South Mountain Pack Ch. 14

As soon as they got in the laundry room, they took off their shirts, noticing the stains on their collars. "No wonder Mr. Miller was so mad at us," said Vin as he began to laugh. "I'm surprised Phil didn't let us know."

"It's on the side towards the back, he probably didn't see it," Dom said with a shrug before he started to laugh too. "At least it's a light color and not bright red."

"Well Gentlemen, I'm going to bed, 4:30 comes bright and early," said Frank with a grimace as he got up and stretched. "Ric and Rocco, the blankets and pillows are in the hall closet, Luc the crib is set up for you in the family room."

"Vaffanculo Francesco, (Fuck you Frank)" said Luc in a haughty tone as the men started laughing loudly.

At 4:50, Frank, Joe and the Italians were at the pool house when the Moretti's and Rossi's joined them. The boys, except Damian, would jog around the side yard and do light weight work since they had the game. "We've got to do this at a better time, I hate waking up so fucking early," said Carlo glaring at Frank and Joe.

"You whine worse then Luc," said Frank with a smile as he punched his mates cousin on the shoulder. "Let's start, we're going to increase our pace, I want to do the ten mile run in forty-five minutes." The men groaned but didn't say anything as they followed Frank and Joe into the woods while the boys started their jog.

After their workout, everyone showered and dressed; the girls in their cheerleading uniforms and the boys in their school uniforms plus ties. After breakfast, the boys loaded the SUV's with their equipment and at 8, they were pulling into the Millers driveway. Lorenzo and Gianni pulled their trucks to the side of the driveway since they would be riding with the others. Carlo said, "Todd, you need these decals on the back windows of the SUV's, it shows you're from SMP. Did you fill both tanks like Frank said?" Carlo handed him SMHS decals with the picture of the husky howling in front of the full moon. Todd nodded and put them on the back of the four new SUV's they purchased earlier in the week. "Where are the girls?"

"Inside with Holly and Mom fixing hair bows, adjusting uniforms and other shit I have no clue about," Todd answered as he rolled his eyes. "We've been up since 5 and it's been a madhouse in there, Dad and I made sure we stayed out of the way." He looked at Sophia and Maria and thought of his daughters as he ran his hands through his hair and said to Frank quietly, "Are you sure it's safe Frank? If you say its safe then I'll feel better."

Frank nodded and said quietly, "Shenandoah Pack...well I wouldn't call them allies, they're isolated and only follow Alpha Council laws because they have to." Seeing the look on Todd's face he shrugged, "They're not enemies either, I'd say they were indifferent and we have protocols we follow when we leave our territory. Anthony and Carlo don't ride in the same vehicle in case something happens and since I have both future Alpha's with me, Ric and Rocco will be with us for increased protection. Your daughters will be well protected, we've taken extra precautions and paired the girls with strong fighters, this week we have the benefit of having the Italians here." Frank stopped talking as he saw Damian and Annie pull in the driveway.

"Is there anything you guys don't think of?" asked Todd.

"We plan for everything and hope nothing happens," said Frank with a thoughtful expression as he watched Damian pull off to the side of the driveway.

"DOC GAVE ME CLEARANCE NOW LET'S KICK SOME ASS," he shouted as he ran over to Maria picked her up and spun her around before kissing her loudly on the forehead as she giggled.

Everyone started to laugh at his excitement except for Alberto who was scowling. He pulled her gently into his side as he scented her and whispered, "I don't like the scent of another male on you, even if it is your brother. I want you to make sure you wear my jacket or my sweatshirt so you carry my scent today." Maria remembered the conversation the night Anthony made his declaration and knew Alberto needed reassurance. She crooked her finger at him and when he bent down, she scented him and whispered in his ear, "Mine." As he straightened up, he looked down at her, his eyes half-lidded as he growled out, "Three years." Knowing what he was talking about her face flushed bright red and she giggled.

Hearing a commotion, everyone turned to see the Miller girls run out of the house chattering loudly as Nana Ellen and Holly followed making sure the door was locked and alarmed. It was the first time the Carlucci boys had seen them in their uniforms and their mouths dropped open, they were used to seeing it on their sisters but on the Millers it looked completely different; the blue pleated skirt with white trim ended 3" above the knee and the blue short sleeve top with white decals came to the top of the skirt. They had matching ribbons in their hair, white ankle socks and white Nike cheerleading shoes with a blue swoosh. The four youngest had on SMHS white t-shirts with blue decals and matching blue capris. Vin and Dom moved immediately to their mates pulling them into their sides and scenting their necks, both boys glanced at Todd before placing a quick gentle kiss on their foreheads and Todd narrowed his eyes as Matt and Phil laughed.

"Fuck," Lorenzo said as his amber tinted eyes raked Erin from head to toe with a predatory gleam. Seeing the look he gave her made goose bumps raise on her arms and she smiled tentatively at him and when he growled her eyes widened as she took an involuntary step back.

"Fuck me sideways," echoed Damian as he zeroed in on Caitlin. "Every guy at Shenandoah Pack is going to be staring at the six of them and I don't blame them. She's fucking gorgeous...I mean they're gorgeous." Caitlin, Erin, Kelly and Aislin jumped up and down in excitement when Sophia, Maria and Gabby ran up to them and he said with a snarl, "Her skirt is too fucking short again and her top is too tight. What is with her and wearing children's clothes?"

"Her outfit isn't any tighter or shorter than your sisters," said Alberto as he stared at Maria. Even though Doc wouldn't give her clearance to cheer, she still wanted to wear her uniform when she sat in the stands. He glanced at Ant and saw him staring at Sophia with an intense look on his face, "What's the matter Ant?"

"Damian's right, everyone will be staring at our intendeds. I hope I can control my wolf when we see others staring at what's ours," he replied as his eyes flashed amber. "He's already on edge knowing his mate is leaving the safety of our territory and it won't take much to provoke him."

Marcus walked over and nudged Ant with his shoulder, "When you're not with her, we'll be by her side. Like we always have been and always will be." Anthony nodded never taking his eyes off his mate.

Frank and Joe looked at the sheet of paper in Joe's hand before handing it to Carlo who nodded before saying, "Fiona, Maeve, Gino, Enzo and Dante will be with me; Fallon, Shannon, Paulo, Michael and Luc with Todd; Maria, Kelly, Alberto and Marcus with Joe; Gabby, Aislin, Angelo, Gianni and Gus with Carmelo; Caitlin, Erin, Lorenzo, Damian and Salvatore with Matt; Brianna, Morgan, Vincent, Dominic and Victor with Papa Mike; Sophia, Anthony, Ric and Rocco with Frank."

"We won't be riding together," Sal whispered to Gabby as he frowned.

Gabby giggled and pulled out her cell phone and whispered, "We'll text each other. Next week when we go to Parr Ridge, Gus won't be here, so hopefully you'll be able to ride with us then. And I remembered to bring your hoodie."

"Load up," announced Carlo as he and Gina moved to their SUV and minutes later they were on their way to the training center. The girls did most of the talking and in Matt and Phil's SUV, Sal sat in the third seat between Erin and Caitlin as all three texted Gabby. As they pulled in the parking lot Joe, Frank and Carlo counted the cars and Carlo said, "Vinnie and Ed, where protocols followed? Did you have any problems with the seating arrangement sent out by Frank and Joe?"

"All protocols were followed, we had no problems with the seating assignments, and everyone has their vehicle placements. Everything is ready Alpha," said Vinnie. "I've also been to the safe room as requested, all the pregnant females, young ones and little ones are secure. George is there with Daisy and Jade, so he is in charge since he is the highest ranking Beta."

"Let's go," Carlo said and waited for his spot in the fifty plus vehicle caravan.

Fiona and Maeve turned and watched as each vehicle took their place. They were in the third seat with Gina so she could get to know them better. Seeing the questioning look on their face, she said quietly, "Frank and Joe give each vehicle a position; they alternate between vehicles that carry females and those that don't. If anything happens, the vehicle filled with males will do everything possible to make sure the vehicle behind them with females escapes. If you notice in front of us and behind us we have extra vehicles; that is because Carlo is Alpha, and Mr. Frank's car is the same way because he has Anthony and Sophia."

"How long of a drive is it, Ma'am?" asked Fiona as she continued to look out the back window. "I'm sorry for not looking at you when we're talking, but I don't want to miss anything, since we've been here we haven't gone many places."

Gina smiled at the girls enthusiasm and her eyes met Carlo's in the rearview mirror, both thinking of their daughter. "It'll take one and a half to two hours depending on traffic. As soon as we enter Virginia, we'll be met by their Betas who'll escort us to their compound, 'Hillside House'. The Pack doesn't allow any humans onto their compound and prefer to keep themselves isolated in the mountains."

Everyone was quiet for several minutes as Maeve and Fiona continued to stare out the windows, before Dante said, "We cannot wait to see the boys play football again. We have the NFL package on satellite but it is not the same." He turned and asked the girls, "Have you ever seen a game in person?"

They shook their heads and Maeve said quietly, "No Sir, on Sundays when we were allowed to see Daddy we'd watch the Cowboys and he explained the game to us, he always said if we understood football then we would understand men. I always hated the end of the game because they'd take us away again and sometimes we wouldn't see Mommy and Daddy for days, maybe even a week. Daddy always said he wished we could do more when we were together but they wouldn't let us."

"They had guards at the door of the room so nobody would leave and we had to be real careful of what we said because they could hear everything," added Fiona with a shudder as she played with a fold in her t-shirt. "We weren't allowed to use our bond to talk either, Alpha Davis and Charles forbade it but Daddy could do it, but he didn't do it often because he got real bad headaches and it made him sick."

"He would do it on our birthdays or if we were really scared, he would tell us he loved us," Maeve said in a voice so quiet they barely heard her. "We tried not to be scared because we knew Mommy and Daddy would be worried but sometimes we couldn't help it." Gina reached out and held their hands squeezing them reassuringly as she looked at the appalled expressions on the others faces.

"Especially at night, in the dorm room," Fiona said quietly as her eyes became glassy. "The guards would stand there and watch while we fell asleep. I didn't like that at all and sometimes if I woke up in the middle of the night they'd be standing next to our bed staring at us." Carlo opened his mouth to say something but closed it when he saw Gina shake her head. His hands gripping the steering wheel were white and he glanced at Dante and saw his hands were fisted in his lap. "Daddy told us to hold each other tight when we were scared and if we felt we were in danger he'd come to us even if he got in trouble again...but we didn't want to see Daddy get hurt again, so we didn't let him know how scared we really were."

"After Morgan was hurt, Daddy said he'd find a way for us to leave, even if we had to run away. Daddy said he and Papa Mike would always protect us and make sure nothing happened, but we were still scared," Maeve said in a quavering voice. Gina let go of their hands and put her arm around their shoulders bringing them close to her as she surrounded them with love and protection as their Alpha Female, a woman and a mother, the girls instinctively responded as they burrowed into her side. "Now we don't have to be scared because Alpha Carlo, Madame Gina, Alpha Dante, Uncle Matt, Uncle Phil plus Mr. Frank and Mr. Joe are watching out for us."

"And the Pack Maeve, don't forget the whole Pack," added Fiona as she reached over Gina's lap to hold her sisters hand.

Enzo added quietly, "We promise to protect you no matter what. More importantly we'll teach you how to protect yourself so you never have to be afraid again, but we'll always be there for you." A smile broke over his face as he continued, "According to Hope, it only counts if we pinky swears." He held his pinky out and Gino did the same, both girls started to laugh as they pinky swore. Enzo gave a big sigh as he said, "At least I didn't have to wear a tiara." At the girls confused look he said, "Alpha Carlo, if I project what happened, can you send it to the girls?" Carlo nodded, hoping it would cheer them up and within minutes the girls were laughing loudly as was everyone in the SUV.

As soon as the first vehicle crossed the bridge from Brunswick, MD into Virginia they pulled into a gas station parking lot where four black Chevy Suburbans were waiting. Gina said quietly, "Alpha Carlo, Mr. Joe, Mr. Vinnie and Mr. G will get out and be officially welcomed onto the territory. Mr. Frank won't get out because if anything happens, he needs to get Anthony and Sophia out of harms way. We don't expect anything to happen, but it's the rules Frank and Joe put in place. Carlo may be Alpha but when it comes to security he always listens to them."

Seeing the intense look on the girls faces, Gino said, "Mr. G's full name is Ed Giovanni, but he likes everyone to call him 'Mr. G' because he says he doesn't want to be named after a horse." The girls looked at him in confusion and he smiled as he said, "You know the old TV show with the talking horse? That was Mr. Ed." The girls started to giggle and Dante was roaring with laughter.

Moments later everyone was back in their vehicles and the caravan started again, but with two new lead vehicles and two new vehicles bringing up the rear. "Alpha Carlo Sir, May I ask you a question?" asked Maeve quietly.

"Yes, Maeve you can ask anything," he smiled at her in the rear view mirror.

"Madame Gina said they welcomed you onto the territory and Daddy said something about having to get permission or it would be trespassing or something," she said with a frown. "How did we get here without getting in trouble?"

"Your Daddy and I discussed the best route to get here and I called those Alphas and informed them you were joining my Pack but were already under my protection. I told them to offer assistance if asked, but you were to be left alone otherwise," Carlo answered. "I didn't tell them there were ten underage females; I only said it was a large family." The girls nodded satisfied with the answer and Carlo started pointing out interesting things as they passed through several small towns.

Lorenzo and Damian were slouched in the middle seat of Matt's SUV as they listened to Sal, Erin and Caitlin talk and laugh as they continued to text Gabby. Lorenzo was getting madder and madder by the minute and he couldn't figure out why. Finally, he couldn't take it anymore, "What the fuck are you doing Sal?"

"Nothing, we're texting Gabby," he replied as he glanced at his cousin. "Why?"

"First, you're annoying the hell out of me. Second, you're sitting entirely too close to them, I bet the Gabster wouldn't like to see you rubbing all over them. Third, you're annoying the fuck out of me," Lorenzo said with a growl which caused Erin and Caitlin to glance at him.

Sal flushed as he said, "I'm not rubbing all over them, all we're doing is texting Gabby. And where would you like me to sit? On your lap? You're losing your fucking mind Lorenzo."

"Will the two of you shut the fuck up? I'm trying to get in the zone and all I hear is blah blah annoying me, blah blah texting, blah blah fucking annoying me, blah blah giggling, blah blah blah blah blah. Let me tell ya something, BOTH of you are annoying the fuck out of me, you're killing me here, you're totally blowing my concentration with the incessant whining," Damian said grumpily as he opened his eyes and looked at Lorenzo and Sal. "I'm about ready to ask Matt and Phil to tie me to the luggage rack to get the fuck away from you two. It'll be windy, but at least it's not raining and I'll be able to work on my tan."

"Fuck off Damian," retorted Lorenzo as he turned to stare out the window seeing Erin in the reflection. His wolf became restless again, pacing back and forth and Lorenzo assumed it was because of the upcoming game but his eyes never left the beautiful girl he was watching.

In Rose's SUV, Frank tried to concentrate on driving but kept glancing in the rear view mirror to keep an eye on Anthony and Sophia in the third seat; Anthony's arm was around her shoulder and her head was pressed against his chest. They were both aware anything they said could be heard so they were talking through the bond which infuriated Frank; he wanted to hear what was making Sophia giggle and Anthony have a smirk on his face.

"Leave them alone. Don't you remember what we were like after you finally made your declaration?" Rose asked as she smiled at her mate.

"That's exactly why I won't leave them alone," replied Frank with a snort.

Paulo's hands flew over the laptop keyboard as he talked with Holly about the items the bakery would carry, operating hours, use of local products, but she didn't have an answer for the most important thing...a name for the bakery. Within thirty minutes he had a mockup for their website and the Millers were astounded as he explained he pulled pictures off the internet but after the build out was done, his mom would take pictures and he would replace them.

Joe was trying to keep Alberto distracted and focused on something other than Maria by talking to him about his plans for college and starting Moretti's Fire Protection Services. Every time Alberto leaned down to whisper in Maria's ear, Joe would ask another question forcing Alberto's attention towards him.

Annie was glaring at him and said, "I know what you are doing Giuseppe and you have to remember how you were after you made your declaration."

"That's exactly why I won't leave them alone," Joe replied with a snort.

In Papa Mike's SUV Vin, Dom and Victor were teaching the Millers Italian and listening to them with their soft Texas drawl was making everyone laugh.

"We're ten minutes out," Carlo announced to everyone. "Keep your eyes and ears open and remember not to speak of the upcoming threat. I know I don't have to say this, but protect the girls at all cost." Maeve and Fiona looked out the windows as they drove down a paved road through a dense forest of trees. "We're here," Carlo said and the girls focused their attention out the windshield.

They drove through a single lane gate and the girls turned to see a chain link fence with barbed wire atop it disappearing into the woods, after they drove another 500' they passed another gate with a similar chain link fence. The road widened to two-lanes with driveways branching off leading to log cabin style homes tucked into the forest. After driving for several minutes, there was a sharp bend in the road and Carlo pulled into a clearing next to a two story house with cedar siding and dark green shutters. He turned to the girls and said, "This is the Alpha's house, the rest of the Pack live in the log cabin homes we passed. The large building to the right is the training center, the official welcome will be held there and later we'll have lunch there between games. Stay close and don't go wandering off, when you have to use the restroom make sure you take at least one adult with you." The girls nodded as they looked around with anxious yet excited expressions.