He walked across to the house with forced briskness6, struck a match and hunted through several grimy scrawls7 on mailboxes before Michaelis' name came to him. Number 8.
The main entrance was unlocked. The hall, dusty in threadbare carpeting, held dim electric bulbs. He heard noises through some of the doors, and smelled stale cooking. A glance told him Number 8 must be upstairs. He climbed, only now starting to wonder just how he planned to do his errand.
Or what his errand was, if it came to that.
Bruce had never spoken much to him of Gene9 Michaelis. They had been children together on the waterfront. Bruce was a year younger, doubtless a quiet bookish sort, teacher's pet, even then—but apparently10 unaffected by it, so that he was not disliked. Still, he must have been lonely. And Gene was a rough-and-tumble fisherman's son. Nevertheless, one of those odd fierce boy-friendships had existed between them. Bruce had probably dominated it, without either of them realizing the fact.
In time they drifted apart. Gene had left high school at sixteen, Bruce had said, after some whoopdedo involving a girl; he had tramped since then, dock walloper, fry cook, bouncer, salesman—he found it easy to lie about his age. Now and then he revisited the Bay Area. His return from Navy service had been last summer, when Kintyre was still in Europe; Kintyre had never actually met him. Gene had looked up Bruce in Berkeley, and through Bruce renewed an acquaintance with Corinna, and after that Gene had moved over to San Francisco.
Number 8. Kintyre heard television bray11 through the thin panels. He looked at his watch. Past ten o'clock. Oh, hell, let's play by ear. He knocked.
Feet shuffled12 inside. The door opened. Kintyre looked slightly upward, into a lined heavy face with a thick hook nose and small black eyes and a gray bristle13 of hair. The man had shoulders like a Mack truck, and there wasn't much of a belly14 on him yet. He wore faded work clothes. The smell of cheap wine was thick around him.
"What do you want?" he said.
"Mr. Michaelis? My name's Kintyre. I'd like to talk to you for a few minutes."
"We're not buying any, and if you're from the finance company you can—" Michaelis completed the suggestion.
"Neither," said Kintyre mildly. "Call me a sort of ambassador."
Puzzled, Michaelis stood aside. Kintyre walked into a one-room apartment with a curtained-off cooking area. A wall bed was opened out, unmade. There were a few chairs, a table with a half-empty gallon of red ink on it, a television set, a tobacco haze15, much dust and many old newspapers on the floor.
Gene Michaelis occupied a decaying armchair. He was a young, black-haired version of his father, and would have been rather handsome if he smiled. He wore flannel16 pajamas17 which had not been washed for some time. His legs stuck rigidly18 out before him, ending in shoes whose heels rested on the floor. Two canes20 leaned within reach. He was smoking, drinking wine, and watching the screen; he did not stop when Kintyre entered.
"I'm sorry the place is such a mess," said Peter Michaelis. He spoke8 fast, with an alcoholic21 slur22. "It's kind of hard. My wife's dead, and my son has to live with me and he can't do nothing. When I get home from looking for work, all day looking for a job, I'm too tired to clean up." He made vague dusting motions over a chair. "Siddown. Drink?"
"No, thanks." Kintyre lowered himself. "I came—"
"I was already down in the world when this happened last year," said Michaelis. "I owned my own boat once. Yes, I did. The Ruthie M. But then she got sunk, and there wasn't enough insurance to get another, and well, I ended up as a deckhand again. Me, who'd owned my own boat." He sat and blinked muzzily at his guest.
"I'm sorry to hear that. But—"
"Then my wife died. Then my son come back from the Navy, and got himself hurt real bad. Both legs gone, above the knees. It took all the money I had to pay the doctors. I quit work to take care of my son. He was in a bad way. When he got so he could look after himself a little, I went looking for my job back, only I didn't get it. And since then I haven't found nothing."
"Well," said Kintyre, "there's the welfare, and rehabilitation—"
Gene turned around and said a short obscenity.
"That's what they'll do for you," he added. "They found me a job basket weaving. Basket weaving! Kee-rist, I was a gunner's mate in the Navy. Basket weaving!"
"I'm a Navy man myself," ventured Kintyre. "Or was, after Pearl Harbor. Destroyers."
"What rank were you? A brown-nosing officer, I'll bet."
"Well—"
"I'm sorry," muttered his father. "It's not so easy for him, you know. He was as strong and lively a young fellow as you could hope to see. God, six months ago! Now what's he got to do all day?"
"I'm not offended," said Kintyre. I would, in fact, be inclined to take offense24 only at a system of so-called education which has so little discipline left in it that its victims are unable to do more than watch this monkey show when the evil days have come. But that is not of immediate25 relevance26.
"What did you come for?" Peter Michaelis lifted his bull head and his voice crested27: "You know of a job?" He sagged28 back again. "No. No, you wouldn't."
"I'm afraid not," said Kintyre. "I came as—I came to help you in another way." Maledetto! How much like Norman Vincent Peale is one man allowed to sound? But I can't think of anything else.
"You know the Lombardi family, of course."
"Have you heard that the son, Bruce, is dead?"
"Uh-huh," said Gene. He turned down the sound of his program and added with a certain pleasure: "Looks like there's some justice in the world after all."
"Now, wait," began Kintyre.
Gene turned more fully31 to face the visitor. His eyes narrowed. "What have you got to do with them?" he asked.
"I knew Bruce. I thought—"
"Sure. You thought he was God's little bare-bottomed baby angel. I know. Everybody does. It took a long time to get down past all those layers of holy grease on him. I did."
"You know what the old man done to me?" shouted Peter Michaelis. "He rammed32 me. Sent my boat to the bottom in 1945. He murdered two of my crew. They drowned. I could of been drowned myself!"
Kintyre remembered Bruce's account. A freakish, sudden fog had been blown down a strong wind. Such impossibilities do happen now and then. The boats blundered together and sank. The Coast Guard inquiry33 found it an act of God; Michaelis tried to sue, but the case was thrown out of court. Then, for the sake of their sons, Peter and Angelo made a grudging34 peace.
What had happened lately must have brought all the old bitterness back, with a dozen years' interest added.
"Shut up," said Gene. He was drunk too, Kintyre saw, but cold drunk, in control of everything except his emotions. "Shut up, Pete. It was an accident. Why should he ruin his own business?"
"Look here," said Kintyre, not very truthfully. "I'm a neutral party. I didn't have to come around here, and there's nothing in it for me. But will you listen?"
"If you'll listen too," said Gene. He poured himself another glass. "Huh. I know what the Lombardis been telling you about me. Let me tell you about them."
Somewhere in the back of Kintyre's mind, a thin little warning whistle blew. He grabbed the arms of his chair and hung on tight. There was no time now to add up reasons why; he knew only that if he let Gene talk freely about Corinna, there was going to be trouble.
"Never mind," he said coldly. "I'm not interested in that aspect. I came here because I don't think you murdered Bruce Lombardi and the police may think you did."
That stopped them. Peter Michaelis looked up, his face turning a drained color. Gene puckered36 his lips, snapped them together, and went blank of expression. His dark gaze did not waver from Kintyre's, and he said quite steadily37: "What are you getting at?"
"Bruce was called over to the City by someone last Saturday evening," said Kintyre. "His body was found Monday morning. You know very well that if you'd called him, offering to patch up the quarrel, he'd have come like a shot. Where were you two this weekend?"
"Why—" Peter Michaelis' voice wobbled. "I was home all day Saturday—housework. Went out for a drink at night—church Sunday morning, yeah, then came back for a nap. Hey, I played pinochle down in front of the warehouse38 that evening with—" His words trailed off.
"Nobody glanced in, then?" asked Kintyre. "No one who could verify that Bruce wasn't lying bound and gagged?"
"Why—I—"
"Hey!" Gene Michaelis surged to his feet. It was a single swinging leap, propelled upward by his arms. His aluminum39 legs spraddled, seeking clumsily for a foothold. Somehow he got one of his canes and leaned on it.
Can I tell you that I don't know? thought Kintyre. Can I tell you I'm here because a girl I'd scarcely seen before now wanted me to come?
Hardly.
He leaned back with strained casualness and said: "I want to make peace between your two families. Call it a gesture toward Bruce. I admit I liked him. And he never stopped liking41 you, Gene.
"If you keep on spewing hatred42 at the Lombardis as you have been, the police are going to get very interested in your weekend. Where were you?"
"I take it you weren't home, then."
"No, I was not. If you want to ask any more, let's see your Junior G-man badge."
Kintyre sighed. "All right." He stood up. "I'll go. The cops won't be so obliging, if you don't cooperate with them."
He looked past Gene, to the window. It was a hole into total blackness. He wondered if that had been the last sight Bruce saw—of all this earth of majesty44, a single smeared45 window opening on the dark.
"I didn't do it," said Gene. "We didn't." He showed his teeth. "But I say three cheers for whoever did. I'd like to get the lot of 'em here, that sister now—"
"Hold on!" The violence of his tone shivered Kintyre's skull46. Afterward47 it was a wonder to him, how rage had leaped up.
Gene swayed for a moment. An unpleasant twisting went along his lips. Beside Kintyre, the father also rose, massive and watchful48.
"So you'd like some of that too, would you?" said Gene. "You won't get it. She's only a whore inside. Outside, she's like a goddam nun49. You know what we call that kind where I come from? Pri—"
"I'm going," said Kintyre harshly. "I prefer to be among men."
Unthinkingly, he had chosen the crudest cut. He saw that at once. A physical creature like Gene Michaelis, whose sexual exploits must have been his one wall against every hidden inadequacy50, must now be feeling nearly unmanned.
It could have been a head-smashing blow. Kintyre stepped from it and it jarred against the floor. The cane broke across. Gene rocked forward on his artificial legs, his hands reaching out for Kintyre's throat.
Kintyre planted himself passively, waiting. He didn't want to hit a cripple. Nor would fists be much use against all that bone and meat.
As Gene lunged, Kintyre slipped a few inches to one side, so the clutching arm went above his shoulder. He took it in his hands, his knee helped the great body along, and Gene Michaelis crashed into the wall.
As the cloud of plaster exploded, Kintyre saw the old man attack. Peter Michaelis was still as strong as a wild ox, and as wrathful.
Kintyre could have killed him with no trouble.
Kintyre had no wish to. Anyone could be driven berserk, given enough low-grade alcohol on top of enough wretchedness. He waited again, until the fisherman's fist came about in a round-house swing. There was time enough for a judo51 man to get out of the way, catch that arm, spin the opponent halfway52 around, and send him on his way. It would have been more scientific to throttle53 him unconscious, but that would have taken a few seconds and Gene was crawling back to his feet.
"Let's call it a day," said Kintyre. "I'm not after a fight."
"You—filthy—bastard." Gene tottered54 erect. Blood ran down one side of his mouth; the breath sobbed55 in and out of him; but he came.
On the way he picked up the other cane.
He tried to jab with it. Kintyre took it away from him. As simple as that—let the stick's own motion carry it out of the opponent's hand. Gene bellowed56 and fell. Kintyre rapped him lightly on the head, to discourage him.
Someone was pounding on the door. "What's going on in there? Hey, what's going on?"
"I recommend you cooperate with the police," said Kintyre. "Wherever you were this weekend, Gene, tell them. They'll find out eventually."
He opened the window, went through, and hung for a moment by his hands. Father and son were sitting up, not much damaged. Kintyre straightened his elbows and let go. It wasn't too long a drop to the street, if you knew how to land.
He went to his car and got in. There was no especial sense of victory within him: a growing dark feeling of his own momentum57, perhaps. He had to keep moving, the horror was not yet asleep.
All right, Corinna, he thought as the motor whirred to life. It was a bit childish, but he was not in any normal state. I did your job. Now I'll do one for myself.
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1
wharf
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| n.码头，停泊处 | |
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authentic
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| a.真的，真正的；可靠的，可信的，有根据的 | |
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tenement
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| n.公寓；房屋 | |
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rattle
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| v.飞奔，碰响；激怒；n.碰撞声；拨浪鼓 | |
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battered
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| adj.磨损的；v.连续猛击；磨损 | |
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briskness
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| n.敏捷，活泼 | |
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7
scrawls
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| 潦草的笔迹( scrawl的名词复数 ) | |
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8
spoke
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| n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说 | |
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9
gene
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| n.遗传因子，基因 | |
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apparently
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| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
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bray
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| n.驴叫声, 喇叭声；v.驴叫 | |
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12
shuffled
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| v.洗（纸牌）( shuffle的过去式和过去分词 )；拖着脚步走；粗心地做；摆脱尘世的烦恼 | |
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13
bristle
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| v.（毛发）直立，气势汹汹，发怒；n.硬毛发 | |
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14
belly
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| n.肚子，腹部；(像肚子一样)鼓起的部分，膛 | |
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15
haze
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| n.霾，烟雾；懵懂，迷糊；vi.(over)变模糊 | |
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16
flannel
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| n.法兰绒；法兰绒衣服 | |
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pajamas
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| n.睡衣裤 | |
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rigidly
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| adv.刻板地，僵化地 | |
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cane
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| n.手杖，细长的茎，藤条；v.以杖击，以藤编制的 | |
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canes
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| n.（某些植物，如竹或甘蔗的）茎( cane的名词复数 )；（用于制作家具等的）竹竿；竹杖 | |
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21
alcoholic
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| adj.（含）酒精的，由酒精引起的；n.酗酒者 | |
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slur
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| v.含糊地说；诋毁；连唱；n.诋毁；含糊的发音 | |
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23
brass
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| n.黄铜；黄铜器，铜管乐器 | |
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offense
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| n.犯规，违法行为；冒犯，得罪 | |
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immediate
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| adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的 | |
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relevance
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| n.中肯，适当，关联，相关性 | |
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27
crested
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| adj.有顶饰的，有纹章的，有冠毛的v.到达山顶（或浪峰）( crest的过去式和过去分词 )；到达洪峰，达到顶点 | |
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28
sagged
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| 下垂的 | |
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erect
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| n./v.树立，建立，使竖立；adj.直立的，垂直的 | |
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30
spat
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| n.口角，掌击；v.发出呼噜呼噜声 | |
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fully
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| adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地 | |
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32
rammed
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| v.夯实（土等）( ram的过去式和过去分词 )；猛撞；猛压；反复灌输 | |
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33
inquiry
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| n.打听，询问，调查，查问 | |
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34
grudging
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| adj.勉强的，吝啬的 | |
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35
mumbled
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| 含糊地说某事，叽咕，咕哝( mumble的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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36
puckered
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| v.（使某物）起褶子或皱纹( pucker的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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37
steadily
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| adv.稳定地；不变地；持续地 | |
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38
warehouse
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| n.仓库；vt.存入仓库 | |
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39
aluminum
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| n.(aluminium)铝 | |
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40
snarled
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| v.（指狗）吠，嗥叫， （人）咆哮( snarl的过去式和过去分词 )；咆哮着说，厉声地说 | |
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41
liking
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| n.爱好；嗜好；喜欢 | |
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42
hatred
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| n.憎恶，憎恨，仇恨 | |
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43
hunched
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| （常指因寒冷、生病或愁苦）耸肩弓身的，伏首前倾的 | |
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44
majesty
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| n.雄伟，壮丽，庄严，威严；最高权威，王权 | |
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45
smeared
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| 弄脏； 玷污； 涂抹； 擦上 | |
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skull
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| n.头骨；颅骨 | |
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47
afterward
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| adv.后来；以后 | |
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watchful
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| adj.注意的，警惕的 | |
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49
nun
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| n.修女，尼姑 | |
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50
inadequacy
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| n.无法胜任，信心不足 | |
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51
judo
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| n.柔道 | |
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52
halfway
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| adj.中途的，不彻底的，部分的；adv.半路地，在中途，在半途 | |
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53
throttle
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| n.节流阀，节气阀，喉咙；v.扼喉咙，使窒息，压 | |
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54
tottered
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| v.走得或动得不稳( totter的过去式和过去分词 )；踉跄；蹒跚；摇摇欲坠 | |
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55
sobbed
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| 哭泣，啜泣( sob的过去式和过去分词 )； 哭诉，呜咽地说 | |
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56
bellowed
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| v.发出吼叫声，咆哮（尤指因痛苦）( bellow的过去式和过去分词 )；（愤怒地）说出（某事），大叫 | |
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57
momentum
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| n.动力，冲力，势头；动量 | |
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