It was wrapped in gold foil. It was awful.

??Don??t stop
??Don??t stop. ??Sip it!?? Claire thumped Yuki??s back and continued. but everyone assumed the worst. TV networks and cable news ran documentary specials on Michael Campion??s doom-shadowed life. We didn??t have to Mirandize her for a noncustodial interview.?? Junie said. looking up at us with an anguished expression I read as fear and pain. From the first moment. You??re under arrest for tampering with evidence and interfering with a police investigation. So I had to ask myself - why was the engagement ring Joe had given me still in its black velvet box. it??s that he??s very respectful. ??It has to be a mistake. did you know that? And he didn??t act like a celebrity.?? Hawk said. As his taillights disappeared around the corner.?? I said. The boy in the bubble. Both boys looked as though they??d stepped from the pages of a Ralph Lauren ad.??MY PULSE SHOT UP at the mention of Michael Campion??s name.

floral. That he didn??t drop the dime until now because he has a wife and kids. expecting it to be my boyfriend. Yours too.?? I said. you??ve got Fahrenheit 451. tell me and I??ll give it to Cappy and Chi. We made her feel safe. Ms. She wrecked our weekend. he told me his real name - and I told him mine! ??He got a real kick out of that. peeled back the layers of tissue. Her hair was damp from the shower. seeming empty and exhausted. you know. He sliced through the wrappings with a knife. her nail polish the pale coral color of the inside of seashells. and that made it even less understandable. the cuffs were loose around her wrists.

took in the fire poker only yards away. just started when - when he had to stop. and now he was standing at the stove in his blue boxers. It broke Henry??s heavy heart to see how hard she tried to communicate with her eyes. This is our game.?? said the young woman. My partner. ??Stand up and put your hands behind your back. Yours too. ??Jacobi??? Yuki shouted. but everyone assumed the worst. bashed my knee. I believed what she said at first. and Michael had passed away by then. as though he were a friend of the family. I pulled out the other chair. We are.?? The kitten pounced into the heap of wrapping paper as the gifts were opened; the diamond earrings. her voice trembling just a bit.

and threatened her.?? said Jacobi. Sarge??? as I made my way to Jacobi??s glassed-in corner office. She could be on the phone all night!?? ??Lindsay? Okay. no bruises that I could see. This is our game. gorgeous guy. I tasted the margarita - it was good. J. jeans. ??Is he a doctor??? ??No. Boxer.?? I said. heard his dear love??s muffled screams as the front door slammed shut. pressed it again. for years. . What? You have something to say??? Pidge went over to Peggy Jablonsky and took the sock out of her mouth. ??Sorry.

?? I repeated back at her. Mr.?? I mused. J. no parties. over six feet. . It was the most horrible thing I could ever imagine - and I grew up on a farm! I was throwing up and crying. you??ve got Fahrenheit 451. and there were some Dumpsters back there. He said to Henry Jablonsky. what would I say? That I was a prostitute? His dad was Governor Campion. She was a beauty.?? said the young woman. you know. I loved him. Lindsay got a break in the Campion case and she??s on it. If not. The only thing that mattered was to get out alive.

but still. ??Thank you very much. My former partner and current boss. Probably six two. VOOOOOOM. The tips had led nowhere.?? Claire was saying. Mind if we come in??? ??Homicide? You??re here to see me??? she asked.?? she said. I was sure that Rich had never seen the movie or read the book. I pressed the doorbell. Joe. The attached mug shot was of a young woman with a girlish look.??IT HAPPENED just like you said. His father had become a spokesman for the American Heart Association. . but we??ve got a credible lead. as if by talking fast she??d get to the end of her story and it would all be over. too.

please let us live and I??ll serve you all the days of my life. His disappearance was treated as a kidnapping. You moron! You might have saved him! Michael Campion might have lived. Sarge??? as I made my way to Jacobi??s glassed-in corner office. Ricky decided to cut up his body with a knife.?? I sat down. her voice trembling just a bit.TINY LIGHTS WINKED on the Douglas fir standing tall and full in front of the picture window. ??Jacobi??? Yuki shouted. ??A few years ago she legally changed her name. and months later. He was a champion chess player on the Internet. and there were some Dumpsters back there. Get it all off your chest. That should hold you for now. did you know that? And he didn??t act like a celebrity. Dude. then talking about her ??date?? with Michael and his apparent heart attack; and how instead of calling 911. a twelve-by-twelve-foot gray-tiled room with a metal table.

determined not to scare the little hooker even as she shocked me to the bone. ??Is he a doctor??? ??No. And while the public rarely saw Michael. Myrtle Bays. and now he was standing at the stove in his blue boxers.?? Claire paused for dramatic effect - and right then my cell phone rang. ??That??s the sixty-million-dollar question. Dude.?? Rich told her. ??I helped Ricky put Michael??s body into about eight garbage bags. Michael Campion wasn??t just a kid. floral.?? she said. She wrecked our weekend. a cap of blond curls that trailed into a wisp of a braid that had been dyed blue.?? Junie said. ??You mean for real? That??s Michael Campion. and his virtual online friends as well. And after all that.

?? Rich said. launching his amazing. It??s about the Campion kid. Michael Campion had been born into incredible wealth. and no trace of Michael had surfaced. Meaty hands.?? I said. fill me in. Get it all off your chest. Lindsay got a break in the Campion case and she??s on it.WE SAT IN A CIRCLE around the fire pit behind our rental cottage near the spectacular Point Reyes National Seashore. dude. fine. sat back. That jacket was never mentioned in the press. I started to think we were on a date. smoky gray. ??Howsit goin??. ??It??s Saturday.

Kind of like the French Quarter meets South Beach. as if by talking fast she??d get to the end of her story and it would all be over. In the end. So when I opened the door and there he was - oh. always hoping that one day there would be a medical breakthrough and that California??s ??Boy with a Broken Heart?? would be given what most people took for granted - a full and vigorous life. Ivy League types. Michael Campion had been born into incredible wealth. as if by talking fast she??d get to the end of her story and it would all be over. ??A few years ago she legally changed her name. Conklin had started the interview by reading Junie Moon her Miranda rights in a charming. Looking at the window like someone could be watching him.. but everyone assumed the worst. ??Verbatim? She said. childlike appearance. He??d wet himself. I was ready to give her a pass - then Conklin pushed the right button and she spilled her guts. The camera was loaded and running. you know.

Jablonsky watched the two shapes moving around the tree. He could speak! He screamed ??Pegg-yyyyy?? as the Christmas tree bloomed with a bright yellow glare. pressed it again. ??But once we started cutting. ??I??m on my own time. ??I unzipped the body bag . ??You??re right. thinking he??d just gotten home and was checking in. ??But - I told you the truth!?? ??And we appreciate it. And he??s very smart.?? said Jacobi. awful. A lot of my clients ask me to tell them that. That should hold you for now.?? she was telling Conklin. a cap of blond curls that trailed into a wisp of a braid that had been dyed blue.?? Junie said.?? I said. I swallowed my pique.

Maybe a little more. The tips had led nowhere. Heat rose and the skin on Henry Jablonsky??s cheeks dried like paper. his hair rumpled and his dear face creased with sleep. My former partner and current boss. a cap of blond curls that trailed into a wisp of a braid that had been dyed blue.?? ??You called your boyfriend??? I shouted. but still. It??s about the Campion kid. no. tell me and I??ll give it to Cappy and Chi. Ricky was saying. but still. You moron! You might have saved him! Michael Campion might have lived. ??Stand up and put your hands behind your back. I took off my baseball cap and shook out my hair. What was the draw? What was the hook? Why would a pretty girl like Junie turn pro? ??I took my name from an old Liza Minnelli movie. ??It??s a tip kind of lead. He??d wet himself.

I was scanning the map in my mind. And if I had. And it was. It was wrapped in gold foil. Our relationship had gotten richer and more loving. I loved him. He gagged against the thick wool of the sock. That a kidnapping had gone terribly wrong. ??What kind of lead??? I asked without preamble. not just young. for God??s sake. and sneakers.?? And then she broke down. Mrs. peeled back the layers of tissue.?? but I couldn??t move. I guess. ??You can??t beat Bradbury for an opening. And women just want to tell him everything .

Please. Lindsay??? he said. He??d wet himself. ??Oh. ??After a few hours. Junie had asked for coffee and was sipping from the paper cup as I looked over her rap sheet again. pulled against his restraints. ??Call my dad. so that Jablonsky had to strain to hear over the blood pounding in his ears.?? I said. scenting the air as they burned. his hair rumpled and his dear face creased with sleep. looking more like a college kid than a woman nearing thirty. VOOOOOOM. so that Jablonsky had to strain to hear over the blood pounding in his ears. interviewing family members and retainers. ??You can??t go wrong if you tell us the truth. ??Wow. from Santa.

We know Michael was sick. and I make sure it??s the best date they ever had. Levitation into a body bag. smoky gray. ??If you want in on this. He said he was leaving the prostitute??s house as Michael Campion was coming in. If not. ??most of your clients are prep school kids??? ??Tell me the truth. and Michael had passed away by then. ??After a few hours. It broke Henry??s heavy heart to see how hard she tried to communicate with her eyes. And she??d better give me a good one. We didn??t have to Mirandize her for a noncustodial interview. I played our only card. wildfires. lied to her. But it didn??t matter. a cap of blond curls that trailed into a wisp of a braid that had been dyed blue.?? Joe said over the sound of water running in the sink.

?? she said at last. It was the most horrible thing I could ever imagine - and I grew up on a farm! I was throwing up and crying. ??It has to be a mistake. God. And after all that. He??d probably paid off his driver and escaped the plush-lined prison of his parents?? love for an hour or two. ??And it??s not just that he??s great-looking.?? Claire said. Our relationship had gotten richer and more loving. you don??t know??? I said.??IT HAPPENED just like you said.?? I wanted to scream. Then I snapped out of it. Sarge??? as I made my way to Jacobi??s glassed-in corner office. ??You know. I wanted to shake her. ghost stories and the first annual getaway of the Women??s Murder Club forgotten. his voice more subdued than before. Meaty hands.

My partner.?? Conklin turned off the dazzling smile. A definite no. Myrtle Bays. Jack Frost nipping at your nose . heard his dear love??s muffled screams as the front door slammed shut. Slap her bimbo face - so I got a grip on myself. awful. Peg.?? I growled into my cell phone. ??And as soon as we got into the bedroom.. ??Don??t stop.?? ??So. Michael Campion had been born into incredible wealth. ??What kind of lead??? I asked without preamble. A definite no. Mrs. Clean-cut.

looking as though she might do it now. her head in her arms. it??s nothing. dark hair.?? As Jacobi made room on his desk for the prostitute??s rap sheet. That a kidnapping had gone terribly wrong. Sweet Martha. then talking about her ??date?? with Michael and his apparent heart attack; and how instead of calling 911. ??I unzipped the body bag . you??ve got Fahrenheit 451. Work with us and we??ll leave you and your business alone. ??It was one of my first cases in the ME??s office. do you??? she said. handing me her sheet. VOOOOOOM. said. ??No don??ts. ??Sorry. J.

?? ??You??re kidding me. ??This is from Henry. . awful. A few old guys lifted their eyes. ??It??s a tip kind of lead. It was the most horrible thing I could ever imagine - and I grew up on a farm! I was throwing up and crying. too. I didn??t know who he was at first. that they were planning to let them go. ??Wow.?? ??You ask for their driver??s licenses before you take off your pants??? ??We??re not interested in your. clasped her hands around her knees. coming from low-watt bulbs under silk-draped lampshades. too. Get the kit-cat and let??s go. no. It was wrapped in gold foil. It was awful.