Sorority Subterfuge, page 1
Sorority Subterfuge
Shieldmaiden Squadron: Book Two
S.T. Bende
Contents
Back Cover Copy
Also By S.T. Bende
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Read Silent Shield
Read Viking Academy
Read The Ære Saga
Also By S.T. Bende
Acknowledgments
About the Author
Sorority Subterfuge
Shieldmaiden Squadron: Book Two
Copyright © 2021, S.T. Bende
Edited by: CREATING ink
Cover Art by: Melissa Stevens of The Illustrated Author Design Services
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All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the author.
* * *
This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage system without the express written permission of the author except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
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First publication: 2021, S.T. Bende
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This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
Dedication
To my favorite little Vikings.
Back Cover Copy
Ingrid Tirsdatter is no stranger to difficult missions. As a first-year shieldmaiden, she’s fought off Viking warriors, defeated the not-quite-dead, and ridden into battle atop a fire-breathing dragon. But nothing in her training prepared her for her current assignment. In order to stop a madman from destroying her home, Ingrid’s jumped one thousand years into the future, moved into an elite Southern California sorority, and done everything in her power to not get distracted by Axel Andersson—her absurdly attractive, and extraordinarily egotistical, battle partner. So far, she’s managed to keep her mission reasonably on track. But when a mysterious stranger shows up with an offer to lead Ingrid to her target, her well-orchestrated plan begins to unravel. It turns out that Ingrid isn’t the only one engaged in subterfuge. If she fails to hunt down the elements that have set her enemy on his dark path, there’s no telling what will become of the future . . . or the past. Ingrid and her team are in a race against time. And if they can’t outrun their target, both of the worlds she’s come to love will be nothing more than a memory.
Also By S.T. Bende
Follow the Valkyris crew in VIKING ACADEMY.
VIKING ACADEMY
VIKING CONSPIRACY
VIKING VOW
-and-
SHIELDMAIDEN SQUADRON
SORORITY SUBTERFUGE
SILENT SHIELD
* * *
Meet the Norse gods, including Axel’s not-so-mythical Asgardian relations in:
THE ÆRE SAGA
PERFEKT ORDER
PERFEKT CONTROL
PERFEKT BALANCE
PERFEKT MATCH
-and-
THE ELSKER SAGA
ELSKER
ENDRE
TRO
TUR (a novella)
THE ELSKER SAGA: COMPLETE BOXED SET
* * *
Meet the demigods in NIGHT WAR SAGA.
PROTECTOR
DEFENDER
REDEEMER
* * *
And introduce your Padawans to Star Wars and Disney!
Complete list of S.T.’s licensed children’s titles
at https://www.stbende.com/kids-books/
* * *
Stay in touch with S.T. at www.stbende.com
or
Sign up for S.T.’s newsletter
Chapter 1
SORORITY GIRLS TALKED A lot.
Not all of them, obviously. And certainly not the one beside me, edging her way across the foyer and toward the front door. Poor Morgan reached for the handle, her fingers twitching as our sorority president chirped excitedly about our upcoming beach party with the neighboring fraternity. While Kayla bubbled on, Morgan’s eyes grew wide with worry. She bore the telltale anxious look of a type-A student about to be late to class.
“So, anyway, it looks like we’re all set for the Santa Monica Pier this weekend.” Kayla flipped her glossy, black hair over one bare shoulder. “The Alphas will pick us up on Saturday at three. That should put us ahead of the Saturday night clubbing traffic, though of course the freeways in Los Angeles are always a nightmare. I mean, honestly, you’d think they’d have fixed things by now. They’ve been working on the 405 for-freaking-ever, am I right? My mom told me it was under construction when she went to So Cal State! But, whatever. Namaste, as my sister always says. Speaking of Kenzi, I need to see if she’s still using my pink sweater or if I can have it back. I want to wear it on my date with Mike tonight because he loves when I’m in—”
“Um, Kayla?” Morgan hemmed. “Do you need me, or can I go to geology class?”
“Right. Sorry! I just wanted to make sure you’d double-checked on our insurance waivers. Everyone signed the November liability forms for off-campus travel, right?”
“We’re all set,” Morgan confirmed. “I collected the last ones at Monday night dinner. And I’d love to keep talking, but class starts in ten minutes and it’s going to look really bad if all four of us walk in late.”
Kayla’s glossy, pink lips formed a pert O. Her amber eyes darted from me to my friends Janna and Brigga before settling back on Morgan. “Oh my god, I am so sorry. I totally forgot you guys had class. Nobody takes them this early. Morgan, you work in the scheduling office. Why don’t you—”
“Kayla. There you are.” Kayla’s sister, Kenzi, padded barefoot across the wooden floor. She was still in the leggings and sports bra she’d worn to our six a.m. yoga class, but she’d added a flowy caftan and an armful of bracelets to her sporty ensemble. The beads clicked against her wrist as she raised her phone toward her sister. “Mom called. She wants to know if you want to join us for that meditation retreat over winter break.”
“Erm . . . well, the thing is . . . I . . .” Kayla stared at her hot-pink fingernails.
Kenzi shot Morgan a wink. “Go,” she mouthed.
“Thank you,” Morgan whispered. She opened the door and darted onto the porch. Janna, Brigga, and I slipped out behind her. When she’d cleared the steps, she turned to us with a furrowed brow. “We’re going to have to book it if we want to make it to class on time. Professor Geryn hates it when people are late.”
“I’ve always enjoyed a brisk morning run. Janna?” I adjusted my backpack and quickened my pace.
Beside me, my captain broke into a jog. “There’s nothing like a sprint to get your blood flowing.”
“A sprint . . .” Brigga matched our pace. “Or that.”
I followed her not-so-subtle finger as she pointed it up the street. Two shirtless men jogged our way. Sweat lined their muscled chests, the tiny droplets sliding over the ridges of their clearly defined abdomens. As they drew closer, I shifted my eyes reluctantly upward. Warmth filled my cheeks as I registered the signature smirk of Axel Andersson—my onetime trainer, and newly minted boyfriend.
Great Odin, is that what he looks like without his shirt?
“Hei.” Axel’s running partner lifted one hand in greeting.
“Hi, Raynor,” Brigga replied breathlessly.
“Ladies.” Axel slowed to a stop. My friends and I did the same.
“Hey, Axel. Raynor.” Morgan nodded. “We’re just heading to class, so—”
“Morning, Ingrid.” Axel leaned in to kiss my cheek. A surge of heat shot up my neck. As he pulled away, I caught a whiff of pine and sweat—the intoxicating blend that was so distinctly Axel. Nothing ever fazed him—not brutal Viking raiders, or angry reanimated dragons, or even the psychotic dark mage we’d traveled one thousand years into the future to destroy. When Axel was a teenager, his parents had left on a voyage and never returned. But instead of breaking down, Axel had kept calm and carried on, taking his place alongside the ruling family of Valkyris with seeming ease and grace. He was definitely inner-peace life goals.
Not that I’d ever tell him that.
Like Janna, Brigga, and I, Axel and Raynor weren’t from around here . . . or now. The five of us were Viking-era warriors from the progressive clan of Valkyris. Under normal circumstances, we lived on an island in western Norway—one enchanted by älva dust and guided by the values of virtue, honor, and self-empowerment. But when a dark mage threatened our home, our chieftains sent us forward in time to capture him before he wreaked havoc on this world . . . and wiped ours clear out of existence. Since the locals had mistaken us for exchange students, we now lived in the Kappa Mu sorority house . . . where we were required to attend exchanges (sorority speak for exclusive parties), philanthropies (charity work), and of course, classes.
Classes we weren’t supposed to be late for.
“We really have to go,” Morgan called from halfway down the block. While I’d been zoning out on Axel’s naked chest, she’d continued on her own mission: school or bust.
Right.
“See you at the gym?” I met my boyfriend’s emerald eyes. “We should be done by eleven—eleven-fifteen if we have questions after the lecture.”
“I’ll see you there.” Axel moved closer to whisper in my ear. “Hope you put up a better fight than you did last time. That was a pretty lousy show, Shieldmaiden.”
My eyes narrowed. “Get ready to have your butt handed to you, Andersson.”
Axel pulled away. He shot me a wink before jogging backward along the sidewalk. “Dream on.”
My pulse spiked as he turned and sprinted toward the Alpha house. The muscles of his back flexed with each stride.
Gods, he was arrogant.
But look at his butt . . .
“Ingrid? You all right?”
“Um . . . yeah. I was just, uh . . .” I tore my gaze away from Axel’s backside. My cheeks heated anew as I caught Janna’s bemused stare.
“I think we all know what you were doing.” Raynor chuckled as he jogged after his friend. “Later, Brigga.”
“Bye!” Brigga waved.
Janna’s eyes twinkled. “We’d better move. Morgan’s going to have a heart attack.”
“I’ll just meet you guys there!” Morgan shouted. “No worries!”
“Poor Morgan.” Brigga shook her head. “I can’t believe you’re making her late, Ingrid.”
“Me? You were talking to Ray—”
“I’m kidding.” Brigga laughed. “It was Kayla’s fault, anyway. Come on. We can still get there on time if we run.”
Brigga broke into a sprint. With one last look at Axel’s retreating form, I tossed my crimson braid over my shoulder and took off after her. Geology didn’t start for another five minutes. It would be tight, but we could definitely make it.
After all, shieldmaidens never backed down from a challenge.
By the time I reached the classroom, Morgan was doubled over just inside the door.
“Thank. God.” She panted. “We. Made. It.”
“You okay?” I patted her back.
“Yeah. I’m just not used to”—Pant. Pant—“impromptu sprints. Okay. Lecture time.” She drew her shoulder blades together and inched her way along the row of students, her face flushed and her eyes to the ground. We claimed empty seats in the geology lecture hall just as Professor Geryn took his place at the podium.
Morgan breathed a heavy sigh of relief.
“Good morning, everyone. Shall we begin?” The middle-aged man with a receding hairline slid his glasses over his nose. He activated the smart screen behind him before looking up with a kind smile. “Today’s lecture will be on the feldspar grouping of minerals—a collection that makes up more than forty percent of our planet’s crust. Now, as you know, feldspar crystallizes from magma. It’s frequently found in the sedimentary rocks so many of you are fond of bringing home from your hikes. Thank you, Britney, for the lovely sample you retrieved for me from your trip to San Diego last week.”
“Of course!” a girl in the front row chirped.
“Before we get into the chemical composition of this group, I’d like to go over some of its practical applications. Let’s see who’s done the reading. Can anyone give me a common use for feldspar?” Professor Geryn scanned the sea of students. “Yes, Kafir?”
I hurriedly extracted a notebook from my bag as the boy three rows below lowered his hand. “Feldspar is a raw material utilized in ceramics and glassmaking.”
“Very good,” the professor praised. “Jules?”
“It’s also used as a filler for rubber, plastics, and paint,” a brunette in the back declared.
“Correct. Now, what about some scientific applications?” Professor Geryn’s gaze moved around the room. My stomach dropped to my feet as his gaze roamed my row.
Please don’t call on me. Please don’t call on me. I’d been so consumed with tracking our dark mage, I hadn’t bothered to crack open this textbook. Morgan called Geology “Rocks for Jocks,” and had claimed it was so easy that anyone could pass it.
But the scientific applications of rocks weren’t covered in shieldmaiden class.
Thankfully, Professor Geryn’s attention shifted when my neighbor shot her hand into the air. “Yes, Morgan?”
“Feldspar is useful in multiple dating techniques, including argon-argon dating, potassium-argon dating, and luminescence-dating,” she said. “And it’s even been confirmed to exist on Mars, as noted in a report from the Curiosity Rover.”
“Excellent.” Professor Geryn changed the screen behind him.
My relief expelled in one slow exhale. “Thanks, Morgan.”
She looked up from her notebook with a smile. “What are friends for?”
Exactly.
“Now, today we know the chemical composition of our main feldspars—aluminum, silicon, and oxygen combined with potassium, sodium, or calcium, most commonly. But our less scientific ancestors believed one of the sodium potassium aluminum silicates to be derived from the rays of the moon. Its formal name is hecatolite, but of course this stone is more commonly known as . . .” Professor Geryn held out his hands.
“Moonstone,” chimed someone in the front half of the class. And Morgan.
“Moonstone,” I muttered under my breath. Because I totally knew that.
Did not.
Wait . . .
“Moonstone.” Brigga leaned over Janna. “Isn’t that one of the—”
“Shh,” I hissed. But I nodded—the name landed with me, too.
In pursuing our target, we’d discovered the dark mage had launched himself into the future to collect the ingredients for a spell—one that would give him complete control of Earth and enable him to wipe Valkyris from existence. We’d hoped the stone was something that was difficult to track—so maybe we could capture him before he managed to destroy our world.
But our teacher just said it made up forty percent of the planet?
“Now, moonstone is commonly found in Australia, Austria, Mexico, Norway, and right here in the states. It’s frequently used in jewelry—in fact, it was crafted into key pieces of Greek and Roman ritual artifacts. After all, both cultures revered their moon deities. As did many others.”
“Is he talking about Máni?” I whispered to Janna. The Norse moon god and his sun god brother, Sól, were a pretty big deal with our seers back home. The prophets performed monthly rituals that I’d never quite understood—bounty offerings, midnight trance dances, the whole deal.
I much preferred an early bedtime and a sunrise workout.
“Maybe,” Janna whispered back.
“Several of these artifacts will be on display in two weeks’ time at the geological museum right here on campus.” Professor Geryn raised his chin. “Yours truly played a key role in curating this particular exhibit, and yes, extra credit will be awarded to those who both attend and write a five-page paper on the artifact of your choosing.”
“Extra credit?” Morgan raised her voice. “Which artifacts will be there?”
