The Da Vinci Code

CHAPTER 94
St. James's Park is a sea of green in the middle of London, a public park bordering the palaces of 
Westminster, Buckingham, and St. James's. Once enclosed by King Henry VIII and stocked with 
deer for the hunt, St. James's Park is now open to the public. On sunny afternoons, Londoners 
picnic beneath the willows and feed the pond's resident pelicans, whose ancestors were a gift to 
Charles II from the Russian ambassador.
The Teacher saw no pelicans today. The stormy weather had brought instead seagulls from the 
ocean. The lawns were covered with them—hundreds of white bodies all facing the same direction, 
patiently riding out the damp wind. Despite the morning fog, the park afforded splendid views of 
the Houses of Parliament and Big Ben. Gazing across the sloping lawns, past the duck pond and 
the delicate silhouettes of the weeping willows, the Teacher could see the spires of the building that 
housed the knight's tomb—the real reason he had told Rémy to come to this spot.
As the Teacher approached the front passenger door of the parked limousine, Rémy leaned across 
and opened the door. The Teacher paused outside, taking a pull from the flask of cognac he was 
carrying. Then, dabbing his mouth, he slid in beside Rémy and closed the door.
Rémy held up the keystone like a trophy. "It was almost lost."
"You have done well," the Teacher said.

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"We have done well," Rémy replied, laying the keystone in the Teacher's eager hands.
The Teacher admired it a long moment, smiling. "And the gun? You wiped it down?"
"Back in the glove box where I found it."
"Excellent." The Teacher took another drink of cognac and handed the flask to Rémy. "Let's toast 
our success. The end is near."
Rémy accepted the bottle gratefully. The cognac tasted salty, but Rémy didn't care. He and the 
Teacher were truly partners now. He could feel himself ascending to a higher station in life. I will 
never be a servant again. As Rémy gazed down the embankment at the duck pond below, Château 
Villette seemed miles away.
Taking another swig from the flask, Rémy could feel the cognac warming his blood. The warmth in 
Rémy's throat, however, mutated quickly to an uncomfortable heat. Loosening his bow tie, Rémy 
tasted an unpleasant grittiness and handed the flask back to the Teacher. "I've probably had 
enough," he managed, weakly.
Taking the flask, the Teacher said, "Rémy, as you are aware, you are the only one who knows my 
face. I placed enormous trust in you."
"Yes," he said, feeling feverish as he loosened his tie further. "And your identity shall go with me 
to the grave."
The Teacher was silent a long moment. "I believe you." Pocketing the flask and the keystone, the 
Teacher reached for the glove box and pulled out the tiny Medusa revolver. For an instant, Rémy 
felt a surge of fear, but the Teacher simply slipped it in his trousers pocket.
What is he doing? Rémy felt himself sweating suddenly.
"I know I promised you freedom," the Teacher said, his voice now sounding regretful. "But 
considering your circumstances, this is the best I can do."
The swelling in Rémy's throat came on like an earthquake, and he lurched against the steering 
column, grabbing his throat and tasting vomit in his narrowing esophagus. He let out a muted croak 
of a scream, not even loud enough to be heard outside the car. The saltiness in the cognac now 
registered.
I'm being murdered!

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Incredulous, Rémy turned to see the Teacher sitting calmly beside him, staring straight ahead out 
the windshield. Rémy's eyesight blurred, and he gasped for breath. I made everything possible for 
him! How could he do this! Whether the Teacher had intended to kill Rémy all along or whether it 
had been Rémy's actions in the Temple Church that had made the Teacher lose faith, Rémy would 
never know. Terror and rage coursed through him now. Rémy tried to lunge for the Teacher, but 
his stiffening body could barely move. I trusted you with everything!
Rémy tried to lift his clenched fists to blow the horn, but instead he slipped sideways, rolling onto 
the seat, lying on his side beside the Teacher, clutching at his throat. The rain fell harder now. 
Rémy could no longer see, but he could sense his oxygen-deprived brain straining to cling to his 
last faint shreds of lucidity. As his world slowly went black, Rémy Legaludec could have sworn he 
heard the sounds of the soft Riviera surf.
The Teacher stepped from the limousine, pleased to see that nobody was looking in his direction. I 
had no choice, he told himself, surprised how little remorse he felt for what he had just done. Rémy 
sealed his own fate. The Teacher had feared all along that Rémy might need to be eliminated when 
the mission was complete, but by brazenly showing himself in the Temple Church, Rémy had 
accelerated the necessity dramatically. Robert Langdon's unexpected visit to Château Villette had 
brought the Teacher both a fortuitous windfall and an intricate dilemma. Langdon had delivered the 
keystone directly to the heart of the operation, which was a pleasant surprise, and yet he had 
brought the police on his tail. Rémy's prints were all over Château Villette, as well as in the barn's 
listening post, where Rémy had carried out the surveillance. The Teacher was grateful he had taken 
so much care in preventing any ties between Rémy's activities and his own. Nobody could 
implicate the Teacher unless Rémy talked, and that was no longer a concern.
One more loose end to tie up here, the Teacher thought, moving now toward the rear door of the 
limousine. The police will have no idea what happened... and no living witness left to tell them. 
Glancing around to ensure nobody was watching, he pulled open the door and climbed into the 
spacious rear compartment.
Minutes later, the Teacher was crossing St. James's Park. Only two people now remain. Langdon 
and Neveu. They were more complicated. But manageable. At the moment, however, the Teacher 
had the cryptex to attend to.
Gazing triumphantly across the park, he could see his destination. In London lies a knight a Pope 
interred. As soon as the Teacher had heard the poem, he had known the answer. Even so, that the 
others had not figured it out was not surprising. I have an unfair advantage. Having listened to 
Saunière's conversations for months now, the Teacher had heard the Grand Master mention this 

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famous knight on occasion, expressing esteem almost matching that he held for Da Vinci. The 
poem's reference to the knight was brutally simple once one saw it—a credit to Saunière's wit—and 
yet how this tomb would reveal the final password was still a mystery.
You seek the orb that ought be on his tomb.
The Teacher vaguely recalled photos of the famous tomb and, in particular, its most distinguishing 
feature. A magnificent orb. The huge sphere mounted atop the tomb was almost as large as the 
tomb itself. The presence of the orb seemed both encouraging and troubling to the Teacher. On one 
hand, it felt like a signpost, and yet, according to the poem, the missing piece of the puzzle was an 
orb that ought to be on his tomb... not one that was already there. He was counting on his closer 
inspection of the tomb to unveil the answer.
The rain was getting heavier now, and he tucked the cryptex deep in his right-hand pocket to 
protect it from the dampness. He kept the tiny Medusa revolver in his left, out of sight. Within 
minutes, he was stepping into the quiet sanctuary of London's grandest nine-hundred-year-old 
building.
Just as the Teacher was stepping out of the rain, Bishop Aringarosa was stepping into it. On the 
rainy tarmac at Biggin Hill Executive Airport, Aringarosa emerged from his cramped plane, 
bundling his cassock against the cold damp. He had hoped to be greeted by Captain Fache. Instead 
a young British police officer approached with an umbrella.
"Bishop Aringarosa? Captain Fache had to leave. He asked me to look after you. He suggested I 
take you to Scotland Yard. He thought it would be safest."
Safest? Aringarosa looked down at the heavy briefcase of Vatican bonds clutched in his hand. He 
had almost forgotten. "Yes, thank you."
Aringarosa climbed into the police car, wondering where Silas could be. Minutes later, the police 
scanner crackled with the answer.
5 Orme Court.
Aringarosa recognized the address instantly.
The Opus Dei Centre in London.
He spun to the driver. "Take me there at once!"

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