The kitten claims her mate (complete)

Elk Creek Trail

Betty made herself a second cup of coffee. She wanted to blame being tired on her job. It had been a long day at work. Judgy Josh had been there and had followed her around, pestering her about going to dinner together. Kilala has threatened to pee on all of her bedding if she agreed, which was just unnecessary.

Or maybe she was tired because she was neighbors with a lying wolf man. When she got home she'd had a Jax siting- which just ruined her day. It was just his back, as he was walking towards his house, but still. Her heart had immediately started racing and she'd had the absurd craving to run over to him and run her fingers through his hair. Stupid Jax!

She blamed her racing heart on Kilala and her nightly visits with him. Even though Kilala was fully in charge during the visits, it still left a vague impression with Betty. That and the incessant blabbering about "their wonderful".

She chugged her coffee, burning her tongue. She kept staring out of her windows, hoping and dreading seeing Jax again. This wasn't healthy. Plus, she still had that damn craving for cinnamon cookies, even though she knew there wasn't a cookie out there that would satisfy the craving. It was driving her batty.

She rinsed out her empty coffee mug and headed out doors. It was time to shake up her routine. Instead of staying home and reading or watching TV, she would go on a hike. She wasn't tired because she was ignoring her mate like Jack implied. She was tired because she wasn't getting enough exercise.

Still, a coffee to go was not a bad idea. She promised herself a coffee on the way back from her hike. She looked both ways and sighed in relief when she didn't see anyone. She ran to her car and headed to the mountains. Maybe fresh air would take away her obsession with her stupid neighbor and reinvigorate her soul.

She parked in a little parking lot by a trail head. It was a trail that she used to go on when she was a teenager. It hadn't changed much since the last time she came. It was out of the way and people rarely used it.

She locked her car and put on her playlist on her phone. Breaking Benjamin started playing and she headed out. The sun was filtering through the leaves ahead, making the path shadowed. To her left was a little creek and she knew from personal experience that the trail would follow the creek for a couple miles and then cross to the other side to circle back. It was only about a 4 mile hike, making it perfect for a short walk.

She was dragging a bit more on the walk than normal, but still found herself enjoying nature. The fresh air and sunshine was indeed like a healing balm.

The trail had almost circled back to her car when she noticed something off. There was something red on the rocks by the creek. She carefully climbed down the small ledge and down to the rocks. She gasped when she saw what was on the rocks. It was a body, half on the rocks and half in the creek. The red shirt was what had caught her eye from the trail.

She stumbled back and choked on her tears. A part of her couldn't believe that she was seeing a dead body. She heard screaming, but there was no one else around. Just her and a dead body in the middle of nowhere.

***

James and another elite had been trailing Betty, making sure she was safe. When they heard the screams they had rushed over. When James called Jax, her screams had filled the background.

"What's wrong?" Jax demanded.

"Betty is fine. There's a second body on Elk Creek trail. She found it and started screaming. Ben shifted and is trying to follow a scent trail, but it's really weak. I haven't approached Betty yet."

"I'm on my way. Is Betty really okay?"

"Yes, she's starting to calm down. She's trying to call 911 and is cussing out her phone for having no service."

"Okay, if she leaves stay with the body. I'll hopefully catch her on her way back to the car. Do not approach Betty unless you have to. I'm sure if she finds out about being followed she'll be spitting mad. And I really don't want her more mad at me than she already is."

He arrived at the trail in record time and saw Betty just as she was reaching her car. She was very pale and shaken. He rushed over to her and asked, "What's wrong? Are you okay?"

"Oh Jax! Thank god you're here! There's a body by the creek and my phone isn't making phone calls. We have to call 911."

He pulled her slowly to him, expecting her to pull away. But she didn't. She rested her head on his shoulder and cried. "It was horrible. I didn't know what to do. Someone died and their body is up there, bloated and smelly and ..."

He gently shushed her and rubbed her back. "I'll take care of it, sweetheart. It'll be okay," he crooned. She nodded and hiccuped, her cries starting to die down. She had one hand on his shoulder and the other was gripping the back of his head.

He felt a zap of energy from her touch and closed his eyes. He really had to go take care of the body. He hoped it was just a normal drowning, but his luck had never been that good. He didn't want to leave, not now that Betty was in his arms clinging to him.

He sighed and reminded himself that his pack must come first. He kissed her gently on her forehead, feeling a zap of tingles from the touch. He stepped away and looked into her eyes. They were such beautiful eyes.

"Sweetheart, I want nothing more than to stay here with you but I have to go take care of the body."

He felt her stiffen, his arms were still around her. Her beautiful eyes shut down and her mouth firmed. "I'm not your sweetheart. Thank you for helping me out, but I'm okay now."

She stepped out of his arms and reminded him to call 911. He heard her mutter about "damn cookies", whatever that meant, before she drove off.

He muttered his own curses all the way to the body. He wanted to relive those priceless moments when she was in his arms. It had felt so right. And the energetic buzz he got from her was addictive. It felt like she reached into his soul and gave it exactly what he needed. And the feel of her soft curves... It made his brain go fuzzy. Dammit, he had to think of something else. He had a second dead body to investigate and he worried it wasn't the last one.

His suspicions had, sadly, been correct. It was a member of his pack patrol. They always traveled in twos or more. After a few calls they found out that one patrol was missing- it had three members in it. One was dead, the other two were missing.

James was shifted into his wolf and was sniffing near the body growling. Ben had followed the trail to a small hunter's shack. Currently, Jason was at the shack with Luke and Ben. It was evident the two pack brothers had been at the shack, but they were now gone.

Jax waited with James for the coroner, who was also pack. Before long any evidence was packed up and the body was taken away. He did one last sweep of the area and then they went back to his house. While Jason, Luke and Ben were searching the shack and surroundings for clues, Jax would lead a sweep of the woods for the second time. Hopefully this time they would find them in time.