a precocious and gifted child.

 And it was within walking distance of the Newkirk School
 And it was within walking distance of the Newkirk School. Our relationship had gotten richer and more loving. ??Oh. ??Michael??s body has been found??? I asked him. six feet two inches of all-American hunk. We didn??t have to Mirandize her for a noncustodial interview.?? ??I told you. smelled the sour odor of urine. swore loudly and emphatically as Jacobi sniggered. ??A few years ago she legally changed her name. But it didn??t matter. thinking how this had been a functional workspace when Jacobi??s office had been mine.??IT HAPPENED just like you said. Long brown hair. heard the tootle as he disarmed his late model BMW. waited a minute. Jacobi. and a bat flew out of the dead man??s clothes. What was done was done.?? Junie Moon??s gray eyes grew even more huge. And if I had. Smoke unfurled in fat plumes and flattened against the ceiling before curling over and soaking up the light. bright blue eyes. childlike appearance. ga-lump.

?? Junie insisted. Junie had asked for coffee and was sipping from the paper cup as I looked over her rap sheet again. too. I was starting to believe that Jacobi??s anonymous tipster was yet another crank caller - and I was seriously considering waking Jacobi and peppering him with a few choice words - when Junie looked down at the table. He was super real. Then he heard Pidge speak to Hawk. ??I helped Ricky put Michael??s body into about eight garbage bags.?? I exchanged startled looks with Conklin.??HENRY JABLONSKY??S STOMACH HEAVED. He could speak! He screamed ??Pegg-yyyyy?? as the Christmas tree bloomed with a bright yellow glare. He fixed his vision on that poker. making the night crew hunched over their desks look like they??d just crawled out of their graves.?? Rich said. ??Take your time. I told Joe the rest of it: Junie??s dazed speech about Michael Campion??s dismemberment. Should I get a lawyer? Because I think you??re trying to say that I have sex with underage boys. Hawk.?? ??Think. ??Anonymous caller using a prepaid cell phone - untraceable. six feet two inches of all-American hunk. ??But once we started cutting. Please. lied to her. This is a classic. Our rules.

 and then we piled the bags into Ricky??s truck.AT JUST AFTER MIDNIGHT. but he said no. too. He would??ve put me in jail forever. dramatic voice.?? I said.?? Conklin murmured. Maybe a little more. walked over to the bookshelf. ??The guy described what Michael was wearing - a particular aqua-blue ski jacket with a red stripe on one sleeve that Michael had gotten for Christmas. but also the top reporter on the Chronicle??s crime desk.?? Joe reached for my empty bowl and stood up. but it was Lieutenant Warren Jacobi. . ??But once we started cutting. VOOOOOOM. from Santa. And then Ricky and I talked for a long time about what to do. ??What??s your theory??? ??That the kid died in flagrante delicto. ah. She wrecked our weekend. ??What??s the prostitute??s name??? ??Her given name is Myrtle Bays. back in January of this year. Ricky was saying.

 floral. Yuki stirred the oysters on the grill. And it was within walking distance of the Newkirk School.??THE MUSCLE TWITCHING in Conklin??s jaw was the only outward sign that he was as stunned by Junie??s confession as I was. ??But once we started cutting. ??Then we??ll decide if we??re going to let you live. ??His feet were hovering above the hay. The hotline was flooded with Michael Campion sightings as photos of Michael from his birth to the present day were splashed over the front pages of the Chronicle and national magazines.?? respectful manner. The attached mug shot was of a young woman with a girlish look. and I wrote it all down. and I took off his clothes. Yours too. ??got two big old boys to come up and cut the body down from the rafters and put Mr. And then he read aloud with a clear. He was to Californians what JFK Jr.?? Junie said. ??Don??t stop. And no one was around. and a thin white scar cut through the top lip of her cupid??s-bow mouth.?? ??You got around to having sex with him. And although Joe had rented a fantastic apartment on Lake Street.?? Junie said. and in the morning his bedroom was empty. ??I unzipped the body bag .

 Hawk. ??If you want in on this. He would??ve put me in jail forever. Ivy League types. diamonds blazing in the dark? Why couldn??t I just say yes? ??What did Cindy tell you??? I asked him. reassured her. but it was Lieutenant Warren Jacobi. walked over to the bookshelf. ??Don??t take that call. fine.??THE MUSCLE TWITCHING in Conklin??s jaw was the only outward sign that he was as stunned by Junie??s confession as I was. ??no big deal. dude. And women just want to tell him everything .?? I took a deep breath and told Joe all about Junie Moon; how she??d denied everything for two hours before telling us to turn off the camera. ??I don??t know. He heard wrapping paper tear. Clean-cut. A lot of my clients ask me to tell them that. I told Joe the rest of it: Junie??s dazed speech about Michael Campion??s dismemberment. They??d said they weren??t going to hurt them.?? Pidge called out to Peggy. ??I yelled down into the dark well of that barn. Well-spoken. ?? ??It was a pleasure to burn.

 Boxer. I leaned forward. ??Have you ever seen this man??? I asked Junie Moon. and the light was soft. Conklin raked his forelock of shining brown hair away from his devilish brown eyes.?? I repeated back at her. It was a good thing that he??d read her her rights. ??It??s a tip kind of lead.??HENRY JABLONSKY??S STOMACH HEAVED. ??Jacobi??? Yuki shouted. So I had to ask myself - why was the engagement ring Joe had given me still in its black velvet box. It was wrapped in gold foil. He was a champion chess player on the Internet. He??d probably paid off his driver and escaped the plush-lined prison of his parents?? love for an hour or two. He spread the Bradbury book open on the lamp table with the span of his hand. he gave me a fake name. And while the public rarely saw Michael. She initialed the acknowledgment of rights form without complaint. Mr. ??You can??t beat Bradbury for an opening. smelled the sour odor of urine. and I??m calling her in the morning for a quote. and the Jensen salad tongs.TINY LIGHTS WINKED on the Douglas fir standing tall and full in front of the picture window. jeans.

 ??The J.?? ??I??m sure. ??Nice talk. I peed my pants. That he didn??t drop the dime until now because he has a wife and kids. ??Junie.?? ??Understand. Jablonsky watched the two shapes moving around the tree. too. ??You can??t beat Bradbury for an opening. This is a classic. the subsequent run up the coast with her boyfriend.WE SAT IN A CIRCLE around the fire pit behind our rental cottage near the spectacular Point Reyes National Seashore.?? Junie said. folded my hands on the table. He sliced through the wrappings with a knife. my God. and she told me that since she??d changed her name. a precocious and gifted child. . ??Not really. while Hawk turned his attention to Peggy Jablonsky. and that made it even less understandable. The boy in the bubble. ??It??s either tell her everything.

 Pidge hauled a large package out from under the tree. The body of Michael Campion in bloody chunks. had been to the nation. J. ??I??ve never seen Michael Campion in my entire life.?? I was desperate to crack open this one miserable lead. In the end. ??Where??s the body??? Joe asked me. Now Jacobi was giving me hope that the awful mystery would in some way be solved. Blondie. Didn??t want to get caught up in the hullabaloo. from Santa.?? I said. but sweetened with innocence. and the light was soft. what would I say? That I was a prostitute? His dad was Governor Campion. His father had become a spokesman for the American Heart Association. the blond one. It was like five in the morning.?? Junie choked out. ??I feel like a new person. six feet two inches of all-American hunk. The attached mug shot was of a young woman with a girlish look. She wrecked our weekend.?? Conklin murmured.

 And although Joe had rented a fantastic apartment on Lake Street. It was wrapped in gold foil.?? We played patty-cake with Junie for about two hours. what would I say? That I was a prostitute? His dad was Governor Campion. for years. ??I fell asleep. I pressed the doorbell. babe-catcher smile. always hoping that one day there would be a medical breakthrough and that California??s ??Boy with a Broken Heart?? would be given what most people took for granted - a full and vigorous life. warming to the subject. ??I hoped he??d start to feel better. They??d said they weren??t going to hurt them. folded my hands on the table. We made her feel safe. so that Jablonsky had to strain to hear over the blood pounding in his ears. but we??ve got a credible lead. always hoping that one day there would be a medical breakthrough and that California??s ??Boy with a Broken Heart?? would be given what most people took for granted - a full and vigorous life. and I was sure if she was Mirandized.?? Conklin said.?? Junie said. ??Naw.?? Conklin said. pleading to Conklin with her eyes.?? ?? I laughed at Joe??s imitation of Cindy. Conklin passed her the box of tissues.

 And for now. cutting me off. But I needed him. ??Go on. and a video camera affixed to the ceiling. walked over to the bookshelf. the six hundred McDonald??s restaurants in Northern California.?? I sat down. referring to the reported size of the Campion fortune. Conklin read Junie her rights when we brought her in for questioning. ??Sure.?? ??Russian Hill is a nice neighborhood for a pross. He??d also been born with an inoperable heart defect and had been living on borrowed time for the whole of his life. and while the public would never forget him. The forty-by-forty-foot open space was lit with flickering overhead fluorescent tubing. I told Joe the rest of it: Junie??s dazed speech about Michael Campion??s dismemberment.?? He took the sock out of Jablonsky??s mouth. handing me her sheet. Yours too.?? she said. did you know that? And he didn??t act like a celebrity. then patted her damp cheek. and a video camera affixed to the ceiling. and she told me that since she??d changed her name. Now Jacobi was giving me hope that the awful mystery would in some way be solved.

 ??A Birkin bag.?? he said. Both boys looked as though they??d stepped from the pages of a Ralph Lauren ad. his hair rumpled and his dear face creased with sleep. Santa brought you a nine-thousand-dollar purse! I??d call that a no. It was like five in the morning.?? Rich told her. Now Jacobi was giving me hope that the awful mystery would in some way be solved. ??He was saying. no bruises that I could see.?? Junie Moon??s gray eyes grew even more huge. hoping to hell that the guys wouldn??t smell tequila on my breath. Jack Frost nipping at your nose . He??d also been born with an inoperable heart defect and had been living on borrowed time for the whole of his life. Sarge??? as I made my way to Jacobi??s glassed-in corner office. Junie still denied any knowledge of Michael Campion. A definite no. which he would be doing as soon as they got the hell out of his home. A lot of my clients ask me to tell them that. but it was Lieutenant Warren Jacobi. I pulled out my chair again. Junie? Where is Michael now??? ??I don??t know. was already there; thirty years old. her voice trembling just a bit. now telling the story as if she were recalling a dream.

 scenting the air as they burned. Mrs. and the light was soft. Then he stooped down to where Jablonsky was hog-tied on the floor with a sock in his mouth. her nail polish the pale coral color of the inside of seashells. heard his dear love??s muffled screams as the front door slammed shut. but still. sighed and crossed her paws in front of her.?? ??Russian Hill is a nice neighborhood for a pross.?? Junie Moon??s gray eyes grew even more huge. And she??d better give me a good one. Long brown hair.?? ??I??m sure. Ms. and we had. ??You??re right. I was sure that Rich had never seen the movie or read the book.?? Hawk bent over. I pressed the doorbell. ??We??re going to open all your presents now.?? Claire paused for dramatic effect - and right then my cell phone rang. the blond one. bigger. and then he started telling me about his life.?? Rich said.

 ??It was one of my first cases in the ME??s office. I peed my pants. . and months later. bashed my knee. Get it all off your chest. did you know that? And he didn??t act like a celebrity. launching his amazing. Lindsay??? he said.?? ?? I laughed at Joe??s imitation of Cindy. expecting it to be my boyfriend. ??And so I was ??it.?? Rich said. They said this was only a robbery. that everything she knew about Michael Campion she??d read in People magazine. don??t you know that??? ??You??re going to want this. Please. He couldn??t move. ??I don??t know. shaking a small turquoise box. but we??ve got a credible lead. ??I would have been honored. tied with gold ribbon. ??I unzipped the body bag . Looking at the window like someone could be watching him.

 and Michael had passed away by then. Heat puddled under his clothes.?? ??You??re kidding me. abruptly. Kind of like the French Quarter meets South Beach. you know. ??His feet were hovering above the hay. . In English that means ??in the saddle.?? I said. ??To Peggy. ghost stories and the first annual getaway of the Women??s Murder Club forgotten. He couldn??t move. The room smelled sweet.. and then he started telling me about his life. Her eyes were moist and her face seemed pinched. So it didn??t sound exactly crazy that he??d visited a prostitute. saw the one called Pidge dangling a bow for the new kitten.?? Pidge reached for another wrapped gift. And frankly. ??What??s the prostitute??s name??? ??Her given name is Myrtle Bays. knew that the gun was in Hawk??s waistband. ??I can only tell you what he said. He sliced through the wrappings with a knife.

 But a back door was unlocked and Michael was gone.. ??It has to be a mistake. and the light was soft. ??got two big old boys to come up and cut the body down from the rafters and put Mr. it irked the hell out of me. He looked husband-y and he loved me. that they were planning to let them go. Tell. ??I can only tell you what he said.?? We played patty-cake with Junie for about two hours. Valentina. It is fated. And I was wondering if there was a chance in the world that we??d ever recover Michael Campion??s remains. Conklin and I watched from our squad car. I told Joe the rest of it: Junie??s dazed speech about Michael Campion??s dismemberment. But I needed him. ??How long did it take for Michael to die??? he asked Junie Moon. but it was Lieutenant Warren Jacobi. Jablonsky praying that they would just take the stuff and leave. and Conklin??s warning might very well inhibit her from telling us something we urgently needed to know. ??It was horrible enough hauling my size-sixteen butt up those ladders in the pitch-black with whispery things scurrying and flapping all around me - and then my beam hit the dead man. Junie Moon wasn??t under arrest. Jacobi was saying. Pidge hauled a large package out from under the tree.

 so we put him into the bathtub. his voice warm.?? ??A witness? But that??s impossible. short blond hair. took the stairs from the lobby to the third floor.?? Junie said. ??If you want in on this. Something Peggy had always wanted and had waited for. floral. God. ??The J. But he could reason. God.?? Henry Jablonsky couldn??t see the boys clearly.?? Junie Moon??s gray eyes grew even more huge. his voice warm. Michael??s teachers and school friends. her head in her arms.?? ??So Michael Campion went to a hooker. J. said. ??I??ll try. my heart going ga-lump. Now Jacobi was giving me hope that the awful mystery would in some way be solved. He was to Californians what JFK Jr.

 you know. I reached up to the video camera and switched it off.?? Cindy begged me. The hotline was flooded with Michael Campion sightings as photos of Michael from his birth to the present day were splashed over the front pages of the Chronicle and national magazines. The room smelled sweet. He heard wrapping paper tear. so that Jablonsky had to strain to hear over the blood pounding in his ears. as if by talking fast she??d get to the end of her story and it would all be over. And after all that. Get the kit-cat and let??s go.?? she said at last.?? And then she broke down. gasping for breath as Cindy and I yelled at her in unison. I??d been able to move up to the third floor of my building to give us a little more room. ??You don??t really know Dougie. she wouldn??t talk. It was like five in the morning.?? Jacobi said. That??s totally bogus. . gruff in my ear. ??Where??s the body??? Joe asked me. Lindsay got a break in the Campion case and she??s on it. Michael??s teachers and school friends. She could be on the phone all night!?? ??Lindsay? Okay.

 determined not to scare the little hooker even as she shocked me to the bone. abruptly. he gave me a fake name. and the FBI launched a nationwide search.?? Junie was crying again. Joe. The camera was loaded and running.?? Conklin said. touching her chest with the flat of her palm. ??Michael died??? I asked her.??I MADE THE ONE-HOUR DRIVE back to the Hall of Justice in forty-five minutes. the subsequent run up the coast with her boyfriend. ??Shifting from one foot to the other.?? ??No way. His disappearance was treated as a kidnapping.?? Pidge reached for another wrapped gift. ??It was called Tell Me That You Love Me. It was the most horrible thing I could ever imagine - and I grew up on a farm! I was throwing up and crying. ??He is. Peggy. not to mention an astonishing way with women.?? Henry Jablonsky??s mind scrambled. you know. ??To Peggy. His disappearance was treated as a kidnapping.

 lifting her tearstained face.?? Cindy said.?? I said. putting the rap sheet back down on his desk. ??But that never happened. ??You can??t beat Bradbury for an opening. jeans. ??And I knew about his heart. did you know that? And he didn??t act like a celebrity. Sergeant Boxer. He couldn??t move. and - I??m not overstating this - she looked like she was in the tenth grade. . it irked the hell out of me. He couldn??t speak. ??That??s where we left the garbage bags. But he could reason. Junie Moon wasn??t under arrest. her voice trembling just a bit. launching his amazing. shaking her head at the memory.?? Junie choked out. And then he read aloud with a clear. thinking he??d just gotten home and was checking in. It was a good thing that he??d read her her rights.

 pulled against his restraints.?? Rich said. ending our tumultuous long-distance relationship in favor of starting something new and maybe permanent. and I was sure if she was Mirandized. It meant that the boys didn??t want to be identified.?? I growled into my cell phone. wildfires. That??s why Joe had just moved to San Francisco from DC. Claire. Meaty hands. .?? Junie bowed her head and tears spilled out of her eyes. Boxer. Get it all off your chest. He??d probably paid off his driver and escaped the plush-lined prison of his parents?? love for an hour or two.?? Junie bowed her head and tears spilled out of her eyes. ??It has to be a mistake. no bruises that I could see. her nail polish the pale coral color of the inside of seashells. ??Don??t leave us!?? He saw the flames climbing the curtains. ??I unzipped the body bag . ??Take your time.??IT HAPPENED just like you said. Yuki stirred the oysters on the grill. I saw that Junie was no ordinary hooker.

 and no trace of Michael had surfaced. and strode into the squad room looking for Jacobi. So I had to ask myself - why was the engagement ring Joe had given me still in its black velvet box. Jacobi was saying. shook the box. ??Junie wasn??t in custody. He would??ve put me in jail forever. dude. will you drive me home now??? ??Not really. the Hermès tie. they put the book of his life aside. coming from low-watt bulbs under silk-draped lampshades. The citizens of San Francisco mourned along with Michael??s famous and beloved family. But a back door was unlocked and Michael was gone.?? Pidge read from the gift tag. took in the fire poker only yards away. then went up in a great exhalation of flame. Probably six two. Both of them. I wanted to shake her. and sneakers. We??re with you. The forty-by-forty-foot open space was lit with flickering overhead fluorescent tubing. J.?? ??A witness? But that??s impossible.

 Lindsay??? he said.?? I said. so that Jablonsky had to strain to hear over the blood pounding in his ears. will you drive me home now??? ??Not really. a twelve-by-twelve-foot gray-tiled room with a metal table.?? Claire said. ??Sometimes they like to pretend that we??re having a date. He??d come to see me!?? ??What happened next??? I asked.?? I said. warming to the subject. and Michael had passed away by then. my heart going ga-lump. I pressed the doorbell. She was barefoot.?? And then she broke down. ??That??s where we left the garbage bags. Something Peggy had always wanted and had waited for. that??s when I called my boyfriend. ending our tumultuous long-distance relationship in favor of starting something new and maybe permanent.?? I was the one who had to climb up these rickety old ladders to the top of a hayloft with only a flashlight.?? And then she broke down. It was wrapped in gold foil. Junie Moon invited us in. Luckily. Sergeant Boxer.

 but sweetened with innocence. He??d wet himself. to see things blackened and changed. ??And it pissed me off.?? she said. Junie still denied any knowledge of Michael Campion. and there were some Dumpsters back there. There was no ransom note. I??d been able to move up to the third floor of my building to give us a little more room.WE SAT IN A CIRCLE around the fire pit behind our rental cottage near the spectacular Point Reyes National Seashore. ??It??s either tell her everything. Didn??t want to get caught up in the hullabaloo. he gave me a fake name. expecting it to be my boyfriend.?? Junie was crying again. ??Not really. Blondie. but that his conscience had been needling him. he told me his real name - and I told him mine! ??He got a real kick out of that.?? Junie bowed her head and tears spilled out of her eyes.?? Henry Jablonsky couldn??t see the boys clearly. dark hair. ??You know. J. Michael.

 ??He got worse. dropped to the table. Slap her bimbo face - so I got a grip on myself.?? I said. ??or tell her nothing. with its view of the on-ramp to the 280 freeway. getting up from my chair.?? Junie said.?? ??So. He looked husband-y and he loved me. ??What??s the prostitute??s name??? ??Her given name is Myrtle Bays. ??But he got worse. He heard wrapping paper tear. awful. and we looked at each other in shock as we waited her out. Junie.?? I said. ??It??s a tip kind of lead. But a back door was unlocked and Michael was gone. I??m thinking maybe Ms. said. As Jablonsky watched. The case was still open. It was a special pleasure to see things eaten. He gagged against the thick wool of the sock.

 If not.?? Even on the tightest notch. ??Lind-say. Mrs. ??I can only tell you what he said. Junie pulled the sash of her gold silk dressing gown tightly around her narrow waist as my partner showed her his shield.?? ??You??re arresting me??? ??Yes. dude.?? ??You got around to having sex with him. ??Call my dad. Yours too. for years. because Michael never left your house. Long brown hair. dude. I was ready to give her a pass - then Conklin pushed the right button and she spilled her guts. ??We??re going to open all your presents now. ??Honey??? ??It??s getting so I feel like I know this guy. And then he read aloud with a clear. Then. What? You have something to say??? Pidge went over to Peggy Jablonsky and took the sock out of her mouth. Sergeant Boxer. Mrs. Junie started speaking quickly. a precocious and gifted child.