"I've never been here at night," Katherine said, gazing up at the brightly lit towers. "It's spectacular."
Langdon agreed, having forgotten how impressive this place truly was. This neo-Gothic masterpiece stood at the north end of Embassy Row. He hadn't been here for years, not since writing a piece about it for a kids' magazine in hopes of generating some excitement among young Americans to come see this amazing landmark. His article--"Moses, Moon Rocks, and Star Wars"--had been part of the tourist literature for years.
Washington National Cathedral, Langdon thought, feeling an unexpected anticipation at being back after all these years. Where better to ask about One True God?
"This cathedral really has ten stones from Mount Sinai?" Katherine asked, gazing up at the twin bell towers.
Langdon nodded. "Near the main altar. They symbolize the Ten Commandments given to Moses on Mount Sinai."
"And there's a lunar rock?"
A rock from heaven itself. "Yes. One of the stained-glass windows is called the Space Window and has a fragment of moon rock embedded in it."
"Okay, but you can't be serious about the last thing." Katherine glanced over, her pretty eyes flashing skepticism. "A statue of . . . Darth Vader?"
Langdon chuckled. "Luke Skywalker's dark father? Absolutely. Vader is one of the National Cathedral's most popular grotesques." He pointed high into the west towers. "Tough to see him at night, but he's there."
"What in the world is Darth Vader doing on Washington National Cathedral?"
"A contest for kids to carve a gargoyle that depicted the face of evil. Darth won."
They reached the grand staircase to the main entrance, which was set back in an eighty-foot archway beneath a breathtaking rose window. As they began climbing, Langdon's mind shifted to the mysterious stranger who had called him. No names, please . . . Tell me, have you successfully protected the map that was entrusted to you? Langdon's shoulder ached from carrying the heavy stone pyramid, and he was looking forward to setting it down. Sanctuary and answers. As they approached the top of the stairs, they were met with an imposing pair of wooden doors. "Do we just knock?" Katherine asked.
Langdon had been wondering the same thing, except that now one of the doors was creaking open.
"Who's there?" a frail voice said. The face of a withered old man appeared in the doorway. He wore priest's robes and a blank stare. His eyes were opaque and white, clouded with cataracts.
"My name is Robert Langdon," he replied. "Katherine Solomon and I are seeking sanctuary."
The blind man exhaled in relief. "Thank God. I've been expecting you."
CHAPTER 80
Warren Bellamy felt a sudden ray of hope.
Inside the Jungle, Director Sato had just received a phone call from a field agent and had immediately flown into a tirade. "Well, you damn well better find them!" she shouted into her phone. "We're running out of time!" She had hung up and was now stalking back and forth in front of Bellamy as if trying to decide what to do next.
Finally, she stopped directly in front of him and turned. "Mr. Bellamy, I'm going to ask you this once, and only once." She stared deep into his eyes. "Yes or no--do you have any idea where Robert Langdon might have gone?"
Bellamy had more than a good idea, but he shook his head. "No."
Sato's piercing gaze had never left his eyes. "Unfortunately, part of my job is to know when people are lying."
Bellamy averted his eyes. "Sorry, I can't help you."
"Architect Bellamy," Sato said, "tonight just after seven P.M., you were having dinner in a restaurant outside the city when you received a phone call from a man who told you he had kidnapped Peter Solomon."
Bellamy felt an instant chill and returned his eyes to hers. How could you possibly know that?! "The man," Sato continued, "told you that he had sent Robert Langdon to the Capitol Building and given Langdon a task to complete . . . a task that required your help. He warned that if Langdon failed in this task, your friend Peter Solomon would die. Panicked, you called all of Peter's numbers but failed to reach him. Understandably, you then raced to the Capitol."
Bellamy could not imagine how Sato knew about this phone call.
"As you fled the Capitol," Sato said behind the smoldering tip of her cigarette, "you sent a text message to Solomon's kidnapper, assuring him that you and Langdon had been successful in obtaining the Masonic Pyramid."
Where is she getting her information? Bellamy wondered. Not even Langdon knows I sent that text message. Immediately after entering the tunnel to the Library of Congress, Bellamy had stepped into the electrical room to plug in the construction lighting. In the privacy of that moment, he had decided to send a quick text message to Solomon's captor, telling him about Sato's involvement, but reassuring him that he-- Bellamy--and Langdon had obtained the Masonic Pyramid and would indeed cooperate with his demands. It was a lie, of course, but Bellamy hoped the reassurance might buy time, both for Peter Solomon and also to hide the pyramid.
"Who told you I sent a text?" Bellamy demanded.
Sato tossed Bellamy's cell phone on the bench next to him. "Hardly rocket science."
Bellamy now remembered his phone and keys had been taken from him by the agents who captured him.
"As for the rest of my inside information," Sato said, "the Patriot Act gives me the right to place a wiretap on the phone of anyone I consider a viable threat to national security. I consider Peter Solomon to be such a threat, and last night I took action."
Bellamy could barely get his mind around what she was telling him. "You're tapping Peter Solomon's phone?"
"Yes. This is how I knew the kidnapper called you at the restaurant. You called Peter's cell phone and left an anxious message explaining what had just happened."
Bellamy realized she was right.
"We had also intercepted a call from Robert Langdon, who was in the Capitol Building, deeply confused to learn he had been tricked into coming there. I went to the Capitol at once, arriving before you because I was closer. As for how I knew to check the X-ray of Langdon's bag . . . in light of my realization that Langdon was involved in all of this, I had my staff reexamine a seemingly innocuous early-morning call between Langdon and Peter Solomon's cell phone, in which the kidnapper, posing as Solomon's assistant, persuaded Langdon to come for a lecture and also to bring a small package that Peter had entrusted to him. When Langdon was not forthcoming with me about the package he was carrying, I requested the X-ray of his bag."
Bellamy could barely think. Admittedly, everything Sato was saying was feasible, and yet something was not adding up. "But . . . how could you possibly think Peter Solomon is a threat to national security?"
"Believe me, Peter Solomon is a serious national-security threat," she snapped. "And frankly, Mr. Bellamy, so are you."
Bellamy sat bolt upright, the handcuffs chafing against his wrists. "I beg your pardon?!"
She forced a smile. "You Masons play a risky game. You keep a very, very dangerous secret."
Is she talking about the Ancient Mysteries?
"Thankfully, you've always done a good job of keeping your secrets hidden. Unfortunately, recently you've been careless, and tonight, your most dangerous secret is about to be unveiled to the world. And unless we can stop that from happening, I assure you the results will be catastrophic."