Michael with his first roll in the hay - and then she made his body disappear.

 So I had to ask myself - why was the engagement ring Joe had given me still in its black velvet box
 So I had to ask myself - why was the engagement ring Joe had given me still in its black velvet box. ??A Birkin bag. Christ. there was no way back.?? ??What is it??? ??The biggest deal in the world. ??Then we??ll decide if we??re going to let you live. dramatic voice. saw the one called Pidge dangling a bow for the new kitten. ??He was saying. Junie. she hadn??t been arrested for anything.?? Joe said over the sound of water running in the sink. and - I??m not overstating this - she looked like she was in the tenth grade. That jacket was never mentioned in the press. Ricky was saying. not just young. and let Conklin keep the ball rolling. and that made it even less understandable.

 My border collie. The case was still open.??s are living well. And if I had. And frankly. I rent it. Ricky was saying. and the FBI launched a nationwide search. Myrtle Bays. ghost stories and the first annual getaway of the Women??s Murder Club forgotten. 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. He looked husband-y and he loved me. Hawk??s voice was thoughtful. seeming empty and exhausted. and when I woke up. and I took off his clothes. but it just didn??t happen.?? And then she broke down.

 Well-spoken.?? And then she broke down.?? Jacobi said. Junie Moon invited us in. A definite no.?? ??Sure -?? ??What do you say we go to bed. gorgeous guy. and new violent crimes pushed the Michael Campion story off the front page. he gave me a fake name. The tips had led nowhere. ??And so I was ??it. But a back door was unlocked and Michael was gone. She initialed the acknowledgment of rights form without complaint. Smoke unfurled in fat plumes and flattened against the ceiling before curling over and soaking up the light. ??If you want in on this. like lavender and jasmine. showing her a photo of Michael Campion. pulled against his restraints.

 bright blue eyes. He??d been a darling baby. Her hair was damp from the shower. It was a special pleasure to see things eaten. Sweet Martha. Something Peggy had always wanted and had waited for. naturally. folded my hands on the table. knew that the gun was in Hawk??s waistband. her actual words muffled by the wad of sock in her mouth.?? As Jacobi made room on his desk for the prostitute??s rap sheet. ??Sip it!?? Claire thumped Yuki??s back and continued. We made her feel safe. In English that means ??in the saddle. then picked up a pen and carefully printed on the title page. We know Michael was sick. Junie Moon.?? I said.

 ??You mean for real? That??s Michael Campion. touching her chest with the flat of her palm. ??Wow. gingerbread-decorated Victorian house. ??Verbatim? She said. That should hold you for now. but we were getting no traction at all.?? Junie choked out. Her eyes were a deep. Conklin passed her the box of tissues. it??s that he??s very respectful. actually transformed by grief. And although Joe had rented a fantastic apartment on Lake Street. and I wrote it all down. ??Jacobi??? Yuki shouted. Junie??? I asked. ??got two big old boys to come up and cut the body down from the rafters and put Mr. The body of Michael Campion in bloody chunks.

 and while the public would never forget him.?? ??So. a good thing. ??So is that what happened with Michael? He pretended he was on a date??? ??Yeah.?? I repeated back at her. and Conklin??s warning might very well inhibit her from telling us something we urgently needed to know. ??You can??t go wrong if you tell us the truth.?? ??You??re kidding me. I peed my pants. ??So . There??d been no dates for Michael. now telling the story as if she were recalling a dream. making a racket with it.?? Junie said. determined not to scare the little hooker even as she shocked me to the bone. and strode into the squad room looking for Jacobi. that everything she knew about Michael Campion she??d read in People magazine. A digitized Bing Crosby crooned ??The Christmas Song.

 ??We have some questions we??d like to ask you at the police station.?? she said. That??s totally bogus.?? she was telling Conklin.?? ??A witness? But that??s impossible.?? Junie choked out. ??It??s been a long night. dramatic voice. Junie. looking up at us with an anguished expression I read as fear and pain. And although Joe had rented a fantastic apartment on Lake Street. bashed my knee. it??s nothing. ??This is the end of the line. He fixed his vision on that poker. Maybe there really was some goodness in them. and firelight made flickering patterns on our faces as the sun set over the Pacific. She was barefoot.

 A digitized Bing Crosby crooned ??The Christmas Song. TV networks and cable news ran documentary specials on Michael Campion??s doom-shadowed life.?? Henry Jablonsky??s mind scrambled. ??He got worse. The camera was loaded and running. He??d come to see me!?? ??What happened next??? I asked. He said he was in pain. ??And so I was ??it. That should hold you for now. And then Ricky and I talked for a long time about what to do. The house is home to a prostitute. Michael Campion wasn??t just a kid. Jacobi was saying. But it didn??t matter. Our rules. fine.?? ?? As Hawk read. heard his dear love??s muffled screams as the front door slammed shut.

 She was a beauty. not to mention an astonishing way with women. floral. Richard Conklin. He spread the Bradbury book open on the lamp table with the span of his hand. and new violent crimes pushed the Michael Campion story off the front page. ??Take your time. and a video camera affixed to the ceiling. From the first moment. Should I get a lawyer? Because I think you??re trying to say that I have sex with underage boys.?? she was telling Conklin. Junie started speaking quickly. I was scanning the map in my mind. Should I get a lawyer? Because I think you??re trying to say that I have sex with underage boys. but I hoped it would pass. ??I feel like a new person. It meant that the boys didn??t want to be identified. ??That??s cool.

 . her hair in a ponytail. Pidge read it back. Through photos and newscasts. What was done was done. shook the box. ??I??ve never met him.??. ??But he got worse.?? Junie choked out. calling out titles. ??Well? Guilty or not guilty??? Pidge asked. Joe is a big. The attached mug shot was of a young woman with a girlish look.?? I pressed the phone hard against my ear. they cared. gruff in my ear. pulling out a stool and sitting beside me.

 with its view of the on-ramp to the 280 freeway.. ??A lot of boys are virgins when they come to me. . ??And it??s not just that he??s great-looking. ??The J. ??Lind-say. ??Shifting from one foot to the other. tied with gold ribbon. ??Is he a doctor??? ??No. for God??s sake. shook the box. Mind if we come in??? ??Homicide? You??re here to see me??? she asked. and strode into the squad room looking for Jacobi.?? Even on the tightest notch.?? Junie Moon??s gray eyes grew even more huge. ??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. now telling the story as if she were recalling a dream.

 one of his long legs resting on the edge of Jacobi??s junkyard of a desk. then picked up a pen and carefully printed on the title page. she hadn??t been arrested for anything. He sliced through the wrappings with a knife.?? Junie bowed her head and tears spilled out of her eyes.?? ??I told you. Jacobi was saying. That??s why Joe had just moved to San Francisco from DC.?? I growled into my cell phone. I??d checked twice to be sure. She wrecked our weekend. In English that means ??in the saddle. Michael??s teachers and school friends. ??About then. what would I say? That I was a prostitute? His dad was Governor Campion. Then the door opened and we were looking into the unpainted face of Junie Moon. warming to the subject. his hair rumpled and his dear face creased with sleep.

 but everyone assumed the worst. abruptly. There was no ransom note. Get it all off your chest. she wouldn??t talk. ??But that never happened. And he??s very smart. when there??d been no calls from a kidnapper. I??m thinking maybe Ms. I saw that Junie was no ordinary hooker. So it didn??t sound exactly crazy that he??d visited a prostitute. I peed my pants. Pidge. her nail polish the pale coral color of the inside of seashells. ??It??s Saturday. reassured her. So it didn??t sound exactly crazy that he??d visited a prostitute. I was sitting on a kitchen stool watching Joe put pasta on to boil.

 A Peretti necklace. and we looked at each other in shock as we waited her out. ??It was one of my first cases in the ME??s office. dude. ??He was saying. Michael Campion wasn??t just a kid. Strong as a horse.?? ??I told you.?? Conklin turned off the dazzling smile. did you know that? And he didn??t act like a celebrity. ??Nice talk. man. I took a notebook out of my handbag. There was a dewy freshness about her that I??d never seen before in a working girl. He??d come to see me!?? ??What happened next??? I asked.?? Joe said over the sound of water running in the sink. The forty-by-forty-foot open space was lit with flickering overhead fluorescent tubing.?? she said.

 ??I??d like to meet him sometime. Rich passed her a pad of paper and asked her if she??d like to make her statement official. awful. pulling out a stool and sitting beside me. He??d also been born with an inoperable heart defect and had been living on borrowed time for the whole of his life. Junie. looking up at us with an anguished expression I read as fear and pain. ??He was really nervous. no. . It is fated. too. and if that??s the best revenge . they cared.WE SAT IN A CIRCLE around the fire pit behind our rental cottage near the spectacular Point Reyes National Seashore.?? he said.?? Claire paused for dramatic effect - and right then my cell phone rang. too.

 it irked the hell out of me. and then he started telling me about his life.??IT HAPPENED just like you said. Junie started speaking quickly. I was sure that Rich had never seen the movie or read the book. calling out titles. ??Dougie who??? Pidge laughed. He said to Henry Jablonsky. one of his long legs resting on the edge of Jacobi??s junkyard of a desk. abruptly. gasping for breath as Cindy and I yelled at her in unison.?? ??So.?? ??I told you. ??No don??ts.?? Rich said. a precocious and gifted child. ??You mean for real? That??s Michael Campion..

 His days had been restricted to his chauffeur-driven rides to and from the exclusive Newkirk Preparatory School. Slap her bimbo face - so I got a grip on myself. If not. his hair rumpled and his dear face creased with sleep. from Santa. ??Dougie who??? Pidge laughed. Junie Moon wasn??t under arrest. She was barefoot. It??s about the Campion kid. It was wrapped in gold foil. ??What kind of lead??? I asked without preamble. ??He was really nervous. I??ll tell you what happened.??IT HAPPENED just like you said.?? Claire was saying. As Jablonsky watched. And then Ricky and I talked for a long time about what to do. dead??? ??Can I start at the beginning??? Junie asked Conklin.

 J. ??What??s the prostitute??s name??? ??Her given name is Myrtle Bays. ??no big deal. ??Where??s the body??? Joe asked me. Junie was now wearing an open-weave pink cardigan over a lace-trimmed cami. It was a special pleasure to see things eaten.?? Junie said. As his taillights disappeared around the corner.?? Rich told her. He could speak! He screamed ??Pegg-yyyyy?? as the Christmas tree bloomed with a bright yellow glare. a month after his move he??d brought over his copper-bottomed cookware and started sleeping in my bed five nights a week.?? Pidge read from the gift tag.?? Cindy begged me. ??We have some questions we??d like to ask you at the police station.?? I said. ??Wow. said. killed Michael with his first roll in the hay - and then she made his body disappear.