- When Vicki goes looking for a dead-beat dad, she finds a little more supernatural, and many more memories, than she wants.
- Vicki takes on the case of locating Dave Jeffries who disappeared a year before and whose wife Celeste has recently died leaving their daughter Sarah alone. Celeste's mother assures him that her son-in-law had nothing to do with her daughter's death but Vicki doesn't take anything for granted and sets out to find him. Sarah is a student at a special school, the Cobb Academy, for gifted children. Her gift however isn't what you might expect from a normal child. When Vicki finally finds Jeffries, he refuses to explain why he left his wife and daughter but he clearly knows more than he is letting on. She enlists Henry to assist her but Det. Mike Celucci clearly doesn't trust him.—garykmcd
- When Celeste Jeffries is murdered, leaving behind an 8-year old daughter, Celeste's aged mother Emily hires Vicki Nelson to find Sarah's father Steve, who deserted the family a year ago. From Mike Celluci, Vicki learns that Celeste was found in the kitchen ridden with bites and claw marks, as if she was attacked by a wild animal, and that the police do not suspect her runaway husband of having anything to do with it. Vicki watches a TPD tape on which Sarah is interviewed about her mother's murder, but Sarah denies that anyone was in the house. She claims her mother simply went into the kitchen, called her name, and then began screaming. Vicki's gut tells her that Sarah is hiding something, so she pays a visit to the Cobb Academy for Gifted Children, where Sarah is currently residing. Vicki attempts to talk with Sarah about her father, but it quickly becomes apparent that Sarah believes her father hates her.
Vicki calls Henry Fitzroy to accompany her to Celeste's house to search for anything that might tell them where Steve is currently living. The blood on the kitchen floor makes Henry hungry, but he curbs his appetite and helps Vicki look through the mail. They find nothing from Steve, but they do notice a drawing made by Sarah of her mother in the kitchen with an orange monster. The drawing was mailed to Celeste a week ago by Sarah's art teacher, Laurel. A note attached to the picture says, "Celeste, call me." Henry diagnoses a vivid imagination, but Vicki photographs the drawing and takes it with her. A visit with Coroner Rajani reveals that whatever tore Celeste up was angry because it continued to bite and claw even after she was dead, however, there was no saliva found in the bites. Henry shows Rajani the drawing of the monster and asks whether it could have killed Celeste. Rajani says, "Yes, if it existed." Henry is beginning to believe the drawing is actually a "photo from a crime scene," but Vicki is still putting her money on Steve Jeffries.
With nothing more to go on other than that Steve is a mechanic and likes old cars, Vicki has Coreen call around to see if she can locate him. By sundown the next day, Coreen hits paydirt. Steve Jeffries works at a Vintage Auto garage in Maypole. Vicki pays him a visit, but Steve produces an ironclad alibi. Furthermore, he wants nothing to do with his daughter. Vicki talks with Mike and finds out that phone records show that Steve made a call to the Cobb Academy, so it's back to Cobb to talk again with Sarah, who still maintains that her father hates her because she was bad. Having been abandoned by her own father when she was young, Vicki tries to explain that it wasn't Sarah's fault her father left. In an attempt to psychologize, Vicki shows the drawing to Sarah and asks if the monster was her dad. "That's Buttercup," Sarah says, and holds up her orange stuffed animal. "Buttercup wouldn't hurt anyone."
Vicki goes to the art room to talk with Laurel. At first, Laurel is reluctant to say anything but finally admits that it was she who talked with Steve. She was becoming worried because Sarah's drawings were becoming more violent recently, and she wanted Steve to know that Celeste was planning to move Sarah into another school, something that Laurel actually supported. It was her impression, however, that Steve didn't much care. Unbeknown to both Vicki and Laurel, Cobb is listening at the door to their conversation. Cobb retreats into a locked room in which students are working one-on-one with their teachers. He singles out Sarah and tells her that Laurel is planning to send her away and to take Buttercup from her. Sarah becomes upset and lights start flashing and tables rattling. Cobb further goads Sarah, telling her that Laurel wants her out of her class and that Laurel hates her. "Then I hate her!" Sarah replies, grasping Buttercup tightly. "Let Buttercup go," Cobb orders. In the art room, an orange monster suddenly appears and goes after Laurel. Vicki is thrown to the floor and screams at Laurel to run.
Later that evening, Vicki and Henry pay another visit to Steve. Steve refuses to get involved until Henry uses his powers of persuasion. Steve shows them the claw marks on his chest and tells how Sarah's doll Buttercup almost killed him. Sarah is telekinetic, he explains, and she has gotten worse after being at Cobb Academy. It was in fear of his life that he ran away, and he's not about to go back even if it means abandoning his daughter to Cobb. When Vicki returns to the office with some fast food for dinner, Coreen informs her that Steve just called and said he had a change of heart and was going over to the Cobb Academy to rescue his daughter. Afraid for Steve's safety, Vicki phones Henry and asks him to meet her right away at the Academy. Henry jumps in his car, not knowing that he's being followed by Mike, who has been conducting a background check on Henry and becoming disturbed by what he is finding, i.e., Henry has NO background, draws a comic book called Blood Price, and appears heavily into blood.
Vicki gets to the Academy first and intercepts Steve. Together, they intercept Cobb as he's going into the locked room. Sarah is pleased to see her father until Cobb says that her dad has come to take Buttercup away. Sarah gets angry, hugs Buttercup, and lights begin to flash. Meanwhile, Henry and Mike have made it to the Academy. They join together and start looking for Vicki. When they can't get through the locked door, Mike goes searching for another way in, and Henry simply breaks the door down. They find Vicki trying to explain to Sarah that her father loves her and that he's proven it by coming back for her. Henry vamps out and puts Cobb in a neck lock until Sarah realizes that it was Cobb who has been lying to her all along. Sarah runs into her father's arms and they hug each other.
Epilogue: Cobb is placed in custody. Sarah throws Buttercup away and goes home with her dad. Having seen Henry vamp out, Mike now realizes Henry is a vampire, and he's not happy about it. [Full synopsis by bj_kuehl]
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