“That must be because our pupils are dilated. What do you have to do next?”
“Pour in the developer and agitate it gently for two to three minutes. Then I’ll pour out the developer and put in the stop bath.”
“Do you have to turn the lights out again?”
“No, the can has a light trap so I can pour liquids in and out.”
Hannah watched as Norman poured in the developer. She could smell it, and it had a very pungent odor. He swished it around in the metal canister very gently until his timer went off. Then he poured out the liquid and added some from a different bottle.
“Is that the stop bath?” Hannah asked.
“That’s right.” Norman swished it around in the tank for a few seconds, then dumped out the stop bath. “Now I have to add the fixer.”
Hannah listened as the timer ticked down. She couldn’t see the dial from where she was sitting, but when it dinged, she judged that it had taken three or four minutes. “What next?”
“I’m going to open the tank and wash the negatives for five to ten minutes. Then I’ll photo flo them and put them in the dryer.”
“The dryer?” Hannah asked. “That’s not what I’m thinking, is it?”
“No, it’s a negative dryer.”
“And then we’ll have pictures?”
“Not yet. We’ll have dry strips of negatives to put under the enlarger to make prints. You’ll like that part, Hannah. When the prints come up, it’s almost magical.”
“But how can you see them if it’s dark?”
“It won’t be dark. We’ll use the safe light for printing. It’s kind of orange, and it’s dim, but you’ll be able to see.”
“This is really interesting, Norman. I kind of wish I’d gotten interested in photography. Can you turn on the safe light so I can see what it looks like?”
“Sure.”
Norman hit a switch, and the bright light in the room clicked off. It took a moment for her eyes to adjust, but then Hannah became aware of a dim orange glow. It reminded her of sitting in front of a campfire, the one summer she’d gone to camp. She’d hated the cots, the food, and the counselors. She’d never been fond of organized activities, where everyone had to take part and pretend that they were having fun. But the campfires had been wonderful, a glowing circle of light with the dark woods beyond.
“Do you want to learn?”
Norman’s question jolted Hannah from memories of ice-cold lakes, mosquito bites, and hot dogs that were both raw and incinerated, a combination that could only be achieved over a campfire. “Learn what?”
“Photography. I could teach you.”
Hannah considered it for a minute. “Yes, I’d like that. But don’t forget that we have to design our dream house, too.”
“It’s a good thing I didn’t mention that to Mother this morning,” Norman said with a teasing grin, “or Mrs. Beeseman would probably wear out her phone.”
Chapter Twelve
Norman stepped into the kitchen. “Hannah? Your prints are ready.”
“Oh, good. I can hardly wait to see how they turned out.” Hannah gave Mrs. Beeseman the most innocent smile she could muster. Norman had suggested that she go down and have coffee with his mother and Mrs. Beeseman to practice a little damage control. “It’s been nice talking to you, Mrs. Beeseman. And you too, Mrs. Rhodes.”
Hannah got up from her chair to follow Norman out of the room and up the stairs. When she was sure they were out of earshot, she asked, “What did we get?”
“Four prints. One of them is good, but I couldn’t do much with the other three.”
“Only four? What about the rest of the roll?”
“It was blank. Lucy must have rewound the film once she got what she wanted.”
Norman opened the door to the darkroom and Hannah stepped in. the prints were arranged on the counter opposite the sink.
“I put them in order,” Norman explained. “The one of Sally Laughlin at the Lake Eden Inn was taken first.”
Hannah stared down at the picture of Sally. She was removing a tray of stuffed mushrooms from one of her ovens at the inn. Then she moved on to the second print and started to frown. The lighting was poor, and she couldn’t make out much in the background. “What is it?”
“I’m not sure. It looks like some kind of a building. There’s a car,” Norman pointed it out, “and two men. I tried to lighten it up a little, but I didn’t have much success. Lucy used existing light instead of her flash.”
Hannah examined the third print. The two men were a bit more visible. While they’d appeared to be standing and talking in the earlier picture, in this one they had assumed a more adversarial stance. She peered down in silence for a moment, then asked, “Do you think the one facing the camera could be Boyd Watson?”
“It’s difficult to tell. There just isn’t enough light.”
Hannah moved on to the final print. The man whose back was to the camera was raising his right arm. There was something in his hand, but Hannah couldn’t quite make it out. She stared at it for a moment, then she gasped.
“What is it?” Norman looked anxious.
“This is a picture of Boyd Watson’s murder!”
“Are you sure?”
“No, but it makes sense if you think about it.” Hannah took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Her heart was pounding so fast, she felt slightly woozy. “I told you about the third car that Mrs. Kalick saw. She thought it was Felicia Berger and her boyfriend, but this changes everything.”
“You think it was Lucy?”
“Yes. She must have parked her car and followed Boyd and his killer down the alley on foot. That’s the only way she could have taken these pictures.”
Norman moved closer to examine the print again. “You could be on to something, Hannah. It would explain why Lucy didn’t use her flash. She didn’t want Boyd and his killer to know she was there. Unfortunately, it’s all speculation.”
“What do you mean?”
“These photos don’t really prove anything. No one can identify the two men. It’s just too dark. They could be anyone in town, or out of town, for that matter. And the background doesn’t help us pin down the location. All we can see are two men and a car, and we can’t even tell what kind of car it is.”
Hannah frowned. “But I’m sure it’s Boyd’s garage.”
“I think you’re right, but we can’t prove it. These prints could have been taken anywhere. We don’t even know when they were taken.”
“There’s no date on the film?”
“No. if Lucy had a date-stamp feature on her camera, she didn’t use it. We can’t even prove she took them the night of Boyd’s murder. We can ask her, but I don’t think she’s dumb enough to admit that she witnessed a murder and didn’t report it.”
Hannah thought about it for a minute. “You’re right, Norman. Lucy won’t tell us anything. And I can’t run out to the sheriff’s station with these prints. Even if I tell them I found that film in Lucy’s desk, it’ll be my word against hers, and that’s a wash.”
“But Andrea was there. She can swear that the film was in Lucy’s desk.”
Hannah sighed deeply. “That won’t work, either. I can’t involve her, and it’s not just Bill’s reaction I’m worried about. Even if Mike and Bill manage to identify Boyd’s killer from the evidence we found, the whole thing could be thrown out of court.”
“You’re right, Hannah. Some smart lawyer for the defense could argue that since the illegal search of Lucy’s
