Chapter 37

           VittoriaglaredattheSwissGuardstandingoutsideOlivetti’slockeddoor.Thesentinelglaredback,hiscolorfulcostumebelyinghisdecidedlyominousair.

           "Chefiasco,"Vittoriathought.Heldhostagebyanarmedmaninpajamas.

           Langdonhadfallensilent,andVittoriahopedhewasusingthatHarvardbrainofhistothinkthemoutofthis.Shesensed,however,fromthelookonhisface,thathewasmoreinshockthaninthought.Sheregrettedgettinghimsoinvolved.

           Vittoria’sfirstinstinctwastopullouthercellphoneandcallKohler,butsheknewitwasfoolish.First,theguardwouldprobablywalkinandtakeherphone.Second,ifKohler’sepisoderanitsusualcourse,hewasprobablystillincapacitated.Notthatitmattered…Olivettiseemedunlikelytotakeanybody’swordonanythingatthemoment.

           Remember!shetoldherself.Rememberthesolutiontothistest!

           RemembrancewasaBuddhistphilosopher’strick.Ratherthanaskinghermindtosearchforasolutiontoapotentiallyimpossiblechallenge,Vittoriaaskedhermindsimplytorememberit.Thepresuppositionthatoneonceknewtheanswercreatedthemindsetthattheanswermustexist…thuseliminatingthecripplingconceptionofhopelessness.Vittoriaoftenusedtheprocesstosolvescientificquandaries…thosethatmostpeoplethoughthadnosolution.

           Atthemoment,however,herremembrancetrickwasdrawingamajorblank.Soshemeasuredheroptions…herneeds.Sheneededtowarnsomeone.SomeoneattheVaticanneededtotakeherseriously.Butwho?Thecamerlegno?How?Shewasinaglassboxwithoneexit.

           Tools,shetoldherself.