The building was a large chateau that was the home of a British Knight named Leigh Teabing. Thus far the police didn't know why the convicts, Sophie Neveu and Robert Langdon had chosen Chateau Villette but it seemed logical to conclude that with it's vastness the criminals had chosen it as a good place to steal money enough to run from the police. Fortunately for the police, they had had a breakthrough in the form of armoured truck driver Andre Vernet who had activated a tracking device attached to a truck Langdon and Neveu had stolen from him and so the criminals had unwittingly led the police straight to their hideout. The police therefore were in a very advantageous position; they had the element of surprise.

An iron gate stood before a drive and a 6 foot wall wound around a vast expanse of crisp grass, dewy in the night air. The gate was closed and showed no sign of forced entry and the stolen truck was parked on the drive which implied Langdon and Neveu were permitted entry into the chateau but this, as the Lieutenant had suggested did not rule out the possibility that the residents were now hostages, Langdon and Neveu could have gained entry and then taken them hostage. The uncertainty of the safety of the possible hostages meant urgency for the police to quickly gain access and detain Langdon and Neveu. However this urgency could not be seen in the team of police officers outside who although in position to close in on the culprits seemed to be waiting for something before moving.

The entire unit waiting outside the chateau seemed to be holding a mutual tense breath of anticipation. They had been in position for the past five minutes but they had been told that they were not to move until the arrival of the Captain, Fache and unfortunately no one knew how long this might be. Police Officer Rachel Ulliel was wracked with nerves; she could feel the weight of the gun on her belt. She hated guns; she only ever held a gun when required as part of the job. Her breathing was slow and deliberate; she was trying to steady her nerves. They'd been waiting for far too long. Why hadn't they made their move? They only had a limited time where they could retain their element of surprise and they were watching it fade into the distance. She couldn't restrain herself and she turned to the Lieutenant.

"Why is it taking so long?" She demanded. Her voice was authoritive, above her station; she had a tendency of speaking above her position, a tendency which made her quite unpopular with a lot of senior staff.

"No movement until we have word." The Lieutenant replied, he sounded uninterested in Rachel, as though he'd been expecting her question, "Captain's Orders."

"Screw the Captain," Rachel muttered, feeling increasingly anxious and annoyed, everyone here knew it was in their best interests to move sooner rather than later but they were all waiting around like sitting ducks.

"What was that Officer?" The Lieutenant barked.

"Nothing Sir," Rachel said, quickly averting her gaze back to the Chateau, inwardly scowling.

"Good. I expect my team to respect their Captains Orders," The Lieutenant continued.

Rachel said nothing but felt hot anger rising to her cheeks. She did not respect her Captains orders. Her Captains orders were given because her Captain wanted the credit of a high profile arrest and was willing to risk letting the convicts flee again in the process.

"Officer?" The Lieutenant pressed, "Do you respect your Captains Orders?"

"Yes Sir." Rachel said, without conviction, leaning back as to see the time in the force car, another two minutes gone. "How long Sir?"

"Officer, I have already made it quite…" Lieutenant Collet started but he was interrupted by the crackle of the radio on his belt, he swiftly detached the radio and clicked the transmission button; immediately a familiar rough voice barked orders in rapid French. Lieutenant Collet looked as though he were going to say something but before he had opened his mouth the transmission was over. He looked irritated but professional as he fixed the radio back onto his belt and resumed his watch over the Chateau.

"Sir?" Rachel asked, when Collet didn't say anything, "Do we move?"

"No," Collet said, although he looked displeased, "We wait for Captain Fache."

"We wait?" Rachel spat, anger bubbling in the pit of her stomach at Fache's pride, "This is ridiculous, every second we wait is a second we waste!"

"Officer," Collet began with an air of professional calm.

"Lieutenant Collet, Fache wants a big arrest, he wants the credit and he'll risk losing them for it."

"Officer," Collet repeated, he looked irritated already and even more displeased by Rachel's outburst.

"We should make our move or we'll lose them!" Rachel continued, apparently oblivious to how much she was riling the Lieutenant.

"Officer Ulliel!" Collet growled, he was tired, annoyed at Fache's pride and irritated by Ulliel's assumption that he was not every bit as anxious as she was to make their move, "Step down Officer Ulliel, take ten minutes and come back when you're ready to take orders."

"But Sir," Rachel began to argue.

"Now Ulliel," Collet commanded. Rachel scowled and opened her mouth but seemingly realised that she'd get no where by arguing and moodily disappeared around the wall, lighting a cigarette.

Collet held a certain distaste for Rachel Ulliel. As far as Collet was concerned Ulliel was too big for her boots. On more that one occasion Collet had witnessed Ulliel going against orders and risking entire operations but the fortunate rookie had always managed avoiding her job. It was true enough that some of her convictions had turned out well, Collet had reaped the benefits of being the leading officer on those cases and apparently this had been enough to save her neck professionally but she had been responsible for more than her fair share of near misses and this infuriated him for the most part when she was not a benefit to him. He was comforted by the fact that his head was a safe distance from the guillotine when it came to the protection of Ulliel. Although he had made moves to protect her career on occasions, the majority of times she'd escaped with her career had not been due to him and he was usually able to avoid working with her. He breathed a sigh of relief with the knowledge that he'd sent her to calm down and so far she'd followed his orders. He turned his attention now to focusing on the issue at hand, waiting for Fache and catching Langdon and Neveu.

Rachel Ulliel was rushing across the back garden of Château Villette, using her police training to conceal herself in the shadows as much as she could to avoid detection from both her targets and her co-workers. Moments before she had thrown the butt of her cigarette to the floor and climbed over the wall, throwing herself onto the lawn. She had acted on impulse, Langdon and Neveu had already outwitted the police twice tonight and she was sure that if the team beyond the fence just stood around waiting for Fache there would be no need for Langdon and Neveu to outwit them again, they'd be letting them go. She was positive that Fache would see that the successful capture of the pair was better for his reputation than another bundled attempt resulting in their escape. They could even just remand Langdon and Neveu until Fache got there and he could make the arrest himself but she'd be damned if she was going to let Fache's pride get in the way of the arrest of two murderers. Of course Lieutenant Collet may throw other reasons at them as to why they should wait but Fache was sure they had their man, sure of Langdon's guilt and Neveu had helped him escape so she too was obviously involved. There was no doubt in Ulliel's mind that her actions were for the best for the investigation and as she reached the lit room, the voices she heard from within confirmed she was right. She had them.