A fate worse than death . . . Bastien Cabarro survived the brutal slaughter of his entire family only to have his wife pin their murders on him. Made Ravin by The League, he is now a target for their assassins-in-training to hunt and kill. The average life expectancy for such beings is six weeks. But defying the odds is what this Gyron Force officer does best, and Bastien won’t rest until he lays his betrayers in their graves. Ten years later, he has one chance to balance the scales of justice, provided he relies on his former wingman― the very sister of the woman who testified against him. Major Ember Wyldestarrin joined the outlaw Tavali the day Kirovar fell into the hands of a tyrant, and she and her sister-team were left on an outpost to die under the barrage of enemy fire. The last thing she wants is to be involved in politics again. But the one thing she wants more than anything is revenge on the tyrant who murdered her parents and forced her and her sisters into exile. Carrying a secret she knows Bastien will annihilate her over, she must find some way to trust her former wingman before he catches on and kills her. Even so, treachery doesn’t come easy to a woman who took a loyalty oath to protect her homeworld and comrades-in-arms, especially when Bastien is much more to her than just a former wingman. Yet as she tries to do right for her family, she learns that Bastien doesn’t just hold the key to the fate of Kirovar, he is vital to The Sentella-League war, and to The Tavali. If she doesn’t ensure he survives this mission, three nations fall, and time for all of them is quickly running out. "Kenyon boldly goes where no author has gone before and claims yet another genre as her own." - Publishers Weekly [A] publishing phenomenon . . . [Sherrilyn Kenyon is] the reigning queen of the wildly successful paranormal scene . . . Just one example of arguably the most in-demand and prolific authors in America these days ― Publishers Weekly Kenyon's writing is brisk, ironic and relentless imaginative. These are not your mother's vampire novels. ― Boston Globe [An] engaging read. ― Entertainment Weekly Defying all odds is what #1 New York Times and international bestselling author Sherrilyn McQueen writing as Sherrilyn Kenyon does best. Rising from extreme poverty as a child that culminated in being a homeless mother with an infant, she has become one of the most popular and influential authors in the world (in both adult and YA fiction), with dedicated legions of fans known as Paladins--thousands of whom proudly sport tattoos from her numerous genre-defying series. Since her first book debuted while she was still in college, she has placed more than 80 novels on the New York Times list in all formats and genres, including manga and graphic novels, and has more than 70 million books in print worldwide. Her series include: Dark-Hunters®, Chronicles of Nick®, Deadman’s Cross™, Eve of Destruction™, Nevermore™, Lords of Avalon® and The League®. Over the years, her Lords of Avalon® novels have been adapted by Marvel, and her Dark-Hunters® and Chronicles of Nick® are New York Times bestselling manga and comics and are #1 bestselling adult coloring books. Born of Vengeance By Sherrilyn Kenyon St. Martin's Press Copyright © 2017 Sherrilyn Kenyon All rights reserved. ISBN: 978-1-250-08275-6 CHAPTER 1 ONE YEAR LATER "Are you going to tell Bastien?" Ember paused at Kindel's question that would have ruined her appetite for the lunch they were supposed to be having had Bastien's father not already done so an hour ago. Her throat tightened as she blinked back tears she didn't want her sister to see, lest she be motivated to do something that could get them both arrested. "No, definitely not, and the last thing I could ever tell him is that his father's threatening to disinherit him." "Why not?" "First, it'd kill him to know that. He loves and respects his father. Second, you know the man. Bas would go off, half-cocked and confront his father, then all hell would unleash and who knows how that would play out." She envisioned everything from Bastien shooting his father to him eloping with her and then growing to hate her years from now once he realized what all he'd given up to marry her. No matter the scenario, they all ended with them miserable. And with Bastien hating her for coming between him and his family. "I don't know what to do." "Do you love him?" "More than my life." Ember bit her lip as a single tear slid past her control. Gah! This would be so easy if she was the gold-digging bitch his family thought she was. Then she could let go and not look back. Or marry him and not give a single shit what they thought. Because what his father didn't know was that Bastien had already told her how much money he'd inherit on his wedding day. He didn't need his father's inheritance. Or approval. His grandparents had all left him with a staggering amount of property and creds. The unbeli