Disclaimer: The DaVinci Code characters and premise belong to Dan Brown, and the movieverse world belongs to someone else as well.

A/N: The beliefs stated in this piece are not mine. Rather, they are what I perceive to be the beliefs of the characters.

SEATBELT

I do not remember the accident.

It might be because I was six at the time, or perhaps because grand-mère always let me see the pictures of my family – but Sophie looks so like mère. Though her smile sparkles with a mischief and sincerity I recognize from still portraits of père's face.

I have always known how my family died. Until I was eighteen, grand-mère would not tell me why. And it was not until today I learned that my little sister had survived as well.

I watch her part with her Knight – for that is what he is, and all the Priory knows and believes it though he might not – with a chaste kiss. The man is honorable – and though my sister has been shot at, and almost had her throat cut, he has protected her above all else during their journey. He has my gratitude, and a debt that I may never be able to pay. He has been hurt as well during this quest, though it is less obvious to see.

I step away from the crowd. "Sophie?"

I see the first hints of confusion on her face as she stares at me. It is almost a whisper, but it brings tears to my eyes. "David?"

I all but crush her in my arms; she hugs me just as fiercely. "I didn't know," I choke out. "I swear, Sophie, I didn't know." If I had, I would have looked – and with all the resources of the Priory behind me, I would have succeeded.

Of us all, all the Priory who have become like family, I think only grand-mère knew until Jacob recognized her in Rosslyn Chapel. I found out only this morning what was occurring in France; how far Opus Dei had come in one short night. Too close.

We pull back, and she smiles at me, blurry through tears in my eyes and hers. "I know."

I inspect the cut on her neck where the tip of a knife drew blood. "Are you alright?"

"Tired," Sophie smiles up at me. "A little hungry." They'd been traveling – running – for over a day. Purple smudges lurked under deep brown eyes identical to my own.

Later, after Sophie's cuts had been tended to, and she curled into one of grand-mère's overstuffed chairs with a mug of hot soup, we had the chance to speak more. About what had happened after the incident that had taken our parents from us. We both knew better than to believe it hadn't been purposefully orchestrated. But we were safe in false death.

I had been raised with grand-mère, knowing who and what I was. Sophie was more ready to believe than I had been; I had doubted our grandmother's word for years. Until today, if I was utterly honest.

But I was no longer alone. In the sleepy woman in the chair beside me, I had finally found my blood family. And I thanked God that we had worn our seatbelts that day.

Fin

A/N: Be on the lookout for the sequel (much longer!), Vanishing Night. My bio as always has the pertinent info.