Page 17 of The Hive

I grabbed the shirt I had discarded as soon as she had left and cleaned myself up. I’d much rather it be my little princess’s tongue cleaning me up, but if I was lucky, and my team was as good as I knew they were, maybe I could make my fantasy a reality.

She might choose another, but we had been friends, even as children. I hoped that she would want me for her mate. I already knew that I chose her. She had the final say, but she had always been my choice.

As my breathing slowed and my head cleared, I wondered if this had all been a plan concocted by our families or if it was the Stars pulling us together. Maybe it was nothing more than wishful thinking, a fantasy that I had built up in my head that had nothing to do with reality. Whatever this draw to her was, I had a job to do and a commitment to our people. I would bring their queen back and hopefully save our world, if it wasn’t already too late.

Chapter Seventeen

Saphyra

Grey seemed to think a cold bath would help ward off my heat cycle. I was skeptical, but being able to have a bath was the height of luxury and I couldn’t have been happier about the order. The infants in the nursery were given baths, but I had no recollection of the experience. In our lessons, the keepers taught us about opulent bathhouses on the surface that the rich and famous frequented. Another one of the Imperatrix’s false promises, no doubt. But I was eager to see what it felt like for the first time in memory. Even if it was likely to be uncomfortably cold.

Ghost plugged the drain and filled the basin for me while I looked on. He didn’t seem excited by the prospect of a bath, but maybe it was more common where he was from. Baths were rare in places where water was a finite resource and what we had wasn’t even fresh, it was filtered and recycled. I didn’t think he fully grasped the significance of this event.

If a cold-water bath was used to slow my oncoming heat, it stood to reason that they installed the basin to be used in the opposite way in a normal situation. I didn’t care why. Being submerged in a tub full of water would be a new experience that I was looking forward to.

I heard the water pump shut off, and the tall, lean alpha skirted the edge of the room, keeping his distance, as he strode past me toward the door. “The water is as cold as it will go. Stay in as long as you can take it. If you need anything, call out.”

Ever since the incident in the examination room after I had come out of the vents, both of my decoys had been staying as far away from me as they could reasonably get. Hopefully, Grey’s idea would help. I found I didn’t like their standoffishness even when I knew the reason.

I shucked my clothes, dipped my toes into the deep basin, and nearly screamed. The water was frigid, and prickles scattered up my leg. Oh no, I was supposed to put my whole body in that. I frowned, not liking that idea one bit. But it was required to help this mess of a situation, so I steeled my nerves and stepped in, sinking down rapidly before I could change my mind.

The chill stole my breath. My muscles froze up as the frosty water engulfed me. Goosebumps erupted across my whole body, and I couldn’t stop the pathetic whimper that slipped between my chattering teeth.

From the doorway, I heard Ghost’s voice. “Are you ok in there, princess?”

My teeth clicked together at a rapid rate, and all I managed to get out was a pathetic chirp: “Cold.”

“I can imagine,” he said as he shifted around outside the door before sliding it open a crack.

Water sprayed across the floor as I scrambled to cover my naked self, but the door remained barely ajar and no more.

“Don’t worry, I’m not coming in. I just thought it might be easier to hear you this way.” The outline of Ghost’s hip and shoulder cast a shadow from where he sat outside the door with his back to the narrow opening.

His presence was a small comfort now that I understood his plan, but it didn’t lessen the ice sinking deeper into my bones. “Do you know how long I have to st-st-st-stay in here?” My voice shuddered and skipped on every syllable. “I only ask because I don’t-t-t-t think I can feel my t-t-t-toes and they’re already looking a little b-b-b-blue.”

His laugh crept through the opening, and even in my pathetic state, it made me smile. “Not too much longer, princess. Your core temperature needs to drop a few degrees. As you approach your heat, your body gets hotter.” I could hear the double meaning in his words. If I hadn’t been in the process of freezing solid, it might have raised my body temperature, even though that’s exactly what we were trying to avoid.

“That’s int-t-terest-t-ting-g,” I said, struggling to make small talk and to keep my mind off the icy water lapping against my skin.

“I think part of it has to do with the fact that if an omega is in distress, their body can push off her heat cycle, at least for a little while. Omegas do best when they are content and well cared for,” he said with a tenderness I hadn’t heard in his voice before.

Well, that explained why I was doing this and how the brood chambers were set up. Rumors circulated about the lavish luxury omegas were housed in. It was sounding like it was less out of the goodness of our Empress’s heart and more to promote a regular and abundant heat cycle.

I nodded, forgetting he couldn’t see me. Realizing my mistake when he didn’t go on, I mumbled a grunt that sounded relatively affirmative to encourage him to keep talking. His idle chatter distracted me from the chill seeping into my body, at least.

Based on the muffled nature of my reply he must have realized how difficult it was for me to respond. He pushed the door open a bit more. “If you’d like conversation to take your mind off this ordeal, I would request permission to come in.”

My teeth chattered so hard it was difficult to hear him. I was unsure and hesitant, but desperate for any information he might provide, so I invited him in. I kept my arms wrapped firmly around myself, but his eyes never wandered. He lowered himself to the floor and leaned against the tub with his back to me.

His position put his mouth near my ear when he turned his head to the side, and his quiet words were soft and soothing. “When we were all younger, Lex, Valyx, and myself would sometimes take trips to the Crown Peaks to hunt and fish. It’s a mountain range north of the capital. No one lives up there anymore. The threat of raids is too high, but game is still plentiful.

“One year, when our stores were low, we went up late in the cold season. The frozen lakes were starting to thaw, but we were young and thought we were invincible. So, we risked the thin ice to reach a better fishing spot. Lex was breaking out a hole with a hammer when the ice gave way and he fell through. Valyx and I were able to haul him out, but by the time we got to him, his lips were blue and he was hypothermic. We all tore our clothes off and huddled together naked in the same sleeping pallet next to the fire, sharing body heat so our stupid friend wouldn’t die. If I’m being honest, I think Valyx liked it more than he let on.”

A growl from the other room interrupted Ghost’s story.

“Okay, okay! Valyx hated every second. That’s why his dick was hard the whole time.”

There was another growl, this time louder and closer to the door.

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