Victor lounged on a tree limb idly at picking his nails as he listened to the pup stumble through the dense foliage. Damn she was loud… and clumsy, he thought smirking as her shoulder bumped a tree.

It'd been a week since she'd been here and this was only their second training session. He was teaching her to extend and make use of her other senses while blind folded so she was forced to trek around blind folded to find him. So far he was not very impressed.

The first lesson went better than he expected. They were in the yard for hours exchanging blows and circling each other until her healing factor became exhausted. He acknowleged begrudgingly that she could hold her own pretty well in hand to hand, considering it was him she was fighting and he had the advantage of weight and height.

She didn't use her claws as much as he did, preferring to use his body weight against him and aiming hits at pressure points or joints that would give under her force. And she fought dirty. He still scowled at remembering her knee practically putting his balls in his stomach. After that, the session ended with her on her back and his teeth in her throat.

On her feet she was quick, on her back… not so much.

She finally came to stand under his perch after nearly 30 minutes of following his trail through the woods. She reached up and reached up and ripped the blind fold off and glaring up at him. Still pissed at the false trails and circles she'd had to endure, not to mention becoming personally acquainted with many trees and bushes along the way.

Victor regarded her with a bored expression.

"Bout fuckin' time," he said leaping onto the ground. Max growled softly.

They walked back to cabin silence, Victor in front and Max a good distance behind. She was so frustrated to discover that there was so much she couldn't do as well as he could. Earlier when he'd sent her off into the woods first it only took him a matter of minutes to find her. A few days earlier he'd given her a thorough ass whipping. To say her pride was bruised was an understatement.

Max studied him cautiously as he led the way, eyes trailing across his shoulders and down his powerful back to his muscular legs. He was unquestionably strong, but not only in body, but in mind as well. His perception and cleverness were as equally unnerving as they were impressive, not that she'd ever admit it.

The past week had been daunting and her nerves were shot. She would spend the day studying him from afar, or at least as far as she could get until he either layed down behind her for sleep, or forced her to sit next to him on the sofa. They spent most of their time in silence unless he was telling her how to cook his food or giving her orders or growling at her during training.

He hadn't touched her the way he did in the dressing room again. Something she was both thankful and curious for.

He also spent a lot of time in that room he always kept locked, and had appeared once to wrap his hand around her throat when she'd been ease dropping outside the door. Needless to say she kept her distance.

Max's eyes narrowed in thought. He was so closed off, mysterious, but at the same time he was interesting, and… alluring. Sometimes she would be so drawn to him that she'd have to stop herself from moving nearer to him. Both to refuse him the satisfaction of his effect on her and because she didn't think he'd take to it well.

If the past week and taught her anything it was that Creed was controlling, demanding and that everything was to be on his terms. Something she had trouble with accepting but made due.

"You got somethin' to say frail?" Oh, and he didn't like it when she stared at him for long periods of time.

"What do you want for dinner?" She asked.

"Doesn't matter. I won't be here to eat it," he said walking up the steps of the back porch. Max stopped and frowned.

What?

She followed him inside to the kitchen, a strange feeling of unease settling in her stomach. He was going to leave her here?

"Where are you going?" Victor snarled and turned on her, making her flinch.

"None of your Goddamn business. If it was you'd know," he snarled. He'd taken a job in Vegas. He'd be gone for at least a week and he still had some digging to do into the pup and her relationship with the Russian mob that had brought her to his doorstep. Cooper. Why was her last name so fucking familiar?

He left her in the kitchen disappearing down the hall and slamming the door.

Max sighed and looked around before slowly padding down the hall as well. She stopped in front of the locked door and studied the wood before going to take a shower.

Victor's fists almost cracked the desk when he slammed them on either side of the keyboard. Bold red letters blinked at him on the screen.

INVALID I.D.

He was so enraged the edges of his vision went blurry. He snarled before shoving his chair back and nearly yanking the door off its hinges.

The pup was standing in the living room with a book watching him with wide eyes and fear blossomed in her scent. He was ready to kill her.

Max dropped the book when he stormed up to her one clawed hand grabbing her throat and digging his claws into the side of her neck, and the other snatching her wrist. He was growling loudly and he jerked her up to slam her down on the couch pressing her against the back making her chest arch into him.

"Who the fuck are you?!" he roared. Max scratched at his hand and gasped for breath as his grip threatened to crush her wind pipe. The smell of his own blood enraged him more.

"Wha- you- tal-king-"

"Don't fuckin' lie to me. There's no record of you! No name, no date of birth, nothing. You don't fuckin' exist!" He snarled. She'd either been playing the fuck out of him or this was something else. Either way he was damned sure going to get to the bottom of it.

Max struggled and choked trying to form words. She was in a panic. Her animal was ready to bust forward and she was tempted to let it.

Victor eased his grip so she could talk.

"My name is Maxine Cooper! I swear to God!" she wheezed. Victor pushed her further into the cushions.

"Then why the fuck is there no record of you even bein' alive?"

"My-my dad did dangerous work. I guess if there was no record of me it'd be harder for people to hurt them." He narrowed his eyes. He watched her face carefully and searched her scent for signs of deception. Nothing but honesty and fear.

"If you looked again, you wouldn't find anything on him either. It's the truth I swear." Victor let go of her throat and straddled her legs, bracing his hand on the couch beside her head.

"You better start giving me details pup, and quick. I'll know if yer tryin' to bullshit me and so help me I'll paint the fuckin walls with you if I think you are," he threatened.

Max heaved trying to calm her heart rate and stroke her animal back into control.

"My dad was a marine, did four terms, two were special ops. He was released from active duty but still did Uncle Sam's dirty work while he and mom raised me." Victor watched her coldly. This was way more to the pup then he'd ever expected.

This was a whole new ball game, and he was trying to wrap his head around it.

"What happened with the Russians?" He asked. They wouldn't be on government's radar unless it was a matter of national security, which they wouldn't have drafted some ex-soldier to take care of. Max dropped her eyes to his chest and his nose twitched as sadness began to perfume from her.

"I… I don't know all the details. I figured dad expanded his services to others outside the government and got contracted to deal with one of the Russians. He either didn't finish the job or… he killed somebody important," she said.

Victor's wheels were starting to turn. He wracked his brain for some clue of what the fuck she was going on about. It'd been a few years since he'd done work for the mob but he'd had his fair share of dealings with them. One event struck him and his claws tipped her head back to look at him.

"Kozlov," he said softly. Max's eyes widened and tears gathered, ready to fall.

She was on the concrete in the rain. Her arm and leg were bleeding and she groaned as the bullets pushed themselves back through her flash to fall beside her. Blood mixed rain water, pooling under her and she pulled one leg under her in an effort to stand up.

She was soaked and in pain. One her ears had a tear in it and she put her hand to it to make sure the whole thing was still there.

The click of a gun shattered the quiet and she felt cold metal pressed to her temple.

A man stood over her with his finger on the trigger and stared at her with a cold indifferent look. She tried to make out his features through her blurry eyes but the street lamp only illuminated one side of his face. A long hooked nose and bearded mouth left no doubt he was Russian.

"Why?" she asked on the verge of tears. The man shrugged before answering her in a heavy accent.

"Because, little wolf. Your father killed the boss's brother, Ivan Kozlov. A very important man no? Boss is very upset, he vill not rest easy until all traces of Daniel Cooper cease to exist. Vat is why, little wolf."

Max trembled uncontrollably. These people had butchered her parents and tried to kill her. They'd taken everything from her, leaving her alone in this cruel world to survive on her own.

She wouldn't die until every single one of them was dead.

The fog crept over her as her animal pushed forward, howling for blood and she welcomed it. She felt her teeth lengthen and power thrummed through her as her consciousness started to drift away.

She would not die.

"And so this is goodbye, little wolf. Join your parents in hell."

She'd sprung up before his finger could tighten on the trigger. Like watching a movie on a screen she saw herself rip into him, spraying his blood on the payment and all over her clothes and her face. His screams pushed her further into her frenzy and she didn't stop ripping at him until he was unrecognizable.

When she was too tired to lift her arms she lifted herself off of him, golden eyes stared coldly at the corpse. He wouldn't be the last, but at least it looked like he was the only one.

She left him there, and didn't look back.

Max focused back on Victor's face when the memory left her. She realized he was about to cry and blinked quickly.

"Yes, Ivan Kozlov," she said lowly.

"I learned his name when the Russians sent one of their goons to try and kill me."

Victor was still studying her. The pup was a fighter, there was no denying that. He'd taken jobs from the Kozlov's a bunch of times. The Russians were a shady bunch, but they were loyal to their country and even more so to their family. Kozlov had been after her for all these years because she was a living reminder that his brother was dead.

He was just shirt of amazed that she was still alive. The only thing that had probably saved her was that they didn't know they couldn't kill her without taking her head off.

Her pain and the saltiness of unshed tears burned his nose. Any other person would've tried to comfort her, probably. But seeing as he was no good at that he started purring instead and let go of her wrist. He leaned his forehead against hers and waited for her eyes to catch his.

"What do ya want frail?" He asked. He felt resolve and determination spread through her.

"I wanna rip their fuckin' throats out," she whispered. "I want them to bleed."

Victor still watched her. He already knew he'd do it for her before she had even finished her history lesson. She would bring her Kozlov's head on a plate, or if she was ready he'd watch her do it herself.

"Alright pup," he whispered and got off her. Max stared ahead as he headed to the bedroom and let out a shaky breath when she heard the door close.

Victor emerged an hour later in a long black trench coat and a duffle bag. Max was curled in the arm of the sofa with a blanket staring into the fire. A book was open beside her but she'd given up on trying to make sense of the words. She didn't look at him until he dropped the bag and plopped down on the opposite end.

"C'mere pup," he said. Max got up slowly and crept forward a few feet before he grabbed her arm and pulled her to sit astride his lap. She went reluctantly but surprisingly didn't resist.

Max exhaled and settled against his chest laying her head on his shoulder. Right now she didn't care that she didn't really like him and had to keep her guard up. She just wanted to be held. To be touched. He was so warm and big, and his scent was so calming. Her ear pressed against his muttonchop and her eyes shifted closed.

"M'gonna be gone for a few days, a week at the most. If I'm not back in three weeks head to town and find a pay phone. Call the Runt and go back to the school." Max opened her eyes and picked her head up to look at him.

"You can go outside but don't go far, and stay out of that room I keep locked. 'F I find out you've been in there I'll tan your hide. Anybody shows up, you hide until they're gone. And another thing…" He wrapped his arms around her waist.

" 'F I get back and you ain't here, I'll hunt you down and rip you apart myself." He said dangerously.

Max nodded and he leaned into her.

"Before I go, I'ma give ya something to think about while I'm gone." Max cocked her head and opened her mouth to ask what it was but never got a chance.

Victor's mouth took her aggressively, his fangs running over her bottom lip before his toung plunged inside and tangled with hers. She whimpered as his hands began to run over her back and down to gripped her buttocks through her cotton shorts and then under the material.

She instinctively rocked against him, and slid her hands up his chest to his shoulders. That feeling was there again. The heat that threatened to consume her and drive her to something she wasn't sure she was prepared for.

Victor groaned and used his hands to keep her pelvis moving over his and he stiffened in his pants. He left her mouth to run his teeth down her neck, nipping her sharply and soothing the bites with his tongue. Max tilted her head back and moaned softly as he grinded his hips into hers.

She started panting as she tried not to be swept away by the sensations. Her animal paced restlessly back and forth in her mind, enjoying the feelings she was experiencing, but reluctant to let her guard down.

Victor's hand left her backside to slide up her side under her tee shirt, leaving a trail of fire in his wake. His claw circled the cup of her bra before pushing it up and palming the mound. Max whined when his thumb swept over her nipple and he left her neck to watch her face.

She was rocking against him on her own now and his another hand reached up around the back of her neck. Her eyes were rimmed in gold but she still had control.

"Like the way you sound pup. Like the way you smell when yer wet for me," Victor growled. Max blushed and her gaze dashed away. Before she knew it Victor's hand was down the down the front of her shorts and reaching under her panties.

The haze of pleasure cleared and anxiety mixed with the smell of her arousal. She'd touched herself before to ease the harder days when the heat would set in. No one else had ever touched her before, or at least not down there.

"Victor I-" she began quickly. He cut her off with a kiss drowning out her protest as his claws stroked her, feeling her want.

"Trust me pup," he whispered raggedly. "I ain't gonna hurt ya." He watched her as he touched her. Retracting his claws and slipping a finger inside. Max whimpered again as she felt movement inside her, and gasped loudly when his thumbed pressed her clit.

Damn she was tight. The thought that his frail was a virgin and that he was the only one to touch her like this sent a rush of power straight to his groin and he moved his hand faster.

She was his. She'd learn that only he could make her feel this way and she wouldn't find it anywhere else.

Max closed her eyes and moaned. She'd never felt anything like this. There was an inferno in her belly and it was spreading, leaving her feeling weak and she leaned against Victor for support, her lips brushing his.

He watched her as he brought to closer to the edge. He felt her tighten around his fingers and her eyes opened again to watch him in a half lidded state.

Max watched him carefully. The end was fast approaching and she dug her nails into his coat and rocked against his hand moaning again.

The damn broke with a shuddering intensity that left her bucking and trembling against him. She through her head back and groaned, vaguely aware of Victor sitting up straighter to follow her so he could watch her face as she climaxed.

Victor chuckled when she came back to herself and pinned back her ears, snuggling her face against the front of his neck so she wouldn't have to look at him.

Shame swamped her. What was she doing? She couldn't let this happen! Even though the aftermath was so… wonderful. Her body felt like a wet, rung-out rag and she slumped against him trying to get her breath back.

Victor purred as he righted her clothes and stood up with her to carry her to the door with him. She slid down his front as he let her go and tipped her head back to look at him.

"Remember what I said frail," he rumbled. "You're mine. I take care of what's mine."

Max swallowed and nodded. She refused to think about what had just happened. At least until she was by herself. The thought of being here alone was unsettling. She didn't understand why… she'd been alone for years and she preferred it that way… she didn't want him to go.

Max bit her lip and grasped the lapels of his coat. Victor grinned and claimed her mouth in a bruising kiss.

"See ya soon pup," and then he was gone.

Max stood by the window and watched the old truck disappear through the woods. When it was out of sight she locked the door and turned to walk into the kitchen.

She needed a beer.

Reviews please.