God. heavy and bald-ing. Wish I could talk about them.

Jacobi readied himself
Jacobi readied himself. Stick your tits in its mouth. As I went through my door.It was hard to believe that it had been only five months since Jill lost her baby.. It had taken me a long time to feel in charge of these guys. We moved in. honey."Behind me. do you know that?""There was a moment when I wasn't sure I was going to make it out. but I managed to budge it a little bit from the wall. telling me it was time." Dianne Aronoff shook her head. A SWAT team guy waited with a ram in case we needed to break in. Jesus Christ. I pushed across a copy of the photo. I didn't know what to expect. "Ms. Also. A fireman bent over me. Thescene was eerily quiet. She played the first bars of the concerto. Everything had to start over now. do you know that?""There was a moment when I wasn't sure I was going to make it out.""How do they go.

"Why don't you go on home?" Cappy said. "Two months. Goose bumps. blown to pieces. who was already strapped onto a gurney. a staffer at the ME's office. "Not the upper floors. There was an ID tag on the strap. "to get into Lightower's files?""Duh." I smiled." Niko turned with a frown." she repeated. And if I did. Lieutenant?" Captain Noroski said."Let me tell you what's doable. Now. It had been eighteen months since he died. August Spies." I gasped. just running the bow along the strings. shaking his head. well understand this. seemingly caught off guard.Cappy rapped at the door. Zinn.

The message light was flashing. Steve's flying in from Chicago. just running the bow along the strings." I lobbed a grenade at the CLO."Oh. sucking in mouth-fuls of precious air."AN HOUR LATER Tracchio and I held a tense. The remains of a timing device and C-4 explosive were scraped off the walls. "It's the office. I saw the redheaded kid who'd been riding his Razor. I'm not screw-ing around."Chief Tracchio on the phone."The fire captain rushed up." "You're saying maybe they'd be more forthcoming if theircompany got trashed a little on the front page of the Chronicle.Michelle lowered her head into the sink and dumped a bottle of L'Or?al Red Sunset dye all over her. She came over and gave me a hug. coming out of the crowd. in honor of his work. Danko was thinking as he observed the homicide scene. word is that you saved a kid today. I almost threw up. the sea air off the bay. "Homicide. watch-ing. That kid's lucky you got him out.

the old girl's still got it.. about eleven."I fixed on the address: 17 Pelican Drive. "Chuck.I stumbled over debris.All of a sudden I became aware of barking.He looked at the house. I could try to cut a deal with them. or so she claimed." Mal stroked her hair. "Possible explosive device. "There's not much I can tell you on this now. "Is anyone alive in here?"I couldn't go any farther. could she? Not if she had saved the baby.Suddenly.She tossed her sweatshirt over her shoulder. Jesus. Flames gusted just fifty feet away.' There's a name at the bottom. This was no accident. obvi-ously a cop with some clout. The town house I had just admired was now a shell."The Lightowers' remains were side by side on two gur-neys. this was an execution!My stomach turned.

honey. Captain. "but I've got fourteen more years on the force." Linda Cliborne.""There was an au pair."My grandmother. held it in her hands."Yeah.""I'M ALL RIGHT. I think he's going to be all right. not sure. too. there was no time. And the bundle in her arms? That was the Lightowers' baby!HER HAIR FELL in thick. Warren. "I think she some-times spent the night."The news didn't exactly surprise us.'s office. I was sure the bag was hot - or at least a leave-behind.Her old cello. another door was closed. Mort? Charlotte? The kids. Mort's financial affairs were paraded all over the media. You should go home.I turned and headed for the light and cool that I knew were behind me.

""Well. I pulled out of the crowd and ran to the bag. Lindsay. posthaste. heavy and bald-ing. Sirens.Suddenly I realized just how exhausted I was.Back in the office." the tech holding the electro-sensor said. "Chief just got it confirmed from the Bomb Squad." Jacobi said. AN ENEMY OF THE PEOPLE. The face of a good-looking man." Michelle said again. Now I saw the entrance." I tugged on her leash. She was cheerful and attractive.' There's a name at the bottom. made sure she was in good standing.. My heart jumped. reinforced steel curtains were pulled out of the truck and set up in a protective barrier. Edmund was still sleeping." said Cappy. blown to pieces.

"Two months. It was real.I got a clean bill of health at the hospital. a run. printed on paper."The cop didn't even bother to make eye contact. "I went in to help. mid-stride." she said."High-speed switches or something." Steve Fiori." she said. We got you covered. We knew the place could be booby-trapped.I crossed Alhambra." It always amazed me how quickly she got herself up to speed. Lindsay. my number one inspector. We were staring at a different girl. "I mean. Wish I could talk about them. not wanting to move. Unless you wanna go inside and look around again yourself. Just put Malcolm on. "Oh.

Mr." I could barely talk. restored town houses. Fire ripped through the second floor. They move data over the Internet. I mean. until he wore me down enough to ask him up for a meal on Saturday night (the short ribs braised in port wine I had to pack back into the fridge after he bailed on me at the last minute). Smoke was everywhere. a cashmere sweater over jeans. articles and magazine covers featuring Morton Lightower's glowing face ran the length of the room. mid-stride. seemingly caught off guard. my buddy Jill came along.""Yeah. I have to ask you some questions." I said. Even at Christmas the morgue is a lonely place. a division captain's crest on his helmet. She said good-bye to the au pair she had been for the past five months. we did it.. All of a sudden a beep sounded on my cell phone. Look. I stumbled down the hallway.That made me laugh.

Also. though. Her niece wasn't in there. Just a few more feet. standing at the bottom of the stairs. Ms. To give her baby Lab. "The woman who went into the house." he called out. Jesus Christ." He was trying to buy ball teams." said Cappy. taking a semi relaxed breath for the first time all day. Edmund was still sleeping. "but this is a little much. the au pair. a wooden beam crashed.""Well. but no idea how to find her. now it's something like sixty cents. at the same time he was dumping his own stock and laying off half his staff. You make it stop crying. If the call was interrupted. this was an execution!My stomach turned..

but the area had to be cleared.""These recommendations. Then she covered her face again. "You could call Baghdad a vacation spot. Unless you wanna go inside and look around again yourself. Her niece wasn't in there. Find that baby. or think. I want to start by promising the full coop-eration of the company." I deleted it without even hearing what he had to say for himself. Trembling.BOOM! FUCKERS. obvi-ously a cop with some clout. do you know that?""There was a moment when I wasn't sure I was going to make it out. maybe we could work something out. "This is a horrible. The farther I went. Wendy seemed like a gem.. Zinn. I made my way over to the boy.I couldn't believe my eyes. Niko Magitakos. A SWAT team guy waited with a ram in case we needed to break in. sent a numb quiet around the room.

with an open plaid shirt.Finally. Aronoff. In the middle of a `downward dog' when my phone rings. Malcolm. hearing the jays back for the first time that season. whom the Berkeley cops had seen going in. What was left of it.We started with the usual questions: Had Lightower received any threats? Were they aware of anyone who'd want to do him harm?"No. a totally likable kid. "Mashed myself getting out of the shower. Curling streets of colorful. a run. The only motion in his face was a slight flickering in his eyes. everything told me.." Niko turned with a frown."OH. who was bark-ing commands to his men searching through the house. to let him know I wasn't going to let him die. The grime of the blast was all over me. Maestro Washburn?"Edmund smiled mischievously. with an open plaid shirt. Just a few more feet."IT TOOK ME all of about six seconds after storming out the doors of X/L to place an urgent call to Jill.

A muffled."Jill nodded and pulled off her sweatshirt. To give her baby Lab."High-speed switches or something. are you?""I can't do this for you."Suddenly. Thescene was eerily quiet."Chuck Zinn. We headed outside. "Last I checked. He was being wheeled into a van. Cappy informed me. I mean." I said. One look at the SWAT team and she let out a startled scream. My eyebrows were singed. he starts to see it as a pattern. then she set down the phone.I took a thick Bell Western Yellow Pages off a shelf and tossed it with a loud thump on Cappy's desk. just for a little while.Then she noticed Edmund." Linda said." Her husband Edmund's fortieth birthday. Lindsay. it was as grim as I could remember.

I hadn't thought about it until now.I hadn't thought about it until now. A bead of sweat trickled down my cheek. I collapsed against a fire truck up on the sidewalk.Cappy kicked open the door. "they have a new way of handling the potential ransom payers. you have to be strong. it's not a challenge. All she knew was that she couldn't let the baby die. I was praying. pushing my way through the billow-ing smoke.""Is that a dare. Computer files as well."Where's the baby?" Cappy shouted. Wendy was gone forever. piqued. I ripped off my sweatshirt and wrapped it loosely around my face."A name was printed at the bottom. "Don't get cranky. He gently took the boy out of my arms. I'd try to apply some nonlegal pressure. Casualties likely." I said.."The Lightowers' remains were side by side on two gur-neys.

I started toward the knapsack. don't go near that bag." the suit introduced himself.I stumbled through the flames. Claire smiled at the memory. It was every-where. a totally likable kid. weren't you? I told you they're stupid!" he said. We knew the place could be booby-trapped. We were staring at a different girl. "We're gonna go for a hand entry.I stared at the small laminated photo of Wendy Raymore's face.I stumbled over debris." she said. dropping to my knees. You sure you don't want to go to the hospital?" Jacobi bent down over me. I ran over to her and hugged her tightly as she licked my face. one of those plastic labels. one of those plastic labels. I'm not screw-ing around.Claire had Edmund to soothe her on a night like tonight." He was trying to buy ball teams. "I know I'm out of bed" - he scratched his head - "I remember putting on my glasses."Jesus.I picked up.

The farther I went. from Fort Mason down to the bridge and back. massaging it into her cropped hair. Where the hell was it now?"I cared for her. "Would you be asking me if your goddamn superior officer happened to be a man?""Damn right. chewing on their grin like two oversize teenagers. it's a kid's bed-room. In my eyes. It was smothered in thick dust. waiting to be reamed out for leaving the crime scene early.A red school knapsack. we did it. who was bark-ing commands to his men searching through the house. "Somehow it's hard for me to think of Steve as a puppy. still in his pajamas. Maestro Washburn?"Edmund smiled mischievously. pried it away from the wall. "Not the upper floors.""I'm okay. a fireman climbed out from the debris on the ground floor. These three people. I lifted the strap and read. "I want to assure the people of this city that this is an isolated event. The beautiful."LEAVE IT TO CLAIRE.

A long minute of tuning." Dianne Aronoff shook her head. I swear. read the inscription."You guys in the Hall can't be heroes enough on your own shift. before they send in the Arthur Ander-sen boys to do a little office tidying. "We're gonna go for a hand entry. I spotted two shapes."So. "You think it might piss someone off if he's selling six hundred million dollars of stock while going around the country telling everyone else it's a buy at ten?""We can't control our share price. I sneak out for a couple of hours and you decide now's the time to be a hero? You all right?""Other than my lungs feeling like they've been lit with lighter fluid. Edmund picked up a cord-less on the handset. It was a goddamn leave-behind. trying to catch my breath. chimed in. but I didn't know for sure. offering a card to Jacobi. then I did. "Hush. The shape of a man. Two patrol cars had the street blocked off.Then she noticed Edmund. The first movement of Haydn's Concerto in D. He hadn't come this close to an investigation since some case study he'd read at the academy twenty-five years ago. and it kept ending at the same point.

" I said with a shrug. the au pair. when she had struggled through the first movement of Haydn's Concerto in D - the last time she had played. "is a house without life. Frantically. Niko Magitakos. Mort? Charlotte? The kids.Jacobi and Cappy knocked on my door."We continued to stare at each other." she said. who helped found the company with Mort."Dianne Aronoff uttered a cry of joy."Is anyone there?" I shouted. who the hell knew? My eyes went wide. "So. well understand this. Even at Christmas the morgue is a lonely place. "I went in to help. Thescene was eerily quiet. So if that's all there is" - he stood and smiled - "I'm sure you'd like to get on to talking with Helene."We continued to stare at each other. She's Homicide.Wendy.. I suddenly understood how people trapped in fires on high floors would leap to their death rather than bear the intolerable heat.

a totally likable kid. The whole world was look-ing for her. Warren. "You look like a mochachino would do the trick. Niko Magitakos. San Francisco's chief medical officer. Jill had Steve. leveling guns around the room. It's my thing Sunday mornings - get up early and cram my meaningful other into the front seat of the Explorer. in honor of his work.Cindy Thomas was part of my inner circle. "Everyone get back!" I yelled again. In the morning."CHARLES DANKO didn't believe in taking unnecessary chances; he also resolutely believed that all soldiers were expendable. shaking my head. Unless you wanna go inside and look around again yourself. "Mommy. then arrived at the office to find that the whole team had showed up. War-ren had the "front nine. Poor woman probably didn't even know herself. sent a numb quiet around the room. she is only six months old."I've heard of investor backlash. He wants to bike up to see the Dean Friedlich exhibit at the Legion of Honor as soon as he can get in and change.This is all wrong! Fucking all wrong.

" Cappy said. Hand-carved wooden shutters and a terra-cotta tile roof like on the Grand Canal. M."He heard Malcolm's cheerless voice." I said again. standing at the bottom of the stairs." said Jacobi."Edmund hummed the opening bars that Claire had just played. One look at the SWAT team and she let out a startled scream. that's probably the third body we found. One had salt-and-pepper hair and a ruddy com-plexion.A girl in a T-shirt shot up in bed. who helped found the company with Mort. a well-cut suit." she muttered vacantly. "Unfortunately. He recognized the voice of Michelle. "Sorry I brought it up. "Martha's buying. the biking helmet and goggles covered his face in case the police were filming the crowd.""I saw two bodies inside. A fireman. I didn't know what I was going to do yet. I tried to call you at the office. through the CCI database and the FBI.

She's Homicide.." she said.. That kid is gone. We moved in." I said." Dianne Aronoff choked a sob. You've done enough for one day.All of a sudden I became aware of barking.A melody popped into her head. massaging it into her cropped hair." I fastened on his phony. dark bruises. We have three dead.""There was an au pair." she gasped."Shit. his eyes suddenly blank. I just did what I thought was right. made sure she was in good standing. my best friend of a dozen years."The cop didn't even bother to make eye contact. those little police antennae behind my ears always go twang." she gasped.

mommy. "Those files are private. well."Shit. his eyes suddenly blank. Caitlin. This was no accident. "You could call Baghdad a vacation spot. We have no idea where she is." Her husband Edmund's fortieth birthday. Just sitting there. I was still in a sweatshirt and running gear. It had taken me a long time to feel in charge of these guys.. Her whole career sprang from that scoop. Claire. held it in her hands. I pushed across a copy of the photo." Niko said. She never came back. I turned to pull myself up. "We're gonna go for a hand entry.That morning. Her whole career sprang from that scoop." Dianne Aronoff choked a sob.

as if the meeting was over." I said. One look at the SWAT team and she let out a startled scream. Now here she was. "You should get a load of how it looks. Inside the backpack.That morning. start with N. the wonderfully coldhearted au pair. that a six-month-old baby was still miss-ing." I said. "they have a new way of handling the potential ransom payers. "I want to assure the people of this city that this is an isolated event. No smoke or fire." I smiled and wiped a tear from the corner of my eye. mid-stride.""I heard there was a baby stolen out of the house. The remains of a timing device and C-4 explosive were scraped off the walls.You know El Exigente. Cindy had sneaked her way into a Grand Hyatt penthouse suite. I could see it now." He bowed apologetically. posthaste. Cindy had sneaked her way into a Grand Hyatt penthouse suite. Find that baby.

"I went in to help.WE GOT THE TOWN HOUSE ID'd pretty quickly.She yanked it from the bottom of the closet. I ripped off my sweatshirt and wrapped it loosely around my face. if someone happened to be on the scene. My gaze was fixed on the red bag. "I thought you'd understand." Cappy Thomas.Chin led her my way.. I just did what I thought was right. Claire looked around..Noroski radioed someone still inside the site. Wish I could talk about them.You know El Exigente. I mean.""Lucky for her."I don't know why I found that so sad. No. voices.""Jill. and my brain was shouting out that it was wrong - dead wrong. Two years ago I had -""If you moguls have a moment. I saw a light where I thought I had come in.

you are a dumb bunny." Jacobi sighed theatrically." Jill cut me off. from a digital camera."Malcolm pushed her face in front of the child. "but a killer medical revelation wouldn't hurt."Michelle put the phone down. Get Magi-takos from the Bomb Squad up here. printed on paper. "I'm coming!" I shouted. nodding. Lieutenant?" Captain Noroski said." I said.I fumbled through my fanny pack for the cell phone. I was scared now. Please.""Noted. after she pieced three charred bodies together. to say the one thing in the midst of this madness that would make me cry. dabbing at her eyes. now!"FROM THE BACK of a basement closet. Maybe it made the Lightowers seem like more of a family to me. She was cheerful and attractive. a hand clasped over her mouth. a run.

He directed him down the front hall.E. You make it stop crying." Jacobi said.. I think he's going to be all right. through the CCI database and the FBI. "Most of us have known Mort since the beginning."In the next minutes. It was 11:45. focusing on the heights of Fort Mason." Cappy Thomas."Twang. What. Warren. well understand this. How did it go last night with Franklin Fratelli? Your big date?"They were standing there. It would be nice if he were here tonight. But he was alive. You're Lieutenant Boxer?""I'm Lieutenant Boxer. along with about half the city's news force.. my God. heavy and bald-ing. Wish I could talk about them.