"Unfortunately, your baby sister is good at digging up things. So good that I am chosen to go to Machu-Picchu for an archeology summer internship!"
“What did you do, pay them to take you?” I teased.
“Ugh, Alex, you are impossible,” she said, exasperated.
“When do you leave?”
"Tomorrow. I was hoping we could have dinner together before I go, but you are hellbent on disappearing. Are you going to tell me what's going on or where you're going?"
I sank into the first chair I could find on the plane as I searched for an answer. I knew my sister's questions were valid. It was not like me to run away at signs of trouble. As the oldest brother, I was taught and pushed to face things head-on. And I was, I just planned to do that thousands of miles away where I would be left alone enough to come up with some solution.
“I just need time, Nori,” I finally admitted, my words low and quiet.
"Did you love her?" she asked, her tone mirroring my own.
“No,” I said with a sigh, “I did not. But that does not lessen the sting of
betrayal by much.”
I tried to make my lie convincing.
"What did she do? You spent three years with her. We all thought you were going to marry her. But now it is over, you will not tell us anything about it. She has plastered these horrible things about you all over social media. I know they are not true; I don't know what to think. Please, talk to me," Nori pleaded, attempting to understand me.
"I told you, Nori, I don't want to talk about it. All that matters is that she and I are no longer together. She needs time without me to get it into her head that I am not coming back."
There was a beat of silence before a ding sounded overhead.
“Please prepare for takeoff.”
The pilot's voice over the intercom interrupted me as I watched the flight attendants make the last rounds securing the overhead bags into place.
“I have to go, Nori.”
“Okay. Text me when you land?”
She phrased it as a question, but I knew it was not a request but a command.
“I will. And please, stay out of trouble while I’m gone. I have enough to deal with.”
We ended the call, and I shut my eyes, leaning my head against the back of my chair. Tension knotted in my neck and shoulders as I replayed the conversation in my head. Out of my siblings, Nori and I were the closest, despite having the biggest age gap. I knew she would not take well to me leaving so abruptly, but for once, I needed to do what was best for me, which meant taking a trip back to my favorite place in the world - Voss.
I spent the better part of my childhood there. Our grandfather had been born and raised in a mountainous Norwegian town and loved the place dearly. He left as a young man with big dreams and big plans and returned as a rich man with a big bank account.
He had insisted that if his children or grandchildren were to inherit any part of the family business, they would learn the family history. I spent every summer there, working alongside my grandfather until I left for college.
Those had been some of the best summers of my life. We spent most days cooped up in his office as he would walk me through the business, let me sit in on meetings, and listen in on phone calls. He would answer all my questions, even the ones I had yet to ask. And in the evenings, we would hike through the mountains as he told me stories about his childhood.
None of my siblings had spent similar time with him, so no one was shocked that I inherited most of the shares in every company he owed when my grandfather died at ninety-seven. That had been ten years ago; since then, I had not taken time for myself. It had felt like a vacation would be dishonoring his memory. No one understood how hard he had worked to build what we had the way I did.
But at thirty-three, I was tired. I had not been back to the mountainous town since my grandfather died, and I was hoping that somewhere in his house, I could find the answers I needed.
The rest of the eight-hour flight was uneventful. I tried to sleep and failed miserably; eventually, I gave up and started working from my laptop. The stream of emails was never-ending, even when I was thousands of feet in the air. By the time we landed, I was restless and ready to be off the plane. I lost six hours of the day with the time change making the traveling feel much longer. At least flying in first class meant I didn't have to deal with layovers and crowds of people.
The drive from the airport to the lodge was more refreshing than I had expected. With a hired driver behind the wheel, I could sit back and take in the view from my window.
Trees shot up from the white snow-coated mountains, scaffolding into the air. Despite it being in the middle of summer, the tips of the mountains would remain white with snow. The road followed the winding waters of the clear blue river for several miles. It was so still and deep that the evening sky reflected perfectly on the water. Something in me shifted like I was coming home for the first time in a long time.
Another ten minutes passed, and the car slowed as we approached the iron gate that swung open automatically. We took a curve in the driveway, and suddenly, the lodge came into view, jutting out from the landscape.
