running. ?? ??It was a pleasure to burn.

 and months later
 and months later. It was like five in the morning. ??I??ll try. ??Nice talk. took the stairs from the lobby to the third floor. Conklin read Junie her rights when we brought her in for questioning. dragged his long fingers across the spines of the books. I heard Conklin say.?? ??No way.?? Claire said. I told Joe the rest of it: Junie??s dazed speech about Michael Campion??s dismemberment.??HENRY JABLONSKY??S STOMACH HEAVED. ??You don??t really know Dougie. ??The guy described what Michael was wearing - a particular aqua-blue ski jacket with a red stripe on one sleeve that Michael had gotten for Christmas. sighed and crossed her paws in front of her. In the end. and when I lit him up. thinking he??d just gotten home and was checking in.

 That Michael had died during his abduction and that the kidnappers had buried his body and gotten out of Dodge. Junie pulled the sash of her gold silk dressing gown tightly around her narrow waist as my partner showed her his shield. Then the door opened and we were looking into the unpainted face of Junie Moon. showing her a photo of Michael Campion.?? Junie told us. You moron! You might have saved him! Michael Campion might have lived. He could speak! He screamed ??Pegg-yyyyy?? as the Christmas tree bloomed with a bright yellow glare.?? I said. This is a classic.?? ??So. We are. over six feet. ??no big deal. and I took off his clothes. ??Lind-say.?? Rich told her. gasping for breath as Cindy and I yelled at her in unison.?? ??Understand.

?? Yuki coughed as the tequila went down her windpipe. interviewing family members and retainers. ??Lindsay. Junie Moon invited us in. Boxer. and months later. you??re right. his hair rumpled and his dear face creased with sleep. Ricky decided to cut up his body with a knife. .?? I said. no makeup. ??What??s the prostitute??s name??? ??Her given name is Myrtle Bays. and sneakers.??THE MUSCLE TWITCHING in Conklin??s jaw was the only outward sign that he was as stunned by Junie??s confession as I was.?? ??You??re arresting me??? ??Yes. you don??t know??? I said. killed Michael with his first roll in the hay - and then she made his body disappear.

 ??Not really. but sweetened with innocence. social activities. ??I yelled down into the dark well of that barn. but what grabbed me the most was Junie Moon??s disarming. ??He was really nervous.?? Rich said.?? Pidge called out to Peggy. putting the rap sheet back down on his desk. Pidge. I saw that Junie was no ordinary hooker. Ricky was saying. It was wrapped in gold foil. diamonds blazing in the dark? Why couldn??t I just say yes? ??What did Cindy tell you??? I asked him.?? ??See. Maybe a couple of minutes. He spread the Bradbury book open on the lamp table with the span of his hand. You moron! You might have saved him! Michael Campion might have lived.

 his hair rumpled and his dear face creased with sleep. and let Conklin keep the ball rolling.?? I took a deep breath and told Joe all about Junie Moon; how she??d denied everything for two hours before telling us to turn off the camera. ??Thank you very much. they cared.?? Conklin turned off the dazzling smile. and we had. Conklin passed her the box of tissues. ??It was one of my first cases in the ME??s office. when there??d been no calls from a kidnapper.?? Junie said.?? Junie said. ??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. Should I get a lawyer? Because I think you??re trying to say that I have sex with underage boys.?? I said. lifting her tearstained face.?? We were parked in the back of a McDonald??s. Junie started speaking quickly.

 walked over to the bookshelf.?? Pidge called out to Peggy. Levitation into a body bag. ??So . ??I hoped he??d start to feel better. ??Is he a doctor??? ??No. please let us live and I??ll serve you all the days of my life. scenting the air as they burned. ??Now she calls herself Junie Moon.?? I said. ??Don??t hurt us -?? ??No. but we??ve got a credible lead. Moon. ??Jacobi??? Yuki shouted.. Through photos and newscasts. Ivy League types. using every legal technique in the book.

 putting the rap sheet back down on his desk. and threatened her. VOOOOOOM. His days had been restricted to his chauffeur-driven rides to and from the exclusive Newkirk Preparatory School. ??Go on. referring to the reported size of the Campion fortune. Hawk. ??But that never happened. They said this was only a robbery.?? Junie choked out. From the first moment. her voice trembling just a bit.?? ??What is it??? ??The biggest deal in the world. and while the public would never forget him. Junie??? I asked. Didn??t want to get caught up in the hullabaloo. Then the door opened and we were looking into the unpainted face of Junie Moon. Work with us and we??ll leave you and your business alone.

 He couldn??t speak. it??s that he??s very respectful. Then he stooped down to where Jablonsky was hog-tied on the floor with a sock in his mouth. ??I would have been honored.TINY LIGHTS WINKED on the Douglas fir standing tall and full in front of the picture window. and - I??m not overstating this - she looked like she was in the tenth grade. Swags of Christmas greenery and dozens of cards decked the well-appointed living room. seeming empty and exhausted. ??Where??s the body??? Joe asked me. there was no way back.?? Pidge reached for another wrapped gift. . for God??s sake. ??I don??t know.?? Junie Moon??s gray eyes grew even more huge. abruptly. ??I??ve never met him. as if by talking fast she??d get to the end of her story and it would all be over.

 ??we??re not blaming you for anything. If not. Then.?? Conklin said. ??Well? Guilty or not guilty??? Pidge asked. ??Junie wasn??t in custody.?? I was desperate to crack open this one miserable lead. too. but it just didn??t happen. 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. He fixed his vision on that poker. If you turn that thing off. ??Verbatim? She said. she hadn??t been arrested for anything. ??The guy described what Michael was wearing - a particular aqua-blue ski jacket with a red stripe on one sleeve that Michael had gotten for Christmas. ??Sip it!?? Claire thumped Yuki??s back and continued. He said that he was a virgin.?? Hawk bent over.

 We leaned on her. floral. ??Is he a doctor??? ??No.?? she was telling Conklin. bashed my knee. Tell.?? Junie insisted. taking a couple of laps around the table. and I??m calling her in the morning for a quote.?? I said.?? she said with a wistful smile.?? ??You called your boyfriend??? I shouted.?? Junie said. He heard wrapping paper tear.?? ??What is it??? ??The biggest deal in the world. referring to the reported size of the Campion fortune. pulling out a stool and sitting beside me. Peggy pleaded with Hawk.

?? I took a deep breath and told Joe all about Junie Moon; how she??d denied everything for two hours before telling us to turn off the camera. ??Don??t hurt us -?? ??No. And I was wondering if there was a chance in the world that we??d ever recover Michael Campion??s remains.?? Conklin said. Her date of birth made her twenty-two years old. Ivy League types. swore loudly and emphatically as Jacobi sniggered. Mr. He looked husband-y and he loved me. Meaty hands. Junie started speaking quickly. Michael Campion had been born into incredible wealth. determined not to scare the little hooker even as she shocked me to the bone. As his taillights disappeared around the corner. I??d been able to move up to the third floor of my building to give us a little more room. She was wearing pajama bottoms and a Boalt Law sweatshirt.?? she said at last. and in the morning his bedroom was empty.

 imagining the towns along the coast. and the FBI launched a nationwide search.?? ?? As Hawk read. scenting the air as they burned. Sarge??? as I made my way to Jacobi??s glassed-in corner office. ??I??ve never met him. with its view of the on-ramp to the 280 freeway. ??I helped Ricky put Michael??s body into about eight garbage bags.?? Claire paused for dramatic effect - and right then my cell phone rang. Jablonsky praying that they would just take the stuff and leave. had been to the nation. Pidge read it back. the blond one.?? Junie told us. ??Stand up and put your hands behind your back. and let Conklin keep the ball rolling. And if I had. I rent it.

 . ??I would have been honored. Moon. ??I would have been honored. already drunk on her one margarita. . and firelight made flickering patterns on our faces as the sun set over the Pacific.?? Junie gave us her boyfriend??s name and address. This is a classic. Luckily. warming to the subject. hoping to hell that the guys wouldn??t smell tequila on my breath. He??d also been born with an inoperable heart defect and had been living on borrowed time for the whole of his life. J. ??To Peggy. We are. Michael??s teachers and school friends.?? Conklin turned off the dazzling smile.

?? ??We drove up the coast a few hours.?? ??Okay. the six hundred McDonald??s restaurants in Northern California. ??I don??t know. The room smelled sweet. Conklin and I watched from our squad car. Our rules. and when I woke up. ??Mrs. ??You can??t beat Bradbury for an opening. Mind if we come in??? ??Homicide? You??re here to see me??? she asked. her actual words muffled by the wad of sock in her mouth.??MY PULSE SHOT UP at the mention of Michael Campion??s name. The forty-by-forty-foot open space was lit with flickering overhead fluorescent tubing. Slap her bimbo face - so I got a grip on myself. that??s when I called my boyfriend. short blond hair. ??He was really nervous.

 That??s totally bogus. ??That??s the sixty-million-dollar question. politics.?? I said. I reached up to the video camera and switched it off. ??most of your clients are prep school kids??? ??Tell me the truth.?? Hawk said. He said to Henry Jablonsky. ??You can??t go wrong if you tell us the truth.?? ??You called your boyfriend??? I shouted. Junie. The body of Michael Campion in bloody chunks. ??I would have been honored. looking as though she might do it now. . It was a special pleasure to see things eaten. isn??t it??? ??That??s right. ??We have some questions we??d like to ask you at the police station.

 ??Nice place. but sweetened with innocence. said.?? Hawk said. ??About then. pleading to Conklin with her eyes. smelled the sour odor of urine. that??s when I called my boyfriend. his voice more subdued than before. Mrs.TINY LIGHTS WINKED on the Douglas fir standing tall and full in front of the picture window. her hair in a ponytail. The attached mug shot was of a young woman with a girlish look. Then he heard Pidge speak to Hawk. No sign of foul play. they cared. And women just want to tell him everything . no.

 Get it all off your chest.?? I stared at her as I imagined the unimaginable: This childlike creature - with gore on her hands. Joe is a big. ??Sorry. you know. My partner.?? ??So. VOOOOOOM. You??re under arrest for tampering with evidence and interfering with a police investigation. and Michael was their adored poster boy. pleading to Conklin with her eyes. ??It??s either tell her everything.?? ??See. Conklin read Junie her rights when we brought her in for questioning.?? Cindy begged me. It was the most horrible thing I could ever imagine - and I grew up on a farm! I was throwing up and crying.?? ??So. She was barefoot.

 I??ll tell you what happened. Jablonsky praying that they would just take the stuff and leave. she hadn??t been arrested for anything. fine. A few old guys lifted their eyes. Get the kit-cat and let??s go. looking as though she might do it now. opened it to the first page. A digitized Bing Crosby crooned ??The Christmas Song. ??Nice talk. and in the morning his bedroom was empty. reassured her.??THE MUSCLE TWITCHING in Conklin??s jaw was the only outward sign that he was as stunned by Junie??s confession as I was. ??You can??t beat Bradbury for an opening. warming to the subject. and I was sure if she was Mirandized. The camera was loaded and running. ?? ??It was a pleasure to burn.