The Claiming by Cooper (Jara & Mason)
Chapter 59
Mason
Last night, when Jara had told Seth that she was going into the territory, I had understood his look. You better catch my sister, and you’d better treat her right.
I had nodded my head in acknowledgement. From one Alpha to another, I wanted him to know that I’d take good care of his sister. And he would know that for himself, because unlike Typhon, I had no intention of keeping her from her family. Plus, she has become very close with Hana. I imagine the two of them will remain close even after this claiming.
I had laid with Jara, holding her as long as I dared before returning to the main house. When I got to my room, I refused to change out of the clothes that smell like her, so I laid down in my bed, sleeping for a few hours before it’s time to get up.
Although I don’t want to, I know I need to wash Jara’s scent off my body. I’m not sure that I’ll be back to this room today, and I have enough to worry about without adding more people to the list of those that want me dead.
After breakfast, we all head outside to watch Jara enter the claiming territory. She looks so alone, standing on the stage with only Elder Jason there beside her. But my girl doesn’t let any of the fear she confessed to me last night show on her face this morning. Instead, she goes all Alpha on us.
Before Elder Jason can escort her off the stage, she steps past him to the microphone, looking out at the crowd.
“I’m giving you all fair warning. If you were one of the ones involved in the ma*s*sacre before Hana’s claiming, and you come for me? I’ll kill you. If you and your pack members try to gang up on me, forcing me into a mate bond, I’ll kill all of you. And, if I’ve been very clear that I want nothing to do with you and you try to claim me, well, I’ll kill you too. You have one day to think about whether or not this claim is worth it to you.”
She turns and struts off the stage, her head held high. I can’t help but smile at my gorgeous mate-to-be. She’s everything I could have dreamed of and more.
She begins walking to the line of the territory. I suddenly realize that she has walked every one of the other girls out here so they wouldn’t be alone. But there is no one left to walk beside her, giving her a last- minute confident boost.
Just as I think it, I hear Hana calling her and jogging over. She runs right into Jara’s arms, hugging her close. We all watch as they stand there for a long moment. I see Jara nod her head briefly, so I know Hana is talking to her. Good. She needs to feel as confident as she sounded on that stage.
I watch as Hana turns toward a smiling Seth. He’s standing off to the side, obviously not wanting his mate around all of the unmated males who are exuding excited energy in waves.
Hana takes Jara’s hand and walks her to the starting line. Just before the gun goes off, she turns and looks at me. I’m not sure if she’s saying goodbye in case I don’t catch her, or if it’s a plea to make sure that I do claim her. Either way, she will be mine this week.
She turns and the gun goes off. She immediately begins running into the claiming territory. All around me a howl of excitement goes up. This next 24 hours will be electrified with energy. But I don’t care. As Jara runs into the claiming territory, I feel as if a band has attached from her to my heart. The farther she goes into the territory, the tighter the band gets, making it hard to breathe, forcing me to stay where I am. So, this is what the others felt. A connection to their mate before the claiming even occurred. I walk up to the edge of the claiming territory. As expected, I won’t be going anywhere until the gun goes off tomorrow morning.
I tune into the sounds that Jara is making. I can hear her running through the territory. I’ve been thinking of the layout of the territory for so many nights now, that I pull up a map in my head and follow her sounds on my imaginary map. She’s headed to the right, swinging around the edge of the territory. She’s going to start by seeing how large the territory is.
As I’m listening, I smell Elijah just before I feel his hand on my shoulder. “I’ll bring lunch out here to you, okay, Alpha?”
“Thanks.” I say, not breaking my concentration away from Jara.
I listen to her all day as she makes her way around the territory and then begins to find her way to the inside of the territory.
Elijah brings me lunch and dinner I don’t look at what he’s brought me, and I don’t taste it. I’m too busy mapping out Jara’s movements around the claiming territory. She had come across the cave hours ago, but she had left it behind. When the sun goes down, I expect to hear her find a place to sleep for the night, but she’s still moving around. I smile because I realize that she has created overlapping patterns of her scent all over the territory. I needn’t have worried about someone stumbling on her accidentally, although it’s still a possibility. But with her creating these lines of movements, her pack of suitors will be all over the territory. And now, hopefully, she knows where she’s been and can avoid those lines.
Late into the night, I hear her head back to the cave I’m glad she’s finally settling, it’s time to bring Typhon’s pack members into my pack. Elijah and Elder Jason join us, and I have all 10 of them swear their allegiance to me, having them drink my blood. Once I feel their mind links join with mine, I give Elder Jason a nod and he escorts them to the vans waiting to take them to my pack.
Once they leave, I shift into my wolf, knowing my senses are heightened in this form. If she begins to move, I’ll hear it and wake up. A couple hours later, I smell the faint smell of a campfire. She’s warm and hopefully she found some food today.
My wolf gets a wolfish grin on his face. She’s going to run all of us ragged during this claim. I can’t wait.
It feels like only a few hours later when I hear her moving around again. I lift my head, tilting it to the side when I hear her moving closer to the edge of the territory where I am. She doesn’t get all the way here, before I hear another sound that I don’t recognize.
What is she doing? In my wolf form, I continue to tilt my head trying to figure out what the sound is that I’m hearing.
I haven’t figured it out when Elijah brings me breakfast, sitting to eat with me.
“Know where she is?” He asks.
“More or less.” I say. “I would have expected her to put as much distance from us and her as possible, but she’s moved closer to the entrance.” I tell him quietly.
Elijah chuckles. “Clever girl.”
“What do you mean?” I ask, not turning my face away from the claiming territory.
“If you think that’s what she’ll do, chances are good that everyone else will too. She’s basically just given herself a free day with no one hunting her as they go to the back of the territory to find her, only they’ll find nothing.”
Now that I can’t hear her moving, I turn my attention to Elijah. “You’re right. So, we should run like we expect to head to the back of the territory before, separate from the pack, then turn back.”
“That’s if we can get off the starting line. You know, no matter what Jara said yesterday, they will try to kill you before you get into the territory.”
“Let them try.” I say. It’s not that I’m overconfident or arrogant about it. I know I’m at risk. The difference is that I know that my mate is the ultimate goal, and nothing is keeping me from her.
The entrance to the territory has gotten crowded overnight. Some males tried to follow Jara’s movements in the beginning but gave up and left. Others came out in the middle of the night to get a good spot for the entrance. As everyone begins making their way toward the claiming territory, I see Typhon looking around, presumably for his pack mates.
When he turns to look at me, I can’t help but smirk at him. Half his pack members in this year’s claiming joined my pack last night. Now he has half the people to help him hunt for Jara and half the people to try and kill me.
“Keep an eye on his new Beta.” Elijah says to me quietly. I switch my gaze to his Beta. I haven’t seen him too often, but he’s huge, ripped. He looks like an Alpha, not a Beta.
“When I walked the guys to the car last night, they told me he’s an a*s*sa*s*sin. That’s why Typhon made him is Beta. He’s a killing machine.”
I watch as everyone picks a group. Typhon and his pack are on my right, some of the other
packs that I know will be trying to kill me are on my left. I had expected my omegas and warriors to give Elijah and I a wide berth, knowing that so many want me dead. But to their credit, they are all here, ready to fight with me.
Seth’s pack is beside us as well, increasing our numbers. I also realize that there are fewer males than there should be. As I look around, there can’t be more than 150 wolves for Jara’s claiming.
“Elder Jason said a bunch left last night.”
“Good, fewer to deal with.” I say. Maybe Jara’s comment had an impact after all.
We’re all ready and when the gun goes off, mayhem ensues.