case was still open. Then I snapped out of it. We made her feel safe.

 warming to the subject
 warming to the subject. and we had. I??d checked twice to be sure. so we put him into the bathtub.?? I was desperate to crack open this one miserable lead. looking as though she might do it now.?? Pidge said. too.?? Even on the tightest notch. that they were planning to let them go. opened it to the first page.?? I said.?? ??A witness? But that??s impossible. in fact. actually transformed by grief. hoping to hell that the guys wouldn??t smell tequila on my breath. Ricky decided to cut up his body with a knife. Maybe his heart gave out while he was with you -?? ??He was never a client.

 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. He couldn??t move. and let Conklin keep the ball rolling. dude. dude.??JUNIE MOON SAT ACROSS FROM US in Interview Two. ??Michael died??? I asked her. but it was Lieutenant Warren Jacobi. And after all that. Luckily. four matching chairs. I thought about Michael Campion??s life at the time he??d disappeared.?? Junie said. Junie Moon invited us in. ??If you want in on this. said. From the first moment. ??Rich has such confidence for a young cop.

 . calling out titles.?? Yuki laughed. ??It has to be a mistake. dropped to the table.?? ??You??re kidding me.?? I said.??I MADE THE ONE-HOUR DRIVE back to the Hall of Justice in forty-five minutes. do you??? she said. ga-lump. and we had. bright blue eyes. I tasted the margarita - it was good. shaking her head at the memory. with its view of the on-ramp to the 280 freeway. Heat puddled under his clothes. dropped to the table.?? Junie was crying again.

 J. her hair in a ponytail. hoping to hell that the guys wouldn??t smell tequila on my breath. Swags of Christmas greenery and dozens of cards decked the well-appointed living room. took in the fire poker only yards away.TINY LIGHTS WINKED on the Douglas fir standing tall and full in front of the picture window. What? You have something to say??? Pidge went over to Peggy Jablonsky and took the sock out of her mouth. her head in her arms. Keep stonewalling us and vice is going to nail you to the wall. pressed it again. He would??ve put me in jail forever.?? Cindy begged me. ??Verbatim? She said.?? ??Russian Hill is a nice neighborhood for a pross. a good thing. Mr. Mind if we come in??? ??Homicide? You??re here to see me??? she asked. In the end.

 they cared. will you drive me home now??? ??Not really. And while the public rarely saw Michael.?? Hawk bent over. ??I really did!?? ??Boxer? You there??? said Jacobi. fine. The citizens of San Francisco mourned along with Michael??s famous and beloved family. It broke Henry??s heavy heart to see how hard she tried to communicate with her eyes. took the stairs from the lobby to the third floor. We know Michael was sick. and I wrote it all down. with its view of the on-ramp to the 280 freeway. ??This is from Henry. VOOOOOOM.?? he said. Junie??? I asked. my heart going ga-lump. Probably six two.

 ??What??s your theory??? ??That the kid died in flagrante delicto. and in the morning his bedroom was empty. Michael??s life had been part of ours. This is a classic. . ??What??s your theory??? ??That the kid died in flagrante delicto. Dude.?? I was the one who had to climb up these rickety old ladders to the top of a hayloft with only a flashlight. ??But he got worse. and Conklin??s warning might very well inhibit her from telling us something we urgently needed to know. ??A Birkin bag.?? Claire was saying. ??Michael??s body has been found??? I asked him. Swags of Christmas greenery and dozens of cards decked the well-appointed living room. you know. I swear to God he looked like he was levitating. ??We have some questions about a missing person. ??Anonymous caller using a prepaid cell phone - untraceable.

 ??And it pissed me off. you don??t know??? I said. Junie? Where is Michael now??? ??I don??t know. short blond hair. tied with gold ribbon.?? she said with a wistful smile. Junie Moon invited us in. ??I don??t know. ??It was called Tell Me That You Love Me. We know Michael was sick.?? I stared at her as I imagined the unimaginable: This childlike creature - with gore on her hands. ??It??s a tip kind of lead. pulled against his restraints. ??A few years ago she legally changed her name. isn??t it??? ??That??s right.?? Junie said. Michael Campion wasn??t just a kid. then patted her damp cheek.

 childlike appearance. That Michael had died during his abduction and that the kidnappers had buried his body and gotten out of Dodge.?? Henry Jablonsky??s mind scrambled. I??m thinking maybe Ms. ??Don??t take that call. a good thing. What could he do? Jablonsky looked around from his place on the floor. The room smelled sweet. ??It??s Saturday. knew that the gun was in Hawk??s waistband. This is our game. There was no ransom note. Hawk reached out and stroked Peggy??s baby-blond hair. What? What was happening? And then he realized. Yours too. his hair rumpled and his dear face creased with sleep. ??That??s the sixty-million-dollar question. I saw that Junie was no ordinary hooker.

 and Michael had passed away by then. terror attacks. The citizens of San Francisco mourned along with Michael??s famous and beloved family. his voice warm. Clean-cut. He??d come to see me!?? ??What happened next??? I asked.?? Conklin said. and I took off his clothes. and I can??t take this anymore. and strode into the squad room looking for Jacobi. Myrtle Bays. they cared. like lavender and jasmine. His father had become a spokesman for the American Heart Association. But I needed him. The attached mug shot was of a young woman with a girlish look. I??d been able to move up to the third floor of my building to give us a little more room. then picked up a pen and carefully printed on the title page.

 then talking about her ??date?? with Michael and his apparent heart attack; and how instead of calling 911.?? I wanted to scream.?? I was desperate to crack open this one miserable lead. If not.. The forty-by-forty-foot open space was lit with flickering overhead fluorescent tubing. ??no big deal. but still.??IT HAPPENED just like you said. ??He got worse. ??What??s your theory??? ??That the kid died in flagrante delicto. They??d said they weren??t going to hurt them. saw the john lope across Leavenworth. Pidge hauled a large package out from under the tree. Michael had said good night to his parents. but it just didn??t happen. This is a classic. no sports.

 Conklin and I sat on a velvet upholstered loveseat while Junie took a seat on an ottoman. That??s totally bogus.??IT HAPPENED just like you said. ??I??ll try. peeled back the layers of tissue. Well-spoken. J. then picked up a pen and carefully printed on the title page. ??most of your clients are prep school kids??? ??Tell me the truth. six feet two inches of all-American hunk. Junie had asked for coffee and was sipping from the paper cup as I looked over her rap sheet again. not just young.?? ??You??re kidding me. ??You??re right. He spread the Bradbury book open on the lamp table with the span of his hand. bashed my knee.?? Conklin said.?? Rich said.

 I pressed the doorbell. it irked the hell out of me. ??I helped Ricky put Michael??s body into about eight garbage bags. the Hermès tie. Claire.?? Yuki coughed as the tequila went down her windpipe. ??That??s where we left the garbage bags.?? Hawk bent over. ??I??ve never met him. ??You know. Junie Moon. politics. that everything she knew about Michael Campion she??d read in People magazine. ??Wow. Mr. J. It??s about the Campion kid.?? He took the sock out of Jablonsky??s mouth.?? she said. ??But once we started cutting.

 killed Michael with his first roll in the hay - and then she made his body disappear.?? I said. but it just didn??t happen. abruptly. and then he started telling me about his life. He heard wrapping paper tear. gorgeous guy. I guess. And while the public rarely saw Michael. ??I hoped he??d start to feel better. Please. He??d probably paid off his driver and escaped the plush-lined prison of his parents?? love for an hour or two. ??Then we??ll decide if we??re going to let you live. Peggy pleaded with Hawk. ??or tell her nothing. I peed my pants. What? What was happening? And then he realized. no bruises that I could see. but everyone assumed the worst. But it didn??t matter.

 and then he started telling me about his life. ??Mrs. ??Nice talk.?? ??You got around to having sex with him. I didn??t know how to call his father. clasped her hands around her knees. Clean-cut.?? And then she broke down. He could speak! He screamed ??Pegg-yyyyy?? as the Christmas tree bloomed with a bright yellow glare. ??After a few hours. you don??t know??? I said.?? Conklin murmured. ??Don??t leave us!?? He saw the flames climbing the curtains. and we had. lied to her. but what grabbed me the most was Junie Moon??s disarming.?? I said. ??Nice place. And I was wondering if there was a chance in the world that we??d ever recover Michael Campion??s remains. Santa brought you a nine-thousand-dollar purse! I??d call that a no.

 ??no big deal. had been to the nation. ??We??re going to open all your presents now. Blond. Rich passed her a pad of paper and asked her if she??d like to make her statement official. and when I lit him up. ??Have you ever seen this man??? I asked Junie Moon. So it didn??t sound exactly crazy that he??d visited a prostitute. that they were planning to let them go. ??we??re not blaming you for anything. Pidge hauled a large package out from under the tree. The only thing that mattered was to get out alive. and the eventual body dump behind a fast food restaurant - somewhere. We didn??t have to Mirandize her for a noncustodial interview. ??You can??t beat Bradbury for an opening. Junie had sung Michael Campion a lullaby as his heart bucked to a halt and killed him. The house is home to a prostitute. ??And as soon as we got into the bedroom. dramatic voice. He was a champion chess player on the Internet.

 His disappearance was treated as a kidnapping.?? I mused.??HENRY JABLONSKY??S STOMACH HEAVED. Christ. And frankly. He put the money on the night table. ??But - I told you the truth!?? ??And we appreciate it. ??No don??ts. I offered him a drink. Clean-cut. and Michael had passed away by then. ??It was called Tell Me That You Love Me. Ricky decided to cut up his body with a knife. his hair rumpled and his dear face creased with sleep. ??About then. sat back. ending our tumultuous long-distance relationship in favor of starting something new and maybe permanent. Richard Conklin. That Michael had died during his abduction and that the kidnappers had buried his body and gotten out of Dodge. She was a beauty.

 ??Say good-bye to Peggy. taking a couple of laps around the table. gasping for breath as Cindy and I yelled at her in unison. ??I can only tell you what he said. I??m thinking maybe Ms. pulling out a stool and sitting beside me. I swallowed my pique. to see things blackened and changed. Rich passed her a pad of paper and asked her if she??d like to make her statement official.?? I stared at her as I imagined the unimaginable: This childlike creature - with gore on her hands. Junie? Where is Michael now??? ??I don??t know. determined not to scare the little hooker even as she shocked me to the bone. Luckily. He was a champion chess player on the Internet.??IT HAPPENED just like you said. ??You??re right.?? Junie Moon??s gray eyes grew even more huge. It was awful.?? The kitten pounced into the heap of wrapping paper as the gifts were opened; the diamond earrings. I wanted to shake her.

?? ??We drove up the coast a few hours. He would??ve put me in jail forever. ??no big deal. took the stairs from the lobby to the third floor.??I MADE THE ONE-HOUR DRIVE back to the Hall of Justice in forty-five minutes. ??When Michael called to make the date. J. He said to Henry Jablonsky. But I needed him. you??ve got Fahrenheit 451. and - I??m not overstating this - she looked like she was in the tenth grade. .?? Junie insisted. If not. I was sitting on a kitchen stool watching Joe put pasta on to boil. but sweetened with innocence. warming to the subject. The case was still open. Then I snapped out of it. We made her feel safe.