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DEAN KOONTZ Life Expectancy This novel is entirely a work of fiction. The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are the work of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is entirely coincidental. HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd. 1 London Bridge Street London SE1 9GF First published in Great Britain by HarperCollinsPublishers 2005 Copyright © Dean Koontz 2005 Dean Koontz asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this ebook on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins ebooks This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise circulated without the publisher's prior consent in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition including this condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser HarperCollinsPublishers has made every reasonable effort to ensure that any picture content and written content in this ebook has been included or removed in accordance with the contractual and technological constraints in operation at the time of publication Source ISBN: 9780007196951 Ebook Edition © FEBRUARY 2009 ISBN: 9780007318223 Version: 2018-12-03 To Laura Albano, who has such a good heart. Strange brain, but good heart.
But he that dares not grasp the thorn
Should never crave the rose. —ANNE BRONTё, “The Narrow Way”
Here’s a sigh to those who love me,
And a smile to those who hate;
And, whatever sky’s above me, Here’s a heart for every fate. —LORD BYRON, “To Thomas Moore” Contents Title Page Copyright Epigraph Part One: Welcome To The World, Jimmy Tock Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four Part Two: Might As Well Die If I Can’t Fly Chapter Five Chapter Six Chapter Seven Chapter Eight Chapter Nine Chapter Ten Chapter Eleven Chapter Twelve Chapter Thirteen Chapter Fourteen Chapter Fifteen Chapter Sixteen Chapter Seventeen Chapter Eighteen Chapter Nineteen Chapter Twenty Chapter Twenty One Chapter Twenty Two Chapter Twenty Three Part Three: Welcome To The World, Annie Tock Chapter Twenty Four Chapter Twenty Five Chapter Twenty Six Chapter Twenty Seven Chapter Twenty Eight Chapter Twenty Nine Chapter Thirty Chapter Thirty One Chapter Thirty Two Chapter Thirty Three Chapter Thirty Four Chapter Thirty Five Chapter Thirty Six Chapter Thirty Seven Chapter Thirty Eight Chapter Thirty Nine Chapter Forty Part Four: All I Ever Wanted Was Immortality Chapter Forty One Chapter Forty Two Chapter Forty Three Chapter Forty Four Chapter Forty Five Chapter Forty Six Chapter Forty Seven Chapter Forty Eight Chapter Forty Nine Chapter Fifty Chapter Fifty One Chapter Fifty Two Part Five: Just Like Pontius Pilate,You Washed Your Hands Of Me Chapter Fifty
