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SADIE

Day Ten

A nurse gently shakes my shoulder to wake me. I groan and squint at the wall clock.

Five a.m.

Without a word, she slides an IV needle into my arm with practiced speed.

“You’ll need to stay in bed for most of today,” she says, taping the line down tight. “Ahead of your next Truth Serum session.”

I blink up at her through my lashes. “For how long?”

“They’ll probably keep you under for ten, maybe twelve hours,” she says. “This drip’s just to keep you hydrated.”

“Is being under that long even legal?”

She gives me an “of course not” look, but she doesn’t dare say the words.

“Someone will bring your breakfast tray soon,” she continues, adjusting the machine beside me. “I suggest staying in this bed unless you’re using the restroom.”

“What about taking a bath or shower?”

“You can take a bath.” She flashes a brief smile. “But a quick one. Try not to get the drip machine wet.”

“I won’t.”

“Oh,” she adds, reaching into her bag. “Dr. Weiss wanted me to give you this.”

She sets a thick hardback copy of The Count of Monte Cristo onto my mattress. A special collector’s edition with sprayed edges and glittered embellishments.

“He said chapter seven is his favorite.”

“Noted…”

She finishes securing the IV and slips out just as the roaming camera hums into view. It circles once, clicks, then glides off toward the kitchen for its morning loop.

I wait for thirty seconds, then another minute, wanting to make sure I’m alone.

Then I crack open the book to chapter seven and scan the lines slowly, deliberately, waiting for his usual pattern to emerge.

My personal cell phone is under a towel in your bathroom.

I downloaded Dateline for you to watch.

Use the headphones I gave you so no one will hear…

My pulse skips a beat.

I close the book gently, then turn my head toward the bathroom.

The IV machine beeps once, low and steady, reminding me I’m still tethered. Still under observation.

But not entirely powerless.

Not today.