Cameron and Lawrence walk into another room to talk privately. Cameron is relieved to hear about Terra. He had been worried about her growing properly lately. With that piece of good news, he felt better about the conversation that was about to come.
"So what did you find out, Lawrence?"
Lawrence looked troubled. "Well, we have a lead on her Master. You're not gonna like it though."
Lawrence had sent Cameron a text earlier saying they had a breakthrough in Terra's case, and since Cameron was acting as her guide, he needed to be involved. "What is it?"
Lawrence fidgets, a bad habit he gets when he's nervous. "Her creator is not a cool dude. He's nasty. He's been charged of abusing females before, but was let go for lack of evidence. If we can nail him on this Terra thing, it might stick."
With that having been said, Cameron knew just who he was talking about. Christopher "Crimson" Cellar. He was notorious in the social services office, and among vampires in general. "Where can we find him?"
With a shrug, Lawrence says, "not anywhere close, unfortunately. Though I'm not sure if we want to be the ones to find him. Maybe we should pass this on to the big guns?"
" Are you sure it's Crimson? Where'd we get the lead?"
Lawrence smiles. "We've got it all on video. A nearby house had a camera on their driveway. It was his red sports car that hit her. He got out and tried to turn her, but when he saw you, he ran."
The thought of him being the one who hurt Terra enrages Cameron. In almost a growl, he says, "Then I can't just leave it to the Tactical Squad. He hurt her, turned her, then just up and abandoned her! If she hadn't been a match for vampire blood then she would have died there in the street! Where is he? I'll go there myself and bring him into custody. The bastard deserves a stake to the heart for what he's done!"
Lawrence had only seen Cameron this mad a few times before. He was taken aback. "Hey man, calm down, if we just rush in... "
" No, Lawrence! I have to be the one to do it."
Lawrence was speechless. Sighing in defeat, Lawrence runs his hand over his face. "Fine, let me look into it and get things set up. It'll take a little time, the bigwigs will have to approve it all. Just take a deep breath and calm down."
Cameron breathes, trying to slow his pulse. He couldn't stand the thought of what happened to Terra. It haunted his dreams and sent him into a panic when he thought of how she looked when he first found her. By the time he had gotten to her parents house, her body had already started to mend, but the sight before that was gruesome. Blood had covered the ground, her limbs mangles, face torn to shreds. Comparing that image to her now was night and day. If you didn't know any better, it would have been like it hadn't happened. But Cameron knew all too well to forget.
Bile rises in his throat at the thought. His friend looks at him in concern. Raising a hand in front of him, Cameron says "I'll be fine. Just some bad memories."
Lawrence places a hand on Cameron's shoulder. "It'll be okay, we'll get it all figured out. And when we find him, you can punch that bastard in the face for what he's done."
Cameron nods, calming slightly. He really needed to be with Terra right now. He goes towards the door, but Lawrence calls out to him.
"Hey man, wait, we need to talk about something else real quick."
Cameron turns back towards him. "What is it?"
"It's about your bonded. If you plan on going to find Crimson, you need to start weening her off of you. Right now, you're like a drug, and without you, she'll go crazy unless you get her used to it slowly."
Cameron hated to amit it, but Lawrence was right. He wasn't going to take Terra anywhere near that Crimson monster, but he could be gone weeks. She's gotten used to having him around, though he's gotten used to her too. "I'll start coming into the office a few days a week until we make our move. That should give her time to adjust, and I can help with preparations."
Lawrence gives a nod of satisfaction. "That's all I can ask for. C'mon, lets get you back to your little minx then."