“Yes,” Von Dietz says. “That’s our working theory.”
I lean forward. “Then who hired the shooter? Have you caught him?”
“The sniper is still at large, but our elite teams are closing in.” Von Dietz looks at Eva and then back at me. “The hit was almost certainly ordered by Kurt Ozzi.”
I raise my eyebrows. “The Swiss philanthropist? Friend of the royal family?”
“The same.” Von Dietz smirks. “Ex-friend.”
Eva’s beautiful eyes narrow.
Von Dietz hesitates, but only for a second. “What I’m about to tell you mustn’t leave this room. Is that understood?”
We both nod and wait.
He steeples his fingers. “Kurt Ozzi isn’t just an oligarch with a god complex. He’s backed by a consortium of multibillionaires. One of their goals is to end Mount Evor as a sovereign state.”
“Why?” Eva asks, shifting in her seat.
“A mix of political gambits and personal grudges too complex to explain now,” Von Dietz answers. “My staff will provide each of you with a dossier but, in a nutshell, Mount Evor stands in the way of their bid for world domination.”
I cross my arms. “No less?”
“We can discuss this again after you’ve read the full dossier, my lord,” he says.
“Whatever their reasons,” Eva jumps in, “I don’t see on what legal basis an unofficial club of oligarchs can erase a country, even one hidden from the general public?”
Von Dietz gives her a tight nod. “Fair point, Your Grace. Kurt’s claim rests on a single document, signed in the year 1000 between King Robert II of France and Dowager Princess Philomena Theresa of Mount Evor.”
“You mean the addendum to the Treaty of Pombrio, kept inside the Impenetrable Vault at the Château des Neiges?” I ask.
He confirms with a slight incline of his head. “That’s the one. Its existence is a matter of record, referenced in multiple Evorian, French, and Italian historical sources. But no one knows its exact contents.”
“Riiight.” Eva lifts her chin, as if recalling something.
The improbable tale many dismiss as an urban legend comes to mind.
“Nine interconnected locks,” I say. “Impossible to open one without the others.”
Eva jumps in, “The vault is small, so if we blow up the door, we risk destroying the precious document. The alternative solution is to find all nine Montevor keys.”
“Correct,” Von Dietz says. “We’ve recovered seven, as it happens. All thanks to visions from the oracle.”
That gets my attention. “Princess Felicia?”
He nods.
“She never said a word about this,” Eva remarks.
“Her visions are confidential,” Von Dietz explains. “What’s relevant to our case is that two keys are still missing. That’s why Kurt Ozzi tried to assassinate her. He’s desperate.”
I rub my temples. “If no one knows what’s in the addendum, how can he use it as a legal loophole to end a millennium-old sovereign state?”
“The international community would never allow it!” Eva exclaims.
“The international community?” Von Dietz offers a weary smile. “Have you been following world news lately, Your Grace?”
She swallows and shifts uncomfortably.
