Hi Scorpio Chick, Don't panic
1) A USB cable is not that expensive. you can buy one in under 10 dollars. Under 5 if u get lucky.
2) The pics on your camera are safe. Nothing's gonna happen to them. They will wait for when you can download them safely to your comp.
3) USB cables come free with camera's, pocket hard drives etc. Many people have them spare. There is a good chance some friend has more than one and can give it away to you for free.
4) Hopefully you are feeling better after reading this. Good!! Your chances of locating your own lost cable just improved significantly. That's just plain old Murphy's law. You will find it just when you realize you can do without it.
ILWL