Summary: At the Church of Saint-Sulpice, Silas knocks on the door to gain admittance, certain that “the Keystone” awaits him on the inside.
Analysis: This brief chapter does not advance the plot much, but it does add another dimension to readers’ understanding of Silas as a character. We learn that, for a decade, he has “denied himself all sexual indulgence” (p. 79). While Supernumerary members of Opus Dei are not required to take vows of celibacy, Numerary members (as Silas is) are. For the novel’s purposes, Silas’ abstinence is one more way in which he sees himself as making sacrifices in order to “do the work of God” (a translation of the Spanish on p. 80).
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