Page 20 of Furever Bound (Hollow Oak Mates #7)
MADDOX
T he Council's afternoon session took place in Varric's private study again, the escalating federal interest requiring discussions that couldn't risk outside surveillance.
Maddox arrived to find Elena's abandoned rental car being processed by supernatural investigators who specialized in cleaning up exposure incidents, their efficient work suggesting this wasn't their first encounter with government overreach.
"Status report," Varric requested.
"Elena's federal colleagues retreated after extracting her from the manifestation site," Callum reported from his position near the window, where he maintained surveillance of the surrounding area.
"But they've established a monitoring perimeter approximately two miles out.
Close enough to track supernatural activity, far enough to avoid direct confrontation. "
"For now," Elder Bram added with his characteristic pessimism. "Federal agencies don't typically abandon high-value assets without concrete reasons. They're regrouping, not retreating."
Maddox settled into his chair while processing the implications. Elena's extraction meant Sera was temporarily safe from direct federal interference, but the monitoring perimeter suggested they were being studied from a distance rather than being ignored.
"What's their likely next move?" Maeve asked, her tactical intelligence focused on threat assessment and response planning.
"Escalation through legal channels," Miriam replied with the tired authority of someone who'd dealt with government interference before. "Eminent domain claims, environmental surveys, health department inspections—any official justification to establish permanent presence."
"And if legal channels don't provide adequate access?" Emmett asked.
"Then they'll manufacture a crisis that requires federal intervention," Bram said grimly. "Supernatural communities have been dealing with this pattern for decades. Create the problem, then offer the solution that happens to involve extensive monitoring and documentation."
The discussion of federal tactics made Maddox’s wolf try to restrain their inner violence, especially when every strategy they described involved using Sera's abilities as justification for broader supernatural community exposure.
"They want her specifically," he stated. "Elena's documentation focused on Sera's manifestation capabilities, not general community supernatural activity. She's the prize they're trying to acquire."
"Which makes her both our greatest asset and our most dangerous liability," Bram observed with clinical detachment that made Maddox's wolf snarl internally. "Her abilities could be invaluable for community defense, or catastrophic for community secrecy."
"She's not a liability," Maddox replied, his voice carrying enough menace to make even Bram pause. "She's my mate, and she's committed to protecting this community despite the personal cost."
"Personal cost that continues escalating," Varric pointed out with diplomatic neutrality. "Her social media engagement numbers haven't decreased since the manifestation. If anything, the mystery surrounding her sudden content changes has increased audience speculation."
The reminder of Sera's viral content's ongoing impact made his stomach clench with uncomfortable awareness. Even with her accounts temporarily deactivated, secondary sharing and speculation were feeding power to Grimjaw's manifestation on a scale they'd never encountered.
"Speaking of which," Emmett said, checking his phone for the latest surveillance reports, "we had three more attempted intrusions last night.
Paranormal investigators, true crime enthusiasts, and at least one team with professional ghost-hunting equipment.
All turned away at the perimeter, but the interest isn't decreasing. "
"Outsiders drawn by viral content, federal agents monitoring from a distance, and a bone-collecting manifestation that gains power from all the attention," Maeve summarized with grim humor. "We're definitely not dealing with standard seasonal supernatural activity."
"How's Grimjaw's manifestation progressing?" Maddox asked, though he suspected he already knew the answer.
"Slower than the initial surge, but steady," Callum replied, consulting his tracker data.
"The creature appears fully corporeal for approximately four hours after sunset, then fades to partial manifestation during daylight.
It's following traditional hunting patterns, but with increased intelligence and patience. "
"Increased intelligence?" The detail caught Maddox's academic attention.
"Last night it avoided our defensive lighting arrangements entirely," Emmett explained. "Instead of testing boundaries like a mindless predator, it mapped our perimeter defenses and identified potential weak points. That's problem-solving behavior, not instinctive hunting."
The implication that Grimjaw was learning and adapting rather than simply following folklore programming made their situation exponentially more dangerous. Manifestations that could think strategically were exponentially harder to contain or redirect.
"Any progress on narrative restructuring research?" Varric asked, his tone suggesting this was their best hope for resolution.
"Some promising leads in historical accounts," Maddox admitted reluctantly. "But the successful transformations required specific community conditions we don't currently have. Unified belief, shared ritual practice, and most importantly, willing sacrifice from the original catalyst."
"Willing sacrifice?" Bram's pale eyes sharpened with interest. "What kind of sacrifice?"
"The person whose abilities triggered the manifestation has to willingly redirect their power toward transformation rather than destruction," Maddox explained, though the very thought of Sera placing herself at such risk made his protective instincts rage.
"It's not fatal, but it requires putting herself directly in contact with the entity while channeling transformation energy.
I found that tidbit hidden in the rewriting late last night. "
"But the risk to Sera would be astronomical, and we don't have enough understanding of her abilities to guarantee successful energy channeling."
"But it is theoretically possible?" Varric pressed with the kind of careful attention that suggested he was evaluating all potential solutions regardless of personal cost.
"Theoretically," Maddox admitted with deep reluctance. "But the failure rate for untrained psychic individuals attempting folklore transformation is approximately eighty percent. And failure typically results in the catalyst being absorbed into the manifestation permanently."
The clinical statistics didn't convey the horror of what absorption actually meant—consciousness trapped within a hostile entity, identity dissolved into manifestation energy, existence reduced to fuel for the very thing they'd tried to destroy.
"So we need alternative solutions," Maeve said with practical finality. "Preferably ones that don't involve sacrificing community members to untested folklore theories."
"Agreed," Varric decided. "Continue research into transformation methods, but focus on approaches that don't require direct catalyst involvement. We have approximately four days until Halloween, when manifestation activity traditionally peaks."
"Four days until the community's most vulnerable period coincides with peak attention on Sera's viral content," Emmett added grimly. "Whatever we're going to do, it needs to happen before then."
As the meeting dispersed, Maddox realized that protecting Sera meant more than just defending her from federal investigators or manifestation threats.
It meant finding solutions that didn't require her to sacrifice herself for a community she'd barely begun to understand, even if she was willing to make that sacrifice.