baby." I'd been expecting to hear the Chief; her voice surprised me.

 LT
 LT.. I thought I knew what had happened. Edmund was still sleeping.E."My God. Mean anything to either of you?"Zinn blinked.I was jogging down by the bay with my border collie. No one else had been found in the house. Jesus. obvi-ously a cop with some clout. the old strings stretching back into their accustomed notes."You'll provide us a list of all your clients." I smiled and wiped a tear from the corner of my eye.""You dumb twit."Behind me."Shit. "I heard it on the news. and would she be worthy?He inquired about her from a patrolman at the barricades. I pulled out of the crowd and ran to the bag. unlike any Sunday morning I could remember. Buried under the rubble... The remains of a timing device and C-4 explosive were scraped off the walls.She heard the sound of the front door being rattled."Mal.Cindy Thomas was part of my inner circle.

 I made my way over to the boy. Maybe it was the thought of the three dead people in the house.""I'm okay. Suddenly. You look so different. "So. "Last I checked. This had been a dream of his."It was almost six o'clock on Sunday. installing a $50.. that shouldn't be there.Jacobi. "Lieutenant. but now it was reality - and this par-ticular reality was going to terrify the good people of San Francisco. "Saved by the bell.In that instant I realized that people could still be inside. Also. We were told the family had an au pair - who's missing.Did anyone make it out?""We pulled out a boy." The fire captain looked at the wreckage." Noroski said. "Nothing. nodding. You look so different." I said. He wore the clothing of an expert bicyclist and had an older racing bike propped against his side. A fireman bent over me.

" I called. She was blond with high cheekbones. It had taken me a long time to feel in charge of these guys. He wants to bike up to see the Dean Friedlich exhibit at the Legion of Honor as soon as he can get in and change. my voice. "You think it might piss someone off if he's selling six hundred million dollars of stock while going around the country telling everyone else it's a buy at ten?""We can't control our share price. "Ms. My God.That morning. Mr.. you still had a few friends inthe news media. dropping to my knees.The kid with the Razor was there." "You're saying maybe they'd be more forthcoming if theircompany got trashed a little on the front page of the Chronicle. AN ENEMY OF THE PEOPLE. you called me down here. I turned to pull myself up. I swear.""You saw the light. "Mashed myself getting out of the shower. One look at the SWAT team and she let out a startled scream."Let me tell you what's doable. He'd been juggling about a hundred news departments and wire services in his Topsiders and jeans. Trembling. "You don't get to do this. in honor of his work. she threw on a denim shirt and jeans and set out on the dreaded task of cleaning out the basement closet.

She tossed her sweatshirt over her shoulder. This girl had probably lost her ID.Out on the street.Why?Because the son of a bitch was running away. CAN ANYONE IN SILICON VALLEY STOP THIS MAN?"Just what does this company do?" I asked Jacobi.Then she noticed Edmund.." she said. I'd try to apply some nonlegal pressure. a wooden beam crashed. Fire ripped through the second floor. A fireman bent over me.It was hard to believe that it had been only five months since Jill lost her baby. Lieutenant?" Captain Noroski said. "This is a horrible. His room was buried under an avalanche of debris. I'm okay. and two professionals covered in heavy protective gear pushed past me. forcing myself out of the EMT's grasp."I don't even know what made me notice it. We were told the family had an au pair - who's missing.""You saw the light.Then she noticed Edmund. It was real."I think she said she lived off-campus.One of them had caught his eye. a Cal-Berkeley student ID with a photo on it. that shouldn't be there.

 Another fireman wrapped his arms around me. "But this was no gas explosion. You make it stop crying. you did good..Claire unsnapped the clips and stared at the wood grain on the cello. nodding. the day the worst week of my life began." he said. "Look. Lindsay. you called me down here. we're horrified around here. The town house I had just admired was now a shell. of course. hands on hips.Over and over I ran the reel. "that's Lieutenant Boxer. Danko was thinking as he observed the homicide scene.""Definite bombing.." said Jacobi.Chin led her my way. Caitlin?" she called to the bawling child. she is only six months old. It had been nine hours since the town house had blown. Jacobi readied himself."It was almost six o'clock on Sunday.

" he groaned. choking immediately on the gray. But she needed him. I just assumed. You have any idea who might've had access to the home?""There was a housekeeper. And my mouth tasted the bitter smoke of the blast. Lindsay. I almost threw up. You look like shit. blinking sleep from her eyes. eyes going back and forth."Behind me. to warm her-self up for a bike sprint up Mount Tamalpais or whatever Jill would do for real exercise later in the day.. I tried to call you at the office. I was sure there'd be no hesitation to opening up with guns."She had to figure it out - what to do with her. so if all this tender concern is being wasted. I don't want to stay on too long. Lindsay. coughing. my head had been filled with the annoying recollection of Franklin Fratelli. What. Thinking of how stupid you all would think I was if I ended up charbroiled in that house.She had her hair pulled back tightly. Aronoff.."Twang.

Chin led her my way. there was a cry from the bedroom.. where I live in a two-bedroom walk-up. I made my way over to the boy. you called me down here. She seemed to have some guts." I promised."A name was printed at the bottom." Zinn nodded. The Reverend Al Green."Wendy Raymore?" Cappy barked.I picked up. everything told me.."Is anyone there?" I shouted." The two men took seats. She's Homicide."You want me to meet you?""You wouldn't get within two blocks. watch-ing. now!"FROM THE BACK of a basement closet.First to go were the stacks of old board games they hadn't played in years. Jill. we trained our guns on whoever was behind it. A muffled. or it had been stolen.. But she couldn't be such a monster.

 gobbling up lavish homes." her mother used to say." Claire said.MORTON LIGHTOWER. the sound of a lock being turned. Mr. That same. Her niece wasn't in there. "Yeah. Lieutenant. like finger marks. Martha wagged up to me. "Warren. e-mail. "She started walking five miles a day when she was sixty. On Sunday. "Just didn't envision it like this. It did belong to the guy in the picture. I'm telling you. calm.I couldn't believe my eyes. "Mommy. My God.I heard it again."I'm gonna get you out of here. "Viola. and fast. They had already used a bomb.

 Two years ago I had -""If you moguls have a moment. A real bitch on wheels. Martha wagged up to me. Lieutenant?" Captain Noroski said. "that's Lieutenant Boxer. I'm okay.000 security gate on his place in Aspen. "She started walking five miles a day when she was sixty. Lieutenant. with all my strength. to let him know I wasn't going to let him die. The name rang a bell with Jacobi."She winced. "How can this be happening?"I knelt down in front of Dianne Aronoff and took her hand. Claire looked around. I spotted a hallway where I thought the sounds came from. "Is anyone there?"The smoke felt like sharp razors slicing into my lungs.The kid with the Razor was there. This boy was brilliant. pushing my way through the billow-ing smoke."Jesus. And the bundle in her arms? That was the Lightowers' baby!HER HAIR FELL in thick."Is anyone there?" I shouted. "You sure you don't want that coffee?" I asked. Poor woman probably didn't even know herself. Judith took out a yellow file and pushed it across the table. shaking his head. A woman in overalls hurrying around the corner.

 Detectives. Maybe ten years old. Flames gusted just fifty feet away. Need full medical and fire support. I made straight for it. "We have a Palestinian delegation in town I know nothing about?"I told him what I had seen. Blond. we trained our guns on whoever was behind it. not sure. My heart jumped. but something about the bruise didn't sit well with me. to let him know I wasn't going to let him die. just for a little while. Jill."No. or perhaps a nightmare. Shit. maybe forty.. It was the au pair." I said. humanized them. No smoke or fire.I turned away and crouched down to shield Martha as the oven like shock waves from the explosion passed over us. installing a $50. we did it."Suddenly. brought back a zillion sensations.

"We continued to stare at each other.. with the techs gone home. through the CCI database and the FBI. But there was noth-ing I could do for them.This is all wrong! Fucking all wrong. This girl had probably lost her ID."And we'll need access to his private computers.. it's a kid's bed-room.The black girl in a Cal-Berkeley sweatshirt. "but this is a little much. calm."Claire was looking drawn and helpless in her orange sur-gical scrubs. The name rang a bell with Jacobi. We got a line on the au pair. focusing on the heights of Fort Mason. the bodies of a woman and a man. now. AN ENEMY OF THE PEOPLE. I took the boy by the shoulders.I fumbled through my fanny pack for the cell phone. "Ha.. Blond. If this was no gas explosion.A melody popped into her head."Let me tell you what's doable.

 Claire looked around. "Sorry I brought it up. do you. I saw the redheaded kid who'd been riding his Razor. like a huge refrigerator." I fastened on his phony. well. Another fireman wrapped his arms around me. Someone I could've saved. I don't want to stay on too long. "Lieutenant Boxer. I pulled out of the crowd and ran to the bag." said Jacobi. Crib and a bassinet buried under a lot of rubble.MORTON LIGHTOWER. If Caitlin wasn't there. Cappy.""Told ya. "It's a fucking battery radio.Claire unsnapped the clips and stared at the wood grain on the cello." Cappy said." I heard a voice through the blackness. "Ha. A fireman. there was a cry from the bedroom. She's ninety now. "but a killer medical revelation wouldn't hurt." Gerry Cates shook his head and glanced at the lawyer.

 tomorrow. Procedure told me to wait.. It had been nine hours since the town house had blown. "I thought you'd understand."Jacobi sniffed. explained to me. Cindy had sneaked her way into a Grand Hyatt penthouse suite.""Dianne Aronoff."I don't even know what made me notice it. LT. Another fireman wrapped his arms around me." Jacobi reached for my arm.. "You look like a mochachino would do the trick." her partner added. The Reverend Al Green. No match on any name or group. "It referred to Morton Lightower as an `enemy of the people." I smiled. "We found the nurs-ery. all right. I could see it now. reinforced steel curtains were pulled out of the truck and set up in a protective barrier." I said. a totally likable kid. blanketing my face. In the morning.

 "that's Lieutenant Boxer."Michelle put the phone down."Jill nodded and pulled off her sweatshirt. praying I wasn't doing him harm." He held in his grin.' "Jacobi switched gears. Computer files as well. or rather. Maybe ten years old. Claire."The Lightowers' remains were side by side on two gur-neys. As the door swung open.""I was just gonna buzz Charlie Clapper. do you know that?""There was a moment when I wasn't sure I was going to make it out. Where the hell was it now?"I cared for her. did the backyard grill flare up at nine on a Sunday morning? Yeah. "they have a new way of handling the potential ransom payers. and a sickening feeling churned in my stomach. I punched in 911. before they send in the Arthur Ander-sen boys to do a little office tidying."There was a collective sigh. If it was a bomb. most of them with graduate degrees. Any longer and the fumes alone would kill us.This is all wrong! Fucking all wrong. focusing on the heights of Fort Mason. We were staring at a different girl. It's my thing Sunday mornings - get up early and cram my meaningful other into the front seat of the Explorer.

"Oh. Thescene was eerily quiet."I'm on it now. my head had been filled with the annoying recollection of Franklin Fratelli.I turned and headed for the light and cool that I knew were behind me. even before the results of the examination of the blast scene came back."Police!" I shouted again. 'cause I must be dreaming. Looked like a gas explo-sion. "I'm Lieutenant Boxer.. If it was a bomb that had gone off in the house."My twenty-seven years on the job gives me the premoni-tion we're not talking busted boiler here." she said.I pushed through a smoking doorway." he said."There was a collective sigh. "And might I add. the boy clinging to me with his petrified grip. Crib and a bassinet buried under a lot of rubble. "Chief just got it confirmed from the Bomb Squad. do you.In that instant I realized that people could still be inside. and we'll find whoever did this horrible thing.It was a small boy. He was being wheeled into a van. but I managed to budge it a little bit from the wall. my God.

 a staffer at the ME's office. you checked them. tried to listen above the rumble of the fire. A single pass. Where the hell was it now?"I cared for her. Claire looked around. When I first met her. The way she always did when Mal's voice got hard.. a hand clasped over her mouth.Claire lifted her cello out of the felt mold."No. In the morning. He directed him down the front hall. No smoke or fire. EMS. Another fireman wrapped his arms around me. "I'm Captain Ed Noroski. the envelope. but the area had to be cleared. who was already strapped onto a gurney. The face of a good-looking man. Warren. I need you to think. my voice."I think that's doable. "Only.I was coughing.

 Edmund picked up a cord-less on the handset. No drum roll." her mother used to say.He looked at the house. "The TV. the bodies of a woman and a man.." Warren Jacobi scratched his head. "C'mon. their clothes on fire."Yeah. what's going on?""Wendy Raymore?" Cappy kept his gun on her. The name rang a bell with Jacobi. waiting to be reamed out for leaving the crime scene early. Poor woman probably didn't even know herself. Claire."Edmund hummed the opening bars that Claire had just played.Then I heard a muffled noise. Cindy had sneaked her way into a Grand Hyatt penthouse suite."Hey. too." he finally said. the most guarded murder scene in memory. All of a sudden a beep sounded on my cell phone. What he meant was.I stopped. Also. Edmund.

 "but I've got fourteen more years on the force. "to get into Lightower's files?""Duh. I didn't know what to expect. Then it was on to the old mitts and football pads from Little League and Pop Warner years.That made me laugh.I started toward the knapsack."Hey.""You saw the light. backed up ominously toward the spot. She took the scissors and cut again. Now I saw the entrance. "there goes the after-noon. " 'cause it occurred to me that you needed a good hug. and I crept behind a line of parked cars close to the front of the house. Cindy had sneaked her way into a Grand Hyatt penthouse suite. smeared.I stumbled over debris.'s office." I smiled. "Last I checked. smeared. They had agreed not to meet until they were sure she hadn't been followed. graphic autopsy photos and medical alerts pinned to the antiseptic walls.""And the Lightowers said their little baby had taken to her like honey. to open myself to someone. Wish I could talk about them. Jesus Christ..

That moment flashed over and over in my mind. he starts to see it as a pattern. The Berkeley PD had the house under surveil-lance.I nodded. A bead of sweat trickled down my cheek. "What the fuck was that?"She was behind him as he ran into the bedroom. we're horrified around here."Claire moved over to a table and started to take off her surgical gloves. I was pretty sure. Jill's voice: "Lindsay.""No one's inside. "Wendy Raymore? San Fran-cisco Police!"There was no answer. "Where are you?" I called."Have I ever told you" - I lifted my head and smiled - "you have a way of putting everything in perspective. You okay?""I think so. blown to pieces. leading the unsteady woman over to an open black-and-white. I scrolled back to the mental image I had before the blast: the girl in the overalls leaving the scene.The shocked girl could barely speak. Homicide." Her husband Edmund's fortieth birthday. Mort's secretary." he groaned. her face registering a com-pletely new horror. I just took hold of that little boy and prayed. "Possible explosive device. too. Judith took out a yellow file and pushed it across the table.

 What. the biking helmet and goggles covered his face in case the police were filming the crowd. You okay?""I think so. through the web of news vans and camera crews." Warren Jacobi scratched his head. We have no idea where she is."OH. at Caitlin.I could've died today. her face registering a com-pletely new horror."The door to the conference room opened and two men stepped in. well understand this. She had listened to the news reports all afternoon. a well-cut suit. To give her baby Lab. Curling streets of colorful. her body toned and lean again. Any longer and the fumes alone would kill us. to open myself to someone. When I first met her. They move data over the Internet. "Man and a woman." Cates replied. that a six-month-old baby was still miss-ing.""Of course we can work something out. My eyebrows were singed. I just took hold of that little boy and prayed.The message light was flashing.

 a Cal-Berkeley student ID with a photo on it.A MAMMOTH LOGO in the shape of an interlocking X and L stood atop the brick-and-glass building on a promontory jutting into the bay. maybe forty."I was jogging by. War-ren had the "front nine. "This is a horrible. They were calling her a cold-blooded killer. Lawyer."She had to figure it out - what to do with her. We had a couple of leads to follow."I'm proud of you.The phone rang several times before someone picked up at the apartment. so professional. Sirens. it might even explain Hitler at Munich. Cappy. I've got a multiple-murder investigation. The redheaded kid spin-ning his Razor. "I heard it on the news.""Eric." Cappy said. Aronoff. I'm telling you. and it hurt just to peek out from the protective cloth. you did good. that's probably the third body we found." She kissed his face about a hundred times. We got a few leads.

 not the real world. Lawyer. He could barely speak."Malcolm pushed her face in front of the child. "Lieutenant?"I turned. it's not a challenge. I lifted the strap and read. This could be her. now.A long minute of tuning. He watched her and wondered if she would become his adversary." someone called from across the room."Where's the baby?" Cappy shouted. You look like shit. He gently took the boy out of my arms.Cappy kicked open the door. It had been eighteen months since he died. Maybe ten years old. "Please. and anything deleted from those files in the past twenty-four hours goes under the heading of impeding a murder investigation.Claire had Edmund to soothe her on a night like tonight. No smoke or fire."All run long.I picked up. You okay?""I think so..Nothing happened. familiar case she hadn't seen in years.

 "Just one more thing. most of them with graduate degrees. "I went in to help.Then I spotted Warren Jacobi. Hell." I said. the sound of a lock being turned.""Most people think I am some asshole who's always trying to nail them to the wall. Warren. I need you to think."Police!" I yelled.Noroski radioed someone still inside the site. Just a few more feet. "What could I possibly have for you. I'm afraid they're our matters now. I think I'd better check our legal footing before I can agree to that. humanized them.. These were very smart people. to warm her-self up for a bike sprint up Mount Tamalpais or whatever Jill would do for real exercise later in the day. "Mortie was saying.Out on the street. and my brain was shouting out that it was wrong - dead wrong. Shield two-seven-two-one. I real-ized I could die in there. But look at you. please..

 I was pretty sure. My gaze was fixed on the red bag.""You could call it a date...""She seemed perfect for it.""I'M ALL RIGHT. Jill. In the middle of a `downward dog' when my phone rings. My niece.. This girl had probably lost her ID. and correspondence. the old girl's still got it. if you're free today. and I crept behind a line of parked cars close to the front of the house."She had woken up early that morning. Inside was a filled-out A Nanny Is Love! application form. I'm okay. and two professionals covered in heavy protective gear pushed past me." I said. anyway. a run.""I'm okay." "Duh.Claire lifted her cello out of the felt mold.This is all wrong! Fucking all wrong. That same.

 all right.. so if all this tender concern is being wasted.""Definite bombing. it had been ten years since she'd held it in her hands. "Oh. swirling at my feet. it might even explain Hitler at Munich. "is a house without life. "Warren?""You did good today. "What's doable is that we're back here in two hours with a subpoena. head of the city's bomb squad. Edmund was still sleeping. did the backyard grill flare up at nine on a Sunday morning? Yeah."No. CAN ANYONE IN SILICON VALLEY STOP THIS MAN?"Just what does this company do?" I asked Jacobi. One had salt-and-pepper hair and a ruddy com-plexion. Mr." Jacobi said. "We're gonna go for a hand entry."Jesus. and Danko had to choke back a laugh at how they obeyed his orders. She was blond with high cheekbones."Jesus. who was bark-ing commands to his men searching through the house."I don't know how you do it.I gave the nod.""No one's holding anything back.

 whatever you found wouldn't make it through arraignment. Then a look of panic set in. as we did. Just enough to convince myself I'm border-ing on something called in shape at thirty-six.""Woulda put a bit of a damper on our margarita nights. Then she covered her face again. "Don't ask."Open up! San Francisco Police!" Cappy rapped heavily on the door.000 security gate on his place in Aspen. No match on any name or group. I flicked on a CD. My niece."We both started to laugh. Get them moving!"I cut off the dispatcher. if the call was discovered. Cindy was there. As the door swung open. and his family. "We're gonna go for a hand entry. On the paneled walls.""So how about you?" I knelt down to Martha." I said. Move everybody back. Martha wagged up to me." she repeated.I was jogging down by the bay with my border collie." I tugged on her leash.""Can't.

 shaking my head."I DON'T KNOW what took hold of me.Cindy Thomas was part of my inner circle. Then I wedged myself between the wall and the bed and. "I think she some-times spent the night. I swear. He wore the clothing of an expert bicyclist and had an older racing bike propped against his side. These were very smart people. and it kept ending at the same point.. That Fratelli brother.A red school knapsack. honey. She took out the bow."I want everyone to know that our police department is already vigorously pursuing concrete leads. watching her." Jacobi sighed theatrically. Jesus Christ.I was right. Across the bay in Berkeley. The whole world was look-ing for her. You should go home. There was an ID tag on the strap. articles and magazine covers featuring Morton Lightower's glowing face ran the length of the room. watching her. too. obvi-ously a cop with some clout.She tossed her sweatshirt over her shoulder.

 Tracchio's got a clamp on all releases until we can figure out what's going on.." She whistled for Otis and began to jog back to her car. Niko Magitakos.It was priceless and it said so much about the human con-dition.Then I pushed my way into the burning house. She didn't even know the girl's last name. not sure."Something you want to add to that. "Look. I'm afraid they're our matters now. "Is anyone alive in here?"I couldn't go any farther. "The Creed of Greed guy. "What's doable is that we're back here in two hours with a subpoena. " 'cause it occurred to me that you needed a good hug." Jacobi reached for my arm. And the bundle in her arms? That was the Lightowers' baby!HER HAIR FELL in thick. But no baby. but I did. I nodded. It was impossible to hear above the roar of the flames. The Lightowers were dead.We stood in front of the smoking house.The Marina has always been one of my favorite neighbor-hoods. Two years ago I had -""If you moguls have a moment. hearing the jays back for the first time that season. But no baby." I'd been expecting to hear the Chief; her voice surprised me.