Lydia's Secret (The Secret Series Book 1) by Ditter Kellen

mind.
    Leaning forward, Roman made eye contact with his young driver in the rearview mirror. “Take Stillwood Avenue to avoid any mishaps. There are idiots who may be driving in this mess.”
    “As opposed to us?” Max shot back with a raised brow.
    A nervous laugh came from his backseat companion. “He has a point, you know.”
    “That he does.” Settling back in his seat, Roman covered her hand with his. “You’re freezing.”
    “It’s just a little chill. I’ll be fine.”
    Roman slid in close, wrapped his arm around her, and pulled her head down to his shoulder. “Turn up the heat, Max.”
    “Yes, sir,” the wolf responded, pressing a button on the dash.
    The temperature increased immediately inside the SUV, and Lydia’s body slowly began to relax.
    “Thank you,” she murmured against his chest.
    He peered down at the top of her head, inhaling her sweet scent and fighting the urge to kiss her again. There would be time for that later once she and her daughter were safe.
    Roman shook off his thoughts and glanced at the little girl only to find her staring back at him with huge, blue eyes.
    “Are you Baltha?”
    He couldn’t look away from her eyes. Her frailty and tiny, bald head melted his two-thousand-year-old heart. He had to clear his throat to speak. “My name is Roman. But I do know Baltha.”
    She sat up so fast her head bumped Lydia’s chin. “You know Baltha?”
    The eagerness in her voice was contagious, and Roman tried to recall every word she’d written in her letter to the guardian angel. “I do. He lives on the North Star and has a pet bat named Fangton.”
    “How are you feeling, honey?” Lydia interrupted, running her hand up and down Jacie’s back.
    “Good. Mama, he knows Baltha and Fangton.”
    Lydia sent Roman a grateful look over the top of Jacie’s head. “I know. Isn’t that great?”
    “Are you taking us there?” Jacie asked in an excited voice.
    The child looked so hopeful Roman couldn’t bring himself to disappoint her. “It’s snowing too hard to get to the North Star tonight, but I will take you there soon. You have my word.”
    Lydia met his gaze, a silent thank-you shining from her eyes. She kissed the top of Jacie’s head and pulled her blanket tighter around her. “Go back to sleep, honey. We have a long day tomorrow, and it’s really, really late.”
    Jacie’s answer was a jaw-popping yawn and a stretch. She lay back in her mother’s arms, snuggling deep in her blanket. “Good night, Mr. Roman.”
    “Night, Jacie.”
    A soft, snoring sound came soon after, telling Roman the child slept. He shifted his attention to Lydia. “This disease she has—”
    “Leukemia,” she corrected.
    “Yes. That. There isn’t anything more that can be done? I mean…”
    She shook her head, misery swimming in her eyes. “They’ve done everything they can.”
    “But—”
    “We’re being followed,” Max announced, taking a sharp right turn.
    Roman’s body tensed and his fangs descended. It had to be Simon or one of Svetlana’s goons behind them. “Try calling Madison again and let her know that you are bringing in Lydia Hughes and her daughter. I will be there as soon as possible. Do not stop until you are safely inside the gates. No matter what.”
    Silence.
    “Max!”
    “Understood,” the young shifter growled, meeting Roman’s gaze in the mirror.
    Roman nodded before jerking the door open. Frigid air rushed inside the vehicle in a flurry of snow and ice that was sure to freeze his precious cargo.
    “What are you doing?” Lydia gasped, gripping his arm with a strength that surprised him.
    “Stay with Max. I’ll catch up with you soon.” Roman jumped from the vehicle and into the waiting blizzard before she could respond.
    * * * *
    “Shut the door,” Max barked, maneuvering the SUV through the storm like a NASCAR driver on the last lap of a race.
    He snatched up a cell phone and pressed it to his ear. She couldn’t make out all of his words,