Chapter 61 - Lydia's Arrival

Lydia took a deep breath. Once she got to Lake Tahoe, she was able to hitch a ride with some hikers who dropped her off at the edge of the White Raven's pack grounds. Lydia thought it was lucky that Josephine's spy Patrick had such a big mouth because she knew exactly where to go once she got to Lake Tahoe.

Now she just had to get up the nerve to walk the long road she assumed would lead her to the packhouse. As she was trying to build up her nerve, she heard a vehicle behind her and turned around. A large black jeep slowly came up the road and stopped when it reached her.

"Are you lost?" The large man behind the wheel asked her. She assumed he was a wolf but couldn't tell.

"No. I need to speak to Kaleigh." Lydia spoke quietly, hoping the man was a pack member and knew who she was talking about.

"Are you the human she told us was coming?" The man didn't look much older than Lydia, but he had a deep gruff voice. What caught Lydia off guard were his words. How did they know she was coming?

"Yes, I believe so." Lydia was hoping it was her they were talking about.

"Well, hop inside, and I'll take you to the packhouse." Lydia gave a little sigh of relief. Maybe this would all work out after all. She opened the door of the jeep and got inside. The man behind the wheel was even bigger than she thought. He seemed like a giant, and she was so small that she felt like a child next to him.

"Thank you, sir, for taking me the rest of the way." Lydia smiled at the man nervously.

"No problem, I was heading there anyway. I'm Vince. What's your name?"

"My name is Lydia." Lydia kept sneaking glances at the man next to her. He was very handsome with long black hair, dark tan skin, and eyes so dark they looked black. Through his tight t-shirt, she could see he was very muscular. She had seen a few werewolves and other shifters, so she knew they were typically more attractive than the average human. However, this man was like a god.

Vince felt the little human's eyes on him, and he smirked. She was a pretty little thing for a human. Vince wasn't mated and thought it was too bad Lydia wasn't his mate, but he couldn't pick up a scent on her. He mindlinked Dominick that he was bringing the human to see Kaleigh.

As they reached the packhouse, Lydia was looking forward, and her eyes became huge. Josephine's mansion looked like a shack compared to this place. It was Spring, and there were flowers blooming everywhere. Lydia felt like she had just come to a magical place from a child's fairytale. She heard Vince chuckling next to her.

"Welcome to White Raven, Lydia." Vince spread his arms wide inside the jeep and accidentally bumped Lydia's arm. He felt a tingling feeling at the slight contact that surprised him. What was that? Vince brushed it off and jumped out of the jeep.

Lydia was still staring at the packhouse when she saw a man and woman come out the front door. The woman was easily the most beautiful woman Lydia had ever seen, with long wavy light reddish hair and pale skin. The man next to her was another god like Vince, only he was darker, and the contrast between the couple made their beauty even more prominent.

Lydia felt very inadequate with these werewolves around her. She was just a small average human that looked like chopped liver compared to them. She decided to tell them what she came here for and then leave. Lydia was too intimidated by this wolf pack.

Kaleigh watched the young woman in the jeep and smiled. She could tell she was nervous, so she decided to approach her alone. Kaleigh mindlinked Dominick and said she was going to ask Lydia to go for a walk with her. Dominick nodded at his mate before kissing her forehead.

Lydia watched as the woman started heading her way with a smile on her face. She didn't know why but she felt calm all of a sudden and decided to get out of the jeep.

"Hello, are you Lydia?"

"Hi. Yes, I'm Lydia. Can I ask how you know my name and how did you know I was coming?" Lydia was worried that Josephine had somehow known she was coming here.

"My name is Kaleigh. I had someone let me know that you were on your way and that you didn't mean us any harm. Would you like to go for a walk with me?" Lydia didn't know what to think. This was the Emerald Stone witch that she had heard so much about? She wasn't like any other witch she had ever seen.

"Yes, Kaleigh, thank you." Lydia walked clumsily next to Kaleigh, feeling very awkward, especially with the man who must be her mate watching her like a hawk.

"Lydia, I understand that you were with Josephine, but not willingly, is that right?" Kaleigh wanted to encourage Lydia to talk but not make it sound like she just wanted to pump her for information.

"Yes. Someone from her mansion kidnapped me a year ago when I got out of foster care. I knew a few days ago from her actions that she was going to kill me, so I decided it was time to get away. I just tried to stay hidden while I was her servant. When I left her mansion, I wanted to come and see you and let you know some of her plans." Lydia stopped talking to see what Kaleigh said.

Lydia looked around, and they were going down a path not too far from the packhouse. There were flowers of every kind on each side of the path, and ahead she could see where the path ended at a massive garden. There was a large fountain in the middle and several benches placed sporadically.

"I'm glad you got away from her, Lydia. Black magic witches are not good for anyone's health. I promise you that our pack is nothing like that. You can stay here with us for as long as you want." Kaleigh led Lydia over to one of the benches and sat down.

"You would let me stay here? Why? I'm not a werewolf." Lydia looked around and thought about staying here, at least until she knew what she wanted to do.

"You don't have to be a werewolf to stay here. Right now, we have witches and werebears here, too. We could find a job for you here if you would like. What kind of work do you know how to do?" Kaleigh already had an idea of what she wanted Lydia to do if she decided to stay with them.

"I cooked and cleaned at the mansion. When I was in foster care, I did a lot of babysitting my foster siblings." Lydia would have done anything Kaleigh asked her if it meant she could stay here for a while. It was very peaceful.

"I have a proposition for you, Lydia. If you stay here, I would like you to be my assistant. I know you have not done anything like that, but I'm sure it won't take you long to catch on. My current assistant Nikki recently mated to my cousin, who will be the next Alpha of Pale Moon Pack. So after we defeat Josephine, she will leave with Riley, and I will have no assistant. If you accept the job, then I will have Nikki start training with you. We will also have a room in the packhouse set up for you. What do you think?" Lydia was staring at Kaleigh with her mouth open.

"You would trust me to be your assistant? I don't know anything about wolf packs or being an assistant." Lydia couldn't believe that Kaleigh was going to give her a real job and not a servant job.

"Yes, I trust you, Lydia, because you came here when you ran from Josephine, so that shows me you have a good heart. I know you don't know anything about wolf packs, but that's okay. You'll learn as you go. I promise we are very easy to get along with." Lydia started crying. For the first time in her life, she felt like she was her own person.

"Thank you, Kaleigh. I promise you that I will do a good job. Kaleigh, I came here to tell you that Josephine plans on coming on the next full moon, and she plans on targeting your twins first to get to you." To Lydia's surprise, Kaleigh smiled at her.

"I know, we were already told, but don't worry, we know how to take care of Josephine and the rest of those witches. Lydia, I have a question for you. When you first got here, no one could pick up a scent on you. Werewolves are usually very good at identifying people by their scent. Are you using something to block your scent?" Lydia blushed.

"Yes. When I was living at Josephine's mansion, she had a bunch of rogue werewolves there. I was worried that one of them would attack me because they constantly threatened the humans in the mansion. One of the other servants gave me a spray that blocks my scent. I used it when I ran away so none of her beasts could pick up my scent when they realized I was gone." Kaleigh started laughing.

"I see. Well, that makes sense why we couldn't smell anything. I suggest you use that when the battle begins with Josephine as well. We will keep you hidden in the packhouse because I don't want her to know you're here. Are you ready to see your room and freshen up? I will let you rest today and then start shadowing Nikki tomorrow. Will that work for you?" Kaleigh stood up and waited for Lydia to do the same.

"Yes, Kaleigh. Thank you for being so understanding and giving me a job and a place to stay. I didn't know what I was going to do after I left here." They started heading back toward the packhouse, where Kaleigh had already mindlinked some of the staff to prepare a room for Lydia.

"You're welcome, and I think you will like it here. You never know what the future may hold for you." Kaleigh and Lydia were both smiling as they returned to the packhouse. Kaleigh had a good feeling about Lydia, and now she had someone to take Nikki's place when she left. Everything was falling into place. Now they had to get past the hardest job of all, defeating Josephine.