The Claiming by Cooper

Jara

“This entire process is archaic and barbaric!” I say for the hundredth time.

“Sweetheart, we agree with you. But there’s nothing we can do. Your father and I have tried everything. After Mila….”

I sigh. I know my parents tried everything. After the death of my sister by her mate’s mistreatment, they tried to have me removed from the claiming pool. But the elders wouldn’t hear of it. They insisted that, as the last unmated Alpha female, I had to participate in the annual claiming.

“We won’t let what happened to Mila, happen to you, Jara.” Seth, my brother, says to me. He is going into the claiming this year as well. Since he is not eligible to hunt for me, he is guaranteed a spot for the Beta female that is in the running this year. He could choose to be in a claim for one of the omegas, but we all know he chose the Beta’s claiming.

Of all the years for me to turn 18, it had to be a year where there are more than double the normal contestants AND a Beta female as well as myself. Every unmated male in the country will be at this year’s claiming.

While all she-wolves are placed in the first claiming after they reach adulthood, males entering the annual claiming are generally between 18-25 years of age. After that, a male werewolf, especially an Alpha who hasn’t taken a mate, will go feral and have to be put down. However, any werewolf who has lost their mate, is also eligible to enter the claiming.

Because there are so few females, hundreds of males come to the

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claiming event every year. It is the only legal way to claim a mate. Any male, regardless of rank, that tries to claim a female outside of the claiming will be put to death or, if he marked the female, he will be imprisoned, and the female will be placed in the next year’s claiming. Since my claim will be open to everyone, it has the potential for over 200 savage wolves to try and hunt me down.

open to any eligible male. And while they may try to catch. and claim me, my Alpha aura will make it easier for me to fight any male

keep it from happening to me, Seth. Not every Alpha is like you. They don’t all want a mate to love and cherish, like I know you will. Some of them will only see me as a breeding machine and a way for them to look

my shoulders, looking into my amber colored eyes with his sage green ones. “We’ll find a way, Jara. I promise. My word as an Alpha, if you are claimed by someone that will

nice sentiment and one I know he means, but it’s not possible. The werewolf laws in this matter are absolute. If a male

He says, holding up an envelope. Today I will see exactly who and how many males will be entering my claim. This gives me a short amount of time to plan for how many Alphas I will

been for the last three years.

claiming pool. That means that I was right, every eligible male has entered this year’s event.

dining room table. My mother and brother come to sit on either side of me as my father sits across, opening the envelope. He flips through

and thirty-six.” I suck in a

that leaves me with two hundred and thirty-two. How many of those are Alphas?” I ask. This is already more than my sister had at her claiming. She

father looks at the stats before looking up at me. “Fifty-three.” My stomach clenches. Fifty-three? My only possible chance of getting out unclaimed

Fifty- three or fifty-two,

papers to my mother, and he puts his

we could run.” He says,

the pack, lose his title and not be eligible as a claimant. I can’t do that to him. I’ll

Jara. I’ll do anything I can to help you