At the beach the next day
"well Cat what do you think" asks Andre expecting a bad response
"I like the privacy but it makes me nervous, I have nowhere to go if you do something to me" says Cat feeling uncomfortable
"they aren't spike secured Cat, if you were to scream the lifeguard would come running and take down the fencing, I paid fifty dollars for this to make sure you felt safe, besides if I wanted to rape you why would I do it where it would be very obvious, why would I spend money, furthermore why would I flirt with you if my intention was to rape you, I could have done that without doing any of this, I just wanted to make you feel secure, Tori or Jade should be here soon with more sunscreen, don't need you getting sunburned like Tori did when I used to do this with her" says Andre
"…. Wait you used to date Tori, but she's gay" asks Cat shocked
"she wasn't always sure she was, she definitely used to have a pull to girls like you or Jade but it wasn't strong enough for her to know for certain that she didn't like guys, we dated for almost a year, we spent most of our time snuggling, on the beach, on the couch or in her bed while watching a movie, she was my girlfriend from August to June two years ago, it was a journey for her, a journey I was in full support of her taking" says Andre
"I-I-I feel dizzy" says Cat as she faints into Andre's arms as Robbie arrives with the sunscreen
"how's Cat" asks Robbie
"she just fainted" says Andre
"was she feeling dizzy, did she eat her cookie this morning" says Robbie
"yes and yes, Robbie you're making me nervous, what's going on" says Andre
"she has CPTSD, what her doctor calls survivors guilt, the cookies she ate contains pot, small amounts of it but still it's there, anyway remember the bomb threat at dispensaries around LA after the Governor decriminalized pot, it turns out the protestors tainted the dispensaries, several were broken into, several crates worth were tainted with chemicals, the only common symptom was dizziness, out of ten patients, three are dead, you need to get Cat to the hospital right now" says Robbie
"ok but only if you come with me, you know more than I do about Cat, get the big towel, the food and bring it with you" says Andre as he picks up Cat and Robbie does as he's told
At the hospital 4 hours later, 1 hour since Cat was admitted to the hospital
"I'm glad you guys responded as fast as you did, her edibles were essentially poisoned, had you delayed even ten minutes Catarina might be dead right now" says Doctor Theodore Brown
"I didn't even know her cookies were edibles, Cat and I just got together yesterday, I wasn't wanting to break the subject of her suspicious smelling snacks yet, is she going to be ok" says Andre
"she is going to be fine, she can be released later today, she's been given the antidote and she's responding well, though she will be leaving in a wheelchair and she will need to use the wheelchair for about a week, maybe longer, her legs were hit pretty hard by the toxin, I noticed the sand on her feet, were you guys at the beach when she fainted" says Doctor Theodore
"I was with her, Robbie had arrived to give us the extra sunscreen for Cat so she had enough, we'd planned to be there till about five tonight, I'd brought food, had Robbie not gotten there in time I'd have never known she was in danger, I'd have only been able to watch as she slowly died, I have to ask myself at what point would I have been responsible for her death, no matter what you say I still feel responsible" says Andre
"I had to lecture her about the importance of oversharing versus undersharing, that undersharing with those you care about or are in fact dating can be just as harmful if not worse than oversharing, I had to make it crystal clear that whoever she's dating at any one time is entitled to know what medications she's taking, people have to be prepared, I told her this 'I get that you don't want people knowing just how unstable you can be but IF there was a recall on any of your medications for any reason they need to know', she looked pretty guilty about it, so guilty I'm not even sure her aunt knows what she's taking, I'm about to call her, you can go in and visit her now" says Doctor Theodore
"she just got that batch two days ago, those protests were months ago, is it really possible that the supply chain was damaged that much" asks Robbie
"some dispensaries had to start completely from scratch, they took down walls and literally built the inside again from scratch, the dispensary Cat gets her edibles from got rid of the smokables but kept the edibles, hoping that the people who tainted the supply had at least some decency, some respect for human life, they've proved themselves to be willing killers" says Doctor Theodore
"could Cat stop eating the edibles while the supply chain is repaired" asks Andre
"she could in theory stop using the edibles, however without them she's very agoraphobic, a symptom of her CPTSD, she will refuse to leave a building in most cases, she will be especially scared about getting in a car" says Doctor Theodore
"may I ask why she doesn't just take medication for it, it would be safer wouldn't it" asks Andre
"it would be safer yes however she gets paranoid on the medication so we can't go there, the edibles content is one percent THC, that's the stuff that could get her high, it has ten percent CBD, CBD is the medical part of pot, it's the part that has the most healing potential, ten percent is actually quite high for someone her size but any less and it doesn't have an effect" says Doctor Theodore
"what does the high stuff do to her, does it change her, what's the actual dosage, I want dosage amounts, not percent numbers" says Andre
"her dosage of THC is two milligrams, it's actually called micro dosing, given her size she might feel a little high but likely not till hours after taking it as her CBD dosage level is three-hundred and fifty milligrams, mainly for the anxiety that comes from her agoraphobia, though it does help lessen the CPTSD slightly" says Doctor Theodore
"has she been ordered to be without the edibles for now, I would rather she not be completely terrified to have them when they are safe again" asks Andre
"no, unlike two of the other girls currently in the hospital for the same reason, Cat can't function safely without her dose, an order has been placed for a shipment of edibles based on her prescription from New York, going forward, we will be sending her home with enough antidote injections for the current batch, Jade and Tori have been ordered not to throw the batch out" says Doctor Theodore
"how quickly after consumption does she need the injection, I assume she would be unable to do it herself" asks Andre
"you'd be assuming correct, the injection has to be within a few minutes but only if you notice a quick change in her behaviour or appearance, it could be as simple as her eyes glassing over, the toxin changes how the edible is digested by the body, the toxin was developed by a Canadian company researching how pot is absorbed by the body but until last year the toxin was secure in their lab, it's similar in make up to Fentanyl, which by the way Catarina calls Fentevil, oh by the way Andre, she's not to leave your sight, not even to use the bathroom" says Doctor Theodore
"any particular reason why" asks Andre
"in the physical exam that we had to do to see what damage the toxin did we found fresh cut marks, self harm cut marks, she refused to explain them, medically we have to know the origin of the cut marks, there have been a few cases where a rapist would force girls to cut, if they outright refused then he'd rape them until they comply, if there is a rapist going by that playbook loose in LA right now that's bad, girls could be sent to therapy for cutting instead of trauma" says Doctor Theodore
"I'll ask, I will not watch her in the bathroom unless I absolutely have to, like I said we only just started dating and I'm having a hard time convincing her I'm not dating her for sex, if I can avoid following her into the bathroom I will" says Andre as he and Robbie head into Cat's hospital room
"you hate me don't you, it was stupid of me to hide the reason behind my cookies for breakfast thing, I'm sorry, I should have told you, I'm not a worthy girlfriend" says Cat
"Cat I don't hate you, why would I be here if I hated you, however if this relationship is going to work going forward there cannot be any secrets between us, your doctor needs to know the origin of the cut marks, he feels that a rapist forced you to cut and that if you didn't then they'd rape you" says Andre
"I'll tell but Robbie can't be here to hear it" says Cat
"wait are you suggesting I made you do that Cat, because I did no such thing" asks Robbie offended as Cat shakes her head no and throws her phone at the wall, cracking it
"Robbie there's obviously a reason she doesn't want you to know about it, if it's relevant then I'll tell you later, as of right now I'm asking that you respect her privacy, I'll message you when it's safe to come back in" says Andre as Robbie's eyes widen in realization then leaves
"I'm being forced to send naked pictures every day, he says if I don't then he'll track me down and kidnap me, that's the real reason I had to switch schools, mom tried to convince me not to send any pictures, that starting in a new school would mean I'm safer, that I can't be hurt, I dropped the apple juice on Thursday because he'd texted me, reminding me what the cost of not sending pictures would mean for me, after I dropped the juice I had to excuse myself to the bathroom to take a picture to keep him away from me, I cut because taking the pictures makes me feel sick, cutting distracts my mind so I forget it" says Cat
"how old is he" asks Andre
"he's a rich kid at my old school, his dad's in on it" says Cat
"I have to tell the doctor, your mom needs to know" says Andre as Cat freaks out
"NO, YOU CAN'T, he'll know the police found out, his dad will kidnap me, he'll threaten to kill me unless the police refuse to investigate" says Cat visibly terrified
"Cat I promised to protect you, my dad is an informant of sorts for the FBI, your mom needs to know, I never said I'd ask her to investigate, it would seem biased and she could lose her job, I'm smarter than that, what's his name, how does he get the pictures" says Andre
"Logan, I don't know his last name, he had us sign up for his dad's cloud storage and back up a certain folder which is the one we put the pictures in, I think he makes ZB do his homework and NB work for him, no I don't know their names, I wasn't very popular, which is probably why he's extorting me the way he is, Logan is creepy, he makes us put captions on the pictures, the last one with the apple juice was 'I'm all sticky for you', I nearly threw up, it's things like that that make me cut" says Cat as Andre texts his dad 'code magenta'
"can I at least tell the doctor, he's afraid there's some rapist out making girls cut and if they don't they rape them" says Andre
"to be fair Andre there have been a few rapists like that around LA before, it's a valid concern, I guess it's best you tell him, please don't tell him everything though, I don't trust doctors, not many anyway" says Cat as Andre texts Robbie
"I'm telling the doctor, I just told Robbie it was safe to come in, cuddle him if you want but don't do anything, I know you like him but you made a commitment to me" says Andre
"I don't break promises Andre… wait if we get serious I need a pet name" says Cat
"how about little red, or maybe kitty when we're alone" says Andre as Cat blushes, barely able to nod as Andre leaves the room, tapping Robbie to head in
With Andre
"did you manage to get her to talk" asks Doctor Theodore
"yes, she doesn't trust doctors, she's being extorted, a certain type of picture in return for her freedom, if she fails to take a picture he threatens to have his dad kidnap her, she cuts because he makes her and apparently two other girls caption the photos with demeaning phrases, you can't ask her mom to start an investigation, she says he'll know and have her tracked down and kidnapped and held for ransom until they stop the investigation, I've informed the FBI, as for the cuts, she's Bipolar, just say it's depression related" says Andre
"what will the FBI do with her" asks Doctor Theodore
"they're going to ask some questions when they get her to a secure location, the extorter has two other victims that Cat knows about, probably from her old school PCA" says Andre
"wow, Pacific Coast Academy, honestly that's the last place I'd think to look, they're pretty strict, not to mention it costs an arm and a leg just to get in, whoever it is won't be getting off easy" says Doctor Theodore
"he's rich so we'll see if he gets charged" says Andre as his dad walks over
"son where is the girl" asks Alexander Harris
"dad, she's my girlfriend, her name is Catarina Mandy Valentine, dad, there are two other girls, Cat doesn't know their names, just the initials ZB and NB" says Andre
"Catarina Valentine huh, I guess it's a good thing you didn't have them start an investigation, are you her doctor sir" says Alexander
"I am, she's not just an extortion victim, she's on edibles, the dispensary she goes to got rid of the smokables but kept the edibles, turns out their hope that the people who tainted the supply had no intention of sparing anyone, she was given the antidote just over an hour ago but we still have to check her blood before we can release her, her legs were hit pretty hard, she is not capable of walking out of here, she will need a wheelchair and it needs to be paid for up front because she'll need it for at least a week" says Doctor Theodore
"she can't stay here much longer, the person probably knows she's here, draw the blood now and start the test but we have to get her out of here, every minute she stays here is a risk to her safety" says Alexander as Robbie
"whoever was tracking Catarina can't track her now, she threw her phone at the wall, it made a popping sound, I just checked it and it's completely dead, it starts up for a second, then pop and it shuts off, any tracking software won't work on a dead phone, even if he knew she was here there is no way he could know if she was still here or who she talked to after he lost signal" says Robbie
"I assume you're the tech guy Robbie Shapiro, is there any way you could fix her phone just enough so we could start a trace to find out where the information gets sent to" asks Alexander
"her phone is the cheap to buy, expensive to fix kind, I'd need at minimum a new battery, you're the FBI, if I give you her Sim card couldn't you track it" says Robbie
"dad I don't think we need her phone, there won't be any evidence on it anyway, the extorter forced her to sign up for his dads back up service and back up a folder where a certain type of picture would be put, with creepy captions, she said his name was Logan, she doesn't know his last name, her last school was PCA, are there any girls with the initials ZB or NB that go there" says Andre
"F*k, Logan Reese, the girls would be Zoey Brooks and Nicole Bristow, we've been tracking a case of extortion for the past month from PCA but the dean has been blocking us, I have a picture of Logan on my phone, if Cat is willing to either confirm or deny then we can move forward and storm the boys dorm" says Alexander
"just to be clear you're not going to be forcing her to identify him as the Logan she spoke of are you, she's in a vulnerable spot right now dad, and she quotes her memory as being like a goldfish, she might not be able to identify him" says Andre
"there could be a reason she says that Andre, no I won't be forcing her to identify the Logan as Logan Reese, if it's him then it's him, if not then it might be awhile before we close the case, if this Logan can no longer track her than we can breath a little but she should still be released into our custody as soon as she can be, if that means before getting the blood results back then that's how it has to be, Catrina's safety has to come first" says Alexander
"the test should only take ten minutes to complete, we're just seeing how much of the toxin is left in her blood, if enough is still present to hurt the healing then she will immediately be given another big injection then she can be discharged, anyway you should go in now while she's still awake" says Doctor Theodore as Alexander, Robbie and Andre enter Cat's hospital room
"Cat, this is my father, he's with the FBI, he's going to show you a picture of someone, if you recognize him let him know" says Andre as Alexander shows Cat the current picture of Logan
"his face looks familiar but I don't remember the Logan I described having hair looking like that, is it possible he changed it recently, everything but the hair is right" Says Cat as a nurse takes two vials of blood and leaves to process it
"yes, that is a current photo, here's the photo as he looked in June" says Alexander as Cat pulls Andre onto the bed panicking slightly
"dad, is that enough of a reaction to confirm" asks Andre
"for me yes but to add Catarina to the list of active victims I need a verbal response" says Alexander as Andre looks at Cat, playing with her hair slightly to calm her down
"y-y-yes, that's Logan" says Cat, barely able to get the words out
"agent Francis, agent Montana, secure this hospital room until Catarina is cleared to leave" says Alexander as he goes to pay for the wheelchair outright so Cat can always have it as an option
"babe, I thought you said he was an informant" asks Cat
"he is, that doesn't mean he can't lead a unit, he works part time, as in as needed, he was already working the PCA case so I figured since your mom said that was where you transferred from there I figured it was worth a shot" says Andre
"thank you Andre, I don't know if this act of gratitude can ever truly be repaid" says Cat