Having squeezed beneath the security gate, Robert Langdon now stood just inside the entrance to the Grand Gallery. He was staring into the mouth of a long, deep canyon1. On either side of the gallery, stark2 walls rose thirty feet, evaporating into the darkness above. The reddish glow of the service lighting3 sifted4 upward, casting an unnatural5 smolder6 across a staggering collection of Da Vincis, Titians, and Caravaggios that hung suspended from ceiling cables. Still lifes, religious scenes, and landscapes accompanied portraits of nobility and politicians.
Although the Grand Gallery housed the Louvre's most famous Italian art, many visitors felt the wing's most stunning7 offering was actually its famous parquet8 floor. Laid out in a dazzling geometric design of diagonal oak slats, the floor produced an ephemeral optical illusion—a multi-dimensional network that gave visitors the sense they were floating through the gallery on a surface that changed with every step.
As Langdon's gaze began to trace the inlay, his eyes stopped short on an unexpected object lying on the floor just a few yards to his left, surrounded by police tape. He spun9 toward Fache. "Is that... a Caravaggio on the floor?"
Fache nodded without even looking.
The painting, Langdon guessed, was worth upward of two million dollars, and yet it was lying on the floor like a discarded poster. "What the devil is it doing on the floor!"
Fache glowered10, clearly unmoved. "This is a crime scene, Mr. Langdon. We have touched nothing. That canvas was pulled from the wall by the curator. It was how he activated11 the security system."
Langdon looked back at the gate, trying to picture what had happened.
"The curator was attacked in his office, fled into the Grand Gallery, and activated the security gate by pulling that painting from the wall. The gate fell immediately, sealing off all access. This is the only door in or out of this gallery."
Langdon felt confused. "So the curator actually captured his attacker inside the Grand Gallery?"
Fache shook his head. "The security gate separated Saunière from his attacker. The killer12 was locked out there in the hallway and shot Saunière through this gate." Fache pointed13 toward an orange tag hanging from one of the bars on the gate under which they had just passed. "The PTS team found flashback residue14 from a gun. He fired through the bars. Saunière died in here alone."
Langdon pictured the photograph of Saunière's body. They said he did that to himself. Langdon looked out at the enormous corridor before them. "So where is his body?"
Fache straightened his cruciform tie clip and began to walk. "As you probably know, the Grand Gallery is quite long."
The exact length, if Langdon recalled correctly, was around fifteen hundred feet, the length of three Washington Monuments laid end to end. Equally breathtaking was the corridor's width, which easily could have accommodated a pair of side-by-side passenger trains. The center of the hallway was dotted by the occasional statue or colossal15 porcelain16 urn17, which served as a tasteful divider and kept the flow of traffic moving down one wall and up the other.
Fache was silent now, striding briskly up the right side of the corridor with his gaze dead ahead. Langdon felt almost disrespectful to be racing18 past so many masterpieces without pausing for so much as a glance.
Not that I could see anything in this lighting, he thought.
The muted crimson19 lighting unfortunately conjured20 memories of Langdon's last experience in noninvasive lighting in the Vatican Secret Archives. This was tonight's second unsettling parallel with his near-death in Rome. He flashed on Vittoria again. She had been absent from his dreams for months. Langdon could not believe Rome had been only a year ago; it felt like decades. Another life. His last correspondence from Vittoria had been in December—a postcard saying she was headed to the Java Sea to continue her research in entanglement21 physics... something about using satellites to track manta ray migrations22. Langdon had never harbored delusions23 that a woman like Vittoria Vetra could have been happy living with him on a college campus, but their encounter in Rome had unlocked in him a longing24 he never imagined he could feel. His lifelong affinity25 for bachelorhood and the simple freedoms it allowed had been shaken somehow... replaced by an unexpected emptiness that seemed to have grown over the past year.
They continued walking briskly, yet Langdon still saw no corpse26. "Jacques Saunière went this far?"
"Mr. Saunière suffered a bullet wound to his stomach. He died very slowly. Perhaps over fifteen or twenty minutes. He was obviously a man of great personal strength."
Langdon turned, appalled27. "Security took fifteen minutes to get here?"
"Of course not. Louvre security responded immediately to the alarm and found the Grand Gallery sealed. Through the gate, they could hear someone moving around at the far end of the corridor, but they could not see who it was. They shouted, but they got no answer. Assuming it could only be a criminal, they followed protocol28 and called in the Judicial29 Police. We took up positions within fifteen minutes. When we arrived, we raised the barricade30 enough to slip underneath31, and I sent a dozen armed agents inside. They swept the length of the gallery to corner the intruder."
"And?"
"They found no one inside. Except..." He pointed farther down the hall. "Him."
Langdon lifted his gaze and followed Fache's outstretched finger. At first he thought Fache was pointing to a large marble statue in the middle of the hallway. As they continued, though, Langdon began to see past the statue. Thirty yards down the hall, a single spotlight32 on a portable pole stand shone down on the floor, creating a stark island of white light in the dark crimson gallery. In the center of the light, like an insect under a microscope, the corpse of the curator lay naked on the parquet floor.
"You saw the photograph," Fache said, "so this should be of no surprise."
Langdon felt a deep chill as they approached the body. Before him was one of the strangest images he had ever seen.
The pallid33 corpse of Jacques Saunière lay on the parquet floor exactly as it appeared in the photograph. As Langdon stood over the body and squinted34 in the harsh light, he reminded himself to his amazement35 that Saunière had spent his last minutes of life arranging his own body in this strange fashion.
Saunière looked remarkably36 fit for a man of his years... and all of his musculature was in plain view. He had stripped off every shred37 of clothing, placed it neatly38 on the floor, and laid down on his back in the center of the wide corridor, perfectly39 aligned40 with the long axis41 of the room. His arms and legs were sprawled42 outward in a wide spread eagle, like those of a child making a snow angel... or, perhaps more appropriately, like a man being drawn43 and quartered by some invisible force.
Just below Saunière's breastbone, a bloody44 smear45 marked the spot where the bullet had pierced his flesh. The wound had bled surprisingly little, leaving only a small pool of blackened blood.
Saunière's left index finger was also bloody, apparently46 having been dipped into the wound to create the most unsettling aspect of his own macabre47 deathbed; using his own blood as ink, and employing his own naked abdomen48 as a canvas, Saunière had drawn a simple symbol on his flesh—five straight lines that intersected to form a five-pointed star.
The pentacle.
The bloody star, centered on Saunière's navel, gave his corpse a distinctly ghoulish aura. The photo Langdon had seen was chilling enough, but now, witnessing the scene in person, Langdon felt a deepening uneasiness.
He did this to himself.
"Mr. Langdon?" Fache's dark eyes settled on him again.
"It's a pentacle," Langdon offered, his voice feeling hollow in the huge space. "One of the oldest symbols on earth. Used over four thousand years before Christ."
"And what does it mean?"
Langdon always hesitated when he got this question. Telling someone what a symbol "meant" was like telling them how a song should make them feel—it was different for all people. A white Ku Klux Klan headpiece conjured images of hatred49 and racism50 in the United States, and yet the same costume carried a meaning of religious faith in Spain.
"Symbols carry different meanings in different settings," Langdon said. "Primarily, the pentacle is a pagan religious symbol."
Fache nodded. "Devil worship."
"No," Langdon corrected, immediately realizing his choice of vocabulary should have been clearer.
Nowadays, the term pagan had become almost synonymous with devil worship—a gross misconception. The word's roots actually reached back to the Latin paganus, meaning country-dwellers. "Pagans" were literally51 unindoctrinated country-folk who clung to the old, rural religions of Nature worship. In fact, so strong was the Church's fear of those who lived in the rural villes that the once innocuous word for "villager"—villain—came to mean a wicked soul.
"The pentacle," Langdon clarified, "is a pre-Christian52 symbol that relates to Nature worship. The ancients envisioned their world in two halves—masculine and feminine. Their gods and goddesses worked to keep a balance of power. Yin and yang. When male and female were balanced, there was harmony in the world. When they were unbalanced, there was chaos53." Langdon motioned to Saunière's stomach. "This pentacle is representative of the female half of all things—a concept religious historians call the 'sacred feminine' or the 'divine goddess.' Saunière, of all people, would know this."
"Saunière drew a goddess symbol on his stomach?"
Langdon had to admit, it seemed odd. "In its most specific interpretation54, the pentacle symbolizes55 Venus—the goddess of female sexual love and beauty."
Fache eyed the naked man, and grunted56.
"Early religion was based on the divine order of Nature. The goddess Venus and the planet Venus were one and the same. The goddess had a place in the nighttime sky and was known by many names—Venus, the Eastern Star, Ishtar, Astarte—all of them powerful female concepts with ties to Nature and Mother Earth."
Fache looked more troubled now, as if he somehow preferred the idea of devil worship.
Langdon decided57 not to share the pentacle's most astonishing property—the graphic58 origin of its ties to Venus. As a young astronomy student, Langdon had been stunned59 to learn the planet Venus traced a perfect pentacle across the ecliptic sky every four years. So astonished were the ancients to observe this phenomenon, that Venus and her pentacle became symbols of perfection, beauty, and the cyclic qualities of sexual love. As a tribute to the magic of Venus, the Greeks used her four-year cycle to organize their Olympiads. Nowadays, few people realized that the four-year schedule of modern Olympic Games still followed the cycles of Venus. Even fewer people knew that the five-pointed star had almost become the official Olympic seal but was modified at the last moment—its five points exchanged for five intersecting rings to better reflect the games' spirit of inclusion and harmony.
"Mr. Langdon," Fache said abruptly60. "Obviously, the pentacle must also relate to the devil. Your American horror movies make that point clearly."
Langdon frowned. Thank you, Hollywood. The five-pointed star was now a virtual cliché in Satanic serial61 killer movies, usually scrawled62 on the wall of some Satanist's apartment along with other alleged63 demonic symbology. Langdon was always frustrated64 when he saw the symbol in this context; the pentacle's true origins were actually quite godly.
"I assure you," Langdon said, "despite what you see in the movies, the pentacle's demonic interpretation is historically inaccurate65. The original feminine meaning is correct, but the symbolism of the pentacle has been distorted over the millennia66. In this case, through bloodshed."
"I'm not sure I follow."
Langdon glanced at Fache's crucifix, uncertain how to phrase his next point. "The Church, sir. Symbols are very resilient, but the pentacle was altered by the early Roman Catholic Church. As part of the Vatican's campaign to eradicate67 pagan religions and convert the masses to Christianity, the Church launched a smear campaign against the pagan gods and goddesses, recasting their divine symbols as evil."
"Go on."
"This is very common in times of turmoil," Langdon continued. "A newly emerging power will take over the existing symbols and degrade them over time in an attempt to erase68 their meaning. In the battle between the pagan symbols and Christian symbols, the pagans lost; Poseidon's trident became the devil's pitchfork, the wise crone's pointed hat became the symbol of a witch, and Venus's pentacle became a sign of the devil." Langdon paused. "Unfortunately, the United States military has also perverted69 the pentacle; it's now our foremost symbol of war. We paint it on all our fighter jets and hang it on the shoulders of all our generals." So much for the goddess of love and beauty.
"Interesting." Fache nodded toward the spread-eagle corpse. "And the positioning of the body? What do you make of that?"
Langdon shrugged70. "The position simply reinforces the reference to the pentacle and sacred feminine."
Fache's expression clouded. "I beg your pardon?"
"Replication. Repeating a symbol is the simplest way to strengthen its meaning. Jacques Saunière positioned himself in the shape of a five-pointed star." If one pentacle is good, two is better.
Fache's eyes followed the five points of Saunière's arms, legs, and head as he again ran a hand across his slick hair. "Interesting analysis." He paused. "And the nudity?" He grumbled71 as he spoke72 the word, sounding repulsed73 by the sight of an aging male body. "Why did he remove his clothing?"
Damned good question, Langdon thought. He'd been wondering the same thing ever since he first saw the Polaroid. His best guess was that a naked human form was yet another endorsement74 of Venus—the goddess of human sexuality. Although modern culture had erased75 much of Venus's association with the male/female physical union, a sharp etymological76 eye could still spot a vestige77 of Venus's original meaning in the word "venereal." Langdon decided not to go there.
"Mr. Fache, I obviously can't tell you why Mr. Saunière drew that symbol on himself or placed himself in this way, but I can tell you that a man like Jacques Saunière would consider the pentacle a sign of the female deity78. The correlation79 between this symbol and the sacred feminine is widely known by art historians and symbologists."
"Fine. And the use of his own blood as ink?"
"Obviously he had nothing else to write with."
Fache was silent a moment. "Actually, I believe he used blood such that the police would follow certain forensic80 procedures."
"I'm sorry?"
"Look at his left hand."
Langdon's eyes traced the length of the curator's pale arm to his left hand but saw nothing. Uncertain, he circled the corpse and crouched81 down, now noting with surprise that the curator was clutching a large, felt-tipped marker.
"Saunière was holding it when we found him," Fache said, leaving Langdon and moving several yards to a portable table covered with investigation82 tools, cables, and assorted83 electronic gear. "As I told you," he said, rummaging84 around the table, "we have touched nothing. Are you familiar with this kind of pen?"
Langdon knelt down farther to see the pen's label.
STYLO DE LUMIERE NOIRE.
He glanced up in surprise.
The black-light pen or watermark stylus was a specialized85 felt-tipped marker originally designed by museums, restorers, and forgery86 police to place invisible marks on items. The stylus wrote in a noncorrosive, alcohol-based fluorescent87 ink that was visible only under black light. Nowadays, museum maintenance staffs carried these markers on their daily rounds to place invisible "tick marks" on the frames of paintings that needed restoration.
As Langdon stood up, Fache walked over to the spotlight and turned it off. The gallery plunged88 into sudden darkness.
Momentarily blinded, Langdon felt a rising uncertainty89. Fache's silhouette90 appeared, illuminated91 in bright purple. He approached carrying a portable light source, which shrouded92 him in a violet haze93.
"As you may know," Fache said, his eyes luminescing in the violet glow, "police use black-light illumination to search crime scenes for blood and other forensic evidence. So you can imagine our surprise..." Abruptly, he pointed the light down at the corpse.
Langdon looked down and jumped back in shock.
His heart pounded as he took in the bizarre sight now glowing before him on the parquet floor. Scrawled in luminescent handwriting, the curator's final words glowed purple beside his corpse. As Langdon stared at the shimmering94 text, he felt the fog that had surrounded this entire night growing thicker.
Langdon read the message again and looked up at Fache. "What the hell does this mean!"
Fache's eyes shone white. "That, monsieur, is precisely95 the question you are here to answer."
Not far away, inside Saunière's office, Lieutenant96 Collet had returned to the Louvre and was huddled97 over an audio console set up on the curator's enormous desk. With the exception of the eerie98, robot-like doll of a medieval knight99 that seemed to be staring at him from the corner of Saunière's desk, Collet was comfortable. He adjusted his AKG headphones and checked the input100 levels on the hard-disk recording101 system. All systems were go. The microphones were functioning flawlessly, and the audio feed was crystal clear.
Le moment de vérité, he mused102.
Smiling, he closed his eyes and settled in to enjoy the rest of the conversation now being taped inside the Grand Gallery.
从封锁门下挤过去后，罗伯特。兰登此刻正站在通往大画廊的入口处。他正在朝一个长长的"大峡谷"口凝望。画廊两边，陡峭的墙壁有三十英尺高，直插上面的黑暗之中。微红的耐用灯光向上散开，把些许不自然的暗光投射到许多从天花板绳子垂下的达。芬奇、提香和卡拉瓦乔的画作上。
静物画、宗教场面、风景画伴着贵族和政治家的画像。
虽然大画廊里藏有卢浮宫最负盛名的意大利艺术品，但不少游客认为这个侧厅所奉献的最令人惊叹不已的东西却是它著名的嵌木拼花地板。它是由对顶的橡木块按着一种令人眼花缭乱的几何图案铺制而成的，能使人产生一种瞬间的视角幻觉，感觉它是一个立体网络，游客每移动一步都觉得是在大画廊里漂游。
兰登开始观看地板的镶饰。他的眼睛突然停留在他左边几码远处的地板上被警察用条带围起来的一个物体上。他没想到会看到这个。他匆忙跑向法希。"那，那地板上是一幅卡拉瓦乔的画作吗？"
法希点了点头，却并没看它。
兰登猜想这幅画作的价值可高达两百万美元，可现在它却象被丢弃的海报一样躺在地上。"见鬼，怎么会在地上！"
法希看了一眼，显然是无动于衷。"这是犯罪现场，兰登先生。我们什么也没动。那画是馆长自己扯下来的。他就是那样启动安全系统的。"兰登转身看看大门，努力想象当时的情形。
"馆长在办公室里受到了袭击，他逃往大画廊，从墙上扯下这幅画，启动了防护门。防护门立刻落下，谁也无法进出，这是进出大画廊的唯一出口。"兰登被弄糊涂了。"那么馆长实际上抓住了袭击他的人，把他关在大画廊里面喽？"
法希摇摇了头说："防护门把索尼埃和袭击者隔开了。杀手被关在外面的走廊里，他通过这个门开枪打死索尼埃。"法希指着悬挂在他们刚爬过的那个门上的一个桔黄色的碎片说："技术警察发现了枪回火时的残留物。他是透过栅栏射击的。索尼埃临终前，这里没有别人。"兰登想起了索尼埃尸体的照片。他们说索尼埃自己把自己弄成那样。兰登望着前方的巨大的长廊说："那么尸体在哪里？"
法希扶正了自己的十字架领带夹开始往前走。"你很可能知道，画廊很长。"
如果兰登没记错的话，确切的长度是约1，500 英尺，是三个华盛顿纪念碑对接后平放的长度。同样令人惊异的是长廊的宽度，可以轻而易举地容纳两列平行的火车客车。走廊的中央间或点缀着雕像和巨大的瓷瓮，这些雕像和瓷瓮正好形成一条很有品味的分界线，把人流分开，一边沿墙而前，一边沿墙而回。
法希不说话，沿着走廊右边大步疾驶，两眼盯着正前方。这么匆匆忙忙的从如此多的杰作旁走过，都没停下来看一眼，兰登觉得有失恭敬。
不是因为在这种光线下，我什么也看不到，他想。
很不幸，暗红的灯光使兰登回忆起他上次在灯光柔和的梵蒂冈秘密档案室的经历。今晚和上次他险些丧命罗马一样使人忐忑不安。维多利亚又闪现在他脑海里。他已好几个月没有梦到维多利亚了。兰登不敢想念在罗马的那桩子事过去才一年；他觉得晃如几十年。
又活一辈子。他最后一次收到维多利亚的邮件是十二月份，那是一张明信片，她说她在动身去爪哇海以便继续在跟踪物理学方面的研究--用卫星追踪蝠鲼的迁徙情况。兰登从未幻想像维多利亚那样的女人会和他一起生活在校园里，但他们在巴黎的邂逅激发了一种他以前从未感受过的渴望。他多年来对单身生活的好感以及单身生活带来的自由感都被击得粉碎，取而代之的是过去的一年中与日俱增、始料未及的空虚感。
他们继续快步向前，但兰登还没看到尸体。"索尼埃跑这么远？"
"索尼埃腹部中弹后过了一段时间以后才死去的，或许十五到二十分钟。他显然是个很坚强的人。"兰登吃惊地转过身。"保安十五分钟才赶到这儿？"
"当然不是。卢浮宫的保安听到警报后，立即做出了反应，但发现大画廊的门被封住了。透过门，他们能听到有人在长廊的那一头挪动，但他们看不清到底是谁。他们大声喊，但没人应答。他们想唯一可能是罪犯，于是他们按规定叫来了司法警察。我们到达后把封锁门抬高了一些以便人能爬过去。我派了十来个警察进去。他们迅速搜遍长廊，希望抓住罪犯。
"结果呢？"
"他们发现里面没人。除了……"他朝长廊远处指去。"他"。
兰登抬起头顺着法希的手指望去。起初他以为法希在指长廊中间的巨型大理石雕像。
但他们继续往前走时，兰登能够看清比雕像更远的东西。在三十码开外的廊厅里，一只挂在便携式灯杆上的聚光灯照在地板上，形成了这暗红色画廊里一座极为光亮的"岛屿"。在光环的中央，索尼埃赤裸的尸体躺在嵌木拼花地板上，像显微镜下的一只昆虫。
"你看到过照片，所以不太吃惊了吧。"法希说。
雅克。索尼埃苍白的尸体躺在拼花地板上，和照片看到的一模一样。兰登站在尸体旁，在强光下眯着眼观察着。在惊愕中，他提醒自己，索尼埃在生命的最后几分钟把自己的身体摆成了这个奇怪的样子。
就他这个年龄的人而言，索尼埃看起来健康极了，他所有的肌肉系统分布分明。他已脱下了身上的每一丝衣服，并把它整齐地放在地板上，躺在走廊的中央，和房间的长轴线完全处于同一条线上。他的手臂和腿向外张开，像一只完全展开的鹰，又像孩子们做的雪天使那样手腿叉开，或许更准确的说是像一个人被看不见的力量向四个方向拉扯着。
在索尼埃的胸骨稍下一点有一块血渍，子弹从这里穿过了他的肌肉。奇怪的是，伤口流血极少，地下只淤积一小片已变黑的血液。
索尼埃食指也有血迹，显然他把食指插进了伤口，来制作他那最令人毛骨悚然的灵床。用自己的血作墨，以赤裸的腹部作画布，索尼埃画了非常简单的符号--五条直线相交而成的五角星。
五角形护身符。
这颗血星以索尼埃的肚脐为中心，这使尸体更显得令人恐怖。照片已令兰登不寒而栗，现在亲自到了现场，兰登更是吓得魂不附体。
他自己弄成这样。
"兰登先生？"法希的黑眼睛又在盯着他。
"这是巫术中的五角形护身符。"兰登说。他的声音在这么大的空间里显得有些沉闷。"这是世界上最早的一个符号，公元前四千年以前使用的。""它代表什么？"
在回答这个问题时兰登总是有些犹豫。告诉一个人一个符号"意味"着什么就如同告诉人家听一首歌时感受如何一样不好说--各人的感觉都不一样。三K 党的白巾在美国是仇恨和种族主义的形象，而在西班牙同样的服饰则表示一种宗教信仰。
"符号在不同的环境下表示的意思也不一样。"兰登说。"五角形主要是一种异教符号。"
法希点点头。"魔鬼崇拜。"
"不对。"兰登纠正道。他马上就意识到自己的用词应该更准确一些。
当今，表示异教的词pagan 几乎成了"魔鬼崇拜"的同义词--这是一种完全错误的观念。这个词的词根可以追溯到拉丁语的paganus，它指的是住在乡下的人。"异教徒"本来的字面意思是指那些没有接受任何宗教灌输，还恪守古老的自然神崇拜的乡下人。事实上，教会非常害怕那些住在乡下村镇（villes）里的人，以至于原本那个表示村民的词vilain 后来竟用来表示"恶棍"了。
"五角形"，兰登解释说。"是一个在基督教产生之前，有关自然崇拜的符号。"古人认为世界由两部分组成--一半雄性，一半雌性。神和女神共同作用保持力量平衡，即阴阳平衡。当阴阳平衡时，世界就处于和蔼的状态下。不平衡时，世界就一片混乱。然后兰登又指向索尼埃的肚子说："这个五角形代表万物中阴性的那一半--一个宗教史学家称为‘神圣女性’或‘神圣女神’概念。索尼埃应该知道这个。""索尼埃在自己肚子上画了女神符号？"
兰登必须承认，这似乎有点怪。"最具体的解释，五角星象征维纳斯--代表女人性爱和美的女神。"法希看了看那裸休男人，咕哝了一声。
"早期宗教都是基于大自然神性的秩序之上的，女神维纳斯（Venus）和金星（Venus）是同一的。女神在夜空中也有一席之地，夜空中的女神有许多名字--金星、东方之星、伊师塔、阿斯塔蒂等，都是些充满活力的与自然和大地母亲密切相关的阴性概念。"兰登决定不告诉他五角星形最令人吃惊的特征--它的形状源于金星。当兰登还是个初出茅庐的天文学专业的学生时，他就吃惊地了解到金星每四年在空中的运行轨迹正是一个正五角形。古人观察到这种现象，对之敬畏之至，于是金星和五角星便成了至善至美和周期性的性爱的象征。为礼赞金星的神奇，希腊人以四年为一个循环来组织奥林匹克运动会。现今很少有人知道现在每四年一届的现代奥林匹克运动会是沿袭了金星的周期。更少有人知道五角星差点成了奥运会的正式标志，只是到了最后一刻才将五个尖角换成了五个相互联结的环以更好地体现奥运会包容与和谐的精神。
法希突然说："兰登先生，五角星显然也和恶魔有关。你们美国的恐怖电影清楚地表明了这一点。"兰登皱起了眉头。真谢谢你，好莱坞。在系列恶魔杀手电影中，五角星几乎每次都出现，它通常和其他被指责为恶魔符号的东西一道被胡乱地画在某些恶魔杀手住所的墙上。
每当在这种情形下看到这个符号，兰登就感到非常不快。五角星真正的起源是神圣的。
"我可以肯定地告诉你。"兰登说。"尽管如你在电影中所见，把五角星被解读为恶魔，但从史学的角度讲，这并不准确。它起初的女性含义是正确的。但一千年来，五角星的象征意义被歪曲了。在这个案子上，还流了血。""我不敢肯定我听懂了。"
兰登看了一眼法希的十字架。他下面的表达有些语无伦次。"教会，先生，象征符号是很弹性的，五角星符号的意义被早期的罗马天主教会给更改了。作为梵蒂冈清除异教并使大众皈依基督教的运动的一部分，天主教会掀起了一个污蔑异教神和异教女神的运动，把他们的神圣的象征符号重新解释为邪恶的符号。""讲下去。"
"这种现象在混乱年代也是常见的。"兰登接着说。"一种新出现的力量会取代现存的象征符号并长期贬损它们以图彻底抹掉它们的意义。在异教象征和基督教象征的争斗中，异教徒输了。海神波塞冬的三叉戟成了恶魔的草叉，象征智慧的锥形尖顶帽成了女巫的象征，金星的五角形成了邪恶的象征。"兰登停了停。"不幸的是，美国军方也曲解了五角星，现在他成了最重要的战争符号。我们把它涂在战斗机上，挂在将军们的肩膀上。"爱与美女神竟承受这么多不幸。
"有意思。"法希边说边朝像展开的鹰一样的尸体点了点头。"那么，尸体的放置？你从中看到了什么？"
兰登耸耸肩。"这种放置只是巩固了五角星和阴性神灵的关联。"
法希脸茫然。"对不起，我没明白。"
"复制。重复一个符号是强化它的意义最简单的方法。雅克。索尼埃把自己放置成了五角星的形状。"一个五角星很好，两个更好。
法希又把手插进了油光光的头发里，眼睛朝索尼埃的五个角看去--胳膊、腿和头。
"有意思的分析。"他停了一下又说："那为什么裸体？"他有些不满地说道，好像很讨厌看到一个老年男人的裸体。"他为什么把衣服都脱了？"
兰登心想，真是好问题。从第一眼看到宝丽莱快照，他就一直对这个问题疑惑不解。
他最接近的猜测是，裸体是性爱女神维纳斯赞许的事情。虽然现代文化已基本清除维纳斯与男女身体结合的关联，但对词源有研究的人，仍然可以敏锐地发觉"维纳斯（Venus）"
本意中有与"性交"（Venereal）有关联的蛛丝马迹。不过，兰登不打算讨论那些。
"法希先生，显然我说不出为什么索尼埃在自己身上画那样的符号，也说不清为什么他那样放置自己，但是我可以告诉你，像雅克。索尼埃那样的人会视五角星符号为一种阴性神灵。这个符号和阴性神灵之间的关联是广为艺术史学家和符号象征学专家所知的。""好的。那么他为什么用自己的血当墨？"
"但显然，他没有别的东西可供写字。"
法希沉默了片刻。"我认为事实上他使用血和警察履行某些法医检查程序有相似之处。"
"我不明白。"
"看他的左手。"
兰登顺着馆长苍白的手臂一直看到他的左手，但什么也没有看到。他不敢肯定是否的确什么也看不到，于是围着尸体转了一圈，最后蹲下了，这时他才吃惊地发现馆长手里抓着一只很大的毡头标记笔。
"我们找到索尼埃时，他手里就攥着它。"法希边说边离开兰登，走过几码，走到一张摊满调查工具、电线和配套的电子设备的便携式桌子旁。"我给你讲过。"他边说边在桌子上翻弄东西。"我们什么都没动。你熟悉这种笔吗？"
兰登跪得更近一些，以便能看清笔的牌子。笔上有法文：黑光笔。
他吃惊地向上看了一眼。
黑光笔或曰水印笔是一种特殊毡头标记笔，原由博物馆、修复专家或反赝品警察设计用来在物品上作隐形标记用的。这种笔用的是一种非腐蚀性的，以酒精为主料的荧光墨水。这种墨水只有在紫外线、红外线等"黑光"下才可见。现在博物馆的维护人员在日常工作中也常带这种笔，以方便在需要修复的画作的画框上打个勾，作个标记。
兰登站起来后，法希走到聚光灯前把它关掉了。画廊顿时一片漆黑。
一时间，兰登什么也看不见，一种莫名的感觉突然袭来。法希的轮廓在强烈的紫光下显现出来。他拿着一个手提式光源走来，浑身裹在紫罗兰色的薄雾中。
"你也许知道。"法希说。他的眼睛在微暗的紫罗兰光中发着光。"警察用黑光照明，在犯罪现场找血渍和其他法医证据。所以你可以想象得出我们是多么吃惊……。"突然他把灯指向尸体。
兰登低头看了一眼，吓得往后一跳。
当他看到拼花地板上奇怪的发光现象，他的心脏怦怦直跳。馆长潦潦草草用荧光笔最后写下的字在尸体旁冷冷地发着紫光。
兰登看着发着光的文字段落，感到今晚笼罩在他周围的迷雾更浓了。
兰登又一次读完那些文字后抬头看法希。"见鬼，这到底是什么意思？"
法希的眼睛发着白光。"先生，那正是你今晚到这儿来要回答的问题。"
在不远处索尼埃的办公室里，科莱中尉正倚着一个架在馆长的大办公桌上的录音架。
要不是有怪异的、机器人似的中世纪武士玩具在盯着他，科莱会感受到很舒服。他调整好自己的AKG 耳机，检查了硬盘录音系统上的输入电平情况。所有系统一切正常，麦克风半点毛病也没有，声音传输极为清晰。
此刻声音完全真实，他思忖着。
他面带微笑，闭上双眼，坐下来欣赏今天在大画廊内正在被录进去的谈话。
收听单词发音 |
1
canyon
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| n.峡谷，溪谷 | |
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stark
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| adj.荒凉的；严酷的；完全的；adv.完全地 | |
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lighting
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| n.照明，光线的明暗，舞台灯光 | |
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sifted
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| v.筛( sift的过去式和过去分词 )；筛滤；细查；详审 | |
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unnatural
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| adj.不自然的；反常的 | |
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smolder
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| v.无火焰地闷烧；n.焖烧，文火 | |
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stunning
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| adj.极好的；使人晕倒的 | |
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parquet
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| n.镶木地板 | |
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spun
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| v.纺，杜撰，急转身 | |
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glowered
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| v.怒视( glower的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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activated
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| adj. 激活的 动词activate的过去式和过去分词 | |
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killer
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| n.杀人者，杀人犯，杀手，屠杀者 | |
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pointed
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| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
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residue
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| n.残余，剩余，残渣 | |
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colossal
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| adj.异常的，庞大的 | |
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porcelain
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| n.瓷；adj.瓷的，瓷制的 | |
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urn
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| n.（有座脚的）瓮；坟墓；骨灰瓮 | |
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racing
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| n.竞赛，赛马；adj.竞赛用的，赛马用的 | |
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crimson
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| n./adj.深(绯)红色(的)；vi.脸变绯红色 | |
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conjured
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| 用魔术变出( conjure的过去式和过去分词 )； 祈求，恳求； 变戏法； （变魔术般地） 使…出现 | |
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entanglement
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| n.纠缠，牵累 | |
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migrations
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| n.迁移，移居( migration的名词复数 ) | |
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delusions
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| n.欺骗( delusion的名词复数 )；谬见；错觉；妄想 | |
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longing
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| n.（for）渴望 | |
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affinity
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| n.亲和力，密切关系 | |
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corpse
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| n.尸体，死尸 | |
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appalled
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| v.使惊骇，使充满恐惧( appall的过去式和过去分词)adj.惊骇的；丧胆的 | |
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28
protocol
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| n.议定书，草约，会谈记录，外交礼节 | |
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judicial
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| adj.司法的，法庭的，审判的，明断的，公正的 | |
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barricade
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| n.路障，栅栏，障碍；vt.设路障挡住 | |
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underneath
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| adj.在...下面，在...底下；adv.在下面 | |
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32
spotlight
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| n.公众注意的中心，聚光灯，探照灯，视听，注意，醒目 | |
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pallid
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| adj.苍白的，呆板的 | |
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squinted
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| 斜视( squint的过去式和过去分词 )； 眯着眼睛； 瞟； 从小孔或缝隙里看 | |
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amazement
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| n.惊奇，惊讶 | |
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remarkably
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| ad.不同寻常地，相当地 | |
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shred
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| v.撕成碎片，变成碎片；n.碎布条，细片，些少 | |
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38
neatly
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| adv.整洁地，干净地，灵巧地，熟练地 | |
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perfectly
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| adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地 | |
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aligned
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| adj.对齐的，均衡的 | |
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axis
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| n.轴，轴线，中心线；坐标轴，基准线 | |
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42
sprawled
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| v.伸开四肢坐[躺]( sprawl的过去式和过去分词)；蔓延；杂乱无序地拓展；四肢伸展坐着（或躺着） | |
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43
drawn
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| v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的 | |
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44
bloody
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| adj.非常的的；流血的；残忍的；adv.很；vt.血染 | |
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45
smear
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| v.涂抹；诽谤，玷污；n.污点；诽谤，污蔑 | |
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46
apparently
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| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
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macabre
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| adj.骇人的，可怖的 | |
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48
abdomen
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| n.腹，下腹(胸部到腿部的部分) | |
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49
hatred
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| n.憎恶，憎恨，仇恨 | |
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50
racism
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| n.民族主义；种族歧视(意识) | |
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51
literally
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| adv.照字面意义，逐字地；确实 | |
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Christian
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| adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒 | |
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chaos
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| n.混乱，无秩序 | |
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interpretation
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| n.解释，说明，描述；艺术处理 | |
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55
symbolizes
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| v.象征，作为…的象征( symbolize的第三人称单数 ) | |
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56
grunted
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| （猪等）作呼噜声( grunt的过去式和过去分词 )； （指人）发出类似的哼声； 咕哝着说 | |
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decided
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| adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的 | |
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58
graphic
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| adj.生动的，形象的，绘画的，文字的，图表的 | |
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59
stunned
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| adj. 震惊的，惊讶的 动词stun的过去式和过去分词 | |
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60
abruptly
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| adv.突然地，出其不意地 | |
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61
serial
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| n.连本影片，连本电视节目；adj.连续的 | |
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62
scrawled
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| 乱涂，潦草地写( scrawl的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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63
alleged
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| a.被指控的，嫌疑的 | |
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64
frustrated
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| adj.挫败的，失意的，泄气的v.使不成功( frustrate的过去式和过去分词 )；挫败；使受挫折；令人沮丧 | |
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inaccurate
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| adj.错误的，不正确的，不准确的 | |
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millennia
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| n.一千年，千禧年 | |
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eradicate
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| v.根除，消灭，杜绝 | |
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erase
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| v.擦掉；消除某事物的痕迹 | |
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perverted
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| adj.不正当的v.滥用( pervert的过去式和过去分词 )；腐蚀；败坏；使堕落 | |
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70
shrugged
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| vt.耸肩（shrug的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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grumbled
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| 抱怨( grumble的过去式和过去分词 )； 发牢骚； 咕哝； 发哼声 | |
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72
spoke
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| n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说 | |
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73
repulsed
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| v.击退( repulse的过去式和过去分词 )；驳斥；拒绝 | |
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endorsement
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| n.背书；赞成，认可，担保；签(注)，批注 | |
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erased
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| v.擦掉( erase的过去式和过去分词 )；抹去；清除 | |
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etymological
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| adj.语源的，根据语源学的 | |
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vestige
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| n.痕迹，遗迹，残余 | |
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deity
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| n.神，神性；被奉若神明的人(或物) | |
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correlation
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| n.相互关系，相关，关连 | |
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forensic
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| adj.法庭的，雄辩的 | |
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crouched
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| v.屈膝，蹲伏( crouch的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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investigation
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| n.调查，调查研究 | |
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assorted
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| adj.各种各样的，各色俱备的 | |
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rummaging
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| 翻找，搜寻( rummage的现在分词 )； 海关检查 | |
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specialized
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| adj.专门的，专业化的 | |
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forgery
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| n.伪造的文件等，赝品，伪造（行为） | |
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fluorescent
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| adj.荧光的，发出荧光的 | |
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plunged
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| v.颠簸( plunge的过去式和过去分词 )；暴跌；骤降；突降 | |
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uncertainty
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| n.易变，靠不住，不确知，不确定的事物 | |
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silhouette
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| n.黑色半身侧面影，影子，轮廓；v.描绘成侧面影，照出影子来，仅仅显出轮廓 | |
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illuminated
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| adj.被照明的；受启迪的 | |
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shrouded
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| v.隐瞒( shroud的过去式和过去分词 )；保密 | |
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haze
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| n.霾，烟雾；懵懂，迷糊；vi.(over)变模糊 | |
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shimmering
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| v.闪闪发光，发微光( shimmer的现在分词 ) | |
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precisely
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| adv.恰好，正好，精确地，细致地 | |
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lieutenant
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| n.陆军中尉，海军上尉；代理官员，副职官员 | |
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huddled
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| 挤在一起（huddle的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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eerie
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| adj.怪诞的；奇异的；可怕的；胆怯的 | |
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knight
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| n.骑士，武士；爵士 | |
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input
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| n.输入(物)；投入；vt.把(数据等)输入计算机 | |
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recording
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| n.录音，记录 | |
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102
mused
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| v.沉思，冥想( muse的过去式和过去分词 )；沉思自语说（某事） | |
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