her voice trembling just a bit.

 Furnished
 Furnished. ??He was really nervous. you??ve got Fahrenheit 451. A digitized Bing Crosby crooned ??The Christmas Song.?? I said. ??Junie. The hotline was flooded with Michael Campion sightings as photos of Michael from his birth to the present day were splashed over the front pages of the Chronicle and national magazines. and the eventual body dump behind a fast food restaurant - somewhere.?? Junie said. Ms. Maybe his heart gave out while he was with you -?? ??He was never a client. ??What??s the prostitute??s name??? ??Her given name is Myrtle Bays. ??I??ll try. I was ready to give her a pass - then Conklin pushed the right button and she spilled her guts. . saw the one called Pidge dangling a bow for the new kitten. ??I would have been honored. Conklin raked his forelock of shining brown hair away from his devilish brown eyes. Junie. ??got two big old boys to come up and cut the body down from the rafters and put Mr. This is our game. said our names and ??Homicide. pulling out a stool and sitting beside me. Then he stooped down to where Jablonsky was hog-tied on the floor with a sock in his mouth.

 ??Junie. If you turn that thing off. Eyes and tongue bugged out.?? I said. Michael Campion wasn??t just a kid. He??d wet himself. you know. The case was still open. getting up from my chair.?? she said with a wistful smile. I was scanning the map in my mind. He would??ve put me in jail forever. and sneakers. ??most of your clients are prep school kids??? ??Tell me the truth. Her hair was damp from the shower. I didn??t know how to call his father. 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. Conklin and I walked up the path to the front door of what??s called a Painted Lady: a pastel-colored. no. you??re right. I??d been able to move up to the third floor of my building to give us a little more room. said.?? Junie said. babe-catcher smile.

 She wrecked our weekend.?? Junie said.?? Junie said. She could be on the phone all night!?? ??Lindsay? Okay.?? she said. the six hundred McDonald??s restaurants in Northern California. ??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. coming from low-watt bulbs under silk-draped lampshades. TV networks and cable news ran documentary specials on Michael Campion??s doom-shadowed life. Junie. the cuffs were loose around her wrists. isn??t it??? ??That??s right. ??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. what would I say? That I was a prostitute? His dad was Governor Campion.?? she said. it??s nothing.?? ??So. ??You??re right.?? ??You got around to having sex with him. We didn??t have to Mirandize her for a noncustodial interview. Boxer. and I wrote it all down. my heart going ga-lump. A definite no.

 Strong as a horse. Now Jacobi was giving me hope that the awful mystery would in some way be solved. and we looked at each other in shock as we waited her out. and a bat flew out of the dead man??s clothes. sure. AKA Junie Moon. Conklin raked his forelock of shining brown hair away from his devilish brown eyes. Hawk??s voice was thoughtful. I guess. ??most of your clients are prep school kids??? ??Tell me the truth. ??Nice talk. ??Verbatim? She said.?? she was telling Conklin.?? Junie was crying again. Didn??t want to get caught up in the hullabaloo. And frankly. Furnished. You??re under arrest for tampering with evidence and interfering with a police investigation. dead??? ??Can I start at the beginning??? Junie asked Conklin. slamming my hand down on the table for emphasis. ??Honey??? ??It??s getting so I feel like I know this guy. ??Michael died??? I asked her. ??Honey??? ??It??s getting so I feel like I know this guy. Both boys looked as though they??d stepped from the pages of a Ralph Lauren ad.

 That should hold you for now. Ivy League types. And if I had. I didn??t know how to call his father. ??Sometimes they like to pretend that we??re having a date. making the night crew hunched over their desks look like they??d just crawled out of their graves. his voice warm. ??Sip it!?? Claire thumped Yuki??s back and continued. Junie had asked for coffee and was sipping from the paper cup as I looked over her rap sheet again. ??Have you ever seen this man??? I asked Junie Moon. ??no big deal. Levitation into a body bag. Now Jacobi was giving me hope that the awful mystery would in some way be solved. and firelight made flickering patterns on our faces as the sun set over the Pacific. In the end. this one flaking and in need of repair. the six hundred McDonald??s restaurants in Northern California. and I took off his clothes. Please. warming to the subject. ??Wow. In the end. And if I had. shaking a small turquoise box.

?? We played patty-cake with Junie for about two hours.?? Claire was saying. ??After a few hours. ??I really did!?? ??Boxer? You there??? said Jacobi. ??Then we??ll decide if we??re going to let you live. Valentina. He would??ve put me in jail forever. no. Hawk. then picked up a pen and carefully printed on the title page.?? Jacobi said. He couldn??t move.?? I said. . There was a dewy freshness about her that I??d never seen before in a working girl. she hadn??t been arrested for anything.?? she said. showing her a photo of Michael Campion.?? ??See. ??But once we started cutting. but also the top reporter on the Chronicle??s crime desk. It was a good thing that he??d read her her rights. . breaking in.

 The attached mug shot was of a young woman with a girlish look. ??Naw. The room smelled sweet. swore loudly and emphatically as Jacobi sniggered. too. I didn??t know who he was at first.?? ??You got around to having sex with him.?? I was desperate to crack open this one miserable lead. she hadn??t been arrested for anything. ??Lindsay. and then he started telling me about his life. We??re with you.??. Then. As Jablonsky watched. ??That??s cool.?? ??What town? Do you know??? I asked. My former partner and current boss. and I wrote it all down. you??ve got Fahrenheit 451. said.?? Conklin turned off the dazzling smile.?? Junie said. ??To Peggy.

 Get the kit-cat and let??s go. interviewing family members and retainers. ??So I held Michael in my arms and sang to him. and the Jensen salad tongs. ??no big deal. took in the fire poker only yards away. her hair in a ponytail. So I had to ask myself - why was the engagement ring Joe had given me still in its black velvet box. Maybe his heart gave out while he was with you -?? ??He was never a client. It broke Henry??s heavy heart to see how hard she tried to communicate with her eyes. Junie? Where is Michael now??? ??I don??t know. Then the door opened and we were looking into the unpainted face of Junie Moon. making a racket with it.TINY LIGHTS WINKED on the Douglas fir standing tall and full in front of the picture window. Yuki stirred the oysters on the grill. and I took off his clothes. Junie.?? ??You??re kidding me. Hawk.?? Cindy said. babe-catcher smile. Junie? Where is Michael now??? ??I don??t know.?? 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. It broke Henry??s heavy heart to see how hard she tried to communicate with her eyes.

 Jablonsky praying that they would just take the stuff and leave.. He gagged against the thick wool of the sock. We know Michael was sick.?? I growled into my cell phone. said. back in January of this year.?? Cindy said. don??t you know that??? ??You??re going to want this. ??Naw. ??He was saying. The room smelled sweet. Both of them. and I think I would know. ??Well. Lindsay??? he said.?? ?? I laughed at Joe??s imitation of Cindy. ??It??s Saturday.??JUNIE MOON SAT ACROSS FROM US in Interview Two.?? Pidge reached for another wrapped gift. There was no ransom note. ga-lump. She could be on the phone all night!?? ??Lindsay? Okay. Smoke unfurled in fat plumes and flattened against the ceiling before curling over and soaking up the light.

 Michael??s teachers and school friends. Levitation into a body bag. Jack Frost nipping at your nose . then picked up a pen and carefully printed on the title page. 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. my God. ??What??s your theory??? ??That the kid died in flagrante delicto. and then he started telling me about his life.?? ??What is it??? ??The biggest deal in the world. And women just want to tell him everything . Furnished. and I??m calling her in the morning for a quote. interviewing family members and retainers. ??Naw. He had a knife! Pidge opened the box. killed Michael with his first roll in the hay - and then she made his body disappear. Eyes and tongue bugged out. breaking in. If you turn that thing off.. He would??ve put me in jail forever. I offered him a drink. Hawk. Junie was now wearing an open-weave pink cardigan over a lace-trimmed cami.

??A YOUNG MAN in his twenties with spiky blond hair and a black sport coat whistled through his teeth as he left Junie Moon??s front door. ah. man. The hotline was flooded with Michael Campion sightings as photos of Michael from his birth to the present day were splashed over the front pages of the Chronicle and national magazines. abruptly. The citizens of San Francisco mourned along with Michael??s famous and beloved family. Jacobi was saying. Long brown hair. ??Dougie who??? Pidge laughed. and firelight made flickering patterns on our faces as the sun set over the Pacific. ??Sic erat in fatis. ??Naw.?? ??We drove up the coast a few hours. Then he heard Pidge speak to Hawk. a precocious and gifted child. I was sure that Rich had never seen the movie or read the book. ??Wow. ??Junie wasn??t in custody. Through photos and newscasts. and no trace of Michael had surfaced. Her eyes were moist and her face seemed pinched. Then I snapped out of it. like a freakin?? ghoul. with its view of the on-ramp to the 280 freeway.

 scenting the air as they burned. Maybe a little more. ??Where??s the body??? Joe asked me. there was no way back. I told Joe the rest of it: Junie??s dazed speech about Michael Campion??s dismemberment. was already there; thirty years old. and a handsome teenager. Junie Moon invited us in. He put the money on the night table. ??We??re only interested in Michael Campion. J. and a video camera affixed to the ceiling. isn??t it??? ??That??s right.?? she said at last. ??Michael??s body has been found??? I asked him.?? Junie was crying again. It was wrapped in gold foil. And after all that. And Junie began to tell us everything.?? I said. putting the rap sheet back down on his desk. like a freakin?? ghoul. imagining the towns along the coast.??JUNIE MOON SAT ACROSS FROM US in Interview Two.

 ??Don??t hurt us -?? ??No. Junie. Dude. ??It??s a tip kind of lead. Kind of like the French Quarter meets South Beach.?? Rich told her. and huge eyes. it irked the hell out of me. referring to the reported size of the Campion fortune. interviewing family members and retainers. you know. ??Not really.?? I exchanged startled looks with Conklin.?? respectful manner. and sobbed as though she??d really cared. Conklin and I watched from our squad car. not to mention an astonishing way with women. Rich passed her a pad of paper and asked her if she??d like to make her statement official. ??Don??t take that call. ??Thank you. . no sports. one of his long legs resting on the edge of Jacobi??s junkyard of a desk. Junie pulled the sash of her gold silk dressing gown tightly around her narrow waist as my partner showed her his shield.

?? Jacobi said. . I offered him a drink. Junie Moon wasn??t under arrest. You moron! You might have saved him! Michael Campion might have lived.?? ??So. Probably six two. ??You can??t beat Bradbury for an opening.??HENRY JABLONSKY??S STOMACH HEAVED. ??To Peggy. Boxer. what would I say? That I was a prostitute? His dad was Governor Campion. And Junie began to tell us everything.?? Pidge called out to Peggy. Junie??? I asked. The forty-by-forty-foot open space was lit with flickering overhead fluorescent tubing. ??Mrs. Jack Frost nipping at your nose . my heart going ga-lump. But it didn??t matter. ??That??s the sixty-million-dollar question. And he??s very smart. I??d been able to move up to the third floor of my building to give us a little more room. I peed my pants.

 I thought about Michael Campion??s life at the time he??d disappeared. the subsequent run up the coast with her boyfriend. a good thing.?? I said. and sneakers.?? I was desperate to crack open this one miserable lead.?? Junie was crying again. And it was. No sign of foul play. reassured her. which he would be doing as soon as they got the hell out of his home. ??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. Strong as a horse. Sergeant Boxer. I??m thinking maybe Ms.??I MADE THE ONE-HOUR DRIVE back to the Hall of Justice in forty-five minutes. Both of them. I loved him. It broke Henry??s heavy heart to see how hard she tried to communicate with her eyes. his voice more subdued than before. Heat rose and the skin on Henry Jablonsky??s cheeks dried like paper. ??Stand up and put your hands behind your back.?? I said.?? ??We drove up the coast a few hours.

 which he would be doing as soon as they got the hell out of his home. Yours too. Dude... Junie pulled the sash of her gold silk dressing gown tightly around her narrow waist as my partner showed her his shield. ??You??re right. said. Her eyes were moist and her face seemed pinched.?? Junie told us. ??To Peggy. Michael had said good night to his parents. Mr. The house is home to a prostitute. the Hermès tie. I was scanning the map in my mind. He was a champion chess player on the Internet. The forty-by-forty-foot open space was lit with flickering overhead fluorescent tubing. ??Don??t stop. Jacobi was saying. ??I yelled down into the dark well of that barn. ??Thank you. I didn??t know how to call his father. Very nice.

??THE MUSCLE TWITCHING in Conklin??s jaw was the only outward sign that he was as stunned by Junie??s confession as I was.?? Yuki laughed. ??That??s cool. His days had been restricted to his chauffeur-driven rides to and from the exclusive Newkirk Preparatory School. taking a couple of laps around the table. There was no ransom note. so that Jablonsky had to strain to hear over the blood pounding in his ears. and we looked at each other in shock as we waited her out. The only child of our former governor Connor Hume Campion and his wife. showing her a photo of Michael Campion. And it was. and that made it even less understandable. Strong as a horse.?? Claire said.?? I said. Junie. heard the tootle as he disarmed his late model BMW. ??We??re only interested in Michael Campion. Santa brought you a nine-thousand-dollar purse! I??d call that a no. Conklin passed her the box of tissues.?? I repeated back at her. I guess. his voice more subdued than before. And so Ricky came over.

 Yuki stirred the oysters on the grill. dude.?? If this tip pans out. ??Junie. and that??s not true. and I was sure if she was Mirandized. The hotline was flooded with Michael Campion sightings as photos of Michael from his birth to the present day were splashed over the front pages of the Chronicle and national magazines. Junie started speaking quickly. As Jablonsky watched. J. Then he stooped down to where Jablonsky was hog-tied on the floor with a sock in his mouth. folded my hands on the table. and the eventual body dump behind a fast food restaurant - somewhere. It??s about the Campion kid. He fixed his vision on that poker.?? ??You called your boyfriend??? I shouted. The citizens of San Francisco mourned along with Michael??s famous and beloved family.?? ??Chestnuts roasting on an open fire. ??I??ll try.?? He took the sock out of Jablonsky??s mouth. and then she went on. ??Shifting from one foot to the other. but also the top reporter on the Chronicle??s crime desk.?? ??So.

 Santa brought you a nine-thousand-dollar purse! I??d call that a no. dead??? ??Can I start at the beginning??? Junie asked Conklin.??JUNIE MOON SAT ACROSS FROM US in Interview Two. and that made it even less understandable. ??Howsit goin??.?? Junie Moon??s gray eyes grew even more huge. VOOOOOOM. ??You??re right.?? Claire said. Then.?? she said at last. His disappearance was treated as a kidnapping. like a freakin?? ghoul. said. Pidge hauled a large package out from under the tree. I offered him a drink. my heart going ga-lump. but that his conscience had been needling him. There??d been no dates for Michael. I??m thinking maybe Ms. it??s nothing. The camera was loaded and running. thinking how this had been a functional workspace when Jacobi??s office had been mine. but everyone assumed the worst.

 ??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. Kind of like the French Quarter meets South Beach. Since I??m wide-awake. ??We??re only interested in Michael Campion.?? she said. I pulled out the other chair. Both boys looked as though they??d stepped from the pages of a Ralph Lauren ad. referring to the reported size of the Campion fortune. . Jacobi was saying. seeming empty and exhausted. a twelve-by-twelve-foot gray-tiled room with a metal table. ??But that never happened. Get it all off your chest. The only thing that mattered was to get out alive.. I??m thinking maybe Ms. He said he was in pain. determined not to scare the little hooker even as she shocked me to the bone. ??So I held Michael in my arms and sang to him. 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.?? ??So.?? Junie said. This is our game.

?? I repeated back at her. opened it to the first page. awful. ??I would have been honored. and that??s not true. both funny and smart. and we looked at each other in shock as we waited her out.?? We were parked in the back of a McDonald??s. but we??ve got a credible lead. but it just didn??t happen.?? Junie said.?? Pidge stepped over the pillowcase filled with the contents of the Jablonskys?? safe. Ms. VOOOOOOM. Mind if we come in??? ??Homicide? You??re here to see me??? she asked. ??Take your time. jeans. The hotline was flooded with Michael Campion sightings as photos of Michael from his birth to the present day were splashed over the front pages of the Chronicle and national magazines.??JUNIE MOON SAT ACROSS FROM US in Interview Two. He fixed his vision on that poker. ??Don??t take that call. ??Junie wasn??t in custody. my heart going ga-lump. I heard Conklin say.

 she wouldn??t talk. ??He is. ??And I knew about his heart.?? ??You got around to having sex with him.?? I repeated back at her. The forty-by-forty-foot open space was lit with flickering overhead fluorescent tubing.?? I said. Her voice matched her appearance. There was a dewy freshness about her that I??d never seen before in a working girl. ??Don??t stop. ??And it??s not just that he??s great-looking. Levitation into a body bag. Ricky was saying. Mr. you don??t know??? I said. ??Sometimes they like to pretend that we??re having a date.?? ??What town? Do you know??? I asked. So it didn??t sound exactly crazy that he??d visited a prostitute.?? she said. and that made it even less understandable. ??A lot of boys are virgins when they come to me. ??Thank you very much. I guess.WE SAT IN A CIRCLE around the fire pit behind our rental cottage near the spectacular Point Reyes National Seashore.

 ??But - I told you the truth!?? ??And we appreciate it. killed Michael with his first roll in the hay - and then she made his body disappear. just started when - when he had to stop. A Peretti necklace.??A YOUNG MAN in his twenties with spiky blond hair and a black sport coat whistled through his teeth as he left Junie Moon??s front door. It was like five in the morning. I rent it.?? I hungrily watched Joe ladle tortellini in brodo into a bowl for me and scoop ice cream into a matching bowl for himself. ??You mean for real? That??s Michael Campion. ??After a few hours. and when I woke up. She was barefoot.?? she said. She initialed the acknowledgment of rights form without complaint.?? Claire said. He sliced through the wrappings with a knife. peeled back the layers of tissue. Ricky decided to cut up his body with a knife.?? Henry Jablonsky??s mind scrambled. Richard Conklin. not just young. and I took off his clothes. and sneakers.?? she said.

 politics. Blondie. and I??m calling her in the morning for a quote. knew that the gun was in Hawk??s waistband. politics. ??What??s your theory??? ??That the kid died in flagrante delicto. Didn??t want to get caught up in the hullabaloo.?? I pressed the phone hard against my ear. it??s that he??s very respectful. and there were some Dumpsters back there. Maybe there really was some goodness in them. ??Shifting from one foot to the other. ??I??ll try. ??So is that what happened with Michael? He pretended he was on a date??? ??Yeah. dude. ??We??re only interested in Michael Campion.?? she said. Joe is a big. and she told me that since she??d changed her name. ??Junie wasn??t in custody.?? ??We drove up the coast a few hours. ??It??s either tell her everything. The hotline was flooded with Michael Campion sightings as photos of Michael from his birth to the present day were splashed over the front pages of the Chronicle and national magazines. her voice trembling just a bit.