While her old pick-up truck was warming up, Heather looked for the address Grace had given her the day before. At the bottom of the purse she found the card Grace had written the address for her studio. The card read, 1539 Douglas St. It had been a few years since she had been to that side of town and she hoped she did not have any trouble finding it.
Heather put the truck in gear and started driving. She always warned her daughter, Riley, about not concentrating when behind the wheel but today she was finding it hard to focus. Heather's feelings about posing nude had improved but still in the back of her mind she was nervous. While she drove her confidence steadily faded.
Luck was on her side and Heather found the address without difficulty. Grace's brand new Mercedes was parked in front of the building giving her the proof she in the right place. 1539 Douglas St. was actually an old ballet school. Heather had almost enrolled Riley in classes here many years ago but decided that her daughter needed braces to straighten her teeth more than she needed to be a ballerina. Heather parked next to Grace's car but left the engine running.
This was her moment of truth. Heather knew she could just leave or she could turn the truck off and go inside. Over the years she had to endure watching her daughter go without because of the decisions she had made. This was a chance for her to make sure Riley got the opportunities she never had. Riley needed this money for college. It was that simple. Heather took a deep breath and turned the engine off.
Grace arrived at her studio early that morning. The first thing she did after walking through the door was to turn up the furnace. Warm air started blowing from the vents and Grace went to the changing room. She kept some clothes at the studio for when she painted. From her locker she got a pair of paint stained flannel shorts and one her husband's old t-shirts.
The hardwood floors were cold under her bare feet as she adjusted the track lighting and prepared the stage for Heather. She hoped that Heather would be warm enough. Since Heather was not a professional model, Grace wanted to make sure she felt comfortable and at ease during the session. She was trying to get the backdrop to drape just right when she saw Heather come through the door.
"Heather! Good morning," said Grace as she stepped off the ladder she had been using and walked over to greet her.
"Good morning, Grace. Am I early?"
"You are right on time. I hope you do not mind but it looks like it is just going to be you and me today. The others all had plans that they couldn't break."
Heather saw a chance to possibly get out of this and asked, "Do you want to reschedule for another day?"
"Not a chance! Now I get you all to myself. Let me show you to the changing room so we can get started."
Heather followed Grace through the long narrow studio. Along the one wall was a floor to ceiling mirror that covered the whole length of the room. Other than the stage, the room was almost bare. The changing room was not much bigger than a walk in closet. There were several lockers and a metal folding chair.
"I am using the locker on the end but the rest are empty and I have a robe for you to wear. It is hanging on the coat rack next to the door. I'll leave you alone so you can get ready," said Grace before returning to the studio.
Heather shrugged off her coat and hung it on the rack. The robe, Grace had left for her, was not much of a robe. It was the half length style and was made from black silk. She took it off the hook and went to the locker she had picked out.
Heather took her time stripping out of her clothes. "What is the rush?" she thought to herself. After carefully folding her panties and placing them on the shelf next to her purse, Heather noticed that her bush had become matted down. She quickly brushed her fingers through her long dark curly hairs trying to fluff them up. Since those dark curly hairs were soon to be the only thing covering her, she might as well make the most of them.
Heather liked the feel of the robe on her skin but it was a little short on her. It covered most of her backside and when she tugged it down it made the front ride up even higher. She pulled and adjusted as best she could to give the most coverage. Satisfied she went back into the studio.
She found Grace sitting on stool behind her easel with a glass of wine. As Heather walked she realized that all of her adjusting had been pointless. The lightweight silk kept rising up exposing her back side and the front opening just refused to stay close despite the sash being tied.
"I just uncorked a bottle of wine. Would you like a glass?" asked Grace.
Heather was not usually the type to drink in the morning but accepted Grace's offer. The wine would probably help calm her nerves. Besides it might get her a few more moments before she would have to lose the robe. Grace went off to pour her a glass while Heather was drawn to the photos and paintings that covered the back wall.
"Are these all your work?" asked Heather.
"Yes. Believe it or not they are all mine."
Heather stopped at a particularly large painting. It was of a young man wearing only a loin clothe holding a javelin over his head as if he was about to throw it. Grace had done an amazing job of depicting his muscular physique. The painting almost seemed alive except the face was left blurry and distorted.
Grace came over with a glass of wine and handed it to her. Heather took a sip and asked, "Did you have a model for this one or is this solely from your imagination."
"He lives in my neighborhood and one day I saw him jogging down the street with his shirt off and these skimpy running shorts. I knew from that moment I needed to paint him. That was a year ago and he was only seventeen so I need to get his parent's permission for him to pose. I was lucky and his mother was all for it and even stayed while he posed."
Grace showed Heather several other pieces while they finished their wine. Grace took her last sip and asked, " Are you ready to get started?"
Heather had to summon all of her courage to say, "Sure. Just tell me what I need to do."
They went to the stage and Grace demonstrated the pose she was looking for. Heather was to kneel down on the floor with her legs spread slightly and her hands behind her head. Heather laid the robe off to the side and assumed the pose. She was facing the mirrored wall and her reflection stared back at her.
Grace went to her easel and started working. She started by sketching out a pencil drawing of Heather's nude body. As she drew she could tell that her subject was nervous and it reminded her of the darkest time of her life. It was during her last semester of college and she was failing the only fine art class she needed to graduate. One day after class her professor asked her if she was interested in earning some extra credit. She was worried about having to explain the failure to her parents and she agreed to his offer.
One evening, thirty years ago, Grace found herself naked standing on a platform in front of a her art professor and three other professors from the department. After a few poses, her professor asked her what she would do for an A in his class. Naively Grace said anything and then the night took a sinister turn. Suddenly he grabbed her wrists and forced her to the floor. While he pinned her the other men tied her down spread eagle. Then one of them gagged her with a rag. Terror does not even begin to describe the fear that gripped her when the four old men unzipped their pants. Her professor was the first one to kneel down between her open thighs. Grace's only knowledge of sex up to that point had been the little talk her mother had with her when she had her first period. When his cock violently assaulted her virgin pussy she desperately tried to free herself but it was futile.
The old man began to grunt and then she felt something warm flowing inside her. He stayed on top panting and sweating profusely. Her professor slowly got up and the next man knelt down and took his place. It was not until the second one finished pumping his seed into her did Grace notice the 8mm movie camera on a tripod filming her being gang raped. Each of the men took multiple turns violating her.
When they were finally finished, Grace could feel their semen spilling out of her. They called her a whore and spit on her. One of the old men came up to her with a knife. She was certain that they were going to kill her. She had heard the rumors of snuff films and deep down inside herself she wanted them to kill her. Instead he just cut the ropes that had held her down and they just let her go like nothing had happened. Grace ran back to her dorm room. She was too ashamed to go to the police.
Desperately she tried to block out the painful memories of that night. Then the cruel nightmare continued when she missed her next period. She knew that no one would believe her story that she had been raped by four of the college's most respected faculty members. Before she started to show, Grace found an alcoholic doctor who performed illegal abortions. In his filthy kitchen and without any anesthesia the drunk man performed the procedure. Using homemade instruments and his bare hands he end the life of the baby growing in her womb and in the process caused so much trauma that she would never be able to conceive again. It took her many years to cope with what had been done to her but the bitter sting that she would never have children still lingered.
Heather had noticed the strange stare on Grace's face and asked, "Is everything alright?"
Snapping back to reality, Grace answered, "I was just reminded of something that happened a long time ago. Everything is fine. Let's take a break for a few minutes. Another glass of wine?"
"That would be great," said Heather as she slipped the robe on.
It was evident to Heather that whatever memory Grace had remembered had be unsettling to her. Grace quickly downed her glass and poured herself another. Then as if a switch had been flipped the outgoing free spirit Heather knew came back. Whatever demon was inside her was back in it's cage.
Time seemed to flash by as Grace worked on paintings of Heather in several different poses. It was mid afternoon and two bottles of wine later when Grace laid her brushes down and announced, "I have painted enough for today. If you want to, you can come over and see what I have done."
Heather did not bother with putting the robe on. She had been naked in front of Grace for most of the day and what was the point of covering up now. Grace had worked on three pieces and each was truly a work of art. The last of the paintings was the one that caused Heather the most concern while she was posing. Grace had her leaning back on a stack of pillows with her legs spread and her head back.
Grace pointed at the last painting and said, "I am going to call this one Waiting for Lover."
Heather was not sure about the name but it was definitely erotic. It was not something she would have hanging in her living room but she still liked it.
