The investigation into the shooting and the robberies had not yielded anything new during his time in Sereno. The lack of information concerned him. Someone had gone to a great deal of trouble and had employed a significant number of people to put something in play. Even though he couldn’t identify the location of Raymond Escobar, Levi had to believe he was the man behind both crimes. A play for the throne was the only motive that made sense.

Levi took note of one surveillance camera that he needed to adjust to eliminate a blind spot on the terrace. He had to admit that overall, Jeremy and Noelle had done a good job with implementing the security enhancements. Another week or so and he would be ready to run some training exercises to make sure they had plugged all the gaps.

Levi rounded the corner of the palace and noticed a car parked by the main entrance, the trunk open.

Then Jeremy emerged from the palace, followed by Noelle.

Levi closed the distance between them. “What’s going on?”

“I was about to call you.” Jeremy loaded his suitcase into the trunk. “We have to leave for Bellamo.”

“Is everything okay?”

“We received a tip that Dimitri Breuer arrived in Meridia this morning.”

“Isn’t he the guy who pulled off the theft in Paris last year?”

“Yeah. Over $3 million worth of diamonds disappeared from Lisbon.”

The memory of the false alarm at the museum triggered in Levi’s brain. He retrieved his phone and called Pierre. No answer.

He checked his watch. Four o’clock. The museum would still be open. Even if Pierre was unable to answer his phone, his assistant should have picked up. Levi checked his watch again, and this time, he noticed the date. Undoubtedly, Pierre was preparing for the exhibit.

Levi tried again but called Janessa. Again, no answer.

“Jeremy, try calling your sister.” As Jeremy dialed, Levi made another call, punching in the number for the chateau security office. He let it ring seven times before he hung up.

“She didn’t answer,” Jeremy said. “That’s not like her.”

“Maybe the cell tower is down,” Noelle suggested.

“No one is answering at the security office either,” Jeremy said. “Someone must have interrupted the phone service.”

“I’m sure Janessa or someone at the chateau is aware of it,” Noelle said.

“Not necessarily,” Levi countered. “There’s a huge exhibit opening tonight. With everyone attending, they aren’t going to be calling each other. Most of the royal family will be together in the same place.”

“And since the royal guard uses a closed frequency, they won’t realize anything is wrong,” Noelle finished for him.

“Right.”

“We’d better go.” Jeremy shouldered his backpack.

Though Levi’s sense of loyalty to the Meridian royal family demanded he accompany Jeremy and Noelle, his protective instincts wouldn’t let him leave Cassie. “When you get there, ask Pierre about the display from Sereno. It may be the target.”

“I’ll call the police to see if they can get a message to him. I’ll be in touch as soon as we get the phones figured out.”