The Da Vinci Code

Collet pondered the implications of this bizarre development. Vernet is involved. Instinctively, he

knew he should call Fache. Emotionally, he knew this lucky break was going to be his moment to shine. He immediately called Interpol and requested every shred of information they could find on the Depository Bank of Zurich and its president, André Vernet.

CHAPTER 80

"Seat belts, please," Teabing's pilot announced as the Hawker 731 descended into a gloomy morning drizzle. "We'll be landing in five minutes." Teabing felt a joyous sense of homecoming when he saw the misty hills of Kent spreading wide beneath the descending plane. England was less than an hour from Paris, and yet a world away.

This morning, the damp, spring green of his homeland looked particularly welcoming. My time in

France is over. I am returning to England victorious. The keystone has been found. The question

remained, of course, as to where the keystone would ultimately lead. Somewhere in the United

Kingdom. Where exactly, Teabing had no idea, but he was already tasting the glory.

As Langdon and Sophie looked on, Teabing got up and went to the far side of the cabin, then slid aside a wall panel to reveal a discreetly hidden wall safe. He dialed in the combination, opened the safe, and extracted two passports. "Documentation for Rémy and myself." He then removed a thick stack of fifty-pound notes. "And documentation for you two." Sophie looked leery. "A bribe." "Creative diplomacy. Executive airfields make certain allowances. A British customs official will greet us at my hangar and ask to board the plane. Rather than permitting him to come on, I'll tell him I'm traveling with a French celebrity who prefers that nobody knows she is in England—press considerations, you know—and I'll offer the official this generous tip as gratitude for his discretion." Langdon looked amazed. "And the official will accept." "Not from anyone, they won't, but these people all know me. I'm not an arms dealer, for heaven's sake. I was knighted." Teabing smiled. "Membership has its privileges." Rémy approached up the aisle now, the Heckler Koch pistol cradled in his hand. "Sir, my agenda." Teabing glanced at his servant. "I'm going to have you stay onboard with our guest until we return.