16. Calvin

CALVIN

A fter the mortification of being caught in the act by Polina's own guards, I finally get dressed and manage to calm down enough to go back out onto the dance floor. The ball is still well underway, though Majordomo Elza and Florian are nowhere to be seen. A bad sign, obviously, considering that gnawing in my gut telling me that those two are up to no good.

I finally find Polina standing by one of the banquet tables, shaking hands and receiving well wishes from dignitaries and other bees as they walk down the line. All female, of course, which is still so strange to me. I spot Ser Beatrix on the dance floor, spinning Sylvie around and around and around. The smaller bee fae has a smile on her face as she laughs, and Ser Beatrix, who I could have sworn had only one expression, is smiling, too.

Aw. Happiness looks good on her. Bet she'd just love hearing that, though.

"Caretaker!" Polina calls out, and I whirl back around to find her waving at me. "Come here and meet some people."

Polina is so polished and composed, she doesn't look like a woman who was being ravished just moments ago. Meanwhile, I'm pretty sure I put my bowtie on incorrectly, and there are still smudges on my glasses, not to mention the lipstick stain on my throat I couldn't rub off.

Shit.

I approach Polina and the three tall, slender bees in their elegant black and gold dresses, taking care not to step on their trains.

"Caretaker, welcome to our hive at last," one of the women says, inclining her head toward me. Where Polina is soft, this woman is angular. Actually, come to think of it, Polina is the only bee fae I've seen so far who is this curvy. Must be a queen thing?

Nevertheless, I smile at the woman, nodding back and raising my glass of amber-hued clover mead. "Thank you, you honor me," I say, trying to sound as dashing as one of those men in the Regency shows on television. The warmth of Polina's body is distracting, and I can't help but move closer to her just so I can bask in more of her light. One of her hands brushes against mine as the others busy themselves with looking around the room.

"Isn't this wonderful, Evie?" she asks, no doubt trying to distract everyone from looking at our fingers, which are now entwined. "Evie is the queen from the Pine Crest Hive. She traveled all this way with her entourage. Their own Caretaker has never visited them before, so when she got word that you were here, she knew she couldn't miss this occasion."

I nod along as I listen to the music play softly in the background, and scan the room for any sign of Majordomo Elza or Florian. It's as if they've vanished.

"Meeting you is going to be the highlight of my senior years," Evie says, smiling at me. I smile back, but I doubt it reaches my eyes. "You are so handsome and young, too. You must not be over the tender age of twenty."

I clear my throat, take a sip from my glass, then say, "I'm, uh, I'm actually thirty-three."

Evie and her bee entourage all gasp.

"But you look so much younger," Evie says, patting me on the hand.

"Thirty-three isn't considered old," I say.

Evie gives me a knowing look that reminds me of my late grandmother. "Oh, sweetie," she tuts, patting me on the hand again.

Polina chuckles as her hand squeezes around mine. I squeeze back and look down at her, smiling. She's so lovely. So kind. I know she'll make a great queen. There's no doubt in my mind about that. I lean over to whisper in her ear when, suddenly, a scream rings out from somewhere within the crowd. I jerk my head up in time to see several bees running toward us.

"Your Highness!" one of the bees cries as she runs across the dance floor, clutching the skirts of her dress.

Polina frowns, places her glass down on the table, and steps forward. "What is it? Answer me immediately," she says as the bee stops in front of her, panting.

The bee trembles as her mandibles click furiously. Ser Beatrix and Sylvie are at our sides at once, as though they teleported there by magic. I didn't even see them move through the ballroom.

The woman bends over her knees as she tries to catch her breath. "T-The yellowjackets have invaded the colony, Your Highness."

Polina's hands fly to her mouth. And then the room descends into chaos.