"Could be several things," Walt said. "A queen that's failing, a brood disease, other stressors affecting the brood. We need to rule out what can spread. If there's a serious brood disease, you don't play hero with the box."
"Would you have to burn it?" Caleb asked.
"Sometimes equipment has to be destroyed or treated under the proper guidance. That decision isn't one a boy makes because he saw something strange in a picture. We contact the right people, test properly and follow their directions. The point is keeping all the other colonies safe."
Caleb sat very still. Only a few months earlier he had been proud that the sound Reyes box could serve another family of bees. Now he pictured that box as the possible starting point of a problem that could reach every hive in the yard. The memory of Elena Reyes handing him her old records made the fear sharper. He didn't want to be the person who had taken something entrusted to him and turned it into another loss.
Walt drove out with him early the next day. They followed a careful inspection plan, using clean equipment and keeping anything from the suspect colony separate. They documented the brood pattern and inspected the affected cells. After consultation and suitable testing, the available evidence did not support a diagnosis of American foulbrood, the highly contagious disease Caleb had feared, though Walt emphasized that a negative field result did not excuse ignoring continuing symptoms.
They continued the assessment, considering the queen's age, laying pattern and the rest of the colony's condition. The queen had apparently been older than the seller believed when Caleb acquired that particular small colony, and she was laying poorly. With other serious causes checked and no additional indications of a contagious brood problem, Walt judged that requeening was a reasonable next step. Caleb was relieved enough to feel weak, but Walt made him sit down and write out the plan before he ordered anything.
"Last time you bought a queen, you decided patience was optional," Walt reminded him.
"I remember."
"Good. Then tell me what's different this time."
Caleb opened to the page where he had written the account of the queen he lost. He explained how they would verify the colony's condition, use an appropriate introduction method with a protected cage, allow time for acceptance, and assess the queen's performance afterward. Walt asked what he would do if the workers rejected the queen again. Caleb said he would stop, review the situation and seek advice rather than keep trying the same thing harder.
"Now you sound like somebody who's learned something," Walt said.
The new queen arrived in a small ventilated cage accompanied by attendants. Caleb introduced her according to the plan, moving carefully and resisting the temptation to hurry the process. Over the next several days he checked the limited signs he could evaluate without excessive disturbance and waited for evidence that the workers were accepting her. He did not open the hive just because he couldn't bear the suspense.