“Every word is true,” he said calmly as he sat down. He smiled in response to her smile, which partially lifted the black cloud that had been hanging over him for days. For the first time he sensed something he hadn’t before – she was afraid. Was she afraid of him? How could she be?<br/><br/>“Since the minute we met I have never lied to you. When you first asked if I had come for you – when we camped with Bronzey – I told you the truth right on the spot. I did the same when we talked that night in the desert before I was captured.” He remembered that night well thanks to Raptor’s interrogation. Cam was still was bruised but most of his more visible injures had faded by that point. “I am on your side.” He looked at the floor and sighed.<br/><br/>“Still, I know that we are probably never going to be together. You – the beautiful, reluctant princess – and me the nobody. Falling in love with you is like jumping out of a plane without a parachute – and hoping gravity stops on the way down.”<br/><br/>While he let that thought sink in Cam touched the part of her dress that ballooned out over her shoulder.<br/><br/>“The dress isn’t that bad,” he said, trying to raise her spirits. “It’s just… a little… poofy.” He gave her a weak smile, tying to be happy for her. “Look on the bright side – you look fantastic in anything. You are the only person I know who could pull of that dress. And you do.”<br/><br/>Cam felt a moment happening. Unconsciously he began to lean into her with his eyes darting between her eyes and her lips. That’s when he saw the ankle bracelet. “What the…” he asked out loud as the moment passed. “They are keeping you as a prisoner? What the hell…?”<br/><br/>With that Cam got down on the floor and took her bare foot in his hands to examine the device. He held her foot and lower leg gently as he looked it over. “It has an intravenous plug going into your leg. I’ll bet it delivers sedative if you charge up. I’ll bet it will if I try to force it off, too.” He snapped his fingers. “Now I get it… that’s why you’re stuck here. That’s why…” he gently set her foot down and stood up. “That’s why you’re afraid of me.” He dropped to one knee and stared directly into her eyes before continuing.<br/><br/>“This must be really difficult for you – being a normal person all of a sudden. But please believe me, I would never, ever, ever hurt you.” He attempted to hold her hands to give her some show of support. He hoped she believed that if she only had one friend in the world, it was him.