Run: 2026-09-23-01M36SGBDPS0KBV3HYT2P3BCXY

# VOICE SHEET — "The Apple Festival Disappearance" ### SCENE 4B: CAFÉ — LATE AFTERNOON --- **HUNTER:** *(pulling out a chair, not waiting for an invitation)* Detective Hunter, Alborn PD. Sorry to bother you, ma'am — I'm making the rounds. You were at the apple festival Saturday night, weren't you? By the pavilion? **MELANIE:** *(looks up from her camera, startled)* Entschuldigung? Ich… ich verstehe Sie nicht. **HUNTER:** *(slows down, enunciating carefully)* I'm a detective. Police. I have some questions about Saturday. **MELANIE:** *(sets the camera down carefully, hands trembling slightly)* Es tut mir leid. Ich spreche kein Englisch. Wollen Sie… möchten Sie Platz nehmen? **HUNTER:** *(frowning, tilting his head)* Do you speak English? English? **MELANIE:** *(shaking her head gently, voice low and troubled)* Das Mädchen… das Mädchen, das neben mir saß. Sie war einfach weg. Eine Sekunde war sie noch da, und dann… nicht mehr. *(presses a hand to her mouth)* Ich kann nicht aufhören, daran zu denken. **HUNTER:** *(leaning in, attentive but visibly lost)* Ma'am? You look upset. Are you okay? Did you see something? Saturday — the festival — did something happen? **MELANIE:** *(not hearing a question she can answer, only hearing his tone — she brightens slightly, thinking he's being kind)* Ja. Ja, etwas ist passiert. Es war so schnell. Ich habe es nicht glauben können. *(her voice breaks)* Und jetzt sucht niemand sie. Niemand weiß, wo sie ist. **HUNTER:** *(exchanges a helpless glance with no one in particular, then tries again, speaking slowly)* I need to ask you about… *(holds up a pen, mimes writing)* …writing down what you saw. Can you tell me what you saw? **MELANIE:** *(following his gesture, misunderstanding — she picks up her camera)* Was ich gesehen habe? *(turns the camera around, shows him the screen)* Sehen Sie. Auf diesem Bild. Am Samstagabend. **HUNTER:** *(studies the photo despite himself)* That's the tree line behind Miller's barn. *(points)* And what's that, right there at the edge? **MELANIE:** *(zooming in, finger trembling over the screen)* Da. Jemand. Im Wald. Er stand die ganze Zeit da und hat uns angesehen, und ich… ich habe es erst heute Morgen bemerkt. *(looks up at him, eyes wide)* Ich hätte sofort die Polizei rufen sollen. **HUNTER:** *(staring at the image, jaw tightening)* …Somebody was watching. *(taps the screen)* This spot — you know whose land this is? **MELANIE:** *(understanding only the wordless urgency in his face)* Bitte. Bitte, finden Sie sie. *(grabs his sleeve for a moment, then lets go, embarrassed)* Es tut mir leid. Ich… ich brauche jemanden, der Deutsch spricht. Kann nicht jemand… *(she looks around the café helplessly)* …kann nicht jemand hier Deutsch sprechen? **HUNTER:** *(holds up a hand, gently)* Hey — easy. Easy. I'm not getting a single word of this, okay? I don't know what you're telling me. *(softens, more to himself)* You're scared, though. That much I can read. **MELANIE:** *(staring at him, realizing)* Sie verstehen mich überhaupt nicht, oder? *(a small, weary laugh)* Nein. Natürlich nicht. *(she sinks back in her chair)* Niemand versteht mich. Nicht hier. **HUNTER:** *(notices her camera again, points at it, then mimics holding a camera and taking a picture, then points at the barn on the screen)* You… more pictures? From that night? **MELANIE:** *(understanding the gesture — she nods quickly, scrolling through)* Ja. Ja, ich habe die ganze Nacht fotografiert. *(she turns the screen toward him again, scrolling frame by frame)* Schauen Sie. Hier. Und hier. Und das hier… **HUNTER:** *(studying each frame, murmuring)* There's a truck. *(squints)* That truck's not from around here. *(looks at her, taps the license plate area of the screen)* Do you have one where I can read this? **MELANIE:** *(a flicker of hope crosses her face — she finds the frame and zooms in, holding the camera out to him)* Bitte. Bitte, schauen Sie genau hin. **HUNTER:** *(takes the camera carefully, holds it close)* Yeah… yeah, I can almost make it out. *(his phone rings — he flinches, fumbles it free)* Hunter. …Yeah. …When? …How long has she been gone? *(his face hardens)* I'm on my way. *(hangs up, stands abruptly)* **MELANIE:** *(looking up at him, alarmed by his expression)* Was ist passiert? *(stands too, clutching her own camera to her chest)* Was ist los? **HUNTER:** *(already turning away, then stops — he reaches into his coat, pulls out a business card, and sets it on the table in front of her, tapping it twice)* If anything else happens — anyone comes around, anything looks wrong — you call that number. *(points at the card, then points at her, then makes a "call me" gesture with his hand)* You call. Understand? **MELANIE:** *(picks up the card, nods slowly)* Ja. Ja, ich verstehe. *(she holds the card against her chest)* Gehen Sie. Bitte. Finden Sie sie. **HUNTER:** *(gives her one long, unreadable look, then nods once and strides out)* …Somebody get me a translator. Now. **MELANIE:** *(alone, turning the card over in her fingers, whispering)* Er hat kein einziges Wort verstanden. *(she looks back down at her camera, at the figure in the trees)* …aber er hat das Bild gesehen. Das ist schon etwas.