I collapsed against a fire truck up on the sidewalk. anyway.

 "Lieutenant?"I turned
 "Lieutenant?"I turned. myGod. Then I heard my name one more time. Aronoff." Cappy said."My God.' There's a name at the bottom." I said. We moved in. "Ms.""I told you. "Which fund you in?""I think it's called Long-Term Growth." I said." I said. leveling guns around the room. A woman in overalls hurrying around the corner. Michelle ran over to him and jumped into his arms.

 Now that she'd proved what she was made of. Lieutenant. but I did.""I thought you were the legal footing. installing a $50. I think I'd better check our legal footing before I can agree to that. "A house without music." I fastened on his phony. Something made me feel like crying. I nodded. obvi-ously a cop with some clout." Dianne Aronoff shook her head.Back in the office..""Of course we can work something out."Please..

 I made my way over to the boy. Tracchio was a glorified bean counter. "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 just heard. Look. "Is anyone alive in here?"I couldn't go any farther. Zinn. that a six-month-old baby was still miss-ing. "Lightower's sister says there was a six-month-old baby inside. too?"Judith Hertan hesitated. Something I had edited out.Someone put an oxygen mask over my mouth and I took several deep gulps." He was trying to buy ball teams. "It looks hot." Cappy said. said." "You're saying maybe they'd be more forthcoming if theircompany got trashed a little on the front page of the Chronicle.

 You're Lieutenant Boxer?""I'm Lieutenant Boxer. "I think she's up there.""I'M ALL RIGHT. is anyone there?""Here. I saw myself on the street. With practiced hands. Inside the backpack. who was already strapped onto a gurney. I made straight for it. sent a numb quiet around the room.It was priceless and it said so much about the human con-dition. we can keep her. Everyone was being so good.""Yeah.Michelle lowered her head into the sink and dumped a bottle of L'Or?al Red Sunset dye all over her. I saw myself on the street."Behind me.

 My God. He hadn't come this close to an investigation since some case study he'd read at the academy twenty-five years ago. Claire looked around." The lawyer jotted down a note again.. Just seeing it brought back a swell of memories: hours and hours of learning the scales.."You don't think I'm such a monster. Or the girl I saw hurrying away from the bombing.You know El Exigente."My twenty-seven years on the job gives me the premoni-tion we're not talking busted boiler here. How did it go last night with Franklin Fratelli? Your big date?"They were standing there. She closed her eyes and played a little more. praying that someone would answer." I promised. A fireman.I tied Martha to a lamppost.

"In the next minutes. Now. In the middle of a `downward dog' when my phone rings."I was hoping to catch up with you sometime today. Also. It had been nine hours since the town house had blown." I said."The door to the conference room opened and two men stepped in. Steve's flying in from Chicago."The news didn't exactly surprise us. What a performance she'd put on. They had agreed not to meet until they were sure she hadn't been followed." I smiled and wiped a tear from the corner of my eye.. Otis."Oh. The farther I went.

 "Who?""Caitlin. Jill. "It looks hot." I stared at the card and sniffed. "they have a new way of handling the potential ransom payers. when she had struggled through the first movement of Haydn's Concerto in D - the last time she had played. don't go near that bag. Inside was a filled-out A Nanny Is Love! application form. to let him know I wasn't going to let him die. She seemed to have some guts. "Viola. brought back a zillion sensations. she is only six months old. the second floor suddenly blowing out." He rocked on his heels. Cappy informed me. Niko wheeled out a boxlike instrument.

 I'm in an all-day yoga clinic. Look. Edmund was still sleeping. choking immediately on the gray.In that instant I realized that people could still be inside. the sea air off the bay. coming out of the crowd."I'm gonna get you out of here. she threw on a denim shirt and jeans and set out on the dreaded task of cleaning out the basement closet. Let's go in."Dianne Aronoff uttered a cry of joy. Lindsay had a date." I called. tried to listen above the rumble of the fire. you still had a few friends inthe news media. "Charlotte Lightower was pregnant." Zinn nodded.

 Malcolm.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 pulled out of the crowd and ran to the bag. I opened my fanny pack and showed him my badge.She yanked it from the bottom of the closet. "Lieutenant. Lindsay." I shook my head. I pulled out of the crowd and ran to the bag. The face of a good-looking man. Cappy looked at me and checked his gun.. are you?""I can't do this for you. In the morgue." I said. Mayor Fiske and Police Commissioner Tracchio were live at the bomb scene.I went into the bedroom and peeled off my tights and sweats.

Cut away the past. You look like shit. This could be her. holding Martha. I had seen only a glimpse of her back. posthaste. We were told the family had an au pair - who's missing." Jacobi said. swirling at my feet. "Isn't that the guy who owned that X/L Systems?""No idea."So. coming out of the crowd. even brushing my teeth." She winked." I said."We pulled up at the end of Marina Green. with all my strength.

 "Lightower's sister.I turned away and crouched down to shield Martha as the oven like shock waves from the explosion passed over us. more firmly. Another fireman wrapped his arms around me."Cappy Thomas stuck his head in. coughing sound. She seemed to have some guts. He directed him down the front hall. I saw the explo-sion. "Morton and Charlotte Lightower were among our city's most generous and involved citizens.""Any evidence there's anything in Lightower's computer to back that up?""Call me suspicious. Everyone was being so good. backed up ominously toward the spot.""X/L. if the call was discovered. like a huge refrigerator.""Is that a dare.

 "Homicide. She's Homicide."Mal. "Don't ask. What I do is supposed to be about making money."You guys in the Hall can't be heroes enough on your own shift. I thought you were out of touch on this. coming out of the crowd.. and I thought. All of a sudden a beep sounded on my cell phone. I'm in an all-day yoga clinic. Claire. I collapsed against a fire truck up on the sidewalk. "Just didn't envision it like this." Jacobi sighed theatrically. No." Gerry Cates shook his head and glanced at the lawyer." I said to the guys." I said. probably a psychopath; he even scared Danko sometimes. a lung-clearing bray from me while Mary Decker over there bobbed on her toes as if she could go another loop. "Is anyone there?"The smoke felt like sharp razors slicing into my lungs. like finger marks. I ran across the street to the blazing home. reinforced steel curtains were pulled out of the truck and set up in a protective barrier. "There's not much I can tell you on this now. On the paneled walls.

 "There's not much I can tell you on this now. The other." Jacobi said." Jacobi rolled his eyes. he opened the zip-pered back. "We mailed her confirmation to a post office box. Warren. Smoke was everywhere.E. I real-ized I could die in there. in a pink cashmere sweater. it's not a challenge."You're looking for a subpoena. as they sometimes did. honey."Doable.' There's a name at the bottom.""Dianne Aronoff. Poor woman probably didn't even know herself.""Woulda put a bit of a damper on our margarita nights. A nicely dressed receptionist led Jacobi and me to a conference room inside. What. and a sickening feeling churned in my stomach. I ran across the street to the blazing home. Wendy was a name for Peter Pan. We got a line on the au pair. a run." I smiled.

 Jill. Morton Lightower." The CLO straightened his pad."You don't think I'm such a monster. Maybe it was the thought of the three dead people in the house." He nodded. a wooden beam crashed. Martha. "Lieutenant. "I'll alert the Berkeley PD. I stumbled over flaming rubble. I stared at that knapsack. We moved in.A. blown to pieces. those little police antennae behind my ears always go twang.. Zinn. now. and Danko had to choke back a laugh at how they obeyed his orders.""I was just gonna buzz Charlie Clapper. after she pieced three charred bodies together. An EMT carefully put a blanket around me..One of the charred bodies inside. through the CCI database and the FBI." he finally said." Jacobi sighed theatrically.

I gave the nod. "Yeah.." she said with a laugh. It had been nine hours since the town house had blown." Jacobi reached for my arm.. I just took hold of that little boy and prayed. One had salt-and-pepper hair and a ruddy com-plexion. at the same time he was dumping his own stock and laying off half his staff.." I stared at the card and sniffed. Lawyer. Any longer and the fumes alone would kill us." she said.""How do you want to handle it?" Cappy looked at me. No one interviewed her. You look like shit. "Possible explosive device. To my left. you think you can finish off the next passage? That's the tricky part.""Yeah.I was right." I said." Zinn nodded.Suddenly I realized just how exhausted I was." "You're saying maybe they'd be more forthcoming if theircompany got trashed a little on the front page of the Chronicle. All of a sudden a beep sounded on my cell phone.

 where I live in a two-bedroom walk-up. if you're free today. a division captain's crest on his helmet. very emo-tional news briefing on the steps of the Hall."I was hoping to catch up with you sometime today." her partner added."Jacobi sniffed."Mal."I'm proud of you. Then she covered her face again. Ms. Niko wheeled out a boxlike instrument. like a huge refrigerator. carrying a bundle of clothes."It was almost six o'clock on Sunday." I said. Lindsay. but the best we could get was a corporate public relations flack who said we could meet with them tomorrow at 8 A. onlookers were being ringed back by the police. My God. This boy was brilliant. I saw the shadowy outline of a child's face. blanketing my face. my God. In the middle of a `downward dog' when my phone rings. I noticed that my hands were still trembling. now!"FROM THE BACK of a basement closet." I promised.

 "And might I add.So he made the call from a pay phone in the Mission Dis-trict.""X/L. Judith took out a yellow file and pushed it across the table. Two years ago I had -""If you moguls have a moment. tomorrow. it was as if San Francisco were suddenly Beirut. searing and noxious. "Killer medical revelation?" She rolled her eyes. "I think she some-times spent the night. They were all here."You want me to meet you?""You wouldn't get within two blocks.""This one signs my checks.""I'm not sure that's doable."I fixed on the address: 17 Pelican Drive. Or the girl I saw hurrying away from the bombing. If nothing else.I moved over to the bodies.The kid with the Razor was there. "Ms. And you must be busy as well.The adrenaline was burning in my veins. Poor woman probably didn't even know herself.. A tech wheeled in a claw and crept closer to the bag. It was impossible to hear above the roar of the flames. I collapsed against a fire truck up on the sidewalk. anyway.