Free Redemption (The Alliance Series Book 1) by Marcus Abshire

did, however, get the chance to see Peotr in action. I watched him change into a raging hulk of fur, claws and teeth to go rampaging off into a squad of Russian Spetsnaz. 
                  The Russian version of a kill or capture team.
                  One of the spetsnaz made the mistake of shooting a little girl who happened to get in the line of fire.
                  They never stood a chance.
                  Watching Peotr eviscerate the Russian soldiers as easy as tearing paper gave me a newfound level of respect for the big guy. In human form, Peotr is vulnerable. He is still tougher than any man I know, but he can be seriously hurt when he is not in bear form. All of that changes when he turns. When Peotr takes on his bear form, it imbues him with enormous strength and speed. It also grants him the abilities we all know about were animals. They are almost indestructible. There are some things that work well with certain species, like silver bullets for werewolves. That doesn't affect Peotr. His particular kryptonite is a secret. He guards it well. He has accepted his situation and loves his life. He does not want many people to know how to end that life.
                  I can't say I blame him.
                  Reaching the U.S., he was granted asylum in exchange for knowledge of Russian operations.
                  It was a good fit for him.
                  He built a cabin in the woods, tried to stay to himself. He used a dummy organization and figureheads to help set up a couple of the largest non-profit groups in the country. The two largest charities concentrated on championing environmental causes and helping children with special needs.
                  I think he felt he needed to try to make up for a couple centuries of nastiness. You don’t get to be a top official in the Russian government by being a swell fellow.
                  We drove for about four hours. It takes a while longer when driving up and down mountains with questionable roads.
                  Nathan and I settled into an easy rhythm.
                  I drove and he slept. It worked out well for us.
                  He had already eaten the meager food we had brought with us. Two M.R.E.'s, five energy bars and three bottles of water. Nathan was great at saving me from imminent death but he was hell on a food budget.
                  When I finally arrived at the cabin, I was starving. I stopped in front of the cabin’s gates.
                  Did I mention his cabin was huge?
                  I got out of the Humvee and stood in front of the gates just taking in the scenery, stretching and shaking off a little road weariness.
                  The view was amazing. For starters, the wilderness was vast, there were huge pines everywhere, subalpine firs shared the forest with white firs and large aspens helped thicken the forest with deep green needles and thick bark.
                  You could see where the sap was dripping from some of the trees. The smell of pinecones, wilderness and fresh air was amazing.
                  There were various flying insects rushing among the flowering trees, scrambling to get the sustenance to ensure their survival throughout the harsh, deep winter. Inadvertently pollenating the flowers and trees, helping the forests continued expansion of the rough terrain.
                  I could hear animals in the underbrush, mice scampering away from open areas, trying to keep out of the view of the big hawks circling lazily overhead.
                  I looked up at the gate. It was wide enough to let three Humvees pass side by side.
                  Made of wrought iron, it was black and had hand carved symbols engraved on the bars.
                  I could