Page 120 of The Hive Queen

The Hive Queen’s long tongue snakes forward, reaching for him just as Anny bursts out of nowhere. Her jaws clamp around that tongue, and she whips her head to the side, ripping it out of the monster’s mouth.

Darius surges up from behind, grasping one of those buzzing wings. Fire floods his hands, burning it to ash.

She whips toward him, fingers hooked to tear into him.

Heart pounding, I sprint forward, my baton opening in my hand. The spells within hum to life, and I reverse it in my hold, slamming the pommel into the Hive Queen’s side at full dispersal.

The blast throws her to the ground, and Amalia swoops in with a bloodthirsty yell, driving the Shard straight through the monster’s chest and pinning her to the ground like a giant bug.

Golden blood sprays everywhere as the Hive Queen writhes, shrieks pouring from her gaping maw.

Amalia twists the spear handle. “Why won’t you die?”

“Here.” Darius yanks the spear out, drives it through the creature’s forehead, and the shrieking stops. “Always go for a headshot when you don’t know where the heart is.”

“Is it dead this time?” Savannah asks as she helps Elizabeth out of the wall.

Trent nudges one of the spindly legs. “Maybe we should stab it a few more times.”

“Leave the Shard where it is until you burn the body and everything should be fine,” Darius says.

“You just want to burn something,” Flint mutters.

He grins. “Hard to resurrect from ash.”

Marc’s warm hand slides over my back. “But not impossible.”

I breathe heavily, the mask making me claustrophobic as I struggle to fill my lungs. “When we get home, we’re updating that book from the Library. It’s missing so much important information.”

“We’re going to need something to drag the body out.” Sharpe looks around. “And as soon as we make sure there are no more handmaidens hiding in the walls, the fire users can burn everything in this cave. Leave nothing behind.”

Darius grins. “Finally.”

“There are tarps in Elizabeth’s backpack,” Trent volunteers, turning to the older woman, who shrugs out of the straps. “We can create makeshift gurneys.”

“I’m not going near that thing.” Johannsson shudders and steps back. “I’ve seen enough horror movies to know better.”

“Don’t be so afraid, man.” O’Hara pats him on the back. “We’ll make a hunter out of you yet.”

Johannsson blanches, setting Trent and his team into amused chuckles.

I glance over our group and notice someone missing. “Where’s Amalia?”

“Halfway to the demon plane, most likely.” Flint points to the spot where the stinger had fallen, where only a pool of golden blood remains. “She needs to claim her bounty before word gets out that the JTFPI took down the Hive Queen.”

Sharpe looks around at all the eggs. “Well, I’d say she has a good head start. This is going to take a while.”

I pull out my phone. “I’ll call in the transportation team to collect the handmaidens.”

And I’ll make one other call while I’m at it.

Amalia may claim her bounty, but the rest of Clearhelmwillknow who to thank for ridding the world of this monster.

evening news

- Sharpe -

The paramedics haulaway the sleeping handmaidens while we search the cave and burn every trace of the Hive Queen’s presence, making sure no eggs are left behind.

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