Chapter 12 Chapter Eleven

Solomon gasped. "…what do you want?" "You have a secret. You have to share it with me tonight." Solomon struggled to lift his chin, and saw Malak's eyes clearly. "I don't...don't understand." Malak took another sip of his tea, setting his cup down on the coaster. "Ten years ago, you said the same thing to me, the night your mother died." Solomon's eyes suddenly widened. "you……?" "She wouldn't have died. If you had given me what I asked for..." Probably because he recognized him, the elder's face was distorted in horror... and he was full of doubts.

"I warned you, if you pull the trigger, I will never let you go." Without further ado, Malak shoved the monogrammed napkin into Solomon's mouth.Then he carried the limp person on his broad shoulders and walked towards the private elevator.On his way out, he picked up Solomon's iPhone and keys from the hallway table. You're going to tell me all your secrets tonight, Myrac thought.Including why you left me there to die all those years ago. SB layer.Senate basement. The further down they went, the more claustrophobic symptoms of Robert Langdon became apparent.Minister Sato was typing on his BlackBerry as he walked.Langdon sensed from her guarded manner that she was doubting himself.

"Professor," Sato said, looking up from his BlackBerry suddenly, "despite your insistence that you don't know why you were called here tonight, you may be able to provide some clues about Peter Solomon's ring. You notice engraved on the band of the ring? It says 'all revealed at level thirty-three'. My staff said that when they double check 'level thirty-three' and 'entry' with masonic When connecting nouns between them, hundreds of entries related to the word 'pyramid' came out, what's going on?" "It should come as no surprise," Langdon said, "that the builders of the Egyptian pyramids were predecessors of modern masons, and that themes of pyramids and Egypt are fairly common in Masonic symbology. Pyramids primarily symbolize enlightenment. It is an ancient Architectural symbolic elements, showing that the ancients had the ability to break through the shackles of the earth, ascend to heaven and the golden sun, and finally ascend to the supreme source of light."

"According to my staff," she went on, "this symbol seems to be more closely related to tonight's events. They tell me that there is a widespread legend that there is another pyramid in Washington-- This pyramid has a deep connection with Freemasonry and ancient mysteries in particular." Langdon realized what she was referring to. "The Masonic pyramid is one of the longest-running myths in Washington, D.C., and probably originated from the pyramid on the Great Seal of the United States." "But this myth is directly related to the ancient mystery, isn't it?"

"Yes, just like many other myths. The ancient mysteries are the basis of countless legends passed down through history - wisdom of great power guarded by members of the Templars, Rosicrucians, Illuminati, Spanish Illuminati - —The examples are endless. The basis of these legends is the ancient mysteries...of which the Masonic pyramid is just one example...until the day when man is ready to face this awesome power and communicate with this wisdom .According to this myth, the Freemasons crowned their great pyramid with a shining pinnacle of pure gold, signifying that it contained a precious possession—that is, ancient wisdom that empowered human beings to realize their full potential. Words: to deify mortals."

"Ma'am," Anderson interrupted, pointing to another security door ten feet away. "We're almost there." They followed the captain of the guard through the security gate, which opened into a narrow passage.It was the longest passage Langdon had ever seen.This aisle runs nearly the entire length of the foundations of the Capitol's East Wing. "Captain," a guard's voice came from afar.He ran down the aisle toward them, a key in his hand. "I'm sorry ma'am, it took a few minutes to find it. We didn't find the SBB master key. It came from the spare key box."

"So that one is missing?" Anderson asked, surprised. "Maybe it's lost," the guard replied breathlessly, "no one has asked to come here for years." Anderson took the key. "SBB13 doesn't have a second key?" The guard's walkie-talkie blared, and a voice replied, "Yes, found it. Very strange. We did a computer search and found nothing, but this hard copy record says that all SBB storage rooms are It was emptied out of use twenty years ago. These rooms are now classified as unused space." He paused. "Except for SBB13."