Page 5 of Claim Me
Chapter 3
Rafe
Knox knew how to crash a party. I watched from the windows of Jade’s office as he knocked on her front door. I smirked as she yanked the door open with enough force to rip it from the frame. I couldn’t hear what they were saying but judging by Jade’s body language, she was pissed. I closed the blinds before I walked down the hallway and to the kitchen. My mom was cooking for the pack again tonight. She enjoyed doing that more lately, especially with all the children here still. Most of the covens didn’t feel safe coming to get them just yet. They were worried Damian would come after them and they figured the children were better off with us. The witches weren’t exactly maternal. If the children’s parents were out of the picture, they didn’t really care to take on orphans. There were only a few covens that really cared about the little ones.
Witches lived abnormally longer lives and didn’t care about the transferring of power. They would rather the power be recycled back to the rest of the coven than go to the smaller children. Which meant that many little witches ended up in foster care or homeless. It was one of the many flaws of being a supernatural. I hated the way their covens worked but there was nothing a werewolf could do to change it. Even if I wanted to.
“You look like you have a lot weighing on your mind,” my mother said as I grabbed a plate from the cabinets behind her.
“Jade’s parents are visiting. We have a ton of kids under our protection. Nine of the witches can’t control or harness their magic. We have a mastermind coming after us and all I want to do is claim my mate.”
My mother let out a soft laugh. “Yes, being the Alpha puts the entire world on your shoulders especially when you are preparing to be in the Pack Law.” She patted my shoulder gently. “It will get easier as time goes on.”
“How did my father survive so long without you?” I didn’t know where the words came from but I almost regretted them as soon as they passed from my lips.
She got a faraway look in her eye. “He wasn’t always alone. He thought he would never find his mate. He thought he would be destined to be married like the humans do. It’s hard to think that he had been ruling this pack for a hundred years before I came around.”
My lips twitched into a smile. “I can’t imagine living that long.”
“It’s easier when you have your mate by your side.” Sadness shot through my heart. How would she continue to live such a long life without my father? These thoughts had never plagued me until I found Jade. Until I ran into her in the grocery store that night. She had no idea that my wolf knew immediately that she was ours.
“I’m sorry,” There weren’t many things I apologized about but I knew I had to about this. I was the reason her mate wasn’t around anymore. I was the reason everything in her life had gone to shit.
She shook her head as she handed a plate to one of the children. “No, that had to be done. He was sick.” Her words didn’t take away the heart-wrenching grief inside of me. “Someday we will be reunited and that will be a joyous time.”
