The Case of the Cursed Camera

"Wonderful!" exclaimed Richard as he turned back to Lydia. "Let's continue, then, shall we? Raise the hem a little more, dear, and give us a better look at those panties."

Lydia giggled some more as she did so, preening with every new compliment and affirmation from the cameraman.

"Such beautiful round buttocks you have! Don't you agree, Ms. Tyler?"

"Yes, beautiful round buttocks," said Laney, staring hard at her daughter's panty-clad ass.

"The only bad thing is the cut of those panties, tsk-tsk-tsk!" he said. "Lydia, let's get a peek at your bra and see what we're working with." As the girl pulled down the top of the dress Richard responded with exaggerated dismay, lamenting, "Oh, what a shame! Titties as nice as yours shouldn't have to endure such an unflattering bra! Don't you concur, Ms. Tyler?"

Laney agreed almost robotically, mumbling, "Yes, titties too much for that bra."

"And what should Lydia do about that bra, Laney?" asked Richard, sounding rather smug.

Laney's face scrunched up with concentration for several long seconds before she replied, "Should not wear the bra?" sounding very unsure of herself.

"That's exactly right, Laney, good job!" Lydia's mother perked up at the praise and smiled a little. "Go ahead and advise your client, then, please!" he said.

Laney looked blearily at her daughter and said, "Bra off, Lydia. Nice titties out for us."

Lydia blushed and giggled some more, saying, "Yes, mommy!" while she undid the clasp and freed her generous bosom from confinement.

"Such splendid tits!" Dick exclaimed, quickly resuming the photoshoot. "Cup them for us; hold them up. Lovely! Now pinch your nipples a little, I want to see how hard they can get. Outstanding! Shake them back and forth, and try bouncing them a little. Amazing!"

Lydia was so focused on the camera that she didn't realize her mother was obeying the same directions, albeit still fully dressed. Laney's obedience did not escape the attention of Mr. Bilde, however, who said, "Why, Ms. Tyler, you look like you're enjoying yourself! You'd like to join Lydia in front of the camera, wouldn't you?"

"Yes," slurred Laney, "Be with Lydia on camera."

"Well, we can't have you posing with that outfit, now can we?" Richard said, examining the mother critically. "Go ahead and take it off and let's see if your underwear is suitable."

As Laney disrobed in front of the others Lydia just giggled some more, but Dick clicked his tongue again and said, "No, I'm afraid those are just too plain to be photographed. I'm sorry, Laney, maybe next time!"

Ms. Tyler shook her head, and seemed to regain some of her earlier irritable attitude, as she spoke more clearly and said, "We object! I want to be in front of the camera, too!"

"Well, I already said we can't do that with you wearing that ugly bra-and-panties set. So what would you propose, Laney?"

Ms. Tyler looked unsure of herself again and replied with another question, "I should take them off?"

Richard's expression brightened and he said, "Why didn't I think of that! You're a shrewd negotiator, Ms. Tyler! Of course you can pose with Lydia if you're naked. Brilliant idea!"

Laney looked very pleased with herself as she removed the rest of her clothes and moved to stand next to her daughter. "The only problem now," said Richard, "Is that Lydia looks a little overdressed next to you. But don't worry, we can work with that! Laney, go ahead and help your client get out of that dress."

Lydia giggled as her mother slid the blue dress down, fully exposing her panties, and then giggled some more as Dick directed them to lose the last remaining garment as well.

The next little while passed strangely for the two women, who were thoroughly enjoying themselves and the constant stream of compliments from the cameraman. At his direction, they displayed every aspect of their bodies, even going so far as touching and caressing each other in ways a mother and daughter shouldn't, although he stopped short of having them do anything overtly sexual with one another.

After getting both women to allow him close access to their sexes, spread apart by eager fingers for the camera lens, Dick finally remarked, "Laney, you clearly need to get yourself off, I can tell. I'd feel bad if you had to leave here in such a state. Why don't you go take care of your arousal in the changing room, so you can have a little privacy? You'll even find some toys if you pull the bottom left drawer out all the way, past the stopper!"

Laney giggled and flounced off, fingering herself as she went, and her loud moans easily reached the ears of Dick and her daughter. Neither paid much attention, however, as they were taking the opportunity to expand the scope of their shoot a little.

"Here, Lydia, you've earned a little treat for being such a wonderful model!" Richard exclaimed as he undid his pants and presented his erection to the starry-eyed teenager. "I can tell just by your expression how much you love to suck dick!" he smiled. "Just like I can tell how much you love having a man cum all over your face!"

Lydia gasped at the realization that her secret was out, then quickly took the man's member into her mouth to avoid saying something silly and girlish. "How did he know?!" she wondered privately, while humming happily at the salty taste of Richard's dick. "I mean, I only sucked one penis a few times before, and that wasn't a lot of fun, so even I didn't know I loved it so much! And how did he know how much I love having a man's cum on my face?! That's never happened before! God, I hope he cums on my face!"

Richard continued to snap pictures of Lydia as she blew him, occasionally giving her directions to either improve the look of the shot or else to improve her technique. He was breathing heavily when he got momentarily distracted by loud moans coming from the changing room, indicating that Laney was really enjoying herself. He smiled down at Lydia and said, "Your mom is a hell of a woman, I hope you realize that!"

Lydia nodded her bobbing head and hummed affirmatively, which made Dick smirk. He soon pulled himself out of her mouth and said, "Now, sit still and look at the camera, with your eyes and mouth wide open. Stick out your tongue a little. Perfect! Now, hold that pose as best you can!" Stroking his cock energetically, he soon threw back his head and sprayed his jism all over the youthful, smiling face of the teen girl, while the camera took shots automatically every half-second.

Dick handed Lydia a rag and told her to get cleaned up while he fetched her mother from the other room. Once he had both nude women paying attention, he handed over a pair of checks and had them sign and initial some papers before letting them get dressed and bidding them a fond farewell.

1996, Early August- Suburban Norfolk, VA

"For the rest of that day Lydia and I acted like ditzy sluts," Ms. Tyler grudgingly admitted. "We talked happily about the whole experience all the way home, and then we went into my room and stripped each other while we tried on our sexiest underwear to show off, or each other's underwear. I got so turned on I called my ex-husband, Lydia's father, and basically demanded that he let me visit and fuck him. The asshole agreed immediately, even though he's got a new fiancée. I feel really sorry for that girl, but not sorry enough to tell her."

Agent Wang nodded sympathetically and asked, "Did you both experience the same reversal of feelings the following day?"

Ms. Tyler scowled and said, "I certainly did, but Lydia seemed pretty nonchalant about the whole thing, and she actually seemed excited when the douchebag sent us a demand for another photoshoot, which is when I started trying to escalate things to find help. Even now she's a lot more casual about not wearing underwear, or coming out of the shower with just a towel on her hair. I think that asshole with the camera still managed to drug us somehow, maybe by gassing the room or something. I took us both to get tested the day after, but they didn't find anything. The doctor told me that a lot of things break down pretty quickly, and might not leave any traces by the time the victim is thinking straight again."

Agent Balzac said, "That's generally true, but we'd like you to authorize release of the medical records to us, if you don't mind. We have specialists who might be able to find evidence of some rarer compounds that we know about."

"Yes, of course, whatever it takes to nail that bastard," Ms. Tyler agreed.

"We'd also like to speak to Lydia alone, if you don't mind sending her down here, please," said Agent Wang.

"Why alone?" asked Laney, frowning.

"Mostly because she might be more willing to discuss embarrassing topics if her mother isn't listening in," said Agent Balzac, "But it's also a general practice to try questioning witnesses separately whenever possible, so they don't accidentally, or deliberately, influence one another's statements."

"Alight," she sighed, "But I think you'll find my daughter doesn't get embarrassed easily anymore."

Lydia's account of what happened up until the day after the second photoshoot was pretty close to what Laney had recounted, and the only explanation she would give for her subsequent change of behavior was, "I grew up. I liked it, and this is me now."

Driving back to their hotel after the interviews, Anita asked her partner, "So, what's the verdict? Were they mind controlled, or do we actually need to go after those drug tests?"

Harry exhaled heavily and said, "There's definitely some kind of psychic or magical influence in both of them. Drugs might be a factor in susceptibility, so we probably ought to check it out to be thorough, but it's pretty clear the principal issue is supernatural."

Agent Wang mulled things over and said, "I think I should go in undercover, posing as Ms. Tyler or Lydia, and try to get a read on what's happening."

Agent Balzac scowled and said, "That's pretty damn risky. It seems like only two exposures to this guy's power or device or whatever can cause permanent, or at least long-term, behavioral changes. What if he's able to detect the ruse and can turn up the intensity somehow?"

"Well, if he does that, you'll be the cavalry and can burst in before anything too serious happens. Just keep a psychic eye on me and pull the plug if you get worried," Anita suggested.

"I still don't like it," frowned Harry. "It's reckless."

"Well, we've got a day and a half to figure out an alternate plan, if we can," said Anita. "We can just go in and question him, but that might tip him off and make him lie low, and leave us with nothing to charge him with in regular court. He might even rabbit."

Harry grunted and asked, "If you go in undercover, which one do you plan to impersonate? They're both close to your size, I guess, so it's not like your illusion will be much easier to detect for one or the other."

"That, indeed, is the question..." mused Anita.

Chapter 3

1996: Early August- Suburban Norfolk, VA

Agent Anita Wang examined herself in the mirror of a changing room in a boutique not far from the photo studio she was about to try to infiltrate. Although her illusions didn't affect her ability to see her body as it actually was, for reasons no one had been able to adequately explain, she saw her reflection as whatever image she was attempting to fool others with.

Staring out of the glass was a very convincing duplicate of a naked Laney Tyler. Although Anita had felt dirty examining the photographic evidence of Ms. Tyler's unwanted exposure, she had needed to study them in order to construct an illusion that would be convincing to someone who had seen the woman nude. Of course, Plan A was to find incriminating evidence or at least determine the source of the man's power before matters could escalate, but it paid to be prepared.

Dressing herself in her underwear and the outfit Ms. Tyler had just been wearing, Anita emerged from the changing room and asked the real Laney, "How do I look?"

Ms. Tyler's eyebrows rose in amazement until they were hidden behind her bangs. "That is an uncanny disguise," she finally admitted. She reached out with her hand to touch Anita's face, but the agent gently stopped her.

"Please don't, it's very difficult to put on properly, I don't want to risk messing things up." In truth, there was little chance of that. Agent Wang's illusions did not include artificial tactile sensations, but there wasn't anything about her current façade that would give her away from a touch. If she had been trying to imitate someone with a scar or a beard, however, a casual caress might invite awkward questions.

"I bet," conceded Ms. Tyler as she lowered her hand. "So you're just going to pretend to be me and trick him into showing his hand?"

"Our operation is a little more sophisticated, but that's the gist of it," affirmed Agent Wang. "Agent Balzac will be monitoring remotely, and we'll be looking for evidence of Mr. Bilde's ways and means, in addition to any other overtly criminal behavior we can charge him with."

"Good," growled Ms. Tyler. "I hope you nail his balls to the wall."

"We'll do our best to see that he's punished to the fullest extent of the law," Anita said, as neutrally as possible. "I'd better head out to meet your daughter. Please stay out of sight for at least five minutes. It's better if Lydia has no idea you're being impersonated; she might blow my cover otherwise."

"Right, right," muttered Laney, "I didn't forget. Don't worry. I'll lurk back here until after the appointment starts."

"Great," said Agent Wang. "I'll see you afterwards." With no further ado, Anita walked out of the changing area and went to rendezvous with Lydia and head to their scheduled photo session.

~~~

Agent Balzac was seated at a small table in the food court, which had line of sight to the photo studio. Although he didn't need to be able to see a target to monitor their thoughts after the initial contact, it was much easier if he knew about where they were in relation to him. When he noticed Anita and Lydia entering the studio he quickly established his connection to Agent Wang and sent her the familiar acknowledgement of his presence.

His coworkers had described it as a feeling similar to someone watching them over their shoulder. If it happened when you weren't expecting it, the sensation could be unnerving. Most of his colleagues, however, said that they came to find it comforting to know someone they trusted was looking out for them.

The amount of information Harry could glean from such contact varied. Anita and he had worked together long enough that she had learned tricks to help his reception, so to speak, and he was able to perceive her audiovisual sensations and some of her surface thoughts. With eye contact they could even communicate telepathically.

Harry settled back in his seat and nursed his bottled water speculatively as he concentrated on the images being sent to his mind's eye. Anita was doing her best to replicate the cautious anger Laney Tyler would have been expressing, while Lydia was evidently almost bouncing with anticipation. At first glance, there did not seem to be anything remarkable about Mr. Richard Bilde.

Agent Balzac was used to other psychics and people with similar abilities being noticeable to his own extra-sensory perceptions, and vice versa. It was the main reason that Anita was the one taking the risk of doing the undercover work: if the man was a psychic mind controller, he'd likely recognize Harry as something of a kindred being, at least in terms of ability if not ethics. But despite making the most careful scrutiny he could, the agent could find no evidence of any supernatural ability.

Ultimately, that was probably for the best, as it would make apprehending and prosecuting the man simpler and safer, once they separated him from his mind control apparatus. As Anita and Lydia were escorted into the private studio, Harry meticulously examined every sight and sound his partner was able to send him. Certain artifacts might also be perceptible to his heightened awareness, and Anita knew it, so she was surveying the room quite thoroughly. Unfortunately, everything seemed entirely mundane.

Harry tried his best to not concentrate on the images of his underwear-clad colleague as she and Lydia changed into a pair of sexy but tasteful dresses, but couldn't help admiring the braless breasts of the teenager that Anita glimpsed briefly. It was shortly after the two ladies returned to the studio proper that things went horribly awry. With the first flash of the camera, Harry's world felt like it exploded.

He was aware of his body screaming and collapsing to the floor, although he felt detached from it. He was also aware of psychic agony unlike anything he'd ever experienced before. The closest analogy his pain-riddled thoughts could come up with was electronic interference screeching through a speaker or radio. Clearly the camera was some kind of psychic tool or weapon, and whatever it was doing reacted very poorly with his ESP.

Harry could tell that a crowd had gathered, and someone had shoved what tasted like a leather belt in his mouth, evidently under the impression that he was having a seizure of some kind. Even without the obstruction, though, he doubted he would be able to say anything intelligible. That was deeply unfortunate, because he had a pretty good idea of what was about to happen to Anita, and he was too incapacitated to call for their reinforcements or otherwise help her.

~~~

Anita was doing her best to try acting both compliant and defiant, the way she thought Ms. Tyler would behave in the same circumstances. Her disguise, at any rate, seemed to have completely fooled both Mr. Bilde and Lydia, although it was questionable how much attention either of them were giving her. Lydia, in particular, seemed singularly focused on preening for the camera.

Agent Wang was continuing to examine the room and anything that looked even slightly out of place, keeping up a running mental monologue and hoping that Harry was getting enough of it to make sense of what they were seeing. Everything Mr. Bilde... Dick... had been saying in the meanwhile had seemed like empty chatter so she had tuned him out. It was a surprise when she suddenly found herself removing the dress at his direction.

"That's great work, ladies!" gushed Dick. "Lydia, I love your choice of underwear!" he added, causing the teenager to giggle. Anita noticed that her supposed daughter was wearing only a tiny red thong; she frowned, thinking that it was inappropriate for some reason, as the camera continued to flash.

"Now, Laney, I'm afraid I can't say the same for you!" he tutted, making Anita stare blearily at the lens. "Those are much nicer than last time, I admit, but a woman as sexy as you should really wear lingerie that accentuates your best features!"

"Should wear sexy lingerie," Anita repeated, feeling disappointed as she looked down at the functional undergarments she always wore while working. She scolded herself for not wearing something more appropriate for the sexy lady she was pretending to be.

"I've got just the thing!" Dick said, ducking into the changeroom and emerging moments later with a tiny, see-through bra-and-panty set on a hanger. "Why don't you go ahead and swap these out right here?"