The Claiming by Cooper novel Chapter 68

Chapter 68: Meson
Mason
The morning after leaving my shirt for Jara, we get up and begin looking in the trees, trying to find her. I know she was near the lake last night. We hadn’t moved too far from the lake to sleep, just in case someone found her. I gave her the evening to calm down. When I claim her, I want it to be on equal ground, not when she’s just been through a traumatic event.
There is something about the hunt that our wolves crave. When we catch and claim our mate, it strengthens our bond. At least that is my understanding. And if that is true, then I want to make sure that Jara is at full strength when I claim her. I want our bond to be something stronger than anything anyone has ever seen before.
Jara’s scent is starting to impact me, and I know I only have another day, maybe a day and a half before the claiming haze takes over. My pack members haven’t given in to it yet, but that’s mostly because, as their Alpha, I haven’t either. Once I can no longer hold out against the haze, they won’t either.
Elijah and I have been searching for Jara’s trail for a couple of hours when we hear the howl of the hunt. There’s something about this one that feels more real. There was excitement and a feralness to the sound, making me think the one that raised the howl has actually found her.
Elijah and I look at each other before taking off, racing in the direction of the howl. As we get closer, we can smell it. Blood. Lots of it. Layered with the scent of blood is Jara’s scent. My heart begins racing and my vision begins to narrow. If she’s dead….if she’s dead, I will kill everyone in this claiming.
I feel the darkness of going feral surrounding me. If she’s dead,
they will have to kill me too.
When we burst into the glade, there are dead men littering the ground. There is blood and gore everywhere, but there is no Jara. I breathe a sigh of relief and I feel the darkness begin to recede.
“Are you okay, Alpha?” Elijah says softly beside me.
I nod, looking around. There are others here, but the massacre has everyone keeping their distance. There are six dead men with various wounds on their bodies. I slowly walk into the mix of dead bodies, blood and gore and begin sniffing. One man, in particular, smells like Jara. Two don’t have her scent at all, but they do have a scent that I’m familiar with. Alpha Luke.
Was Jara attacked, like yesterday, and today, Alpha Luke came to her rescue? I haven’t heard a howl of victory, so I know he hasn’t claimed her. At least not yet.
I continue to sniff and when I come to a fallen tree limb, I can smell his scent more strongly and the scent of blood in this area is very strong. I turn, looking at Elijah, giving him the silent look that we’re leaving, and I begin following Alpha Luke’s scent.
We eventually follow his scent back to the lake. There we find him washing blood off his body. When we step out of the trees, he whips around, his claws coming out and his canines extending.
I put my hands up and stop, making sure I’m in front of Elijah.
“Alpha Luke. Do you recognize me?” I ask.
It takes him a moment before he stands straight, his claws and canines retracting.
“Alpha Mason. Beta Elijah.” He says, before turning back to the water.
“We just came from the battle. What happened?” I ask him.
He continues washing the water off in the lake as he answers my question. “I found Jara. I was about to go after her when six wolves found me. They were all in the claiming haze. They attacked me. I can take on several, but six was too many for me. I was fighting, but I was going down. It was then that Jara jumped in. She killed three of the six wolves. I killed the other three.”
I look at him, my eyes narrowing. “You let her go?”
He snorts, gesturing to his body that is still covered in shallow wounds.
“I was in pretty bad shape. I would be dead if it wasn’t for her. And while she told me that she would not be disappointed if I claimed her,” he stops and looks at me, “she told me her heart belongs to you.”
I’m so shocked, I don’t know what to say. I’m sure I look like an idiot, my mouth gaping and no words coming out. Alpha Luke returns to the lake, scrubbing blood off his arms and chest. “I told her that I didn’t want to be mated to a woman that was in love with someone else, but that by tomorrow, it wouldn’t be a choice any longer.”
He glances up at us for a moment. “By tomorrow, we’ll all be in the haze. I warned her to be careful and to stick to her hiding spot.”
He looks at me and I can see he’s wondering if I know. Using my body to cover my hand in case we’re being watched, I quickly point up, indicating that she’s hiding in the trees. He nods.
“I did tell her that, while I was letting her go today, once I’m in the haze, our conversation today won’t matter. She said she understands.”
He turns to leave, picking up his wet clothes. He looks back, as if thinking of something. “Oh, and she’s hungry. Her stomach was growling. I had some cooked meat with me, and I gave her what I had, but she is limited with her ability to hunt, and she definitely can’t cook her food. Someone would find her.” He looks at me again.
“I tell you that in case you run into her again before the haze takes you.”
“Thank you, Alpha Luke.”
After he walks away, Elijah and I find a place to sleep for the night. We take turns sleeping while the other keeps watch. In the morning, we hunt and cook some food, both of us putting extra in our pockets. If I find Jara, she’ll need food. Even if I have to leave it for her. If I don’t find Jara, it’s nice to have a little extra, especially with what I’m about to do.
“It’s Day 4 Elijah. It’s time for us to split up.” Once the haze takes me, I won’t be his Alpha. I will see him and anyone else as a potential threat to me getting my mate. I won’t put Elijah in danger like that.
He looks at me for a long moment. “Are you sure you’ll be alright?” He asks.
“Two of those wolves yesterday were Typhon’s. He’s down to five, including him and his Beta and those are just the ones we know about. It’s going to be rough for everyone going forward. By tomorrow, we’ll all be in the haze. With as many dead bodies as we’ve found and heard, there can’t be more than 100 claimants left.”
We get our meager belongings together. “Good luck Alpha. Get our Luna and let’s get the f*ck out of here and back home.”
“Be safe, Elijah. I expect my Beta to still be alive when this is done.”
“Yes, Alpha.” He says and we turn, running off in different
directions, hunting for our mate and Luna.