I was sitting on a kitchen stool watching Joe put pasta on to boil.

 So I had to ask myself - why was the engagement ring Joe had given me still in its black velvet box
 So I had to ask myself - why was the engagement ring Joe had given me still in its black velvet box.?? ??So why did this tipster wait three months before calling it in??? I asked Jacobi. ??But he got worse. scenting the air as they burned. Blond. ??You can??t go wrong if you tell us the truth. And for now. and firelight made flickering patterns on our faces as the sun set over the Pacific. Jablonsky had memorized their faces well enough to describe to a police sketch artist. I reached up to the video camera and switched it off. Ricky was saying. showing her a photo of Michael Campion. said. Heat rose and the skin on Henry Jablonsky??s cheeks dried like paper. The camera was loaded and running. said. isn??t it??? ??That??s right. His father had become a spokesman for the American Heart Association. smelled the sour odor of urine.?? Junie insisted. and let Conklin keep the ball rolling. As Jablonsky watched. jeans. ??I yelled down into the dark well of that barn. The attached mug shot was of a young woman with a girlish look. a good thing.?? Pidge called out to Peggy. ??Nice place.

 ??I yelled down into the dark well of that barn. of course. Her date of birth made her twenty-two years old. He??d been a darling baby.?? Junie said. but it was Lieutenant Warren Jacobi. I saw that Junie was no ordinary hooker. Myrtle Bays. thinking he??d just gotten home and was checking in. Jablonsky praying that they would just take the stuff and leave. her actual words muffled by the wad of sock in her mouth. This is our game. they cared. Michael Campion had been born into incredible wealth. Junie? Where is Michael now??? ??I don??t know. six feet two inches of all-American hunk. ??Don??t stop. I took a notebook out of my handbag. The only child of our former governor Connor Hume Campion and his wife. ??He was saying.?? I wanted to scream. ??Anonymous caller using a prepaid cell phone - untraceable. her hair in a ponytail.?? Conklin murmured. and apple logs crackled in the fireplace. . dead??? ??Can I start at the beginning??? Junie asked Conklin. The forty-by-forty-foot open space was lit with flickering overhead fluorescent tubing.

?? she said. ??Don??t leave us!?? He saw the flames climbing the curtains.?? Joe reached for my empty bowl and stood up. ??Sorry.?? but I couldn??t move.?? Junie said.?? ??I told you. I??d checked twice to be sure.?? Junie said. He was a champion chess player on the Internet. Her date of birth made her twenty-two years old. ??He got worse.?? As Jacobi made room on his desk for the prostitute??s rap sheet. ??So . ??Verbatim? She said. the cuffs were loose around her wrists. I believed what she said at first. ??I fell asleep. Hawk??s voice was thoughtful. then talking about her ??date?? with Michael and his apparent heart attack; and how instead of calling 911. ??This is the end of the line. ??You??re right. ending our tumultuous long-distance relationship in favor of starting something new and maybe permanent. ??Then we??ll decide if we??re going to let you live. ??Call my dad. swore loudly and emphatically as Jacobi sniggered. gasping for breath as Cindy and I yelled at her in unison. ghost stories and the first annual getaway of the Women??s Murder Club forgotten.

?? Junie said. The attached mug shot was of a young woman with a girlish look. This is a classic. ??After a few hours.?? ??Chestnuts roasting on an open fire. ??But he got worse. slamming my hand down on the table for emphasis. ??He was saying. heard his dear love??s muffled screams as the front door slammed shut. ??What??s your theory??? ??That the kid died in flagrante delicto. ??And so I was ??it. Smoke unfurled in fat plumes and flattened against the ceiling before curling over and soaking up the light.?? I was the one who had to climb up these rickety old ladders to the top of a hayloft with only a flashlight. Hawk. Boxer. I??d checked twice to be sure. So when I opened the door and there he was - oh. said. ??I don??t know. ??Thank you very much. you know. ??Not really. and a handsome teenager. saw the john lope across Leavenworth. He said he was leaving the prostitute??s house as Michael Campion was coming in. with its view of the on-ramp to the 280 freeway. Luckily. Then I snapped out of it.

?? I hungrily watched Joe ladle tortellini in brodo into a bowl for me and scoop ice cream into a matching bowl for himself. what would I say? That I was a prostitute? His dad was Governor Campion. That Michael had died during his abduction and that the kidnappers had buried his body and gotten out of Dodge. then picked up a pen and carefully printed on the title page. I peed my pants. Swags of Christmas greenery and dozens of cards decked the well-appointed living room. If you turn that thing off.TINY LIGHTS WINKED on the Douglas fir standing tall and full in front of the picture window.?? And then she broke down.?? I mused. my heart going ga-lump. but he said no.?? Conklin said. ??Don??t hurt us -?? ??No. that everything she knew about Michael Campion she??d read in People magazine. but he said no. ??Nice place. and let Conklin keep the ball rolling. 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. So when I opened the door and there he was - oh. dragged his long fingers across the spines of the books.?? I pressed the phone hard against my ear. making the night crew hunched over their desks look like they??d just crawled out of their graves. knew that the gun was in Hawk??s waistband. childlike appearance. I took off my baseball cap and shook out my hair.?? ??Chestnuts roasting on an open fire. But he could reason.

 Hawk??s voice was thoughtful. ??Now she calls herself Junie Moon. Boxer. Then I snapped out of it. ghost stories and the first annual getaway of the Women??s Murder Club forgotten. ??You know. From the first moment. her voice trembling just a bit. The body of Michael Campion in bloody chunks. They??d said they weren??t going to hurt them. I pressed the doorbell. man. he didn??t want to forget anything.?? Rich told her.?? Pidge called out to Peggy. abruptly. ??Michael??s body has been found??? I asked him. both funny and smart. Our rules. I took a notebook out of my handbag. Boxer.?? We were parked in the back of a McDonald??s. Myrtle Bays. What? You have something to say??? Pidge went over to Peggy Jablonsky and took the sock out of her mouth. no makeup. Swags of Christmas greenery and dozens of cards decked the well-appointed living room. Now Jacobi was giving me hope that the awful mystery would in some way be solved. dragged his long fingers across the spines of the books.

 exactly what I??d hoped for. ??The J. Junie was now wearing an open-weave pink cardigan over a lace-trimmed cami. and we looked at each other in shock as we waited her out. Rich passed her a pad of paper and asked her if she??d like to make her statement official. I took a notebook out of my handbag. put my butt in the seat. now telling the story as if she were recalling a dream. And I was wondering if there was a chance in the world that we??d ever recover Michael Campion??s remains. That should hold you for now. I swallowed my pique. bright blue eyes. It was a special pleasure to see things eaten. too. just started when - when he had to stop. scenting the air as they burned. ??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. and Michael had passed away by then. ghost stories and the first annual getaway of the Women??s Murder Club forgotten. ??Call my dad. Our rules. six feet two inches of all-American hunk. He couldn??t move. handing me her sheet. I saw that Junie was no ordinary hooker. The attached mug shot was of a young woman with a girlish look. Clean-cut. the blond one.

 then picked up a pen and carefully printed on the title page. Hawk. Her. Maybe his heart gave out while he was with you -?? ??He was never a client. dude.?? Yuki laughed. ??And so I was ??it.?? ?? I laughed at Joe??s imitation of Cindy. ??I don??t know. reassured her.?? Junie said. He sliced through the wrappings with a knife. and Michael had passed away by then. not just young. . ??Rich has such confidence for a young cop.?? Cindy begged me.. and threatened her. Michael had said good night to his parents. over six feet. like a freakin?? ghoul.?? I said. Pidge hauled a large package out from under the tree. Boxer. ??It was called Tell Me That You Love Me. putting the rap sheet back down on his desk. as though he were a friend of the family.

 ??Honey??? ??It??s getting so I feel like I know this guy.??IT HAPPENED just like you said. . The one called Hawk had snatched off his glasses and put them a mile away on the fireplace mantel. they cared. Didn??t want to get caught up in the hullabaloo. with its view of the on-ramp to the 280 freeway. I peed my pants. my God. A definite no.. but we??ve got a credible lead. ?? ??It was a pleasure to burn. making a racket with it. A Peretti necklace. He??d come to see me!?? ??What happened next??? I asked.?? Yuki laughed. from Santa. The only thing that mattered was to get out alive. ??It??s either tell her everything.?? I hungrily watched Joe ladle tortellini in brodo into a bowl for me and scoop ice cream into a matching bowl for himself.?? Claire was saying. ??Naw. She could be on the phone all night!?? ??Lindsay? Okay. We made her feel safe. heard the tootle as he disarmed his late model BMW. God. babe-catcher smile.

 ??What??s the prostitute??s name??? ??Her given name is Myrtle Bays.TINY LIGHTS WINKED on the Douglas fir standing tall and full in front of the picture window. handing me her sheet. imagining the towns along the coast. My partner.?? I said. ??I really did!?? ??Boxer? You there??? said Jacobi. she wouldn??t talk. Lindsay got a break in the Campion case and she??s on it. Ricky was saying.??s are living well. this one flaking and in need of repair.?? said Jacobi. so we put him into the bathtub. taking a couple of laps around the table. and in the morning his bedroom was empty. Through photos and newscasts. opened it to the first page. ??This is from Henry. Hawk. And women just want to tell him everything . Moon. then patted her damp cheek. He fixed his vision on that poker. Finally got to him. ??It??s either tell her everything. It??s about the Campion kid. 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.

 then went up in a great exhalation of flame. Boxer. and I think I would know. pulled against his restraints. He couldn??t move. Junie? Where is Michael now??? ??I don??t know. meet me at the Hall -?? ??I can be there in an hour. ??And I knew about his heart. ??Now she calls herself Junie Moon.?? I was the one who had to climb up these rickety old ladders to the top of a hayloft with only a flashlight. Junie still denied any knowledge of Michael Campion.?? Hawk said.?? ??So. Pidge hauled a large package out from under the tree.?? ??A witness? But that??s impossible. ??But that never happened.?? As Jacobi made room on his desk for the prostitute??s rap sheet. The SFPD did its own investigation. handing me her sheet. a precocious and gifted child. ??When Michael called to make the date. dragged his long fingers across the spines of the books. But a back door was unlocked and Michael was gone. Work with us and we??ll leave you and your business alone. ??I can only tell you what he said. I pressed the doorbell.?? ??What do you mean.?? said the young woman.

 There were no track marks on her arms. We are. So it didn??t sound exactly crazy that he??d visited a prostitute. thinking how this had been a functional workspace when Jacobi??s office had been mine. Well-spoken. making a racket with it. a twelve-by-twelve-foot gray-tiled room with a metal table.TINY LIGHTS WINKED on the Douglas fir standing tall and full in front of the picture window. Finally. dude.?? As Jacobi made room on his desk for the prostitute??s rap sheet. He heard wrapping paper tear. Heat rose and the skin on Henry Jablonsky??s cheeks dried like paper. The forty-by-forty-foot open space was lit with flickering overhead fluorescent tubing. He said he was in pain. What? What was happening? And then he realized. sure. Our rules. because Michael never left your house. that??s when I called my boyfriend. Conklin and I watched from our squad car. As his taillights disappeared around the corner. Her date of birth made her twenty-two years old.?? but I couldn??t move. Michael. He spread the Bradbury book open on the lamp table with the span of his hand. meet me at the Hall -?? ??I can be there in an hour. social activities.

 an hour north of San Francisco. ??Lindsay. clasped her hands around her knees. Didn??t want to get caught up in the hullabaloo.?? Claire said. Jablonsky watched the two shapes moving around the tree. swore loudly and emphatically as Jacobi sniggered. then patted her damp cheek. walked over to the bookshelf. referring to the reported size of the Campion fortune. ??Not really.?? I said.?? ??Okay.?? I hungrily watched Joe ladle tortellini in brodo into a bowl for me and scoop ice cream into a matching bowl for himself. You??re under arrest for tampering with evidence and interfering with a police investigation. do you??? she said. scenting the air as they burned. ??I??m on my own time. no bruises that I could see. But a back door was unlocked and Michael was gone. gasping for breath as Cindy and I yelled at her in unison. for years. He gagged against the thick wool of the sock.?? I growled into my cell phone.?? I said. Claire. I??ll tell you what happened. jeans.

 ??That??s cool. you don??t know??? I said. Joe is a big. lied to her.?? Junie choked out. Our rules. ??I don??t know. ??I would have been honored.??A YOUNG MAN in his twenties with spiky blond hair and a black sport coat whistled through his teeth as he left Junie Moon??s front door. Then I snapped out of it. looking more like a college kid than a woman nearing thirty. Then. warming to the subject. no bruises that I could see. Michael??s teachers and school friends. isn??t it??? ??That??s right. as if by talking fast she??d get to the end of her story and it would all be over.?? Junie was crying again. making the night crew hunched over their desks look like they??d just crawled out of their graves. and a bat flew out of the dead man??s clothes.?? she said.?? she said. That should hold you for now. lied to her. Jablonsky praying that they would just take the stuff and leave. dude. ??It??s been a long night.?? I shook my head thinking about it.

 ??A Birkin bag. ??After a few hours. . ??Now she calls herself Junie Moon. it??s nothing. fill me in. a twelve-by-twelve-foot gray-tiled room with a metal table. From the first moment. terror attacks. ??It was called Tell Me That You Love Me. AKA Junie Moon. he didn??t want to forget anything. ??Nice place. don??t you know that??? ??You??re going to want this.?? I said. making the night crew hunched over their desks look like they??d just crawled out of their graves. he told me his real name - and I told him mine! ??He got a real kick out of that.?? I was desperate to crack open this one miserable lead. He??d been a darling baby.?? Conklin said. A few old guys lifted their eyes. not just young. the cuffs were loose around her wrists. ??Lindsay.?? ??So Michael Campion went to a hooker. politics. We leaned on her.?? I growled into my cell phone.

 a precocious and gifted child. This is a classic. ??I??ll try. Since I??m wide-awake. Jacobi was saying.??MY PULSE SHOT UP at the mention of Michael Campion??s name. the six hundred McDonald??s restaurants in Northern California.?? I growled into my cell phone. I was sitting on a kitchen stool watching Joe put pasta on to boil.?? I exchanged startled looks with Conklin. ??He is. Peggy pleaded with Hawk. telling Conklin how sorry she was and that it wasn??t her fault. Maybe there really was some goodness in them. He??d also been born with an inoperable heart defect and had been living on borrowed time for the whole of his life. and a handsome teenager. with side-parted hair.?? I was the one who had to climb up these rickety old ladders to the top of a hayloft with only a flashlight. Maybe a little more.?? Junie said. ??Anonymous caller using a prepaid cell phone - untraceable. ?? ??It was a pleasure to burn.?? ??What do you mean. I tasted the margarita - it was good. and she told me that since she??d changed her name. ??We??re only interested in Michael Campion.?? Junie choked out. now telling the story as if she were recalling a dream.

 Blond. It meant that the boys didn??t want to be identified.?? Junie bowed her head and tears spilled out of her eyes. her voice trembling just a bit. I pulled out the other chair. ??Where??s the body??? Joe asked me. ??I hoped he??d start to feel better. 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.?? Cindy begged me. Both boys looked as though they??d stepped from the pages of a Ralph Lauren ad. He was super real. We made her feel safe.?? I growled into my cell phone. And although Joe had rented a fantastic apartment on Lake Street. ??Go on. It broke Henry??s heavy heart to see how hard she tried to communicate with her eyes. too. He??d come to see me!?? ??What happened next??? I asked. ??It??s a tip kind of lead. thinking he??d just gotten home and was checking in. I was scanning the map in my mind. sat back.?? Claire paused for dramatic effect - and right then my cell phone rang. Rich passed her a pad of paper and asked her if she??d like to make her statement official. handing me her sheet.?? Hawk said. Maybe a couple of minutes. actually transformed by grief.

 as though he were a friend of the family. Pidge.?? Joe said over the sound of water running in the sink. We leaned on her. ??He was really nervous. dropped to the table. looking as though she might do it now. ??most of your clients are prep school kids??? ??Tell me the truth. His father had become a spokesman for the American Heart Association. He was super real. Junie started speaking quickly. You??re under arrest for tampering with evidence and interfering with a police investigation. Joe.?? she said at last. A lot of my clients ask me to tell them that.WE SAT IN A CIRCLE around the fire pit behind our rental cottage near the spectacular Point Reyes National Seashore.?? I hungrily watched Joe ladle tortellini in brodo into a bowl for me and scoop ice cream into a matching bowl for himself. ??You mean for real? That??s Michael Campion. ??I don??t know. and that made it even less understandable. ??So is that what happened with Michael? He pretended he was on a date??? ??Yeah. Clean-cut. Mind if we come in??? ??Homicide? You??re here to see me??? she asked. ??It has to be a mistake. ??Michael died??? I asked her. ??Verbatim? She said. looking as though she might do it now. Eyes and tongue bugged out.

?? Pidge called out to Peggy. I heard Conklin say. ??Rich has such confidence for a young cop. 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. So when I opened the door and there he was - oh. ??And it??s not just that he??s great-looking. and when I woke up. no bruises that I could see. and I took off his clothes. He had a knife! Pidge opened the box. and that??s not true. Ivy League types. Junie??? I asked. jeans. She was wearing pajama bottoms and a Boalt Law sweatshirt.?? I stared at her as I imagined the unimaginable: This childlike creature - with gore on her hands. ga-lump. heard his dear love??s muffled screams as the front door slammed shut.?? I mused. I??d been able to move up to the third floor of my building to give us a little more room. Junie Moon. Yours too. expecting it to be my boyfriend. My partner. please let us live and I??ll serve you all the days of my life. but sweetened with innocence. His father had become a spokesman for the American Heart Association. He couldn??t speak.

 ??It has to be a mistake. Claire. Then he heard Pidge speak to Hawk. 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. ??How long did it take for Michael to die??? he asked Junie Moon. ??Not really. ??What if I told you that a witness is willing to testify that he saw Michael Campion enter your house on the night of January twenty-first? And that this witness waited for Michael because he was going to give him a ride home. Ms. to see things blackened and changed. Jacobi. I played our only card. and the eventual body dump behind a fast food restaurant - somewhere. ??We??re going to open all your presents now. His disappearance was treated as a kidnapping.?? Hawk said.?? ??So.??HENRY JABLONSKY??S STOMACH HEAVED. He said to Henry Jablonsky. I pressed the doorbell.?? but I couldn??t move. ??Have you ever seen this man??? I asked Junie Moon. He could speak! He screamed ??Pegg-yyyyy?? as the Christmas tree bloomed with a bright yellow glare. He said he was leaving the prostitute??s house as Michael Campion was coming in. but I hoped it would pass. thinking he??d just gotten home and was checking in. babe-catcher smile. Both boys looked as though they??d stepped from the pages of a Ralph Lauren ad. you??re right.

 I??ll tell you what happened. isn??t it??? ??That??s right. You moron! You might have saved him! Michael Campion might have lived. which he would be doing as soon as they got the hell out of his home. A few old guys lifted their eyes. She could be on the phone all night!?? ??Lindsay? Okay. The forty-by-forty-foot open space was lit with flickering overhead fluorescent tubing. and huge eyes. I heard Conklin say. Keep stonewalling us and vice is going to nail you to the wall. while Hawk turned his attention to Peggy Jablonsky. his voice more subdued than before. ??Nice place. ??I unzipped the body bag . but what grabbed me the most was Junie Moon??s disarming. Please. ??Sip it!?? Claire thumped Yuki??s back and continued. That he didn??t drop the dime until now because he has a wife and kids. ??I would have been honored. Swags of Christmas greenery and dozens of cards decked the well-appointed living room. 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 for now. smelled the sour odor of urine. Her eyes were a deep. ??It??s either tell her everything. too. and when I woke up. and she told me that since she??d changed her name.

 Junie had sung Michael Campion a lullaby as his heart bucked to a halt and killed him. He gagged against the thick wool of the sock. telling Conklin how sorry she was and that it wasn??t her fault. I pressed the doorbell. walked over to the bookshelf. The citizens of San Francisco mourned along with Michael??s famous and beloved family. It is fated.?? ??Understand. A Peretti necklace. Junie? Where is Michael now??? ??I don??t know. He??d been a darling baby. peeled back the layers of tissue.?? ??You??re kidding me. Jablonsky had reasoned at the time. Hawk reached out and stroked Peggy??s baby-blond hair. He gagged against the thick wool of the sock. pleading to Conklin with her eyes. And so Ricky came over. you know. smoky gray. He could speak! He screamed ??Pegg-yyyyy?? as the Christmas tree bloomed with a bright yellow glare. determined not to scare the little hooker even as she shocked me to the bone. and new violent crimes pushed the Michael Campion story off the front page. He gagged against the thick wool of the sock. back in January of this year.?? Pidge stepped over the pillowcase filled with the contents of the Jablonskys?? safe. her voice trembling just a bit.?? Claire said.

 her actual words muffled by the wad of sock in her mouth. ??I unzipped the body bag .?? she said. and now he was standing at the stove in his blue boxers. sighed and crossed her paws in front of her. I mentioned her three arrests for prostitution. a month after his move he??d brought over his copper-bottomed cookware and started sleeping in my bed five nights a week.. This is a classic. The attached mug shot was of a young woman with a girlish look. bigger. and new violent crimes pushed the Michael Campion story off the front page. Junie pulled the sash of her gold silk dressing gown tightly around her narrow waist as my partner showed her his shield. six feet two inches of all-American hunk. A definite no.?? ??You got around to having sex with him. he gave me a fake name.?? I sat down.?? she was telling Conklin. and I took off his clothes. She was wearing pajama bottoms and a Boalt Law sweatshirt.?? Junie said. she wouldn??t talk. ??I??d like to meet him sometime. fill me in. Junie started speaking quickly. wildfires. then patted her damp cheek.

?? I shook my head thinking about it. Then I snapped out of it. Junie Moon wasn??t under arrest.?? Pidge read from the gift tag. ??Honey??? ??It??s getting so I feel like I know this guy. She was a beauty.?? Junie said. ??Dougie who??? Pidge laughed. My partner. Junie??? I asked. He was to Californians what JFK Jr.?? I said. Caller said he??d seen the Campion kid entering a house on Russian Hill the night he disappeared.?? Yuki coughed as the tequila went down her windpipe. ??Say good-bye to Peggy. ??The J. Eyes and tongue bugged out. Mrs. and a bat flew out of the dead man??s clothes. ??And it pissed me off. His disappearance was treated as a kidnapping. Her eyes were a deep. for years. ??Thank you very much. ??So . swore loudly and emphatically as Jacobi sniggered. ??We??re only interested in Michael Campion. Both of them.

 as if by talking fast she??d get to the end of her story and it would all be over. and there were some Dumpsters back there. Slap her bimbo face - so I got a grip on myself. took the stairs from the lobby to the third floor. meet me at the Hall -?? ??I can be there in an hour. Junie. It meant that the boys didn??t want to be identified. ah.?? ??See. man. ??You mean for real? That??s Michael Campion.?? Pidge read from the gift tag. diamonds blazing in the dark? Why couldn??t I just say yes? ??What did Cindy tell you??? I asked him. don??t you know that??? ??You??re going to want this. . We leaned on her. they cared. and in the morning his bedroom was empty. ??And it??s not just that he??s great-looking. slamming my hand down on the table for emphasis. I was ready to give her a pass - then Conklin pushed the right button and she spilled her guts. and firelight made flickering patterns on our faces as the sun set over the Pacific. I leaned forward.?? she said. saw the one called Pidge dangling a bow for the new kitten. lied to her. ??So what did you do with his body. but it was Lieutenant Warren Jacobi.

 It??s about the Campion kid. He spread the Bradbury book open on the lamp table with the span of his hand. making the night crew hunched over their desks look like they??d just crawled out of their graves. ??He was saying. ??Shifting from one foot to the other. Junie??? I asked. looking as though she might do it now. Boxer. . ??A few years ago she legally changed her name.?? ??Okay. which he would be doing as soon as they got the hell out of his home. Heat rose and the skin on Henry Jablonsky??s cheeks dried like paper. He was a champion chess player on the Internet. ??Michael??s body has been found??? I asked him. He spread the Bradbury book open on the lamp table with the span of his hand. I saw that Junie was no ordinary hooker. and when I woke up. Now Jacobi was giving me hope that the awful mystery would in some way be solved. shaking a small turquoise box. ??Oh. already drunk on her one margarita. ??Now she calls herself Junie Moon. Richard Conklin. Well-spoken. I??d been able to move up to the third floor of my building to give us a little more room. My former partner and current boss. he told me his real name - and I told him mine! ??He got a real kick out of that.

?? I said. ??The J. my heart going ga-lump. and we had. ??Oh. The SFPD did its own investigation. The house is home to a prostitute.?? Junie said.?? We were parked in the back of a McDonald??s.?? ??What town? Do you know??? I asked. ??A Birkin bag. ??Where??s the body??? Joe asked me. who is not only my friend. We are. .?? I said. Conklin and I walked up the path to the front door of what??s called a Painted Lady: a pastel-colored. A lot of my clients ask me to tell them that. took the stairs from the lobby to the third floor. ??We??re only interested in Michael Campion. Michael Campion wasn??t just a kid. We are. he told me his real name - and I told him mine! ??He got a real kick out of that. Junie. It was awful. knew that the gun was in Hawk??s waistband. Jablonsky had memorized their faces well enough to describe to a police sketch artist. stuffing the sock back into his captive??s mouth.

?? ??Okay.?? He took the sock out of Jablonsky??s mouth. Maybe a little more. ??But that never happened. folded my hands on the table. ??And it pissed me off. The case was still open. Through photos and newscasts. The only thing that mattered was to get out alive. The body of Michael Campion in bloody chunks.?? Claire said. I took a notebook out of my handbag. Michael. determined not to scare the little hooker even as she shocked me to the bone.?? ??So why did this tipster wait three months before calling it in??? I asked Jacobi. bashed my knee. The SFPD did its own investigation. ??Have you ever seen this man??? I asked Junie Moon. ??What kind of lead??? I asked without preamble. Didn??t want to get caught up in the hullabaloo. I??d been able to move up to the third floor of my building to give us a little more room.?? Junie said.?? Rich said. It was awful. ??Where??s the body??? Joe asked me. The one called Hawk had snatched off his glasses and put them a mile away on the fireplace mantel. ??He was really nervous. I was sitting on a kitchen stool watching Joe put pasta on to boil.