Chapter 22: Spy Story

I TOOK ADRIENNE to the opening of The Bacchae that night and we were suitably impressed. It was one thing to see acts during rehearsal so I could photograph them over three days, but to see the impact of the whole show put together was incredible. By the end of the show, the entire audience was standing and dancing with the cast. I think some clothing even came off.

Peter and Jane sat next to us and were equally enthusiastic. At intermission, Peter declared that he was investing in the show in London and would help with finding the rest of the cast.

“What would you think about having a trans woman play the role of Pentheus? She’s a professional drag queen and would convert from male to female completely,” I said.

“You have to ask Damien!” Peter said. “I would love to meet her.”

When we got to the after party at the bar, Eugene zeroed in on Adrienne. I could see the concept of ‘fresh meat’ going through his mind. Adrienne not so subtly removed the chain leash she wore as a belt and handed it to me, lifting her head so Eugene could clearly read her collar. I clipped the leash to her.

Eugene immediately lost interest and turned his attention to Peter and Jane. I wondered if he was trying to do both of them. Well, that wasn’t my business.

“You know a drag queen who would be good at this?” Damien asked me, having been alerted to the idea by Peter.

“Yes. I’m sure she’d be great. I’m not sure what she’s doing this summer or fall. She’s been touring the country doing shows at various gay bars and showrooms. Theatre major in college, but with a rather limited opportunity for mainstream shows,” I said. “Her stage name is Dora Devine.”

“See if you can reach her. That would absolutely be a kicker of an idea to put in the show. Phillip does well in this production as Pentheus, but he admits that Eugene’s overtures toward him make him uncomfortable. He is pretty explicitly straight.”

“I’ll see if I can reach her. I know someone in Chicago who probably has her current number.”

I had a very good time with Adrienne that night. I teased her unmercifully about Eugene wanting her until she admitted he was attractive. Then, of course, I had to punish her for that. Not too severely, but Adrienne loves to have her bottom spanked and I just love having it turned up for me on my lap.

On Friday, I started straightaway by calling Carrie in Chicago.

“Oh, hi, world traveler,” she said. “Are you landing in Chicago anytime soon?”

“Might be in for a week, but it will be rushed before we move to England for the next few months.”

“I am so jealous. But we’re getting ready for Leva’s congressional campaign next fall. It will take all my time for the next year.”

“One of the reasons I’m calling, besides the pleasure of your voice, is to see if you know how to get hold of Dora. There’s a possible opportunity for her in a legitimate stage show.”

“Oh, she’ll love that! Let me look at my calendar. She’s supposed to be in Buffalo, New York this weekend. Here’s the name of her hotel and the theatre.”

It was nice to talk to Carrie a while. I wondered what was going on with my other friends. I needed to go over to the theatre tech rooms and chase down Judy and Leanne. I hadn’t seen either one yet this season. I wondered how Leslie was doing with her job in New York. And so many of my former models. We’d gotten a wedding announcement from Stoney and Lori. That was cool. Who else had married, and who was making a name for himself or herself?

It was about noon, so I figured Dora would be awake by now. I called the hotel and they gave me the room when I asked for Devon Young. They didn’t know who Dora Devine was.

“Hello?” a sleepy voice said.

“Dora, did I wake you at this hour? It’s Nate Hart.”

“Nate!” she exclaimed, suddenly sounding wide awake and alert. “How are you? Are you inviting me to visit?”

“Today or tomorrow if you can,” I said. “I know you’re performing in Buffalo. How soon could you cross the river into Canada? We’re about 130 miles from you.”

“I have to do my makeup. Then I can leave.”

“I thought you have performances there this weekend.”

“It’s a bust. I got here only to find out the nightclub just closed. Well, it got closed, I should say. I guess I was lucky not to have been performing when they were raided.”

“Is that crap still going on? I’m so sorry, Dora.”

“More common than ever. An arsonist burned the Upstairs Lounge in New Orleans last month. He killed thirty people. I played there just in February. We never know when we’ll be attacked.”

“Well, put your pretty little self in your car and come here. I have something for you to see and it could be a possible job opportunity somewhere safe. Or at least safer than the US.”

“I have to put on my boy clothes to travel. You know, they wouldn’t issue a passport or driver’s license to Dora Devine. Only to Devon Young. I don’t dare travel anywhere in drag.”

“Be safe, Dora. I’ll see you in a few hours.”

I gave him the address and directions. Then I talked to the family. They agreed that she should stay in the apartment if she was willing to. I wanted to present him to Damien as Dora, not as Devon. Besides, I was staying in with the girls tonight. All three of my wives were going to the show. Adrienne was babysitting with me.

When the wives got home, after going out with the cast, they found Adrienne, Devon, and me sitting at the kitchen table playing cards. Devon and Adrienne got on spectacularly. He hadn’t changed clothes and makeup after he arrived. Adrienne went out to get take-away food when he got there and Toni had her favorite French fries and grilled cheese from the pub. The rest of us ate ‘real’ food. I was pretty busy with the baby, getting her bathed, fed, and in bed. During that time, Toni entertained Devon and Aunt Addie. I don’t think she knew quite what to do with Devon. He was different than she thought he should be.

When the girls got home, Adrienne stood to leave. Anna latched onto her arm and went with her, bidding us all good night. The rest of us finally got to bed.

In the morning, Devon woke up early enough to get in the guest bath and do his makeup. When Toni came out of her room and saw Dora instead of Devon, she marched straight to the guest room to see if our other guest was there. When she saw the empty room, she came back and faced Dora with her hands on her hips.

“Why were you pretending to be a boy yesterday?” she demanded.

“I didn’t have time to change before I met you,” Dora explained.

“You stay a girl. You’re prettier.”

“Oh, well, thank you, honey.”

From that point on, Dora was completely acceptable. Toni never asked about her being a boy again.

That evening, I took Dora to see the closing performance of The Bacchae. She was thrilled, and like Peter, was completely enamored with Eugene. We went to the cast party after the show and I introduced Dora to Damien.

“You’re beautiful!” Damien said. “Can you do the male bit, too?”

“I have a pretty good range. Boys who come to see my shows like to hear the occasional slip into my boy range. It proves I’m what they want.”

“I’ll vouch for that,” Peter said. “I love that you are able to do both. This is really lovely.”

Of course, Peter had nothing to say about casting, but Damien immediately took Dora to meet Eugene as well. It was apparent they got along well.

“I’m meeting at the theatre tomorrow afternoon for a proper audition,” Dora said when we finally got home. “Oh, Nate, thank you so much for giving me this opportunity!”

She gave me a big hug. I admit, I gave her ass a nice squeeze, but then she went to her room and I went to mine.

Peter and Jane delayed their departure until Monday so they could have one more day riding at the ranch with Toni. They also wanted to wait until Damien had made a decision about casting Dora. Well, and Jane wanted one more night with me before they left. None of us objected to that. With Dora in one guest room, though, my wives simply dragged Jane into our family bed and made sure she felt welcome.

It was a little sad to see Jane packing to leave Monday after breakfast at That Scottish Café. The good news, however, was that Dora had been cast. Damien asked her to stay in Stratford a couple of weeks so he could work with her on the music and staging. Then she’d return to the US and prepare for a move to London. Since she was officially on Damien’s payroll, he moved her into a hotel room so she wouldn’t be a burden on our family.

It didn’t make too much difference to us, but we only had Adrienne for the rest of the week before she headed back to LA, and then Kat and Julie were expected for the next week and Kat’s eighteenth birthday.

“Is it true you got Dora a part in The Bacchae?” Leanne asked. She and Judy had just marched into the studio Wednesday afternoon. It was the first time this summer that I’d seen either one of them.

“Well, hi to you, too,” I laughed at her. Hugs and kisses ensued.

“Did you?”

“I invited her up to see the show and talk to Damien. She did everything else on her own,” I said. “I’m glad I did. I was beginning to think you two weren’t even working here this summer.”

“It could be my last,” Judy said. “But you’ve seen the shows. Lear, Pericles, Shrew, She Stoops, and A Month are all costume dramas. Sewing, repair, and working backstage during the shows has been twice the work that last year was.”

“Makeup is just as bad,” Leanne said. “Just getting Eugene into a beard and rags for his appearance in Shrew is ... a little distracting.”

“Don’t tell me he has you wrapped around his little finger, too,” I said.

“Oh, I’ve wrapped more than just his finger. Not to worry, though. Once he’s had a girl he moves on. Except with the Weird Sisters. They are going to be tough for him to shake,” Leanne said. “Still, I wish I could travel to London with The Bacchae cast. It was a fun show to work on. Dora will have a blast.”

“Have something else for the winter?” I asked. I hadn’t seen my friends in nearly a year, so I really didn’t know what was happening in their lives.

“Actually, I got a call from one of the theatres in Las Vegas,” Leanne said. “One of our models from the month down there recommended me for a human animal act the group wants to launch. Do you remember Gloria Love?”

“The tiger we took out to the Valley of Fire? Hard not to remember her,” I said.

“She apparently came up with this concept for an act in a show in which nude girls are completely painted like wild animals. It will look for all the world like a regular animal act, but people will eventually realize they are women,” Leanne said. “She requested me as her makeup designer. It will be fun. I’ll be down there by Labor Day.”

“And what about you, Judy? You have plans for the winter?”

“Well, yeah. Um ... I kind of have a boyfriend now. It’s one of the reasons I haven’t been over. I knew if I visited you, I’d end up naked and impaled.”

“I wouldn’t try to force you to do that!” I said.

“No. I’d want to. Even just sitting here with you, I’m feeling um ... things happening in my body,” she said. “Squishy things.”

“Tell me about your boyfriend and where you’re going to shack up.”

“You know him. Remember our classmate, Kurt McDonald?”

“Football player. I remember. You caught up with him?”

“Well, we’ve been writing to each other ever since school. He was so impressed that I went to college that he decided to try it for himself. He got started a year later than we did, but he finished this spring and got a job teaching at a big high school in Naperville. He’ll be an assistant coach for football as well as teaching history.”

“Shades of Mr. Hennessey,” I chuckled.

“Yeah. He really admires Mr. Hennessey. Anyway, there’s a college there and I got hired into their theatre department. I’ll be teaching college classes. Can you believe that?”

“That’s great, Judy. I’m really proud of you.”

“Yeah, well, I thought it would be best not to run around on Kurt this summer. But my pussy is still itching. I think I’d better leave now.”

“Good luck, Judy. My best to you and Kurt.”

She picked up and left as quickly as she had arrived.

Leanne paused long enough to make sure she’d been thoroughly kissed and had gotten my hands all over her body.

“I’ll find a willing actress and bring her over to test my designs,” she said. “After we’ve painted her, cleaned her, and satisfied her, I’ll work in the darkroom with you.”

Then Leanne was gone as well.

Each of us got to spend special time with Adrienne that week. Thursday evening, she stayed with Alex and Toni while my wives and I went to see The Taming of the Shrew. Anna and Ronda had seen it, but Patricia and I had never gotten around to going. Of course, I’d seen several parts of it while photographing during rehearsal.

Anita was great as Kate. Eugene made the small part of Sly into a major role with his antics and vocalizations. We didn’t go out to party after the show, but went straight home and swept Adrienne into bed with us.

On Saturday, Kat and Julie arrived.

“Why haven’t you visited Mom and Dad this summer?” Kat demanded as soon as we’d all settled in.

“It’s been a really busy summer,” I said lamely.

“I know you’re moving and all, but Mom and Dad are feeling really lonely now. With Deb in Japan, Naomi in Germany, you going to England, and me in Minneapolis, they are feeling like we’ve all abandoned them. Julie and I are headed that way from here to visit for a week before we go back to Minneapolis,” Kat said.

“I’m glad you’re going. We all plan to go back to Illinois the week of the twentieth. Ronda and I have a couple of meetings in Chicago to get our schedule finalized, and then we’ll spend the next week moving. It’s crazy.”

“Julie and I want to visit you, but it always seems like we should go home when we have a break. Mom’s new place in DeKalb is kind of yukky.”

“I thought all the parsonages were pretty good,” I said. “The one in Sage was certainly great.”

“The way I got the story when I helped them move was that the job she’s taking on is new, and funded by the conference. The church didn’t have a parsonage for a second pastor. So, they rented this little place. It’s convenient to the campus, but has suffered from time being rented to students. They didn’t do much except replace the stove and refrigerator. You would not believe the colors the walls are painted. The school colors are cardinal red and black. Apparently, they use gold highlights. At least they didn’t paint any walls black. Red and gold walls are bad enough.”

“Wow! That sounds really disgusting.”

“Yeah. Dad had to find another place to store all his tools and things. The house is tiny. It has two bedrooms and one bath. And a musty basement where the furnace, water heater, and laundry are. I had to clear out the spiderwebs before I could do laundry.”

“Okay. I get the idea. I’ll spend as much time there as I can.”

Of course, Kat and Julie’s first night with us was Adrienne’s last. After we’d all had dinner and celebrated a little, I went to Adrienne’s room and spent the night there. She left first thing Monday morning to drive to Toronto to catch her flight to LA. It was a trip I’d be making in a couple of weeks.

I met the rest of the family for Monday breakfast at That Scottish Café. Kathleen and Anita were very happy to see Kat and Julie. They wanted to know if they were planning any painting sessions. It wasn’t long before they did.

We told the waitress it was Kat’s eighteenth birthday, and the cook made her a stack of pancakes with a birthday candle in the middle of it. She was thoroughly embarrassed as we all sang to her, but when Julie leaned in to give her a birthday kiss, the whole group of us went silent. There was such passion and adoration in Julie’s kiss that it took our breath away.

The studio was bustling that week, especially when Leanne brought Cynthia Styles in on Wednesday.

“Cynthia has kindly volunteered to be our model to test my animal concept on,” Leanne said. “Who knows? Maybe Gloria will call her with a job opportunity.”

“We can hope,” Cynthia said. “Just call me Cyn. It’s the middle of summer and I feel like doing something outrageous.”

I looked at the sketch Leanne handed me. Yes, it would be outrageous.

“Cyn, you’ve signed a model release and we’ll get some great photos. Are you here of your own free will without being coerced in any way?”

“I don’t think persuasion is the same as coercion. Leanne had to talk me into it, but the more we talked, the more fun it sounded. So, I declare that I’m doing this because I want to.”

“Great. Leanne, where do we start?”

“Well, this is a crossover animal. Gloria and I have talked about this a lot. We want good animal makeup, but it should have a surprise that simply isn’t found in nature. I mean something besides your beautiful boobs, Cyn. So, we’re doing a kind of leopard with spots and good face makeup, but we’re going to make her pink.”

“Our own Pink Panther,” I suggested.

“Sort of, but that’s copyrighted. She’s our pink leopard.”

Once we had the materials set, Leanne used a spray brush or large airbrush to lay in the pink pretty rapidly. Of course, that meant Cyn was naked from the start. She didn’t seem to mind and did her share of wiggling and preening. The paint job left the centerline of her torso unpainted. The paint only just reached her nipples. From that point on, Leanne focused on the intricate makeup of Cyn’s face and hair, while I applied black spots to the rest of Cyn’s body. The result was pretty cool. We got some great shots, including a roll of 35mm transparencies Leanne could send to Gloria.

I shot some black and white images on the Hasselblad, but the paint job just screamed for 4x5 color images.

“There are several of John’s student paintings that I haven’t used as a background. There’s one that is a nice rendering of a circus tent background. Let’s put Cyn in front of that for a few shots,” I suggested. Leanne and I got that set up as Cyn posed for Kat to do a good sketch.

The background was mostly purple-blue with lighting streaks and mere suggestions of the ring and audience. Like all John’s student projects, it was beautifully rendered and Cyn posed in front of it, clowning around half the time. We got some great shots.

By that time, we needed to get Cyn cleaned up. We had the dressing room prepared with a plastic sheet on the floor and lots of warm water. The paint came off pretty quickly, but there was a lot of playing during the process. Finally, the only thing left was to wash her hair and Cyn said she’d go to her apartment and take a shower. She thanked both Leanne and me with a kiss, and then took off.

I ran the slides down to Pro Photo Source and when I got back, Leanne had the dressing room cleaned up and was processing the first roll of film. I joined her in the darkroom and we got into a rhythm of processing, printing, and developing, interspersed with kissing, petting, and ultimately fucking.

“You know, I need to find someone who can supply this penis thing more regularly. I go along, seducing a girl or falling in love, but then I see you and remember how much I also like having you fill me. All I need is to find a guy who won’t get jealous of my girls and who won’t run off with one of them.”

“Good luck. You know I love you and care about you, but I’m not that guy. I can’t imagine that Ronda, Anna, and Patricia are really going to be happy to have me sexing someone outside the family for long. We have enough complications as it is,” I said.