Blaine Deschamps has succeeded Julian as head of the all-powerful family known as the Sicarii, the fearsome descendants of Judas, the apostle who betrayed Christ for thirty pieces of silver. These silver coins became a powerful artifact known as The Silver, giving the Sicarii an edge in the battle against the forces of Good. Jude Oliver, born Olivier Deschamps, renounced his family and stole the Silver. In an epic battle, he killed his father, Julian, putting a major crimp in the Sicarii's plans. Although Jude gave his life to protect mankind, his friend, the Catholic priest Father Mike Engle, survived, and is now in possession of the Codex Infernales, the Deschamps' unholy book. The Sicarii will go to any lengths to kill Father Engle and retrieve the Codex, but the task proves far more difficult than they imagined. Mike is watched over by another arch-enemy of the Sicarii who has eluded their assassins for millennia: Cain, son of Adam, doomed to wander the Earth until he is killed, or the end of time, whatever comes first. Now Cain and Mike must fight the Sicarii, find a mysterious oracle, avoid ambushes, and ally with an old enemy of the Sicarii who has been fighting them for centuries. What could go wrong? Book 2 in the Judas Line Chronicles, which began with The Judas Line.

Born in Helsinki, Finland, Mark Everett Stone arrived in the U.S. at a young age and promptly dove into the world of the fantastic. Starting at age seven with the Iliad and the Odyssey, he went on to consume every scrap of Norse Mythology he could get his grubby little paws on. At age thirteen he graduated to Tolkien and Heinlein, building up a book collection that soon rivaled the local public library's. In college Mark majored in Journalism and minored in English. Mark is feverishly working on his next book while his amazingly patient wife, Brandie, keeps him and their two sons, Aeden and Gabriel, in check.