Run: 2026-10-08-01M4DZ3BVDKKJJPWSFBG61HAWZ

**VOICE SHEET** *Scene: The Honeycrisp Café, Alborn, MN. Melanie sits alone at a corner table, scrolling through photos on her camera. A cup of cider cools beside her.* *Melanie speaks only German. Her lines include English translations in brackets for reference. Hunter speaks only English.* Hunter: "(pulling out the chair across from her) Melanie, right? I'm Detective Hunter. I'm working these disappearances. Dottie over at the diner says you've never been seen without that camera, and that you were out at the Kessler orchard Friday morning, shooting before sunrise. Ruth Sorensen went missing that same morning. That right?" Melanie: "(startled, gripping her camera strap) Ruth Sorensen? Ja... die ganze Stadt redet davon. Ich war am Freitag früh dort, um den Sonnenaufgang zu fotografieren. Aber ich... ich weiß nicht, was ich gesehen habe. [Ruth Sorensen? Yes... the whole town is talking about it. I was there Friday morning, to photograph the sunrise. But I... I don't know what I saw.]" Hunter: "(frowning, leaning back) Okay. I got Ruth's name, and that's about it. You're going to have to slow down. Do you speak English?" Melanie: "(voice trembling) Ich verstehe kein Englisch. Bitte... ich habe solche Angst. Sie müssen mir glauben. [I don't understand English. Please... I'm so scared. You have to believe me.]" Hunter: "(under his breath, glancing out at the festival banners) Three people gone in eight months, and the one person who might've seen something doesn't speak English. Perfect." Hunter: "(calmer, leaning in, calm as a drill instructor) Ma'am, I can't understand a word you're saying. But I know scared when I see it. Breathe with me. In... hold it... and out." Melanie: "(breathing unevenly, then slowing) Gut... gut. [Good... good.]" Hunter: "(nodding at her camera) Okay. What've you got?" Melanie: "(turning the screen toward him, hands still shaking) Hier. Freitag, fünf Uhr zwölf. [Here. Friday, five-twelve.]" Hunter: "(studying the screen) Friday, five-twelve a.m. That's Kessler's old packing barn." (taps the screen) "That a pickup? No headlights?" Melanie: "Ja. Ein Pickup. Ohne Scheinwerfer. [Yes. A pickup. Without headlights.]" Hunter: "(zooming in with two fingers) And that's a man. Right at the barn door." Melanie: "Ja. Ein Mann. Er stand genau an der Scheunentür. [Yes. A man. He was standing right at the barn door.]" Melanie: "Und dann hat er sich umgedreht. Er hat direkt in meine Richtung gesehen. Direkt in die Kamera. [And then he turned around. He looked straight in my direction. Straight into the camera.]" Hunter: "(sharp, all business) He turned around? He saw you?" Melanie: "(pale, nodding) Ja. [Yes.]" Hunter: "Did he follow you?" Melanie: "Nein. Ich habe mich nicht einmal umgedreht. [No. I didn't even look back.]" Hunter: "(slow nod) So you ran. Smart move." Melanie: "(miming holding a paper cup) Ruth hat mir jeden Morgen frischen Apfelsaft verkauft. Sie wollte nie, dass ich bezahle. [Ruth sold me fresh-pressed apple juice every morning. She never wanted me to pay.]" Hunter: "(softer) She never let me pay for her cider, either." Melanie: "(tears welling up) Sie war so gut zu uns allen. [She was so good to all of us.]" Hunter: "(quiet) Yeah. She was." Hunter: "(flipping open a notebook, pen poised) Okay. Describe the man. Height, build, anything." Melanie: "(pointing at the screen, then at her own shoulder) Groß. Sehr groß. Eine dunkle Jacke mit Kapuze. Die Kapuze war hochgezogen. [Tall. Very tall. A dark jacket with a hood. The hood was pulled up.]" Hunter: "(writing, murmuring) Tall. Dark jacket. Hood up." Hunter: "Melanie, I need you to come down to the station and give a formal statement." Melanie: "(panicking) Ein Dolmetscher? Bitte... [An interpreter? Please...]" Hunter: "(frowning) Dol-what?" Melanie: "(pointing back and forth between them) Dolmetscher! [Interpreter!]" Hunter: "(a beat) Interpreter. Yeah. I'll get you one." Hunter: "(phone buzzing; he glances at the screen and answers) Hunter... Say that again... Pickup? ... Where? ... (jaw tightening) Don't touch anything. I'm on my way." Melanie: "(silent, color draining from her face)" Hunter: "(standing, sliding a business card across the table) I've got to go. My number's on there. If you remember anything, call. And stay in town. Don't go back out to that orchard. Understand?" Melanie: "Was? [What?]" Hunter: "(flat, humorless half-smile) Yeah. Didn't think so." Melanie: "(standing, desperate) Warten Sie! Bitte... passen Sie auf sich auf. [Wait! Please... take care of yourself.]" Hunter: "(pausing at the door, the café bell chiming behind him) Yeah. You too." Melanie: "(alone, whispering, staring at the photo on her camera) Er hat mich gesehen. [He saw me.]"