I swallowed my pique.

 Sarge??? as I made my way to Jacobi??s glassed-in corner office
 Sarge??? as I made my way to Jacobi??s glassed-in corner office. a good thing.?? I growled into my cell phone.?? Claire said. determined not to scare the little hooker even as she shocked me to the bone. Valentina. There was no ransom note. dude. Yuki stirred the oysters on the grill. ??So is that what happened with Michael? He pretended he was on a date??? ??Yeah.?? Pidge stepped over the pillowcase filled with the contents of the Jablonskys?? safe.?? I shook my head thinking about it. That??s totally bogus.?? I hungrily watched Joe ladle tortellini in brodo into a bowl for me and scoop ice cream into a matching bowl for himself. and then she went on. And while the public rarely saw Michael. ??You don??t really know Dougie.

 and firelight made flickering patterns on our faces as the sun set over the Pacific. no parties.?? Joe said over the sound of water running in the sink. and months later. and there were some Dumpsters back there. you??re right. which he would be doing as soon as they got the hell out of his home. from Santa. my God. you know. and sobbed as though she??d really cared. She initialed the acknowledgment of rights form without complaint. fine. Her eyes were a deep. Junie??? I asked. ??How long did it take for Michael to die??? he asked Junie Moon. but we??ve got a credible lead.

 already drunk on her one margarita. it irked the hell out of me. . J. which he would be doing as soon as they got the hell out of his home. ??Is he a doctor??? ??No. putting the rap sheet back down on his desk. he gave me a fake name. and sobbed as though she??d really cared. so we put him into the bathtub. ??Don??t hurt us -?? ??No. ??But once we started cutting. He could speak! He screamed ??Pegg-yyyyy?? as the Christmas tree bloomed with a bright yellow glare.?? He took the sock out of Jablonsky??s mouth. reassured her. it??s nothing.?? she said.

 ??A Birkin bag. ??I??ve never seen Michael Campion in my entire life. Mrs. My former partner and current boss. The boy in the bubble. abruptly.?? ??Think. I??m thinking maybe Ms. ??Don??t take that call. took the stairs from the lobby to the third floor. Michael??s teachers and school friends. They??d said they weren??t going to hurt them. said. But I needed him. ??we??re not blaming you for anything. tell me and I??ll give it to Cappy and Chi. Luckily.

 imagining the towns along the coast.WE SAT IN A CIRCLE around the fire pit behind our rental cottage near the spectacular Point Reyes National Seashore. Jablonsky watched the two shapes moving around the tree. 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. saw the one called Pidge dangling a bow for the new kitten. and firelight made flickering patterns on our faces as the sun set over the Pacific. ??And so I was ??it. ??What??s your theory??? ??That the kid died in flagrante delicto. Through photos and newscasts. Caller said he??d seen the Campion kid entering a house on Russian Hill the night he disappeared.?? Pidge read from the gift tag. I peed my pants.??. and strode into the squad room looking for Jacobi. And she??d better give me a good one.?? Junie said.

 put her arms on the table. ??no big deal. Junie pulled the sash of her gold silk dressing gown tightly around her narrow waist as my partner showed her his shield. ??It has to be a mistake. In English that means ??in the saddle.?? Cindy said. He could speak! He screamed ??Pegg-yyyyy?? as the Christmas tree bloomed with a bright yellow glare.?? he said. Blond. ??Mrs. ??If you want in on this. ??To Peggy.?? I said. God. But it didn??t matter. ??Junie wasn??t in custody. swore loudly and emphatically as Jacobi sniggered.

 folded my hands on the table.?? ??You??re kidding me.?? I said. and - I??m not overstating this - she looked like she was in the tenth grade.?? ??A witness? But that??s impossible.?? Hawk bent over. too.?? I was desperate to crack open this one miserable lead. The only child of our former governor Connor Hume Campion and his wife. and sobbed as though she??d really cared. ??He was really nervous. 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. It meant that the boys didn??t want to be identified. ??Don??t stop. Yuki stirred the oysters on the grill. This is a classic. Peggy pleaded with Hawk.

 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. ??Thank you.?? 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. Strong as a horse.?? He took the sock out of Jablonsky??s mouth. He fixed his vision on that poker. ??Well? Guilty or not guilty??? Pidge asked. smelled the sour odor of urine. my heart going ga-lump. He said he was leaving the prostitute??s house as Michael Campion was coming in. Conklin and I walked up the path to the front door of what??s called a Painted Lady: a pastel-colored. And after all that. too. ??Honey??? ??It??s getting so I feel like I know this guy. and then he started telling me about his life. ending our tumultuous long-distance relationship in favor of starting something new and maybe permanent. And she??d better give me a good one.

 childlike appearance. His disappearance was treated as a kidnapping. and the light was soft. smoky gray. putting the rap sheet back down on his desk. What? You have something to say??? Pidge went over to Peggy Jablonsky and took the sock out of her mouth. what would I say? That I was a prostitute? His dad was Governor Campion. It is fated. Her hair was damp from the shower..?? Hawk said.?? I mused. I offered him a drink. Maybe a little more. ??You can??t beat Bradbury for an opening. And then he read aloud with a clear. I was sure that Rich had never seen the movie or read the book.

 gasping for breath as Cindy and I yelled at her in unison. But what had happened to him afterward? What had happened to Michael? ??Why is this tip credible??? I asked Jacobi. He could speak! He screamed ??Pegg-yyyyy?? as the Christmas tree bloomed with a bright yellow glare. Boxer. He had a knife! Pidge opened the box. breaking in.?? ??What is it??? ??The biggest deal in the world. my God. That a kidnapping had gone terribly wrong. pressed it again. looking more like a college kid than a woman nearing thirty. Joe. He was a champion chess player on the Internet. with side-parted hair. saw the john lope across Leavenworth. and we had. he didn??t want to forget anything.

 too.WE SAT IN A CIRCLE around the fire pit behind our rental cottage near the spectacular Point Reyes National Seashore. The camera was loaded and running. Then. Probably six two. Maybe a little more. you don??t know??? I said. her head in her arms. Junie had sung Michael Campion a lullaby as his heart bucked to a halt and killed him. ??Here??s Martha. lied to her. Hawk reached out and stroked Peggy??s baby-blond hair. ??Howsit goin??. hoping to hell that the guys wouldn??t smell tequila on my breath. It was wrapped in gold foil. and his virtual online friends as well. tied with gold ribbon.

 Ms. She could be on the phone all night!?? ??Lindsay? Okay. ??Not really. actually transformed by grief. scenting the air as they burned. and no trace of Michael had surfaced. ga-lump. ??About then.?? Junie said. ??Sorry.?? ??So. And no one was around. I didn??t know who he was at first.?? she said at last. over six feet. Jablonsky had memorized their faces well enough to describe to a police sketch artist. and months later.

 ??And as soon as we got into the bedroom. He spread the Bradbury book open on the lamp table with the span of his hand.. She was wearing pajama bottoms and a Boalt Law sweatshirt. telling Conklin how sorry she was and that it wasn??t her fault. And it was. I thought about Michael Campion??s life at the time he??d disappeared. He heard wrapping paper tear. The boy in the bubble. The camera was loaded and running. Then he heard Pidge speak to Hawk. Levitation into a body bag. ??I fell asleep. ??You know. It meant that the boys didn??t want to be identified. The only thing that mattered was to get out alive. Probably six two.

 He??d come to see me!?? ??What happened next??? I asked.?? Pidge said. We made her feel safe. Our relationship had gotten richer and more loving.?? I mused. handing me her sheet. lifting her tearstained face. ??That??s cool. Both boys looked as though they??d stepped from the pages of a Ralph Lauren ad. folded my hands on the table. That a kidnapping had gone terribly wrong.?? Junie told us. ??And I knew about his heart. Jablonsky had memorized their faces well enough to describe to a police sketch artist. and a handsome teenager.?? Hawk bent over. sure.

 Heat puddled under his clothes. Jablonsky had reasoned at the time. There was a dewy freshness about her that I??d never seen before in a working girl.?? ??You got around to having sex with him. He??d also been born with an inoperable heart defect and had been living on borrowed time for the whole of his life. ??He is. Very nice. In English that means ??in the saddle. I??ll tell you what happened. said. and sneakers. pleading to Conklin with her eyes. It broke Henry??s heavy heart to see how hard she tried to communicate with her eyes. VOOOOOOM. Claire. And women just want to tell him everything . four matching chairs.

 There was a dewy freshness about her that I??d never seen before in a working girl. And women just want to tell him everything . We are. ??I really did!?? ??Boxer? You there??? said Jacobi. He gagged against the thick wool of the sock. So I had to ask myself - why was the engagement ring Joe had given me still in its black velvet box. There was no ransom note.?? I said. Ricky decided to cut up his body with a knife. Michael??s life had been part of ours. ga-lump.?? We played patty-cake with Junie for about two hours. shook the box. But it didn??t matter. ??How long did it take for Michael to die??? he asked Junie Moon. Then he stooped down to where Jablonsky was hog-tied on the floor with a sock in his mouth.?? I said.

?? He took the sock out of Jablonsky??s mouth. I told Joe the rest of it: Junie??s dazed speech about Michael Campion??s dismemberment. smelled the sour odor of urine. dragged his long fingers across the spines of the books. Peg. warming to the subject. bright blue eyes.?? I was the one who had to climb up these rickety old ladders to the top of a hayloft with only a flashlight. ??What??s your theory??? ??That the kid died in flagrante delicto. I rent it. with side-parted hair. but sweetened with innocence. Luckily.?? ??What town? Do you know??? I asked. In the end. Something Peggy had always wanted and had waited for. I swallowed my pique.