The Claiming By Cooper

The Claiming by Cooper (Jara & Mason)

Chapter 78

Jara

When I left Mason at the cliffs, I thought he’d catch me quickly. When he didn’t, I was surprised, but also on alert. Just because I don’t see him doesn’t mean that he isn’t up to something.

It takes me awhile, but I finally find a tree that will hold my weight but few, if any, of the males left in the claiming. I climb high, knowing that Mason won’t be able to smell me when he finds me. I know he will, he won’t sleep tonight if he doesn’t find me.

Title of the document

However, because the tree is smaller, in general, than the others that I’ve been sleeping in, I can only go so high before the branches become too small to hold even my weight.

I get as comfortable as I can, using several branches that are bunched together to squish myself into. Between all of them, I feel safe that my little spot here will hold.

I’ve nearly fallen asleep when I hear the rustling of the underbrush beneath me. Then I hear a limb snapping and the growling of frustration.

I lean over and see that Mason has found me. I’m really surprised that it took him this long. As I watch, he jumps up again, only to break the limb and fall back to the ground. Then he’s up and climbing the tree next to me. When he leaps over to my tree, I feel it sway with his weight.

Shit! I didn’t plan for him to get to me up here. There’s nowhere for me to go.

he

begins scratching at the tree like he did the other night. Then he leaps up, trying to catch my scent. His howl of frustration brings several wolves to see what the commotion is about. When he begins killing them without any warning,

scratching the tree as if he’s trying

it’s the middle of the night. I’m exhausted and cramped but unwilling to move. Mason lays down at the

he’s up, trying to get to me again. He’s whining and growling, then he scratches at

exhausted by the time the sun starts to rise, but my adrenaline is pumping. This is it,

that Mason is sleeping again. I carefully unfold myself from this tree limb bed, hearing my

I’m finally standing, I look down again. Still

way down the tree, careful not to slip and send debris tumbling onto Mason. If he wakes up now, there’s no chance I’ll make it out

can in the tree, the limbs having been broken off my Mason’s attempt to climb to me, I leap to the tree next to me. This is the tree that Mason climbed last night. The limbs on this

more shuffling and growling below me. The ranked wolves are aware enough to know that this is the last morning, their last chance to catch me and they are beginning to

up here. At this point, they’d probably pull the trees down to get to me. When I get as close as I

at the entrance. It’s 7:30am. I have 30 minutes and the

settle in, taking in my surroundings and the wolves that have congregated near here. They are all keeping their distance from each other, but right now, they are so busy trying to catch

see Alpha Luke, Beta Elijah possibly, and several warriors from Seth’s pack that I know. There are some others, one definitely is an Alpha based on his size and others that are large enough to be ranked members or

not being able to find my scent. The breeze is in my favor and I’m

clock. I send a silent thank you to Elder Jason for giving me the time so I don’t rush it. If I tried to leave the claiming territory before

Is he still asleep? Does he not realize that I’ve

climb lower in the tree. I keep looking around at the ground beneath