The surrounding bees were looking uneasily between me and Ambrosia, like children of arguing parents. The sheer awkwardness of it all made me take a step back.
"We can't decide something like that on the spot, anyway…"
Ambrosia's posture relaxed.
"You are right, we can't. We should arrange a search for mites in the quarantine village and in the uncapped larvae cells immediately. But… The longer we wait, the more we undermine our own efforts."
I took in a deep, calming breath and slowly took it out. The forest was as loud as always around us, full of rustling of leaves and distant cries of unknown beasts. The wind brought scents of grass, damp soil, and bees.
"You are right, Amby. But we can't rush into it, either. Otherwise, we might as well just kill those pupae ourselves—that would be an effective way to stop the mites, too. But we don't want it, don't we?"
I sent Ambrosia a smile—not one of my best ones. It only made her frown.
