F/Stop
21
Sister, Sister
“Kathleen and Julie” by PilgrimSPB, ID251017951 from Shutterstock.com
WE DIDN’T ALL just go to a hotel for a week, exactly. I took Ronda, Patricia, and Toni to Adrienne’s hotel and we simply walked in. I suppose I should have thought that through before I walked in with Toni, but it was okay. Anna was holding Adrienne in her lap, wrapped in a robe, watching TV. Adrienne wasn’t paying attention to the TV—I’m not sure Anna was—but they were cuddled tightly together. Seeing her reminded me the of the almost boneless cat she’d felt like when I held her.
Toni scrambled to get down and run to the girls.
“Antaddi, you have owie? Toni kiss.”
“Oh, Toni, thank you,” Adrienne said. “Will you kiss the owie on my finger?”
Toni kissed Adrienne’s hand and probably slobbered all over it.
“Honey, let Aunt Adrienne rest with Anna so she’ll get all better and want to play with you,” Patricia said. “Do you have toys here?”
“Antaddi give me dolls,” Toni said. She ran to the bedroom and came back with a couple of baby dolls.
“Remind me to give her some trucks,” I laughed. “She shouldn’t have all dolls.”
“Oh, you should see some of the things she plays with in the store! I don’t think that’s going to be a problem. She puts a doll on the firetruck to go fight a fire,” Ronda said.
Eventually, we decided to order dinner from the hotel restaurant and sat on the floor around a blanket like a hotel room picnic. Ronda and Patricia took Toni home and I stayed with Anna and Adrienne, just pampering our pet, and letting her know how much we loved her.
Adrienne was feeling well enough to go out to breakfast Saturday. Anna and I took her to That Scottish Café where we could be seen with her. Her back was looking better but was still a ragged patchwork. She sat gingerly, but ordered a healthy breakfast.
It wasn’t long before Kathleen and Damien came in and made a beeline for our table. They flagged the waitress and ordered on the way to the table.
“Well, hi. Welcome, have a seat,” I said. Might as well invite them since they were already sitting at our table. Damien was next to me.
“Nate, I have a lot of respect for you, but this rumor either needs to be stopped or you’re going to lose a lot of business,” he said immediately.
“What rumor?”
“That you hit Beth. I saw her face Thursday night. She came to us for shelter.”
“Damien, I will not speak against Elizabeth. If she feels the need to blame me for what happened, so be it.”
“I will speak against her,” Adrienne practically shouted, jumping out of her seat. She turned her back and pulled her shirt up to her boobs. The marks were clear. Then she turned and showed the marks on her stomach. “She did this to me!”
“Fifi, sit!” Anna commanded. Adrienne sat immediately in her chair and hung her head. “It’s okay, honey. Let it go now.”
Adrienne looked up defiantly.
“Not without telling him that I’m the one who hit her when I couldn’t take any more. It was never Nate’s fault nor any of his other girlfriends. She whipped me and I hit her.”
“Holy shit! Oh, Adrienne, I’m so sorry,” Kathleen said, reaching a hand to her. Adrienne sniffed back a tear.
“So am I,” Damien said. “And thank you for clearing it up. A rumor that Nate hit one of his girlfriends like that could really put a hole in your business. I’ll make sure it doesn’t spread any further.”
“Should we cancel her performance at the Black Swan?” Kathleen asked. “Damn it, why did she do a thing like that? I liked her!”
“We all liked her,” I said. “I believe she’s gone a little out of control. She’s had a couple of instances where she’s jumped the rails on us this week.”
“I should have realized that Tuesday night when she went home with us. People don’t usually get that drunk on a single drink,” Damien said. “We had room and it was easier than dumping her at your place. I’m sorry if that helped upset things.”
“I think it’s really something else. She’s showing almost constant signs of being over-stressed by the three months in Las Vegas. Then her sister took her off to Africa. Maybe one day she’ll get herself back together, but I don’t know if we’ll ever be able to have her as part of the family again,” Anna said.
I could hear a low rumble from Adrienne’s stomach as her food was set down. It sounded incredibly like a wild animal growling. She quickly shoved some food in her mouth.
“Will you be here for a while yet, Adrienne?” Kathleen asked. “We never have managed our cup of tea together.”
“I’m flying back to Los Angeles tomorrow. That isn’t because of this. It was when I originally booked my flight.”
“You can stay longer if you want, sweet,” I said.
“It’s better this way for now. And you’ll still come out at the end of summer, won’t you?”
“Yes, of course I will. We’ll get the work done and have time for some fun.”
Adrienne smiled at me and then turned to Anna. Anna petted her hair and Adrienne kissed her on the cheek. Then we all went back to eating.
Kathleen and Adrienne got together that afternoon and I spent a last night with my pet. In the morning, after an early breakfast, I kissed Adrienne goodbye and she drove back to Toronto for her flight to LA.
I went back to the apartment and found things fairly peaceful. We got ready and went to church, then out to Sunday dinner. We decided to drive into London for a special dinner and didn’t get back until late afternoon.
When we got home, it was time for a nap. While Toni slept, the four of us—all that was left of my family—cuddled together in bed, too. We didn’t actually make love. Sometimes just holding each other and softly petting is all that’s necessary. It was the gentle reassurance that we were there and loved each other.
I went down to the studio after naps. The girls busied themselves with tidying things up, both upstairs and downstairs. I had a project I needed to get finished. I’d taken some good new promo shots for Beth and knew she would need them to promote her show next weekend. I was about to start printing when I heard the studio door open and stepped out of the darkroom.
Elizabeth was just standing in the middle of the studio staring around her like she’d never seen it before. She looked over at me and approached.
“Patricia said I’d find you down here,” she said. “I… um… wanted to talk about my promo photos.”
“I was just getting ready to print them,” I said. I could feel a weariness in both our voices.
“I… uh… I’ll pay for them. I just needed to know how much money to get out of the bank tomorrow.”
“Elizabeth, you know you don’t need to pay for your photos. I’ll get you the whole selection we agreed on. I’ve never charged you for a photo,” I said.
“Still? I mean… I’m not… anymore.”
“Still. I’m sorry I yelled at you like I did. I was very angry and should have stuck to the reason. I made personal attacks on you that weren’t called for,” I said. She snorted.
“I came down here to apologize to you. Everything I’ve done since I got here has been inappropriate or thoughtless,” she said. “I’m sorry.”
I’m a big softie. Everything inside me was screaming to forgive and forget and get the family back on track. We’d had hard times, but we were a family, right? No. Not really.
“Elizabeth, we can’t…”
“I know. I’m not asking to be back in the family. There’s no guarantee I wouldn’t go off on one of the girlfriends next. And… I don’t really fit. I thought we’d be cool in Chicago. I’d be your Chicago girlfriend. But I didn’t expect everyone else to move there. And I didn’t expect I’d start touring all of a sudden. And, I’m not a lesbian. I tried it in Las Vegas. With Rose. Didn’t work. There isn’t anything for me when I’m waiting my turn with you. I just… thank you for all the good times and for making those great contacts for me in Las Vegas and here.”
“I guess we all learned something. I’m sad, but it’s for the best.”
I looked at her, trying to decide if I was supposed to kiss her now. Instead, I just nodded and went into the darkroom to start printing her photos. She didn’t follow me.
Have you ever noticed that relationships are messy? Well, boys are messy. Yes, yes, girls are messy, too. But girls are a mess inside. Boys are a mess outside. Think about sex—as if you’ve stopped thinking about sex since I walked on stage in a miniskirt. You in the front row owe me a dollar tip.
Girls get messy during sex, but it’s all inside. Boys? Boom! It’s everywhere. You have to shampoo your hair three times.
I broke up with my boyfriend recently.
Yeah. Awww. Thank you. It’s okay. Nobody’s fault.
I shouldn’t lie like that. It was my fault, but I won’t admit it.
Did you ever notice that when everything is going right for you is when your relationship will go to hell? I found out something valuable, though. You can clean a boy’s mess up with a wash cloth and a little shampoo. A girl’s mess? There is no soap made to clean where I’m a mess. I have to come on a stage and spill it all over you. And then I still have plenty inside. So, I’ll go find another stage and another and another. One day, you’ll come into the Black Swan and there will be a cardboard box over on that corner of the stage that says ‘Starr’ on it. And that will be where I live.
Fortunately, most of her hour standup was funnier than that. People really laughed and enjoyed themselves.
I went alone. The girls just couldn’t bring themselves to come and watch our former girlfriend. There weren’t even a lot of people I knew there. Damien and Kathleen had a performance of Merchant of Venice that night, so they couldn’t attend but promised to Saturday night. And Saturday night, the parents would be there.
We’d reserved the entire fourplex where we’d once stayed in a single unit for our four sets of parents, and some kids. Mom and Dad had one unit, but I’d promised Kat she could stay in our guest room. Beth had moved out on Thursday and was staying at the hotel where her parents would be staying. Well, this whole thing had been arranged before the breakup, so we had to deal with it.
Ronda’s parents, Dr. Joseph and Susan May, and her seventeen-year-old brother Danny, were staying in one of the fourplex units. Tor and Elise Berg, Patricia’s parents, were staying in a unit and had already said they wanted Toni to stay with them. Toni was excited that so many grandparents would be in one place for her. And Don and Nancy Marx were staying with Anna’s ten-year-old brother Rick in the last unit.
I was glad Kat was staying with us because I didn’t completely trust Danny. Neither did Ronda. She figured the number of girls who had been in the playhouse to sacrifice their virginity was climbing. She’d had to remind Danny to empty the wastebasket between girlfriends.
When they all started arriving on Saturday afternoon, I was surprised to find Julie Evans with Kat. Mom had figured that with two boys in the party, there should be two girls, so when Kat asked to have her best friend come along, she thought that was reasonable. After all, Julie was the same age as Danny and Rick wasn’t old enough to worry about.
“Oh, where’s this girl going to stay?” I asked in mock surprise when they showed up. Kat had an instant look of panic on her face.
“Don’t worry, Reverend Hart,” Anna jumped in. “We’ve got a guest room and a spare room. We can keep them both.”
She said that seriously, as if there was even a ghost of a chance that Kat and Julie would need two rooms. The girls ran upstairs with their suitcases where Patricia showed them to the guest room.
Toni was in heaven as soon as she saw her best friend and immediately wanted to show Kat her artwork, her toys, and the whole store. That’s where they were when Elise and Tor walked in and Toni forgot all about Kat.
We all trooped over to the four-plex and found Dr. and Mrs. May having a chat with Don and Nancy Marx as they unloaded their cars for the week. All except Tor and Elise decide to go see Beth at the Black Swan, even though she is no longer a girlfriend. I begged off, but Anna and Ronda were roped into going with their parents.
Patricia and I left Toni with her grandparents and went home to have a little quiet loving before the rest of the family got there.
I didn’t really want to get into the whole thing with my parents about why we had broken up with Beth. They didn’t even know Adrienne, and saying that Beth beat up some unknown person put everything on her as an evil person. I didn’t really believe that. I did think that she was a little unstable, but sometimes I thought I was, too.
“We forgave each other, but the rift is too big for us to mend it,” I said. “We all decided we were better off without Beth in the family. I still need to talk to her father about buying her share of the property here in Stratford, but I don’t foresee us getting back together again.”
“Forgiveness is a misused word, I’m afraid,” Mom said. I settled in for a sermon. “I’ve come to believe that only God can truly forgive. It is beyond the capacity of the human heart and mind.”
“What do you mean, Mom? I thought we prayed forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. Aren’t people supposed to forgive others?”
“This is a hard one,” she said. “I thought I was good at forgiveness. And just as you are not betraying the confidence of what happened, I won’t either. But in my life, I’ve tried to forgive some very powerful sins against my person, my psyche, my very spirit. And I still find myself, many years later, having the stray thought of that event cross my mind and becoming alternately hurt, angry, bitter, vengeful. You see, true forgiveness is only possible if you forget. If you can’t forget, you can’t forgive. And I have never met a human being who could forget a grievance against another person. We don’t have the ability to pluck that memory from our minds and destroy it.”
“God can forget things?”
“The mind of God is much vaster than I ever thought I comprehended before. When God forgives, He expunges the very memory of that act and it is as if it never happened. We humans try to mimic his act, but never really forget. I spend part of every day calming myself from old memories and hurts so that those memories don’t control my responses, but even then, I know I fail more often than not.”
I thought I’d put that one on one of my Reverend Mother Superior posters if I ever got around to making them. ‘If you can’t forget, you can’t forgive.’ ‘I was called to minister, not to judge.’ ‘Too much Bible study can ruin your faith.’ ‘The minister’s home is a home first.’
I thought that if Mom kept having these deep thoughts, maybe she’d be a bishop one day. The United Methodist Church hadn’t gotten that far, yet.
Jordan, Nadia, and Adele came into the store on Wednesday. I knew I’d have to face them. I’d been close to Beth’s parents, especially Jordan, ever since I moved to Chicago. I didn’t know how that relationship would survive the breakup.
“So this is the shop?” Jordan said as he came in. His women were immediately busy examining everything on the shelves and choosing a few little things to take to Ronda at the cash register. “Looks nice.”
“This is it, Jordan. I can’t say it’s an incredibly profitable business, but the authorities seem to be happy to have us with a couple of open businesses in town.”
“I can well imagine. Immigrants in any country are welcome as long as they aren’t taking a national’s job and are contributing to the economy,” he said.
“Would you like to see the studio?”
“Well, yes! Nadia and Adele can entertain themselves shopping for hours,” he laughed. He sounded pretty jovial, but that could change when we were in private. He’d once threatened me with a shotgun if I ever hurt his little girl.
“Times are changing and I’ve had to expand into some color photography,” I said. “I’m getting a lot more people who want a photo, but aren’t interested in modeling, so I don’t have releases for their photos. Still, we get a few.”
“Yes. Well, you know I’m a collector of the black and white. Can’t do everything. I can see on some of these where the color is a real plus to the image. There are so many different colors in that costume that would be lost in black and white. That one, though, I’d like a print of,” he said pointing to the photo of Min in her tracery. It was a very sexy shot.
“I can do that. Do you want to take it back with you or do you want me to ship it home?”
“If you can… Wait. That one is signed by you and two others. Who?”
“Leanne is the makeup artist and Min is the model. It was the kind of work we thought all three of us should sign. We did the same thing with the ‘Min the Gold’ print. We each have one copy signed by all three of us.”
“And no others?”
“No. Those are the only ones that will have all three of our signatures. I’ll sign any originals that I print, but otherwise, none.”
“I’ll take that one,” Jordan said. I was shocked. The black and white of Min with Leanne’s tracery was matted and framed, like the dragon lady. Anna had priced it at $1,500. ‘Min the Gold’ was priced at $2,500.
“You’re sure, Jordan? I mean, nothing else of mine that you have comes close to that. Of course, I’ll split that with Min and Leanne, but it’s still a lot of money.”
“All right. You convinced me. I’ll take them both. Nadia!” he called out into the shop. Nadia quickly came to the studio with Adele right on her heels.
“Yes, Jordan?”
“What do you think of these two. Are we ready to add a bit of color to our collection?”
“Those are beautiful! Can we really buy them, dear?”
“Come now, I’m not a skinflint. I think we can afford to drop some money on our favorite photographer.”
He had to know that Beth and I had broken up. But he was acting like he was still a fan of mine.
“Besides,” he continued, “imagine what they’ll be worth once the artist is dead.”
Oh, shit!
Adele gasped.
Jordan turned and grinned at me.
“I’m thinking a long-term investment here. You don’t need to rush the dying part. You know the old adage: It takes two to paint a masterpiece. One to put paint on the canvas and one to hang the artist.”
“I’d rather not get to that last part,” I said.
“I’d rather you didn’t either. I’d miss our drinks and smokes together. Speaking of which, I know all the families are in town, but do you have time to get together one evening this week?”
“Oh, well, not tomorrow because I’m taking my sister to the theatre. And Saturday is my folks’ last day in town. I guess that just leaves Friday night,” I said.
“Why don’t we meet at that bar in the Windsor House around nine. We’ll just have a drink and unwind after a long week. What say?”
“That sounds good, Jordan. I always like spending time with you.”
“Well, have those two wrapped and sent over to us. I’ll go find Anna and settle up with her.”
“Nate, are you painting, too?” Adele asked. She was standing in front of a couple of my sister’s paintings that I’d hung in the gallery.
“Oh, no. It’s my sister who paints. I told her I’d hang a couple of her pieces and see if anyone was interested.”
“I’m interested,” Adele said. “I love this.”
The picture she was staring so intently at was one of Julie on Kat’s rocking horse. It wasn’t as demure as her early paintings of her friend, but was a full-on Lady Godiva pose. I had to wonder if Julie’s breasts had grown that much. Actually, when she’d hugged me the previous night before she and Kat went to bed, I could pretty well tell they had.
“Um… I can call Kat downstairs to talk to you about it. I know she and Anna set prices.”
“Please do. You’re so sweet, Nate,” Adele said. She actually leaned into me and kissed me on the cheek.
“I suppose I should wait until this deal is struck before I write a check,” Jordan laughed.
I took Kat and Julie to the show Thursday night. It was opening week of Cymbeline, which would run through mid-September when the season ended. This was Kathleen’s big role as Innogen, the King’s daughter who spends much of the play disguised as a boy page to the Roman invaders.
It was called The Tragedie of Cymbeline, but the program notes said it was more often classified as a romance or even a comedy. At least the revelations of who his daughter is, her brothers, and her husband all come before Cymbeline executes them all. Unlike King Lear when all the messages come and deceptions are revealed a heartbeat too late to save anyone’s life.
After the show, I took Kat and Julie to the Tudor Café to meet the cast and crew who showed up to celebrate their opening.
“It was so good!” Julie said, bouncing in her seat. “Miss Thomas, you were just wonderful!”
“Thank you, Julie. Please, we’re among friends. Call me Kathleen.”
“Do you ever go by ‘Kat,’ like Kat does? Oh, her name is Katherine.”
“Oh, no. I’ve never had the claws to be a Kat. Sometimes, Kath, though. Did you enjoy the show, Kat?”
Julie had been talking across Kat, who was seated between Julie and Kathleen.
“Oh, yes, ma’am. I saw your picture that you modeled for Nate. Do you charge a lot to model?”
“I suppose I would if I were modeling fashions or on the runway, but I got a copy of the photo for my time with Nate. And the benefits of his friendship.”
“I think I’ve definitely come out on the better end of that bargain,” I said.
“Would you model for me?” Kat blurted out. “I’m sorry, I’m only here two more days.”
“Are you a photographer, too?”
“Please pardon my sister’s enthusiasm, Kathleen,” I broke in. “Kat is a painter and I’ve even hung a couple of her pieces in my gallery. But she might have been a little more discreet in her request.”
“I’m sorry,” Kat said. “Julie and I were talking about it on the way here.”
“Are you an artist, too, Julie?” Kathleen asked.
“Oh, no, ma’am. Kat’s the artist. I’m her… model for a lot of her paintings.”
“I probably know every curve of Julie’s body better than anyone else in the world,” Kat said enthusiastically. “Um… on canvas.”
“I’d love to do a scene with you that Kat could paint,” Julie said.
Kathleen glanced at me and apparently, decided to humor them.
“I could come over for a while around noon tomorrow,” she said. “I’ll look at your paintings and if I see something I like, I’ll spend some time holding still for you to paint.”
“Oh, so cool!” both girls said.
The sitting with Kathleen at noon on Friday took my friend by surprise. After the sale of Kat’s painting on Wednesday, she’d brought several down to spread on the table for people to view. Kathleen and Damien spent several minutes looking through them.
“I confess, I wasn’t expecting anything like this,” Kathleen said. “Kat, these are wonderful! Where do you study?”
“Oh, I’m just in high school yet,” Kat said. “But I’ve been waiting for my birthday to announce that I’ve received a provisional acceptance to the Minneapolis College of Art and Design. I could feasibly start there as early as the fall I turn sixteen. Next year.”
As Reverend Mother Superior would say, ‘I about dropped my teeth.’
“Kat, you’ve gotten a college acceptance already?” I said. “That’s unbelievable. I didn’t even start thinking about college until I was almost a senior.”
“It was kind of a juried selection. I had to send samples of my work and statements from my art teachers and parents. It’s a full scholarship, but I have to find a place to live and something called a loco parentis, which I think means someone crazy enough to be responsible for me until I’m eighteen. And I might wait one more year so Julie is out of school and can go with me.”
That set the tone for the afternoon. Damien left and Kathleen realized she was not going to be sitting for a formal clothed portrait. Kat wanted to set a scene and have Kathleen interact with Julie. Kathleen was a blonde and looked pretty young, even though she was five years older than me. Julie had slightly darker hair and a pretty mature look, so they went well together.
Kathleen said she wanted to have a chaperone since she was working with two underage girls, and Kat quickly said that I could stay and maybe I could take a couple of photos, too. I wasn’t going to be taking pictures of naked Julie, no matter what. It was going to be difficult enough just to be in the room with the girl who reminded me so much of her sister.
Once Kat started working with them, I could see the kind of scene she was going for and suggested a library interior backdrop to put behind them. Putting the girls in that kind of setting really made the scene come alive. When she got started, I took several pictures—that was while they were still mostly dressed. As Kat worked on poses, making quick sketches, then gradually talking them out of their clothes, I was amazed at how well she was managing her models.
Finally, she called for a freeze and remember their positions, then asked me to adjust the lights slightly. She started working furiously on the pose, then gave them a break. After ten minutes, she got them back into the same pose so she could continue the drawing. I snapped a picture over her shoulder that caught both her sketch pad and her models. I thought she’d like to have that one, even though I’d never display it.
As much as I appreciated looking at Julie’s seventeen-year-old breasts, I wasn’t going to display any pictures of them.
We were all exhausted by the time we were able to call it quits and Kat was satisfied that she had a good sketch for a painting. Kathleen sidled up to me as she collected her clothes from the stage. We saw Julie step up to Kat, just as naked, and kiss her. Kathleen turned to kiss me as I held her butt in my hand.
“That was so much harder than posing for you,” she laughed as she pulled on her panties and handed me her bra to hold for her. She turned away from the kids so I could make sure her boobs were seated comfortably in her bra. “Did she really get a good sketch?”
“You should go look. I think it’s great. She doesn’t have any difficulty with underage models like I could have. I won’t show any nudes in the photographs,” I said.
“Well, if you want to photograph some more nudes, I’m happy to come back for you. I feel pretty free to just strip here and do whatever you want. You never really want all that much.”
“I’ll try not to disappoint you next time,” I laughed. I patted her butt as she was pulling her slacks up.
I went over to Windsor House where Jordan, Nadia, and Adele were staying. And Beth. I hadn’t heard a word from Beth since her show. I assumed that if she’d left Jordan would have, too. Well, it wasn’t my concern anymore. I had to keep reminding myself of that.
“Have a seat, Nate,” Jordan said. He already had two drinks on the table. “Cognac and smoke. What could be better.”
I had to agree. I didn’t drink very much that was so strong, but with a relaxing pipe late in the evening, it was pretty good.
“Well, let me get the business out of the way so we can just enjoy the evening. Everybody in your family put in $5,000 for their share in the property here in Stratford and you put in the $5,000 downpayment to buy the business. I’ll just add the $5,000 from Elizabeth to your total loan and you own it. The four of you will each owe an extra $1,250 over what you originally did. Fair enough?”
“Fair enough,” I said, holding out my hand.
We shook and that was the end of the business. After I’d seen him on Wednesday, I was pretty confident the business transaction would be painless. We’d be handling the mortgage owed to Jordan for the Stratford property and rent of our apartment in Chicago. I didn’t think we’d have a problem with them since I was still pulling down good money on photo sales here and expected to in Chicago this fall. Every time I went to LA to consult for a week, the movie paid me $5,000 plus expenses. And I got to stay with Adrienne. It sounded like I’d have some portraits while I was there, too.
“You know, I only wish Beth well,” I said. “It was unfortunate that it worked out that way.”
“Well, she wouldn’t tell me what happened and I don’t expect you to. That’s the easiest way to keep from picking sides. She took off yesterday.”
“Really? I didn’t expect she’d leave while you were still in town.”
“Oh, we’ll leave sometime tomorrow, I suppose. Adele and Nadia wanted to see another show tonight. I expect they’ll wander in when it’s over,” Jordan said. “She had an opportunity, I guess. Some director saw her show and decided she was perfect for a role in New York. I don’t like the guy, but I can’t specify anything about him. Except he’s about fifteen years older than her. I can’t speak out too strongly about that. I’m fifteen years older than Nadia. Of course, you don’t have that perspective.”
“I sort of do,” I said. “I kind of have a girlfriend who’s about ten or fifteen years older than me.”
“Sort of do? Kind of have? Why haven’t I heard about another girlfriend? Are you stepping out behind your lovely ladies’ backs?”
“No! They know about her. Adrienne lives in Los Angeles. She was at your New Year’s Eve party. You have one of the pictures I took of her. The dancer in the ruins.”
“I didn’t recognize her. Isn’t she sponsored by your big benefactor in Las Vegas? Don’t get crosswise of him!”
“Yes, she receives a benefits package of some kind from him every month, but she hasn’t seen him face-to-face in years. He told her he thought she might like me and she took it from there,” I said. “And she likes my girlfriends, too. I think she would have liked Elizabeth if Beth had given her a chance.”
“Well, be careful. At least now you won’t need to worry if Nadia or Valerie decide to book an appointment.”
“I’m not sure that would be a good idea. I’ve had an experience with the wife of a patron and it didn’t end well.”
“Oh, yes. Sylvia. Don’t worry. I’m not violent like her husband was, nor does Nadia have a bodyguard who would shoot me if I was. Although, sometimes I think Adele would be a little unpredictable if I didn’t keep her on a leash. That was my way of compromising. My performance wasn’t exactly up to par anymore, and Adele has been good for Nadia. Just get some good pictures, and don’t worry about anything else,” he said.
I still wasn’t sure that was a good idea. From that point on, though, our conversation was all just friendly chat about how business was since I got up to Canada and whether the movie would be successful. I told him I was headed out there at the end of the month and maybe I’d know better by the time I got back. To me, it seemed like it was taking them a long time to get started, considering that they started scripting over a year ago and had me in Las Vegas a year ago to study my style.
But I guess actually shooting the film was about the shortest part of the process. After it was shot, there would be days of reviewing the ‘rushes’ and then weeks of cutting it together. Then there would be post-recording, music, titles, and God-knew what else they had to do before it was released. Next summer, maybe.
I’d had a second glass of Cognac when Nadia and Adele got to the bar after the show. I was just a bit tipsy on my mile walk home and was happy to just fall into my bed and go to sleep.
All the families took off first thing Sunday morning for the long drive back to Chicago and Tenbrook. I hugged Mom and Dad and Kat. Then Julie hugged me and whispered in my ear.
“I never got to tell you. Chris’s husband is a creep. I kept waiting for you to pull a Benjamin Braddock and come to drag her off and shove a cross through the door of the church. He made a pass at me at the reception. I wish you were my brother-in-law.” She kissed me on the cheek and ran to join Kat in the car. I waved goodbye and turned to join my family.
I wasn’t sure I wanted that information. I certainly didn’t know what to do with it.
We cleaned house, stripped beds, and did laundry. We’d had non-stop company ever since we got to Stratford, it seemed. The girls had neatly piled the linens from their room by the bed, but Elizabeth hadn’t really cleaned up her area much when she left.
We were about to settle into my family tradition of watching TV and eating ice cream when we heard a horn outside. I looked out the window and shook my head. I knew we had one more guest arriving.
“We have company,” I said, heading for the stairs.
“Are we expecting someone?” Ronda asked.
“Oh, yes. Judy is coming,” Anna said. “I almost forgot.”
“Almost?” Patricia asked.
The three girls followed me down the stairs. As soon as I opened the door, Judy jumped into my arms, gave me a kiss, and then jumped to each of my girlfriends, including kissing Toni.
“I’m so happy to see you guys!” she yelled. “I thought this summer would never move forward. Can I really see a bunch of shows this week? Will we take pictures? Can we run around naked?”
“Look at you, girl. You’re practically naked already!” Ronda said. “Why don’t I start by helping you… um… get settled in your room.”
“You know I’m not quite as naïve as I was in high school, Ronda. I know exactly how you’d help me get settled. And I’m all for it,” Judy laughed as we dragged her suitcase upstairs.
“As much as we’d all like to help you get settled like that, maybe we could take a few minutes first to just relax and find out how you’ve been doing,” I suggested.
Ronda was looking absolutely predatory. Of course, maybe Judy was inviting that a little. She wore a pair of ultra-short cutoffs that reminded me of a pair Patricia had once worn, and a gauzy peasant blouse that was at least partially see-through.
“You guys, I’ve really missed you. I almost wish I’d found a school in Chicago to go to, but these guys were the ones who opened my eyes to the idea that I even could go to college. And I’ve made a bunch of friends there, but it’s so dull this summer after spending last summer having fun in Vegas.”
“I’m glad to hear you’ve made friends,” Patricia said. “Without you and Janice in Tenbrook it was getting pretty lonely there, so I moved to Chicago, too. Then this summer here in Stratford has flown past.”
“Oh, I got a job at school this summer,” Judy said. “We revamped the entire costume department with new storage and sewing areas. Every costume was sorted, inspected, and catalogued. It was good work, but there were only three of us on the project and we started to get on each other’s nerves by the end of the day.”
“I can’t imagine,” I said.
“You! Can I have some ice cream?” she asked. We all grabbed our dishes and had another scoop—just to be sociable.
“So, tell me what the story is,” Patricia said as she sat next to her old friend. “Are you making lots of costumes? Did you bring something new for me to wear? Are you seeing anyone? Boy or girl?”
“Well, I’m having a lot of opportunities. I’ve been selected to design The Madwoman of Chaillot, our winter production this school year. I’ve assisted on all the productions this past year, but this is the first one where my design acumen will be tested. And it’s fun! Every costume will be a caricature of a persona circa 1945. The characters mostly don’t have names. They’re called things like the Ragpicker, the Sewer Man, the Flower Girl, the President, the Broker, the Baron, and of course, the Madwoman. It’s going to be such fun!”
“And…?” Patricia asked. “A costume for me.”
“Of course I did! I don’t know if it will contain your boobs, though. Have you grown up here?”
“You should talk,” Patricia said, reaching over to tweak one of Judy’s nipples. “You aren’t even trying to hide yours anymore.”
“Patricia!” Judy squeaked. She reached over and squeezed one of Patricia’s boobs.
“You know where that will get you, girl? Straight to bed,” Patricia growled.
“With you? Oh! Patricia! Really?”
“Right now, I need to get the pipsqueak to bed. Then I’ll see about getting you into bed.”
Patricia placed a quick kiss on Judy’s lips and jumped up to get Toni ready for bed.
Monday morning, we were all kind of excited about getting Patricia into a new costume and photograph, especially after Judy showed us her renderings.
“We had an assignment in class to design a fantasy character. She said anything goes and the winner could build and model the costume. I won.”
“Were they all kind of Tolkien-esque?” I asked. I’d read The Hobbit after it was recommended by my friend Jon in high school. It was the only thing I could think of that had elves in it.
“No. That was what made the contest fun! We were just told that it wasn’t to be a creature we would normally find in our natural world. All of mythology, fairy tales, science fiction, and fantasy was available. And, of course, being who we are, we went for as sexy as we could get. Barbarella, Amazons, Elves, Star Trek aliens, a minotaur, Venus, a centaur, you name it.”
“How big a class was this?” I asked.
“Only ten, but you don’t think costume nuts like me would make up just one entry, do you? My second entry was a satyr, like in The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, you know? I wanted to do a dragon, but all my concepts were too bulky.”
“Wait till you see the dragon Leanne designed and we turned our model Min into. I have to print a new copy because I sold the signed original this week.”
“I can get Patricia ready. In fact, after last night, I’m rather looking forward to getting her ready,” Judy said. “I have a wig and elf ears as well as the costume pieces. You need to work out a setting for her.”
“Have anything particular in mind?” I asked.
“Oh, it could be a forest setting if you have a bow we can give her. Or just about any medieval setting,” Judy said. “Ah! Here she is now. You get busy on your end and I’ll get busy on Patricia’s. I mean, my end.”
Patricia came straight to the studio after taking Toni to her daycare. I looked over what I had, to figure out what kind of setting I could make. The best medieval setting I had was just a stone wall with a fireplace in it. I wished it had a little more depth.
I went upstairs to the phone and called Katheen.
“Ohh. Why are you calling so early? I had both a matinee and an evening show yesterday.”
“I’m sorry. Would you rather I called back later?” I asked.
“No. I’m awake now. Do you want me to do another scene with that delicious little teen?”
“No, afraid she’s gone back home. Don’t want you to enjoy yourself too much.”
“She was awfully nice to hold, but it’s obvious that she’s far gone on your little sister. Not that I blame her. What’s up?”
“I need to put together a medieval fantasy scene and I’m coming up dry. All I have is a rather flat looking stone wall and that table and chairs you brought. I’m thinking that might be too elegant. This scene features an elf and I think it should be more rustic.”
“Oh! That’s intriguing. I suppose you need it right now.”
“The model is in makeup and costuming right now,” I said.
“Meet me at the scene shop in fifteen minutes.”
“I owe you,” I said.
“You sure do.”
I told Judy and Patricia that I had to make a run for props and would be back in forty-five minutes. I hoped I wasn’t off by too much.
Please feel free to send comments to the author at devon@devonlayne.com.
