The Da Vinci Code

required windows above fifteen meters in public buildings be breakable in case of fire, exiting a

Louvre second-story window without the help of a hook and ladder would be suicide. Furthermore, there were no trees or grass on the western end of the Denon Wing to cushion a fall. Directly beneath that rest room window, the two-lane Place du Carrousel ran within a few feet of the outer wall. "My God," Collet exclaimed, eyeing the screen. "Langdon's moving to the window ledge!" But Fache was already in motion. Yanking his Manurhin MR-93 revolver from his shoulder holster, the captain dashed out of the office. Collet watched the screen in bewilderment as the blinking dot arrived at the window ledge and then did something utterly unexpected. The dot moved outside the perimeter of the building.

What's going on. he wondered. Is Langdon out on a ledge or— "Jesu!" Collet jumped to his feet as the dot shot farther outside the wall. The signal seemed to

shudder for a moment, and then the blinking dot came to an abrupt stop about ten yards outside the perimeter of the building. Fumbling with the controls, Collet called up a Paris street map and recalibrated the GPS. Zooming in, he could now see the exact location of the signal. It was no longer moving. It lay at a dead stop in the middle of Place du Carrousel. Langdon had jumped.

CHAPTER 18

Fache sprinted down the Grand Gallery as Collet's radio blared over the distant sound of the alarm. "He jumped!" Collet was yelling. "I'm showing the signal out on Place du Carrousel! Outside the bathroom window! And it's not moving at all! Jesus, I think Langdon has just committed suicide!" Fache heard the words, but they made no sense. He kept running. The hallway seemed never- ending. As he sprinted past Saunière's body, he set his sights on the partitions at the far end of the Denon Wing. The alarm was getting louder now. "Wait!" Collet's voice blared again over the radio. "He's moving! My God, he's alive. Langdon's moving!"