Myron rose then and moved to the door. He turned to say good-bye, but Karl Snow kept his head down, studying those invoices with a little too much concentration. Back in the ice cream parlor, Mickey was working on the SnowCap Melter. Kimberly had wheeled her chair over to cheer him on. She lowered her voice and whispered something that made Mickey explode with laughter.

Myron again flashed to his fist heading toward his brother. Only one thing helped now. The passport. Per Kitty’s instructions, he had looked at it closely. First he checked the stamps, the many countries they visited. But that wasn’t what Kitty wanted him to see. It was the first page, the identification page. He studied it again and looked closely at Mickey’s name. His real name. Myron had assumed that Mickey was a nickname for Michael. But it wasn’t.

Mickey’s real first name was Myron.

Kimberly said something else, something so funny that Mickey put down the spoon, sat back, and laughed—really just let go and laughed—for the first time since Myron had known him. The sound twisted in Myron’s chest. The laugh was so familiar, so much like Brad’s, as though the laugh had started in some distant memory, some wonderful moment two brothers shared long ago, and had just echoed through the years until it found its way into this ice cream parlor, into the heart of Brad’s son.

Myron stood and listened, and while he knew the echo would quiet again, he hoped that maybe it would never go silent.

Acknowledgements

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

This is the part where I get to thank the band—and what an eclectic band it is. In alphabetical order: Christine Ball, Eliane Benesti, David Berkeley (the parachute line), Anne Armstrong-Coben, Yvonne Craig, Diane Discepolo, Missy Higgins, Ben Sevier, Brian Tart, Lisa Erbach Vance, and Jon Wood.

This is a work of a fiction. That means I make stuff up. So if you’re wondering whether I based the character on so-and-so, or if there really is someone like this in your town or kid’s school, the answer is no.

For those who enjoyed meeting Myron’s nephew, the story of Mickey Bolitar—and by extension, Myron—will continue in my new young adult novel Shelter, coming in fall 2011. For details, and to read a sample chapter, go to www.HarlanCoben.com. Warning: The sample may contain a Live Wire spoiler. Do not read it until you have finished this book.

As always, I thank you.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Harlan Coben is the author of nineteen previous novels, including the #1 New York Times bestsellers Caught, Long Lost, and Hold Tight, as well as Play Dead and the popular Myron Bolitar series. Winner of the Edgar, Shamus, and Anthony Awards, Coben lives in New Jersey.

ALSO BY HARLAN COBEN