Claimed (Werewolf boyxboy)

Chapter 29

THIRD PERSON POV

"Daniel Cahill..." Benji whispered, tears dripping from his chin as his entire body trembled with the weight of failure, "... Time of death, four twenty-one AM."

...

The earth-shattering memory echoed through the very air of the Pack House, staining each and every intake of breath with the somber scent of sorrow. The pack mourned, the weight of their grief shared in every heavy step, every hollow glance, every trembling touch.

Every one of Danny's four children – including his beautiful newborn – existed in a state of blood-curdling torment, unable to comprehend – to even consider – the possibility of moving on through life without their dad by their side.

Danny had birthed them, raised them, carried them through their darkest moments, and wiped away their tears more times than one could count in a single lifetime. And now, knowing that he would never be there to hit them with his neck pillow or joke around at the dinner table left them with nothing but all-consuming emptiness – a neverending void that threatened to suck the rest of their existence in along with it.

Because they loved him... Everyone loved him.

Jax held Corey tight, crying with him as the Alpha wept unceasingly at his side. The abraded sound of his mate's hoarse screams of pain ripped at what little was left of the Beta's heart, and with his shoulders hunched and knees pulled up into the fetal position, the Alpha looked no more than a frightened child.

It had been three days. Three days of Jax begging his mate to eat something, to drink something, to walk to the window and get a single breath of fresh air. But the Alpha simply couldn't stomach it, gut churning as a hiraeth of blurry images of his dad's cheerful face danced endlessly across his psyche. The misery was inescapable, and Corey no longer possessed the willpower to fight against its cruel hold.

Simply put, the Alpha was depressed.

His dad was gone and the loss became him, annihilating him from the inside out as he struggled to keep up with the multitude of emotions that would run through him at any given moment.

Anger, fear, rage, denial, nothing, and then more anger coursed through his veins, until he could think of no other way to cope but to cling to the only person that could possibly bring him even a sliver of comfort through his torment.

"Corey..." Jax soothed with a patient tone, running his fingers through his mate's tangled hair in an effort to rouse him. However – just like all of the other times the Beta had attempted this over the past three days – Corey didn't move a single muscle, face still buried deep in his mate's chest and arms locked around his waist as if afraid that he, too, would disappear from his life at any moment.

The Alpha's grip was tight, so much so that the Beta had a little trouble breathing at first. But after three days of laying in the same position, his lungs had adjusted.

"... I'm going to kiss you... If that's okay..." Jax whispered once more, giving his unresponsive mate a moment to – hopefully – comprehend what he was doing before he slowly twisted his body.

The Beta reached over to grab one of the multiple water bottles he'd deposited beside them, popping the cap and filling his own cheeks with the liquid before doing his best to shimmy down in Corey's unrelenting grip. Once he got close enough to his target, Jax gently cupped both sides of Corey's cheeks to tilt his head up high enough. Then, he pressed their lips together, simultaneously releasing the water that he stored in his cheeks into his mate's mouth and holding it there until he felt the Alpha swallow.