Suite Embrace (19 page)

B
ack in New York, Richard viewed the rough cut of the film that he had shot at Scenic Ridge, and knew he had something special. Using the ski school as a forum to showcase Mark Jorgen's Olympic career, as well as the work he was currently doing, had turned out to be a unique angle that would encourage minorities to take up skiing while creating a buzz around the project.

The executives at Black Entertainment Showcase loved what he showed them and immediately gave Richard the green light to go ahead and complete the project. As soon as he got out of the meeting he called Virina in Los Angeles.

“Good news, Richard,” Virina said when she heard that the rough cut of the film was exactly what BES wanted.

“Yeah, and I've got to get the ball rolling. How's the money looking?”

“No problem. I've got investors lined up just waiting to write checks, so go ahead and proceed with the project.”

Richard hesitated for a moment, and then asked, “Are you sure? Because I'll be making financial commitments that I'll have to personally cover if the money folks don't come through.”

“I told you. It's all set. I have commitments from my people for more than enough money to cover the final project. However, if you need cash right away, I can transfer some money tomorrow. How much do you need?”

“Hold off for now,” Richard advised. “Let me finalize negotiations I've got going on for legal fees and studio time. Once those costs are firm, I can adjust our original budget and get back to you.”

“Fine. Call me in a few days,” Virina told him, clicking off.

Relieved that Virina was coming through with the funding, Richard got busy. In record time, he put together a full film crew, hired a director, a logistics person, makeup, wardrobe and graphic talent and put down deposits for studio time that he would need to edit the piece after filming was completed. He contacted a good friend of his who was a lawyer and got him to draw up the necessary releases and contracts with a promise to pay him as soon as the funding came through. Then he booked air fare and rooms for everyone going to Scenic Ridge.

Within a week, Richard and his crew were back in Colorado, and for the next ten days the men and women working with him shadowed Mark everywhere he went. They shot him teaching beginners, coaching the new wave of budding professionals, giving lectures on how to safely hit the slopes and even at home in the Snow King Suite after a full day on the powder. When it became clear to Richard that Mark and Skylar were more than coworkers, he managed to get some shots of them having drinks together in the main lodge.

Richard studied a great number of photos, mementos and scrapbooks that carefully detailed Mark's stunning career, including his Olympic trials and eventual win. Using a digital voice recorder, he interviewed Mark and captured stories about his youth, which provided insight on what it had been like to be among the few black competitors in a mostly white sport. It was evident that Mark had moved in a world populated with world class athletes and socially important people and that his life experiences had been very different from those of an average black male living in America.

When Richard wasn't with Mark, he was talking with Deena or shooting footage of the lodge and its surroundings, as well as documenting the inner workings of the ski school and the resort. He got plenty of footage of Skylar, too, as she interacted with guests who were more than happy to be included in the film.

The ski school instructors, the resort staff and even guests at the lodge were not shy about approaching Richard to express their interest in and support of his project. Many of them asked if they could be interviewed, eager to add their voices to the film and give their approval of the important contributions to winter sports that the Simpsons and Mark Jorgen were making, especially for minorities.

By the end of the second week in Colorado, Richard had accumulated enough raw film and taped interviews to fly back to New York, sort it all out and decide what else he needed. As soon as he put together a rough cut of the film, he sent it to Virina in L.A., eager for her reaction.

 

In Los Angeles, Virina hung up the phone, picked up her Tiffany pen and made an
X
over the name of the person she had been talking to, Abdul Jaran. Another rejection. And she had only asked him for twenty thousand dollars. Crossing him off her list meant that she had exhausted all of her potential investors without raising one cent of the financial commitment she had made to Richard Nobel. Why had her friends suddenly become so damn cautious about their investments? They were holding on to their money as if it were glued to their hands. She had been shocked at how snippy some of them had been with her, too. What was going on?

Did they think of her as an outsider now that she was no longer married to Count Wilhelm? Or maybe they were snubbing her because Mark's star status had faded and he no longer traveled in their circles, preferring to bury himself in a second class resort? Had news leaked about her imminent departure from Deleur Cosmetics? She simply had no answers. But one thing she did know: the cool reception she had received from people she had thought were her friends was frightening, and she had to do something about it or risk being permanently shut out of the world to which she absolutely
had
to remain connected.

Calling potential investors, leaving messages for them, and then tracking them down had taken much more time than she had thought, but she'd done it, and now she had to face the truth. She had failed in her mission and Mark's documentary would not be made, at least not with funds she raised.

Nervously, she glanced over the list of names again, depressed by the way she had been treated. Why hadn't she managed to persuade them to commit to Richard's project? Even when she had informed them that Black Entertainment Showcase was on board as the distributor, they still had not budged. Couldn't they understand that a permanent record of her son's life and his achievements was only the first step? That a book deal, a DVD and his media appearances would surely rake in the cash and give them a healthy return on their money?

At one time, when Virina had been married to a wealthy Palm Springs Realtor, she had earned the reputation as the most effective, sought-after charity fundraiser in the state. Back then, she had honed her skills to a fine art and brought in record-breaking sums for a roll call of nonprofit organizations. Now, she couldn't raise a dime to benefit her son, as well as ensure her own future.

Contemplating her dilemma, Virina set down her notepad, opened a bottle of Evian and took a quick sip. If there was one thing she hated, it was failing, and even worse was for anyone to know that she had failed. Now, she'd have to find a creative way to break the news to Richard without letting on that she had miscalculated her leverage with people she'd thought were her friends.

When the doorbell rang, she hurried to answer, pushing depressing thoughts from her mind. It was Federal Express and the package she signed for was from Richard. She ripped it open and was both delighted and uneasy to see that it was the DVD first cut of the film that he had promised to send her. How much had this cost and how many people did he owe money to? she worried. But most importantly, what reason could she give him for not coming through with the funds to complete the project?

She took the DVD into the living room and slipped it into the DVD player, anxious to see what Richard had done. It started out with an overview of Mark's childhood and his early years, using photos that she and Mark had provided. Her eyes grew misty as she watched a montage of early pictures of herself, Mark and his father, James.

God, James was so handsome
, Virina mused, now able to see how much Mark resembled his father. Seeing the three of them together brought a rush of memories back. Her early days of modeling. The fun she'd had while living in New York. Resettling in Norway as a single mother after James walked out on her. It all seemed so long ago, and yet Virina still missed the hell out of James and wished they could have made it together.

Other photos followed. Mark when he first arrived in Norway, wearing a baggy knit sweater and his first pair of skis. Virina on the mountain with Mark, giving him pointers on how to do parallel turns on his first slope.

The memories tumbled around, crowding into her mind, making Virina both proud and sad. She and Mark had been so close back then, almost like brother and sister. He had trusted her completely, followed her advice. But now he seemed so distant and angry all the time. What had she done to deserve this kind of treatment? All she had ever wanted to do was look out for him, prepare him for a better life than she had had as a child. Why didn't he understand that she had never wanted him to know what it was like to go to bed hungry, to wear thin-soled shoes and secondhand clothing and to feel cold all the time?

Virina's parents had been Norwegian farming peasants, as her grandparents had been before them. Stoically accepting their station in life, her family had been content to live in their small wood-and-sod house, to own two changes of clothing, to earn their living with an ancient plow and a pair of mules. But Virina had never stopped yearning for more. She spent all her spare time skiing, to stay out in the open and out of her tiny crowded house. When it became clear that she was a talented skier, she had begged her father to let her go to Oslo to train for the Olympics. He had refused: he needed her on the farm. Angry and resentful, she put away her dream, but as soon as she turned eighteen, she fled the farm, worked odd jobs in Oslo and eventually made her way to the United States. To her good fortune, James Jorgen had come along and made her journey worthwhile, and she'd always be grateful to him for that, even though he'd dumped her for that bitchy Ethiopian and abandoned his only son.

The film rolled quickly through Mark's high school years, documenting his rigorous training schedule and his many competitions, including his Olympic win in 1992 at the Albertville Olympic Games in France. What a great time they'd had! Norwegian skiers won every cross-country skiing race at the competition that year, and Mark had been right up there with Björn Daehlie and Vegard Ulvang, each of whom won gold medals, too.

The next section of the film started with Mark talking about his decision to leave the competitive world of skiing at the age of thirty-six to explore teaching.

When a shot of the exterior of Scenic Ridge came up, Virina paused, waiting for more references to Mark and his work at the school. However, the story took a turn away from Mark when Deena Simpson's face appeared and she began talking about how and why she and her husband had started the ski school. An in-depth piece followed, showcasing Jerome Simpson, whose family had acquired the backwoods property in the Roaring Fork Valley for very little money seventy-five years ago. Next came details about the construction of the resort. Then interviews with various staff members, including Skylar Webster. Testimonials from former students. Endorsements by black ski clubs. Another shot of Skylar, this time with Mark, relaxing in front of a fire while chatting with a group of students.

Virina gasped. What was this about? The documentary was more of a promotional piece for Scenic Ridge, than a feature story on her son's life. It was a good thing that her investor-friends hadn't come through. This was not what she had pitched to them at all!

While staring at the images on her television screen, an idea began to form in her mind. A slow smile curved her lips. Richard had just provided the answer to her dilemma and she was going to use it.

Quickly, she snatched up the phone and began punching the keypad while mentally rehearsing how she was going to blast Richard with outrage and turn her failure to her advantage.

“I want to know why this material is focused so heavily on the ski school at Scenic Ridge!” she shouted into the phone as soon as Richard answered.

“I thought we agreed that I would include Mark's current status as an instructor at the ski school. We talked about it when we were at dinner in New York. Remember?”

“No, I don't remember any such conversation. I agreed on shots of Mark at work! Not the Simpson family's life story.”

“But their story adds so much to the project and it's right in line with the vision I have for the film.”

“I don't care. It's not what I envisioned and it's certainly not what I told the investors they'd be buying. I never agreed to any shots of, or references to Deena Simpson, or her sister, Skylar Webster, either. That damn little hotel concierge might think she's got a place in my son's life but she damn well doesn't have a place in my son's life story. This was not to be a promotional piece for her sister's business venture.”

“Then I guess we really aren't on the same page, Miss Dagrun. Mark made it clear to me before I began that he'd only participate if the ski school was featured, too.”

“He never said that to me!” Virina snapped.

“Then I guess you two didn't communicate very well,” Richard said, trying to smooth things out. “I thought you understood the direction of the piece.”

“Well, you can forget about getting a dime from me. I'm through with you and now I've got to go back to my investors and tell them the project is off. How do you think that will make me look? You've caused me a great deal of embarrassment, Richard, and I don't take things like that lightly.” She slammed down the receiver, completely satisfied that she had solved her problem. As for Richard, let him find someone else to raise money to promote Scenic Ridge, she sure as hell wasn't going to.