Page 7 - Size Zero Preview

8 SIZE ZERO
in the blackness. But handcuffs weighed heavy on her wrists.
She kicked up her legs, and a chain rattled. She was shackled
in the room.
The smell of body odor and hairspray seeped under the door.
Her head throbbed, and her fingers traced over the blood pooled at her hairline.
When she tried to scream, her breath got trapped inside her chest. Her rib cage heaved up and down.
Stars flitted before her eyes, marring the darkness. But there was not even a glimmer of light dancing on the broken glass embed- ded in her neck. An air vent kicked on with a rumble behind her. As the cool gust blew over her body, she realized she was naked.
Three minutes until showtime.
A thumb stroked her shoulder in lurid circles. She wasn’t alone. Ava shrieked, but the commotion outside made it impossi- ble for anyone to hear her.
Two minutes until showtime.
The door cracked open just enough for Ava to see someone holding a Visage dress bag, the perfect size to fit her body.
She thrashed and writhed, hands tied in front of her chest. When she tried to stand, her body was crushed to the floor. A nee- dle found a vein in the crevice of her arm, and a numbing warmth shot through her.
A slimy leather coat slid onto her back as she tried to fight through the nausea.
She had never smelled anything worse than that cape—a decaying animal splashed with gasoline, the fabric moist against her naked skin.
When the coat’s hairy hood dangled securely on her head, she was pulled to her feet, and the door opened to the runway.
Sweet tones of Vivaldi’s “Winter” played, accompanying the ballet of champagne glasses and hors d’oeuvre that sashayed through manicured fingertips. Ava held her breath as the room spun, Crevier crystals blinking mockingly at her in Technicolor.
There was the runway, glimmering and calling to her like a skywalk.