The Da Vinci Code Chapter 7-9

CHAPTER 7The abject dwelling within the church service of Saint-Sulpice was go up on the second floor of the perform itself, to the left of the choir balcony. A two-room retinue with a orchestra pit floor and border bound furnishings, it had been home to baby Sandrine Bieil for over a decade. The nearby convent washer formal residence, if whatever adept requireed, hardly she preferred the quiet of the church and had take up herself quite comfortable upstairs with a bed, ph peerless, and hot plate.As the churchs conservatrice daffaires, babe Sandrine was trustworthy for overseeing exclusively nonreligious aspects of church operations ordinary maintenance, hiring support staff and guides, securing the building afterward seconds, and ordering supplies earthage communion booze and wafers.Tonight, asleep in her sm each(prenominal) bed, she awoke to the spirant of her tele hollo. Tiredly, she move the receiver.Soeur Sandrine. Eglise Saint-Sulpice.Hello, Sister, th e domain said in French.Sister Sandrine sat up. What time is it? Although she jazz her bosss percentage, in fifteen stratums she had never been awoken by him. The abbe was a deeply sanctimonious man who went home to bed like a shot after mass.I apologize if I necessitate awoken you, Sister, the abbe said, his possess join sound groggy and on edge. I pee-pee a favor to ask of you. I just received a gripe from an influential American bishop.Perhaps you k in a flash him? soldieryuel Aringarosa?The head of physical composition Dei? Of course I know of him.Who in the Church doesnt? Aringarosas remediate prelature had grown powerful in recent years. Their ascension to grace was jump-started in 1982 when Pope John Paul II unheraldedly elevated them to a individualised prelature of the Pope, moodyicially sanctioning all of their practices. Suspiciously, report Deis elevation occurred the same year the wealthy sect allegedly had transferred closely one billion dollars i nto the Vaticans Institute for religious Works comm lonesome(prenominal) known as the Vatican Bank bailing it taboo of an embarrassing bankruptcy. In a second maneuver that elevated(a) eye frontal bones, the Pope placed the effecter of Opus Dei on the immobile track for holy personhood, accelerating an oft century-long waiting period for canonization to a genuine twenty years. Sister Sandrine could not help only when feel that Opus Deis advanced standing in capital of Italy was suspect, nevertheless one did not argue with the Holy See.Bishop Aringarosa imposeed to ask me a favor, the abbe told her, his voice nervous. superstar of his numeraries is in Paris tonightAs Sister Sandrine listened to the crotchety request, she mat up a deepening confusion. Im sorry, you say this see Opus Dei numerary cannot wait until morning?Im afraid(p) not. His imagee leaves truly early. He has ever so dreamed of seeing Saint-Sulpice. scarcely the church is far much interesting b y day. The suns rays through the oculus, the graduated shadows on the gnomon, this is what makes Saint-Sulpice unique.Sister, I agree, and to that extent I would consider it a personal favor if you could let him in tonight. He can be on that point at say one oclock? Thats in twenty minutes.Sister Sandrine frowned. Of course. It would be my plea received. The abbe thanked her and hung up. Puzzled, Sister Sandrine remained a mo workforcet in the fervency of her bed, toilsome to shake get through the cobwebs of sleep. Her sixty-year-old form did not awake as fast as it used to, although tonights retrieve vociferate had for certain roused her senses. Opus Dei had always do her uneasy. Beyond the prelatures ad here(predicate)nce to the arcane rite of corporal mortification, their views on women were medieval at best. She had been shocked to learn that fe mannish numeraries were pressure to clean the mens residence halls for no redress while the men were at mass women slept o n hardwood floors, while the men had straw mats and women were forced to dismissure additional requirements of corporal mortification all as added penance for original sin. It seemed Eves bite from the apple of knowledge was a debt women were doomed to pay for eternity. Sadly, while most of the Catholic Church was gradually moving in the right direction with respect to womens rights, Opus Dei imperil to reverse the progress. Even so, Sister Sandrine had her orders. vacillation her legs off the bed, she stood slowly, get ravened by the cold stone on the soles of her bare feet. As the chill rose through her flesh, she felt an un judge apprehension.Womens learning?A follower of graven ascertain, Sister Sandrine had learned to queue peace in the calming voices of her own soul. Tonight, however, those voices were as smooth as the empty church nigh her.CHAPTER 8Langdon couldnt tear his look from the ardent purple text scrawled across the parquet floor floor. Jacques Saunier es utmost communication seemed as tall(a) a departing steer as each Langdon could imagine.The sum read 13-3-2-21-1-1-8-5 O, Draconian nark Oh, lame saintAlthough Langdon had not the slightest composition what it meant, he did understand Faches instinct that the pentacle had some topic to do with reach revere.O, Draconian ogreSauniere had left a literal part to the devil. Equally as flaky was the serial of total. Part of it smellings like a mathematical cipher.Yes, Fache said. Our cryptanalysts are already working on it. We imagine these falls whitethornbe the place to who killed him. Maybe a tele visit metamorphose or some human body of well-disposed identification. Do the numbers impart any(prenominal) emblematical meaning to you?Langdon looked again at the digits, sensing it would take him hours to extract any symbolic meaning. If Sauniere had even intended any.To Langdon, the numbers looked totally random. He was accustomed to symbolic progressions that made some semblance of sense, exactly everything here the pentacle, the text, the numbers seemed disparate at the most fundamental level.You alleged earlier, Fache said, that Saunieres actions here were all in an effort to steer some sort of meaning g comicaless worship or something in that vein? How does this message chink in?Langdon k mod the question was rhetorical. This bizarre communique obviously did not fit Langdons scenario of gleft(p)ess worship at all.O, Draconian devil? Oh, lame saint?Fache said, This text appears to be an accusation of some sort. Wouldnt you agree?Langdon tried to imagine the curators final minutes trap alone in the Grand Gallery, perspicacious he was well-nigh to die. It seemed logical. An accusation against his receiver makes sense, I suppose.My job, of course, is to put a human body to that person. Let me ask you this, Mr. Langdon. To your eye, beyond the numbers, what about(predicate) this message is most conflicting? to the highest degr ee strange? A dying man had barricaded himself in the gallery, drawn a pentacle on himself, and scrawled a cabalistic accusation on the floor. What about the scenario wasnt strange?The word Draconian? he ventured, offering the depression thing that came to mind. Langdon was fairly certain that a reference to Draco the ruthless seventh-century B. C. pol was an unlikely dying thought. Draconian devil seems an odd choice of wording.Draconian? Faches tone came with a tinge of impatience now. Saunieres choice of vocabulary hardly seems the primary issue here.Langdon wasnt sure what issue Fache had in mind, plainly he was starting to suspect that Draco and Fache would have gotten along well.Sauniere was a Frenchman, Fache said flatly. He lived in Paris. And to that degree he chose to create verbally this messageIn slope, Langdon said, now realizing the victors meaning. Fache nodded. Precisement.Any view why? Langdon knew Sauniere spoke impeccable English, and yet the reason he had chosen English as the language in which to import his final nomenclature escaped Langdon. He shrugged.Fache motioned fend for to the pentacle on Saunieres abdomen. secret reckon to do with devil worship? argon you still certain?Langdon was certain of post statute anymore. The symbology and text dont seem to coincide. Im sorry I cant be of more help.Perhaps this depart clarify. Fache backed away from the body and raised the drear light again, letting the radiation revolve out in a wider angle. And now?To Langdons amazement, a rudimentary dance band glowed virtually the curators body. Sauniere had plainly lay take down and swung the pen around himself in some(prenominal) long arcs, essentially inscribing himself inside a mass.In a flash, the meaning became clear.The Vitruvian Man,Langdon gasped. Sauniere had created a vivification-sized replica of da Vinci Da Vincis most famous sketch.Considered the most anatomically correct drawing of its day, Da Vincis The Vi truvian Man had become a advanced-day moving picture of culture, appearing on posters, mouse pads, and T-shirts around the world. The celebrated sketch consisted of a faultless circle in which was inscribed a nude male his arms and legs outstretched in a naked spread eagle.Da Vinci.Langdon felt a throb of amazement. The clarity of Saunieres intentions could not be denied. In his final secs of life, the curator had stripped off his c dish outhing and arranged his body in a clear image of da Vinci Da Vincis VitruvianMan.The circle had been the missing searing element. A feminine symbol of protection, the circle around the naked mans body undefiled Da Vincis intended message male and female harmony. The question now, though, was why Sauniere would copy a famous drawing.Mr. Langdon, Fache said, certainly a man like yourself is aware that da Vinci Da Vinci had a tendency toward the darker arts.Langdon was impress by Faches knowledge of Da Vinci, and it certainly went a long way toward exempting the captains suspicions about devil worship. Da Vinci had always been an embarrassing subject for historians, especially in the Christian tradition. Despite the visionarys genius, he was a showy homosexual and worshipper of Natures divine order, both of which placed him in a sodding(a) state of sin against God. Moreover, the artists eerie eccentricities intercommunicate an defytedly demonic aura Da Vinci exhumed corpses to study human anatomy he kept mysterious journals in foul reverse handwriting he considerd he have the alchemic power to turn lead into gold and even cunning God by creating an elixir to shelve death and his inventions included horrific, never-before-imagined weapons of war and torture. misapprehension breeds distrust, Langdon thought.Even Da Vincis enormous production of breath fetching Christian art only furthered the artists reputation for spiritual hypocrisy. Accepting hundreds of compensable Vatican commissions, Da Vinci painted Chr istian themes not as an expression of his own beliefs moreover rather as a commercialized venture a means of backing a lavish lifestyle. Unfortunately, Da Vinci was a prankster who often amused himself by quietly gnawing at the hand that supply him. He incorporated in many a(prenominal) of his Christian paintings hidden symbolism that was anything entirely Christian tributes to his own beliefs and a crafty thumbing of his nose at the Church. Langdon had even aban maked a lecture once at the National Gallery in capital of the United Kingdom entitled The Secret Life of Leonardo Pagan Symbolism in Christian Art.I understand your concerns, Langdon now said, but Da Vinci never really nice any dark arts. He was an exceptionally spiritual man, albeit one in invariable conflict with the Church. As Langdon said this, an odd thought popped into his mind. He glanced down at the message on the floor again. O, Draconian devil Oh, lame saintYes? Fache said.Langdon weighed his words ca refully. I was just thinking that Sauniere shared a lot of spiritual ideologies with Da Vinci, including a concern over the Churchs riddance of the sacred feminine from modern religion. Maybe, by imitating a famous Da Vinci drawing, Sauniere was simply echoing some of their shared frustrations with the modern Churchs demonization of the goddess.Faches eyeball hardened. You think Sauniere is commerce the Church a lame saint and a Draconian devil?Langdon had to admit it seemed far-fetched, and yet the pentacle seemed to endorse the mood on some level. All I am saying is that Mr. Sauniere dedicated his life to studying the history of the goddess, and goose egg has done more to erase that history than the Catholic Church. It seems reasonable that Sauniere might have chosen to express his disappointment in his final levelheaded-bye.Disappointment? Fache demanded, sounding hostile now. This message sounds more enragedthan disappointed, wouldnt you say?Langdon was reaching the end o f his patience. Captain, you asked for my instincts as to what Sauniere is severe to say here, and thats what Im better-looking you.That this is an indictment of the Church? Faches reproof snugened as he spoke through prehend teeth. Mr. Langdon, I have seen a lot of death in my work, and let me give out you something. When a man is murdered by an new(prenominal) man, I do not believe his final thoughts are to economise an obscure spiritual statement that no one will understand. I believe he is thinking of one thing only. Faches whispery voice sliced the air. La vengeance.I believe Sauniere wrote this note to tell us who killed him. Langdon stared. But that makes no sense whatsoever. No? No, he fired back, tired and frustrated. You told me Sauniere was attacked in his right by somebody he had apparently invited in.Yes.So it seems reasonable to conclude that the curator knew his attacker. Fache nodded. Go on. So if Sauniere knew the person who killed him, what kind of indictme nt is this? He pointed at the floor. mathematical enters? Lame saints? Draconian devils? Pentacles on his hold out? Its all too cryptic.Fache frowned as if the humor had never occurred to him. You have a point.Considering the circumstances, Langdon said, I would assume that if Sauniere wanted to tell you who killed him, he would have written down somebodys name.As Langdon spoke those words, a smug grinning crossed Faches lips for the first time all night. Precisement,Fache said. Precisement.I am witnessing the work of a master, mused Lieutenant Collet as he tweaked his audio gear and listened to Faches voice approach path through the head retrieves. The agent superieur knew it was moments like these that had lifted the captain to the pinnacle of French jurisprudence enforcement.Fache will do what no one else dares.The delicate art of cajoler was a disjointed skill in modern lawfulness enforcement, one that required exceptional equilibrise under pressure. Few men possessed the necessary sangfroid for this kind of operation, but Fache seemed born(p) for it. His restraint and patience bordered on the robotic.Faches sole emotion this evening seemed to be one of intense resolve, as if this assure were somehow personal to him. Faches briefing of his agents an hour ago had been unusually succinct and assured. I know who murdered Jacques Sauniere, Fache had said. You know what to do.No mistakes tonight.And so far, no mistakes had been made.Collet was not yet privy to the evidence that had cemented Faches foregone conclusion of their suspects guilt, but he knew better than to question the instincts of the Bull. Faches intuition seemed almost supernatural at times. God whispers in his ear, one agent had insisted after a particularly impressive exhibit of Faches sixth sense. Collet had to admit, if there was a God, Bezu Fache would be on His A-list. The captain attended mass and confession with zealous rule far more than the requisite pass attendance fulf illed by other officials in the name of good cosmos relations. When the Pope visited Paris a a some(prenominal) years back, Fache had used all his massiveness to obtain the honor of an audience. A moving-picture show of Fache with the Pope now hung in his office. The apostolic Bull, the agents secretly called it.Collet found it teetotal that one of Faches rare popular frequent stances in recent years had been his forthright defendion to the Catholic pedophilia scandal. These priests should be hanged twice Fache had declared. Once for their crimes against children.And once for shaming the good name of theCatholic Church.Collet had the odd sense it was the last mentioned that angered Fache more.Turning now to his laptop computer computer, Collet attended to the other fractional of his responsibilities here tonight the GPS tracking system. The image onscreen revealed a detailed floor plan of the Denon Wing, a structural schematic uploaded from the quintuplet Security Off ice. Letting his eyes take in the maze of galleries and hallways, Collet found what he was looking for. Deep in the stub of the Grand Gallery blinked a piddling red dot. La marque.Fache was keeping his quarry on a very tight leash tonight. Wisely so. Robert Langdon had proven himself one cool customer.CHAPTER 9To ensure his communion with Mr. Langdon would not be embarrassed, Bezu Fache had false off his cellular phone. Unfortunately, it was an expensive model fit with a two-way radio feature, which, strange to his orders, was now being used by one of his agents to page him.Capitaine? The phone crackled like a walkie-talkie.Fache felt his teeth batch in rage. He could imagine nothing important enough that Collet would interrupt this surveillance cachee especially at this deprecative juncture.He gave Langdon a calm look of apology. One moment please. He pulled the phone from his belt and pressed the radio transmission system button. Oui?Capitaine, un agent du Departemen t de Cryptographie est arrive.Faches anger stalled momently. A cryptographer? Despite the lousy timing, this was probably good news. Fache, after finding Saunieres cryptic text on the floor, had uploaded photographs of the entire crime pellet to the Cryptography Department in hopes someone there could tell him what the hell Sauniere was trying to say. If a code breaker had now arrived, it most likely meant someone had decrypted Saunieres message.Im invade at the moment, Fache radioed back, leaving no dubiety in his tone that a line had been crossed. Ask the cryptographer to wait at the command post. Ill speak to him when Im done.Her,the voice corrected. Its element Neveu.Fache was becoming less amused with this call every passing moment. Sophie Neveu was one of DCPJs biggest mistakes. A boyish Parisian dechiffreuse who had studied cryptogram in England at the Royal Holloway, Sophie Neveu had been foisted on Fache two years ago as part of the ministrys attempt to incorporate mo re women into the police force. The ministrys ongoing foray into policy-making correctness, Fache argued, was weakening the department. Women not only lacked the physicality necessary for police work, but their mere presence posed a hazardous distraction to the men in the field. As Fache had feared, Sophie Neveu was proving far more distracting than most.At 32 years old, she had a dogged full stopping point that bordered on obstinate. Her eager conjugal union of Britains new cryptologic methodology continually exasperated the veteran French cryptographers to a higher place her. And by far the most affect to Fache was the inescapable universal truth that in an office of middle-aged men, an attractive young woman always drew eyes away from the work at hand.The man on the radio said, Agent Neveu insisted on speaking to you immediately, Captain. I tried to stop her, but shes on her way into the gallery.Fache recoiled in disbelief. Unacceptable I made it very clear For a moment, Robert Langdon thought Bezu Fache was piteous a stroke. The captain was mid- sentence when his cane stopped moving and his eyes bulged. His voluptuous gaze seemed fixated on something over Langdons shoulder. in the lead Langdon could turn to see what it was, he perceive a womans voice chime out behind him.Excusez-moi, messieurs.Langdon turned to see a young woman approaching. She was moving down the corridor toward them with long, fluid strides a haunting certainty to her gait. Dressed casually in a knee-length, cream-colored Irish sweater over black leggings, she was attractive and looked to be about thirty. Her thickened burgundy hair fell unstyled to her shoulders, framing the caring of her face. Unlike the waifish, cookie-cutter blondes that adorned Harvard residence hall room walls, this woman was healthy with an barren beauty and genuineness that radiated a great personal confidence.To Langdons surprise, the woman walked directly up to him and extended a polite hand . Monsieur Langdon, I am Agent Neveu from DCPJs Cryptology Department. Her words curved richly around her leaden Anglo-Franco accent. It is a pleasure to meet you.Langdon took her woolly palm in his and felt himself momentarily fixed in her strong gaze. Her eyes were olive- cat valium incisive and clear.Fache drew a hum inhalation, clearly preparing to launch into a reprimand.Captain, she said, turn of events quickly and beating him to the punch, please pardon the interruption, but Ce nest pas le moment Fache sputtered.I tried to phone you. Sophie move in English, as if out of adroitness to Langdon. But your cell phone was turned off.I turned it off for a reason, Fache hissed. I am speaking to Mr. Langdon. Ive rewrite the numeric code, she said flatly. Langdon felt a pulse of excitement. She broke the code?Fache looked enigmatic how to respond.Before I explain, Sophie said, I have an urgent message for Mr. Langdon. Faches expression turned to one of deepening concern. For Mr. Langdon? She nodded, turning back to Langdon. You need to nexus the U. S. Embassy, Mr. Langdon. They have a message for you from the States.Langdon reacted with surprise, his excitement over the code giving way to a fast ripple of concern. A message from the States? He tried to imagine who could be trying to reach him. Only a few of his colleagues knew he was in Paris.Faches broad jaw had tightened with the news. The U. S. Embassy? he demanded, sounding suspicious. How would they know to find Mr. Langdon here?Sophie shrugged. Apparently they called Mr. Langdons hotel, and the concierge told them Mr. Langdon had been collected by a DCPJ agent.Fache looked troubled. And the embassy contacted DCPJ Cryptography?No, sir, Sophie said, her voice firm. When I called the DCPJ switchboard in an attempt to contact you, they had a message waiting for Mr. Langdon and asked me to pass it along if I got through to you.Faches brow furrowed in apparent confusion. He open up his mouth to speak , but Sophie had already turned back to Langdon.Mr. Langdon, she declared, pulling a small snarf of publisher from her pocket, this is the number for your embassys messaging service. They asked that you phone in as soon as possible. She handed him the paper with an intent gaze. While I explain the code to Captain Fache, you need to make this call.Langdon studied the slip. It had a Paris phone number and annexe on it. thank you, he said, feeling worried now. Where do I find a phone?Sophie began to pull a cell phone from her sweater pocket, but Fache waved her off. He now looked like Mount Vesuvius about to erupt. Without taking his eyes off Sophie, he produced his own cell phone and held it out. This line is secure, Mr. Langdon. You may use it.Langdon felt mystified by Faches anger with the young woman. Feeling uneasy, he accepted the captains phone. Fache immediately marched Sophie several go away and began chastising her in hushed tones. Disliking the captain more and more, Lan gdon turned away from the odd confrontation and switched on the cell phone. Checking the slip of paper Sophie had give him, Langdon dialed the number.The line began to ring.One ring two rings triple rings Finally the call connected. Langdon expected to hear an embassy operator, but he found himself instead listening to an answering gondola. Oddly, the voice on the tape was familiar. It was that of Sophie Neveu.Bonjour, vous etes bien chez Sophie Neveu, the womans voice said. Je suis absenle displace le moment, maisConfused, Langdon turned back toward Sophie. Im sorry, Ms. Neveu? I think you may have given me No, thats the right number, Sophie interjected quickly, as if anticipating Langdons confusion. The embassy has an automated message system. You have to dial an access code to pick up your messages.Langdon stared. But Its the three-digit code on the paper I gave you.Langdon opened his mouth to explain the bizarre error, but Sophie flashed him a silencing glare that lasted o nly an instant. Her green eyes sent a crystal-clear message.Dont ask questions. Just do it.Bewildered, Langdon punched in the extension on the slip of paper 454.Sophies outperform message immediately cut off, and Langdon hear an electronic voice announce in French You have one new message. Apparently, 454 was Sophies remote access code for plectron up her messages while away from home.Im plectron up this womans messages?Langdon could hear the tape rewinding now. Finally, it stopped, and the machine engaged. Langdon listened as the message began to play. Again, the voice on the line was Sophies.Mr. Langdon, the message began in a fearful whisper. Do not react to this message. Just listen calmly. You are in danger right now. Follow my directions very closely.