“Oh, I beg to differ!” she said, pivoting on her heels. “I cannot wait to see this.”
“Honey, no, wait!”
Nova chased after her and grabbed the comic, hoping that would stop Honey, but she hardly seemed to notice as she made her way back through the cathedral’s corridors.
“Honey, please! We need to stay focused. This doesn’t mean anything!”
Honey cast a smirk at her. “Careful, Nightmare. I’m beginning to think you might actually feel bad for the hostage.”
Nova winced and ceased her pleading, but she stayed on Honey’s heels, dread filling her with every step.
* * *
Adrian had never been afraid of bees before. But then, he’d never had the creatures crawling over him like tiny guards with fat, striped abdomens and needle-like stingers that twitched every time he moved. Though one of the villains had put gauze over the deep gashes in his arms, the blood had soaked through in spots, and the bees seemed particularly attracted to it, forming little clusters on the bandages.
He tried to distract himself by thinking of the creatures not as harbingers of venom and pain, but rather of little miracles of nature. He didn’t know how many species Queen Bee had control of, but he’d counted nine different varieties while he’d been sitting here by himself. Some all black and fluffy like a caterpillar. Others that were sleek and metallic blue, with a wingspan as wide as Danna’s butterflies. Black and yellow stripes. Black and red stripes. Long, narrow bodies that looked more like a dragonfly, and thick, shiny-shelled bodies that looked more like a beetle, and everything in between.
He was beginning to think his efforts at distraction might have been misplaced when he heard footsteps in the hall. Queen Bee appeared with a toothy grin that immediately set Adrian on edge again, wondering what new torture she was devising.
It was foolish, he knew, but he couldn’t help but be relieved when Nova came in right behind her. Not that she’d done anything to stop Queen Bee from cutting out his tattoos.
“I’ve just learned the most delectable secret about you!” Queen Bee said, clasping her hands in front of her face.
Nova opened her mouth to say something, but stopped herself and shut it again with a grimace.
“I wonder if you can guess what it is.” Queen Bee sat down beside Adrian, her arm pressed against his. Hairspray clogged his lungs and he angled his head away, but she didn’t seem to notice. “I’ll give you a hint. It has to do with our eerie skeletal friend, who likes to go on and on about fear and courage and bleh.” She rolled her eyes in mock disgust.
Jaw tightening, Adrian glanced up at Nova in disbelief, before glowering sidelong at Queen Bee. “Phobia killed my mother,” he said through his teeth. “It’s not a secret anymore, but, wow, I sure am glad it’s been so amusing for you.”
Rather than seem disappointed, Queen Bee gasped and pressed a hand dramatically to the base of her throat. “That’s right, he did kill Lady Indomitable. Why”—her eyes glinted cruelly—“that just makes all of this even richer, doesn’t it?”
“Honey,” said Nova, her voice cutting. “It’s not a game.”
“Oh, lighten up,” said Queen Bee, flicking a few fingers toward her. “You’ve been frolicking around the city with your Renegade friends for months now. It’s time I got to have some fun, too.” She winked at Adrian, but then her expression became thoughtful. She placed a hand on his forearm, right over his wound, squeezing just enough to make him flinch. A few of the bees deserted him and started making their way up her limbs instead. “I’ve just had a thought. Do you believe in archenemies? You know, that a hero and a villain are destined to be locked in an eternal battle forever and ever until they finally destroy each other? Because I always thought the idea was a bit too clean-edged, if you know what I mean—Ace Anarchy and your dear dad notwithstanding—but I’m beginning to wonder. Because it’s just so…” She tapped a finger against her shiny, sticky lips. “Perfect. Your own mother, the person you must have loved more than any other in this world, cruelly snatched away from you by … your very … own … creation.”
Adrian blinked at her and would have gone on blinking at her, except a hornet decided at that moment to try and climb into his ear and he let out a yelp and roughly shook his head.