immeasurably small

This word means quivering as from weakness or fear.

"...took an almost superhuman effort to get into her car and drive to the edge of the forest, keeping tight control of her body, keeping tight control of her _______ body for just one more minute..."

To take delight in.

"She _______ in getting dressed up and in painting her lips and nails scarlet."

The sun went down at last, and the gray day imperceptibly merged into the gray dusk.

Imperceptible means...

Something ______ is notably unusual. If your friend starts saying strange things you don't understand, ask her why she's suddenly become ________.

"Or divert some of the money intended for a car loan."

Divert means to

"All her senses were keener too, she could hear, even from some distance away, infinitesimal sounds which, before, would have gone unnoticed: a lizard scurrying through the leaves, an invisible mouse making a twig crack, an acorn falling, a bird landing on a bush..."

Keen means

not clearly understood or expressed

"...she pored over the bodies of birds, fascinated, pondering the softness of the flesh behind their feathers..."

Ponder means to

"She would come back tomorrow, as early as possible, in her lunch break, or during the morning; yes, she would find a pretext to slip out during the morning."

Pretext means

impulse means

Sheen

"She recoiled, stunned, when she heard the reply."

Recoil means...

"She started visiting the shop at night, when it was closed and no one would see her, in order to gaze at the coat through the window, and each time it brought her more joy, each time it was brighter, more fiery, like red flames that did not burn, but were soft on her body, like a thick, ample, enfolding skin that moved when she moved."

Ample means...

"Her legs were agile, her feet nimble."

Nimble means...

"...she could sense atmospheric changes long before they happened: the wind turning, a rise in humidity, an increase in air pressure that would culminate in rain."

Culminate means...

This word means a broad range of related objects, values, or qualities.

"a whole ___ of smells that came to her on waves through the air, and which she could draw together or separate out, sniffing the wind, imperceptibly lifting her head."

This word means not fake or counterfeit.

"...keeping tight control of her tremulous body for just one more minute, before that slam of the door, that first ___ leap on feet free at last, shaking her back and her tail, sniffing the air, the ground, the wind, and, with a howl of pleasure and joy..."

This word means evil in nature or effect.

"She burst out laughing and began to dance, waving her bloodstained hands in the air, feeling her own blood rise, as if some tempestuous inner force had been unleashed, a ___ force that she could transmit to others, a plague or a curse..."