Laying workers or Drone laying Queen?

[Gaztafari]

Hi everyone, I carried out an inspection today hoping to find a new Q had eventually started to lay. She was from a QC created after a swarm had left the hive about six weeks ago. I have inspected every week since emergence with no evidence of laying to be seen. I had seen the virgin Queen about 4 weeks ago (not too sure on the dates as I have left my records at the out apiary)
With the weather being pretty appaling since then, I have made only very quick inspections just to look for eggs, of which there have been none and had been unable to spot the Queen...but as I have said, I didn't carry out a thorough search for her because of the weather!
Today I looked and there were eggs on the bottom of the cells and I was thinking what a good job she had done....then I noticed eggs, single in some cells, two in others, halfway up the walls of a number of cells...and more curiously, clusters of 5 or 6 eggs on the floor of Queen cup/cells. I only saw the multiple eggs in the QC's, of which there were three altogether, all on the same frame, one of them with what appeared to be Royal Jelly. No sign of a Queen.
The question is...do I have laying workers, which would explain the eggs on cell walls and multiple eggs in a cell (but why just QC's?) or do I have a Drone laying Queen, as both symptoms appear to be there.
I'm in a quandry as to my next step. I have looked at past threads on the forum but have not seen anything directly the same as my findings re: single eggs on floor of cells and eggs on cell walls...and, multiple eggs in Queen cups/cells. I am of a mind just to unite with my other hive, which is looking good, by the paper method, as I'm not too sure on whether there would be time to get a new Q and build up a good colony for overwintering if I tried any other method that invloved re-Queening.
I have referred to 'Queen cells/cups' because the cells were at the Queen play cup size and not yet any bigger.
Any comments, advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Gaztafari]

I forgot to mention, there are five frames of Bees in the brood box, all very calm and placid. However, there was no sign of any brood in any of the frames, Drone, or otherwise, just some capped and open stores and some pollen too.

 

[BKF Admin]

If you have 2 hives then you have a little insurance if things are bad.

I would leave for another week as a newly mated queen will often lay a number of eggs in cells before she gets into rhythm.

If you then have loads of drone brood with no worker brood you will know its time to act.

 

[Polyanwood]

I think you should wait and see. Queens often misfire at the beginning. In ten days you will see whether you have drone brood from the cappings. You might be lucky and they are fertilised eggs and the workers will just tidy up for her (move the eggs so only one in each cell).

I'll keep my fingers crossed for you.

 

[Hivemaker.]

Sounds like laying workers....you could try a test comb with just a small patch of open brood and eggs.