Page 29 of After Darkness Falls

“Is he a big deal?”

“In London, definitely. He runs the city, with just a few dozen huntsmen under him. They're as powerful as mortals get, but their numbers have never been large, and they recruit once a year or so. I say if Jack wants to see you run, you show him what you got.”

Chloe paused.

“You mean to become a huntsman-thing?”

That sort of thing had never crossed her mind. She wanted a high-stakes position in a successful company. Maybe own a business by the time she was fifty. Kicking naughty paranormal creatures into behaving wasn't her idea of a career.

“That, and to show the rest of the Institute you're not a useless little newbie they can play with. There are vampires, werewolves, and so many other things here. You don't wanna look like prey? Taking a huntsman's challenge is a good start.”

Gwen might have had a point.

The problem was that she could run reasonably fast, and that was the extent of her skill set. If anyone did want to see what she was capable of, she'd make a fool of herself. Staying on the sidelines made more sense. Besides…

“I won't win.”

It had been too long since she'd run; this morning had been pretty hard.

“That's okay. Just don't lose.”

Chloe pondered her options.

“If you don't show up, I doubt Jack will ask again.”

Very true. And if she did show up, she'd spend the evening drinking beer with some students after the race—whether she paid for it or not. It certainly beat going back to her room and replaying every single moment she'd rather bury as soon as she was alone. She couldn’t hold out hope for another miracle sleeping potion from Levi.

“All right. Let's go before I change my mind.”

Circling the dorm toward the forest, they found Jack with about twenty people, most of them wearing brown leather gear. Belatedly, Chloe realized that she wasn't dressed as well as she could be for running in her jeans and baby pink Converses. The snow had melted away on the roads, meaning there was probably mud in the woods. Pink and mud did not go well together.

“Look who we have here. Just in time,” said Jack.

Great. Just in time sounded like too late to back out or change shoes.

“Crew, this is…” He turned to her. “What was that again?”

She didn't think he'd asked her name in the first place. “Chloe.” She pointed to her new friend. “And Gwen.”

“Right. Chloe, Gwen, this is Tris, Chris, Reiss, Ward, Bat, Bash…”

He lost her halfway through.

After the speedy introduction, he stated, “So, you know the deal. Five hundred to the winner, loser buys the drinks. No rules, but try to stay away from the northeast—the werewolves don't take kindly to strangers intruding on their territory.”

Wait, werewolf territory?

“Whoever gets to Lakehill first wins. Ethan is waiting at the finish line to determine a clear winner. On my mark!”

Shit. That was not nearly enough information.

“Get set!”

“Where's Lakehill?” she screamed over Jack's counting.

There were only three hills—Night Hill, then one at its right and another to its left. Jack pointed to the left one.

“Two miles north. Through the woods, or down the path—but the path takes five miles. No rules. Get there first, you win. Got it?”

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