In chapter 72, Langdon figures out that the next alter of science is right outside St. Peter’s Church. The sculpture by Bernini is in St. Peter’s Square and it is a marble block with the image of a billowing gust of wind. It is called the West Ponente – the West Wind. They go to St. Peter’s Square and the BBC van follows them, unnoticed.
In chapter 73, Langdon and Vittoria walk around St. Peter’s Square and pretend to be tourists. Gunther Glick and Macri watch them. They see that the same army that had found the cardinal’s body had fanned out and surrounded the piazza. Glick thinks that something big is about to happen.
In chapter 74, Vittoria notices that a woman with a BBC camera is following them. Then, the bells of St. Peter begin to chime. Despite the clanging bells, the area seems perfectly calm. Tourists were wandering. A homeless drunk dozed awkwardly at the base of the obelisk. A little girl was feeding pigeons. As the echo of the ninth bell faded away, a peaceful silence descended across the square. Then, the little girl began to scream.
In chapter 75, Langdon and Vittoria run to the little girl and see her pointing to the shabby, decrepit drunk. Langdon sees a dark widening stain spreading across the man’s rags – fresh, flowing blood. The old man seemed to crumple in the middle, toppled off the stairs, and hit the pavement facedown. A crowd began to gather. Vittoria finds that he has a pulse and Langdon rolls him over to find that the word Air had been branded to his chest. The Swiss Guards race after an unseen assassin. Nearby, a tourist explains that only a few minutes ago, a dark-skinned man had been kind enough to help the poor, wheezing, homeless man across the square before disappearing back into the crowd. Vittoria rips the rest of the rags off of the man and sees that he has two deep puncture wounds, one on either side of the brand, just below his rib cage. She tries to give him mouth to mouth. As she blew, the wounds on either side of the man’s midsection hissed and sprayed blood into the air like blowholes on a whale. His lungs had been punctured. As the Swiss Guard moves in, Langdon sees the BBC woman crouched nearby taping everything.
In chapter 76, Macri is able to give the footage to Glick before the Swiss Guard can take it.
In chapter 77, Langdon is in the Office of the Pope. Olivetti, the camerlengo, and Captain Rocher are debating what to do next.
In chapter 78, in London, a BBC technician plays a video cassette for the editor-in-chief. As the tape plays, she tells him about the conversation she had just had with Gunther Glick in Vatican City. The man tells everyone that they are going “live in five.” He tells them to sell the story to CNN, MSNBC, and then the big three for a million dollars. At that exact instant, somewhere in Rome, the Hassassin dials the BBC reported to whom he had spoken earlier. It was time. The world had yet to hear the most shocking news of all.
In chapter 79, Langdon needs a list of all of Bernini’s sculptures so he can find the next alter of science. A Swiss Guard takes him back to the Vatican Secret Archives. Vittoria says that she can help, but Olivetti stops her and says that he needs to talk to her. Just then, his walkie-talkie crackles loudly and says that he thinks they better turn on the television.
In chapter 80, Langdon is in the archives once more.
In chapter 81, the people in the Office of the Pope watch the television. It is MSNBC news and it is broadcasting the whole story. The reporter also says that the Illuminati have just claimed responsibility for the death of the Pope fifteen days ago. By Vatican law, no formal autopsy is ever performed on the Pope, so the Illuminati claim of murder cannot be confirmed. Everyone is completely shocked. Rocher flips the channel and finds a BBC station also talking about it. On that channel is Glick who explains that the assassin phoned only moments ago and said how the Illuminati were responsible for the Pope’s death. The anchorman asks Glick how. Glick says, “They gave no specifics except to say that they killed him with a drug known as Heparin.” The camerlengo, Olivetti, and Rocher all exchange confused looks because the Pope’s medication was Heparin. Rocher says that Heparin isn’t a poison, but Vittoria says that it’s a powerful anticoagulant and an overdose would cause massive internal bleeding and brain hemorrhages. The camerlengo is troubled because no one on the outside knew about the Pope’s daily injections. Vittoria tells them that if he overdosed with Heparin, his body would show signs. His gums would bleed and the inside of his mouth would be black. They decide to go see the late Pope.
I think it would be really awful if the Pope really was poisoned. If he was, I wonder if it was the Hassassin who poisoned him or someone else inside the church. I also think the second cardinal murder was really disgusting and sick. The way the second element of air was connected to the way he was murdered was really creative though. The Illuminati must have spent a lot of time working to prepare for this day because they left no room for error. The Swiss Guard failed to catch the Hassassin twice now. I hope they can catch him soon so the two remaining cardinals can live.
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