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.

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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 falls to the ground, only when he lands, he’s in wolf form and man is

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, I know he’s back in the

tree and scratching the tree as

night. I’m exhausted and cramped but unwilling to move. Mason lays down at the bottom of the tree,

whining and growling, then he scratches

sun starts to rise, but my adrenaline is pumping. This is it, I’m at the end. Only a

down and see that Mason is sleeping again. I carefully unfold myself from this tree limb bed, hearing my joints crack and creak as I

I’m finally standing, I look down again.

tumbling onto Mason. If he wakes up now, there’s

tree that Mason climbed last night. The limbs on this tree are much larger and sturdier.

I’m moving through the trees, I begin to hear more shuffling and growling below me. The ranked wolves are aware enough to know that this is

pull the trees down to get to me. When I get as close as I can, I look out to the

has placed a clock at the entrance. It’s 7:30am. I have 30 minutes and the sprint of my life to make

here. They are all keeping their distance from each other, but right now, they are so busy

sure I 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

me, all searching, all whining and growling in frustration at not being able to find

on the 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 the end of the claim, the males would be within their rights to chase me down until someone caught and claimed me. This way,

not seeing Mason. Is he still asleep? Does he not realize that I’ve moved

at the ground beneath me. The wolves are