The Awakening_Book 1 of Valkyrie's Curse series Read online

  Scott ordered the burger, Lena wavered between the burger and fried chicken, but the waitress said it wasn’t their usual cook so she didn’t recommend the chicken.

  “That was nice of her.”

  “Either that or it’s a matter of preservation. It wouldn’t do good to have your customers getting sick.” Scott stated as he took the paper off of his straw.

  “Well, I suppose.” She tried to reach across the table to hold his hand but he turned sideways, avoiding the contact.

  A few minutes later he drained the bottle of beer and walked up to the bar to get another instead of waiting on their server.

  They ate their food in relative quiet then Scott was eager to head back to camp. The drive was awkwardly silent.

  They were very near to their camp when Lena couldn’t stand it any longer. “Scott, what’s going on? You’ve barely said two words to me since I finished my presentation.”

  He pulled the car over to a stop then turned towards her. “You know I love you, but that’s just wrong.”

  “What is wrong?” Lena asked.

  “You gave your entire presentation, not giving any of the rest of us credit for our contributions. You didn’t even give Gabby credit on her photos.”

  “Not in my presentation, no. But everyone is credited in the full report. Look this was supposed to be a streamlined presentation, the cliff notes.”

  “Really? Because from where I sat, it sure sounded like you were taking full credit as if it were a one woman show.” He harrumphed recalling her answer to the use of his equipment. “Yeah? You sure threw Erik under the bus awfully quick. Who’s next? Brad? Me?”

  “You’re blowing this way out of portion, ok? Of course it isn’t a one woman show. I’m in charge of this dig, and I’m the one that has to face the board. I’m the one that has to answer their questions. So No, I didn’t name each of you individually. They don’t care about that. They want to see bottom line profit come from this, and historical value for their museum.”

  “Sure, you justify it any way you want to.” He threw the gear into drive and took off at a shot.

  “Why are you so upset? Is it because I didn’t lavish praise on you personally?” She spoke in a mocking sarcastic tone then. “ Oh if it weren’t for Scott, he’s my hero, we would never be this far in the dig. Without his big strong arms and equipment we’d be dead in the water after those big bullies came and ransacked our camp. That was so awful.” She pushed her lower lip out in a mocking pout.

  “You just don’t get it do you?” He glanced over at her, shaking his head. “Is it really worth it to you to step on everyone to come out on top?”

  “That’s not what I did.”

  “Sure sounded like it from where I was sitting. OH yeah, I cracked the door just a bit because I didn’t want to miss a word because I thought, I was so proud of you, and our accomplishments. You know, I’ve been impressed with you since that first class together. Boy was I surprised.”

  “What, are you made because I didn’t credit you for getting things moving again? OR that I didn’t say without your equipment? Don’t worry, it’s all in the full report. Like I said, this had to be streamlined.”

  “No Lena. I came because I was excited about the progress that we’ve made. You couldn’t have done this on your own. You didn’t achieve all of this on your own. I’ve given reports to a board before, you know this isn’t my first rodeo either. You have a whole team here and you made it sound like the lone ranger.” He pulled the jeep into the spot in the transportation tent and slammed on the brakes.

  “I’m not trying to steal your glory. You made that perfectly clear on day one. I guess I didn’t realize to what length you’d go for success.” He tossed her the keys, exiting the vehicle.

  “What’s that supposed to mean?” She scrambled to get out of the jeep and close the door with equal force. “That my attitude is why it’s lonely at the top?”

  He crossed his arms over his chest. “If the shoe fits darlin’.”

  “Are you done? I think you should leave.”

  “Fine!” He began walking briskly towards his tent.

  “Fine!” Lena yelled after him.

  ~~~~~

  Lena rifled through her box of snacks looking for something chocolate. ‘Oh the nerve of him!’

  “Hey sis, how’d the presentation go?” Gabby asked innocent enough then noticed her frantic search for something. “That bad?”

  “It went fine. They were pleased with the progress. They were pleased with the artifacts. The benefactor was satisfied with the value of artifacts catalogued so far, which has him making a small profit, but we aren’t done yet and we haven’t hit the main stash.” Lena sat back with a scowl. “Do you have any M&M’s?”

  “Yes, why? If it went ok then why are you going into comfort food mode?” Gabby sat on her cot, and pulled out her box from under it. She held the two bags of sweets in her hand waiting for her sister to respond.

  “It’s Scott, OK? He went off on me about the presentation. He was sitting right outside the door eavesdropping the whole time. He got all bent out of shape because I didn’t give anyone else proper credit. The presentation is supposed to be streamlined, they don’t want to be there all day long to read a full report. I told him it’s all in detail in the full report, but he got all bent out of shape.”

  “Wait, you didn’t cred my photos? The ones you used in your power point? You can’t give them any kind of report using my photos or anyone else’s without giving credit. That’s the law, Helena.”

  “Oh, you too?”

  “Seriously Helena? Don’t you think anyone else deserves credit for anything? This isn’t the first time you’ve screwed me over on my images. Scott’s right. I’m glad he called you on it. I remember Mom distinctly telling you that your ambition was out of hand and that you better consider your friends or you’d never have any. Mom was right.” She tossed the two bags of M&M’s at Helena and stormed out.

  Lena shouted at the tent flaps behind her “That’s just great. Why doesn’t everyone gang up on Lena tonight!” She tore open the bag of M&M’s as she flopped down on her cot with a harrumph.

  She lay on her cot staring at the center seam for several minutes before deciding she couldn’t sleep and it would be best to go to the Ops lab and burn off this energy.

  Rifling through her clothes, she found her khaki capris, a clean tank top and her favorite white over shirt. It was a warm night. It had been humid and sticky the past few days and not cooling down at night. She took her hair down from the fancy up do, brushing it out and then pulled it back into a ponytail, doubling the ends back again so it was off the back of her neck. She slipped on her work boots and grabbed the second bag of M&M’s, stuffing them in her backpack along with one of the bottles that she had picked up at the mini mart on the first day she arrived.

  She turned off her lantern and headed towards the Ops tent. Once there she spread out her stuff on the table, opening the laptop.

  It was time to send a report to Leroy anyway, she might as well make the revisions now. “Let’s start at the beginning. Heaven forbid I don’t give someone credit for a little hard labor.” Lena spat it in the air with a note of sarcasm, not to anyone in particular as she was alone. It was a little white lie before, she hadn’t named anyone in the full report other than teams.

  After draining her beverage, it left a bitter taste in her mouth. The drinks here were sure different than colas back home.

  She made a pot of coffee and started going through the full report from the very beginning, adding notations for who was on each team. As she worked through it, she made changes adding in full sections about Erik, Scott, Brad, Joe and especially crediting the photographers.

  Gabby was right about that, she had used her photos in her proposition for this project without crediting her and she felt bad about not giving her sister the credit due.

  As she began going over the report, details began to come together in her mind. A patte
rn began to form that she hadn’t seen before. Lena made another pot of coffee as her excitement grew. If she was right about what she was thinking, this was an exciting break through! She wanted to call Scott and share the news, but was still angry with him from earlier.

  It was close to midnight when she went back to work, so focused on the report and other documents that were spread out on the table that she paid little to no attention to the monitors connected to the surveillance cameras.

  ~~~~~~

  Damn those blasted do-gooders putting up the posters all over Roskilde. Every female in the town was nervous and on edge from those damn posters.

  It wouldn’t have been so difficult if he hadn’t been surprised at the end of the second sacrifice. He’d enjoyed the evening on the boat prior to performing the ritual.

  Then, he was interrupted by the inept crew that he’d hired to steal the key. Not only did they interrupt him and cause some major complications, but they failed to locate the key. They came barreling down the hill from camp before he had a chance to clean up. He had to duck inside the cave until they had gone. They took off down the coast where their boat was anchored at the peninsula.

  One miscalculation in timing could have cost him the victory. Instead, he had to be smarter than the detective and outwit the investigation and that arrogant bitch that stumbled onto his prize.

  While most of the camp partied and danced, it was easy to fade into the shadows and avoid the patrol. It was easy pickings to find his next volunteer. All he had to do was wait in a dark area besides the latrines and showers and before too very long, a blonde leggy beauty staggered towards the port-a-potties. On her way back, she tripped and fell into the trash barrel.

  It was the gentlemanly thing to do to help the poor girl. She could hardly walk on her own. He wasn’t in the mood to be a proper host on his yacht, however.

  All this business with his crew coming up empty handed and the interruptions, it was infuriating.

  He offered her a drink which she readily accepted. She was out before she finished the glass.

  Anchored just off shore in the cove, he moved the unconscious girl to the raft to go ashore. He would take care of this matter first, then find the key himself.

  ~~~~~

  Lena worked excitedly on her legal pad, writing down her notes.

  “Oh my god! This is” She tapered off her words, the rest inside her head.

  ‘This is monumental! This could be the trading hub of the entire Viking world!’ She couldn’t contain her excitement and had to tell someone. She texted Scott.

  Lena moved to refill her coffee cup when a motion caught her eye on the monitor. She glanced over, seeing the long haired Hulk look alike on the screen, at the same place as before.

  “Oh no you don’t. I’ve got you this time!” She took off at a sprint, heading towards the dig. She fired up one of the four wheelers, spitting gravel as she threw it into gear.

  “You are not going to sabotage my site! NO!”

  It had been raining and she slid about five feet to a stop, spinning around in a three quarter turn as she neared the wall. Lena jumped off of the ATV, running towards the tunnel.

  “Hey! You’re trespassing.”

  She depressed the walkie to notify the patrol as she raced forward to the same spot she’d seen him before.

  “You can’t be here!”

  She nearly lost her footing as the ground was saturated, water pooling in spots. “She slowed down to a careful walk, holding onto the sides of the excavated tunnel and took her flashlight from her back pocket.

  Lena passed the first set of aged timbers supporting the tunnel. Flashing the light behind her, then back in front of her, she eased forward slowly. Her foot caught on a stone in the floor and she tumbled headlong down the incline, ramming her hand into the next set of timbers.

  “Ow! Ow!“

  She groped on the floor for the flashlight that had been knocked from her hand. There was a large cut on the back of her hand, blood trickling down. Two of her nails had been broken and the skin just above her cuticles had been scraped, blood welling at the spots.

  She stood, placing her hand against the tunnel walls for support. She took two cautious steps forward and her flashlight died. No matter how hard she beat the thing, it wouldn’t work. She clicked it on and off, but nothing.

  “Of course!”

  Easing forward even slower in the dark, she felt along the damp, cold wall of the tunnel. Her hand hit the next timber support, and it moved. As it shifted, a huge chunk of dirt fell from the ceiling, along with the sodded grass from above. A few meager rays of bright moonlight filtered in showing her clearly the stone wall less than five feet in front of her.

  ‘Where did he go?’

  She hadn’t passed him. Maybe he ran out before she had arrived. That would be about her luck.

  She glanced around, seeing nothing but the wall. “Dammit! I will catch you, you jerk!”

  Turning to leave, she lost her footing in the dirt and clumps of grass and stumbled back toward the wall. Frantic, she turned to catch herself, landing palms first on the stone wall. Only, it just disappeared and she fell through it, landing at the feet of the Hulk Hogan look alike.

  Chapter 19: Murder by Moonlight

  The thrall alone takes instant vengeance; the coward never.

  -Grettir’s Saga, c.15

  Helena scrambled to her feet. She barely came up to his chest. She brushed herself off and squared her shoulders. “You need to leave now. This is my dig, my site and I want you gone.”

  ”Hvad er det? Er det en Valkyre komme til at eskortere mig til Valhal eller Nefflheim?” (What is this? Is it a Valkyrie come to escort me to Valhalla or Niflheim?) His voice was deep, gravelly. His expression was one of mistrust.

  She didn’t trust him either. “Look pal, you’ve got to go! Come on.” She grabbed his arm tugging him towards the wall she’d just fallen through. When she turned it was gone. That’s when it hit her, she’d fallen through the wall.

  How was that possible? It must be some sort of trick that this guy was doing to sabotage her dig. She turned on him, slowly releasing his arm, crossing her arms over her chest and leveled him with a look that would make most men cringe.

  ”What. Did. You. Do. To. My Dig?” She enunciated each word, practically spitting then at him through clenched teeth.

  ”Hvordan har jeg vred det Guds at de har sendt mig sådan en smuk plage Valkyrie? Jeg ville turde dybder Niflheim for én sød kys.”

  (How have I angered the God's that they have sent me such a beautiful tormenting Valkyrie? I would dare the depths of Niflheim, for one sweet kiss. )

  She was not amused. How dare he come here to sabotage her site then speak Danish or whatever gibberish he was talking to her. She barely could make out a few words and she didn’t have her dictionary with her. “Kan du bremse, så jeg kan forstå deeg?” She hoped she’d just asked him to slow down so she could understand him, if not she may have just made him an elicit offer that she was not ready to fulfill.

  ”Ros Odin! Jeg vil langsomt min tale.” (Praise Odin! I will slow my speech. ) The man’s eyes sparkled. He seemed pleased.

  ’Oh god’ she hoped she had said the right thing and not offered him sexual favors.

  ”OK” she struggled with the Danish. Why hadn’t she spent more time studying? ”You must ” she sighed trying to form the words. “Du skal forlade her. Du skal ikke være her.” (You must leave here. You shouldn't be here.)

  ” Ja selvfølgelig!” He exclaimed with excitement.

  Lena cleared her throat, saying a silent prayer. ’Please let me not be telling him I’m going to be his prostitute!’ Very slowly she enunciated her words. “Vi vil gå til te exit.”

  He lifted her in the air, twirling her around. ”Ja. Ja. Ja.”

  This wasn’t going anything like she had anticipated. She still wasn’t sure if she was saying the right things, or if he was excited that he was going to get some.

  She
moved away from him quickly when he set her down.

  “OK. Glad you’re excited.” Under her breath she added ”Depending on what you’re excited about anyway.”

  She smoothed her shirt down. ”Let’s go this way.” She motioned to the left, he eagerly followed her.

  ~~~~~

  The timing had to be perfect. The gods would not tolerate sloppy sacrifice. He only hoped that this one would make up for the blundered one previously.

  He caressed her cheek. She was an attractive girl. At least she wouldn’t feel as much pain since she was unconscious. He began the chant, glancing at his watch, circling the altar as he spoke.

  His clean up bag was at the corner of the small area. He would do this one right and find out who the girl was, and send some sort of token gift to her family in condolences.

  He stepped to her side, his heart pounding as he recited the words staring at his watch. Precisely at midnight he plunged the dagger into her heart.

  Elation overtook him and he felt giddy. This was it! He’d done it. He stood, head turned up to the sky, arms outstretched to his sides, waiting.

  He turned in a circle, waiting.

  Wait, something wasn’t right. He heard no rumbling beneath ground, he heard no door opening. He opened his eyes looking towards the cave. Nothing had changed.

  What had gone wrong? He had timed it perfectly, he knew the words to the incantation by heart. “Dammit!”

  ~~~~~

  He circled her body twice before accepting that the door had not opened. He stared at her lifeless body. It had to be her fault. She was inadequate.

  He walked over to examine her hair, shining the flashlight on her scalp, pulling the hair back to see the roots. There, about a half inch of dark roots.

  “Aaaaaaaahhhhhh!” He yelled. “What have you done?” He plunged the dagger into her chest several times in anger.

  “What are you doing? She’s already dead.”

  He turned, startled to see a man in a dark cloak behind him.