23. Vesper #2
“Of course,” she replies. “I’m not a barbarian.” She tenses. “Hold that thought, female. I must attend to business.”
And then she starts to scream.
It’s so sudden, both Locke and I duck, thinking we’re about to be attacked.
The queen starts to writhe on her pillows, her body convulsing, her dress wrinkling around her.
The men don’t move, still continuing their stroking, barely turning to look at her.
I watch, horrified, as the queen’s abdomen seems to pulse and then a white, bulbous item starts to eject from her rear . . .
What the fuck? Locke mouths to me, his eyes wide. Suddenly, I can tell he’s changed his mind about taking one for the team. Relief fills me, a feeling I don’t have time to focus on. Instead, my eyes are riveted to the white item.
An egg. She’s laying eggs, I realize. And it must be painful.
“Oh,” I say, immediately rushing forward. “Let me help you.”
Instinct takes over, and I move forward to catch the egg before it plops onto the ground where the men are. The moment it lands on my forearms, I regret the decision. It’s slimy, and it stinks, and it takes everything inside me not to start retching.
Locke stares at me like I’ve lost my mind, not coming forward to help at all.
The queen stops screaming and starts to gather her senses, adjusting herself on the pillow before wiping at her brow. She realizes I’ve caught the egg and studies me carefully.
“You did not have to do that, female. I have other females for that.” She gestures and a few of the ants in dresses appear to take the egg.
“I didn’t want it to hit the ground,” I tell her. “You were in so much pain, I wanted to help.”
Her gaze softens. “Sweet human female,” she says, shaking her head. “That empathy will get you killed in this world if you’re not careful.”
“So I’ve been told,” I grumble, trying to wipe the slime off my arms without offending her. “I, for one, think us ladies need to stick together.”
She clucks her tongue and focuses back on Locke. “About the bargain—”
“Unfortunately, I don’t think I could share him,” I say. “I’m sorry to disappoint you, but I care very much about him.”
Locke’s shoulders visibly relax and he shoots me a grateful look, understanding he has no sway in this matter. If I’d have said yes, there would have been no getting out of it without dying. I hold the control, and I can see, for the first time, his trust in me to make the right decision.
“Disappoint? No,” the queen says, and something akin to a smile appears on her face. “I understand your possessiveness. Come forward, Player.”
I do as she says, thinking she’s going to either kill me or give me some profound advice. Locke shifts to allow me center stage, but it forces him closer to one of the males who immediately moans louder and makes him tense.
The queen reaches up and touches my face.
Her hand is covered in strange little hairs that scratch my face, but I do my best not to pull away.
Her other hand swipes through the egg slime on my forearm, getting it on her hand.
I stand ramrod straight as she reaches up to my face and do my best not to jerk away in horror as she smears it across my forehead, my cheek, and then across my lips.
My stomach roils, but I just barely manage to keep my stomach acid down. Thank the Harrow I haven’t eaten today.
“You will go far, female,” she tells me, clamping her hands around my face. “Give all the males hell.”
“I’ll do my best,” I tell her, gagging a little when the putrid taste of the egg slime gets in my mouth.
She releases me and settles back, looking at me carefully.
ACHIEVEMENT UNLOCKED
You defeated the leaf cutter queen with diplomacy and have earned her favor. Congr-ant-ulations! You didn’t have to fight or fuck your way out of this anthill.
REWARD: you get to live! Oh, and this new bonded familiar.
The last line is mumbled so fast, I almost miss it. “Wait,” I say, confused. “Did it just say I get a bonded familiar?”
The queen laughs. “Oh, this should be good, female. I have never witnessed a Beast Bound receive her familiar.”
“Be careful,” Cipher interrupts. “Familiars require respect to bond. Approach with caution.”
The room is quiet. Even the males have stopped stroking themselves to watch as I stand on the dais in confusion. Nothing appears in front of me. No loot chest or something that looks like a familiar. What does a familiar even look like? Do I need to go somewhere to get it? Do I get to choose?
I blink, looking around. “Well?” I say. “Where is i—”
The brightest, white-hot pain I’ve ever felt blooms on my forearm so suddenly, I jerk, thinking I’ve just been bitten by something. In fact, when I look down at my arm, I almost expect it to have been chopped off.
The scream that tears from my throat can’t be stopped. I’m not even conscious of deciding to scream. One moment, I’m checking to see if I’m missing a limb and the next my throat is being ripped to shreds by the sound spilling from my lips.
The queen’s laughter filters through my pain, but I can’t do anything other than scream and clutch at my arm.