Chapter 27: New Man

THE NEXT WEEK at school was pretty quiet. It was marked by Chris and Ronda and I just hanging out together more. They were with me at lunches. We walked home from school together. We finished our big term papers and handed them in. I guess if anything was different, it might have been the way they looked at me. And I returned their look in the same way. I adored them. We all knew I’d turned down the opportunity to have sex with Kelly because we wanted each other.

We did some kissing and making out, and went to see the double feature of Bikini Beach and Beach Blanket Bingo. I guess the Huntertown theater was experimenting with all kinds of things to draw an audience and even though the films were a couple of years old, we were among the teens who crammed the theater who had never seen them. Annette Funicello and Frankie Avalon never looked better. It reminded us that summer was coming soon, even though the temperature was still only around forty degrees.

I think that knowing we were going to do it together kind of slowed the three of us down a little. We still made out and petted when we could, but we didn’t go back to the studio or to Ronda’s playhouse to get more intimate than we could get while parked in front of their houses. And while the physical play calmed down a little, the emotional intensity picked up.

I had an appointment to shoot some pictures of Lori again on Sunday at two. I’d gotten ‘push’ chemicals and instructions from Levi but hadn’t had a chance to experiment with it. After we had Sunday dinner and cleaned up the dishes, I headed over for the studio. I was almost to the top of the stairs to go in through the attic when I was stopped by a voice from below.

“You there on the fire escape. Stop where you are and turn around.”

I looked down and saw a uniformed police officer.

“Hello, sir. How can I help you?” I asked. I’d heard the town hired a new constable, but I hadn’t met him. I figured I’d better be polite and try not to get on his wrong side.

“What are you doing up there?”

“I was just going to my studio, sir. Mr. Barkley lets me use some space for my darkroom and photoshoots.”

“Really? I’d like to confirm that. Stay where you are while I come up.”

He started mounting the stairs. I just waited. He reached me and grabbed the door immediately.

“I don’t think you’re going through this door unless you’re breaking and entering. It’s locked tight,” he growled menacingly.

“I have a key, sir,” I said, holding up the key.

“Open it.”

I opened the door and stepped in to turn on the lights. I stopped to take off my shoes and leave them by the door. He pushed in behind me and glanced around the room.

“Barkley lets you use this space?”

“Yes, sir. I’m a photographer. Um ... I understand if you don’t want to take off your shoes, but please wipe your feet. It’s still pretty wet outside and I’d rather not have to spend the next hour cleaning up the mud.”

I think he started to object, but I’d put a mat in front of the door, so it didn’t really cost him anything to wipe his feet. He followed me to the darkroom and looked inside just to verify that it was what I said.

“Photographer, huh? You the one who took the incriminating photos of the former constable?”

“I guess so. I’m Nate Hart.”

“Okay. I’ve heard the name. Preacher’s kid, right? This doesn’t really look like much of a studio.”

“I was going to work on an enlargement,” I said. “The studio is down a flight.”

“Just in the interest of touring the town, I’d like to see it,” he said. “You aren’t a suspect in anything now that I know who you are and that you belong here. I’m Jim Stoneburner and, as you’ve probably figured out, I’m the new constable. Seeing someone crawling around the back of a building on Sunday afternoon was suspicious, but I’ve seen your work. The mayor made a point of showing me before I was hired so I’d know what went down here before.”

“Constable, I’d be happy to show you around. I don’t have many visitors unless I’m shooting a model or have an appointment for a showing. Let me lock the door behind you, though. I work alone and don’t leave the doors open since there’s still so many petty thefts. Camera equipment is expensive,” I said.

“Good thinking.”

I locked the upstairs door and led him to the stairs to the new studio.

“Barkley just gives you access to his whole store?”

“No. There’s a locked gate at the foot of the next flight down. I just use the third and fourth floors.”

I found the switch and turned on the overhead lights in the big room. I planned to get some props ready before Lori got there and set the lights where I thought I’d want them.

“Now this is impressive,” Stoneburner said. “You bring models up here?”

“Yes. I have a scheduled shooting at two o’clock today. Please take a look at my gallery.”

He walked over to the wall display. I had a couple dozen photos on display now and I really liked them. I’d managed to print a very cool picture of Lori on the old pickup truck. Her expression was one of utter disdain as she pulled one side of her shirt up. I liked that one better than the one where she was completely topless and had her shorts unzipped. I used a filter and overexposed slightly to darken it and she looked really moody.

The constable looked at all the photos carefully, nodding. He pointed to the first of my really artistic nudes of Lori.

“Your girlfriend? I see you have a few photos of her.”

“No, sir. I don’t date my models and I don’t photograph my girlfriends. This is my business. I’m fortunate enough to have a couple of models who just want a collection of sexy pictures of themselves and are willing to come and pose occasionally, so I can work on capturing the right feeling. That model will be here in about twenty minutes. I was going to set up a backdrop and some props for her. Want to give me a hand setting my backdrop? It’s difficult to do alone.” I showed him what drop I was using and we both stood on boxes to put it on the stands.

“You’ve got an interesting style. Not that I’m an art critic. I just find it interesting.”

“It evolved from the original studio upstairs before Mr. Barkley opened this floor for me. I call it Attic Allure.” I pulled down the brick wall drop and got the silhouettes of the falling people. I had to stack two boxes in order to stand high enough to push the upholstery tacks holding the fishline leading to the lightweight cutouts into the ceiling. I was thankful that the constable put a hand on my waist to steady me.

“Can I watch your photo session?”

“I only allow people in the room when I’m working at the model’s invitation. You can imagine that a model like Lori might feel a little exposed or inhibited. It would be like the doctor inviting a neighbor in while he was examining a patient.” For some reason, I was really relaxed around the new constable. He just wasn’t threatening at all.

“I’ll have to consider that statement. I acknowledge that you take good pictures, but I’m not ready to equate you with a doctor. How old is this girl?”

“Eighteen. I can show you her model release. I always verify the age of a model and don’t do this kind of work with anyone under eighteen.”

“Okay. I’ll accept that. Listen, Nate, I saw the photos you took of the former constable. They were good, and were enough to get him fired. Believe me, I don’t have that kind of prejudice and I’m not a violent man by nature. I’m a former Army officer and this job is a good way to start a career in law enforcement. As long as you don’t actually interfere with me doing my job, you can take my photo in any place you want. In fact, give me one of these model releases. I’ll sign it for you. If you ever catch me in an act like the former constable committed, you can plaster photos of it all over the town and the newspapers and television. People think all police are pigs. I’m not and I’ll stake my reputation on any photo you take.”

“Wow! That’s a bold statement. Thank you. I can’t do it right now, but I’ve been taking pictures of community leaders for a future exhibition. I’d like to get yours for the collection,” I said.

“I’ll agree to that. Stop by the office and we’ll set a time. And I won’t interfere with your work, either. Just don’t create suspicions in town that you are doing anything illegal up here. No porn, right?”

“No porn, sir. I’m an art photographer. I once had a model that went a little overboard and I had to destroy some pictures and negatives. I hate to do that and I’ve learned to avoid the need to,” I said.

“Well, I’ll let you get to work then. If you’d unlock the door, I’ll leave.”

I unlocked the door just in time to let Lori in as the constable left.

“Miss, do you mind if I ask if you are here freely and plan to model for Mr. Hart? I’m Constable Stoneburner and I just want to make sure you feel safe and aren’t being coerced.”

“Um ... have you seen my pictures on Nate’s wall?”

“Yes ma’am, I have.”

“Do you love them as much as I do? I’d do anything Nate asked of me because he always comes up with something that makes me look more beautiful than I am,” Lori said.

“You’re a fine-looking young woman,” Stoneburner said. “I don’t think the man’s photos did anything to improve your looks. He’s just captured what anyone with eyes could see. You two have a good sitting.” He went down the stairs and out the alley.

“What was that all about?” Lori squeaked as she came on in. “Is it okay to do this?”

“Yeah, it’s fine, Lori. He saw me on the back stairs and thought I was breaking in. As soon as he found out who and what I am, he was fine. He even signed a model release and told me I could take his picture anytime I wanted as long as I didn’t interfere with his work.”

“That’s good. Talk about being fine-looking. Mmm. I do like me an older man,” she said, looking back toward the door, which I’d relocked. “And in uniform, too. Yum. What are we shooting today? Can I just get naked now?”

“I got this backdrop recently and Constable Stoneburner helped me set it up. I want to do something really dramatic with strong shadows and a kind of bizarre background, I guess.”

“Whoa! This is ... Are those supposed to be people falling off a building?” she asked.

The three silhouettes I’d positioned were hung with a single filament of fishing line, so they spun a little if they were hit by a breeze or touched. We’d need to be careful not to get too much motion in them. This was also going to tax Lori’s ability to strike and hold a pose that wouldn’t just be sexy and sultry—two things she did especially well.

“I was kind of interrupted while getting ready, so I need to go upstairs and get my camera. Just relax for a few minutes and think about what we can do. I’ll be right back.”

“Okay. Can I use other props?”

“Sure. Be creative. If you need something from upstairs, come and get it. We’ve got a lot of new props here in this room, too.”

I went up to get my camera case and film. While all my negatives and proofs and model releases were now in the fire safe, my camera was still kept in the under-the-counter safe I’d built in the darkroom. Most of my film was in the refrigerator at home, much to Mom’s disgust, but the weather was getting too warm to just have it sitting in the darkroom.

When I came back downstairs with the camera case and a dozen rolls of film, I found Lori had pulled a couple of things together for her ‘scene.’ She had one of the smaller black wooden cubes in the center of the stage area. When she stood on it, she looked like she was more ‘among’ the falling shadows than when she was on the floor and looked like they were falling toward her. She’d laid out a teddy bear and an umbrella. And, of course, she was naked.

“I think I kind of see the dark and gruesome side of what you want, but I thought about a humorous bit, too. I could be falling among the shapes, but floating with the umbrella over my head and a toy under my arm.”

“That’s great thinking, Lori. Kind of a Mary Poppins thing. When I looked at these things all I saw was falling to death. I still want to do that scene, but I think the humorous scene would be good, too. Let’s start with that. I need to adjust the lights so I get a good exposure of you.”

“Am I not exposed enough?” she giggled. “You know, Nate, I’ve had some guys ... I mean, you know I lost my virginity when I was fifteen to Billy. He’s not the only one who poked his cock into my pussy. I kind of like sex. But it’s always been in a parked car or a dark barn somewhere. I think you are the only boy who has truly seen me completely naked.”

“I’m honored, Lori. I don’t doubt that any of your lovers would have wanted to see you like I do,” I said.

She was standing on the block, just relaxed with the umbrella and teddy bear and completely bare. She even had bare feet and wore no jewelry. I did like seeing her soft round tits and exposed slit. If I wasn’t committed to preserving the studio space and my relationship with two perfectly wonderful and beautiful girls, I could certainly see myself being one of the guys who’d poked his cock into her pussy. In fact, I’d imagined it a few times late at night in the privacy of my bedroom. I thought that tonight might be one of those nights.

For now, though, I got the first round of photos set up. I shut down all the overhead lights in the room so I was only lighting with the photo and theatre lights. I was getting light from the window in the front of the room, too, but it wasn’t enough to upset the balance I was looking for. When we started getting sunny weather, I might have problems, but the dreary clouds just made it glow slightly. I might have to move the heavy drapes from upstairs to cover these windows.

When I thought I had the lighting right, we started taking pictures. And Lori came to life. She showed a side of herself that I hadn’t seen before, laughing as if she were parachuting among the falling bodies, holding the umbrella above her head and the bear out to her side, pirouetting, and standing tiptoe on one foot. I shot two rolls of her in these positions and said I was satisfied with this one.

She came down from the box and sat on it, laying the bear and umbrella aside.

“Whoo! That was hard work.” She had her legs spread open and if I was doing porn, I’d have snapped a picture of what I saw between her legs. She fanned at her pussy. “Do you have a clean washcloth and towel in the bathroom? I think I need to wipe down a little before the next series.”

“Sure. That reminds me that I should invest in some more things for the restrooms. If you happen to think of anything else I should have in there, let’s make a list so I can go shopping.”

She hopped up and ran to the restroom as I watched her ass bouncing away from me. That ass. I was definitely going to feature it in this next series.

Pushing the 400 ASA film to 3200 was a process for very low light or high speed use. I knew the general characteristics and how to process it. It tended to be a lot grainier, especially than the lower speed portrait film I used for beautiful continuous skin tones. The shadows would be especially grainy. But for the effect I wanted, the graininess was a desired effect. I wanted only enough detail in the shadows to make Lori fully three-dimensional rather than flat like the silhouettes. Not only did I have all the lights off, but I cut the light from my floods and spots down and emphasized the backlight so the wall had very little light on it at all.

I was going to shoot exactly the same scenes on two different rolls of film—at least as exactly as we could reproduce them. One would be shot normally as 400ASA Tri-X. But I’d shoot the other as if it were 3200 ASA. Then I’d over develop it to further enhance the grain. Maybe this whole experiment would work and maybe I’d have a colossal failure on my hands. I was lucky that Lori accepted the fact that she was an experimental subject, but that there was always at least one photo from a set that she was proud of.

We set to work as soon as she was out of the restroom. There would be no extra props for this scene, but I was going to continue having her posed on the box. For one thing, limiting her area of movement helped limit the number of lighting adjustments I had to make.

I was lucky that she was so good at balancing on one foot. Having her completely vertical when all the silhouettes were falling just looked odd, so I wasn’t planning to do full body shots for this. What I really wanted with the lights was just to highlight the curves of her face, her breasts, her back, and her butt with the rest in deep relief.

This time I was more involved with getting her in exactly the poses I wanted. The first set had been her creative endeavor. In this one, I stepped right up to her and moved her with my hands until the light fell exactly the way I wanted it. I probably touched Lori as much as any of the boys who had poked her, but neither of us really noticed because we were so focused on the outcome we wanted.

I shot four rolls at normal speed and four more pushing it. I used different filters on some. It took us almost two hours and Lori had to take another quick break to wipe down about halfway through.

I was absolutely sure, though, that I had photos that would make her weep. I knew for a fact that I’d cry.

I spent most of my spare time the next week working in the darkroom, keeping meticulous records of what exposures I’d used, how long the film was in the developing tank, how long I exposed the paper from the negative, and which filter was used for each. After the basic proofs, I probably printed a hundred enlargements of different frames before I saw what I actually wanted. I was so thankful that Levi was supplying all my film, chemicals, and about half my paper. He just kept saying that my patron was paying for it. It’s a cinch I’d never have been able to afford half of what I was consuming.

Wednesday after school I headed for the darkroom and stopped at the third floor door. Something looked odd about the lock. When I pulled at the door, it came open without my using the key. I poked my head in and flipped on the light. Nothing looked disturbed in the big room. I looked at the props as I walked past them and checked the fireproof file cabinet. It was still locked and didn’t seem to have been disturbed. I supposed someone could have come in and gone either upstairs to my darkroom or down to break into the store. I glanced at my gallery wall as I turned to head toward the stairs and immediately saw what was missing.

The picture of Lori posed on the truck that I liked so much was gone. So was the dark and moody picture that had made her cry when she saw it. Two pictures, both of Lori. I looked down to see if they had fallen off the wall, but there was no sign of it. I ran upstairs to see if anything had been disturbed up there, but didn’t see a thing wrong. My little safe under the table was still locked securely.

I ran down and outside, locking the door behind me. As soon as I was downstairs, I ran around the block to get to the front of the store. I stopped at the village hall where the constable’s office was and ducked inside. I saw him sitting at his desk.

“Constable Stoneburner. There’s been a break-in. A couple of pictures are missing from my studio.”

“You’re sure it wasn’t just taken by mistake by one of your models? You know it was a break-in?”

“The lock on the third floor door was scratched up and the door was unlocked when I got there a few minutes ago. The photos are the only thing I’ve been able to identify as missing.”

Stoneburner came out around his desk and we went up two doors to the store. I told Mr. Barkley what had happened and he led us up the inside stairs, pausing to unlock the gates that sealed the first and second floor from what was above. The constable checked the locks on those gates to see if they had been tampered with, but there was no sign of anything.

When we got to my studio, I showed him the outside door lock and he confirmed that it looked like someone had been at it with a knife. We walked inside and I showed where the photos were missing. Both Mr. Bartley and the constable knew at once which photos I was talking about.

Stoneburner had me answer a whole lot of questions about who had been in the studio recently. He wanted to know if anyone showed undue interest in the photo. Then he wanted to know about whether I had any enemies in town, and if I still had a good relationship with Tony Kowalski. I hoped he didn’t pursue that any further. I knew that Tony loved the last set of pictures I took with Patricia. There was no reason he’d be interested in a photo of Lori.

Stoneburner said he’d inherited a file about the break-ins, petty theft, and vandalism in the town. He was beginning to see a pattern, but didn’t have a suspect yet. He said he could call the sheriff’s department to get someone out to dust the lock for prints, but he suspected there were enough of my prints on it to occlude anything else. I’d need to get fingerprinted.

I finally got to my darkroom, but didn’t really have time to do much. I pulled another print of each of Lori’s missing photos and set them to dry. One thing about having a stack of negatives in a fireproof safe was that if something happened to a print, I could print it again.

I couldn’t believe the fog we had on Thursday morning. It was like walking through pea soup on the way to school. I stopped just outside of the main business block and took a picture with the streetlight still on and lighting up a portion of the street around it. It was a cool effect. In fact, I thought about it all day long and after I’d walked Ronda and Chris home after school in the misty fog, I ran back to school to see if I could find Lori or Pam. I didn’t find either one, but Avery Benton was finishing typing a paper in Miss Sullivan’s room. She stretched and asked me what I was looking for the other two cheerleaders for.