Sophie, hearing that Teabing was the mastermind behind everything and that the three of them were now controlled, was filled with despair. She asked, without regard for consequences, "Why? Why did you do this? Why did you kill my grandfather and those innocent people?"
"Innocent, haha!" Teabing laughed heartily as if he had heard the biggest joke. "The Priory of Sion is not innocent." Teabing, leaning on his cane, walked over to Silas, who was trembling with pain, took the gun from his hand, and pointed it at Sophie, saying:
"The Knights Templar are the most shameful, most evil group in this world." Teabing, holding the gun, walked to the desk and sat in a chair.
"If it weren't for the Templars' greed and foolishness in making a deal with the Church of Light, allowing the Church of Light to escape collapse a thousand years ago, we wouldn't have been ruled by the Church of Light for a thousand years.
How many shameless massacres has the Church of Light committed throughout history, imprisoning people's minds for a thousand years?" After saying that, Teabing pointed the gun in his hand at Silas, who was trembling as he watched him,
"Do you think I provided you with the secrets of the Priory of Sion for the Church of Light? Haha, I did this to destroy the Church of Light. Finding the Holy Grail will provide scientific evidence to prove that the Church's version of the God of Light is not what people imagine.
When people discover that everything they believe in is a lie, do you think the Church of Light can still exist? It's time for the Church to pay the price for the sins it has committed over thousands of years."
Hearing this most unwelcome answer, Silas looked at Teabing with a deathly pale face. His hands went limp, and his entire spirit seemed to be drained. He had believed that everything he did was guided by God, and that ruthlessly eliminating the Priory of Sion was for the sake of the Church of Light. But all of this was a conspiracy by this old man before him. Thinking of the internal struggle and pain he felt after each killing, Silas roared and charged at Teabing.
"Bang!" A gunshot rang out. Silas clutched his heart, slowly sinking to his knees, his eyes unfocused as he gazed at the sky, murmuring sorrowfully, "I'm just a shadow…"
"Ahhh!" Sophie screamed, startled by the gunshot. Remy's ears buzzed from Sophie's piercing shriek so close to him, and he instinctively recoiled. "A good opportunity!" William, who had been standing by, suddenly drew the gun from his lower back and fired at Remy's head.
Then, he quickly turned the gun and fired another shot at the panicking Teabing's head. "Bang!" Teabing was knocked to the ground by the bullet's impact.
The police ambushed outside rushed in after hearing the first gunshot. However, no more than three seconds passed between Teabing's shot and William's shots. By the time they entered, three people were already down in the archives.
"Don't move! French police! Nobody move! Drop your weapons! You are surrounded!"
William immediately raised his hands, shouting at Langdon and Sophie, "Quick, raise your hands, Langdon, Sophie!" Langdon reacted, instantly raising his hands. Only Sophie, terrified, stumbled to the ground, her legs weak.
The police officers who rushed in stared in astonishment at William and the three bodies on the ground. They had heard clearly from outside and rushed in as soon as the shots were fired, but what surprised them was how William had reversed the situation in just a few seconds.
This made all the officers who rushed in nervously point their guns at William. After confirming that William would not resist, one officer cautiously confiscated the gun from William's hand.
"Alright, release the three of them," Fache said, walking in with a cigar clamped in his mouth. He looked at Teabing, Remy, and Silas lying on the ground, shaking his head and saying, "I didn't expect things to turn out this way."
Fache walked over to Sophie and helped her up, as her legs were still weak. "It's alright, Sophie. I hope to see your report tomorrow."
Sophie's face was filled with terror. William's shot had grazed her head when he killed Remy. Hearing Fache's words, Sophie stammered, "Y-y-yes, sir. I'll write a detailed report for you. Thank you."
Fache nodded and said to William, "Mr. Devonshire, although it appears to be self-defense, we still need to follow procedure. You are temporarily restricted from leaving the country, and do you have a gun license in France? If not, you're in serious trouble."
Things were heading towards the outcome William most desired: the keystone was destroyed, and the albino, Teabing, and Remy were all dead. This made him feel incredibly pleased, and he said with a smile, "Understood, officer. But can I make a phone call? The English Embassy will provide you with a reasonable explanation."
Fache looked at William with some surprise. "Are you sure?"
William smiled and shrugged, "Yes."
"Alright, Mr. Devonshire, the three of you go to the police station to give your statements," Fache said, shaking his head.
Sitting in the police car, William called Anthony at Moonstar Law Firm and briefly explained the situation. After hanging up, William called Gareth Mallory of the English Security Committee. The phone rang for dozens of seconds before it was answered.
As soon as the call connected, Gareth's complaints came through. William knew it was only 6 AM, so he let him complain. After Gareth finished, William told him what had happened. Gareth replied, "Got it," and hung up.
Half an hour later, William and the others arrived at the police station. As soon as he got out of the police car, he saw four or five people walking towards him. "Mr. Devonshire, I'm Terry from the English Embassy in France. We've already understood your situation. We'll handle the gun license issue, so please rest assured it won't cause you any trouble."
William shook hands with Terry. "Thank you, I appreciate your trouble."
Terry smiled and said, "You're welcome, Mr. Devonshire. If there's nothing else, we'll head back to the consulate."
"Alright, thank you again. I'll see you out," William said happily as he saw off the embassy staff. Then he turned to his lawyer and said, "Come with me to give my statement."
William stayed at the police station for two hours before being informed that he could leave.
By the time William walked out of the police station, it was already broad daylight. As he exited, he saw Professor Langdon and Sophie waiting for him.
"Are you alright, William?" Langdon asked.
William smiled and nodded, saying, "I'm fine, Professor. Were you waiting for me specifically?"
"Of course. Let's go get some breakfast and talk," Sophie said.
"Alright."
The group found a restaurant, ordered breakfast, and began to eat. When they were almost finished, Langdon and Sophie exchanged glances, and then Langdon nodded to Sophie. "William, may I ask you, does your Devonshire family have any other clues about the Holy Grail?"
William looked unhappily at Professor Langdon and Sophie. These two just wouldn't quit! After everything that happened last night, they still wanted to continue searching for the Holy Grail. He said impatiently, "The killer has been found, and revenge has been taken. Why are you still looking for the Holy Grail?"
"No, my grandfather died because of the Holy Grail. I want to find it and see what it truly is," Sophie said stubbornly. "Besides, I'm suspended now, so I have plenty of time to look."
William was annoyed just seeing Sophie. He turned to Professor Langdon, who looked a bit embarrassed under William's gaze. "If I don't find it, I won't be able to sleep. I want to see if what Teabing said was true. This could help us understand what really happened in history, and it has immense value in archaeological research."
William would be crazy to get entangled with these two do-gooders again. Wasn't the frustration from a few hours ago enough? He said without thinking, "No."
Sophie's face fell when she saw William refuse so quickly. She said, "You must know something. William, if the three of us search together, it will be easier. We are the best partners, don't leave us out."
William shook his head definitively. If it weren't for you two, I would have already taken care of that albino. You're just getting in the way. You two should just be ordinary people, don't hinder me.
However, it turned out that their blunders had some unexpected benefits. If it weren't for these two, Teabing wouldn't have been exposed so quickly. So William, with a sincere tone, spoke nonsense:
"If I knew, I wouldn't have come to France to find Professor Jacques Saunière. My maternal grandfather didn't leave me any clues. He only told me in his will to find Professor Jacques Saunière, saying the professor would tell me everything. But you all know what happened next: the professor's death and the destruction of the keystone. This secret is forever taken to the grave. I'm sorry, I can't help."
Langdon and Sophie also knew that William was telling the truth. The two shook their heads helplessly. After breakfast, the three parted ways. Langdon was going to the American Consulate, and Sophie drove Langdon.
William smiled as he saw off these two troublesome people. He could tell they had feelings for each other now, but hadn't explicitly acknowledged them. It would be nice if they ended up together.
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