Mamie's face drained of color. Her eyes rimmed red in an instant, and she threw herself into Oliver's arms, sobbing with theatrical anguish.
"Oliver, look at what she's saying to me! How can she be so cruel? My allergy is real. You're the only one who can touch me." She turned her tear-streaked face toward me. "If you hate me that much, if you want me gone, I'll go. Right now."
"I'll just spend the rest of my life alone. Become a nun."
She slid off the bed barefoot, hands covering her face, making a show of bolting for the door.
Oliver reacted instantly. He jumped off the bed and caught her in his arms, pulling her close. Then he turned and shoved me square in the chest.
"Bernice, I understand you're jealous, but you don't get to be this vicious. You'd really drive Mamie away? Condemn her to a lifetime of loneliness?"
"She has a rare condition. Do you have any idea how much she's suffered? She finally found me, the one person who can help her. You're both women. Can't you show a shred of compassion?"
I stumbled backward and slammed into the wall. Pain shot through my spine, sharp and rigid. A laugh escaped me before I could stop it.