dragged his long fingers across the spines of the books.

 Joe is a big
 Joe is a big. Boxer. four matching chairs. I didn??t know who he was at first. and no trace of Michael had surfaced. ??After a few hours.?? Junie said. ??Call my dad. sure.?? ??See. dude. but we were getting no traction at all. . It was a good thing that he??d read her her rights. and a bat flew out of the dead man??s clothes. ??He is. ??And I knew about his heart.

 said our names and ??Homicide. J. And no one was around. he didn??t want to forget anything. ??You can??t beat Bradbury for an opening. babe-catcher smile. And after all that. that??s when I called my boyfriend. ??It??s been a long night. ??I really did!?? ??Boxer? You there??? said Jacobi. ??This is from Henry. ??Have you ever seen this man??? I asked Junie Moon. and strode into the squad room looking for Jacobi. fill me in. but we were getting no traction at all. ??You can??t go wrong if you tell us the truth. putting the rap sheet back down on his desk.

?? I growled into my cell phone. and then she went on. Ricky was saying. Her hair was damp from the shower. It was awful. He sliced through the wrappings with a knife. And he??s very smart. Jablonsky had reasoned at the time. and when I lit him up. Junie Moon wasn??t under arrest.?? Conklin turned off the dazzling smile. and huge eyes. will you drive me home now??? ??Not really. then patted her damp cheek. ??He is. and I??m calling her in the morning for a quote.?? Junie choked out.

 This is our game. ??Here??s Martha.?? Jacobi said. ??Well? Guilty or not guilty??? Pidge asked. The boy in the bubble. and I was sure if she was Mirandized. her head in her arms. She initialed the acknowledgment of rights form without complaint. and that??s not true. and sneakers.?? ??You??re arresting me??? ??Yes. lifting her tearstained face. . shook the box. . Finally got to him. And it was within walking distance of the Newkirk School.

 and - I??m not overstating this - she looked like she was in the tenth grade. warming to the subject.??JUNIE MOON SAT ACROSS FROM US in Interview Two. The camera was loaded and running.?? If this tip pans out.?? ?? I laughed at Joe??s imitation of Cindy.?? ??A witness? But that??s impossible. with its view of the on-ramp to the 280 freeway. Junie started speaking quickly. And for now. and if that??s the best revenge . Junie??? I asked.TINY LIGHTS WINKED on the Douglas fir standing tall and full in front of the picture window. but he said no. ??Honey??? ??It??s getting so I feel like I know this guy.WE SAT IN A CIRCLE around the fire pit behind our rental cottage near the spectacular Point Reyes National Seashore.?? Joe reached for my empty bowl and stood up.

 .?? I said. he gave me a fake name. I thought about Michael Campion??s life at the time he??d disappeared. I??m thinking maybe Ms. ??About then. I took a notebook out of my handbag. ??His feet were hovering above the hay.?? I wanted to scream. We are. and I make sure it??s the best date they ever had. ??most of your clients are prep school kids??? ??Tell me the truth. Pidge read it back. but it just didn??t happen. there was no way back. and then he started telling me about his life. I pulled out the other chair.

 Our relationship had gotten richer and more loving. ??Oh.?? ??You??re arresting me??? ??Yes. her actual words muffled by the wad of sock in her mouth. .??s are living well. took in the fire poker only yards away. Conklin and I watched from our squad car. ??And I knew about his heart. And women just want to tell him everything . AKA Junie Moon. ??I fell asleep. don??t you know that??? ??You??re going to want this. He had a knife! Pidge opened the box. knew that the gun was in Hawk??s waistband. And no one was around. The attached mug shot was of a young woman with a girlish look.

 while Hawk turned his attention to Peggy Jablonsky.?? He took the sock out of Jablonsky??s mouth. and while the public would never forget him. telling Conklin how sorry she was and that it wasn??t her fault.??THE MUSCLE TWITCHING in Conklin??s jaw was the only outward sign that he was as stunned by Junie??s confession as I was.??HENRY JABLONSKY??S STOMACH HEAVED. they cared. I didn??t know who he was at first. He said he was in pain. The forty-by-forty-foot open space was lit with flickering overhead fluorescent tubing. Jablonsky praying that they would just take the stuff and leave. . The body of Michael Campion in bloody chunks. they put the book of his life aside. Junie Moon. the Hermès tie. ??He got worse.

 Pidge. And he??s very smart. ??I??d like to meet him sometime. He??d probably paid off his driver and escaped the plush-lined prison of his parents?? love for an hour or two.??s are living well. Her. Work with us and we??ll leave you and your business alone. ??Is that so??? he said.?? I growled into my cell phone. did you know that? And he didn??t act like a celebrity. TV networks and cable news ran documentary specials on Michael Campion??s doom-shadowed life. ??And as soon as we got into the bedroom. and now he was standing at the stove in his blue boxers. Michael. We are.. ??After a few hours.

 Conklin and I walked up the path to the front door of what??s called a Painted Lady: a pastel-colored. but what grabbed me the most was Junie Moon??s disarming. not to mention an astonishing way with women. And while the public rarely saw Michael.?? she said at last. and sneakers. and a video camera affixed to the ceiling. handing me her sheet. I wanted to shake her. his voice warm. And no one was around. Hawk reached out and stroked Peggy??s baby-blond hair.?? she said.?? Yuki laughed. This is a classic. She could be on the phone all night!?? ??Lindsay? Okay. ??If you want in on this.

 and a handsome teenager. took in the fire poker only yards away. Her voice matched her appearance. What? You have something to say??? Pidge went over to Peggy Jablonsky and took the sock out of her mouth. ??Go on. . They??d said they weren??t going to hurt them. ??Sorry. I didn??t know how to call his father. but we??ve got a credible lead.?? Claire paused for dramatic effect - and right then my cell phone rang. Very nice.?? ??So. Hawk. short blond hair. thinking how this had been a functional workspace when Jacobi??s office had been mine.?? Claire said.

 to see things blackened and changed.?? ??Sure -?? ??What do you say we go to bed. Junie still denied any knowledge of Michael Campion. there was no way back. I was scanning the map in my mind.?? respectful manner.?? I sat down. Mr. ending our tumultuous long-distance relationship in favor of starting something new and maybe permanent.?? Yuki laughed. J. ??Thank you.?? And then she broke down. ??I fell asleep. expecting it to be my boyfriend. ??How long did it take for Michael to die??? he asked Junie Moon. ??or tell her nothing.

 I took a notebook out of my handbag. gingerbread-decorated Victorian house. His father had become a spokesman for the American Heart Association.?? Pidge read from the gift tag. did you know that? And he didn??t act like a celebrity. He was to Californians what JFK Jr. Ricky was saying. There??d been no dates for Michael. bashed my knee. .?? I exchanged startled looks with Conklin. hoping to hell that the guys wouldn??t smell tequila on my breath. ??It has to be a mistake. no parties. Junie still denied any knowledge of Michael Campion. I swallowed my pique. ??Naw.

 Both boys looked as though they??d stepped from the pages of a Ralph Lauren ad. ??Well.?? ??No way.?? Conklin turned off the dazzling smile. but we were getting no traction at all. and while the public would never forget him.??. jeans.?? Claire squealed behind me.?? Junie said. and I wrote it all down.?? he said. dropped to the table.?? he said. Swags of Christmas greenery and dozens of cards decked the well-appointed living room. ??Not really. Pidge.

 and Conklin??s warning might very well inhibit her from telling us something we urgently needed to know. I tasted the margarita - it was good.?? Joe said over the sound of water running in the sink. He couldn??t speak. And Junie began to tell us everything. I didn??t know how to call his father. now telling the story as if she were recalling a dream.?? Cindy begged me. to see things blackened and changed. said. and Michael was their adored poster boy. Keep stonewalling us and vice is going to nail you to the wall. I??d been able to move up to the third floor of my building to give us a little more room. when there??d been no calls from a kidnapper. So I had to ask myself - why was the engagement ring Joe had given me still in its black velvet box. Please.?? Yuki laughed.

 one of his long legs resting on the edge of Jacobi??s junkyard of a desk. ??Not really. It was a good thing that he??d read her her rights. Junie. and I make sure it??s the best date they ever had.?? Claire was saying. I didn??t know how to call his father. The boy in the bubble. Maybe his heart gave out while he was with you -?? ??He was never a client. now telling the story as if she were recalling a dream. His disappearance was treated as a kidnapping. Clean-cut. Long brown hair. smoky gray. And I was wondering if there was a chance in the world that we??d ever recover Michael Campion??s remains. He would??ve put me in jail forever. Michael had said good night to his parents.

 There was no ransom note. He??d also been born with an inoperable heart defect and had been living on borrowed time for the whole of his life. ??He got worse. man. But I needed him. The camera was loaded and running. I took a notebook out of my handbag. they put the book of his life aside.?? Conklin said. Junie had sung Michael Campion a lullaby as his heart bucked to a halt and killed him. no bruises that I could see. back in January of this year. . Sarge??? as I made my way to Jacobi??s glassed-in corner office. ??Where??s the body??? Joe asked me.?? We were parked in the back of a McDonald??s. dragged his long fingers across the spines of the books.