Some time passed until I finally got to meet Mr. V, which I knew later it was the nickname of doctor Damir Vetrov. Apparently, he had travelled to Malmö, city in which he had lived before joining the movement, to look for a treat for his "pride and joy", a precious felt flower crown...and to check if, as he thought, a traitor to the movement was hidden in there.

I know because that man was really talkative. It was evident he was the kind of doctor who likes to talk to his patients. While he explores a naked body, tied up to a gurney, while he saws limbs just to see how the cut tendons reconnect, while he injects all kinds of toxicals and then compares blood samples...

Mutilation is not strange to me. In 1871, fighting against France, a cannonball hit me. It is really undescriptible, what you feel when you are blown apart. Humans have the grace of dying instantly. I...had to live to see how they gathered the pieces, joined them together and sent me back to the front. Actually, war is part of a nation's life. Only a few lucky ones do not know what that is. It is not that terrible to me. But the chatter of that man...That did disturb me.

"Look at this beautiful body...You really take care of yourself, eh, friendo? Hehehe...A good representation of the Aryan race. You're not my Little girl, but it is still a pleasure. Be honest with me, you work out, right? Or maybe it is an effect of your prosperity. The more prosperous, better looks. Although I firmly believe you are gods in miniature, represent the ideal of beautfy of your people. If my dear girl grew up, she would turned out to be quite a beauty. But I like her that way. The incarnation of innocence. Of the placid life in the Helvetian countryside.

He talked. He did nothing but talk. And I could picture little Liechtenstein in my place, scared, having to listen to that man.

"It is just too funny for me, you know? Doesn't this remind you of Mengele and one of his victims? Does it bring back good memories? You can be honest with me, we are among Friends. It is well known the Allies knew of the death camps from the first years of war and decided to focus on winning. Yes. But you were not aware of everything? I don't believe that. Oh, bad doctor, bad. You went through so many trials, you don't need an old man like me to judge you decades later. You paid the price dearly. You collaborated in hunting down the Nazi leaders, Mengele included. Yes, you've had enough. Now you spend your time doing much calmer things, like ruling Europe through that impressive cancellor of yours. The iron lady! No surprise German ladies have certain reputation. They got your nerve.

Liechtenstein, torn apart to be reconstructed again and again, and that man looking, chatting...

"Never mind the uncomfortable memories, Germany. The good thing about death is that it makes you forget all sorrows. It is not that terrible...It is even worse having to live with the burden…"

I saw him turning around, with his gloves on.

"Remember what happened in Besland, 2004?"

If that was an act of justice for what I let my bosses do to those poor people, justice was made. I started to get nervous. How he felt my body, like identifying each vein, the position of each bone, the shape of each muscle.

"You were surely too busy with your own issues, of course. Well, you see: a group of Muslim terrorists irrumpted into a school in the city of Beslan. They wanted the independence of Chechnya...Russia...Russia knew an attacked was planned against a school...and did nothing...and once everything happened, do you know what he did? Do you know what happened? Negotiations were a disaster and the forces of security hurried too much. A hundred and eighty six children died. Among them….among them...my Little Jannochka.

The man chuckled bitterly. Still to this day I remember that chuckle and I shiver.

"Russia insisted that he and his army had done well. Pressured by the UN he gave us a millionaire compensation...Money...for the life of a child...Russia considered the case closed, the other countries...Just like that...Sure, they didn't have to go back home and face that empty room, the silence, a wife who took more and more medication...It is not personal, my friend...But there is too much injustice in the world…"

Poor Liechtenstein...

"If there were no religions...if there were no borders to defend...Just one race: the human race...Oh, it would be so marvellous...Then we could live in peace and harmony…"

I saw him grabbing a saw. A damned electric saw. I didn't scream or jerk. I was just shaken by a shiver when he approached to me with that thing in his hands.

"When you meet my girl in Heaven...Tell her daddy loves her…"

He didn't get to switch on the device. A shadow appeared behing him and hit him hardly in the head.

"Tell her yourself, you son of a bitch."

I was alarmed. I tried to fight against my ties, but then the person approached to the light.

"Germany! Are you alright?"

I knew him. I knew that face.

"Switzerland?" he didn't look like himself, with that haircut, but there was no doubt it was Switzerland.

"Damn, what have they done to you?" he muttered, releasing me.

"Nothing. You got right on time. Thank you" I said as I got up.

"Here. Put this on" somebody I didn't notice at first said, handing me my clothes.

"Austria?" what was wrong with them, they had completely changed their style? Austria, as far as I knew, and unless he had been hit in the head, hated the juvenile fashion of the new times and insisted on wearing glasses.

Talking about hits in the head...

"Is he dead?" I asked, pointing at the fallen man.

Switzerland moved him with the tip of his shoe.

"It seems so."

"You shouldn't have done that" Austria judged him.

"He was about to cut Germany into pieces with that thing. I Will give account to whoever I have to."

Switzerland's expression softened. For the first time in an awful lot of time, I saw him letting dow his emotional defenses. He looked around, to that hole filled with devices, cameras which focused on the opperating table, the dark stains that couldn't be cleaned from the floor...He closed his eyes and hugged himself.

"Liechtenstein has been locked up in here this whole time? At the mercy of this beast?" he whispered.

"She's not here. But she has to be close. For some reason, I've had to take her place. But she's alive. I am sure. That man was going to give her a gift."

Switzerland breathed deep and started climbing the stairs.

"And what the heck are you doing in here? How did you find me?" I asked Austria as I followed him.

"We've been following hunches and doing stupid things for weeks. We've simply been lucky. And we had help from above. I didn't bring my planner; remind me when we get home the first thing I do is to go to Saint Stephen."

'Oh'. Switzerland remembered something when he almost reached the door. He retraced his steps and crouched down to take something from the pocket of the doctor: a purple ribbon. Then, he kicked the man's head and came out again.

"You don't have a pone with you, right?" he asked me.

"No. They broke it when they abduced me" I replied.

"Well, we should find someone who can lend us one somewhere. Let them get all clues they can from this place and take care of that man. But first we're going to find Liechtenstein."

He looked at the house the basement belonged to. It wasn't plausible they had been using it without the owner knowing it. It had to belong to the same person. There had to be more of them around...

Switzerland gripped his weapon and headed to the house.

It was then when an explosión made us fall backwards.