Read Online Sea (A Stranded Novel) by Theresa Shaver - Free Book Online Page B

on the huge ship that was off in the distance. She thought she could see tiny people on the deck waving their arms. She turned to David to mention it when her stomach dropped and she had to rush to the side where all her breakfast came rushing out. David held onto her while she heaved again and again until there was nothing left. He helped her to the stairs and down below where she joined the others in their misery.

Chapter 6
    The next three days were hell for Emily and everyone else onboard. She seriously thought she would die. Nothing would stay down and even when her belly was empty she continued to dry heave. Lisa and Mark were just as bad off as she was and Mason and David had their hands full trying to take care of them. Tim had stopped trying to give them the small amount of medicine he had onboard as they just threw it up before it could even take effect. Her throat was raw , and her abdomen muscles ached like she had been punched repeatedly. It helped to be up on deck where they could see the horizon but there just wasn’t room for all of them to be up there comfortably. Those three days were a blur for Emily and all she wanted was her mom’s cool hand on her forehead.
    Tim tried to help but he had his hands full sailing the boat and teaching Mason as much as he could. It was the fourth night on the boat and the three patients were slumped around the table when Tim came flying down the stairs with a look of triumph on his face.
    “I’m so sorry I didn’t think of this before guys. I know how to get the medicine into you.” He raced into the bathroom and came out with the bottle of Dramamine.
    Mark groaned and muttered, “Save it.”
    Lisa and Emily just shook their heads. They had all tried to keep the medicine down but it just wouldn’t work.
    “No, really! I just remembered a friend telling me this trick. It will work, I know it. You guys really need to get some fluids and food in you, as well as a good night sleep. Take one of these pills and put it under your tongue. Let it dissolve fully. Don’t try and swallow it. It’s going to taste really bad but it will finally get into your system and start to work,” he explained while handing out the pills.
    Emily was willing to try anything to get this under control. She was feeling really weak and her head pounded from dehydration. The pill was very bitter and her tongue started to go numb but she kept it there until it had dissolved. After twenty minutes , she took a cautious sip of water and waited. After a few more sips, she tried a cracker and then another one. One hour after they had taken the pills, all three felt much better. They all felt drowsy but Tim wouldn’t let them sleep until they had all had a bowl of soup and more water.
    Emily barely remembered crawling into bed next to Lisa. Her only thought was to wonder what would be for breakfast.
    When Emily cracked her eyes open the next morning, she stayed perfectly still taking stock of her body. She felt clear-headed for the first time in days and knew she had turned a corner. She turned her head slightly and saw the bottle of medicine in the cup holder beside the bed, slowly reached out for it and got it open. She felt Lisa shift beside her and cautiously turned her head to see that Lisa was awake and staring at the ceiling. Neither girl wanted to move in case the sickness came rushing back. Emily slipped one of the pills into the other girl’s hand and whispered to her.
    “Put it under your tongue. Let’s just stay here until we know it’s going to work.”
    “It has to work. I can’t do that again. I don’t endorse anorexia as a diet plan,” Lisa whimpered jokingly.
    Emily laughed . It was the first time she had heard Lisa make a joke that wasn’t full of nasty sarcasm. They laid side by side waiting for the pills to dissolve and take effect. After a while they could hear someone banging around in the kitchen. Soon the smell of cooking came to them and Emily’s belly growled