For over two thousand years, the patriarchal heads of thirteen families have ruled the world from the shadows. When adopted Maria Sanchez marries the wealthy, good looking Joshua Christenson III, she has no idea of who he really is or the ancestry of their child she carries. As the new generation of the thirteen take their places at the table - they have no idea that one in their own midst will seek to destroy them all. As Maria attempts to understand what is happening in the world and why; the weaker link of the thirteen attempts to gain the power that he so desperately desires. Although a standalone thriller, The XIII picks up 2000 years after the story told in Kat Yares' Beneath the Tor. A page turner that fits the description of The Da Vinci Code meets The Illuminati. Although first penned several years ago, the themes in this story are front page news today.