by Jillian Dodd
“That’s because the design is based off that. Did you notice that, while most coat of arms have a cross shape in the middle of the shield, it has an X?”
“Like Black X?” I ask.
“Well, like the black X from the Von Allister logo, yes. And each design inside the shield is based off my friends. We’d drink, joke, and gamble; we were on top of the world, dreaming of even bigger things. I made the logo for our perfect world more as a joke. But, when I saw it on the Arcadian dollar bill, I got very worried. I knew The Echelon was planning to turn my dreams into reality and what that meant.”
“What do the symbols stand for?”
“Well, first, there was the prince, Giovanni. Since the perfect country of Arcadia was going to have its capital as Montrovia, it made sense that I use the base of their coat of arms. The gold symbols generosity. The ponies symbolize readiness for all employments for king and country—not the world-class polo that people joke about—and their motto Virtute Non Vi Regium, which roughly translates to—”
“Virtue by glory, not force. When I took the castle tour, our guide told us that. She said Lorenzo the Magnificent was greatly adored by the people. That they wanted him to be king. That he didn’t have to take the position by using force.”
“Which is something I love about their monarchy. It’s one of the few in history that wasn’t taken by force.”
“I heard you were a pacifist.”
“My twin sister died in war. A mostly senseless war that did nothing but make many countries hate us, which has led to increased terrorism and more death. I would much prefer we lived in peace.”
“Me, too,” I say. “What about the other symbols?”
“There’s the eagle. That’s what we called Jack. His father was the president, and he ended up being elected, too. He was very patriotic, and everyone loved him.”
“His father was evil.”
“Yes, I know that now. My own father and I had a tenuous relationship, and I idolized Jack’s father a bit. He invited me to The Echelon when I was pretty young. To be involved in something of that magnitude that had its roots in the Renaissance, I was so incredibly honored. And, with the other members’ guidance and advice, my business flourished.”
“Hillford ordered the hit on Jack because he couldn’t control him, right? There was something The Echelon wanted him to do that he wouldn’t. Do you know what it was?”
“I think it had to do with martial law. His father was pushing for him to sign a bill about it, allowing him to declare martial law without approval from the Senate in extreme cases.”
“Like a bunch of people dying?”
“I suppose so,” Ares says, bowing his head. “Then, there is The Society. Their crown symbol sits atop the crest.”
“Are they related? The Society and The Echelon?”
“Yes. Lorenzo the Magnificent had his network of contacts and spies, but The Echelon was his secret society. Throughout history, there have only been ten in that group.”
“Ten rings, ten seats,” I say. “And, now, The Society is connected through the phones you created. Those are the people they want to survive The Great Culling, I assume.”
“Exactly. Those they deem worthy of living in the new world. They have been expanding at an extremely fast rate over the last ten years. Their members now total close to five million.”
“And you, Jack, Gio, Malcolm, and Aleksandr were all recruited together?”
“I was the first, as you saw in the video,” he replies. “That’s part of why I became a recluse. I knew they were considering giving rings to Malcolm and Aleksandr.”
“Do they have symbols on the shield, too?”
“Yes. Aleksandr was the valiant. The dragon represents his Slavic background, but he was extremely chivalrous, particularly with the ladies,” he says with a laugh. “Gosh, I miss them. We called Malcolm the dauntless, so he is the lion on the shield. He has an unwavering personality and is very rigid in thought. We used to tease him that, when he wanted his way, he would practically roar.”
“Does that mean you are the phoenix? I guess that’s fitting now since you’ve risen from the dead.”
“They called me that because I would hole up in my lab, working on a project for long periods of time. They used to tease me that I’d burst into flames and I couldn’t come back out until I was reborn.”
“I really like Malcolm and Aleksandr. I hope they aren’t involved in this. I don’t want to have to kill them.”
“Would you if they were?” he asks.
“I wouldn’t want to, but if they were behind all this, yes, I would. And I’m pretty sure they are.”
“Why do you think that?”
“I opened the vault at the TerraSphere when I was there.”
“You what?” he exclaims.
“Isn’t that what you wanted me to do? You put it in the video game.”
“No! I was just trying to show you why the Sphere was built where it was. To hide The Echelon’s treasure. If you accessed it, that changes everything. They know. They have to know!”
“Know that it was me?” I ask.
“Yes! That must be why you were attacked.”
“I don’t think so.”
“What do you mean, you don’t think so?”
“They would have already killed me if they thought that. Think about it. Dupree’s ring is missing. How could I possibly have it?”
Ares considers this. “You’re right. And they have mine.”
I tell him about the timing of Malcolm and Aleksandr’s urgent trip and how I believe they went to the Sphere to check it out.
Ares furrows his brow in concern, clearly thinking it all through.
“We need to discuss who is in The Echelon,” I say, still on a roll. “We’ve been blind as far as that goes. Why don’t we just freaking kill them all and stop it that way?”
“Because Blake hung the man who’d killed Prince Marcelo off a building, and even then, all he would say was that there was nothing that could stop it.”
“Why are we even trying then? Why don’t we just go to your Society-approved vault to ride The Great Culling out and then live in Arcadia?”
“Because we can’t let millions of people die,” Ares says, shaking his head.
“I want a list. It will also help us figure out what their plan is. We can track them.”
“Tracking them is all I’ve been doing for the past six years, Huntley. I haven’t figured it out.”
“Okay, let’s talk about who is part of it. Who was in it when you left six years ago?”
“Myself, Marquis Dupree, John Hillford—who was the leader—Harrison McClellan, Alessandro Vallenta, Maximillian Olivier, Rutherford Elingston, and one ring was given to a British museum by an heir who hadn’t known better. They’ve been secretly trying to buy it back for years. The other two are of no consequence to the plan, as they passed with no male heirs. So, new members would have been brought in.”
“Let’s talk about their industries. You had the idea for the perfect world. What else did you bring to the table?”
“They didn’t ask anything else of me that would relate, so I think that’s it.”
“Okay. Dupree was in pharmaceuticals. I suppose they could taint their drugs. Or maybe they could put drugs in the grain that would kill people? Or they could simply withhold whatever the sick people would need to get better? But I feel like that’s not right. Because Dupree was trying to impress The Echelon with the nuclear bombs.”
“He was a bit of a showboat,” Ares agrees. “And, if they didn’t give him a big role, he would have created one for himself.”
“Hillford was a former president, and his son was president, which would be important to their plan to enact martial law—something they will need to do, right?”
“I assume so.”
“Do you know if that bill ever passed? Like, did Daniel’s dad approve it?”
Ares’s eyes widen. “I don’t know. Let me look.” He
taps on his phone and then sighs. “Yes, he did.”
“So, they control the stock market of the world as well as a large majority of the banking, medical supplies, and drugs. Do you think they could have offered Hillford’s ring to Daniel’s dad?”
“I’d say it’s highly likely since he passed the bill.”
“Assuming they did, that means they effectively control the US and their military stations around the world. Speaking of the world, if Alessandro Vallenta had succeeded in killing his brother, they would control the Strait of Montrovia, possibly Tartus, and could have been behind the closing of the Strait of Malacca. That would hinder Europe’s ability to fight back in a war situation, wouldn’t it? Do you think their plan is nuclear and has nothing to do with poisoned grain? Like, could that have been the original plan, but now, it’s changed?”
“Maybe,” he says thoughtfully, “but I don’t think so. It would destroy their perfect world.”
I let out a frustrated sigh but keep going. “Rutherford Elingston’s family controls most of the world’s banks and now also controls the world’s stock markets. Not to mention, he’s worth about two trillion. What could Maximillian Olivier do?”
“He’s a fund manager. He can break a country’s economy by short-selling the billions he controls.”
“Which he could do right before they shut down the stock markets and closed the banks. What if that’s it? What if we’re talking financial ruin? People can’t buy food. Harrison McClellan owns much of the world’s food supply, so they’d die of starvation. Or they offer up free poisoned grain and kill them that way.”
“Possible, but I don’t see how that could start in Montrovia,” Ares counters.
“So, that’s eight out of the ten rings. If they recruited Malcolm, he’s been buying up water sources. Aleksandr has a shipping company. I suppose he would be able to move his ships freely. Who else? What about some of the other men on your board? Like Sergey Olander or Zayn Kipling or the CEO?”
“The CEO earns a good living, but he’s not in their league. And, while the other two have enough money, I’m not sure what they would bring to the table. Sergey mostly hangs out with his football club, and Zayn is busy filling his yacht with fashion models.”
“But Zayn is in the tech industry. Maybe they needed someone who understood things like quantum computing to run the TerraSpheres they want to build in the new world?”
“I don’t think so. Regardless, it really doesn’t matter at this point who the others are. They would have joined after the plan was in place. They might not even know the full plan. For example, if they invited Ryan Spear to the group, I highly doubt they would tell him they were planning to kill off most of the population.”
“True. So, once again, we’re back to square one.”
“I’ve been thinking about the fact that you accessed the vault. The vault can only be opened with a ring, but because of the secrecy of the group, they never wanted cameras or to mar the rings to distinguish between them. It’s no wonder they sent a team of men. They were worried that someone had broken in somehow or that they had a traitor in their midst. Thank goodness you didn’t take anything out of the vault. All of the pieces are electronically tagged and would have triggered alarms.”
“Which means they can’t figure it out. Why would a member go in the vault and take nothing?”
“I think that’s what they are probably wondering. Maybe, somehow, we could make them not trust each other. Get someone to talk.”
“Maybe I should just ask. Everyone says you were curious and asked a million questions. Maybe I can say I discovered this plan in your personal effects. Ask about it.”
“No, that would put you in too much danger.”
“What if you went to them? Told them you, like, faked your death because of the mob or that someone had been after you.”
“They wouldn’t believe that.”
“Why not?”
“Because, if someone were after me, I would have gone to them. We’re talking about one group who has basically had a hand in ruling the world since the Renaissance. Petty criminals are a distraction, not a threat. I was curious as to past members and tried to determine who they had been but couldn’t find any written record. As far as I’m aware, there’s nothing to prove they exist other than the rings.”
“Okay then, let’s go at it from yet another angle. How did they know about my mother? What had she done that put her on their radar?”
“I don’t know. She didn’t talk to Giovanni, as I’d suggested she should. He told me so.”
“She talked to someone else.”
“What do you mean?”
I close my eyes and interlock my fingers, remembering. “She couldn’t meet with who she wanted to, so she spoke to someone else. He was tall and thin. Closely cropped hair.”
“Military?” Ares asks.
“He wasn’t wearing military dress but possibly, based only on his hair.”
“Have you ever seen the man since?”
“No. And I think I would recognize him. I met most of the top military officials at the Queen’s Ball, but I’ve really only had dealings with General Agueda and Admiral Lamonte.”
“And both of those men were friends of Giovanni’s. If your mother had told either of them something, Gio would have gotten the message.”
“So, what’s the plan? What would be my next mission—like, if I were accepting them?”
“Just keep doing what you can. Follow your gut. Maybe something will break.” He glances at his watch. “I must leave. Ari is meeting me. I’ll fill him in on everything we’ve discussed. You’re welcome to come with or stay here.”
“I’d like to stay here.”
He tosses me a set of keys and makes his exit.
I stay seated on my mom’s bed for a few more moments, just absorbing the memories. I recall being in the tree outside and her calling me in when it started to get dark. I remember sitting on the bed, folding some laundry, while she finished unpacking. I try to gauge her emotions. She was moving quickly and efficiently, as usual. She seemed a bit preoccupied, but I didn’t perceive it as stress. I know, if I had discovered something like what she had, I’d probably be freaking out a little, but she wasn’t, which meant that she wasn’t worried about being betrayed or discovered. She had no idea an assassin was closing in on us. That means one of two things. She either told someone in Montrovia she felt she could trust completely, who betrayed her, or somehow, someone intercepted her secure call to her handler or Ares. Only one makes sense.
I pick up my cell phone and immediately call Lorenzo.
“Lee,” he answers. “I’m currently flying home from London. It’s quite turbulent. Normally, it doesn’t bother me, but it’s good to hear your voice.”
“Speaking of turbulence, it’s about to get very bumpy in Montrovia. Right now, your country is flying through a few wispy clouds. I believe you have a traitor in your midst. Actually, in your military. Someone your father trusted who he shouldn’t have. Someone who was probably in a position of power six years ago when Alessandro tried to kill him on the yacht. They were planning a coup. And that person might still be. Can you imagine the chaos if there were a coup during the Olympics?”
“No, I can’t. Before we get into that, however, I want you to know that our little friend is on his way to see real-life superheroes. He insisted I help him pack. And his suitcase might be full of costumes I purchased for him to wear.”
“That was really sweet of you.”
“What can I say? Both of your pouting faces are my kryptonite.”
“I’ll have to remember that,” I tease. “Just so you are aware, Daniel and I are going on a very public date this evening, and we’ll be on a late-night talk show tomorrow. I would only agree to one interview, so I expect he will be a little over the top affectionately.”
“And you will only be playing a role?”
“Yes, but I promise that, regardless of what you see, know there is nothing g
oing on between us. Our engagement has been purely platonic, and if he kisses me in public, it’s only for show. I shouldn’t really be telling you all of this. His idea was to make you jealous as well, hoping one of you would break the engagement. And, while I want that, I don’t want to hurt you, and I don’t want to lie to you.”
“I understand your need for the charade,” he says, sounding a little choked up. “You know I would break the engagement with Lizzie in a heartbeat if you would agree to go public with our relationship.”
“And you understand why we can’t do that yet, right? I don’t have time to spend my days posing for magazines and going to tea. Too much is at stake.”
“Including our love. Something I worry about more than my country.”
“Will you please try to figure out who Alessandro was conspiring with?”
“As long as you keep wearing the necklace, I will do anything you ask of me, my love.”
I’m quiet for a moment and then say, “I’m at the house where it happened.”
“Where your mother was killed?”
“Yes. It was left among other properties in Ares Von Allister’s will.”
“You should have told me that when you first called,” he says sternly, but then his voice softens. “Are you all right?”
“I am. I realized why I kept waking up in my dreams right after the bullet entered my mother’s head and why I blocked so much out. It’s the same reason I didn’t ever want to come back here. You saw it yourself when I rescued you and Ari. The bullet goes in clean, but—”
“There is a lot of gore as the bullet exits. I will admit to looking away. It was traumatic as an adult. I can’t imagine how it was as a child.”
“I’m okay now,” I tell him. “The house is … well, it looks like I remember it from before that horrific moment.”
“You seem at peace with it. That makes my heart happy.”
“You make my heart happy. I have to go. Daniel and I will arrive in Montrovia on Tuesday morning. He will be prepping for the Olympics. I will be touring the locations with you. Will Lizzie be joining us?”
“I hope not,” he says. “Until then.”
When the call ends, I push myself up and get to work, meticulously going through the room, hoping to find some kind of clue. I search for secret hiding spots. I search in plain sight. When I’ve exhausted every inch, I move into the main part of the home to do the same.
