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I forced myself to dry heave again, my whole body convulsing with the effort. It wasn't entirely fake. The combination of whatever drug she'd given me and the stress of the situation had my stomach in knots.

Glenda was pacing again, her movements becoming more agitated. “This is a disaster. I planned everything so carefully, and now I’ve poisoned you.”

“We’re not sure you’ve poisoned me.” I made my voice as weak and reassuring as possible. “This happened to me once before when I had my wisdom teeth out. The anesthesia made me really sick for hours. But I was fine the next day.”

It was a lie, but it seemed to calm her down a little. She stopped pacing and looked at me with desperate hope.

“Really? You think it's just a reaction to the medication?”

“I'm sure of it.” I let my head fall back against the pillow again. “You know me, Glenda. You know I wouldn't lie to you. This isn't your fault.”

The absolute conviction in my voice seemed to be exactly what she needed to hear. Her shoulders sagged with relief, and she wiped at her eyes with the back of her hand.

“You're so good to me,” she whispered. “Even when you're sick, you're trying to make me feel better. That's why I love you so much. You have such a pure heart.”

I had to bite my tongue to keep from screaming. Instead, I forced myself to smile weakly at her.

“I just need to rest for a little while.” I let my eyelids drift closed. “Maybe if I sleep it off, I'll feel better when I wake up.”

“Yes, that's a good idea. Sleep is probably exactly what you need.” Glenda pulled the afghan up to my chin, her touch gentle despite everything. “I'll just sit right here and watch over you. Make sure you're okay.”

That wasn't what I wanted to hear. I needed her to leave me alone, at least for a few minutes. I lay still for several minutes, trying to even out my breathing and make it look like I was falling asleep. But I could feel her eyes on me, watching my every breath.

This wasn't going to work. I needed a different approach.

I let out a small whimper and shifted restlessly on the couch. “I think I'm going to be sick again.”

“Oh no.” Glenda's voice was immediately full of concern. “Do you need me to help you sit up?”

Instead of answering, I let my body go completely limp. My breathing became shallow and rapid, and I made sure my face was turned away from her so she couldn't see that my eyes were slightly open.

“Joy? Joy, can you hear me?”

I didn't respond. I let my body stay slack and unresponsive, like I'd passed out.

“Oh God, this is bad. This is really, really bad.” I could hear her getting up from her chair, her footsteps moving around the room. “Joy, wake up. Please wake up.”

She knelt beside the couch and shook my shoulder gently. I let my head loll to the side but didn't react otherwise.

“This is not normal. People don't just pass out from nausea.” I could hear her moving away from me, and then the sound of a laptop being opened. “Okay, WebMD. Please help me figure out what's wrong with her.”

Perfect. If I could keep this up long enough, maybe she'd panic enough to leave me alone while she went for help.

I listened to her typing frantically, muttering to herself as she searched for information.

“Nausea, vomiting, unconsciousness after medication.” More typing. “Oh God, these symptoms could mean brain swelling. Or an allergic reaction. Or drug toxicity.”

I heard her get up and come back over to me. She shook my shoulder again, harder this time.

“Joy, wake up. I need you to wake up right now.”

I didn't respond. I forced myself to keep my breathing shallow and irregular, like someone who was seriously ill.

“Okay, it says here that if someone becomes unconscious after medication, the first thing to do is make sure they're getting enough fluids.” Glenda's voice was getting more panicked by the minute. “Joy, I'm going to need you to wake up and drink some water.”

She shook me harder, and this time I let my eyes flutter open just a little. I made sure to look confused and disoriented.

“Glenda?” I whispered, my voice barely audible.