Character Analysis
Smoldering good looks? Check. Attentiveness? Check. Nice to parents? Check. Plays the guitar? Check.
(Wait, does Cam play the guitar? He has to, right? Why else would he have guitar picks?)
Anyway, Cam Briel is the resident bad boy of Sword & Cross, the drop-out so depraved he was kicked out before being invited back. He's got it all: the looks, the attitude, the coolness, the suave smile. He captures Luce's attention almost immediately—and from the moment she meets him, Luce isn't sure it's a good thing. She mentally pits her feelings for Daniel over her attraction to Cam…until she knows she's let things get too far.
Sure, Cam is attentive and caring, but a quick look at his actions shows that he is that way for selfish reasons. Basically, he's nice to Luce in order to win her over and show off in front of Daniel. Except for the picnic, all of his displays of affection are, to a degree, public. In fact, he seems to be more concerned about taking Luce away from Daniel than he is about actually dating her.
That wouldn't have anything to do with the fact that she'll die if she gets too close to Daniel, would it?
Devil in Disguise
No, Cam isn't a devil: he's a fallen angel who has chosen the wrong side—the "other" side, as Daniel explains to Luce (19.95). Cam still retains his fallen angel charms, which explains why Luce can't resist the attention he lavishes on her. Although they never actually get together, Cam takes advantages of Luce's flustering around him, taking moments to touch her and invade her personal space, all with the express purpose of making her forget to breathe and think and tell him that his behavior isn't wanted.
Cam is pretty much a master of seduction.
While Luce might not be the best at making sure that her intentions are clear—okay, she's terrible at it—there are moments when Cam doesn't take no for an answer and pushes to get her attention. It's not entirely clear if he does this for his own benefit or whether he does it to mess with Daniel. There are times when Cam seems to really be into Luce, like when he tells her that he saw her crossing the quad and put together a special picnic just for her (7.49).
At other times, though, he flirts with her in Daniel's presence, as if he specifically wants to get a rise out of the other guy. When Daniel sees Luce in the library, for example, Cam makes a point to be there as well, and kisses Luce right in front of Daniel and Penn (14.132). Also, when Luce tries to tell Cam that she's breaking things off with him, he instantly begins comparing himself to Daniel, complaining that Luce didn't give him a chance, and that she should also get to know him some more before she makes a decision (16.38).
From the tone of his conversation, it sounds like Cam's offering up a full-blown challenge. At this point, we can see that what's going on isn't really about Luce's feelings anymore—it's about choosing a side. And from Cam's point of view, Luce isn't allowed to pick Daniel's side.
The Other Side
Since Cam and Daniel aren't on the same side in whatever war it is they're fighting, it stands to reason that their little disputes feed into something bigger. But what is it about Cam's side that at times seems so appealing to Luce? Apart from the pet snakes that seem to come to him when called, what could Cam's endgame be?
It does kind of seem like Cam gets a rise out of stirring things up just for the sake of doing so: and he revels in his own bad-boy status. He may not care about Luce, exactly, but it does seem that he wants to destroy her when he finds out that she can't come back to life. That's something that has never happened before. The consequences? "Hell on earth. The end of the world as anyone knows it" (18.118), as Arriane ominously explains.
Um, Cam does know that if the world ends, there won't be anymore Netflix, right?
Yeah, well maybe he doesn't care. In fact, during the argument in the cemetery, he practically relishes in telling this to Daniel: "I hear you may have something bigger to lose this time. Something that's going to make annihilating her so much more enjoyable" (18.109).
Somehow, we don't think Cam's talking about Daniel's deposit on a new couch for his dorm room.
Is Cam jealous that it's Daniel who gets to have true love?
We're not sure, but not only does the idea of the end of the world apparently appeal to Cam, he seems to genuinely enjoy fighting. He shows off about it at least three times: first when fighting Daniel outside the library, where he seems to be enjoying throwing punches, goading Daniel with, "What else you got, Grigori?" (14.150); then at the bar, when he extends the fight well past the one patron who threatened Luce; and finally when he tells Luce in the cemetery, "Oh yes, we're going to brawl, baby. Over you. Again" (18.102).
Oh. "Again."
Cam seems to have a real axe to grind.