Page 20 of After Darkness Falls

An unknown number was calling. Chloe sighed. This was a brand-new phone with a sim card from the UK. Surely, spammers hadn't gotten their hands on the number yet.

Reluctantly, she pressed the green icon.

“Miller.”

“I'm your alarm clock,” said an unknown, irritable, and somehow menacing male voice.

“What?”

“You're welcome.”

On that note, the rude stranger hung up. Chloe stared at the phone in disbelief for a good half second. Then, her eyes actually took in the time displayed on the screen, and she jumped to her feet.

Shitty cake! Nine-thirty. Walking from the Institute to the dorms had taken a good half hour with Blair the previous day. She was late on her first official day.

Chloe brushed her teeth with one hand and her hair with the other. She didn't have time to check the mirror above the sink, so the likelihood of having toothpaste in her hair was high. She grabbed the first pants and top from her bag, along with the satchel where she kept her wallet and notepads, and her jacket.

Bursting down the staircases and out of doors, she stopped on the threshold, her mouth falling open. Sometime overnight, the world had frozen into a winter fairy wonderland. Oldcrest had seemed beautiful the previous day, but covered in fresh snow, it was the most enchanting place in the world. All right, she might not have seen much of the world, but the picturesque scene was hard to beat.

She didn't have time to appreciate it. Nine forty-seven. She had thirteen minutes.

“What are you doing?” a guy asked from the threshold.

She hadn't noticed him standing there. She took him in with a glance. He was her age, perhaps slightly older, and wore gray suit pants, a black tank top, and a halter fitted with two guns.

A billion questions came to mind—such as,aren't guns illegal in England?—but she didn't have time for them.

“Preparing,” she replied, crouching down to stretch her legs.

“What for?” the guy asked, but she was already twenty feet away, so she just waved her hand in the air as a goodbye.

Shit, she was going to regret running without any proper stretching. Not so long ago, the two and a half miles heading up the castle would have been child's play, but Chloe had stopped running track right after high school. Her poor muscles protested against the effort, and her breathing was labored, weak. But she pushed through, forcing her legs to leap as fast as they could through Adairford’s main street, onto the drawbridge, and then past the strange translucent gates.

She'd made it. Chloe glanced at her phone. Four minutes to spare.

She grabbed hold of her knees and tried to catch her breath before looking around the courtyard.

Unlike yesterday afternoon, it was mostly empty except for a small gathering. Chloe forced herself to stand upright, like a civilized person, and smiled.

“Hi there. Sorry I overslept. Did I miss anything?”

The group was diverse in every way—age, size, color, and breed, no doubt. Chloe would have sworn she was the only regular here, although she would have a hard time telling whether the redheaded guy playing with a knife was a shifter or a witch. Next to him stood a gorgeous ebony-skinned woman who was wisely wearing long pants and a ski jacket. Definitely not a shifter, as they didn't tend to be affected by the cold. She could be a witch, or something else altogether. There was also a young boy who couldn't have been much older than twelve. He had jet-black hair and pale skin. The last member of the group was a bald woman with tattoos on her scalp; she was as short as the teenager but looked to be in her forties.

“No matter, Miss Miller,” the short woman said, her voice distinguished and authoritative. “You're right on time for the introductions, if you'd lead the way.”

Chloe grimaced. Right. Introductions. She didn't even know what to say. Who was she, really? For the last few years, she'd defined herself as either someone's daughter or a waitress. Before then, she would have listed her clubs, activities, her GPA. Now, none of that applied.

“Okay…my name is Chloe Miller and I'm from Colorado. I left the state when I was eighteen, and I've traveled through ten different states since, but I've never been outside of the USA until now. For the last few years, my home was NOLA.”

“I've been to NOLA,” said the brown woman, beaming. “It's pretty awesome. And the witches there are hardcore.”

“Good. Very good.” The small teacher inclined her head. “I believe Miss Miller was sponsored by the NOLA coven. The Institute isn't only a place where you're expected to learn. You will also network, make connections that can serve you for the rest of your life, long after you leave us. Next time you're in NOLA, Miss Kanye, you may want to give a call to Miss Miller and see if she could get you an introduction to the witches, for example.”

The woman looked hopefully at Chloe, who nodded. “Sure. I can ask.”

“This,” said the teacher, “is the very heart of the Institute. We are a powerful force because we have alumni in every corner of the world. Miss Kanye, you're next.”

Miss Kanye’s first name was Gwen, and she introduced herself as a witch. “I have a strong link to one element, but I'm pretty useless at controlling it.”

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