Chapter 98

   Langdon and Sophie moved slowly down the north aisle, keeping to the shadows behind the ample pillars that separated it from the open nave. Despite having traveled more than halfway down the nave, they still had no clear view of Newton’s tomb. The sarcophagus was recessed in a niche, obscured from this oblique angle.
   “At least there’s nobody over there,” Sophie whispered.
   Langdon nodded, relieved. The entire section of the nave near Newton’s tomb was deserted. “I’ll go over,” he whispered. “You should stay hidden just in case someone—“
   Sophie had already stepped from the shadows and was headed across the open floor.
   “—is watching,” Langdon sighed, hurrying to join her.
   Crossing the massive nave on a diagonal, Langdon and Sophie remained silent as the elaborate sepulchre revealed itself in tantalizing increments… a blackmarble sarcophagus… a reclining statue of Newton… two winged boys… a huge pyramid… and… an enormous orb.
   “Did you know about that?” Sophie said, sounding startled.
   Langdon shook his head, also surprised.
   “Those look like constellations carved on it,” Sophie said.
   As they approached the niche, Langdon felt a slow sinking sensation. Newton’s tomb was covered with orbs—stars, comets, planets. You seek the orb that ought be on his tomb? It could turn out to be like trying to find a missing blade of grass on a golf course.
   “Astronomical bodies,” Sophie said, looking concerned. “And a lot of them.”
   Langdon frowned. The only link between the planets and the Grail that Langdon could imagine was the pentacle of Venus, and he had already tried the password “Venus” en route to the Temple Church.
   Sophie moved directly to the sarcophagus, but Langdon hung back a few feet, keeping an eye on the abbey around them.
   “Divinity,” Sophie said, tilting her head and reading the titles of the books on which Newton was leaning. “Chronology. Opticks. Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica?” She turned to him. “Ring any bells?”
   Langdon stepped closer, considering it. “Principia Mathematica, as I remember, has something to do with the gravitation pull of planets… which admittedly are orbs, but it seems a little farfetched.”
   “How about the signs of the zodiac?” Sophie asked, pointing to the constellations on the orb. “You were talking about Pisces and Aquarius earlier, weren’t you?”
   The End of Days, Langdon thought. “The end of Pisces and the beginning of Aquarius was allegedly the historical marker at which the Priory planned to release the Sangreal documents to the world.” But the millennium came and went without incident, leaving historians uncertain when the truth was coming.
   “It seems possible,” Sophie said, “that the Priory’s plans to reveal the truth might be related to the last line of the poem.”
   It speaks of Rosy flesh and seeded womb. Langdon felt a shiver of potential. He had not considered the line that way before.
   “You told me earlier,” she said, “that the timing of the Priory’s plans to unveil the truth about ‘the Rose’ and her fertile womb was linked directly to the position of planets—orbs.”
   Langdon nodded, feeling the first faint wisps of possibility materializing. Even so, his intuition told him astronomy was not the key. The Grand Master’s previous solutions had all possessed an eloquent, symbolic significance—the Mona Lisa, Madonna of the Rocks, SOFIA. This eloquence was definitely lacking in the concept of planetary orbs and the zodiac. Thus far, Jacques Saunière had proven himself a meticulous code writer, and Langdon had to believe that his final password—those five letters that unlocked the Priory’s ultimate secret—would prove to be not only symbolically fitting but also crystal clear. If this solution were anything like the others, it would be painfully obvious once it dawned.
   “Look!” Sophie gasped, jarring his thoughts as she grabbed his arm. From the fear in her touch Langdon sensed someone must be approaching, but when he turned to her, she was staring aghast at the top of the black marble sarcophagus. “Someone was here,” she whispered, pointing to a spot on the sarcophagus near Newton’s outstretched right foot.
   Langdon did not understand her concern. A careless tourist had left a charcoal, graverubbing pencil on the sarcophagus lid near Newton’s foot. It’s nothing. Langdon reached out to pick it up, but as he leaned toward the sarcophagus, the light shifted on the polished blackmarble slab, and Langdon froze. Suddenly, he saw why Sophie was afraid.
   Scrawled on the sarcophagus lid, at Newton’s feet, shimmered a barely visible charcoalpencil message:


   I have Teabing.
   Go through Chapter House, out south exit, to public garden.


   Langdon read the words twice, his heart pounding wildly.
   Sophie turned and scanned the nave.
   Despite the pall of trepidation that settled over him upon seeing the words, Langdon told himself this was good news. Leigh is still alive. There was another implication here too. “They don’t know the password either,” he whispered.
   Sophie nodded. Otherwise why make their presence known?
   “They may want to trade Leigh for the password.”
   “Or it’s a trap.”
   Langdon shook his head. “I don’t think so. The garden is outside the abbey walls. A very public place.” Langdon had once visited the abbey’s famous College Garden—a small fruit orchard and herb garden—left over from the days when monks grew natural pharmacological remedies here. Boasting the oldest living fruit trees in Great Britain, College Garden was a popular spot for tourists to visit without having to enter the abbey. “I think sending us outside is a show of faith. So we feel safe.”
   Sophie looked dubious. “You mean outside, where there are no metal detectors?”
   Langdon scowled. She had a point.
   Gazing back at the orbfilled tomb, Langdon wished he had some idea about the cryptex password… something with which to negotiate. I got Leigh involved in this, and I’ll do whatever it takes if there is a chance to help him.
   “The note says to go through the Chapter House to the south exit,” Sophie said. “Maybe from the exit we would have a view of the garden? That way we could assess the situation before we walked out there and exposed ourselves to any danger?”
   The idea was a good one. Langdon vaguely recalled the Chapter House as a huge octagonal hall where the original British Parliament convened in the days before the modern Parliament building existed. It had been years since he had been there, but he remembered it being out through the cloister somewhere. Taking several steps back from the tomb, Langdon peered around the choir screen to his right, across the nave to the side opposite that which they had descended.
   A gaping vaulted passageway stood nearby, with a large sign.


This Way to:
Cloisters
Deanery
College Hall
Museum
Pyx Chamber
St. Faith’s Chapel
Chapter House

   Langdon and Sophie were jogging as they passed beneath the sign, moving too quickly to notice the small announcement apologizing that certain areas were closed for renovations.
   They emerged immediately into a highwalled, openroof courtyard through which morning rain was falling. Above them, the wind howled across the opening with a low drone, like someone blowing over the mouth of a bottle. Entering the narrow, lowhanging walkways that bordered the courtyard perimeter, Langdon felt the familiar uneasiness he always felt in enclosed spaces. These walkways were called cloisters, and Langdon noted with uneasiness that these particular cloisters lived up to their Latin ties to the word claustrophobic.
   Focusing his mind straight ahead toward the end of the tunnel, Langdon followed the signs for the Chapter House. The rain was spitting now, and the walkway was cold and damp with gusts of rain that blew through the lone pillared wall that was the cloister’s only source of light. Another couple scurried past them the other way, hurrying to get out of the worsening weather. The cloisters looked deserted now, admittedly the abbey’s least enticing section in the wind and rain.
   Forty yards down the east cloister, an archway materialized on their left, giving way to another hallway. Although this was the entrance they were looking for, the opening was cordoned off by a swag and an officiallooking sign.


Closed for Renovation
Pyx Chamber
St. Faith’s Chapel
Chapter House

   The long, deserted corridor beyond the swag was littered with scaffolding and drop cloths. Immediately beyond the swag, Langdon could see the entrances to the Pyx Chamber and St. Faith’s Chapel on the right and left. The entrance to the Chapter House, however, was much farther away, at the far end of the long hallway. Even from here, Langdon could see that its heavy wooden door was wide open, and the spacious octagonal interior was bathed in a grayish natural light from the room’s enormous windows that looked out on College Garden. Go through Chapter House, out south exit, to public garden.
   “We just left the east cloister,” Langdon said, “so the south exit to the garden must be through there and to the right.”
   Sophie was already stepping over the swag and moving forward.
   As they hurried down the dark corridor, the sounds of the wind and rain from the open cloister faded behind them. The Chapter House was a kind of satellite structure—a freestanding annex at the end of the long hallway to ensure the privacy of the Parliament proceedings housed there.
   “It looks huge,” Sophie whispered as they approached.
   Langdon had forgotten just how large this room was. Even from outside the entrance, he could gaze across the vast expanse of floor to the breathtaking windows on the far side of the octagon, which rose five stories to a vaulted ceiling. They would certainly have a clear view of the garden from in here.
   Crossing the threshold, both Langdon and Sophie found themselves having to squint. After the gloomy cloisters, the Chapter House felt like a solarium. They were a good ten feet into the room, searching the south wall, when they realized the door they had been promised was not there.
   They were standing in an enormous dead end.
   The creaking of a heavy door behind them made them turn, just as the door closed with a resounding thud and the latch fell into place.
   The lone man who had been standing behind the door looked calm as he aimed a small revolver at them. He was portly and was propped on a pair of aluminum crutches.
   For a moment Langdon thought he must be dreaming.
   It was Leigh Teabing.

Chapter 99

   Sir Leigh Teabing felt rueful as he gazed out over the barrel of his Medusa revolver at Robert Langdon and Sophie Neveu. “My friends,” he said, “since the moment you walked into my home last night, I have done everything in my power to keep you out of harm’s way. But your persistence has now put me in a difficult position.”
   He could see the expressions of shock and betrayal on Sophie’s and Langdon’s faces, and yet he was confident that soon they would both understand the chain of events that had guided the three of them to this unlikely crossroads.
   There is so much I have to tell you both… so much you do not yet understand.
   “Please believe,” Teabing said, “I never had any intention of your being involved. You came to my home. You came searching for me.”
   “Leigh?” Langdon finally managed. “What the hell are you doing? We thought you were in trouble. We came here to help you!”
   “As I trusted you would,” he said. “We have much to discuss.”
   Langdon and Sophie seemed unable to tear their stunned gazes from the revolver aimed at them.
   “It is simply to ensure your full attention,” Teabing said. “If I had wanted to harm you, you would be dead by now. When you walked into my home last night, I risked everything to spare your lives. I am a man of honor, and I vowed in my deepest conscience only to sacrifice those who had betrayed the Sangreal.”
   “What are you talking about?” Langdon said. “Betrayed the Sangreal?”
   “I discovered a terrible truth,” Teabing said, sighing. “I learned why the Sangreal documents were never revealed to the world. I learned that the Priory had decided not to release the truth after all. That’s why the millennium passed without any revelation, why nothing happened as we entered the End of Days.”
   Langdon drew a breath, about to protest.
   “The Priory,” Teabing continued, “was given a sacred charge to share the truth. To release the Sangreal documents when the End of Days arrived. For centuries, men like Da Vinci, Botticelli, and Newton risked everything to protect the documents and carry out that charge. And now, at the ultimate moment of truth, Jacques Saunière changed his mind. The man honored with the greatest responsibility in Christian history eschewed his duty. He decided the time was not right.” Teabing turned to Sophie. “He failed the Grail. He failed the Priory. And he failed the memory of all the generations that had worked to make that moment possible.”
   “You?” Sophie declared, glancing up now, her green eyes boring into him with rage and realization. “You are the one responsible for my grandfather’s murder?”
   Teabing scoffed. “Your grandfather and his sénéchaux were traitors to the Grail.”
   Sophie felt a fury rising from deep within. He’s lying!
   Teabing’s voice was relentless. “Your grandfather sold out to the Church. It is obvious they pressured him to keep the truth quiet.”
   Sophie shook her head. “The Church had no influence on my grandfather!”
   Teabing laughed coldly. “My dear, the Church has two thousand years of experience pressuring those who threaten to unveil its lies. Since the days of Constantine, the Church has successfully hidden the truth about Mary Magdalene and Jesus. We should not be surprised that now, once again, they have found a way to keep the world in the dark. The Church may no longer employ crusaders to slaughter nonbelievers, but their influence is no less persuasive. No less insidious.” He paused, as if to punctuate his next point. “Miss Neveu, for some time now your grandfather has wanted to tell you the truth about your family.”
   Sophie was stunned. “How could you know that?”
   “My methods are immaterial. The important thing for you to grasp right now is this.” He took a deep breath. “The deaths of your mother, father, grandmother, and brother were not accidental.”
   The words sent Sophie’s emotions reeling. She opened her mouth to speak but was unable.
   Langdon shook his head. “What are you saying?”
   “Robert, it explains everything. All the pieces fit. History repeats itself. The Church has a precedent of murder when it comes to silencing the Sangreal. With the End of Days imminent, killing the Grand Master’s loved ones sent a very clear message. Be quiet, or you and Sophie are next.”
   “It was a car accident,” Sophie stammered, feeling the childhood pain welling inside her. “An accident!”
   “Bedtime stories to protect your innocence,” Teabing said. “Consider that only two family members went untouched—the Priory’s Grand Master and his lone granddaughter—the perfect pair to provide the Church with control over the brotherhood. I can only imagine the terror the Church wielded over your grandfather these past years, threatening to kill you if he dared release the Sangreal secret, threatening to finish the job they started unless Saunière influenced the Priory to reconsider its ancient vow.”
   “Leigh,” Langdon argued, now visibly riled, “certainly you have no proof that the Church had anything to do with those deaths, or that it influenced the Priory’s decision to remain silent.”
   “Proof?” Teabing fired back. “You want proof the Priory was influenced? The new millennium has arrived, and yet the world remains ignorant! Is that not proof enough?”
   In the echoes of Teabing’s words, Sophie heard another voice speaking. Sophie, I must tell you the truth about your family. She realized she was trembling. Could this possibly be that truth her grandfather had wanted to tell her? That her family had been murdered? What did she truly know about the crash that took her family? Only sketchy details. Even the stories in the newspaper had been vague. An accident? Bedtime stories? Sophie flashed suddenly on her grandfather’s overprotectiveness, how he never liked to leave her alone when she was young. Even when Sophie was grown and away at university, she had the sense her grandfather was watching over. She wondered if there had been Priory members in the shadows throughout her entire life, looking after her.
   “You suspected he was being manipulated,” Langdon said, glaring with disbelief at Teabing. “So you murdered him?”
   “I did not pull the trigger,” Teabing said. “Saunière was dead years ago, when the Church stole his family from him. He was compromised. Now he is free of that pain, released from the shame caused by his inability to carry out his sacred duty. Consider the alternative. Something had to be done. Shall the world be ignorant forever? Shall the Church be allowed to cement its lies into our history books for all eternity? Shall the Church be permitted to influence indefinitely with murder and extortion? No, something needed to be done! And now we are poised to carry out Saunière’s legacy and right a terrible wrong.” He paused. “The three of us. Together.”
   Sophie felt only incredulity. “How could you possibly believe that we would help you?”
   “Because, my dear, you are the reason the Priory failed to release the documents. Your grandfather’s love for you prevented him from challenging the Church. His fear of reprisal against his only remaining family crippled him. He never had a chance to explain the truth because you rejected him, tying his hands, making him wait. Now you owe the world the truth. You owe it to the memory of your grandfather.”

   Robert Langdon had given up trying to get his bearings. Despite the torrent of questions running through his mind, he knew only one thing mattered now—getting Sophie out of here alive. All the guilt Langdon had mistakenly felt earlier for involving Teabing had now been transferred to Sophie.
   I took her to Chateau Villette. I am responsible.
   Langdon could not fathom that Leigh Teabing would be capable of killing them in cold blood here in the Chapter House, and yet Teabing certainly had been involved in killing others during his misguided quest. Langdon had the uneasy feeling that gunshots in this secluded, thickwalled chamber would go unheard, especially in this rain. And Leigh just admitted his guilt to us.
   Langdon glanced at Sophie, who looked shaken. The Church murdered Sophie’s family to silence the Priory? Langdon felt certain the modern Church did not murder people. There had to be some other explanation.
   “Let Sophie leave,” Langdon declared, staring at Leigh. “You and I should discuss this alone.”
   Teabing gave an unnatural laugh. “I’m afraid that is one show of faith I cannot afford. I can, however, offer you this.” He propped himself fully on his crutches, gracelessly keeping the gun aimed at Sophie, and removed the keystone from his pocket. He swayed a bit as he held it out for Langdon. “A token of trust, Robert.”
   Robert felt wary and didn’t move. Leigh is giving the keystone back to us?
   “Take it,” Teabing said, thrusting it awkwardly toward Langdon.
   Langdon could imagine only one reason Teabing would give it back. “You opened it already. You removed the map.”
   Teabing was shaking his head. “Robert, if I had solved the keystone, I would have disappeared to find the Grail myself and kept you uninvolved. No, I do not know the answer. And I can admit that freely. A true knight learns humility in the face of the Grail. He learns to obey the signs placed before him. When I saw you enter the abbey, I understood. You were here for a reason. To help. I am not looking for singular glory here. I serve a far greater master than my own pride. The Truth. Mankind deserves to know that truth. The Grail found us all, and now she is begging to be revealed. We must work together.”
   Despite Teabing’s pleas for cooperation and trust, his gun remained trained on Sophie as Langdon stepped forward and accepted the cold marble cylinder. The vinegar inside gurgled as Langdon grasped it and stepped backward. The dials were still in random order, and the cryptex remained locked.
   Langdon eyed Teabing. “How do you know I won’t smash it right now?”
   Teabing’s laugh was an eerie chortle. “I should have realized your threat to break it in the Temple Church was an empty one. Robert Langdon would never break the keystone. You are an historian, Robert. You are holding the key to two thousand years of history—the lost key to the Sangreal. You can feel the souls of all the knights burned at the stake to protect her secret. Would you have them die in vain? No, you will vindicate them. You will join the ranks of the great men you admire—Da Vinci, Botticelli, Newton—each of whom would have been honored to be in your shoes right now. The contents of the keystone are crying out to us. Longing to be set free. The time has come. Destiny has led us to this moment.”
   “I cannot help you, Leigh. I have no idea how to open this. I only saw Newton’s tomb for a moment. And even if I knew the password…” Langdon paused, realizing he had said too much.
   “You would not tell me?” Teabing sighed. “I am disappointed and surprised, Robert, that you do not appreciate the extent to which you are in my debt. My task would have been far simpler had Remy and I eliminated you both when you walked into Chateau Villette. Instead I risked everything to take the nobler course.”
   “This is noble?” Langdon demanded, eyeing the gun.
   “Saunière’s fault,” Teabing said. “He and his sénéchaux lied to Silas. Otherwise, I would have obtained the keystone without complication. How was I to imagine the Grand Master would go to such ends to deceive me and bequeath the keystone to an estranged granddaughter?” Teabing looked at Sophie with disdain. “Someone so unqualified to hold this knowledge that she required a symbologist babysitter.” Teabing glanced back at Langdon. “Fortunately, Robert, your involvement turned out to be my saving grace. Rather than the keystone remaining locked in the depository bank forever, you extracted it and walked into my home.”
   Where else would I run? Langdon thought. The community of Grail historians is small, and Teabing and I have a history together.
   Teabing now looked smug. “When I learned Saunière left you a dying message, I had a pretty good idea you were holding valuable Priory information. Whether it was the keystone itself, or information on where to find it, I was not sure. But with the police on your heels, I had a sneaking suspicion you might arrive on my doorstep.”
   Langdon glared. “And if we had not?”
   “I was formulating a plan to extend you a helping hand. One way or another, the keystone was coming to Chateau Villette. The fact that you delivered it into my waiting hands only serves as proof that my cause is just.”
   “What!” Langdon was appalled.
   “Silas was supposed to break in and steal the keystone from you in Chateau Villette—thus removing you from the equation without hurting you, and exonerating me from any suspicion of complicity. However, when I saw the intricacy of Saunière’s codes, I decided to include you both in my quest a bit longer. I could have Silas steal the keystone later, once I knew enough to carry on alone.”
   “The Temple Church,” Sophie said, her tone awash with betrayal.

   Light begins to dawn, Teabing thought. The Temple Church was the perfect location to steal the keystone from Robert and Sophie, and its apparent relevance to the poem made it a plausible decoy. Remy’s orders had been clear—stay out of sight while Silas recovers the keystone. Unfortunately, Langdon’s threat to smash the keystone on the chapel floor had caused Remy to panic. If only Remy had not revealed himself, Teabing thought ruefully, recalling his own mock kidnapping. Remy was the sole link to me, and he showed his face!
   Fortunately, Silas remained unaware of Teabing’s true identity and was easily fooled into taking him from the church and then watching naively as Remy pretended to tie their hostage in the back of the limousine. With the soundproof divider raised, Teabing was able to phone Silas in the front seat, use the fake French accent of the Teacher, and direct Silas to go straight to Opus Dei. A simple anonymous tip to the police was all it would take to remove Silas from the picture.
   One loose end tied up.
   The other loose end was harder. Remy.
   Teabing struggled deeply with the decision, but in the end Remy had proven himself a liability. Every Grail quest requires sacrifice. The cleanest solution had been staring Teabing in the face from the limousine’s wet bar—a flask, some cognac, and a can of peanuts. The powder at the bottom of the can would be more than enough to trigger Remy’s deadly allergy. When Remy parked the limo on Horse Guards Parade, Teabing climbed out of the back, walked to the side passenger door, and sat in the front next to Remy. Minutes later, Teabing got out of the car, climbed into the rear again, cleaned up the evidence, and finally emerged to carry out the final phase of his mission.
   Westminster Abbey had been a short walk, and although Teabing’s leg braces, crutches, and gun had set off the metal detector, the rentacops never knew what to do. Do we ask him to remove his braces and crawl through? Do we frisk his deformed body? Teabing presented the flustered guards a far easier solution—an embossed card identifying him as Knight of the Realm. The poor fellows practically tripped over one another ushering him in.
   Now, eyeing the bewildered Langdon and Neveu, Teabing resisted the urge to reveal how he had brilliantly implicated Opus Dei in the plot that would soon bring about the demise of the entire Church. That would have to wait. Right now there was work to do.
   “Mes amis,” Teabing declared in flawless French, “vous ne trouvez pas le SaintGraal, c’est le SaintGraal qui vous trouve.” He smiled. “Our paths together could not be more clear. The Grail has found us.”
   Silence.
   He spoke to them in a whisper now. “Listen. Can you hear it? The Grail is speaking to us across the centuries. She is begging to be saved from the Priory’s folly. I implore you both to recognize this opportunity. There could not possibly be three more capable people assembled at this moment to break the final code and open the cryptex.” Teabing paused, his eyes alight. “We need to swear an oath together. A pledge of faith to one another. A knight’s allegiance to uncover the truth and make it known.”
   Sophie stared deep into Teabing’s eyes and spoke in a steely tone. “I will never swear an oath with my grandfather’s murderer. Except an oath that I will see you go to prison.”
   Teabing’s heart turned grave, then resolute. “I am sorry you feel that way, mademoiselle.” He turned and aimed the gun at Langdon. “And you, Robert? Are you with me, or against me?”

Chapter 100

   Bishop Manuel Aringarosa’s body had endured many kinds of pain, and yet the searing heat of the bullet wound in his chest felt profoundly foreign to him. Deep and grave. Not a wound of the flesh… but closer to the soul.
   He opened his eyes, trying to see, but the rain on his face blurred his vision. Where am I? He could feel powerful arms holding him, carrying his limp body like a rag doll, his black cassock flapping.
   Lifting a weary arm, he mopped his eyes and saw the man holding him was Silas. The great albino was struggling down a misty sidewalk, shouting for a hospital, his voice a heartrending wail of agony. His red eyes were focused dead ahead, tears streaming down his pale, bloodspattered face.
   “My son,” Aringarosa whispered, “you’re hurt.”
   Silas glanced down, his visage contorted in anguish. “I am so very sorry, Father.” He seemed almost too pained to speak.
   “No, Silas,” Aringarosa replied. “It is I who am sorry. This is my fault.” The Teacher promised me there would be no killing, and I told you to obey him fully. “I was too eager. Too fearful. You and I were deceived.” The Teacher was never going to deliver us the Holy Grail.
   Cradled in the arms of the man he had taken in all those years ago, Bishop Aringarosa felt himself reel back in time. To Spain. To his modest beginnings, building a small Catholic church in Oviedo with Silas. And later, to New York City, where he had proclaimed the glory of God with the towering Opus Dei Center on Lexington Avenue.
   Five months ago, Aringarosa had received devastating news. His life’s work was in jeopardy. He recalled, with vivid detail, the meeting inside Castel Gandolfo that had changed his life… the news that had set this entire calamity into motion.
   Aringarosa had entered Gandolfo’s Astronomy Library with his head held high, fully expecting to be lauded by throngs of welcoming hands, all eager to pat him on the back for his superior work representing Catholicism in America.
   But only three people were present.
   The Vatican secretariat. Obese. Dour.
   Two highranking Italian cardinals. Sanctimonious. Smug.
   “Secretariat?” Aringarosa said, puzzled.
   The rotund overseer of legal affairs shook Aringarosa’s hand and motioned to the chair opposite him. “Please, make yourself comfortable.”
   Aringarosa sat, sensing something was wrong.
   “I am not skilled in small talk, Bishop,” the secretariat said, “so let me be direct about the reason for your visit.”
   “Please. Speak openly.” Aringarosa glanced at the two cardinals, who seemed to be measuring him with selfrighteous anticipation.
   “As you are well aware,” the secretariat said, “His Holiness and others in Rome have been concerned lately with the political fallout from Opus Dei’s more controversial practices.”
   Aringarosa felt himself bristle instantly. He already had been through this on numerous occasions with the new pontiff, who, to Aringarosa’s great dismay, had turned out to be a distressingly fervent voice for liberal change in the Church.
   “I want to assure you,” the secretariat added quickly, “that His Holiness does not seek to change anything about the way you run your ministry.”
   I should hope not! “Then why am I here?”
   The enormous man sighed. “Bishop, I am not sure how to say this delicately, so I will state it directly. Two days ago, the Secretariat Council voted unanimously to revoke the Vatican’s sanction of Opus Dei.”
   Aringarosa was certain he had heard incorrectly. “I beg your pardon?”
   “Plainly stated, six months from today, Opus Dei will no longer be considered a prelature of the Vatican. You will be a church unto yourself. The Holy See will be disassociating itself from you. His Holiness agrees and we are already drawing up the legal papers.”
   “But… that is impossible!”
   “On the contrary, it is quite possible. And necessary. His Holiness has become uneasy with your aggressive recruiting policies and your practices of corporal mortification.” He paused. “Also your policies regarding women. Quite frankly, Opus Dei has become a liability and an embarrassment.”
   Bishop Aringarosa was stupefied. “An embarrassment?”
   “Certainly you cannot be surprised it has come to this.”
   “Opus Dei is the only Catholic organization whose numbers are growing! We now have over eleven hundred priests!”
   “True. A troubling issue for us all.”
   Aringarosa shot to his feet. “Ask His Holiness if Opus Dei was an embarrassment in 1982 when we helped the Vatican Bank!”
   “The Vatican will always be grateful for that,” the secretariat said, his tone appeasing, “and yet there are those who still believe your financial munificence in 1982 is the only reason you were granted prelature status in the first place.”
   “That is not true!” The insinuation offended Aringarosa deeply.
   “Whatever the case, we plan to act in good faith. We are drawing up severance terms that will include a reimbursement of those monies. It will be paid in five installments.”
   “You are buying me off?” Aringarosa demanded. “Paying me to go quietly? When Opus Dei is the only remaining voice of reason!”
   One of the cardinals glanced up. “I’m sorry, did you say reason?”
   Aringarosa leaned across the table, sharpening his tone to a point. “Do you really wonder why Catholics are leaving the Church? Look around you, Cardinal. People have lost respect. The rigors of faith are gone. The doctrine has become a buffet line. Abstinence, confession, communion, baptism, mass—take your pick—choose whatever combination pleases you and ignore the rest. What kind of spiritual guidance is the Church offering?”
   “Thirdcentury laws,” the second cardinal said, “cannot be applied to the modern followers of Christ. The rules are not workable in today’s society.”
   “Well, they seem to be working for Opus Dei!”
   “Bishop Aringarosa,” the secretariat said, his voice conclusive. “Out of respect for your organization’s relationship with the previous Pope, His Holiness will be giving Opus Dei six months to voluntarily break away from the Vatican. I suggest you cite your differences of opinion with the Holy See and establish yourself as your own Christian organization.”
   “I refuse!” Aringarosa declared. “And I’ll tell him that in person!”
   “I’m afraid His Holiness no longer cares to meet with you.”
   Aringarosa stood up. “He would not dare abolish a personal prelature established by a previous Pope!”
   “I’m sorry.” The secretariat’s eyes did not flinch. “The Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away.”
   Aringarosa had staggered from that meeting in bewilderment and panic. Returning to New York, he stared out at the skyline in disillusionment for days, overwhelmed with sadness for the future of Christianity.
   It was several weeks later that he received the phone call that changed all that. The caller sounded French and identified himself as the Teacher —a title common in the prelature. He said he knew of the Vatican’s plans to pull support from Opus Dei.
   How could he know that? Aringarosa wondered. He had hoped only a handful of Vatican power brokers knew of Opus Dei’s impending annulment. Apparently the word was out. When it came to containing gossip, no walls in the world were as porous as those surrounding Vatican City.
   “I have ears everywhere, Bishop,” the Teacher whispered, “and with these ears I have gained certain knowledge. With your help, I can uncover the hiding place of a sacred relic that will bring you enormous power… enough power to make the Vatican bow before you. Enough power to save the Faith.” He paused. “Not just for Opus Dei. But for all of us.”
   The Lord taketh away… and the Lord giveth. Aringarosa felt a glorious ray of hope. “Tell me your plan.”

   Bishop Aringarosa was unconscious when the doors of St. Mary’s Hospital hissed open. Silas lurched into the entryway delirious with exhaustion. Dropping to his knees on the tile floor, he cried out for help. Everyone in the reception area gaped in wonderment at the halfnaked albino offering forth a bleeding clergyman.
   The doctor who helped Silas heave the delirious bishop onto a gurney looked gloomy as he felt Aringarosa’s pulse. “He’s lost a lot of blood. I am not hopeful.”
   Aringarosa’s eyes flickered, and he returned for a moment, his gaze locating Silas. “My child…”
   Silas’s soul thundered with remorse and rage. “Father, if it takes my lifetime, I will find the one who deceived us, and I will kill him.”
   Aringarosa shook his head, looking sad as they prepared to wheel him away. “Silas… if you have learned nothing from me, please… learn this.” He took Silas’s hand and gave it a firm squeeze. “Forgiveness is God’s greatest gift.”
   “But Father…”
   Aringarosa closed his eyes. “Silas, you must pray.”

Chapter 101

   Robert Langdon stood beneath the lofty cupola of the deserted Chapter House and stared into the barrel of Leigh Teabing’s gun.
   Robert, are you with me, or against me? The Royal Historian’s words echoed in the silence of Langdon’s mind.
   There was no viable response, Langdon knew. Answer yes, and he would be selling out Sophie. Answer no, and Teabing would have no choice but to kill them both.
   Langdon’s years in the classroom had not imbued him with any skills relevant to handling confrontations at gunpoint, but the classroom had taught him something about answering paradoxical questions. When a question has no correct answer, there is only one honest response.
   The gray area between yes and no.
   Silence.
   Staring at the cryptex in his hands, Langdon chose simply to walk away.
   Without ever lifting his eyes, he stepped backward, out into the room’s vast empty spaces. Neutral ground. He hoped his focus on the cryptex signaled Teabing that collaboration might be an option, and that his silence signaled Sophie he had not abandoned her.
   All the while buying time to think.
   The act of thinking, Langdon suspected, was exactly what Teabing wanted him to do. That’s why he handed me the cryptex. So I could feel the weight of my decision. The British historian hoped the touch of the Grand Master’s cryptex would make Langdon fully grasp the magnitude of its contents, coaxing his academic curiosity to overwhelm all else, forcing him to realize that failure to unlock the keystone would mean the loss of history itself.
   With Sophie at gunpoint across the room, Langdon feared that discovering the cryptex’s elusive password would be his only remaining hope of bartering her release. If I can free the map, Teabing will negotiate. Forcing his mind to this critical task, Langdon moved slowly toward the far windows… allowing his mind to fill with the numerous astronomical images on Newton’s tomb.
   You seek the orb that ought be on his tomb.
   It speaks of Rosy flesh and seeded womb.

   Turning his back to the others, he walked toward the towering windows, searching for any inspiration in their stainedglass mosaics. There was none.
   Place yourself in Saunière’s mind, he urged, gazing outward now into College Garden. What would he believe is the orb that ought be on Newton’s tomb? Images of stars, comets, and planets twinkled in the falling rain, but Langdon ignored them. Saunière was not a man of science. He was a man of humanity, of art, of history. The sacred feminine… the chalice… the Rose… the banished Mary Magdalene… the decline of the goddess… the Holy Grail.
   Legend had always portrayed the Grail as a cruel mistress, dancing in the shadows just out of sight, whispering in your ear, luring you one more step and then evaporating into the mist.
   Gazing out at the rustling trees of College Garden, Langdon sensed her playful presence. The signs were everywhere. Like a taunting silhouette emerging from the fog, the branches of Britain’s oldest apple tree burgeoned with fivepetaled blossoms, all glistening like Venus. The goddess was in the garden now. She was dancing in the rain, singing songs of the ages, peeking out from behind the budfilled branches as if to remind Langdon that the fruit of knowledge was growing just beyond his reach.

   Across the room, Sir Leigh Teabing watched with confidence as Langdon gazed out the window as if under a spell.
   Exactly as I hoped, Teabing thought. He will come around.
   For some time now, Teabing had suspected Langdon might hold the key to the Grail. It was no coincidence that Teabing launched his plan into action on the same night Langdon was scheduled to meet Jacques Saunière. Listening in on the curator, Teabing was certain the man’s eagerness to meet privately with Langdon could mean only one thing. Langdon’s mysterious manuscript has touched a nerve with the Priory.
   Langdon has stumbled onto a truth, and Saunière fears its release. Teabing felt certain the Grand Master was summoning Langdon to silence him.
   The Truth has been silenced long enough!
   Teabing knew he had to act quickly. Silas’s attack would accomplish two goals. It would prevent Saunière from persuading Langdon to keep quiet, and it would ensure that once the keystone was in Teabing’s hands, Langdon would be in Paris for recruitment should Teabing need him.
   Arranging the fatal meeting between Saunière and Silas had been almost too easy. I had inside information about Saunière’s deepest fears. Yesterday afternoon, Silas had phoned the curator and posed as a distraught priest. “Monsieur Saunière, forgive me, I must speak to you at once. I should never breach the sanctity of the confessional, but in this case, I feel I must. I just took confession from a man who claimed to have murdered members of your family.”
   Saunière’s response was startled but wary. “My family died in an accident. The police report was conclusive.”
   “Yes, a car accident,” Silas said, baiting the hook. “The man I spoke to said he forced their car off the road into a river.”
   Saunière fell silent.
   “Monsieur Saunière, I would never have phoned you directly except this man made a comment which makes me now fear for your safety.” He paused. “The man also mentioned your granddaughter, Sophie.”
   The mention of Sophie’s name had been the catalyst. The curator leapt into action. He ordered Silas to come see him immediately in the safest location Saunière knew—his Louvre office. Then he phoned Sophie to warn her she might be in danger. Drinks with Robert Langdon were instantly abandoned.
   Now, with Langdon separated from Sophie on the far side of the room, Teabing sensed he had successfully alienated the two companions from one another. Sophie Neveu remained defiant, but Langdon clearly saw the larger picture. He was trying to figure out the password. He understands the importance of finding the Grail and releasing her from bondage.
   “He won’t open it for you,” Sophie said coldly. “Even if he can.”
   Teabing was glancing at Langdon as he held the gun on Sophie. He was fairly certain now he was going to have to use the weapon. Although the idea troubled him, he knew he would not hesitate if it came to that. I have given her every opportunity to do the right thing. The Grail is bigger than any one of us.
   At that moment, Langdon turned from the window. “The tomb…” he said suddenly, facing them with a faint glimmer of hope in his eyes. “I know where to look on Newton’s tomb. Yes, I think I can find the password!”
   Teabing’s heart soared. “Where, Robert? Tell me!”
   Sophie sounded horrified. “Robert, no! You’re not going to help him, are you?”
   Langdon approached with a resolute stride, holding the cryptex before him. “No,” he said, his eyes hardening as he turned to Leigh. “Not until he lets you go.”
   Teabing’s optimism darkened. “We are so close, Robert. Don’t you dare start playing games with me!”
   “No games,” Langdon said. “Let her go. Then I’ll take you to Newton’s tomb. We’ll open the cryptex together.”
   “I’m not going anywhere,” Sophie declared, her eyes narrowing with rage. “That cryptex was given to me by my grandfather. It is not yours to open.”
   Langdon wheeled, looking fearful. “Sophie, please! You’re in danger. I’m trying to help you!”
   “How? By unveiling the secret my grandfather died trying to protect? He trusted you, Robert. I trusted you!”
   Langdon’s blue eyes showed panic now, and Teabing could not help but smile to see the two of them working against one another. Langdon’s attempts to be gallant were more pathetic than anything. On the verge of unveiling one of history’s greatest secrets, and he troubles himself with a woman who has proven herself unworthy of the quest.
   “Sophie,” Langdon pleaded. “Please… you must leave.”
   She shook her head. “Not unless you either hand me the cryptex or smash it on the floor.”
   “What?” Langdon gasped.
   “Robert, my grandfather would prefer his secret lost forever than see it in the hands of his murderer.” Sophie’s eyes looked as if they would well with tears, but they did not. She stared directly back at Teabing. “Shoot me if you have to. I am not leaving my grandfather’s legacy in your hands.”
   Very well. Teabing aimed the weapon.
   “No!” Langdon shouted, raising his arm and suspending the cryptex precariously over the hard stone floor. “Leigh, if you even think about it, I will drop this.”
   Teabing laughed. “That bluff worked on Remy. Not on me. I know you better than that.”
   “Do you, Leigh?”
   Yes I do. Your poker face needs work, my friend. It took me several seconds, but I can see now that you are lying. You have no idea where on Newton’s tomb the answer lies. “Truly, Robert? You know where on the tomb to look?”
   “I do.”
   The falter in Langdon’s eyes was fleeting but Leigh caught it. There was a lie there. A desperate, pathetic ploy to save Sophie. Teabing felt a profound disappointment in Robert Langdon.
   I am a lone knight, surrounded by unworthy souls. And I will have to decipher the keystone on my own.
   Langdon and Neveu were nothing but a threat to Teabing now… and to the Grail. As painful as the solution was going to be, he knew he could carry it out with a clean conscience. The only challenge would be to persuade Langdon to set down the keystone so Teabing could safely end this charade.
   “A show of faith,” Teabing said, lowering the gun from Sophie. “Set down the keystone, and we’ll talk.”

   Langdon knew his lie had failed.
   He could see the dark resolve in Teabing’s face and knew the moment was upon them. When I set this down, he will kill us both. Even without looking at Sophie, he could hear her heart beseeching him in silent desperation. Robert, this man is not worthy of the Grail. Please do not place it in his hands. No matter what the cost.
   Langdon had already made his decision several minutes ago, while standing alone at the window overlooking College Garden.
   Protect Sophie.
   Protect the Grail.
   Langdon had almost shouted out in desperation. But I cannot see how!
   The stark moments of disillusionment had brought with them a clarity unlike any he had ever felt. The Truth is right before your eyes, Robert. He knew not from where the epiphany came. The Grail is not mocking you, she is calling out to a worthy soul.
   Now, bowing down like a subject several yards in front of Leigh Teabing, Langdon lowered the cryptex to within inches of the stone floor.
   “Yes, Robert,” Teabing whispered, aiming the gun at him. “Set it down.”
   Langdon’s eyes moved heavenward, up into the gaping void of the Chapter House cupola. Crouching lower, Langdon lowered his gaze to Teabing’s gun, aimed directly at him.
   “I’m sorry, Leigh.”
   In one fluid motion, Langdon leapt up, swinging his arm skyward, launching the cryptex straight up toward the dome above.

   Leigh Teabing did not feel his finger pull the trigger, but the Medusa discharged with a thundering crash. Langdon’s crouched form was now vertical, almost airborne, and the bullet exploded in the floor near Langdon’s feet. Half of Teabing’s brain attempted to adjust his aim and fire again in rage, but the more powerful half dragged his eyes upward into the cupola.
   The keystone!
   Time seemed to freeze, morphing into a slowmotion dream as Teabing’s entire world became the airborne keystone. He watched it rise to the apex of its climb… hovering for a moment in the void… and then tumbling downward, end over end, back toward the stone floor.
   All of Teabing’s hopes and dreams were plummeting toward earth. It cannot strike the floor! I can reach it! Teabing’s body reacted on instinct. He released the gun and heaved himself forward, dropping his crutches as he reached out with his soft, manicured hands. Stretching his arms and fingers, he snatched the keystone from midair.
   Falling forward with the keystone victoriously clutched in his hand, Teabing knew he was falling too fast. With nothing to break his fall, his outstretched arms hit first, and the cryptex collided hard with the floor.
   There was a sickening crunch of glass within.
   For a full second, Teabing did not breathe. Lying there outstretched on the cold floor, staring the length of his outstretched arms at the marble cylinder in his bare palms, he implored the glass vial inside to hold. Then the acrid tang of vinegar cut the air, and Teabing felt the cool liquid flowing out through the dials onto his palm.
   Wild panic gripped him. NO! The vinegar was streaming now, and Teabing pictured the papyrus dissolving within. Robert, you fool! The secret is lost!
   Teabing felt himself sobbing uncontrollably. The Grail is gone. Everything destroyed. Shuddering in disbelief over Langdon’s actions, Teabing tried to force the cylinder apart, longing to catch a fleeting glimpse of history before it dissolved forever. To his shock, as he pulled the ends of the keystone, the cylinder separated.
   He gasped and peered inside. It was empty except for shards of wet glass. No dissolving papyrus. Teabing rolled over and looked up at Langdon. Sophie stood beside him, aiming the gun down at Teabing.
   Bewildered, Teabing looked back at the keystone and saw it. The dials were no longer at random. They spelled a fiveletter word: APPLE.

   “The orb from which Eve partook,” Langdon said coolly, “incurring the Holy wrath of God. Original sin. The symbol of the fall of the sacred feminine.”
   Teabing felt the truth come crashing down on him in excruciating austerity. The orb that ought be on Newton’s tomb could be none other than the Rosy apple that fell from heaven, struck Newton on the head, and inspired his life’s work. His labor’s fruit! The Rosy flesh with a seeded womb!
   “Robert,” Teabing stammered, overwhelmed. “You opened it. Where… is the map?”
   Without blinking, Langdon reached into the breast pocket of his tweed coat and carefully extracted a delicate rolled papyrus. Only a few yards from where Teabing lay, Langdon unrolled the scroll and looked at it. After a long moment, a knowing smile crossed Langdon’s face.
   He knows! Teabing’s heart craved that knowledge. His life’s dream was right in front of him. “Tell me!” Teabing demanded. “Please! Oh God, please! It’s not too late!”
   As the sound of heavy footsteps thundered down the hall toward the Chapter House, Langdon quietly rolled the papyrus and slipped it back in his pocket.
   “No!” Teabing cried out, trying in vain to stand.
   When the doors burst open, Bezu Fache entered like a bull into a ring, his feral eyes scanning, finding his target—Leigh Teabing—helpless on the floor. Exhaling in relief, Fache holstered his Manurhin sidearm and turned to Sophie. “Agent Neveu, I am relieved you and Mr. Langdon are safe. You should have come in when I asked.”
   The British police entered on Fache’s heels, seizing the anguished prisoner and placing him in handcuffs.
   Sophie seemed stunned to see Fache. “How did you find us?”
   Fache pointed to Teabing. “He made the mistake of showing his ID when he entered the abbey. The guards heard a police broadcast about our search for him.”
   “It’s in Langdon’s pocket!” Teabing was screaming like a madman. “The map to the Holy Grail!”
   As they hoisted Teabing and carried him out, he threw back his head and howled. “Robert! Tell me where it’s hidden!”
   As Teabing passed, Langdon looked him in the eye. “Only the worthy find the Grail, Leigh. You taught me that.”

Chapter 102

   The mist had settled low on Kensington Gardens as Silas limped into a quiet hollow out of sight. Kneeling on the wet grass, he could feel a warm stream of blood flowing from the bullet wound below his ribs. Still, he stared straight ahead.
   The fog made it look like heaven here.
   Raising his bloody hands to pray, he watched the raindrops caress his fingers, turning them white again. As the droplets fell harder across his back and shoulders, he could feel his body disappearing bit by bit into the mist.
   I am a ghost.
   A breeze rustled past him, carrying the damp, earthy scent of new life. With every living cell in his broken body, Silas prayed. He prayed for forgiveness. He prayed for mercy. And, above all, he prayed for his mentor… Bishop Aringarosa… that the Lord would not take him before his time. He has so much work left to do.
   The fog was swirling around him now, and Silas felt so light that he was sure the wisps would carry him away. Closing his eyes, he said a final prayer.
   From somewhere in the mist, the voice of Manuel Aringarosa whispered to him.
   Our Lord is a good and merciful God.
   Silas’s pain at last began to fade, and he knew the bishop was right.

Chapter 103

   It was late afternoon when the London sun broke through and the city began to dry. Bezu Fache felt weary as he emerged from the interrogation room and hailed a cab. Sir Leigh Teabing had vociferously proclaimed his innocence, and yet from his incoherent rantings about the Holy Grail, secret documents, and mysterious brotherhoods, Fache suspected the wily historian was setting the stage for his lawyers to plead an insanity defense.
   Sure, Fache thought. Insane. Teabing had displayed ingenious precision in formulating a plan that protected his innocence at every turn. He had exploited both the Vatican and Opus Dei, two groups that turned out to be completely innocent. His dirty work had been carried out unknowingly by a fanatical monk and a desperate bishop. More clever still, Teabing had situated his electronic listening post in the one place a man with polio could not possibly reach. The actual surveillance had been carried out by his manservant, Remy—the lone person privy to Teabing’s true identity—now conveniently dead of an allergic reaction.
   Hardly the handiwork of someone lacking mental faculties, Fache thought.
   The information coming from Collet out of Chateau Villette suggested that Teabing’s cunning ran so deep that Fache himself might even learn from it. To successfully hide bugs in some of Paris’s most powerful offices, the British historian had turned to the Greeks. Trojan horses. Some of Teabing’s intended targets received lavish gifts of artwork, others unwittingly bid at auctions in which Teabing had placed specific lots. In Saunière’s case, the curator had received a dinner invitation to Chateau Villette to discuss the possibility of Teabing’s funding a new Da Vinci Wing at the Louvre. Saunière’s invitation had contained an innocuous postscript expressing fascination with a robotic knight that Saunière was rumored to have built. Bring him to dinner, Teabing had suggested. Saunière apparently had done just that and left the knight unattended long enough for Remy Legaludec to make one inconspicuous addition.
   Now, sitting in the back of the cab, Fache closed his eyes. One more thing to attend to before I return to Paris.

   The St. Mary’s Hospital recovery room was sunny.
   “You’ve impressed us all,” the nurse said, smiling down at him. “Nothing short of miraculous.”
   Bishop Aringarosa gave a weak smile. “I have always been blessed.”
   The nurse finished puttering, leaving the bishop alone. The sunlight felt welcome and warm on his face. Last night had been the darkest night of his life.
   Despondently, he thought of Silas, whose body had been found in the park.
   Please forgive me, my son.
   Aringarosa had longed for Silas to be part of his glorious plan. Last night, however, Aringarosa had received a call from Bezu Fache, questioning the bishop about his apparent connection to a nun who had been murdered in SaintSulpice. Aringarosa realized the evening had taken a horrifying turn. News of the four additional murders transformed his horror to anguish. Silas, what have you done! Unable to reach the Teacher, the bishop knew he had been cut loose. Used. The only way to stop the horrific chain of events he had helped put in motion was to confess everything to Fache, and from that moment on, Aringarosa and Fache had been racing to catch up with Silas before the Teacher persuaded him to kill again.
   Feeling bone weary, Aringarosa closed his eyes and listened to the television coverage of the arrest of a prominent British knight, Sir Leigh Teabing. The Teacher laid bare for all to see. Teabing had caught wind of the Vatican’s plans to disassociate itself from Opus Dei. He had chosen Aringarosa as the perfect pawn in his plan. After all, who more likely to leap blindly after the Holy Grail than a man like myself with everything to lose? The Grail would have brought enormous power to anyone who possessed it.
   Leigh Teabing had protected his identity shrewdly—feigning a French accent and a pious heart, and demanding as payment the one thing he did not need—money. Aringarosa had been far too eager to be suspicious. The price tag of twenty million euro was paltry when compared with the prize of obtaining the Grail, and with the Vatican’s separation payment to Opus Dei, the finances had worked nicely. The blind see what they want to see. Teabing’s ultimate insult, of course, had been to demand payment in Vatican bonds, such that if anything went wrong, the investigation would lead to Rome.
   “I am glad to see you’re well, My Lord.”
   Aringarosa recognized the gruff voice in the doorway, but the face was unexpected—stern, powerful features, slickedback hair, and a broad neck that strained against his dark suit. “Captain Fache?” Aringarosa asked. The compassion and concern the captain had shown for Aringarosa’s plight last night had conjured images of a far gentler physique.
   The captain approached the bed and hoisted a familiar, heavy black briefcase onto a chair. “I believe this belongs to you.”
   Aringarosa looked at the briefcase filled with bonds and immediately looked away, feeling only shame. “Yes… thank you.” He paused while working his fingers across the seam of his bedsheet, then continued. “Captain, I have been giving this deep thought, and I need to ask a favor of you.”
   “Of course.”
   “The families of those in Paris who Silas…” He paused, swallowing the emotion. “I realize no sum could possibly serve as sufficient restitution, and yet, if you could be kind enough to divide the contents of this briefcase among them… the families of the deceased.”
   Fache’s dark eyes studied him a long moment. “A virtuous gesture, My Lord. I will see to it your wishes are carried out.”
   A heavy silence fell between them.
   On the television, a lean French police officer was giving a press conference in front of a sprawling mansion. Fache saw who it was and turned his attention to the screen.
   “Lieutenant Collet,” a BBC reporter said, her voice accusing. “Last night, your captain publicly charged two innocent people with murder. Will Robert Langdon and Sophie Neveu be seeking accountability from your department? Will this cost Captain Fache his job?”
   Lieutenant Collet’s smile was tired but calm. “It is my experience that Captain Bezu Fache seldom makes mistakes. I have not yet spoken to him on this matter, but knowing how he operates, I suspect his public manhunt for Agent Neveu and Mr. Langdon was part of a ruse to lure out the real killer.”
   The reporters exchanged surprised looks.
   Collet continued. “Whether or not Mr. Langdon and Agent Neveu were willing participants in the sting, I do not know. Captain Fache tends to keep his more creative methods to himself. All I can confirm at this point is that the captain has successfully arrested the man responsible, and that Mr. Langdon and Agent Neveu are both innocent and safe.”
   Fache had a faint smile on his lips as he turned back to Aringarosa. “A good man, that Collet.”
   Several moments passed. Finally, Fache ran his hand over his forehead, slicking back his hair as he gazed down at Aringarosa. “My Lord, before I return to Paris, there is one final matter I’d like to discuss—your impromptu flight to London. You bribed a pilot to change course. In doing so, you broke a number of international laws.”
   Aringarosa slumped. “I was desperate.”
   “Yes. As was the pilot when my men interrogated him.” Fache reached in his pocket and produced a purple amethyst ring with a familiar handtooled mitrecrozier appliqué.
   Aringarosa felt tears welling as he accepted the ring and slipped it back on his finger. “You’ve been so kind.” He held out his hand and clasped Fache’s. “Thank you.”
   Fache waved off the gesture, walking to the window and gazing out at the city, his thoughts obviously far away. When he turned, there was an uncertainty about him. “My Lord, where do you go from here?”
   Aringarosa had been asked the exact same question as he left Castel Gandolfo the night before. “I suspect my path is as uncertain as yours.”
   “Yes.” Fache paused. “I suspect I will be retiring early.”
   Aringarosa smiled. “A little faith can do wonders, Captain. A little faith.”

Chapter 104

   Rosslyn Chapel—often called the Cathedral of Codes—stands seven miles south of Edinburgh, Scotland, on the site of an ancient Mithraic temple. Built by the Knights Templar in 1446, the chapel is engraved with a mindboggling array of symbols from the Jewish, Christian, Egyptian, Masonic, and pagan traditions.
   The chapel’s geographic coordinates fall precisely on the northsouth meridian that runs through Glastonbury. This longitudinal Rose Line is the traditional marker of King Arthur’s Isle of Avalon and is considered the central pillar of Britain’s sacred geometry. It is from this hallowed Rose Line that Rosslyn—originally spelled Roslin—takes its name.
   Rosslyn’s rugged spires were casting long evening shadows as Robert Langdon and Sophie Neveu pulled their rental car into the grassy parking area at the foot of the bluff on which the chapel stood. Their short flight from London to Edinburgh had been restful, although neither of them had slept for the anticipation of what lay ahead. Gazing up at the stark edifice framed against a cloudswept sky, Langdon felt like Alice falling headlong into the rabbit hole. This must be a dream. And yet he knew the text of Saunière’s final message could not have been more specific.
   The Holy Grail ‘neath ancient Roslin waits.
 
   Langdon had fantasized that Saunière’s “Grail map” would be a diagram—a drawing with an Xmarksthespot—and yet the Priory’s final secret had been unveiled in the same way Saunière had spoken to them from the beginning. Simple verse. Four explicit lines that pointed without a doubt to this very spot. In addition to identifying Rosslyn by name, the verse made reference to several of the chapel’s renowned architectural features.
   Despite the clarity of Saunière’s final revelation, Langdon had been left feeling more off balance than enlightened. To him, Rosslyn Chapel seemed far too obvious a location. For centuries, this stone chapel had echoed with whispers of the Holy Grail’s presence. The whispers had turned to shouts in recent decades when groundpenetrating radar revealed the presence of an astonishing structure beneath the chapel—a massive subterranean chamber. Not only did this deep vault dwarf the chapel atop it, but it appeared to have no entrance or exit. Archaeologists petitioned to begin blasting through the bedrock to reach the mysterious chamber, but the Rosslyn Trust expressly forbade any excavation of the sacred site. Of course, this only fueled the fires of speculation. What was the Rosslyn Trust trying to hide?
   Rosslyn had now become a pilgrimage site for mystery seekers. Some claimed they were drawn here by the powerful magnetic field that emanated inexplicably from these coordinates, some claimed they came to search the hillside for a hidden entrance to the vault, but most admitted they had come simply to wander the grounds and absorb the lore of the Holy Grail.
   Although Langdon had never been to Rosslyn before now, he always chuckled when he heard the chapel described as the current home of the Holy Grail. Admittedly, Rosslyn once might have been home to the Grail, long ago… but certainly no longer. Far too much attention had been drawn to Rosslyn in past decades, and sooner or later someone would find a way to break into the vault.
   True Grail academics agreed that Rosslyn was a decoy—one of the devious dead ends the Priory crafted so convincingly. Tonight, however, with the Priory’s keystone offering a verse that pointed directly to this spot, Langdon no longer felt so smug. A perplexing question had been running through his mind all day:
   Why would Saunière go to such effort to guide us to so obvious a location?
   There seemed only one logical answer.
   There is something about Rosslyn we have yet to understand.
   “Robert?” Sophie was standing outside the car, looking back at him. “Are you corning?” She was holding the rosewood box, which Captain Fache had returned to them. Inside, both cryptexes had been reassembled and nested as they had been found. The papyrus verse was locked safely at its core—minus the shattered vial of vinegar.
   Making their way up the long gravel path, Langdon and Sophie passed the famous west wall of the chapel. Casual visitors assumed this oddly protruding wall was a section of the chapel that had not been finished. The truth, Langdon recalled, was far more intriguing.
   The west wall of Solomon’s Temple.
   The Knights Templar had designed Rosslyn Chapel as an exact architectural blueprint of Solomon’s Temple in Jerusalem—complete with a west wall, a narrow rectangular sanctuary, and a subterranean vault like the Holy of Holies, in which the original nine knights had first unearthed their priceless treasure. Langdon had to admit, there existed an intriguing symmetry in the idea of the Templars building a modern Grail repository that echoed the Grail’s original hiding place.
   Rosslyn Chapel’s entrance was more modest than Langdon expected. The small wooden door had two iron hinges and a simple, oak sign.
 

Roslin
 
   This ancient spelling, Langdon explained to Sophie, derived from the Rose Line meridian on which the chapel sat; or, as Grail academics preferred to believe, from the “Line of Rose”—the ancestral lineage of Mary Magdalene.
   The chapel would be closing soon, and as Langdon pulled open the door, a warm puff of air escaped, as if the ancient edifice were heaving a weary sigh at the end of a long day. Her entry arches burgeoned with carved cinquefoils.
   Roses. The womb of the goddess.
   Entering with Sophie, Langdon felt his eyes reaching across the famous sanctuary and taking it all in. Although he had read accounts of Rosslyn’s arrestingly intricate stonework, seeing it in person was an overwhelming encounter.
   Symbology heaven, one of Langdon’s colleagues had called it.
   Every surface in the chapel had been carved with symbols—Christian cruciforms, Jewish stars, Masonic seals, Templar crosses, cornucopias, pyramids, astrological signs, plants, vegetables, pentacles, and roses. The Knights Templar had been master stonemasons, erecting Templar churches all over Europe, but Rosslyn was considered their most sublime labor of love and veneration. The master masons had left no stone uncarved. Rosslyn Chapel was a shrine to all faiths… to all traditions… and, above all, to nature and the goddess.
   The sanctuary was empty except for a handful of visitors listening to a young man giving the day’s last tour. He was leading them in a singlefile line along a wellknown route on the floor—an invisible pathway linking six key architectural points within the sanctuary. Generations of visitors had walked these straight lines, connecting the points, and their countless footsteps had engraved an enormous symbol on the floor.
 


 
   The Star of David, Langdon thought. No coincidence there. Also known as Solomon’s Seal, this hexagram had once been the secret symbol of the stargazing priests and was later adopted by the Israelite kings—David and Solomon.
   The docent had seen Langdon and Sophie enter, and although it was closing time, offered a pleasant smile and motioned for them to feel free to look around.
   Langdon nodded his thanks and began to move deeper into the sanctuary. Sophie, however, stood riveted in the entryway, a puzzled look on her face.
   “What is it?” Langdon asked.
   Sophie stared out at the chapel. “I think… I’ve been here.”
   Langdon was surprised. “But you said you hadn’t even heard of Rosslyn.”
   “I hadn’t…” She scanned the sanctuary, looking uncertain. “My grandfather must have brought me here when I was very young. I don’t know. It feels familiar.” As her eyes scanned the room, she began nodding with more certainty. “Yes.” She pointed to the front of the sanctuary. “Those two pillars… I’ve seen them.”
   Langdon looked at the pair of intricately sculpted columns at the far end of the sanctuary. Their white lacework carvings seemed to smolder with a ruddy glow as the last of the day’s sunlight streamed in through the west window. The pillars—positioned where the altar would normally stand—were an oddly matched pair. The pillar on the left was carved with simple, vertical lines, while the pillar on the right was embellished with an ornate, flowering spiral.
   Sophie was already moving toward them. Langdon hurried after her, and as they reached the pillars, Sophie was nodding with incredulity. “Yes, I’m positive I have seen these!”
   “I don’t doubt you’ve seen them,” Langdon said, “but it wasn’t necessarily here.”
   She turned. “What do you mean?”
   “These two pillars are the most duplicated architectural structures in history. Replicas exist all over the world.”
   “Replicas of Rosslyn?” She looked skeptical.
   “No. Of the pillars. Do you remember earlier that I mentioned Rosslyn itself is a copy of Solomon’s Temple? Those two pillars are exact replicas of the two pillars that stood at the head of Solomon’s Temple.” Langdon pointed to the pillar on the left. “That’s called Boaz —or the Mason’s Pillar. The other is called Jachin —or the Apprentice Pillar.” He paused. “In fact, virtually every Masonic temple in the world has two pillars like these.”
   Langdon had already explained to her about the Templars’ powerful historic ties to the modern Masonic secret societies, whose primary degrees—Apprentice Freemason, Fellowcraft Freemason, and Master Mason—harked back to early Templar days. Sophie’s grandfather’s final verse made direct reference to the Master Masons who adorned Rosslyn with their carved artistic offerings. It also noted Rosslyn’s central ceiling, which was covered with carvings of stars and planets.
   “I’ve never been in a Masonic temple,” Sophie said, still eyeing the pillars. “I am almost positive I saw these here.” She turned back into the chapel, as if looking for something else to jog her memory.
   The rest of the visitors were now leaving, and the young docent made his way across the chapel to them with a pleasant smile. He was a handsome young man in his late twenties, with a Scottish brogue and strawberry blond hair. “I’m about to close up for the day. May I help you find anything?”
   How about the Holy Grail? Langdon wanted to say.
   “The code,” Sophie blurted, in sudden revelation. “There’s a code here!”
   The docent looked pleased by her enthusiasm. “Yes there is, ma’am.”
   “It’s on the ceiling,” she said, turning to the righthand wall. “Somewhere over… there.”
   He smiled. “Not your first visit to Rosslyn, I see.”
   The code, Langdon thought. He had forgotten that little bit of lore. Among Rosslyn’s numerous mysteries was a vaulted archway from which hundreds of stone blocks protruded, jutting down to form a bizarre multifaceted surface. Each block was carved with a symbol, seemingly at random, creating a cipher of unfathomable proportion. Some people believed the code revealed the entrance to the vault beneath the chapel.
   Others believed it told the true Grail legend. Not that it mattered—cryptographers had been trying for centuries to decipher its meaning. To this day the Rosslyn Trust offered a generous reward to anyone who could unveil the secret meaning, but the code remained a mystery. “I’d be happy to show…”
 
   The docent’s voice trailed off.
   My first code, Sophie thought, moving alone, in a trance, toward the encoded archway. Having handed the rosewood box to Langdon, she could feel herself momentarily forgetting all about the Holy Grail, the Priory of Sion, and all the mysteries of the past day. When she arrived beneath the encoded ceiling and saw the symbols above her, the memories came flooding back. She was recalling her first visit here, and strangely, the memories conjured an unexpected sadness.
   She was a little girl… a year or so after her family’s death. Her grandfather had brought her to Scotland on a short vacation. They had come to see Rosslyn Chapel before going back to Paris. It was late evening, and the chapel was closed. But they were still inside.
   “Can we go home, Grand-père?” Sophie begged, feeling tired.
   “Soon, dear, very soon.” His voice was melancholy. “I have one last thing I need to do here. How about if you wait in the car?”
   “You’re doing another big person thing?”
   He nodded. “I’ll be fast. I promise.”
   “Can I do the archway code again? That was fun.”
   “I don’t know. I have to step outside. You won’t be frightened in here alone?”
   “Of course not!” she said with a huff. “It’s not even dark yet!”
   He smiled. “Very well then.” He led her over to the elaborate archway he had shown her earlier.
   Sophie immediately plopped down on the stone floor, lying on her back and staring up at the collage of puzzle pieces overhead. “I’m going to break this code before you get back!”
   “It’s a race then.” He bent over, kissed her forehead, and walked to the nearby side door. “I’ll be right outside. I’ll leave the door open. If you need me, just call.” He exited into the soft evening light.
   Sophie lay there on the floor, gazing up at the code. Her eyes felt sleepy. After a few minutes, the symbols got fuzzy. And then they disappeared.
   When Sophie awoke, the floor felt cold.
   “Grand-père?”
   There was no answer. Standing up, she brushed herself off. The side door was still open. The evening was getting darker. She walked outside and could see her grandfather standing on the porch of a nearby stone house directly behind the church. Her grandfather was talking quietly to a person barely visible inside the screened door.
   “Grand-père?” she called.
   Her grandfather turned and waved, motioning for her to wait just a moment. Then, slowly, he said some final words to the person inside and blew a kiss toward the screened door. He came to her with tearful eyes.
   “Why are you crying, Grand-père?”
   He picked her up and held her close. “Oh, Sophie, you and I have said goodbye to a lot of people this year. It’s hard.”
   Sophie thought of the accident, of saying goodbye to her mother and father, her grandmother and baby brother. “Were you saying goodbye to another person?”
   “To a dear friend whom I love very much,” he replied, his voice heavy with emotion. “And I fear I will not see her again for a very long time.”
 
   Standing with the docent, Langdon had been scanning the chapel walls and feeling a rising wariness that a dead end might be looming. Sophie had wandered off to look at the code and left Langdon holding the rosewood box, which contained a Grail map that now appeared to be no help at all. Although Saunière’s poem clearly indicated Rosslyn, Langdon was not sure what to do now that they had arrived. The poem made reference to a “blade and chalice,” which Langdon saw nowhere.
   The Holy Grail ‘neath ancient Roslin waits.
   The blade and chalice guarding o’er Her gates.
 
   Again Langdon sensed there remained some facet of this mystery yet to reveal itself.
   “I hate to pry,” the docent said, eyeing the rosewood box in Langdon’s hands. “But this box… might I ask where you got it?”
   Langdon gave a weary laugh. “That’s an exceptionally long story.”
   The young man hesitated, his eyes on the box again. “It’s the strangest thing—my grandmother has a box exactly like that—a jewelry box. Identical polished rosewood, same inlaid rose, even the hinges look the same.”
   Langdon knew the young man must be mistaken. If ever a box had been one of a kind, it was this one—the box custommade for the Priory keystone. “The two boxes may be similar but—“
   The side door closed loudly, drawing both of their gazes. Sophie had exited without a word and was now wandering down the bluff toward a fieldstone house nearby. Langdon stared after her. Where is she going? She had been acting strangely ever since they entered the building. He turned to the docent. “Do you know what that house is?”
   He nodded, also looking puzzled that Sophie was going down there. “That’s the chapel rectory. The chapel curator lives there. She also happens to be the head of the Rosslyn Trust.” He paused. “And my grandmother.”
   “Your grandmother heads the Rosslyn Trust?”
   The young man nodded. “I live with her in the rectory and help keep up the chapel and give tours.” He shrugged. “I’ve lived here my whole life. My grandmother raised me in that house.”
   Concerned for Sophie, Langdon moved across the chapel toward the door to call out to her. He was only halfway there when he stopped short. Something the young man said just registered.
   My grandmother raised me.
   Langdon looked out at Sophie on the bluff, then down at the rosewood box in his hand. Impossible. Slowly, Langdon turned back to the young man. “You said your grandmother has a box like this one?”
   “Almost identical.”
   “Where did she get it?”
   “My grandfather made it for her. He died when I was a baby, but my grandmother still talks about him. She says he was a genius with his hands. He made all kinds of things.”
   Langdon glimpsed an unimaginable web of connections emerging. “You said your grandmother raised you. Do you mind my asking what happened to your parents?”
   The young man looked surprised. “They died when I was young.” He paused. “The same day as my grandfather.”
   Langdon’s heart pounded. “In a car accident?”
   The docent recoiled, a look of bewilderment in his olivegreen eyes. “Yes. In a car accident. My entire family died that day. I lost my grandfather, my parents, and…” He hesitated, glancing down at the floor. “And your sister,” Langdon said.
 
   Out on the bluff, the fieldstone house was exactly as Sophie remembered it. Night was falling now, and the house exuded a warm and inviting aura. The smell of bread wafted through the opened screened door, and a golden light shone in the windows. As Sophie approached, she could hear the quiet sounds of sobbing from within.
   Through the screened door, Sophie saw an elderly woman in the hallway. Her back was to the door, but Sophie could see she was crying. The woman had long, luxuriant, silver hair that conjured an unexpected wisp of memory. Feeling herself drawn closer, Sophie stepped onto the porch stairs. The woman was clutching a framed photograph of a man and touching her fingertips to his face with loving sadness.
   It was a face Sophie knew well.
   Grand-père.
   The woman had obviously heard the sad news of his death last night.
   A board squeaked beneath Sophie’s feet, and the woman turned slowly, her sad eyes finding Sophie’s. Sophie wanted to run, but she stood transfixed. The woman’s fervent gaze never wavered as she set down the photo and approached the screened door. An eternity seemed to pass as the two women stared at one another through the thin mesh. Then, like the slowly gathering swell of an ocean wave, the woman’s visage transformed from one of uncertainty… to disbelief… to hope… and finally, to cresting joy.
   Throwing open the door, she came out, reaching with soft hands, cradling Sophie’s thunderstruck face. “Oh, dear child… look at you!”
   Although Sophie did not recognize her, she knew who this woman was. She tried to speak but found she could not even breathe.
   “Sophie,” the woman sobbed, kissing her forehead.
   Sophie’s words were a choked whisper. “But… Grand-père said you were…”
   “I know.” The woman placed her tender hands on Sophie’s shoulders and gazed at her with familiar eyes. “Your grandfather and I were forced to say so many things. We did what we thought was right. I’m so sorry. It was for your own safety, princess.”
   Sophie heard her final word, and immediately thought of her grandfather, who had called her princess for so many years. The sound of his voice seemed to echo now in the ancient stones of Rosslyn, settling through the earth and reverberating in the unknown hollows below.
   The woman threw her arms around Sophie, the tears flowing faster. “Your grandfather wanted so badly to tell you everything. But things were difficult between you two. He tried so hard. There’s so much to explain. So very much to explain.” She kissed Sophie’s forehead once again, then whispered in her ear. “No more secrets, princess. It’s time you learn the truth about our family.”
 
   Sophie and her grandmother were seated on the porch stairs in a tearful hug when the young docent dashed across the lawn, his eyes shining with hope and disbelief.
   “Sophie?”
   Through her tears, Sophie nodded, standing. She did not know the young man’s face, but as they embraced, she could feel the power of the blood coursing through his veins… the blood she now understood they shared.
 
   When Langdon walked across the lawn to join them, Sophie could not imagine that only yesterday she had felt so alone in the world. And now, somehow, in this foreign place, in the company of three people she barely knew, she felt at last that she was home.

Chapter 105

   Night had fallen over Rosslyn.
   Robert Langdon stood alone on the porch of the fieldstone house enjoying the sounds of laughter and reunion drifting through the screened door behind him. The mug of potent Brazilian coffee in his hand had granted him a hazy reprieve from his mounting exhaustion, and yet he sensed the reprieve would be fleeting. The fatigue in his body went to the core.
   “You slipped out quietly,” a voice behind him said.
   He turned. Sophie’s grandmother emerged, her silver hair shimmering in the night. Her name, for the last twentyeight years at least, was Marie Chauvel.
   Langdon gave a tired smile. “I thought I’d give your family some time together.” Through the window, he could see Sophie talking with her brother.
   Marie came over and stood beside him. “Mr. Langdon, when I first heard of Jacques’s murder, I was terrified for Sophie’s safety. Seeing her standing in my doorway tonight was the greatest relief of my life. I cannot thank you enough.”
   Langdon had no idea how to respond. Although he had offered to give Sophie and her grandmother time to talk in private, Marie had asked him to stay and listen. My husband obviously trusted you, Mr. Langdon, so I do as well.
   And so Langdon had remained, standing beside Sophie and listening in mute astonishment while Marie told the story of Sophie’s late parents. Incredibly, both had been from Merovingian families—direct descendants of Mary Magdalene and Jesus Christ. Sophie’s parents and ancestors, for protection, had changed their family names of Plantard and SaintClair. Their children represented the most direct surviving royal bloodline and therefore were carefully guarded by the Priory. When Sophie’s parents were killed in a car accident whose cause could not be determined, the Priory feared the identity of the royal line had been discovered.
   “Your grandfather and I,” Marie had explained in a voice choked with pain, “had to make a grave decision the instant we received the phone call. Your parents’ car had just been found in the river.” She dabbed at the tears in her eyes. “All six of us—including you two grandchildren—were supposed to be traveling together in that car that very night. Fortunately we changed our plans at the last moment, and your parents were alone. Hearing of the accident, Jacques and I had no way to know what had really happened… or if this was truly an accident.” Marie looked at Sophie. “We knew we had to protect our grandchildren, and we did what we thought was best. Jacques reported to the police that your brother and I had been in the car… our two bodies apparently washed off in the current. Then your brother and I went underground with the Priory. Jacques, being a man of prominence, did not have the luxury of disappearing. It only made sense that Sophie, being the eldest, would stay in Paris to be taught and raised by Jacques, close to the heart and protection of the Priory.” Her voice fell to a whisper. “Separating the family was the hardest thing we ever had to do. Jacques and I saw each other only very infrequently, and always in the most secret of settings… under the protection of the Priory. There are certain ceremonies to which the brotherhood always stays faithful.”
   Langdon had sensed the story went far deeper, but he also sensed it was not for him to hear. So he had stepped outside. Now, gazing up at the spires of Rosslyn, Langdon could not escape the hollow gnaw of Rosslyn’s unsolved mystery. Is the Grail really here at Rosslyn? And if so, where are the blade and chalice that Saunière mentioned in his poem?
   “I’ll take that,” Marie said, motioning to Langdon’s hand.
   “Oh, thank you.” Langdon held out his empty coffee cup.
   She stared at him. “I was referring to your other hand, Mr. Langdon.”
   Langdon looked down and realized he was holding Saunière’s papyrus. He had taken it from the cryptex once again in hopes of seeing something he had missed earlier. “Of course, I’m sorry.”
   Marie looked amused as she took the paper. “I know of a man at a bank in Paris who is probably very eager to see the return of this rosewood box. Andre Vernet was a dear friend of Jacques, and Jacques trusted him explicitly. Andre would have done anything to honor Jacques’s requests for the care of this box.”
   Including shooting me, Langdon recalled, deciding not to mention that he had probably broken the poor man’s nose. Thinking of Paris, Langdon flashed on the three sénéchaux who had been killed the night before. “And the Priory? What happens now?”
   “The wheels are already in motion, Mr. Langdon. The brotherhood has endured for centuries, and it will endure this. There are always those waiting to move up and rebuild.”
   All evening Langdon had suspected that Sophie’s grandmother was closely tied to the operations of the Priory. After all, the Priory had always had women members. Four Grand Masters had been women. The sénéchaux were traditionally men—the guardians—and yet women held far more honored status within the Priory and could ascend to the highest post from virtually any rank.
   Langdon thought of Leigh Teabing and Westminster Abbey. It seemed a lifetime ago. “Was the Church pressuring your husband not to release the Sangreal documents at the End of Days?”
   “Heavens no. The End of Days is a legend of paranoid minds. There is nothing in the Priory doctrine that identifies a date at which the Grail should be unveiled. In fact the Priory has always maintained that the Grail should never be unveiled.”
   “Never?” Langdon was stunned.
   “It is the mystery and wonderment that serve our souls, not the Grail itself. The beauty of the Grail lies in her ethereal nature.” Marie Chauvel gazed up at Rosslyn now. “For some, the Grail is a chalice that will bring them everlasting life. For others, it is the quest for lost documents and secret history. And for most, I suspect the Holy Grail is simply a grand idea… a glorious unattainable treasure that somehow, even in today’s world of chaos, inspires us.”
   “But if the Sangreal documents remain hidden, the story of Mary Magdalene will be lost forever,” Langdon said.
   “Will it? Look around you. Her story is being told in art, music, and books. More so every day. The pendulum is swinging. We are starting to sense the dangers of our history… and of our destructive paths. We are beginning to sense the need to restore the sacred feminine.” She paused. “You mentioned you are writing a manuscript about the symbols of the sacred feminine, are you not?”
   “I am.”
   She smiled. “Finish it, Mr. Langdon. Sing her song. The world needs modern troubadours.”
   Langdon fell silent, feeling the weight of her message upon him. Across the open spaces, a new moon was rising above the tree line.
   Turning his eyes toward Rosslyn, Langdon felt a boyish craving to know her secrets. Don’t ask, he told himself. This is not the moment. He glanced at the papyrus in Marie’s hand, and then back at Rosslyn.
   “Ask the question, Mr. Langdon,” Marie said, looking amused. “You have earned the right.”
   Langdon felt himself flush.
   “You want to know if the Grail is here at Rosslyn.”
   “Can you tell me?”
   She sighed in mock exasperation. “Why is it that men simply cannot let the Grail rest?” She laughed, obviously enjoying herself. “Why do you think it’s here?”
   Langdon motioned to the papyrus in her hand. “Your husband’s poem speaks specifically of Rosslyn, except it also mentions a blade and chalice watching over the Grail. I didn’t see any symbols of the blade and chalice up there.”
   “The blade and chalice?” Marie asked. “What exactly do they look like?”
   Langdon sensed she was toying with him, but he played along, quickly describing the symbols.
   A look of vague recollection crossed her face. “Ah, yes, of course. The blade represents all that is masculine. I believe it is drawn like this, no?” Using her index finger, she traced a shape on her palm.
 


 
   “Yes,” Langdon said. Marie had drawn the less common “closed” form of the blade, although Langdon had seen the symbol portrayed both ways.
   “And the inverse,” she said, drawing again on her palm, “is the chalice, which represents the feminine.”
 


 
   “Correct,” Langdon said.
   “And you are saying that in all the hundreds of symbols we have here in Rosslyn Chapel, these two shapes appear nowhere?”
   “I didn’t see them.”
   “And if I show them to you, will you get some sleep?”
   Before Langdon could answer, Marie Chauvel had stepped off the porch and was heading toward the chapel. Langdon hurried after her. Entering the ancient building, Marie turned on the lights and pointed to the center of the sanctuary floor. “There you are, Mr. Langdon. The blade and chalice.”
   Langdon stared at the scuffed stone floor. It was blank. “There’s nothing here….”
   Marie sighed and began to walk along the famous path worn into the chapel floor, the same path Langdon had seen the visitors walking earlier this evening. As his eyes adjusted to see the giant symbol, he still felt lost. “But that’s the Star of Dav—“
   Langdon stopped short, mute with amazement as it dawned on him.
 
   The blade and chalice.
   Fused as one.
   The Star of David… the perfect union of male and female… Solomon’s Seal… marking the Holy of Holies, where the male and female deities —Yahweh and Shekinah —were thought to dwell.
 
   Langdon needed a minute to find his words. “The verse does point here to Rosslyn. Completely. Perfectly.”
   Marie smiled. “Apparently.”
   The implications chilled him. “So the Holy Grail is in the vault beneath us?”
   She laughed. “Only in spirit. One of the Priory’s most ancient charges was one day to return the Grail to her homeland of France where she could rest for eternity. For centuries, she was dragged across the countryside to keep her safe. Most undignified. Jacques’s charge when he became Grand Master was to restore her honor by returning her to France and building her a resting place fit for a queen.”
   “And he succeeded?”
   Now her face grew serious. “Mr. Langdon, considering what you’ve done for me tonight, and as curator of the Rosslyn Trust, I can tell you for certain that the Grail is no longer here.”
   Langdon decided to press. “But the keystone is supposed to point to the place where the Holy Grail is hidden now. Why does it point to Rosslyn?”
   “Maybe you’re misreading its meaning. Remember, the Grail can be deceptive. As could my late husband.”
   “But how much clearer could he be?” he asked. “We are standing over an underground vault marked by the blade and chalice, underneath a ceiling of stars, surrounded by the art of Master Masons. Everything speaks of Rosslyn.”
   “Very well, let me see this mysterious verse.” She unrolled the papyrus and read the poem aloud in a deliberate tone.

 
The Holy Grail ‘neath ancient Roslin waits.
The blade and chalice guarding o’er Her gates.
Adorned in masters’ loving art, She lies.
She rests at last beneath the starry skies.
 

   When she finished, she was still for several seconds, until a knowing smile crossed her lips. “Aah, Jacques.”
   Langdon watched her expectantly. “You understand this?”
   “As you have witnessed on the chapel floor, Mr. Langdon, there are many ways to see simple things.”
   Langdon strained to understand. Everything about Jacques Saunière seemed to have double meanings, and yet Langdon could see no further.
   Marie gave a tired yawn. “Mr. Langdon, I will make a confession to you. I have never officially been privy to the present location of the Grail. But, of course, I was married to a person of enormous influence… and my women’s intuition is strong.” Langdon started to speak but Marie continued. “I am sorry that after all your hard work, you will be leaving Rosslyn without any real answers. And yet, something tells me you will eventually find what you seek. One day it will dawn on you.” She smiled. “And when it does, I trust that you, of all people, can keep a secret.”
   There was a sound of someone arriving in the doorway. “Both of you disappeared,” Sophie said, entering.
   “I was just leaving,” her grandmother replied, walking over to Sophie at the door. “Good night, princess.” She kissed Sophie’s forehead. “Don’t keep Mr. Langdon out too late.”
   Langdon and Sophie watched her grandmother walk back toward the fieldstone house. When Sophie turned to him, her eyes were awash in deep emotion. “Not exactly the ending I expected.”
   That makes two of us, he thought. Langdon could see she was overwhelmed. The news she had received tonight had changed everything in her life. “Are you okay? It’s a lot to take in.”
   She smiled quietly. “I have a family. That’s where I’m going to start. Who we are and where we came from will take some time.”
   Langdon remained silent.
   “Beyond tonight, will you stay with us?” Sophie asked. “At least for a few days?”
   Langdon sighed, wanting nothing more. “You need some time here with your family, Sophie. I’m going back to Paris in the morning.”
   She looked disappointed but seemed to know it was the right thing to do. Neither of them spoke for a long time. Finally Sophie reached over and, taking his hand, led him out of the chapel. They walked to a small rise on the bluff. From here, the Scottish countryside spread out before them, suffused in a pale moonlight that sifted through the departing clouds. They stood in silence, holding hands, both of them fighting the descending shroud of exhaustion.
   The stars were just now appearing, but to the east, a single point of light glowed brighter than any other. Langdon smiled when he saw it. It was Venus. The ancient Goddess shining down with her steady and patient light.
   The night was growing cooler, a crisp breeze rolling up from the lowlands. After a while, Langdon looked over at Sophie. Her eyes were closed, her lips relaxed in a contented smile. Langdon could feel his own eyes growing heavy. Reluctantly, he squeezed her hand. “Sophie?”
   Slowly, she opened her eyes and turned to him. Her face was beautiful in the moonlight. She gave him a sleepy smile. “Hi.”
   Langdon felt an unexpected sadness to realize he would be returning to Paris without her. “I may be gone before you wake up.” He paused, a knot growing in his throat. “I’m sorry, I’m not very good at—“
   Sophie reached out and placed her soft hand on the side of his face. Then, leaning forward, she kissed him tenderly on the cheek. “When can I see you again?”
   Langdon reeled momentarily, lost in her eyes. “When?” He paused, curious if she had any idea how much he had been wondering the same thing. “Well, actually, next month I’m lecturing at a conference in Florence. I’ll be there a week without much to do.”
   “Is that an invitation?”
   “We’d be living in luxury. They’re giving me a room at the Brunelleschi.”
   Sophie smiled playfully. “You presume a lot, Mr. Langdon.”
   He cringed at how it had sounded. “What I meant—“
   “I would love nothing more than to meet you in Florence, Robert. But on one condition.” Her tone turned serious. “No museums, no churches, no tombs, no art, no relics.”
   “In Florence? For a week? There’s nothing else to do.”
   Sophie leaned forward and kissed him again, now on the lips. Their bodies came together, softly at first, and then completely. When she pulled away, her eyes were full of promise.
   “Right,” Langdon managed. “It’s a date.”
   Epilogue
   Robert Langdon awoke with a start. He had been dreaming. The bathrobe beside his bed bore the monogram HOTEL RITZ PARIS. He saw a dim light filtering through the blinds. Is it dusk or dawn? he wondered.
   Langdon’s body felt warm and deeply contented. He had slept the better part of the last two days. Sitting up slowly in bed, he now realized what had awoken him… the strangest thought. For days he had been trying to sort through a barrage of information, but now Langdon found himself fixed on something he’d not considered before.
   Could it be?
   He remained motionless a long moment.
   Getting out of bed, he walked to the marble shower. Stepping inside, he let the powerful jets message his shoulders. Still, the thought enthralled him.
   Impossible.
   Twenty minutes later, Langdon stepped out of the Hotel Ritz into Place Vendome. Night was falling. The days of sleep had left him disoriented… and yet his mind felt oddly lucid. He had promised himself he would stop in the hotel lobby for a café au lait to clear his thoughts, but instead his legs carried him directly out the front door into the gathering Paris night.
   Walking east on Rue des Petits Champs, Langdon felt a growing excitement. He turned south onto Rue Richelieu, where the air grew sweet with the scent of blossoming jasmine from the stately gardens of the Palais Royal.
   He continued south until he saw what he was looking for—the famous royal arcade—a glistening expanse of polished black marble. Moving onto it, Langdon scanned the surface beneath his feet. Within seconds, he found what he knew was there—several bronze medallions embedded in the ground in a perfectly straight line. Each disk was five inches in diameter and embossed with the letters N and S.
   Nord. Sud.
   He turned due south, letting his eye trace the extended line formed by the medallions. He began moving again, following the trail, watching the pavement as he walked. As he cut across the corner of the ComédieFrançaise, another bronze medallion passed beneath his feet. Yes!
   The streets of Paris, Langdon had learned years ago, were adorned with 135 of these bronze markers, embedded in sidewalks, courtyards, and streets, on a northsouth axis across the city. He had once followed the line from SacréCoeur, north across the Seine, and finally to the ancient Paris Observatory. There he discovered the significance of the sacred path it traced.
   The earth’s original prime meridian.
   The first zero longitude of the world.
   Paris’s ancient Rose Line.
   Now, as Langdon hurried across Rue de Rivoli, he could feel his destination within reach. Less than a block away.
   The Holy Grail ‘neath ancient Roslin waits.
 
   The revelations were coming now in waves. Saunière’s ancient spelling of Roslin… the blade and chalice… the tomb adorned with masters’ art.
   Is that why Saunière needed to talk with me? Had I unknowingly guessed the truth?
   He broke into a jog, feeling the Rose Line beneath his feet, guiding him, pulling him toward his destination. As he entered the long tunnel of Passage Richelieu, the hairs on his neck began to bristle with anticipation. He knew that at the end of this tunnel stood the most mysterious of Parisian monuments—conceived and commissioned in the 1980s by the Sphinx himself, François Mitterrand, a man rumored to move in secret circles, a man whose final legacy to Paris was a place Langdon had visited only days before.
   Another lifetime.
   With a final surge of energy, Langdon burst from the passageway into the familiar courtyard and came to a stop. Breathless, he raised his eyes, slowly, disbelieving, to the glistening structure in front of him.
   The Louvre Pyramid.
   Gleaming in the darkness.
   He admired it only a moment. He was more interested in what lay to his right. Turning, he felt his feet again tracing the invisible path of the ancient Rose Line, carrying him across the courtyard to the Carrousel du Louvre—the enormous circle of grass surrounded by a perimeter of neatly trimmed hedges—once the site of Paris’s primeval natureworshipping festivals… joyous rites to celebrate fertility and the Goddess.
   Langdon felt as if he were crossing into another world as he stepped over the bushes to the grassy area within. This hallowed ground was now marked by one of the city’s most unusual monuments. There in the center, plunging into the earth like a crystal chasm, gaped the giant inverted pyramid of glass that he had seen a few nights ago when he entered the Louvre’s subterranean entresol.
   La Pyramide Inversée.
   Tremulous, Langdon walked to the edge and peered down into the Louvre’s sprawling underground complex, aglow with amber light. His eye was trained not just on the massive inverted pyramid, but on what lay directly beneath it. There, on the floor of the chamber below, stood the tiniest of structures… a structure Langdon had mentioned in his manuscript.
   Langdon felt himself awaken fully now to the thrill of unthinkable possibility. Raising his eyes again to the Louvre, he sensed the huge wings of the museum enveloping him… hallways that burgeoned with the world’s finest art.
   Da Vinci… Botticelli…
   Adorned in masters’ loving art, She lies.
 
   Alive with wonder, he stared once again downward through the glass at the tiny structure below.
   I must go down there!
   Stepping out of the circle, he hurried across the courtyard back toward the towering pyramid entrance of the Louvre. The day’s last visitors were trickling out of the museum.
   Pushing through the revolving door, Langdon descended the curved staircase into the pyramid. He could feel the air grow cooler. When he reached the bottom, he entered the long tunnel that stretched beneath the Louvre’s courtyard, back toward La Pyramide Inversée.
   At the end of the tunnel, he emerged into a large chamber. Directly before him, hanging down from above, gleamed the inverted pyramid—a breathtaking Vshaped contour of glass.
   The Chalice.
   Langdon’s eyes traced its narrowing form downward to its tip, suspended only six feet above the floor. There, directly beneath it, stood the tiny structure.
   A miniature pyramid. Only three feet tall. The only structure in this colossal complex that had been built on a small scale.
   Langdon’s manuscript, while discussing the Louvre’s elaborate collection of goddess art, had made passing note of this modest pyramid. “The miniature structure itself protrudes up through the floor as though it were the tip of an iceberg —the apex, of an enormous, pyramidical vault, submerged below like a hidden chamber.”
   Illuminated in the soft lights of the deserted entresol, the two pyramids pointed at one another, their bodies perfectly aligned, their tips almost touching.
 
   The Chalice above. The Blade below.
   The blade and chalice guarding o’er Her gates.
 
   Langdon heard Marie Chauvel’s words. One day it will dawn on you.
   He was standing beneath the ancient Rose Line, surrounded by the work of masters. What better place for Saunière to keep watch? Now at last, he sensed he understood the true meaning of the Grand Master’s verse. Raising his eyes to heaven, he gazed upward through the glass to a glorious, starfilled night.
   She rests at last beneath the starry skies.
 
   Like the murmurs of spirits in the darkness, forgotten words echoed. The quest for the Holy Grail is the quest to kneel before the bones of Mary Magdalene. A journey to pray at the feet of the outcast one.
   With a sudden upwelling of reverence, Robert Langdon fell to his knees.
   For a moment, he thought he heard a woman’s voice… the wisdom of the ages… whispering up from the chasms of the earth.
   Copyright © 2003 by Dan Brown

Digital Fortress


Prologue
   
Plaza De Espana, Seville, Spain, 11:00 A.M.
   It is said that in death, all things become clear; Ensei Tankado now knew it was true. As he clutched his chest and fell to the ground in pain, he realized the horror of his mistake.
   People appeared, hovering over him, trying to help. But Tankado did not want help-it was too late for that.
   Trembling, he raised his left hand and held his fingers outward. Look at my hand! The faces around him stared, but he could tell they did not understand.
   On his finger was an engraved golden ring. For an instant, the markings glimmered in the Andalusian sun. Ensei Tankado knew it was the last light he would ever see.

Chapter 1
   
They were in the smoky mountains at their favorite bed-and-breakfast. David was smiling down at her. "What do you say, gorgeous? Marry me?"
   Looking up from their canopy bed, she knew he was the one. Forever. As she stared into his deep-green eyes, somewhere in the distance a deafening bell began to ring. It was pulling him away. She reached for him, but her arms clutched empty air.
   It was the sound of the phone that fully awoke Susan Fletcher from her dream. She gasped, sat up in bed, and fumbled for the receiver. "Hello?"
   "Susan, it's David. Did I wake you?"
   She smiled, rolling over in bed. "I was just dreaming of you. Come over and play."
   He laughed. "It's still dark out."
   "Mmm." She moaned sensuously. "Then definitely come over and play. We can sleep in before we head north."
   David let out a frustrated sigh. "That's why I'm calling. It's about our trip. I've got to postpone."
   Susan was suddenly wide awake. "What!"
   "I'm sorry. I've got to leave town. I'll be back by tomorrow. We can head up first thing in the morning. We'll still have two days."
   "But I made reservations," Susan said, hurt. "I got our old room at Stone Manor."
   "I know, but-"
   "Tonight was supposed to be special-to celebrate six months. You do remember we're engaged, don't you?"
   "Susan." He sighed. "I really can't go into it now, they've got a car waiting. I'll call you from the plane and explain everything."
   "Plane?" she repeated. "What's going on? Why would the university…?"
   "It's not the university. I'll phone and explain later. I've really got to go; they're calling for me. I'll be in touch. I promise."
   "David!" she cried. "What's-"
   But it was too late. David had hung up.
   Susan Fletcher lay awake for hours waiting for him to call back. The phone never rang.
 
***
 
   Later that afternoon Susan sat dejected in the tub. She submerged herself in the soapy water and tried to forget Stone Manor and the Smoky Mountains. Where could he be? she wondered. Why hasn't he called?
   Gradually the water around her went from hot to lukewarm and finally to cold. She was about to get out when her cordless phone buzzed to life. Susan bolted upright, sloshing water on the floor as she grappled for the receiver she'd left on the sink.
   "David?"
   "It's Strathmore," the voice replied.
   Susan slumped. "Oh." She was unable to hide her disappointment. "Good afternoon, Commander."
   "Hoping for a younger man?" The voice chuckled.
   "No, sir," Susan said, embarrassed. "It's not how it-"
   "Sure it is." He laughed. "David Becker's a good man. Don't ever lose him."
   "Thank you, sir."
   The commander's voice turned suddenly stern. "Susan, I'm calling because I need you in here. Pronto."
   She tried to focus. "It's Saturday, sir. We don't usually-"
   "I know," he said calmly. "It's an emergency."
   Susan sat up. Emergency? She had never heard the word cross Commander Strathmore's lips. An emergency? In Crypto? She couldn't imagine. "Y-yes, sir." She paused. "I'll be there as soon as I can."
   "Make it sooner." Strathmore hung up.
 
***
 
   Susan Fletcher stood wrapped in a towel and dripped on the neatly folded clothes she'd set out the night before-hiking shorts, a sweater for the cool mountain evenings, and the new lingerie she'd bought for the nights. Depressed, she went to her closet for a clean blouse and skirt. An emergency? In Crypto?
   As she went downstairs, Susan wondered how the day could get much worse.
   She was about to find out.