On a clear December morning, while cycling in the Carso, Inspector Pina Cardareto is attacked by a combat dog. After the attack the dog vanishes in thin air. A few days later, Commissario Laurenti, back from a Security conference regarding the entrance of Slovenia in the Schengen Area, finds himself involved in a murder scene: just a few meters from him, Marzio Manfredi, a homeless taxidermist from the Carso, is found hanging on a metal rope. Two apparently independent events lead to a common line of investigation. Everything seems to revolve around Goran Newman, “The Duke”, a mysterious businessman who operates in high finance, allegedly with a large amount of dirty money. He seems to be the target of an assassination attempt perpetuated by an irredentist group called “Istria libera, Dalmazia nostra” which Marzio Manfredi is also involved with. This group allegedly organises also illegal dog fights. The situation is further complicated by the fact of The Duke’s son, Sedem, who is on a wheel chair, having a relationship with Pina Cardareto.

This novel highlights the background of the economical crisis, taking the reader within the world of high finance mob among dirty politicians, ruthless businessmen, financial bubbles and subprimes. In the background there are Europe’s political changes, with the Eastern Enlargement of EU and the growing role of the city of Trieste, acting again as a bridge between the East and the West.

Special witness to the events is the dog Argo, significant victim of humankind’s obsession with the new God, Money, capable of turning his best friend into a terrible weapon.