Dangerous silence. A lonely start.

Katia had spent the better part of two months guiding movers and construction of her building. By dawns early light till twilight she kept moving, cleaning and working. First thing she would do is scrub the windows of her first floor. The graffiti ranged from impressive to a five year old doing finger paints for the first time, but it did not discourage her or sway her in any way.

She was, however, rather terse that there were a few scuffs upon the new glass as if someone was determined to break it. Graffiti scrubbed off with enough effort. Scuffs would take more to buff out and a special type of sealant would have to be used to fill in the scrapes. She could tell that someone was trying to break into the basement door and the door to the stair well to her apartment. All she could figure is they hadn't gotten the memo of her moving in. Or perhaps they had, and weren't to happy. Tough shit. Two days from opening day, she wasn't about to give up now. She was too excited, had managed to find a good staff and cooks even. Yet, she was lonely.

Anton had dropped off the large pet German Shepard, Gunnar, and took off back to Russia to deal in her father's affairs. Leaving her to focus on her projects and move in on her own. Anton was the closest thing she had to a friend in this area; deceptive as he was. Yet she had no one other than Gunnar to share the excitement with.

Tonight would be her first night staying in her apartment since she bought the building. As twilight hit she moved up to her apartment to gather Gunnar for a walk. Coming back and hovering near the door that lead to the stairwell while she watched Gunnar mark around the small grassy alley that could be considered a small yard between four buildings. This was also perhaps the latest she stayed after twilight as well.

Gunnar made his way up to her and rested his head upon her knees as she set upon the back steps of her building. She rubbed at her sore bare arms and paused only a moment before moving her hands to either side of Gunnar's face and rubbing at his jowls.

"All done? Good boy." She said praising him. She leaned in and kissed his forehead. His head would turn sharply to her right looking out to what would have been the street that ran just out front of her building. A low growl formed in his chest and his body went tense. Her pale blue eyes turn and squint slightly at a figure that leans against the wall. It is large, male and even though he is down wind of her she can smell the heavy scent of brute as it crept towards her on the cross breeze.

She reached down beside her and grabbed the leash she had brought with her to keep Gunnar in check on their walk. After she latched it she moved to stand and turned to her door while she dug in her pocket for the key. Gunnar's growl became more vicious and when she looked up the figure had moved closer. She paused, a slight aggravation started to ebb it's way into her mood. He had moved close enough that the light above her door lit his features well enough to see.

His hair matted in locks that traveled down his back to just above his hips. There was a hint of gray that streaked through that and his beard. His eyes had a light golden hew, and were focused upon her with an intensity that she hadn't experienced before.

"Can I help you?" She asked, as she gave Gunnar's leash a soft pull to be sure he would not lunge at the man. If she had been any other woman, human even, she probably would feel a sense of danger or foreboding. But for now she as simply tired and not in the mood to chase off another meth head. As she had spoke, the corner of the man's mouth started to curl upwards. Though his eyes showed no true friendliness.

Suddenly she was glad she had waited till after Gunnar's walk to take a shower, as she got the impression this might turn messy. A tank top and cut off jeans gave her more movement than those dresses she planned to wear once her restaurant opened. "You should leave now, sir. You do not know what you are getting into." She spoke and gave him a flat toned warning.

Most of this day he paced back and forth in his apartment. Waiting for the sun to set and to watch as the woman traveled back to her truck. He attempted to focus on other dealings and goings on in his territory. There were a few new faces new to the area and he felt that growing need to let them know who really ran this part of the City. He had spent too much time upon this building already. Though it was no wonder he wanted it so bad.
The building stood five levels high. Aside from the museum in the other corner of this territory, it was the tallest. Able to have a clear view of everything in his domain. Both the Museum and the Brass Hound were built by the same company. Strong stone walls that stood for years before Blake had even been born. One could say he's had his eyes upon the place since they could focus outside of his own little window. Though the Brass Hound was technically in the worst part of the City at the moment, It still seemed to reach out to the twin across the way.
As Blake's eyes glanced out to the building once again he paused. The woman and her dog where no where to be seen. Had he missed them while in thought? He leaned in against the broken window catching the slight chilled breeze across his bare chest. He could just make out the black SUV parked on the top floor of the garage. She was staying late tonight, perhaps. This might be his chance. He moved over and slipped on an old black T-shirt and then his leather jacket. By the time he got down to the sidewalk he paused watching as the woman moved over and sat down on the back steps of the building.
Slowly he made his way over to the corner of her building. She seemed to be alone so he took a moment to glance up at the camera focused on the window in the front. Hopefully the boy he paid to black out the cameras did his job already. It was then that he caught sign of movement from the corner of his eye. The damn dog was there, and off it's leash. He hesitated a moment then leaned against the corner. The smell of wild jasmine lifted upon the wind and caught his senses off guard. There was something woodsy smelling about it.
When he heard the dog start to growl he glanced from the corner of his eye and watched as she moved to unlock the door. He moved closer in just a couple of paces with his long legs. As she spoke the smile started to creep along his features.
"Oh? I'm hear for payment. You're behind by at least four months now." He said taking a relaxed stance and looking up at her door. "Think it is about time to evict you. Less you want to pay up on those past four months and the next two to come." His voice gruff as he watched the dog for a moment. "No pets allowed either. You'll want to watch him." He gave back in his own warning. His eyes left the dog, taking their time to travel up her athletic build to her pale blue eyes. "How about it little white dove?"

Watched the man for a moment then gave a soft sigh as she continued to unlock her door. When he spoke of payment for the past four months on top of the next too she pushed Gunnar into the stair well and closed the door behind him. She heard him scratch at it a few times and let out a sharp bark. She turned facing him and slipped the keys into her pocket. Standing her ground elevated above him, but only by a foot. He was a tall bulk of a man, she could tell that even with his leather jacket on.

"Oh.. You are landlord then?" She asked, a condescending tone ebbing its way into her speech. She rested her hands upon her hips for a moment. "Funny, I could sear I hold title. In fact, I believe I am up to date on all my payments and even the land. Or are you the person who keeps damaging -my- property?" Her eyes narrowed slightly. She watched as those hints of a smile faded quickly. His expression was easy to read. His ears lowered, his golden hued eyes became more intense as the pupils became larger. She was tired. Her muscles all over her body ached and she wanted to go curl up on her couch with Gunnar watching old movies. This man was keeping her from doing such things. Gunnar let out a growl and a bark as he scratched at the door again. "As for the dog, he stays. You are trespassing and upsetting my dog.. I do believe that is grounds for me to call the police, da?" She offered a new threat.