We weren't angels/Roberta

When Roberta was nearing the age of 3 I figured she was fair game for one of my first pranks.
We had a kitchen sink with a slow drip. In order to keep the area under the sink dry, we had a bucket positioned to catch the dripping water. As I recall, it was my duty to take the bucket out and dump it every day and then replace it back under the sink. True to my procrastinating nature, I went a day or two without emptying the bucket. When it occurred to me to check on my assigned container I found it full to the brim with water, ready to overflow. Berta happened to be standing by me when I did this bucket check and she stood close, looking at me with a vacant stare. One of those, “I don’t know what you are trying to do, but I’m going to watch you anyway” looks.
I thought this a good time to test her naiveté.
“You can see this bucket is full can’t you Berta?” I said as I began to lay the plot. She shook her head yes.
“Do you know why I am supposed to empty the bucket?” I asked, knowing she had no clue why. She shook her head no.
“If this bucket overflows, the water will get out onto the floor and we will all drown.” I said in full seriousness.
“Do you see how full it is now? I think I’ve waited too long. It will soon overflow and then we’ll all die,” I passed on to her, awaiting her reaction."
She still had that blank stare on her face. I wasn’t sure she fully understood the meaning of death, drowning or any other d-word for that matter. I could see if this plot was to take hold I had to insert some drama.
“Here Berta, help me move this bucket out so we can empty it,” I asked of her. “Be sure not to spill any water because then we will really be in trouble."
The look on her face changed from a vacant stare to instant apprehension---“be in trouble”---now those were words she could relate with.
As we struggled with the bucket, a goodly amount of water spilled out onto the floor. It was an amount I could easily mop up with a rag or two, but this was the exact moment I was waiting for. In an overly dramatic manner I said, “Oh no!! Now we are in trouble! We’ve got water on the floor and we are all going to drown!"
I stepped in the water, pretended to be overcome by some mystical power it held, and I fell to the floor trying my best to act as if I were in a life or death fight to save myself from the middle of the ocean. It was my intent to make Berta think I was drowning. It worked. In fact, it worked too well!! She broke into an hysterical shriek and began to wail, after all, she knew she was really in trouble now. Not only had we spilled some water, but I was overcome by some water demon.
It took Mom merely seconds to come galloping into the kitchen to rescue her screaming daughter. It was long enough to allow me to stand up, but not long enough to get over to Berta and stuff a rag into her mouth. Had Roberta had sufficient vocabulary to tell Mom what had happened I’m sure I would have gotten a good paddling for this prank. Mom first asked Berta what was wrong, but she just whimpered and cried a little more, offering no words at all. I’m sure I had a huge look of guilt on my face, but when Mom asked me what had happened I shrugged my shoulders and tried to look dumb (most all you know it is easy for me to look dumb). I must have had the look of a complete idiot as no discipline was meted out to me or Roberta. I think Mom was relieved no one was bleeding.She took the bucket of water out and dumped it herself.