The next morning
"why didn't you let Connor see her yesterday when he arrived" asks Frank
"because she did not want to see him at that moment, change is hard for her dad you know that, it was hard enough on her to be whisked away from her home, she was having a hard enough time realizing she couldn't have her blanky to sleep with at night and you know that she only sleeps with her blanky" says Ariel
"she's fallen asleep many times in your arms Ariel, you're just as good as her blanky" says Athena
"that may be mom but she refused to let me cuddle her in her new bed, she kept signing 'you have to get mom and dad's money back', only when I insisted did she give in, she knows that the main reason I took up a job with the CIA was to get your money back, until that happens she won't sleep soundly" says Ariel as Tori arrives on a golf cart
"while you're here your doctor will be one we have on site, they spoke with your doctor and filled your prescriptions, every single one" says Tori handing a bag to Ariel
"but I can't afford half of my meds" says Frank
"that's where Ariel being an agent comes in, the CIA has the best medical coverage in America, at least the California branch does, it applies to family members of an agent as well, her premium is a grand a month but it comes out of her pay" says Tori
"what else does it cover, Julia has sensitive gums, we think she had an infection when she was three and there is supposed to be this safe gel that helps lower sensitivity, if it flares up she won't eat any food" asks Athena
"it covers dental, hospital stays, massages and even chiropractic if need be, it covers basically everything you can think of" says Tori as Connor walks over
"when can I see her" pouts Connor
"supervised only for the time being Connor, you know she doesn't do well with change, this is a very big change for her, all she's ever known is that house" says Ariel
"I'm okay with that Ariel, I just don't like seeing her scared, can I please go see her now" says Connor as Ariel nods
"sure, you can help me sort these medications out between mom, dad, Julia and me" says Ariel as she walks with Connor into the building
"you trust that doctor to fill the meds properly" asks Athena
"he's been my doctor for a few months now, he's one of the best, I had a bad reaction to one of my meds, which does happen every so often and he switched me off the med, I've been solid for two and a half months, so has Cat, and Zoey and even Robbie, we all trust him, he seriously is one of the best" says Tori
"does he have experience with dwarfism" asks Frank
"his wife has it as does his daughter so ya I'd say he's experienced, for Julia's meds he set it to a child's dose minus ten percent" says Tori
"oh thank God, we've been telling her doctor to lower the dose for almost two years, the one for her specific case is supposed to help her absorb minerals because her body couldn't on its own, he had that dose so high she'd start seizing, it would terrify her, she believes everything that has been happening is her fault because she's different" says Athena
With Julia and Connor
"why is she signing to me, she's never done that before" asks Connor
"she's asking if you'd ever leave her or cheat on her because of her dwarfism" says Ariel
"I'd never do anything like that, she's my world, I'd never leave her, not by choice" says Cooper as Julia smiles
"has she ever said anything" asks Ariel
"she can't speak, how could she say anything if she can't speak" asks Connor
"oh she can speak, just not very well, she signs because her voice is nothing more than a whisper, her doctor wasn't satisfied with her progress on a specific med meant to stimulate her vocal cords as they were paralyzed at the time of her birth, the doctor decided to give her an adult dose, which any doctor will tell you is dangerous to give to a child, our mom said she was uncomfortable giving her such a high dose and he said 'if you don't give it to her I will call the cops citing negligence', my mom not wanting to be on the receiving end of a negligence charge obeyed his request, the first pill she took nearly killed her, she threw up for nearly ten minutes while the paramedic tried to stabilize her, my mom explained the situation and they rushed Julia to the hospital, three weeks later the doctor was shot resisting arrest for misuse of his medical license, for three months she had to have a neck brace to hold her head up because that adult dose essentially fried the muscles in her neck, as a result she trusts barely anybody with a medical degree" says Ariel
"I remember that day, she came in and handed a note directly to the teacher, she's been glued to my side ever since" says Connor
"wuv me" whispers Julia as Connor picks her up
"very much, you are my princess, my queen" says Connor
"you sound very certain of that Connor" whispers Julia
"I know people will judge us and ask us how we could possibly know, but trust me, being away from you, it hurts me, I'd hoped to take you to my family reunion this summer, my family is Canadian, French Canadian to be exact, on both sides, one side immigrated to Canada after world war one and the other after the second world war, one has northern France roots and the other southern France roots, they'd love you" says Connor
"for the time being none of us are leaving this property, the good news is they have sushi here" says Ariel as Julia makes a face
"I'm more of a taco person myself" says Connor
"we don't have to have sushi Julia, I said that more as a joke, I know you're not fond of it, the restaurant is called sushi rox but as Quinn Pensky now owns the land the owner will make just about anything, do you want a mich Julia" says Ariel
"I can say sandwich now you know" whispers Julia
"ya I know but you don't speak very often so I default to what you used to call it, we can take the golf cart for a ride down there, would you like that" says Ariel
"only if Prince can come with" whispers Julia
"obviously he can, let's go" says Ariel as they walk to the cart
"where are you kids going" asks Riley as Julia points to the golf cart
"it was just put on charge a few minutes ago, it's not ready to be run, I can have one brought over if you'd like" says Riley
"how far of a walk is it to Sushi Rox" asks Ariel
"fifteen minutes maybe twenty, they don't open for another hour, his daughter is still in the hospital recovering" says Riley
"I was really hoping for some quality sushi for lunch, are we allowed to order food and have it delivered to the property then" asks Ariel
"that would be a no generally on the ordering food from off property, Tori does but she meets them at the gate by the highway, you can't get that close to public property right now Ariel, they still haven't located Patrick, he definitely is on the channel islands national park land but he built himself a bunker underground or something and they can't find the entrance and as it's a national park they can't use explosives or guns, tazers only" says Riley
"any bodies found" asks Ariel covering Julia's ears
"plenty, looks to be od'd rape victims from the frat, we're notifying the families the moment we get id's on them, most had inklings their daughters were dead but confirming that fear is always so much worse, they're just happy to be able to put them to rest at this point, you're looking good for that reward Ariel" says Riley
"this wasn't exactly how I was hoping to win that reward Riley, I was hoping to avoid death, it leaves its mark on everyone" says Ariel
"you have to realize at least fifty of the girls we've identified have been on the missing persons list for five to seven years, not knowing is a worse feeling, especially for parents, my own daughter went missing from that school Ariel, as did Connor's big sister, Christy and I's worst fear is that what happened to Zoey happened to them, your advice to check the islands is allowing families to stop worrying that their daughter is chained in someone's bedroom being raped and waiting for someone to come rescue them" says Riley
"but dead means no more hope" says Ariel
"my sister is not dead" says Connor
"you can't know that" says Ariel
"yes I can, I've been pinging her phone since she went missing, it still responds, if she was dead the battery would be dead, she was obsessed with making sure her phone was charged, nobody would care to keep a person's phone charged after they kill them…. I watch a lot of murder mystery shows that's how I know that" says Connor
"I guess you have a point there, since you have to wait for food would you mind pinging my daughters phone, tech has never really been my thing and nobody on the property under the CIA has that equipment at the moment, I really want to know if she's alive" says Riley
"if you can give me details about her phone model I can even get you a location" says Connor
"so are you saying you know where your sister is and you haven't told anyone" asks Ariel
"no, she got a new phone when she started at the campus, she didn't want to seem outdated, all I know is her number, I was able to get information about her battery level and basic texting information, she knows I can get into her phone if I knew that information, she didn't want me looking at her photos, the last text she sent was to an Isabelle Braveheart" says Connor
"that's my daughter, what did the text say" asks Riley
"something about cuddling then a bunch of periods, like she didn't want to have anyone see what she texted, Isabelle responded with a wink emoji and a kissy emoji then all texting stopped, that was three and a half years ago" says Connor as Riley hands him a paper with all of her daughter's cellphone information
"do you think you could tap into the camera" asks Riley
"that's against the law, I can get you access to her photos, her texts and her location, that's if her phone is not dead, taping into the camera is illegal without consent Agent Riley, I can't do that" says Connor
"fine but please let me know if it's live" says Riley as they head inside
25 minutes later
"I have a location but you're not going to like it" says Connor
"why" asks Riley
"because they are five miled out from smugglers cove, if there was a line between smugglers cove and California it would be pointing to Ventura beach" says Connor
"there are no boats currently in the area, how is that possible" asks Riley
"because they're below sea level, by my calculations on or near the bottom, in some sort of man made container connected to the island somehow" says Connor
"that's not possible" says Riley
"I'm just telling you what the location data is telling me, my sister is in the same room as your daughter, within a few feet, if you promise me I will be immune from hacking charges I can get you access to their cameras but I need it in writing" says Connor
"I promise Connor, lives are at risk, just get me that camera lock" says Riley
"ok got it….. this isn't good" says Connor
"why not" asks Ariel
"because they're naked, I shouldn't be looking at this" says Connor averting his eyes
"are they chained" asks Riley
"very much so, tell Christy to drop a sonar detector or camera dive rover three miles off of San Pedro Point, she should see a metal structure, she should be able to track it back to San Pedro point, likely hidden on the side not facing the mainland" says Ariel
"on what assumption" says Riley
"Patrick is there, he's choking your daughter, I also see two children, maybe two years old that definitely resemble you Riley" says Ariel
"great…. No I meant why assume it would lead to the point, why wouldn't he have just built it up from that point to sea level" asks Riley
"because it's unreliable, boats would hit it and the sea level changes with the tide and water would likely get in, I'm seeing no evidence of sea water on this video stream even though that area would be experiencing a swell thanks to the deep ocean earthquake that happened last night about a hundred miles out to sea from the channel islands" says Ariel
"ok I'll text her then" says Riley
4 hours later as Christy arrives
"oh my God Isabelle I'm so happy you're alive" says Riley
"they're in shock Riley, they can't speak, thankfully the baby's aren't his, he performed experiments on them, though he did rape them the 'baby maker' was artificial and came from my Jessica, Patrick confessed to being the mastermind behind the rape operation at campus, that our daughters were his personal toys, though he stipulates that the plan to rape Zoey at campus wasn't his, that her father's death wasn't his fault nor was it Zoeys's fault, he said one of the agents working for Huang paid his protégé off in order to keep Zoey silent and make Tori and Lola pay for finding out about Huang's trafficking ring" says Christy
"that pressure has affected Cat not Tori or Lola, Cat's having more and more memory loops, she's literally weeks from being able to be declared mentally insane" says Dana
"how does he explain the dead bodies then" asks Ariel
"he's never killed anyone, he says the frat killed those girls, that they got greedy and started trying to rape three girls at a time, but things got messy when they started messing around with drugs and accidentally od'd several of them, he says the operation he started was becoming something he couldn't condone, so he built that contraption under water to get away from the pure evil as he called it and keep his toys pure and relatively drug free" says Christy
"they need to be looked after at the hospital Mom" says Connor
"you should know that Jessica wouldn't look at me until I said you sent me, I could almost see the terror melt from her face, she seemed relieved, I can't take care of her, I still have many missions to do it will be your job to make sure she feels safe and that she eats" says Christy
"that's too much responsibility for me, I need to make sure Julia feels safe" says Connor
"she may be your girlfriend Connor but she's my sister, just as I will be making sure Julia is safe as should you make sure your sister is safe, she's been in that place for years now, you need to be there for her, family comes first right Julia" says Ariel
"always, family first, I'm not going anywhere Connor, her fear is worse than mine, I'm afraid of losing you, she would have felt certain she'd never see you again, that kinda fear not good" whispers Julia
"I can't work with her in this condition, they still don't have clothes on" says Connor
"they were burned Connor, none of the things they brought to university was spared, none of the clothing we have at home will fit her, for the time being you don't have a choice, they will be wrapped in blankets, I asked Quinn to order some and she did but they won't be here for a week, I'm not asking you to give her showers Connor, just make sure she eats and sleeps, they have PTSD now, the shock will wear off but it could be a few days before they're able to talk" says Christy
"I don't want her thinking I'm objectifying her, like you said she can't speak because of shock, which means she can't give consent to look at her" says Connor
"you're not like Patrick, trust me she knows that, she calmed down the moment I said your name, remember she used to walk around in her underwear around you, I yelled at her the first time, her response was 'I'm teaching him to respect a woman's body, not objectify it or be afraid of it'" says Christy as Jessica stands at attention for Connor
"did she consciously just salute me" asks Connor
"yeah, the shock is just preventing her from speaking, why is it important or something" says Riley
"our grandfather was Navy, Jessica and I had this inside joke about grandma because she'd salute him every time he came home before she checked him for cuts, her and I would do the same thing on a much smaller scale" says Connor
"so you two played doctor" asks Christy
"no, I just looked for cuts, stickers and stuff, her fellow students were never nice, one time they sliced her back, not like deep but enough that if she leaned down to pick something up it would bleed from the tension" says Connor as Jessica cries
"ok let's get them inside" says Ariel offering them her hand and guides them inside
10 minutes later
"they seem more comfortable, the kids too" says Ariel
"yeah, that's only because the twins weren't traumatized, they had no idea the conditions they were living in were bad at all, because they were born in that facility they don't know how bad it was, right now they think this is a vacation, they're smart girls, they'll soon realize how much better it is up here" says Christy
"why would he do such a thing as experiment on Jessica and Isabelle without their consent" asks Ariel
"they were dating at the time they were taken by Patrick, Leah and Olivia are the first real world examples of female 'baby maker' as it were, when they were taken the research showed how it was possible but it was only proven in a lab setting and never used to actually make kids, though there is evidence he altered their DNA slightly" says Riley
"such as, they look just like their parents" says Ariel
"neither parent has ever had blonde hair and neither do any of our families, blonde hair however is prominent in Patrick's family" says Riley
"so maybe they are his kids" says Ariel
"no, they show too much resemblance to their mothers, plus I tried dating Patrick in university, he has always hated the idea of having children, that's why he married his wife, she didn't want children either and she'd kill him if he changed his mind without consulting her and he would absolutely be a dead man if she learned he had children by rape, he wouldn't risk his own life to have kids by any means, though he would most definitely mess with someone else who did want kids, splicing in his DNA would be like Christmas for him, especially if they begged him not to" says Wendy as Isabelle nods
"damn, I feel sorry for you girls" says Ariel as Julia nuzzles the twins
"seems like Julia would really be a great mom too" says Connor
"bide your time there boy, her organs are more compact because of her size, besides your way too young to be thinking about that" says Ariel
"I've seen her naked, she spilled juice on her dress a few weeks and asked me to help her get changed, I'm not one of those hormones piping boys who see a girl and only see them as an object, I'd rather respect her body than use it for my own purposes, like I said she's my whole world, I'd never intentionally do anything like that, I have gotten wires crossed before but she's very clear about boundaries, if when I pick her up my hand accidentally slips above her knees or anywhere near her waist she makes it clear that I need to adjust my grip, only once has she actually hinted at enjoying my grip slipping past her boundaries, literally only once, we are getting to that point where puberty really kicks in, we've kinda been preparing to brace against it" says Connor spinning around with Julia
"so you had no urge to grope her in that situation, I'm very certain she was nervous" asks Ariel as Julia nods
"sure I wanted to, the difference between me and most boys is my sister Jessica, she was very clear about making sure I knew how to respect a woman's body, even if she never said it, obviously I wanted to but with my sister's training I was able to tell it no, that consent was important" says Connor
"you are a strong man, that is bad" says Ariel
"huh, I thought it was good, that we weren't supposed to grope" asks Connor
"that part is good, the problem is she has a record of breaking 'strong' men, since she was three she's had a new doctor almost every year, she's goated them into hitting her every time, in her eyes strong men will ignore her till they break and yell, scream or hit her, a good man, in her eyes will tell it to her straight, will tell her exactly where the line is and will talk to her about her going too far and how to fix it for both people, she really is different than most girls, if you are a strong man and she breaks you it will likely include seeing her naked, she can defend herself just fine, if you love her you need to convert to a good man" says Ariel
"you stop telling secrets sis or I tell your secrets" whispers Julia
"he's not dating me Julia, if you tell him my secrets then legally I can make him leave, I told him what I told him because nobody understands where you're coming from, you don't look normal, you don't act normal and you can't speak normally, you can't expect everyone to know that you're different in more than just size, take it from me Julia sometimes making them find your secrets can tear a relationship apart, your love is pure Julia, I wanted to give it a fighting chance, Connor doesn't deserve to fight, not like that, he deserves a little insight into how you think" says Ariel