Coral Madison's Arc

Chapter 4 of 4

Coral sat in her car outside the mall and checked her bank balance one more time. The number did not change. She had the bikini, the dress, and the walk. She had almost nothing left. The gate to the audition needed arranged transport, a car and a driver she could not pay for. The window closed in the morning. She drove, looking for any answer, and pulled into a bright car wash because she needed to stop and think. Inside the glossy bays, water sprayed over a line of cars. A blonde woman in a small bikini worked a cloth across a fender. She did not look like staff. She looked like the owner. She caught Coral staring and walked over, wiping her hands. "You're not here for a wash," the woman said. "Your car's clean. You've been parked ten minutes." "I need to get somewhere," Coral said. "A private shore. There's a gate. I can't afford the ride." The words came out before she could soften them. The woman studied her the way a buyer studies a used car. "Crystal Kline. I run this place." She nodded at the far bay. There sat a red car with a gleaming grille, long and expensive, polished to a mirror. "Detailing job. Client wants it delivered today. Down the coast, past a gated road." Coral's pulse jumped. "That gate?" "Could be. I don't do charity." Crystal crossed her arms. "I need two hands I can trust for an hour. You want a ride, you earn it. Help me finish this car." Coral grabbed a sponge from the tidy set by the bucket. She scrubbed the wheels while Crystal worked the windows with a squeegee. Water ran cold over her arms. She wiped the chrome until she saw her own face in it. Crystal said little, only "missed a spot" and "faster." Coral kept up. She knew hard work. She had done it every morning on the sand. An hour later the red car shone. Crystal looked it over, then looked at Coral. "You're careful. Most people quit at the first cold splash." "I needed this more than they did." "Get in." Crystal tossed her the passenger door. "I'm delivering it now. If your gate's on the way, you ride through." Coral slid into leather that cost more than her year. Crystal drove the coast road. The gleaming hood threw back the sun. At a checkpoint, a guard waved the luxury car through without a question. No one stopped a car like this. The tires rolled onto the private shore. Crystal stopped. "This is you." Coral stepped out onto sand she had never touched. The gate was behind her now. Ahead, white tents stood on the beach, and a crowd of polished girls waited by the water. She had made it through. But she carried a sponge's chill on her skin and no name on any list, and the Malibu girl was already there, laughing, like she belonged.