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Chartrand forces open the Pope’s office after hearing Camerlegno Ventresca scream, and the guards, Langdon, and Vittoria rush inside. They find Kohler standing near his wheelchair with a pistol aimed at the camerlegno, whose cassock has been torn open and whose chest has been burned with a glowing brand lying nearby.

Two Swiss Guards immediately shoot Kohler, driving him back into his wheelchair. As the camerlegno writhes in pain, the camerlegno points at Rocher and cries, “ILLUMINATUS!” Rocher charges toward the camerlegno in fury, and Chartrand instinctively shoots Rocher in the back, killing him.

Chartrand and the guards attend to the camerlegno and react with horror to the symbol seared on the camerlegno’s chest. Chartrand covers the wound, while Langdon, trying to understand the violence, examines the square brand. Langdon recognizes it as the sixth brand from the Illuminati chest but is confused because its symmetrical design looks like meaningless squiggles.

Kohler, not yet dead, reaches for Langdon and removes a tiny Sony Ruvi camcorder from his wheelchair. With his last breaths, Kohler tells Langdon to give it to the media. Assuming it contains a final anti-religious message, Langdon hides the device in his jacket instead of turning it over.

The camerlegno regains enough control to ask about the cardinals, and Chartrand says they are still in the Sistine Chapel because of Rocher’s orders. The injured camerlegno orders their immediate evacuation, then asks for the helicopter outside to take him to a hospital.