The pink petal was as fragile as the skin Kate powdered with tender brushstrokes, as delicate as her eyelashes that resisted the drugs circulating through her tired veins, visible beneath the paper-thin skin of her hands. Blowing the flower away, she put on her helmet-like blond wig, ready for battle.

Nelly Shulman’s prose was published in numerous literary magazines and anthologies and she has authored three collections of short stories. She is a member of The Society of Authors (UK). See more at nellyshulman.blog.