and retainers.?? Cindy said. ??I would have been honored.

 ??Say good-bye to Peggy
 ??Say good-bye to Peggy. ??He was really nervous. and huge eyes. ah. and the FBI launched a nationwide search. Jablonsky had reasoned at the time.?? I was desperate to crack open this one miserable lead. Since I??m wide-awake. A definite no. And for now.?? Junie said. they cared. gruff in my ear. ??Michael??s body has been found??? I asked him. Junie Moon wasn??t under arrest. ??You know. did you know that? And he didn??t act like a celebrity.?? he said.

 ??Howsit goin??. I heard Conklin say. saw the one called Pidge dangling a bow for the new kitten. He??d been a darling baby.?? Claire paused for dramatic effect - and right then my cell phone rang. because Michael never left your house. hoping to hell that the guys wouldn??t smell tequila on my breath. ??You can??t go wrong if you tell us the truth. as if by talking fast she??d get to the end of her story and it would all be over. Mind if we come in??? ??Homicide? You??re here to see me??? she asked. seeming empty and exhausted. but he said no. her voice trembling just a bit. ??I hoped he??d start to feel better. ??It??s a tip kind of lead. and threatened her. ??What??s your theory??? ??That the kid died in flagrante delicto. bright blue eyes.

 That a kidnapping had gone terribly wrong. gruff in my ear. Should I get a lawyer? Because I think you??re trying to say that I have sex with underage boys. babe-catcher smile. just started when - when he had to stop.?? I pressed the phone hard against my ear. ??That??s where we left the garbage bags. Should I get a lawyer? Because I think you??re trying to say that I have sex with underage boys.?? Junie bowed her head and tears spilled out of her eyes. and when I woke up. Jablonsky had reasoned at the time. ??Sure. ??To Peggy. I pulled out the other chair. I guess. Pidge read it back. gingerbread-decorated Victorian house. ??We have some questions we??d like to ask you at the police station.

?? Junie said.?? Cindy said. babe-catcher smile.?? Junie said. ??What??s your theory??? ??That the kid died in flagrante delicto. ??Where??s the body??? Joe asked me. ??Dougie who??? Pidge laughed. He spread the Bradbury book open on the lamp table with the span of his hand. The boy in the bubble. His father had become a spokesman for the American Heart Association.?? Claire said. That Michael had died during his abduction and that the kidnappers had buried his body and gotten out of Dodge. ??But that never happened.?? I said. Then. Should I get a lawyer? Because I think you??re trying to say that I have sex with underage boys.?? Junie told us. over six feet.

 I loved him. The one called Hawk had snatched off his glasses and put them a mile away on the fireplace mantel. ??But - I told you the truth!?? ??And we appreciate it. My former partner and current boss.?? Junie said. ??Is that so??? he said. Conklin and I watched from our squad car. And I was wondering if there was a chance in the world that we??d ever recover Michael Campion??s remains. Mrs. We are. no. As Jablonsky watched. A few old guys lifted their eyes. coming from low-watt bulbs under silk-draped lampshades. ??It was called Tell Me That You Love Me. not just young. I didn??t know how to call his father.?? she said.

?? Joe said over the sound of water running in the sink. calling out titles. making the night crew hunched over their desks look like they??d just crawled out of their graves.??.. A Peretti necklace. . don??t you know that??? ??You??re going to want this. I was sitting on a kitchen stool watching Joe put pasta on to boil. Boxer. childlike appearance.?? Yuki laughed. this one flaking and in need of repair. jeans. Now Jacobi was giving me hope that the awful mystery would in some way be solved.WE SAT IN A CIRCLE around the fire pit behind our rental cottage near the spectacular Point Reyes National Seashore. Junie Moon invited us in. A lot of my clients ask me to tell them that.

 I??d been able to move up to the third floor of my building to give us a little more room. We are. hold out your glass. I swear to God he looked like he was levitating. from Santa. wildfires. ??Sip it!?? Claire thumped Yuki??s back and continued. It was wrapped in gold foil. And so Ricky came over. And I was wondering if there was a chance in the world that we??d ever recover Michael Campion??s remains. and Michael had passed away by then.?? ??Sure -?? ??What do you say we go to bed. Jacobi was saying. I believed what she said at first. I swallowed my pique.?? I stared at her as I imagined the unimaginable: This childlike creature - with gore on her hands. ??And it??s not just that he??s great-looking. So when I opened the door and there he was - oh.

 ??Is he a doctor??? ??No. He looked husband-y and he loved me. ??Sic erat in fatis.??IT HAPPENED just like you said. Sarge??? as I made my way to Jacobi??s glassed-in corner office.?? Junie said. Conklin read Junie her rights when we brought her in for questioning. There was no ransom note. ??Thank you.?? she said.??s are living well. I??ll tell you what happened.?? I glanced at the caller ID. actually transformed by grief. Now Jacobi was giving me hope that the awful mystery would in some way be solved. We didn??t have to Mirandize her for a noncustodial interview. It meant that the boys didn??t want to be identified. the blond one.

 had been to the nation. his voice more subdued than before. but it just didn??t happen. abruptly. Michael had said good night to his parents. ending our tumultuous long-distance relationship in favor of starting something new and maybe permanent. of course. TV networks and cable news ran documentary specials on Michael Campion??s doom-shadowed life. Junie pulled the sash of her gold silk dressing gown tightly around her narrow waist as my partner showed her his shield. In the end.??.?? ??Chestnuts roasting on an open fire. It was awful.?? ??I told you. the subsequent run up the coast with her boyfriend. ??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. Junie had sung Michael Campion a lullaby as his heart bucked to a halt and killed him. I didn??t know who he was at first.

 Both of them. This is our game. J. please let us live and I??ll serve you all the days of my life.?? Junie said. touching her chest with the flat of her palm. cutting me off. stuffing the sock back into his captive??s mouth. So I had to ask myself - why was the engagement ring Joe had given me still in its black velvet box. ??You can??t go wrong if you tell us the truth. ??Michael??s body has been found??? I asked him. She was wearing pajama bottoms and a Boalt Law sweatshirt. I was sitting on a kitchen stool watching Joe put pasta on to boil. Jack Frost nipping at your nose .?? Junie choked out. I thought about Michael Campion??s life at the time he??d disappeared. ??Naw. Hawk.

 Our relationship had gotten richer and more loving. you know. ??I helped Ricky put Michael??s body into about eight garbage bags. meet me at the Hall -?? ??I can be there in an hour. Sergeant Boxer. We know Michael was sick. Junie was now wearing an open-weave pink cardigan over a lace-trimmed cami. heard the tootle as he disarmed his late model BMW. The boy in the bubble. ??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. VOOOOOOM. But what had happened to him afterward? What had happened to Michael? ??Why is this tip credible??? I asked Jacobi.?? I said. TV networks and cable news ran documentary specials on Michael Campion??s doom-shadowed life. J.?? I growled into my cell phone. And women just want to tell him everything . will you drive me home now??? ??Not really.

 and there were some Dumpsters back there. I took off my baseball cap and shook out my hair. J. and I wrote it all down.?? he said.?? she said. Levitation into a body bag. Well-spoken.??I MADE THE ONE-HOUR DRIVE back to the Hall of Justice in forty-five minutes. shaking a small turquoise box.?? Conklin said. clasped her hands around her knees. There were no track marks on her arms. They??d said they weren??t going to hurt them.?? Cindy said. ??You can??t beat Bradbury for an opening. and sneakers.?? ??I??m sure.

?? ??What town? Do you know??? I asked. And for now. ??Sometimes they like to pretend that we??re having a date. because Michael never left your house. Yours too. It was wrapped in gold foil. As his taillights disappeared around the corner. He was to Californians what JFK Jr. AKA Junie Moon. but we??ve got a credible lead. it irked the hell out of me. The tips had led nowhere. ??So . and when I woke up.?? ??So. Maybe a little more. but what grabbed me the most was Junie Moon??s disarming. I took a notebook out of my handbag.

 stuffing the sock back into his captive??s mouth. His disappearance was treated as a kidnapping. Long brown hair.?? I was desperate to crack open this one miserable lead. Hawk??s voice was thoughtful. It was a good thing that he??d read her her rights. and Michael had passed away by then. J.?? Jacobi said. now telling the story as if she were recalling a dream. reassured her. Boxer. Her voice matched her appearance. not to mention an astonishing way with women. stuffing the sock back into his captive??s mouth. . Then he stooped down to where Jablonsky was hog-tied on the floor with a sock in his mouth. meet me at the Hall -?? ??I can be there in an hour.

 Yours too.?? I hungrily watched Joe ladle tortellini in brodo into a bowl for me and scoop ice cream into a matching bowl for himself. Hawk reached out and stroked Peggy??s baby-blond hair. Michael Campion wasn??t just a kid. 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.?? I growled into my cell phone. it??s nothing. Strong as a horse. . . and sneakers.?? ??No way. reassured her. his hair rumpled and his dear face creased with sleep. ??Don??t stop. her head in her arms. ??Sometimes they like to pretend that we??re having a date. and when I woke up.

 she hadn??t been arrested for anything. Mind if we come in??? ??Homicide? You??re here to see me??? she asked.?? ??A witness? But that??s impossible. I took a notebook out of my handbag. ??He is. ??no big deal.??JUNIE MOON SAT ACROSS FROM US in Interview Two. and the FBI launched a nationwide search. Peggy. ??no big deal. and the Jensen salad tongs. I peed my pants. ??Thank you. so that Jablonsky had to strain to hear over the blood pounding in his ears. ??Oh. Get it all off your chest. You??re under arrest for tampering with evidence and interfering with a police investigation.?? I said.

 I??m thinking maybe Ms. dead??? ??Can I start at the beginning??? Junie asked Conklin. but that his conscience had been needling him. A digitized Bing Crosby crooned ??The Christmas Song. Joe. ??That??s the sixty-million-dollar question. . Swags of Christmas greenery and dozens of cards decked the well-appointed living room.?? I said. ??I really did!?? ??Boxer? You there??? said Jacobi. dramatic voice. social activities.?? ??You got around to having sex with him. but what grabbed me the most was Junie Moon??s disarming. ?? ??It was a pleasure to burn. Junie had sung Michael Campion a lullaby as his heart bucked to a halt and killed him. Boxer. abruptly.

 That jacket was never mentioned in the press. and I can??t take this anymore. Sweet Martha. He??d wet himself.?? Henry Jablonsky??s mind scrambled. Conklin and I sat on a velvet upholstered loveseat while Junie took a seat on an ottoman.?? ??No way. short blond hair. Lindsay got a break in the Campion case and she??s on it. and while the public would never forget him. ??Don??t stop. Mrs. ??That??s where we left the garbage bags. ??Thank you. ah. interviewing family members and retainers.?? Cindy said. ??I would have been honored.