The Dark Side of the Rainbow

by Rita Hogan

  The look he had seen on Natasha’s face while in the tub had been the very same expression on the face of Olivia Nelson when Landon saw her kneeling next to her brother’s body on the causeway. As Landon had lain in the white porcelain basin, with his life flowing out of him, he realized the agony he had caused his sister was akin to the anguish he had forced upon Jacob Nelson’s sister and father. As his eyes fluttered closed, Landon had prayed that if he survived, he would never again attempt to take his life. He would somehow learn to shoulder the burden of his tragic mistake. He would do it for Natasha, the sister he loved.

  For the last twelve years, he held true to his promise. The idea of living life while Jacob Nelson lie dead in the ground seemed impossible to bear at times; yet he managed to bring the self-destructive thoughts under control.

  Throwing himself into the family business had helped. His sister was grooming him to one day take over. She was not interested in running the family’s South American empire for the rest of her life. Natasha wanted to be married and to have children. Seven years ago, when she hired the resort’s new executive chef, Gaston Arnaud, the two fell wildly in love and married six months to the day they met. A niece and a nephew later, Landon was now the head of NLG Property Group’s South American hospitality holdings based in Patagonia.

  Finally off the mountainside, Landon made his way to the highway that would take him to the San Carlos de Bariloche Airport. It was unusual to see the head of a vast corporation driving the resort’s SUV to pick up guests, but it was not unusual to see the young executive do what was necessary to keep things in order.

  He chuckled to himself when he remembered the look on the resort’s general manager’s face when Landon had insisted that he pick up the arriving guests from the airport. The hotel was facing a mini-crisis with the staff, several of whom had called out unexpectedly. Ricardo needed to be there to keep everything from falling apart. Landon could handle the trip to and from Bariloche. Besides it was Sunday, his day off; what better way to spend it than to make the beautiful drive?

  This region of Argentina had quickly become his home. Being in this breathtaking land had gone a long way toward his healing, and helping Landon accept the tragic decision he had made those many years ago. Sadly, nothing could completely wipe away the consequences of it. The loss of a good man’s life had been the devastating result, yet something more tragic had occurred that day. The truth often kept him up at night.

  The relationship between Jacob and Olivia had been legendary. Most of the kids at Riverdale High had grown up together and knew how close the siblings were. They were best friends, a friendship that was as true as any. The shared blood running through their veins made the connection perfect.

  It was as if everyone in their community had suffered from the loss of Jacob Nelson’s life. He was a good person, loyal and kind. It was the tightly knit bond between the siblings and the suffering inflicted upon Olivia that had caused the mourners the most sorrow. The sister would never again experience the unique connection she had with her brother. She may have memories, but they were a weak substitute.

  Landon checked the speedometer, switched lanes, and thought about the promise of something wonderful also lost in the accident. That summer, twelve years ago, Landon found himself falling in love with Olivia Nelson. One simple and courageous act of kindness caused his feelings for her to come into sharp focus. The longing he felt had been on the verge of exploding into something beautiful, a forever kind of love.

  The beginning of that something beautiful had dissipated into a million shards of light, scattering into the colors of the rainbow that had filled the sky that day. The remnants of the potential love were so far flung, never to be made whole again.

  Landon couldn’t help but remember the day he first noticed Olivia.

  * * *

  Landon saw the crowd in the hallway and knew something was wrong. Curious, he made his way toward the group of people. His height gave him an advantage, and he could see clearly what was happening. What he witnessed caused something to shift deep inside of him. It was one of those life-altering moments that would permanently change him; an indelible impression upon the very nature of his person.

  Standing with her back against the lockers, hugging her books to her chest in fear, was Shannon Able, the most ordinary and homeliest person in all of Riverdale High. Landon would later discover that mean girl, Celeste Peters, had somehow been provoked into taunting the meeker girl.

  Standing between the two ladies was the beautiful Olivia Nelson, facing mean girl Peters. “I know you’re upset, Celeste. I’m not sure what happened, but you don’t want to do this. In a few moments, you’ll calm down and realize walking away is the right thing to do.”

  “Get out of the way, Olivia,” ordered Celeste. The rich surly girl wasn’t interested in reason.

  Olivia backed up closer toward Shannon Able and continued to face the angry young lady. “Then you’ll have to go through me first.”

  Landon noticed the slight trembling of Olivia’s lips as she raised her chin in determination.

  The response was unexpected, even for Celeste. He could see the offended contemplating her options. Landon knew she would back down from her pursuit. Peters may have been the richest girl in all of Riverdale High, which entailed a certain amount of popularity, but she was not ignorant. Taking on Olivia Nelson would have been a fool’s errand. The kinder girl’s popularity wasn’t a result of her wealth. She and her brother came from an upper-middle-class family, not one that was worth millions. No, Olivia’s prominence was largely due to who she was and to the popularity of her brother. Jacob Nelson was, hands down, the most well-liked person in their school. No one messed with his sister.

  Knowing she was beat, Celeste said, “You can’t protect her forever,” and stormed away.

  Olivia hadn’t taken the threat lightly. The last two months of school she and her new friend, Shannon Able, were inseparable.

  Over the course of the summer, they continued their newfound relationship. Under Olivia’s kind and caring tutelage, Shannon transformed from the most ordinary and homeliest girl at Riverdale High to a more attractive and confident young woman. It was a modern-day Pygmalion. For Landon, it was truly a sight to behold, better than any story that could ever be written.

  As he closely watched Olivia the last two months of school, her simple act of acceptance had changed him in every way. He realized for the first time, there were more important things in life—the eternal kind. Shannon Able would one day grow older and her physical appearance would wane, but this one act of kindness and the hand of friendship extended to her would last forever.

  Even Celeste had been somewhat affected. She was still her surly pretentious self, but Landon noticed it less, and she never again threatened Shannon.

  When he discovered that Olivia worked at the Espresso Room during the summer, he made a point to stop in every day. He could not bring himself to ask her on a date right away. Being rejected by the lovely young woman would have been too much for him to bear. His heart was already made vulnerable by the emotional changes she had awakened in him.

  Sadly, he would never know if Olivia had felt anything for him. Two weeks before the summer was over, Landon Gray realized the only way to her heart would be with her brother’s approval.

  When he approached Jacob one afternoon at Tad’s to ask for his permission to invite Olivia to the movies, the response the older brother gave Landon filled him with anger.

  “I’m not my sister’s keeper, Gray. She makes her own choices, but she’ll want to know my thoughts,” Jacob paused, “and I’ll have to be honest with her. Nothing I’ve seen or heard so far about you and your character has left me with a favorable opinion. In the year that you’ve been here, I’ve seen you with a different girl every month. Will Olivia simply be another person left behind in your trail of use?”

  What infuriated Landon the most was the fact that Jacob had been right. Instead of accepting the tru
th, he responded in anger, which incited Jacob’s own lividness. They hadn’t come to blows, but it had been close.

  Two weeks later, on the first day of school when Landon heard Jacob making comments about his car, it had pushed his anger to the brink. He had gone to Tad’s that afternoon looking for Jacob, determined to make the saintly brother put his money where his mouth was.

  * * *

  Seeing the airport exit sign, Landon turned on his blinkers and made the turn.

  On the verge of maturing into a kinder and more thoughtful young man, Landon had realized the error of his ways and wanted to change. That summer, for the first time, he had been faced with the consequences of his poor choices. The price had been so steep that he had let his immaturity get the best of him. Ultimately it had cost Landon everything.

  There were times throughout the years when he felt the sharp and intense longing for Olivia. The feelings were always cooled by the memory of the look she had given him when he had walked by the ambulance, cuffed and on his way to the police car. The rage he saw behind her sorrow-filled eyes had felt like a physical blow.

  What was the point of longing for the only woman he had ever loved? Never in a million lifetimes would she ever find a way to forgive him. Besides, Landon didn’t deserve her forgiveness. He had decided that if he couldn’t have Olivia Nelson, he didn’t want anyone. Even if he desired to be with another woman, what would he have to offer her—a shell of a man with broken pieces of himself rattling around the inside of his soul? He may have overcome his suicidal tendencies, but Landon Gray was still paying penance for the tragic choice he had made twelve years ago.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  Olivia stood by the baggage carousel. She was reading the directions given to her by the resort reservationist on where to meet the vehicle that would take her to the Grand Vue hotel. Right outside the doors of the baggage claim area was the ground transportation. The section designated for taxis is where she would wait.

  Collecting all the bags for her six-month stay, she directed the porter to where they needed to go. The nerves she had begun to feel on the connecting flight from Buenos Aires to San Carlos de Bariloche were taking control. How soon would Landon Gray walk back into her life? From her research, she knew the home base of his family’s South American operations was at their flagship resort, the Grand Vue. To keep him knowledgeable of the day to day business, he was often seen throughout the hotel. Would she see him wandering the property?

  He also spent time engaging with his guests. Once every month he hosted a VIP cruise that toured the vast bodies of water which made up Patagonia’s Lake District. It was a three-day excursion, beginning with a champagne brunch and ending with a candlelight dinner. During the warmest part of the season, guests could enjoy some of the water sports on the lake itself or lounge in the pool on deck.

  Olivia had actually grimaced when she paid the $2,000 fee for the cruise. She may have been able to afford it as a result of the surprise dollar amount of her inheritance, but she wasn’t accustomed to paying exorbitant fees for anything. Six months after her father’s death, she continued to wonder how he had managed to save up a small fortune for her.

  The next cruise was scheduled to depart in a week. Would she see Landon before then? Would she run into him on her way to the restaurant as he made his way to some part of the resort? As prepared as she felt, she could not stifle the nerves that filled her stomach, causing her to take shallow breaths.

  Wanting to reassure herself, she pulled out a compact mirror from her purse and glanced at her appearance. She was confident he would never recognize her. Her long fiery red hair with its natural curls was now a raven black, styled straight and cut in soft feminine layers right below her shoulders. The emerald green eyes her mother had given her were now dark brown due to colored contacts. Her new look would surely prevent Landon from making any connection to Olivia Nelson.

  Other guests for the Grand Vue resort were beginning to arrive. There were five in total, two couples and herself. As they introduced each other and made small talk, one of the women noticed a sleek Cadillac Escalade approaching. When the vehicle pulled to a stop and the driver exited, Olivia nearly fainted.

  Approaching the small group of wealthy visitors was Landon Gray. Why is he here? she thought wildly. Bracing the cool steel of the cart which held her luggage, Olivia pulled herself together as Landon began introducing himself to his guests as the person who would take them to the resort. Relieved that he didn’t seem to recognize her, Olivia found it interesting that he never mentioned to the vacationers that he was the owner of the hotel.

  Choosing the back seat, Olivia fought to control her emotions. He looked the same, though older and something else she could not pinpoint. His hair was the same dark brown with reddish highlights, framing the most handsome face she had ever seen. For a moment, she remembered the summer before the accident and the feelings associated with the visits Landon had made to the Espresso Room. He always made it a point to speak with her. On the days when his arrival coincided with her quitting time, he would invite her to have a seat for a few minutes before she left. On occasion, those few minutes turned into a couple of hours.

  It had been easier to talk to him than she had thought. He was open and charming but also interested in her, asking questions and hanging on to her every response. She had enjoyed their conversations immensely. Soon, summer was over, and so was the time they had spent together.

  Pushing aside the memories, Olivia allowed the anger she felt toward Landon to take front and center. Nothing that took place that long ago summer mattered, except for the death and pain he had brought upon her family.

  The fit of rage Olivia had when she first heard about his sentencing had solidified her intent for revenge. After her father calmed her down, he had looked at her. “Olivia, there is nothing we can do. You have to let it go.”

  Looking at her father, she had retorted in a hard and determined voice, “I’ll never let it go, and neither should you.”

  Once upon a time, Olivia may have entertained the idea of her father being a co-conspirator in her plans for revenge, but the few conversations she had with him through the years, and the final one a few months before he died, made it clear that she was alone in her unrequited anger.

  The conversation had taken place at her house after they had finished dinner one night. Josh Nelson had asked his daughter if she would ever consider letting go of her resentment.

  What she didn’t say to him was that her bitterness was all she had left. Rather, she responded with, “I’ll never be able to forgive Landon Gray for what he’s done. It’s impossible for me to even consider.”

  “What if I told you he was suffering too?”

  The thought of Landon Gray suffering unleashed a different kind of fury inside of Olivia. “I don’t care if he feels tormented,” she bit out. “Whatever he has felt is nothing compared to the pain we’ve had to endure. I can assure you he deserves to suffer.” I will be sure to make that happen, she had thought to herself. How could her father not understand?

  As Josh made his leave, he had stood by the door of his daughter’s condo with a sorrowful and troubled look in his eyes. “I’m worried about you, Olivia. As concerned as I am, I know you will have to discover how to resolve this for yourself.” He kissed her on the forehead before departing.

  It was the last time Josh Nelson ever spoke to his daughter about forgiving Landon Gray. A few months later he died of a massive heart attack.

  Olivia knew that with the loss of her father, she was giving herself permission to finally put the wheels of her plan in motion. Had her father lived to be eighty, she would have moved forward with her retribution. However, with him gone, she would never have to worry about seeing the disappointed look in his eyes if he ever discovered what she had done and that she had used the inheritance he had left her to help fund her efforts.

  Deep in her thoughts, Olivia had missed the beautiful drive to the resort. Rounding a curve i
n the road, her shutterbug instincts kicked in when she saw the hotel. Her fingers were itching for her camera. It was a beautiful building with nineteenth century Romanesque Revival architecture. The structure possessed similar features as the Neuschwanstein Castle in Germany, including the prerequisite mountain range in the background.

  She was the last person to exit the van. Having recovered from the shock of seeing Landon so soon and remembering her mission, she gave him a charming smile, graciously accepting the hand he offered to help her out of the vehicle.

  “Thank you,” she said when her feet were on solid ground. “It is absolutely breathtaking here.”

  “There’s no place else like it,” came Landon’s reply.

  Waiting at the front entrance of the hotel were two bellhops dressed in red cropped jackets and bow ties. The two men nodded to the guests. When the luggage had been pulled from the trunk, the hotel employees were directed by Landon to assist the two couples, leaving Olivia without help.

  The resort owner looked at the young photographer. “I will show you to your room, Ms. Johnson. Please follow me.”

  The Grand Vue may have looked like an age-old castle straight out of Bavaria, but it was truly a modern wonder. The décor in the lobby was a metro modern design, with touches of the French influence. Tufted chaises in shades of deep purple were nestled in secluded corners of the lobby. Silver and glass-plated sconces lined the hallways.

  When Landon pushed the button to the elevator, he looked at Olivia. “I understand you will be with us for an extended stay, Ms. Johnson. May I ask if you are here for business or pleasure?”