Chapter 81 Chapter Eightieth

When Langdon left the Vatican Secret Archives two hours ago, it had never occurred to him that he would appear here again.Accompanied by the Swiss guard, he was trotting all the way, out of breath.He found himself back in the Archives. Guided by the scarred bodyguard, Langdon walked through rows of translucent compartments. The archives were eerily silent.However, the arrival of the guard broke the dead silence, and Langdon was very pleased with this. "Over there, I think." He and Langdon walked to the far end of the archives, where a row of smaller archives lined the wall.The guard looked at the marks on the archives, pointed to one of them, and said, "That's it, this is what the commander said."

Langdon looked at the label.Vatican assets?He hastily scanned the contents above.Real Estate...Cash...Vatican Bank...Antiques...the list goes on. "This is a written record of all the assets of the Vatican," said the guard. Langdon surveyed the compartment.God, even though the lights were dim, he could still vaguely see how crowded the place was with data. "The Commander says that all works by Bernini commissioned by the Holy See are on the property list here." Langdon nodded, realizing that the Commander's hunch was probably right.In Bernini's day, the law stated that any work created by an artist with papal patronage belonged to the Vatican.Langdon felt that this was more feudal exploitation than patronage, but top artists were well off and few complained. "Including works placed in churches outside the closed city of the Vatican?"

The guard gave him a surprised look. "Of course, all Catholic churches in Rome belong to the Vatican." Langdon looked at the list in his hand, which listed more than twenty churches located on the central line of the "West Wind".The third altar of science is in it.Langdon hoped he'd find it in time.In normal times, he would be happy to visit every church in person.But today, he had to find that place in about twenty minutes—the church where Bernini's statue extolling fire was kept. Langdon walked towards the electronic revolving door of the vault, only to find that the guard was not following him.

Sensing his hesitation, Langdon smiled. "The air is good, although a little thin, but still breathable." "It was my mission to bring you here. I must now return to Security Center immediately." "You want to go?" "Yes, the Swiss guards are not allowed in the archives. I have violated the regulations by bringing you here. The commander reminded me of this." "Breaching the rules? Who knows you don't understand what happened tonight? Which side is your damn commander on!" The friendly look on the guard's face was instantly wiped away.The scar under his eyes was twitching.

The guard looked a little like Olivetti himself when he glared. "I apologize," Langdon said quickly, regretting what he had just said. "It's just... I might need your help." The guard replied without blinking: "The training I have received is to obey orders, not to argue with the boss. After you find what you are looking for, please contact the commander immediately." Langdon panicked. "But where is he?" The guard took off the walkie-talkie and put it on the table beside him. "Line 1." After saying that, he disappeared into the darkness.