Chapter 19 Chapter Seventeen

She pressed again: "You and grandfather plan to meet tonight, what are you going to talk about?" Langdon was puzzled. "His secretary arranged the meeting but didn't tell me there was any particular reason and I didn't ask." Sophie did not accept such an explanation.Such a connection is too far-fetched.Grandfather knew pagan icons better than anyone.Besides, he is a person who pays attention to privacy, and he will not just chat with any American professor unless there is some important reason. Sophie took a deep breath and probed further: "Grandfather called me this afternoon and said he and I were in extreme danger. Do you know what that means?"

Langdon's blue eyes were clouded with concern. "I don't know, but from what has happened..." Sophie nodded.Thinking of what happened tonight, of course she would be terrified.She racked her brains and couldn't understand what happened tonight.She walked to the window with the small plate glass at the far end of the toilet and looked out silently through the alarm grid embedded in the glass.They were far off the ground—at least forty feet. Sighing, she lifted her eyes to gaze out the window at the dazzling view of Paris.On the left, on the other side of the Seine, stands the Eiffel Tower shining with lights; directly in front, is the Arc de Triomphe; With white light, the whole building looks like a gorgeous temple.

This is the westernmost end of the Denon Pavilion.The north-south traffic arteries on the Place de la Carsay are parallel to this place, and there is only a sidewalk between them and the outer wall of the Louvre.On the street below the Denon Pavilion, the fleet of nighttime delivery trucks waited idly for the lights to change color.Those flashing headlights seemed to wink at Sophie mockingly. "I don't know what to say," Langdon said, walking behind her. "It's clear your grandfather was trying to tell us something. Unfortunately, I can't help." Sophie sensed the regret in Langdon's deep voice.For all his troubles, it was clear that he wanted to help Sophie.Sophie turned and thought: He certainly has the makings of a teacher.Sophie learned about his basic situation from the police station's suspect investigation records.He is a scholar who respects facts.

We have something in common, Sophie thought. As a cryptographer, it's Sophie's job to extract meaning from seemingly disjointed data.Tonight, the best Sophie could guess was that Langdon had the information she desperately wanted, whether Langdon himself realized it or not.Princess Sophie, go find Robert Langdon.The message of the grandfather was very clear.Sophie needed more time with Langdon, time to think about the problem, time to solve this mystery with him.Unfortunately, there is no time left. Staring at Langdon, Sophie finally came up with an idea. "Bezu Fache could arrest you at any moment. I can help you escape from the museum. But we must act now."

Langdon's eyes widened in surprise, "You want me to escape?" "It's a smart move. If Fache arrests you now, you'll spend weeks in a French prison. Meanwhile, the French police and the American embassy will start arguing over which country should try you. But if Let’s get out now and try to get to the U.S. embassy, ​​so the U.S. government can protect your rights. At the same time, we can find a way to prove that you have nothing to do with this murder.” Langdon was unwavering. "Forget it! Fache has guards at every exit! Even if we escape without being killed, it will only make people feel more guilty. You should tell Fache that the message on the ground is For you, your grandfather didn't write my name to denounce me."

"I'll do that," said Sophie eagerly, "but only after you've safely entered the American embassy. The embassy is only a mile away, and my car is parked outside the museum. There's little chance of winning against Fache here. .Didn't you see? Fache has made it his task tonight to incriminate you. He delayed his arrest to observe your behavior in the hope that some of your words and actions would strengthen his case." "Not bad. Like running away!" The phone in Sophie's sweater pocket suddenly rang.Possibly Fache.She reached into her pocket and turned off her phone.

"Mr. Langdon," she said eagerly, "I ask you one last question. It will determine your entire future. The writing on the floor is clearly not your incrimination, but Fache has declared that you are his man. Can you find out why he convicted you?" Langdon was silent for a moment, then said, "No." Sophie sighed, obviously Fache was lying on purpose.Sophie couldn't imagine why, but it wasn't the issue at hand.The truth was that Bezu Fache had decided to do whatever it took to put Langdon behind bars tonight. But Sophie needs Langdon.This dilemma led Sophie to a conclusion: I had to send Langdon to the American embassy.

Sophie turned to the window and looked down at the road from a dizzying forty feet through the alarm grid embedded in the plate glass.If Langdon had jumped from such a height, he would have broken his leg at least. But anyway, Sophie had made her decision. Langdon must escape the Louvre whether he likes it or not. "What do you mean she didn't answer?" Fache looked incredulous. "You're calling from her cell phone, right? I know she has it." Collet had been on the phone for several minutes, trying to find Sophie. "Maybe the phone died, or she turned off the ringer."

Fache had been worried ever since he received a call from the head of the code-breaking division.After hanging up the phone, he strode up to Collet and asked him to call Officer Neveu.Now, Collet hadn't called, and Fache was pacing up and down the room like a trapped animal. "What did the cryptography department say?" Collet asked boldly. Fache turned around. "Tell us they didn't find a source for 'The Harsh Lord' and 'The Lame Saint.'" "That's all?" "No, and tell us they just confirmed that the string of numbers is the Fibonacci sequence, but they suspect that the string of numbers means nothing."

Collet was confused. "But they sent Officer Neveu to tell us." Fache shook his head. "They didn't send Officer Neveu." "what?" "The chief said that after receiving my order, he called all the people in the team to look at the pictures I telexed. After Officer Neveu arrived, he glanced at the pictures of Saunière and Cipher, and then left without saying a word The chief said he had no doubts about Neveu's actions because her uneasiness was understandable." "Uneasy? Didn't she see the photo of the deceased?" Fache was silent for a moment. "As we all know, Sophie Neveu is the granddaughter of Jacques Saunière. I didn't realize it at first, and the director only remembered it when a colleague reminded me."

Collet was speechless. "The commissioner said Neveu never mentioned Saunière to him, probably because she didn't want to be treated preferentially for having such a famous grandfather." No doubt she was disturbed by that picture.Asking a young woman to decipher a code left by a dead family member - Collet could hardly believe such an unfortunate coincidence.Also, her behavior was unreasonable. "But she obviously recognized the series of numbers as Fibonacci numbers, because she told us so. But I don't understand why she quietly left the office and didn't tell anyone about her discovery." Collet thought that there was only one explanation for this strange event: Sanier wrote a string of digital codes on the floor in the hope that the code breakers would also participate in the investigation of the case, so that his granddaughter would naturally have the opportunity to participate in the investigation.For the rest of the information, will Sanier communicate with his granddaughter in some special way?If so, what would Sanil have to tell her?How did Langdon get involved?Before Collet had time to think deeply, an alarm broke the silence of the museum.Sirens sounded like they were coming from the art gallery. "Alert!" A police officer shouted, looking at the feedback from the Louvre Security Center. "Great Art Gallery! Men's Restroom!" Fache turned quickly to Collet and asked, "Where's Langdon?" "Still in the men's room!" Collet said, pointing to the flashing red dot on the computer screen. "He must have broken the window glass!" Collet knew Langdon wouldn't go far.Although the Paris fire code stipulates that windows of public buildings more than 15 meters above the ground must be equipped with breakable glass for people to escape in case of fire, if you jump out of the window on the second floor of the Louvre without the help of a hook or a ladder It would be tantamount to suicide.Besides, there was neither tree nor grass to act as a buffer beneath the westernmost end of the Denon Pavilion.Below the toilet, a few meters away from the outer wall of the Louvre, is the two-lane Place de Carseille. "My God!" Collet yelled, looking at the screen. "Langdon is moving toward the ledge!" By this time, Fache was already in motion.He drew his Manuhan MR93 revolver from his shoulder holster and rushed out of the office. Collet was still staring at the screen in bewilderment.The little red dot moved to the edge of the window, then unexpectedly moved out of the boundary of the building.what will happenHe was amazed.Did Langdon stand on the ledge or— "My God!" Seeing the little red dot quickly move away from the boundary of the building, Collet jumped up in surprise.The signal faltered for a while, then stopped suddenly about ten yards from the building. Collet frantically operated the computer, pulled up a map of Parisian neighborhoods, and readjusted the "Global Positioning System".That way, just by zooming in on the picture, he could see exactly where the signal was. The little red dot didn't move. It stood motionless in the center of Place de Carsay. Langdon jumped.