Catherine's Fag Packet

Catherine pulls a cigarette packet from her pocket and turns it inside out to use as a makeshift notepad. She scribbles down Kelsey’s contact number and Leonie’s account of the rape, including the attacker’s partial registration (SP55). The fag packet, a humble and improvised tool, becomes a vessel for critical evidence in the absence of proper police documentation. Its use underscores the urgency and ad-hoc nature of the investigation, as well as Catherine’s determination to ensure Leonie’s voice is heard.

Catherine’s fag packet, turned inside out, serves as an improvised notepad for documenting Leonie’s statement. Its foil interior becomes a canvas for the brutal details of the assault—choking, unprotected rape, threats with a broken bottle—written in Catherine’s precise handwriting. The object’s humble origins (a discarded cigarette packet) contrast sharply with its narrative weight: it preserves evidence that the system nearly ignored, symbolizing both the desperation of the moment and Catherine’s refusal to let bureaucracy obstruct justice. The packet’s crumpled state mirrors Leonie’s fractured psyche, while its utility underscores the resourcefulness required to navigate institutional failures.

Catherine pulls a cigarette packet from her pocket and turns it inside out, using the foil interior as an improvised notepad. She scratches down Leonie’s account—Kelsey’s number, the license plate (SP55), and the attacker’s threats—with the Biro. The fag packet, a symbol of Catherine’s personal habits (smoking as a coping mechanism), becomes a vessel for official documentation. Its foil surface, usually associated with protection (e.g., wrapping cigarettes), here protects the fragile details of Leonie’s trauma. The act of writing on it is intimate, almost sacred, as Catherine treats Leonie’s words with the care they deserve, despite the makeshift tools.