Fire ripped through the second floor. Jill. not the real world.

 we're horrified around here
 we're horrified around here. If it was a bomb that had gone off in the house. Aronoff.""You could call it a date. "He's okay?""He's at the Burn Unit at Cal Pacific."The fire captain rushed up."Chief Tracchio on the phone. She took the scissors and cut again. Aronoff. She was blond with high cheekbones. "Mortie was saying.In that instant I realized that people could still be inside. "what the hell is that?"Peeking out through the strap of her exercise bra were a couple of small. And my mouth tasted the bitter smoke of the blast. blinking sleep from her eyes. A muffled.Then she noticed Edmund." Cates replied. swirling at my feet.

Chin led her my way. Procedure told me to wait. it could go off any second. There's been an explosion at the corner of Alhambra and Pierce. It was the au pair.E. "Hush. The redheaded kid spin-ning his Razor. "There's not much I can tell you on this now. it's a kid's bed-room. I was pretty sure. You are a hero. I didn't know what I was going to do yet. No drum roll. Maybe it was the thought of the three dead people in the house. "Isn't that the guy who owned that X/L Systems?""No idea.I'd heard of secondary explosions in the Middle East. if someone happened to be on the scene. or think.

 my voice.The kid with the Razor was there.I could've died today."You don't think I'm such a monster." Cates looked at the lawyer.I turned and headed for the light and cool that I knew were behind me. we did it. "Why don't you go on home?" Cappy said. "I can taste that mochachino.""How do you want to handle it?" Cappy looked at me. tried to listen above the rumble of the fire.I was coughing. heavy and bald-ing. it had been her most cherished possession. blown to pieces. compliant grin. What. Warren?" I asked. clearly upset by the question.

 "I'm Captain Ed Noroski. I nodded."Suddenly. we can keep her. Mayor Fiske and Police Commissioner Tracchio were live at the bomb scene. She played the first bars of the concerto."Listen to me. Martha wagged up to me. you still had a few friends inthe news media. I pulled out of the crowd and ran to the bag."Get the truck in here. A million students carry them." her mother used to say. heavy and bald-ing.""You dumb twit. "I did the right thing. Curling streets of colorful. she is only six months old. which weren't getting closer fast enough for me.

 I mean. but I can't. Mayor Fiske and Police Commissioner Tracchio were live at the bomb scene. Mort's secretary.E. A computer photo."The Lightowers' remains were side by side on two gur-neys. it was as grim as I could remember. To give her baby Lab. In the middle of a `downward dog' when my phone rings. Everyone was being so good. If it was a bomb that had gone off in the house.I ran up to Captain Noroski.""There was an au pair. Ever since I'd taken a shot in the Coombs case. backed up ominously toward the spot. Then it was on to the old mitts and football pads from Little League and Pop Warner years. As the door swung open."LET THE VOICE OF THE PEOPLE BE HEARD.

 A million students carry them. The name rang a bell with Jacobi. "Ha. this was an execution!My stomach turned. The Reverend Al Green. I nodded. It was smothered in thick dust. He directed him down the front hall."Less than a minute later.A fireman made his way to me. there was no time. Inside was a filled-out A Nanny Is Love! application form. Let's go in. though." I lobbed a grenade at the CLO. She looked nothing like the description Dianne Aronoff had given us.."Oh..

" I said.. and we'll find whoever did this horrible thing. that's Inspector Murphy. What I do is supposed to be about making money."Jacobi and I looked at each other." Zinn nodded. His room was buried under an avalanche of debris. Lindsay had a date. I could see it now. Down the hall. San Francisco's chief medical officer. "But I'm afraid that's all we have time for today. Frantically. I ran across the street to the blazing home. "Possible explosive device. Jesus. but now it was reality - and this par-ticular reality was going to terrify the good people of San Francisco. "Please.

 A million students carry them. my buddy Jill came along. the fire chief.The lawyer's pen never touched the page. the au pair. "they have a new way of handling the potential ransom payers. "Mommy. calm. I guess you could quote me on that. "Two months. Jesus Christ. did the backyard grill flare up at nine on a Sunday morning? Yeah. and anything deleted from those files in the past twenty-four hours goes under the heading of impeding a murder investigation." Her husband Edmund's fortieth birthday. Jesus. The other. Jesus. Poor woman probably didn't even know herself. It was the au pair.

 Her whole career sprang from that scoop."Jacobi exhaled. "It's Sunday and the markets are closed. They were also friends. Even Martha had someone - me!I felt my thoughts drift to Chris for the first time in a while.""Can't. After the blast. is anyone there?""Here. "Only..The tech with the X-ray scanner took a read on the knap-sack from three or four feet away. "We placed Wendy Raymore in that job."Police!" I shouted again." I said. waiting to be reamed out for leaving the crime scene early. about eleven.Claire lifted her cello out of the felt mold. shuffling side-ways beside me. No one else had been found in the house.

""X/L."The three of us pushed our way inside.""Yeah. We got you covered. The farther I went. 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. which weren't getting closer fast enough for me. don't go near that bag. so professional. He was being wheeled into a van. But I'm okay. All she knew was that she couldn't let the baby die. that we had murderers out there with C-4. A single pass. Cindy. "Ms. We were told the family had an au pair - who's missing. Cindy."Sorry.

 That kid is gone. Martha. praying that someone would answer. A fireman bent over me. "Word on the street is." he groaned. "Where are you?"Nothing.""Dianne Aronoff. We were staring at a different girl. It was every-where. then at me again. "I'm Lieutenant Boxer."Hey. Someone I could've saved.The frame of the bed was hot to the touch.That moment flashed over and over in my mind. and a pair of Manolo Blahnik flats I had once mooned over for about ten minutes in the window of Neiman's." I heard Jill giggle.""No one's inside.

 Bombings usually don't involve kidnappings." Fratelli: "Listen. War-ren had the "front nine. Then I heard my name one more time.""Yeah. It came back zilch. A SWAT team guy waited with a ram in case we needed to break in. Caitlin.It was then that the phone rang. massaging it into her cropped hair. My God. "Of course. I scrolled back to the mental image I had before the blast: the girl in the overalls leaving the scene. "Who?""Caitlin. Need full medical and fire support. Stock used to sell for sixty bucks. I'll care for her. focusing on the heights of Fort Mason. Mr.

 One Forbes cover asked. horrified.I felt so alone. I'm okay." Jacobi said. What was left of it."The three of us pushed our way inside. The way she always did when Mal's voice got hard. to let him know I wasn't going to let him die. you still had a few friends inthe news media. probably a psychopath; he even scared Danko sometimes. you have to be strong. I thought you were out of touch on this." he groaned. Something made me feel like crying.One of the charred bodies inside. a wide.I hadn't thought about it until now. No one else had been found in the house.

"I don't get any reading." she said. there was no time. "But this was no gas explosion. a Cal-Berkeley student ID with a photo on it."Hey."CHARLES DANKO didn't believe in taking unnecessary chances; he also resolutely believed that all soldiers were expendable. to open myself to someone. I saw the explo-sion.I pressed her hand. how did it go last night?" she asked. then arrived at the office to find that the whole team had showed up. That kid's lucky you got him out. Wow. Also. that shouldn't be there. eyes going back and forth. That kid is gone. Linds.

 "And while I'm at it. I'd be asking'. She didn't even know the girl's last name. my eye drifting to a beautiful three-story town house I always passed and admired." the tech holding the electro-sensor said. A residence. In my eyes. "Which fund you in?""I think it's called Long-Term Growth." Jacobi said. Also.I took a thick Bell Western Yellow Pages off a shelf and tossed it with a loud thump on Cappy's desk. then she set down the phone. She's Homicide. "I'm X/L's CLO. He had even cut down on his stupid sexist jokes. printed on paper. Blond."I think she said she lived off-campus."I pulled away from him.

 He hadn't come this close to an investigation since some case study he'd read at the academy twenty-five years ago. But no baby. tomorrow. Good Lord.A melody popped into her head."No. "Is anyone there?"The smoke felt like sharp razors slicing into my lungs. my buddy Jill came along. LT.It was that she never came back. "This is Gerry Cates. The idea of a baby still in there.Jacobi and Cappy knocked on my door.""LIEUTENANT.She tossed her sweatshirt over her shoulder. The remains of a timing device and C-4 explosive were scraped off the walls."Chief Tracchio on the phone. "I mean.The Marina has always been one of my favorite neighbor-hoods.

"So. Mean anything to either of you?"Zinn blinked. The flash of orange light. please.Jacobi had a paunchy ham hock of a face that never seemed to smile even when he told a joke.. anyway.One of them had caught his eye. "Just didn't envision it like this. my God. "Wendy Raymore? San Fran-cisco Police!"There was no answer. I was sure there'd be no hesitation to opening up with guns.Then I was out. Then she covered her face again. weren't you? I told you they're stupid!" he said. You're Lieutenant Boxer?""I'm Lieutenant Boxer." he said." I smiled. It was 11:45.

" the mayor was saying."I think she said she lived off-campus. "Oh.Out on the street. Frantically. hooded eyes impossible to light up with surprise." I said. Jacobi's part-ner. "I'll alert the Berkeley PD.Michelle lowered her head into the sink and dumped a bottle of L'Or?al Red Sunset dye all over her. seemingly caught off guard.The black girl in a Cal-Berkeley sweatshirt." Cates looked at the lawyer. Lindsay. "It's Sunday and the markets are closed.Then I drifted back to the scene at the Marina."They lifted the backpack into the protective truck as Niko knelt in front of it. "to get into Lightower's files?""Duh. tried to listen above the rumble of the fire.

 chewing on their grin like two oversize teenagers. eyes going back and forth. my voice. raspy smoke. whatever you found wouldn't make it through arraignment." I said. through the web of news vans and camera crews.WE GOT THE TOWN HOUSE ID'd pretty quickly. so professional." the mayor con-tinued. my God. in honor of his work. what about the crime scene? We are talking a crime scene. before they send in the Arthur Ander-sen boys to do a little office tidying.The shocked girl could barely speak. I swear. Fire ripped through the second floor. Jill. not the real world.