Page 82 of The Secret of Secrets

I have Katherine. Come to Petřín Tower.

Clearly, Katherine was not here, and it seemed unlikely that she had been. Nothing was making much sense—including Katherine’s Enochian email.

LXXEDOC?

What is she trying to tell me?!

Not far ahead, Langdon saw a clearing with several of the park’s attractions—carousel, pony stable, rose garden, chapel. Breaking free of the forest, he dashed onto the gravel courtyard, grateful for the firmer footing, though he could hear the heavy footfalls of his pursuer behind him.

Langdon raced past the stable and garden to the chapel, whose rooftop belvedere was historically a symbol of “sanctuary,” although the padlock on its door sent a different message. Without breaking stride, he scanned the plaza for any other shelter. He saw three buildings ahead and made his decision in an instant.

The first two structures were most likely locked at this hour—Calvary Chapel and the Church of St. Lawrence—both part of a program to Christianize this pagan hill. The third structure was a kitschy, bright yellow, fairy-tale castle whose faux turrets flew colorful coat-of-arm banners on rooked fortress walls. Beyond the fake drawbridge, a man in a medieval costume was just now hoisting the iron gate, apparently opening the castle for the day. Over the entrance hung a banner that read: Vítejte / Welcome.

Sometimes the universe points the way, Langdon thought.

Whether or not the sign was a cosmic nudge in the right direction, Langdon saw no other options for cover. A quick glance over his shoulder confirmed that Pavel had already emerged from the woods at the far end of the plaza, and he seemed to be gaining ground. Digging in, Langdon dashed across the faux drawbridge, past the startled attendant, skidding into a small anteroom whose unmanned ticket booth bore a sign:

ZRCADLOVÉ BLUDIŠTĚ

Langdon had no idea what the words meant, but it didn’t matter; the anteroom contained a single turnstile that blocked what appeared to be the only entrance into the castle—a narrow archway into a darkened hallway.

Forgive me, Cinderella, Langdon thought, vaulting over the turnstile and rushing through the opening. He sprinted down a stone corridor, took a hard left, and plunged into a glistening six-sided room. Langdon skidded to a halt, stunned by what he saw surrounding him.

What the…?!

Six men stood in a circle, evenly spaced around Langdon, all staring directly at him.

Stranger still, all six men were Robert Langdon himself.

Langdon now realized the meaning of ZRCADLOVÉ BLUDIŠTĚ, and he desperately wished he had made a different choice.

Chapter 51

The purple glow of The Golěm’s apartment felt soothing after the violent episode of Michael Harris’s death. Having taken a quick shower and donned a robe, The Golěm now kneeled silently in his darkened sanctuary to his svatyně—the sacred room in which he kept the shrine he had erected to her.

A tribute to the woman I was born to protect.

Kneeling in the darkness, he struck a match and lit the three votive candles that were arranged among the dried flowers on the table. As the flickering light grew brighter, he raised his eyes to the photo hanging above the shrine.

The Golěm smiled lovingly at her face.

I am here to watch over you…and yet you don’t even know me.

The details of the woman’s face were not classically beautiful. She had strong Slavic features, shoulder-length blond hair, and a broken nose…but Sasha Vesna was The Golěm’s entire world.

I am your protector, Sasha.

Although she didn’t know it, Sasha’s soul had collided with his years ago in a Russian mental institution…in a moment of horrific violence. Sasha had been alone and unprotected, enduring a brutal beating from the wicked night nurse, a woman called Malvina, when The Golěm had appeared in the room, unable to bear the abuse any longer. Fueled by an upwelling of outrage, The Golěm had intervened, lashing out with brutal force and breaking the nurse’s neck.

Mercifully, Sasha had been unconscious and never discovered what had truly transpired that night. The Golěm had slipped silently back into the darkness undetected…but in that moment, their two souls had become forever intertwined, and he had pledged to protect her.

The night I saved her life…is the night I became her protector.

Before his act of compassion, he had been an empty vessel, a ghostly spirit. But in that instant, as if struck by a beam of energy from another realm, he felt his life begin, immediately understanding who he was and the nature of his mystical connection to Sasha Vesna.

I am her guardian angel.

She is my entire reason for living, for suffering, for being.