"Torture?"

Langdon nodded. "They were branded alive. On the chest. With the symbol of a cross."

Kohler’s eyes widened, and he shot an uneasy glance at Vetra’s body.

"Then the scientists were brutally murdered, their dead bodies dropped in the streets of Rome as a warning to others thinking of joining the Illuminati. With the church closing in, the remaining Illuminati fled Italy."

Langdon paused to make his point. He looked directly into Kohler’s dead eyes. "The Illuminati went deep underground, where they began mixing with other refugee groups fleeing the Catholic purges—mystics, alchemists, occultists, Muslims, Jews. Over the years, the Illuminati began absorbing new members. A new Illuminati emerged. A darker Illuminati. A deeply anti-Christian Illuminati. They grew very powerful, employing mysterious rites, deadly secrecy, vowing someday to rise again and take revenge on the Catholic Church. Their power grew to the point where the church considered them the single most dangerous anti-Christian force on earth. The Vatican denounced the brotherhood as Shaitan."

"Shaitan?"

"It’s Islamic. It means ‘adversary’… God’s adversary. The church chose Islam for the name because it was a language they considered dirty." Langdon hesitated. "Shaitan is the root of an English word…Satan."

An uneasiness crossed Kohler’s face.

Langdon’s voice was grim. "Mr. Kohler, I do not know how this marking appeared on this man’s chest… or why… but you are looking at the long-lost symbol of the world’s oldest and most powerful satanic cult."

10

The alley was narrow and deserted. The Hassassin strode quickly now, his black eyes filling with anticipation. As he approached his destination, Janus’s parting words echoed in his mind. Phase two begins shortly. Get some rest.