearly distressed* „Die Frau mit dem roten Mantel. Sie war da. Dann war sie weg. Ich habe es mit meiner Kamera festgehalten, aber als ich genauer hingesehen habe… war da nur noch ihr Schal auf dem Boden. Ich habe Angst. Etwas stimmt hier nicht.“ Hunter: *sighing, pulling out a small notebook anyway* “I’m going to assume that was important. Can you… show me the pictures? Fotos? Pictures?” *he points at her camera* Melanie: *nodding quickly and turning the camera toward him, voice trembling* „Sehen Sie? Hier. Das ist sie. Und hier — nur noch der Schal. Ich schwöre, sie war gerade noch da.“ Hunter: *squinting at the screen, trying to make sense of both the images and the language barrier* “This might actually be useful. I’m gonna need copies of these. Copies? Ah, verdammt… I wish I’d paid more attention in high school Spanish.” *The two continue for several minutes — Melanie growing more agitated as she tries to explain in German, Hunter growing more frustrated as he gestures at the photos and repeats key words like “disappeared,” “festival,” and “witness.” She keeps pointing at specific parts of the images while repeating variations of “Verschwunden” and “Schal.”* *Suddenly Hunter’s phone rings. He checks the caller ID and his expression hardens.* Hunter: “This is Hunter… Yeah. I’m on my way.” *hangs up, looks at Melanie with clear regret* “I’ve gotta go. Something just came up at the south trail. But I’m not done with you. Stay in town, alright? Bleiben. Here.” *he scribbles his number on a napkin and slides it toward her* “If you remember anything else… call me. Or find someone who speaks both. Danke. I think that’s thank you.” Melanie: *quietly, still shaken* „Bitte… finden Sie heraus, was passiert ist.“ Hunter: *standing, giving her one last confused but sincere nod* “I’ll be in touch.” *Hunter strides out of the café, leaving Melanie staring at the napkin and her troubling photographs.*