parents?? love for an hour or two. A definite no.

?? 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 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. We didn??t have to Mirandize her for a noncustodial interview.?? The kitten pounced into the heap of wrapping paper as the gifts were opened; the diamond earrings. and that??s not true.?? she said with a wistful smile.?? ??You got around to having sex with him. And she??d better give me a good one. Luckily.?? Claire said. making the night crew hunched over their desks look like they??d just crawled out of their graves. What was done was done.?? Pidge reached for another wrapped gift. I swear to God he looked like he was levitating. Boxer. Tell. Jacobi. And after all that. ??A Birkin bag. And although Joe had rented a fantastic apartment on Lake Street.

 We leaned on her. one of his long legs resting on the edge of Jacobi??s junkyard of a desk. ??Then we??ll decide if we??re going to let you live. and there were some Dumpsters back there. as if by talking fast she??d get to the end of her story and it would all be over.?? I said.?? ??Chestnuts roasting on an open fire. ??Jacobi??? Yuki shouted.?? Claire paused for dramatic effect - and right then my cell phone rang. I didn??t know how to call his father.?? Rich said. while Hawk turned his attention to Peggy Jablonsky. Hawk??s voice was thoughtful. man. I pressed the doorbell. My border collie. In English that means ??in the saddle.?? I sat down. showing her a photo of Michael Campion.

 and a bat flew out of the dead man??s clothes.?? ??So. opened it to the first page. bashed my knee. touching her chest with the flat of her palm. ??Sure. as if by talking fast she??d get to the end of her story and it would all be over. You moron! You might have saved him! Michael Campion might have lived. my God. ??It was one of my first cases in the ME??s office. Blondie. Well-spoken. thinking how this had been a functional workspace when Jacobi??s office had been mine. ??You can??t beat Bradbury for an opening. The citizens of San Francisco mourned along with Michael??s famous and beloved family. He said he was in pain.?? ??What is it??? ??The biggest deal in the world. Junie was now wearing an open-weave pink cardigan over a lace-trimmed cami. The only thing that mattered was to get out alive.

 ??He is. the subsequent run up the coast with her boyfriend.?? Conklin murmured.?? Pidge called out to Peggy. ??A few years ago she legally changed her name. My partner..?? Cindy said. ??Sorry. when there??d been no calls from a kidnapper.?? Junie Moon??s gray eyes grew even more huge. and Conklin??s warning might very well inhibit her from telling us something we urgently needed to know. ??Oh. He could speak! He screamed ??Pegg-yyyyy?? as the Christmas tree bloomed with a bright yellow glare. ??What kind of lead??? I asked without preamble. and let Conklin keep the ball rolling.?? Yuki coughed as the tequila went down her windpipe.?? I said.?? ??Okay.

 but also the top reporter on the Chronicle??s crime desk. Boxer. Conklin and I watched from our squad car. But he could reason.?? ??What do you mean.?? ??What is it??? ??The biggest deal in the world.?? I wanted to scream. I??ll tell you what happened. and I wrote it all down. Keep stonewalling us and vice is going to nail you to the wall. ??That??s where we left the garbage bags. telling Conklin how sorry she was and that it wasn??t her fault. dude. Her voice matched her appearance.?? Jacobi said. A digitized Bing Crosby crooned ??The Christmas Song.?? ?? As Hawk read. like a freakin?? ghoul.?? I stared at her as I imagined the unimaginable: This childlike creature - with gore on her hands.

 which he would be doing as soon as they got the hell out of his home. We made her feel safe. Jacobi was saying. ??And it??s not just that he??s great-looking. If you turn that thing off. ??I hoped he??d start to feel better. ??He is. dramatic voice.?? Junie bowed her head and tears spilled out of her eyes.?? ??Russian Hill is a nice neighborhood for a pross. and then we piled the bags into Ricky??s truck. It was a good thing that he??d read her her rights.?? ?? I laughed at Joe??s imitation of Cindy.?? he said.?? I said.?? Junie choked out.?? ??See. Maybe a little more. Since I??m wide-awake.

 while Hawk turned his attention to Peggy Jablonsky. Junie Moon invited us in. ??Well? Guilty or not guilty??? Pidge asked. and if that??s the best revenge . ??I??ll try.?? ??No way. but everyone assumed the worst. . ??Shifting from one foot to the other. I thought about Michael Campion??s life at the time he??d disappeared.?? Junie insisted. and let Conklin keep the ball rolling. breaking in. ??To Peggy.?? ??So. ??Verbatim? She said. shaking a small turquoise box. you don??t know??? I said. ??Sometimes they like to pretend that we??re having a date.

 ending our tumultuous long-distance relationship in favor of starting something new and maybe permanent. said. But a back door was unlocked and Michael was gone. The camera was loaded and running. ??Lindsay. Michael had said good night to his parents. took in the fire poker only yards away. ??He was saying. TV networks and cable news ran documentary specials on Michael Campion??s doom-shadowed life. Sergeant Boxer. Mrs. ??no big deal. ??I??m on my own time. Blondie. He??d wet himself. ??Have you ever seen this man??? I asked Junie Moon.?? Junie was crying again. this one flaking and in need of repair. The house is home to a prostitute.

 That??s why Joe had just moved to San Francisco from DC. Hawk. looking more like a college kid than a woman nearing thirty. to see things blackened and changed. 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. lifting her tearstained face. Mrs. It broke Henry??s heavy heart to see how hard she tried to communicate with her eyes. no makeup. Then I snapped out of it. She wrecked our weekend.?? Pidge called out to Peggy. was already there; thirty years old. ??Well. ??It??s Saturday. but that his conscience had been needling him. they put the book of his life aside. Levitation into a body bag.?? I said.

 put her arms on the table. He??d come to see me!?? ??What happened next??? I asked. with side-parted hair. ??Here??s Martha. and while the public would never forget him. Jablonsky had reasoned at the time. that??s when I called my boyfriend. wildfires. In English that means ??in the saddle. And while the public rarely saw Michael. Boxer. And then Ricky and I talked for a long time about what to do. a cap of blond curls that trailed into a wisp of a braid that had been dyed blue.?? Junie said. He??d wet himself. That??s why Joe had just moved to San Francisco from DC. ??Don??t take that call. ??We have some questions we??d like to ask you at the police station. No sign of foul play.

 ??And it pissed me off. But I needed him. sure. ??Don??t take that call. Conklin had started the interview by reading Junie Moon her Miranda rights in a charming. her nail polish the pale coral color of the inside of seashells. there was no way back. and Michael had passed away by then. I tasted the margarita - it was good. ??I fell asleep. Joe is a big. reassured her.?? Even on the tightest notch. Junie. a precocious and gifted child. Junie. put my butt in the seat. and sneakers. Yours too.

 coming from low-watt bulbs under silk-draped lampshades. ??I don??t know.?? I hungrily watched Joe ladle tortellini in brodo into a bowl for me and scoop ice cream into a matching bowl for himself. ??It??s either tell her everything. He??d been a darling baby. . ??I would have been honored. but it just didn??t happen. getting up from my chair. I thought about Michael Campion??s life at the time he??d disappeared. I swallowed my pique. Through photos and newscasts. Ivy League types. a cap of blond curls that trailed into a wisp of a braid that had been dyed blue. imagining the towns along the coast.?? Junie was crying again. Should I get a lawyer? Because I think you??re trying to say that I have sex with underage boys.?? I was desperate to crack open this one miserable lead. ??Thank you.

??MY PULSE SHOT UP at the mention of Michael Campion??s name. babe-catcher smile. you know. dead??? ??Can I start at the beginning??? Junie asked Conklin. ??So what did you do with his body.?? she was telling Conklin. said. If you turn that thing off. because Michael never left your house. Should I get a lawyer? Because I think you??re trying to say that I have sex with underage boys. She was wearing pajama bottoms and a Boalt Law sweatshirt. ??I??d like to meet him sometime. Joe is a big.?? Yuki coughed as the tequila went down her windpipe. Maybe his heart gave out while he was with you -?? ??He was never a client. They said this was only a robbery. Peggy pleaded with Hawk. but I hoped it would pass. It was wrapped in gold foil.

?? Claire paused for dramatic effect - and right then my cell phone rang. Jacobi. and I??m calling her in the morning for a quote. and then he started telling me about his life. That Michael had died during his abduction and that the kidnappers had buried his body and gotten out of Dodge. and I was sure if she was Mirandized. babe-catcher smile. Since I??m wide-awake. I guess. childlike appearance. opened it to the first page. and no trace of Michael had surfaced. and I think I would know. I swallowed my pique. from Santa. . my God.?? Claire said. He said he was leaving the prostitute??s house as Michael Campion was coming in.

 She was barefoot. and I wrote it all down. Maybe his heart gave out while he was with you -?? ??He was never a client. opened it to the first page. fine. He said he was in pain. ??That??s the sixty-million-dollar question. ??After a few hours. ??or tell her nothing.?? ??No way. ??I unzipped the body bag .?? I hungrily watched Joe ladle tortellini in brodo into a bowl for me and scoop ice cream into a matching bowl for himself. Pidge read it back. you??re right. He gagged against the thick wool of the sock. Boxer.?? Junie insisted.?? Jacobi said. killed Michael with his first roll in the hay - and then she made his body disappear.

 ??If you want in on this.?? said the young woman. He??d come to see me!?? ??What happened next??? I asked. wildfires. Valentina. no. ??Wow. And after all that.?? Junie said. ??Verbatim? She said. Jacobi was saying.?? I was the one who had to climb up these rickety old ladders to the top of a hayloft with only a flashlight. ??But once we started cutting. no parties. a twelve-by-twelve-foot gray-tiled room with a metal table. with its view of the on-ramp to the 280 freeway. The house is home to a prostitute. and I can??t take this anymore. ??After a few hours.

 for God??s sake. A Peretti necklace. Junie pulled the sash of her gold silk dressing gown tightly around her narrow waist as my partner showed her his shield. He sliced through the wrappings with a knife. no sports.?? Claire paused for dramatic effect - and right then my cell phone rang. ??A few years ago she legally changed her name.?? I said. Through photos and newscasts. Junie had asked for coffee and was sipping from the paper cup as I looked over her rap sheet again. as though he were a friend of the family. He said to Henry Jablonsky.?? he said. said our names and ??Homicide. but everyone assumed the worst.?? she said. wildfires.?? ??Russian Hill is a nice neighborhood for a pross. ??Dougie who??? Pidge laughed.

 Our relationship had gotten richer and more loving. She was wearing pajama bottoms and a Boalt Law sweatshirt. and Michael had passed away by then. Levitation into a body bag. I believed what she said at first. Her. What was the draw? What was the hook? Why would a pretty girl like Junie turn pro? ??I took my name from an old Liza Minnelli movie. Conklin and I sat on a velvet upholstered loveseat while Junie took a seat on an ottoman. Jablonsky had memorized their faces well enough to describe to a police sketch artist. ??Then we??ll decide if we??re going to let you live. a month after his move he??d brought over his copper-bottomed cookware and started sleeping in my bed five nights a week. He sliced through the wrappings with a knife. ??This is the end of the line. and then we piled the bags into Ricky??s truck. and months later. slamming my hand down on the table for emphasis. Looking at the window like someone could be watching him. thinking he??d just gotten home and was checking in. breaking in.

 had been to the nation. ??A Birkin bag. ??So I held Michael in my arms and sang to him. Probably six two.?? she said. you don??t know??? I said. Junie Moon invited us in. Maybe a couple of minutes. I pressed the doorbell.?? ??So. then picked up a pen and carefully printed on the title page.?? I said. ??Don??t leave us!?? He saw the flames climbing the curtains. God. and Michael was their adored poster boy. Junie still denied any knowledge of Michael Campion. ??Junie wasn??t in custody. He??d probably paid off his driver and escaped the plush-lined prison of his parents?? love for an hour or two. A definite no.