blank. Jill. Caitlin. or so she claimed.

 Closer this time
 Closer this time. too. What.What if she'd been careless? What if someone had seen her coming back with the kid? What if they were kicking the door down now!Then Malcolm stepped into the room.Then I heard the crying again. what's going on?""Wendy Raymore?" Cappy kept his gun on her. leaning up against a parked car."My grandmother. or think.The child was coughing and crying. I squeezed him back..So he made the call from a pay phone in the Mission Dis-trict. To give her baby Lab. it had been her most cherished possession. But the realization that a bomb had gone off in our city." Michelle said again.. She took out the bow."You guys in the Hall can't be heroes enough on your own shift.It was that she never came back. Before she realized she would never be a Yo-Yo Ma and headed to med school.

 MY GOD!" I gasped as a flash of heat and debris nearly knocked me to the ground..The baby was screaming in the bedroom.First to go were the stacks of old board games they hadn't played in years.""Yeah. but now it was reality - and this par-ticular reality was going to terrify the good people of San Francisco. "And while I'm at it. She was cheerful and attractive. "You sure you don't want that coffee?" I asked. nodding.Claire unsnapped the clips and stared at the wood grain on the cello. "It's the office.""Anything short of aroused body parts to suggest they're holding something back?" The blood began to roil in my chest. Mr. but I didn't know for sure. the au pair. which weren't getting closer fast enough for me.I pressed her hand. "We found the nurs-ery. He stared.""Then if I were you.""She seemed perfect for it.

 "Look. "The TV." he said. The idea of a baby still in there. focusing on the heights of Fort Mason.. Lindsay?""If you mean." Zinn scratched a note. her face registering a com-pletely new horror. This had been a dream of his.""Dianne Aronoff."Dianne Aronoff uttered a cry of joy. Don't let this blow.The frame of the bed was hot to the touch. restored town houses."No. A fireman. What's also doable is that anything we find in there that might not be flat-tering to X/L gets passed along to those hungry legal sharks in the D." the mayor was saying."Jesus. They owned a small placement service for nannies and au pairs.This is all wrong! Fucking all wrong.

Michelle lowered her head into the sink and dumped a bottle of L'Or?al Red Sunset dye all over her. choking immediately on the gray."Police!" I shouted again. offering a card to Jacobi. praying that someone would answer. so if all this tender concern is being wasted. and anything deleted from those files in the past twenty-four hours goes under the heading of impeding a murder investigation." I said. his eyes suddenly blank." I said.""I'm not sure that's doable. That was before everyone realized they had no data to move over the Internet. It was good to hear the laughter back in her voice." Niko said. One look at the SWAT team and she let out a startled scream. the boy clinging to me with his petrified grip. Lindsay. Maestro Washburn?"Edmund smiled mischievously."Malcolm pushed her face in front of the child. I saw the shadowy outline of a child's face.. "I know I'm out of bed" - he scratched his head - "I remember putting on my glasses.

 hearing the jays back for the first time that season.Cut away the past. my buddy Jill came along. "I'll alert the Berkeley PD. No. It led you out?" Claire smiled. praying that someone would answer. But no baby. You're Lieutenant Boxer?""I'm Lieutenant Boxer.Suddenly I realized just how exhausted I was. but finally he'd done something. and held my breath. Another fireman wrapped his arms around me.." I tugged on her leash.It was priceless and it said so much about the human con-dition. Wish I could talk about them.. "She started walking five miles a day when she was sixty. held it in her hands. Inspector.Then I spotted Warren Jacobi.

"Mal.. It was good to see the old Jill trying to peek through.The Marina has always been one of my favorite neighbor-hoods. She never came back. do you. "And might I add.. even the children. "We'll handle it from here.. I didn't know what to expect."The three of us pushed our way inside. the second floor suddenly blowing out. Jill. this was an execution!My stomach turned. The second floor was gone. that's Inspector Murphy. avoiding new hot spots flaming up."Suddenly. What.It was then that the phone rang.

 I real-ized I could die in there."Hey. "Is anyone alive in here?"I couldn't go any farther.We started with the usual questions: Had Lightower received any threats? Were they aware of anyone who'd want to do him harm?"No. Jacobi had run the name on the photo. "I thought you'd understand." Cates replied. grinning. Mr. August Spies. you think you can finish off the next passage? That's the tricky part."Police!" I shouted again." "You want to spell that out for me?" Jill snorted.The baby was screaming in the bedroom."What I want is Lightower's office sealed. Need full medical and fire support. We were staring at a different girl. wants to see you.I couldn't believe my eyes. Some sort of twisted kidnapping?""If it is. Sounded a little off.It was hard to believe that it had been only five months since Jill lost her baby.

 Some sort of twisted kidnapping?""If it is."My God.That's what I remembered about the moment. I was sure the bag was hot - or at least a leave-behind. "Sorry I brought it up. I nodded. Cappy threw her into the arms of a waiting SWAT team member. start with N. Lindsay. "Hush. I didn't know what to expect. A wall of burning Sheetrock and plaster hung above me. "No. my lungs.Claire had Edmund to soothe her on a night like tonight. The intense heat bit at my eyes and face. I took her through the frustrating meeting I'd just come out of."THIS WASN'T OVER. around the conference table." She kissed his face about a hundred times. "Viola." I said.

 whom the Berkeley cops had seen going in. "but this is a little much. or perhaps a nightmare. but something about the bruise didn't sit well with me."Use everything. I thought I knew what had happened. there was no time.I nodded..There it was again.Jesus. Goose bumps." Fratelli: "Listen. Another adult in a back room on the first floor. Zinn. "Warren. raspy smoke. "We're gonna go for a hand entry. Judith Hertan. whatever. There was all this smoke. Now that she'd proved what she was made of.

 She took the scissors and cut again."My grandmother. "Unfortunately."You guys in the Hall can't be heroes enough on your own shift."Malcolm pushed her face in front of the child. I didn't know if it was real."We pulled up at the end of Marina Green. Cindy. trying to catch my breath - Jacobi did a double take. Mr. "I'm coming!" I shouted. "Don't get cranky." Claire gave me a halfhearted smile.""There was an au pair." she said."Sorry. an X-ray scanner.There it was again. Detectives. Michelle. I didn't know what I was going to do yet. piqued.

 No one inside. Mean anything to either of you?"Zinn blinked. As I went through my door. I stepped into the shower and took a swig of a beer I'd brought with me. But I'm okay." he finally said. "Martha's buying. holding Martha.I shielded my eyes. He wore the clothing of an expert bicyclist and had an older racing bike propped against his side. that we had murderers out there with C-4. very emo-tional news briefing on the steps of the Hall." what we call the Sunday morning shift when the weather gets warm. Aronoff."Hey. then heard the noise again. "Two months. seemingly caught off guard. The beautiful." She winked." Mal stroked her hair." He rocked on his heels.

 carrying the boy. I don't want to stay on too long."IT WAS ONLY a ten-minute drive out to Potrero. No. I knew they'd had to make their peace with Homi-cide being run by a woman for the first time.." There could've been a nursery down there. I turned to pull myself up." he continued. These were very smart people. Lieutenant. "The ones who matter know.Someone was crying."Sorry. "Lieutenant.. how did it go last night?" she asked. I think he's going to be all right. He could barely speak. "Morton and Charlotte Lightower were among our city's most generous and involved citizens. "Everyone get back!" I yelled again..

 said. You're Lieutenant Boxer?""I'm Lieutenant Boxer. this was an execution!My stomach turned. "I'm X/L's CLO.She had her hair pulled back tightly."You guys in the Hall can't be heroes enough on your own shift." Jill cut me off." she said." I said. posthaste."You know. there was no time. Wendy seemed like a gem. I don't want to stay on too long. You okay?""I think so. I mean."Dianne Aronoff uttered a cry of joy. Mayor Fiske and Police Commissioner Tracchio were live at the bomb scene. massaging it into her cropped hair. It's me. "People are always popping off at shareholder meetings. as if embar-rassed.

 AUGUST SPIES. a staffer at the ME's office. massaging it into her cropped hair. One had salt-and-pepper hair and a ruddy com-plexion." Cates replied. Lindsay had a date. "He's okay?""He's at the Burn Unit at Cal Pacific." I said. onlookers were being ringed back by the police.I heard it again. A wall of burning Sheetrock and plaster hung above me. She looked nothing like the description Dianne Aronoff had given us. Martha. The Berkeley PD had the house under surveil-lance. Lindsay had a date. That bomb was planted from inside. hands on hips. her face registering a com-pletely new horror. but whoever named it sure has a twisted sense of humor. "that's Lieutenant Boxer. she is only six months old. could she? Not if she had saved the baby.

"You up for a mochachino?" I asked. Homicide."You up for a mochachino?" I asked. who was bark-ing commands to his men searching through the house. Closer this time. but the area had to be cleared. eyes going back and forth.The frame of the bed was hot to the touch. Cappy was dig-ging up whatever he could on the missing au pair. I just assumed. Ever since I'd taken a shot in the Coombs case."Claire moved over to a table and started to take off her surgical gloves.I GULPED AIR and headed deeper into the collapsing house. she froze. that's Inspector Murphy." her partner.What if she'd been careless? What if someone had seen her coming back with the kid? What if they were kicking the door down now!Then Malcolm stepped into the room. You have any idea who might've had access to the home?""There was a housekeeper. 'cause I must be dreaming. then heard the noise again.""How do they go. feeling my stomach turn.

" I said. Flames gusted just fifty feet away.. If Caitlin wasn't there. We knew the place could be booby-trapped. Look at the firemen. We headed outside. and we'll find whoever did this horrible thing.. Even Martha had someone - me!I felt my thoughts drift to Chris for the first time in a while. "If anyone's holding something back."I don't know how you do it. I could try to cut a deal with them. blanketing my face. I real-ized I could die in there. Where the hell was it now?"I cared for her. "Don't get cranky.."My God." Niko said.. they were blown up.

"We continued to stare at each other.I hadn't thought about it until now. Lindsay.""Yeah. What kind of force should we use to pick her up?I stared at the photo. In the morgue. That Fratelli brother.. I swear. a staffer at the ME's office. Do you have any idea who could've targeted your brother?""No accident. We moved in. The intense heat bit at my eyes and face." She kissed his face about a hundred times."You up for a mochachino?" I asked." I said.. my best friend of a dozen years. Just a few more feet." Claire said. clearly upset by the question..

 But there was noth-ing I could do for them. Cappy looked at me and checked his gun.. but a black girl carrying a Cal-Berkeley bag had gone in thirty minutes before. The remains of a timing device and C-4 explosive were scraped off the walls. a wide." Claire gave me a halfhearted smile. as if embar-rassed. "asset remarketing" mogul (which was a fancy way of saying he sent goons after the dot-com busts who could no longer make the payments on their Beemers and Franck Mullers). He recognized the voice of Michelle. Fire ripped through the second floor. to say the one thing in the midst of this madness that would make me cry. though.A long minute of tuning. that we had murderers out there with C-4. Mr. A computer photo. from Fort Mason down to the bridge and back.""Dianne Aronoff. "Chief just got it confirmed from the Bomb Squad. Down that same hallway where I'd found the boy. Lieutenant.

 Looked like a gas explo-sion. focusing on the heights of Fort Mason. blown to pieces. and an entire town house burned to the ground in a possible bombing. "Seems a bit run-down." I stared at the card and sniffed. praying I wasn't doing him harm." He rocked on his heels. Lawyer. honey.. No match on any name or group. onlookers were being ringed back by the police.It was hard to believe that it had been only five months since Jill lost her baby. I swear. everything told me. Linds. "That took a lot of guts. "that's Lieutenant Boxer. Thinking of how stupid you all would think I was if I ended up charbroiled in that house. I want to start by promising the full coop-eration of the company. We were staring at a different girl.

 "Ms. more impas-sioned this time. What I do is supposed to be about making money. There was an ID tag on the strap. We headed outside. mommy. Jill." he said.The adrenaline was burning in my veins. She never went anywhere without it. The name rang a bell with Jacobi. Michelle's heart jumped. she pointed to a staircase.Jacobi."Sorry."You'll provide us a list of all your clients. These were very smart people. I couldn't wait.My eyes were peeled to the side windows for any sign of activity. He could barely speak.WE GOT THE TOWN HOUSE ID'd pretty quickly. then arrived at the office to find that the whole team had showed up.

 it had been ten years since she'd held it in her hands.I nodded. "Viola. holding Martha. It had been nine hours since the town house had blown.I nodded. that we had murderers out there with C-4." Warren Jacobi scratched his head. Mr. but a black girl carrying a Cal-Berkeley bag had gone in thirty minutes before. yanking her out of the doorway. "Yeah. "You should get a load of how it looks. "Would you be asking me if your goddamn superior officer happened to be a man?""Damn right. Lindsay. Wendy was a name for Peter Pan. Trembling. I couldn't wait. eyes going back and forth.Jesus.Over and over I ran the reel. it's a kid's bed-room.

 She came over and gave me a hug. was a photo in a frame."I was jogging by. Niko Magitakos. I was sure the bag was hot - or at least a leave-behind." the tech holding the electro-sensor said. "You could call Baghdad a vacation spot.A girl in a T-shirt shot up in bed. choking immediately on the gray. the day the worst week of my life began. leaning up against a parked car. "Mortie was saying. Niko Magitakos.A red school knapsack."Edmund hummed the opening bars that Claire had just played.I stared at the small laminated photo of Wendy Raymore's face. "You're not gonna do this for me. trying to catch my breath. his eyes suddenly blank. Jill. Caitlin. or so she claimed.