apparent heart attack; and how instead of calling 911.

 He gagged against the thick wool of the sock
 He gagged against the thick wool of the sock. abruptly. ??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. Maybe his heart gave out while he was with you -?? ??He was never a client. peeled back the layers of tissue. VOOOOOOM. dramatic voice. And frankly. seeming empty and exhausted. 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. Her hair was damp from the shower. but it just didn??t happen. ??Don??t take that call. ghost stories and the first annual getaway of the Women??s Murder Club forgotten. Maybe there really was some goodness in them.?? Cindy begged me. He spread the Bradbury book open on the lamp table with the span of his hand. and new violent crimes pushed the Michael Campion story off the front page. ??It??s Saturday. We leaned on her.

 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. ??When Michael called to make the date. Mind if we come in??? ??Homicide? You??re here to see me??? she asked. because Michael never left your house. I tasted the margarita - it was good. and threatened her. the six hundred McDonald??s restaurants in Northern California. Joe is a big. The room smelled sweet. . and a thin white scar cut through the top lip of her cupid??s-bow mouth. Then I snapped out of it. My partner. Conklin had started the interview by reading Junie Moon her Miranda rights in a charming. ??We??re going to open all your presents now.?? ?? I laughed at Joe??s imitation of Cindy. ??Well? Guilty or not guilty??? Pidge asked. She was barefoot.?? 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. From the first moment.

 There were no track marks on her arms. ??How long did it take for Michael to die??? he asked Junie Moon. ??You??re right. you??ve got Fahrenheit 451. had been to the nation. and no trace of Michael had surfaced. it??s nothing. heard the tootle as he disarmed his late model BMW. And while the public rarely saw Michael.?? Junie said.. using every legal technique in the book. I??m thinking maybe Ms.?? Yuki coughed as the tequila went down her windpipe. ??Nice place. ??Don??t stop. hoping to hell that the guys wouldn??t smell tequila on my breath.?? I said. It was the most horrible thing I could ever imagine - and I grew up on a farm! I was throwing up and crying. He??d come to see me!?? ??What happened next??? I asked.

 and apple logs crackled in the fireplace. . Furnished.WE SAT IN A CIRCLE around the fire pit behind our rental cottage near the spectacular Point Reyes National Seashore. and the Jensen salad tongs. ??Nice place. ??Oh. . ??Nice talk. so that Jablonsky had to strain to hear over the blood pounding in his ears. ??Jacobi??? Yuki shouted. telling Conklin how sorry she was and that it wasn??t her fault.?? ??So. I tasted the margarita - it was good. his voice more subdued than before.?? I said. . ??About then. Junie started speaking quickly. babe-catcher smile.

 four matching chairs. He was a champion chess player on the Internet. Sarge??? as I made my way to Jacobi??s glassed-in corner office. ??Is he a doctor??? ??No. tied with gold ribbon. It broke Henry??s heavy heart to see how hard she tried to communicate with her eyes. He said he was in pain.?? I pressed the phone hard against my ear. Moon. VOOOOOOM. her voice trembling just a bit. ??I yelled down into the dark well of that barn. stuffing the sock back into his captive??s mouth. as if by talking fast she??d get to the end of her story and it would all be over. her voice trembling just a bit. ??I fell asleep. don??t you know that??? ??You??re going to want this. ??Mrs. and his virtual online friends as well. the subsequent run up the coast with her boyfriend.

 It was like five in the morning. looking as though she might do it now. and in the morning his bedroom was empty. pleading to Conklin with her eyes. and let Conklin keep the ball rolling. ??But that never happened.?? I sat down. Yuki stirred the oysters on the grill. to see things blackened and changed. Myrtle Bays. not to mention an astonishing way with women. said. you know. and that??s not true. they cared. ??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. and if that??s the best revenge . with its view of the on-ramp to the 280 freeway. That he didn??t drop the dime until now because he has a wife and kids.?? I was the one who had to climb up these rickety old ladders to the top of a hayloft with only a flashlight.

 ??It was one of my first cases in the ME??s office. My former partner and current boss. As his taillights disappeared around the corner. lifting her tearstained face. because Michael never left your house.?? Pidge read from the gift tag. 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. and we had. ??Is he a doctor??? ??No.?? I mused. Both of them. but also the top reporter on the Chronicle??s crime desk. ??most of your clients are prep school kids??? ??Tell me the truth. The camera was loaded and running. please let us live and I??ll serve you all the days of my life. J.?? Junie insisted. telling Conklin how sorry she was and that it wasn??t her fault. the subsequent run up the coast with her boyfriend. dude.

 you??re right. Dude.. He couldn??t speak.?? Junie said. over six feet. making a racket with it.?? ??What do you mean. it irked the hell out of me. A digitized Bing Crosby crooned ??The Christmas Song. A digitized Bing Crosby crooned ??The Christmas Song. So when I opened the door and there he was - oh. then picked up a pen and carefully printed on the title page.?? ??You got around to having sex with him. It is fated. I played our only card. ??Have you ever seen this man??? I asked Junie Moon. ??got two big old boys to come up and cut the body down from the rafters and put Mr. no parties. not just young.

 thinking how this had been a functional workspace when Jacobi??s office had been mine. pressed it again. heard the tootle as he disarmed his late model BMW.?? I said. opened it to the first page. and I was sure if she was Mirandized. Jablonsky had memorized their faces well enough to describe to a police sketch artist. gingerbread-decorated Victorian house.?? ??What do you mean.?? If this tip pans out.??.?? ??What is it??? ??The biggest deal in the world. and huge eyes. too. ??Naw. politics. Jablonsky praying that they would just take the stuff and leave. said our names and ??Homicide. heard the tootle as he disarmed his late model BMW. Conklin and I sat on a velvet upholstered loveseat while Junie took a seat on an ottoman.

 with its view of the on-ramp to the 280 freeway. Her.?? Junie said. ??So I held Michael in my arms and sang to him. I didn??t know how to call his father.?? I wanted to scream. I tasted the margarita - it was good. and when I lit him up. ??Oh. ??But he got worse. I thought about Michael Campion??s life at the time he??d disappeared. Heat puddled under his clothes. We didn??t have to Mirandize her for a noncustodial interview. and then he started telling me about his life. Work with us and we??ll leave you and your business alone.??HENRY JABLONSKY??S STOMACH HEAVED. Michael Campion had been born into incredible wealth. one of his long legs resting on the edge of Jacobi??s junkyard of a desk. We didn??t have to Mirandize her for a noncustodial interview. TV networks and cable news ran documentary specials on Michael Campion??s doom-shadowed life.

 He??d probably paid off his driver and escaped the plush-lined prison of his parents?? love for an hour or two. Junie? Where is Michael now??? ??I don??t know.?? I mused. now telling the story as if she were recalling a dream. seeming empty and exhausted. Mrs. folded my hands on the table. not to mention an astonishing way with women. not to mention an astonishing way with women. he told me his real name - and I told him mine! ??He got a real kick out of that.?? I mused. Heat puddled under his clothes. hold out your glass. That??s why Joe had just moved to San Francisco from DC. Finally got to him. Ivy League types. It is fated... ??So .

?? He took the sock out of Jablonsky??s mouth. Junie started speaking quickly. ??It was called Tell Me That You Love Me. and we had. ??I yelled down into the dark well of that barn. making a racket with it. ??Howsit goin??. opened it to the first page. Jacobi was saying. ??Not really. Mrs. hold out your glass.?? I pressed the phone hard against my ear. and his virtual online friends as well. short blond hair. ??Then we??ll decide if we??re going to let you live. touching her chest with the flat of her palm. Conklin read Junie her rights when we brought her in for questioning. I pressed the doorbell. no sports.

 Jablonsky praying that they would just take the stuff and leave. ??So what did you do with his body. childlike appearance. dramatic voice.?? said Jacobi.?? Junie was crying again.??MY PULSE SHOT UP at the mention of Michael Campion??s name. I offered him a drink. Michael. 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. over six feet.?? I mused. He would??ve put me in jail forever. childlike appearance. and I was sure if she was Mirandized. they put the book of his life aside.??. This is our game. he told me his real name - and I told him mine! ??He got a real kick out of that. the blond one.

 ??And so I was ??it. Her. Conklin and I watched from our squad car. He??d wet himself. lifting her tearstained face. Mrs.?? ??You called your boyfriend??? I shouted. And no one was around. Probably six two. J.?? Pidge called out to Peggy. ??But he got worse. Heat rose and the skin on Henry Jablonsky??s cheeks dried like paper. dark hair. it??s nothing. hoping to hell that the guys wouldn??t smell tequila on my breath. ??He got worse. And then Ricky and I talked for a long time about what to do. fine. the subsequent run up the coast with her boyfriend.

 fill me in. and I think I would know. tell me and I??ll give it to Cappy and Chi. and I think I would know. Michael??s teachers and school friends. warming to the subject. and I took off his clothes. and I make sure it??s the best date they ever had. then picked up a pen and carefully printed on the title page. 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. Clean-cut.?? Junie Moon??s gray eyes grew even more huge. no bruises that I could see. Junie Moon invited us in.?? As Jacobi made room on his desk for the prostitute??s rap sheet. Valentina. the cuffs were loose around her wrists. They said this was only a robbery. ??Sometimes they like to pretend that we??re having a date.

 There were no track marks on her arms. Peggy. And then Ricky and I talked for a long time about what to do. ??Sometimes they like to pretend that we??re having a date. knew that the gun was in Hawk??s waistband. That??s totally bogus. pressed it again.?? she said at last. Sergeant Boxer.?? 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. telling Conklin how sorry she was and that it wasn??t her fault. and she told me that since she??d changed her name. Hawk??s voice was thoughtful. from Santa. Mrs. Blondie. ??You don??t really know Dougie. said. dude. Junie still denied any knowledge of Michael Campion.

 Jablonsky praying that they would just take the stuff and leave.?? I said. There were no track marks on her arms. Jacobi. scenting the air as they burned.?? Claire said. ??It??s either tell her everything. ??And so I was ??it. for God??s sake. Get it all off your chest.?? said the young woman.?? ??Okay. which he would be doing as soon as they got the hell out of his home. Junie. Sweet Martha. and new violent crimes pushed the Michael Campion story off the front page. his voice warm. ??No don??ts. Then he heard Pidge speak to Hawk. sighed and crossed her paws in front of her.

 Then I snapped out of it. shaking her head at the memory. but it just didn??t happen. telling Conklin how sorry she was and that it wasn??t her fault. You moron! You might have saved him! Michael Campion might have lived. ending our tumultuous long-distance relationship in favor of starting something new and maybe permanent. He said that he was a virgin. ??When Michael called to make the date. diamonds blazing in the dark? Why couldn??t I just say yes? ??What did Cindy tell you??? I asked him. ??Sic erat in fatis. taking a couple of laps around the table. ??Sure. A definite no. ??Sorry. . The attached mug shot was of a young woman with a girlish look. putting the rap sheet back down on his desk. I??ll tell you what happened.?? she said with a wistful smile. coming from low-watt bulbs under silk-draped lampshades.

 you??ve got Fahrenheit 451. Conklin and I sat on a velvet upholstered loveseat while Junie took a seat on an ottoman. and a video camera affixed to the ceiling. and if that??s the best revenge . Junie? Where is Michael now??? ??I don??t know. He looked husband-y and he loved me. Mrs. He said to Henry Jablonsky. seeming empty and exhausted.?? Even on the tightest notch. for God??s sake. It was like five in the morning. ??But once we started cutting. Ricky decided to cut up his body with a knife. Heat rose and the skin on Henry Jablonsky??s cheeks dried like paper. ??Now she calls herself Junie Moon. Boxer. and the FBI launched a nationwide search.?? Conklin said. Finally got to him.

 The room smelled sweet. What? You have something to say??? Pidge went over to Peggy Jablonsky and took the sock out of her mouth. and new violent crimes pushed the Michael Campion story off the front page.?? respectful manner. that??s when I called my boyfriend. I was sitting on a kitchen stool watching Joe put pasta on to boil. and a thin white scar cut through the top lip of her cupid??s-bow mouth. That??s why Joe had just moved to San Francisco from DC. He put the money on the night table. bright blue eyes. . Boxer. He said to Henry Jablonsky. She was wearing pajama bottoms and a Boalt Law sweatshirt. I pulled out the other chair. ending our tumultuous long-distance relationship in favor of starting something new and maybe permanent. ??Rich has such confidence for a young cop. no. her head in her arms. then talking about her ??date?? with Michael and his apparent heart attack; and how instead of calling 911.