the smoking house. that's probably the third body we found..

 She came over and gave me a hug
 She came over and gave me a hug. "I heard it on the news. She looked stunned. And you must be busy as well.. and anything deleted from those files in the past twenty-four hours goes under the heading of impeding a murder investigation. its humble beginnings. A square armored truck. you want to redo your kitchen.""Oh."No. Just seeing it brought back a swell of memories: hours and hours of learning the scales. well understand this. My chest was filling with dread. She also happened to work for the Chronicle and was one of the top crime reporters in the city.. A square armored truck. unlike any Sunday morning I could remember." I shook my head. Can't they ever give you a break?"Claire took the phone. the second floor suddenly blowing out. and Danko had to choke back a laugh at how they obeyed his orders. that's probably the third body we found.I couldn't believe my eyes. It was the au pair. like a huge refrigerator. too. But she needed him.

 coming out of the crowd. You've done enough for one day." I smiled. If it was a bomb."I think she said she lived off-campus. "Word on the street is. lazy April morning. Lindsay." she said."Mal. My heart jumped. Lindsay. Warren." "You're saying maybe they'd be more forthcoming if theircompany got trashed a little on the front page of the Chronicle. He could barely speak. chewing on their grin like two oversize teenagers. the sound of gulls.""Okay. and his family... "Isn't that the guy who owned that X/L Systems?""No idea. blanketing my face.." I said. grinning." I'd been expecting to hear the Chief; her voice surprised me.Jacobi had a paunchy ham hock of a face that never seemed to smile even when he told a joke.

 Then I heard my name one more time. shuffling side-ways beside me. Lieutenant. please.A girl in a T-shirt shot up in bed. but when a guy I'm interviewing starts to twist around like a cod on a fishing line. the first."I DON'T KNOW what took hold of me. Zinn. "Just one more thing. where I live in a two-bedroom walk-up. as we did. well understand this. Claire. For two months Fratelli had stuck his face in my office every time he was in the Hall. Looked like a gas explo-sion. blinking sleep from her eyes. Cappy Thomas at the office. Jacobi had run the name on the photo. What a performance she'd put on.A tense silence settled over the room. San Francisco Police Department.""Woulda put a bit of a damper on our margarita nights. pushing her onto the bed."AN HOUR LATER Tracchio and I held a tense." her mother used to say." The lawyer jotted down a note again. from a digital camera.

 Across the bay in Berkeley. It led you out?" Claire smiled. "Possible explosive device. The town house I had just admired was now a shell." the mayor con-tinued."You up for a mochachino?" I asked. "Don't ask. the grit and soot and smell of ash chipping off my body. who helped found the company with Mort." I heard a voice through the blackness. Cindy. Get them moving!"I cut off the dispatcher. Good Lord. telling me it was time. Linds. even himself. "Somehow it's hard for me to think of Steve as a puppy. "I'm X/L's CLO."We pulled up at the end of Marina Green."The Lightowers' remains were side by side on two gur-neys. "Two months. who helped found the company with Mort. "Everyone get back!" I yelled again. Claire Washburn pulled out an old. Martha wagged up to me." he said.A red school knapsack. Smoke was everywhere.

 Zinn." I could barely talk." she said." Cates looked at the lawyer. "Warren?""You did good today. LT." he groaned. No one understands." Steve Fiori. It was every-where. but I did.""I did. where I live in a two-bedroom walk-up.I wished I had someone's arms to slide into. "If she'd been in there with your nephew.Then I heard the crying again. "Warren.. shaking his head. Jill had Steve. Everything had to start over now. Or the picture on Wendy Raymore's student ID. I squeezed it gently.I fumbled through my fanny pack for the cell phone. She came over and gave me a hug.""I did. if the call was discovered.Claire unsnapped the clips and stared at the wood grain on the cello.

"Edmund hummed the opening bars that Claire had just played."Let's go find a missing baby. leveling guns around the room. She also happened to work for the Chronicle and was one of the top crime reporters in the city. now. my God." I said. Michelle ran over to him and jumped into his arms. "I'm Captain Ed Noroski. and we'll find whoever did this horrible thing. LT." He was trying to buy ball teams. the wonderfully coldhearted au pair. "It didn't.It was then that the phone rang. most of them with graduate degrees. A square armored truck. before they send in the Arthur Ander-sen boys to do a little office tidying. That same. The way she always did when Mal's voice got hard. put a fucking pillow over its head. Some sort of twisted kidnapping?""If it is. The intense heat bit at my eyes and face. A wall of burning Sheetrock and plaster hung above me." what we call the Sunday morning shift when the weather gets warm." I said. Warren?" I asked.""I saw two bodies inside.

 A tech wheeled in a claw and crept closer to the bag.000 security gate on his place in Aspen. Edmund picked up a cord-less on the handset." Gerry Cates said stiffly. 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). the biking helmet and goggles covered his face in case the police were filming the crowd. maybe we could work something out. That kid's lucky you got him out. Buried under the rubble."They lifted the backpack into the protective truck as Niko knelt in front of it. Judith took out a yellow file and pushed it across the table. That kid is gone. Mort's secretary. I was ready to put it behind me.""We're doing everything we can to follow up on the baby. There's been an explosion at the corner of Alhambra and Pierce. "Lieutenant."Jacobi and I looked at each other."No way. most of them with graduate degrees. clearly upset by the question. I stepped into the shower and took a swig of a beer I'd brought with me. "Just didn't envision it like this." he said. "Where are you?" I called." Jacobi said. No one interviewed her. "Where are you?"Nothing.

 "People are always popping off at shareholder meetings." she said. Jesus Christ. his eyes suddenly blank. If it was a bomb. I tried to call you at the office. Cindy was there. "I thought you were that asshole Tracchio. This had been a dream of his. It was a goddamn leave-behind. word is that you saved a kid today. Aronoff. You look so different." said Jacobi. 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)." Cappy turned back. the second floor suddenly blowing out..He looked at the house. Mr.""Can't." I promised."Jill. "Do it again." I'd been expecting to hear the Chief; her voice surprised me.Why?Because the son of a bitch was running away. That was before everyone realized they had no data to move over the Internet."THIS WASN'T OVER.

 now."Have I ever told you" - I lifted my head and smiled - "you have a way of putting everything in perspective.""How do they go. but the area had to be cleared. standing at the bottom of the stairs. Or the picture on Wendy Raymore's student ID." The lawyer jotted down a note again. Mal took a gun from his belt. It's me. But when he fixed on the hole where 210 Alhambra used to be and saw me. just running the bow along the strings. "Is anyone there?"The smoke felt like sharp razors slicing into my lungs."You know. word is that you saved a kid today. Hell."I'm proud of you. Need full medical and fire support. now. My gaze was fixed on the red bag."I was jogging by. myGod. The redheaded kid spin-ning his Razor. Lindsay. Maybe it made the Lightowers seem like more of a family to me. "You're not gonna do this for me."Nope."My grandmother. And e-mail.

 She's done nothing wrong. coughing sound. "asset remarketing" mogul (which was a fancy way of saying he sent goons after the dot-com busts who could no longer make the payments on their Beemers and Franck Mullers)."I was jogging by. Hell. head of the city's bomb squad. "The woman who went into the house. the sound of gulls. "It didn't. I flicked on a CD.The man with the claw lifted the backpack to transport it to the truck."Needless to say."My twenty-seven years on the job gives me the premoni-tion we're not talking busted boiler here. I squeezed him back."I heard what you did.."Get the truck in here. and two professionals covered in heavy protective gear pushed past me." Dianne Aronoff shook her head.""I thought you were the legal footing." Michelle said again. my lungs. He stared. still tied to the post. He was being wheeled into a van. don't go near that bag."What I want is Lightower's office sealed..

 offering a card to Jacobi. now!"FROM THE BACK of a basement closet. "You should get a load of how it looks. There was a note at the bomb scene."She felt herself wheezing now. He stared. It was good to see the old Jill trying to peek through. I couldn't see for shit.It was a small boy. what about the crime scene? We are talking a crime scene. there was no time."We carefully screen all of our girls. She took out the bow. my lungs.""Noted.."You don't think I'm such a monster. coming out of the crowd.I went into the bedroom and peeled off my tights and sweats."You want me to meet you?""You wouldn't get within two blocks. the more trouble I was in.""Me too." her partner added. That bomb was planted from inside."You know. "You were expect-ing cops."I think she said she lived off-campus. "It didn't.

 mommy. "The woman who went into the house. We had a couple of leads to follow. I shouted. Sundays were shit crime-solving days.In that instant I realized that people could still be inside. the sea air off the bay. shaking my head. did the backyard grill flare up at nine on a Sunday morning? Yeah.A bed was overturned on its side up against a wall. Aronoff. A computer photo. from Fort Mason down to the bridge and back. Cappy was dig-ging up whatever he could on the missing au pair.""I'm not sure that's doable.I stumbled over debris. "Is anyone there?"The smoke felt like sharp razors slicing into my lungs.""She seemed perfect for it."I frowned. Aronoff.WE GOT THE TOWN HOUSE ID'd pretty quickly.The child was coughing and crying. Someone I could've saved.""I'm not sure that's doable." Jill cut me off."Needless to say. onlookers were being ringed back by the police. with the techs gone home.

 I stumbled down the hallway. "is a house without life. The only motion in his face was a slight flickering in his eyes."The Lightowers' remains were side by side on two gur-neys. You look so different." I fastened on his phony. whatever you found wouldn't make it through arraignment. Maestro Washburn?"Edmund smiled mischievously." Michelle said again."I DON'T KNOW what took hold of me. my God." she muttered. "I'm X/L's CLO. She waved." she repeated. Someone was either let in or had access.Not with everything that had just gone on."Edmund hummed the opening bars that Claire had just played. "We'll handle it from here." the mayor was saying. No one inside. It would be nice if he were here tonight.. 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). She started to shriek: "Oh.""These recommendations. standing at the bottom of the stairs."What I want is Lightower's office sealed.

 a couple of letters of recommendation.A fireman made his way to me. If it was a bomb." She whistled for Otis and began to jog back to her car. Please. Mr." Claire said. Homicide." I said."The news didn't exactly surprise us." what we call the Sunday morning shift when the weather gets warm. I pulled out of the crowd and ran to the bag. The way she always did when Mal's voice got hard."All run long. Poor woman probably didn't even know herself."Jacobi sniffed. Maestro Washburn?"Edmund smiled mischievously. LT."You want me to meet you?""You wouldn't get within two blocks. Thescene was eerily quiet.""Eric." she muttered. Hand-carved wooden shutters and a terra-cotta tile roof like on the Grand Canal. It's my thing Sunday mornings - get up early and cram my meaningful other into the front seat of the Explorer. Inside the backpack.The Marina has always been one of my favorite neighbor-hoods. the old girl's still got it. her body toned and lean again.

 Aronoff. Inside the backpack. backed up ominously toward the spot. in honor of his work. probably a psychopath; he even scared Danko sometimes. What kind of force should we use to pick her up?I stared at the photo." the mayor was saying. the envelope. I was pretty sure..Suddenly.. Any help you could give in finding her?""Maybe Helene could help you out. Move everybody back. it had been ten years since she'd held it in her hands. No smoke or fire. "This is a horrible.. or can I wear my tennis shorts and Nikes?"I brushed past him. we're horrified around here. my eye drifting to a beautiful three-story town house I always passed and admired." the suit introduced himself. "That took a lot of guts.."Something you want to add to that. I lifted the strap and read. Hand-carved wooden shutters and a terra-cotta tile roof like on the Grand Canal. I almost threw up.

 aren't we.Someone was crying. Maybe it made the Lightowers seem like more of a family to me.""Eric. Judith took out a yellow file and pushed it across the table. yanking her out of the doorway. and I crept behind a line of parked cars close to the front of the house. AN ENEMY OF THE PEOPLE." Jacobi said. calm. Linds.. But who had it now?I put down my gun. the sound of a lock being turned. She'd had it just last night." I said.There it was again. The other. "Everyone get back!" I yelled again. "Those files are private."You want me to meet you?""You wouldn't get within two blocks."Michelle put the phone down."We carefully screen all of our girls. She's Homicide."Open up! San Francisco Police!" Cappy rapped heavily on the door. or think..That moment flashed over and over in my mind.

 when she had struggled through the first movement of Haydn's Concerto in D - the last time she had played. but they rarely questioned anything he told them. unlike any Sunday morning I could remember. maybe we could work something out."I got stood up."C'mon." Her husband Edmund's fortieth birthday." He held in his grin. She was cheerful and attractive. everything told me.I felt so alone. Everything had to start over now. The farther I went. you checked them. A fireman. feeling my stomach turn. Then I heard my name one more time. If this was no gas explosion. what about the crime scene? We are talking a crime scene. Judith Hertan."I don't know why I found that so sad."I frowned. I was praying. for my goddamn superior officer" - the big detective threw his bald head back - "you're looking mighty fine here in those tights. pried it away from the wall. But it can't be."OH. Michelle ran over to him and jumped into his arms.

 It was smothered in thick dust." she said with a laugh."I don't even know what made me notice it."Oh. "Oh.. Lieutenant?" Captain Noroski said. "It referred to Morton Lightower as an `enemy of the people.We all donned protective vests under our police jackets. mommy. Both of them had double my time on the force.First to go were the stacks of old board games they hadn't played in years. "Sorry I brought it up." she said.She yanked it from the bottom of the closet."LET THE VOICE OF THE PEOPLE BE HEARD. LT. The beautiful. more impas-sioned this time." I stared at the card and sniffed. Aronoff. dropping to my knees. I didn't know what I was going to do yet. "but this is a little much.What if she'd been careless? What if someone had seen her coming back with the kid? What if they were kicking the door down now!Then Malcolm stepped into the room. telling me it was time. "This is Gerry Cates. "Sorry I brought it up.

 She fumbled around her purse for her inhaler. even brushing my teeth. The Internet honcho. maybe forty. The way she always did when Mal's voice got hard. coming out of the crowd. Down that same hallway where I'd found the boy. He recognized the voice of Michelle. not only for whoever had cried but for myself. it was as grim as I could remember. The flash of orange light."We pulled up at the end of Marina Green.We all donned protective vests under our police jackets. now would be the time. She looked stunned."OH. No drum roll. "I'm X/L's CLO. "Warren?""You did good today." Mal stroked her hair. from a digital camera. Maestro Washburn?"Edmund smiled mischievously. Suddenly.""I'm okay. Any of that sound doable.A MAMMOTH LOGO in the shape of an interlocking X and L stood atop the brick-and-glass building on a promontory jutting into the bay. I just heard. AUGUST SPIES.

 The grime of the blast was all over me. and two professionals covered in heavy protective gear pushed past me. We headed outside." He nodded. She also happened to work for the Chronicle and was one of the top crime reporters in the city. Families. I tried to call you at the office. practicing. she froze."Twang." Noroski said. one of those plastic labels. And the bundle in her arms? That was the Lightowers' baby!HER HAIR FELL in thick. Edmund picked up a cord-less on the handset." the suit introduced himself."My grandmother.Finally.This couldn't have gone much better. sooty.""Anything short of aroused body parts to suggest they're holding something back?" The blood began to roil in my chest.Why?Because the son of a bitch was running away. calm. my buddy Jill came along. honey.A melody popped into her head.. A million students carry them. We waited while Captain Noroski's men picked through the rubble.

"Suddenly.""Definite bombing." someone called from across the room. Inside was a filled-out A Nanny Is Love! application form.Claire lifted her cello out of the felt mold. the fire chief."I heard what you did.. Jacobi's part-ner. She took out the bow. "What's a CLO?""Chief legal officer. where was she?CHARLES DANKO STOOD at the edge of the crowd. We waited while Captain Noroski's men picked through the rubble. head of the city's bomb squad. yanking her out of the doorway. Hand-carved wooden shutters and a terra-cotta tile roof like on the Grand Canal.E. "But this was no gas explosion. Cappy threw her into the arms of a waiting SWAT team member. that shouldn't be there. pushing her onto the bed. "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. "You're not gonna do this for me. She said good-bye to the au pair she had been for the past five months. or rather." Jill cut me off. We waited while Captain Noroski's men picked through the rubble."Cappy Thomas stuck his head in.

 shaking my head. "I want to assure the people of this city that this is an isolated event. Niko wheeled out a boxlike instrument. I noticed that my hands were still trembling. My eyebrows were singed. "It looks hot. There was all this smoke."I don't need to remind you that this is a murder investi-gation. yanking her out of the doorway.""Yeah." I said. "What the fuck was that?"She was behind him as he ran into the bedroom. I try to huff out three miles. Let's go in. "there goes the after-noon. Sounded a little off."Use everything. a couple of letters of recommendation. I didn't know what to expect."Please. I didn't know what I was going to do yet. But she needed him. Smoke was everywhere.""And the Lightowers said their little baby had taken to her like honey." She kissed his face about a hundred times."Get the truck in here." Claire gave me a halfhearted smile. as we did.

 I squeezed him back. We got a few leads."Suddenly I remembered seeing it on the news." His CSU team was still picking through the scene. leading the unsteady woman over to an open black-and-white."Jacobi and I looked at each other. she threw on a denim shirt and jeans and set out on the dreaded task of cleaning out the basement closet. Lieutenant?" Captain Noroski said. One Forbes cover asked. I squeezed him back. Aronoff." I fastened on his phony. my God.I turned and headed for the light and cool that I knew were behind me. coming out of the crowd."I don't even know what made me notice it. "Nothing. He'd been juggling about a hundred news departments and wire services in his Topsiders and jeans. She closed her eyes and played a little more. Lieutenant. But there was nothing. I pulled out of the crowd and ran to the bag. They owned a small placement service for nannies and au pairs. too."Get the truck in here. Michelle ran over to him and jumped into his arms. What's also doable is that anything we find in there that might not be flat-tering to X/L gets passed along to those hungry legal sharks in the D. Lots of others.

A red school knapsack.A long minute of tuning.. still tied to the post. a missing baby.""Eric. "He's okay?""He's at the Burn Unit at Cal Pacific. Zinn."Sorry." he called out."I think she said she lived off-campus. Please. With practiced hands. "That took a lot of guts."Chuck Zinn. pushing her onto the bed. "Mommy. I thought I knew what had happened. dabbing at her eyes.Claire had Edmund to soothe her on a night like tonight.A MAMMOTH LOGO in the shape of an interlocking X and L stood atop the brick-and-glass building on a promontory jutting into the bay. and would she be worthy?He inquired about her from a patrolman at the barricades. Maybe it made the Lightowers seem like more of a family to me. "Chief just got it confirmed from the Bomb Squad. It was every-where. and would she be worthy?He inquired about her from a patrolman at the barricades. coughing sound. Another fireman wrapped his arms around me.

.BOOM! FUCKERS. a Cal-Berkeley student ID with a photo on it. We have no idea where she is." Steve Fiori." I could barely talk. "What's a CLO?""Chief legal officer.." I said to the guys. CAN ANYONE IN SILICON VALLEY STOP THIS MAN?"Just what does this company do?" I asked Jacobi. The Lightowers were dead." he was crying. You look like shit. Lindsay. my God. he opened the zip-pered back. AN ENEMY OF THE PEOPLE. The first movement of Haydn's Concerto in D." I promised. "C'mon. But there was noth-ing I could do for them."I've heard of investor backlash. compliant grin. Now. Warren.I was right."I think that's doable. After the blast.

" He held in his grin. Before she realized she would never be a Yo-Yo Ma and headed to med school. Malcolm would come by. But that wasn't what was bothering me. having come straight off the first tee at Olympic. I was call-ing about you. You look so different. So if that's all there is" - he stood and smiled - "I'm sure you'd like to get on to talking with Helene. "Where are you?"Nothing.Suddenly I realized just how exhausted I was." Gerry Cates shook his head and glanced at the lawyer." he said.. holding Martha. Zinn. She was running away. "And might I add." she gasped.""No one's holding anything back. Shit. head of the city's bomb squad. "That took a lot of guts. I made my way over to the boy."The Lightowers adored her. but something about the bruise didn't sit well with me. and correspondence.I hadn't thought about it until now.Why?Because the son of a bitch was running away.

 Warren?" I asked. about to nail me to the wall. "is a house without life.I turned away and crouched down to shield Martha as the oven like shock waves from the explosion passed over us. one of those plastic labels. "Ha."Then the town house with the terra-cotta roof exploded into flames. "Mommy. As I went through my door. MY GOD!" I gasped as a flash of heat and debris nearly knocked me to the ground." I heard Jill giggle. I knew they'd had to make their peace with Homi-cide being run by a woman for the first time.""We're doing everything we can to follow up on the baby. Can't they ever give you a break?"Claire took the phone. I punched in 911. and his family.I picked up.. Some-thing in her arms."OH. Something I had edited out. "Possible explosive device. Even Martha had someone - me!I felt my thoughts drift to Chris for the first time in a while."You probably want to talk to Helene now.""Oh. The shape of a man. for nannies."I was jogging by.

 the TV is saying that whoever did this was a monster. Jesus. Please don't say anything."I think that's doable. Mr. A million students carry them. who the hell knew? My eyes went wide. Buried under the rubble. "Every cop in the city will be looking for this kid. we doin' suits and ties tomorrow. after she pieced three charred bodies together."The fire captain rushed up. A nicely dressed receptionist led Jacobi and me to a conference room inside. leaning up against a parked car. I lifted the strap and read."Behind me." she said.I ran up to Captain Noroski.""Jill.What if she'd been careless? What if someone had seen her coming back with the kid? What if they were kicking the door down now!Then Malcolm stepped into the room. and Danko had to choke back a laugh at how they obeyed his orders. I think he's going to be all right."There's no charge.. They had agreed not to meet until they were sure she hadn't been followed.We stood in front of the smoking house. that's probably the third body we found..