CHAPTER XII. DISAFFECTION.

 Collins and Van both arose eagerly at this.

 

The detective’s blood surged hotly through his veins¹.

 

“The unconscionable scoundrels!” he muttered under his breath. “They are human fiends.”

 

And in that moment the old detective rejoiced that their would-be victim was beyond their reach.

 

But he was conscious of his own perilous² position.

 

If the trio of villains³ went to Evelyn’s prison cell to commit the contemplated⁴ horrible crime of murder, her escape would be discovered.

 

But the old detective was only temporarily alarmed.

 

He reckoned that it would be very soon time for Harry⁵ to return from Paine’s with assistance.

 

Certainly escape would be a difficult matter for the villains.

 

The snow was too deep to admit of their making very rapid progress if they attempted to leave the asylum⁷.

 

The trio of villains had arisen for the purpose of paying a murderous visit to the prison cell of the young girl.

 

But at that moment Scraggs interposed.

 

“Hold on!” he growled⁸. “What are ye going to do?”

 

Burke turned and stared at him.

 

“You heard the agreement.”

 

“Well, you can’t kill the girl in this house. I object to that!”

 

“Thunder!” ejaculated Burke. “What has come over you?”

 

“That’s what has come over me,” said Dr. Scraggs, coolly.

 

“You are blocking our plans.”

 

“I don’t care if I am. This is my house and I am boss here!”

 

There was an ominous⁹ silence.

 

The trio looked ugly and Collins glared at the asylum keeper.

 

“You’re a cursed traitor¹⁰!”

 

“No, I am not!”

 

“Then what’s the matter with ye?”

 

“I’m not going to have any murder in my house, that’s all! I don’t care a picayune what you do with the girl, but you can’t kill her here. Do you see?”

 

“Humph!” exclaimed Burke. “You’re mighty¹¹ particular. It’s an easy job. There’ll be no blood stains. We’ll just shut her windpipe and she can be carried out for a dead patient. See?”

 

But Scraggs was obdurate¹².

 

“I don’t care!” he said. “It’s not going to be done here. That ends it.”

 

All this while Blood had been silent. Now he said:

 

“Well, I don’t blame Scraggs for that, boys. This asylum is his way of making a living. If any scandal arose out of this place it would put him out of business.”

 

“That’s it,” agreed Scraggs. “Them’s my reasons an’ nothin’ more nor less.”

 

“Well,” said Burke, in a mollified way, “if that’s the way of it perhaps you’re right.”

 

“We can fix that!” said Collins.

 

“How?”

 

“To-morrow we’ll take her away in a sleigh. A few miles from here is the Assabet river. We can dump her in under the ice and if she’s ever found it won’t be until Spring, anyway.”

 

“Good!” cried Blood. “That is the best way to work it. No need of having any hard feelings.”

 

“I haven’t any feelings about it,” said Burke. “So we’ll put it off until morning. One more drink, gents.”

 

Brandy was decanted¹³ and the party drank freely.

 

All this while Old King Brady had listened with deep interest.

 

23

Now that the fate of Evelyn Grimm had been settled, other matters came in for discussion.

 

Burke laughed uproariously.

 

“Haw! Haw!” he guffawed¹⁴. “Every detective in this country thinks the girl was burned up in Fifteenth street.”

 

“Everybody else does, for that matter,” said Blood.

 

“We led ’em astray easy enough. The poor woman who was burned up there though——”

 

“Sh!” exclaimed Van, with a frightful¹⁵ contortion¹⁶ of the face. “Let thet rest.”

 

“Oh, it’s a tender subject with you, Old Bluebeard. How many more wives have you burned up ther same way?”

 

“Curse you, shut up!” growled Van, savagely¹⁷. “I had to shut her mouth. She was false and would have betrayed the whole gang of us sooner or later.”

 

“Never mind that,” said Scraggs, “I am interested in those accursed detectives. You say a couple of them chased you as far as Lexington?”

 

“Yes,” agreed Burke.

 

“Do you know who they were?”

 

“I do!” said Van. “For I’m the man they chased. Curse ’em! They are the Bradys of New York!”

 

“They are on our list,” said Collins. “We’ll trap them.”

 

“They must die!”

 

“Well,” growled Scraggs, “I don’t want them to get their eyes on my place here. I’ve too much at stake. See?”

 

“Ain’t you with us?”

 

“Of course!”

 

“Then you’ve got to take chances.”

 

“But there’s no need of being so reckless.”

 

“Oh, don’t fret¹⁸, we can handle the Bradys all right! Hello! What the deuce is that?”

 

A wild, animal-like cry came down the stairs.

 

Old King Brady crouched¹⁹ back in the shadows just in time.

 

A dark form rushed past him. The next moment Isaac, the keeper, sprang into the reception room.

 

He was wildly excited.

 

“Quick!” he shouted. “They have got her! She is gone! She is gone, I tell you!”

 

Wildly threshing his arms about him he made the circuit of the room.

 

Van caught him by the shoulder.

 

“What are ye talkin’ about, ye cursed hyena²⁰?” he yelled. “Speak plain! What’s wrong?”

 

“Oh, the girl! She’s gone!”

 

“Gone?” echoed all.

 

“Yes.”

 

“Where?”

 

“I don’t know. The two countrymen slipped a bar out of the cell door and they’re gone, too!”

 

Fierce exclamations²¹ filled the room. Van hurled²² the unfortunate keeper to the floor.

 

“You cursed traitorous²³ dog!” he yelled, drawing a knife. “I’ll kill you for this!”

 

He flung himself forward and that moment might indeed have been the keeper’s last.

 

But Scraggs forced the ruffian back.

 

“Hold on!” he growled. “Hear the man’s story first. I’ve always found him true.”

 

“Oh, I swear it!” cried Isaac. “I left the door securely barred. Come and see for yourself. They were asleep before I left them.”

 

“Come on then, you dog!” hissed²⁴ Van. “If I find you’ve lied, you shall die!”

 

Up the stairs all now rushed.

 

They found the prison cell of the girl captive empty.

 

A brief examination told the whole story.

 

The tracks on the fire-escape and the snow beneath told all.

 

Fury and fear alike overwhelmed the villains.

 

Their consternation²⁵ was great.

 

“We’ve been fooled!” cried Burke, savagely. “I tell ye it was a game!”

 

“Them two Rubes weren’t what we thought they were.”

 

Martin brought his hands forcibly together.

 

“Curse it!” he cried. “We had the game right in our hands and didn’t know it. Them two jays were our men!”

 

“The Bradys?”

 

“Yes.”

 

“They fooled us!”

 

As this conviction dawned upon the villains their fury was beyond expression. Words cannot depict²⁶ it.

 

But Scraggs was sour.

 

“Confound you for coming here at all!” he growled. “Why didn’t you lead those detectives somewhere else?”

 

“We thought this the best place,” said Van. “If things had worked the way I thought they would——”

 

“But they didn’t!” snapped Scraggs. “What are you going to do about it?”

 

“That’s the idea!” cried Van. “We are gaining nothin’ hyar. We ought to chase ’em.”

 

“Chase ’em!” said Burke. “In this snow?”

 

“We ought to git along just as well as they kin⁶!”

 

“You fergit.”

 

“What?”

 

“They have snowshoes.”

 

“Wall, git snowshoes, then, for us. I say, Scraggs, have ye such a thing?”

 

“No!” replied the asylum keeper. “What do you take me for? I’m no keeper of a logging camp.”

 

“No, nor anything else!” snapped Burke, viciously. “But if we can’t do any better we must wade²⁷.”

 

“That would be a fool’s game,” said the asylum keeper. “They can go four steps to your one on snowshoes.”

 

“Curse the luck! They can’t go far on such a night.”

 

“Ten miles would put ’em beyond your reach.”

 

“Wall, suggest a plan then,” growled Burke. “I’m sick of it.”

 

“So am I!” snapped Scraggs. “I wish I’d never seen you or your girl. This will be my ruin.”

 

“You’re awful afraid of being ruined,” said Blood, angrily. “I’ve paid you good money, Anthony Scraggs!”

 

“And you’re making a fugitive²⁸ from justice of me, the same as yourself.”

 

24

“Well, you ought to be. You’re the worst shark of us all.”

 

Old King Brady listened to all this wrangling²⁹ with much edification.

 

The old detective was exultant³⁰.

 

Certainly he had reason to be.

 

In a short while the asylum would be surrounded by armed men and the birds would be in limbo³¹.

 

The great case would be won.

 

Old King Brady could hardly contain himself.

 

He listened intently for some distant sound of the return of Harry. But time passed.

 

The crooks³² did not attempt a pursuit.

 

They abandoned it as impracticable. But they were alive fully³³ to the exigencies³⁴ of the moment.

 

It had been decided³⁵ to let the girl go without any effort to recapture her.

 

The trio would trudge³⁶ the best way they could through the snow to a distant railway station.

 

Blood was to remain in the asylum with Scraggs.

 

“I can hide you where nobody will ever find you,” said the proprietor³⁷ of the asylum. “So have no fears.”

 

Old King Brady listened to all this with some misgiving³⁸. Would his men slip him after all?

 

1 veins   

n.纹理；矿脉( vein的名词复数 )；静脉；叶脉；纹理

参考例句：

• The blood flows from the capillaries back into the veins. 血从毛细血管流回静脉。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I felt a pleasant glow in all my veins from the wine. 喝过酒后我浑身的血都热烘烘的，感到很舒服。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 perilous   

adj.危险的，冒险的

参考例句：

• The journey through the jungle was perilous.穿过丛林的旅行充满了危险。
• We have been carried in safety through a perilous crisis.历经一连串危机，我们如今已安然无恙。

3 villains   

n.恶棍( villain的名词复数 )；罪犯；（小说、戏剧等中的）反面人物；淘气鬼

参考例句：

• The impression of villains was inescapable. 留下恶棍的印象是不可避免的。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Some villains robbed the widow of the savings. 有几个歹徒将寡妇的积蓄劫走了。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

4 contemplated   

adj. 预期的 动词contemplate的过去分词形式

参考例句：

• The doctor contemplated the difficult operation he had to perform. 医生仔细地考虑他所要做的棘手的手术。
• The government has contemplated reforming the entire tax system. 政府打算改革整个税收体制。

5 harry   

vt.掠夺，蹂躏，使苦恼

参考例句：

• Today,people feel more hurried and harried.今天，人们感到更加忙碌和苦恼。
• Obama harried business by Healthcare Reform plan.奥巴马用医改掠夺了商界。

6 kin   

n.家族，亲属，血缘关系；adj.亲属关系的，同类的

参考例句：

• He comes of good kin.他出身好。
• She has gone to live with her husband's kin.她住到丈夫的亲戚家里去了。

7 asylum   

n.避难所，庇护所，避难

参考例句：

• The people ask for political asylum.人们请求政治避难。
• Having sought asylum in the West for many years,they were eventually granted it.他们最终获得了在西方寻求多年的避难权。

8 growled   

v.（动物）发狺狺声， （雷）作隆隆声( growl的过去式和过去分词 )；低声咆哮着说

参考例句：

• \"They ought to be birched, \" growled the old man. 老人咆哮道：“他们应受到鞭打。” 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He growled out an answer. 他低声威胁着回答。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 ominous   

adj.不祥的，不吉的，预兆的，预示的

参考例句：

• Those black clouds look ominous for our picnic.那些乌云对我们的野餐来说是个不祥之兆。
• There was an ominous silence at the other end of the phone.电话那头出现了不祥的沉默。

10 traitor   

n.叛徒，卖国贼

参考例句：

• The traitor was finally found out and put in prison.那个卖国贼终于被人发现并被监禁了起来。
• He was sold out by a traitor and arrested.他被叛徒出卖而被捕了。

11 mighty   

adj.强有力的；巨大的

参考例句：

• A mighty force was about to break loose.一股巨大的力量即将迸发而出。
• The mighty iceberg came into view.巨大的冰山出现在眼前。

12 obdurate   

adj.固执的，顽固的

参考例句：

• He is obdurate in his convictions.他执着于自己所坚信的事。
• He remained obdurate,refusing to alter his decision.他依然固执己见，拒不改变决定。

13 decanted   

v.将（酒等）自瓶中倒入另一容器( decant的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Afterwards the aqueous solution from above the nitroglycerine was decanted. 然后倒出硝化甘油之上的水溶液。 来自辞典例句
• The coated particles are centrifuged and the liquid decanted. 将包覆的颗粒进行离心，除去液体。 来自辞典例句

14 guffawed   

v.大笑，狂笑( guffaw的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• They all guffawed at his jokes. 他们听了他的笑话都一阵狂笑。
• Hung-chien guffawed and said, "I deserve a scolding for that! 鸿渐哈哈大笑道：“我是该骂！ 来自汉英文学 - 围城

15 frightful   

adj.可怕的；讨厌的

参考例句：

• How frightful to have a husband who snores!有一个发鼾声的丈夫多讨厌啊！
• We're having frightful weather these days.这几天天气坏极了。

16 contortion   

n.扭弯，扭歪，曲解

参考例句：

• I had to admire the contortions of the gymnasts.我不得不为这些体操运动员们高难度的扭体动作而赞叹。
• This sentence was spoken with the bitterness of self-upbraiding,and a contortion of visage absolutely demoniacal.这话是用辛辣的自我谴责的口吻说出来的，说话时他的面孔也歪扭得象个地道的魔鬼。

17 savagely   

adv. 野蛮地，残酷地

参考例句：

• The roses had been pruned back savagely. 玫瑰被狠狠地修剪了一番。
• He snarled savagely at her. 他向她狂吼起来。

18 fret   

v.(使)烦恼；(使)焦急；(使)腐蚀，(使)磨损

参考例句：

• Don't fret.We'll get there on time.别着急，我们能准时到那里。
• She'll fret herself to death one of these days.她总有一天会愁死的.

19 crouched   

v.屈膝，蹲伏( crouch的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He crouched down beside her. 他在她的旁边蹲了下来。
• The lion crouched ready to pounce. 狮子蹲下身，准备猛扑。

20 hyena   

n.土狼，鬣狗

参考例句：

• African hyena noted for its distinctive howl.非洲鬣狗，以其特别的嚎叫而闻名。
• The hyena's public image is not aided by its ridiculous appearance.鬣狗滑稽的外表无助于改善它在公众心中的形象。

21 exclamations   

n.呼喊( exclamation的名词复数 )；感叹；感叹语；感叹词

参考例句：

• The visitors broke into exclamations of wonder when they saw the magnificent Great Wall. 看到雄伟的长城，游客们惊叹不已。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• After the will has been read out, angry exclamations aroused. 遗嘱宣读完之后，激起一片愤怒的喊声。 来自辞典例句

22 hurled   

v.猛投，用力掷( hurl的过去式和过去分词 )；大声叫骂

参考例句：

• He hurled a brick through the window. 他往窗户里扔了块砖。
• The strong wind hurled down bits of the roof. 大风把屋顶的瓦片刮了下来。 来自《简明英汉词典》

23 traitorous   

adj. 叛国的, 不忠的, 背信弃义的

参考例句：

• All traitorous persons and cliques came to no good end. 所有的叛徒及叛徒集团都没好下场。
• Most of the time I keep such traitorous thoughts to myself. 这种叛逆思想我不大向别人暴露。

24 hissed   

发嘶嘶声( hiss的过去式和过去分词 )； 发嘘声表示反对

参考例句：

• Have you ever been hissed at in the middle of a speech? 你在演讲中有没有被嘘过？
• The iron hissed as it pressed the wet cloth. 熨斗压在湿布上时发出了嘶嘶声。

25 consternation   

n.大为吃惊，惊骇

参考例句：

• He was filled with consternation to hear that his friend was so ill.他听说朋友病得那么厉害，感到非常震惊。
• Sam stared at him in consternation.萨姆惊恐不安地注视着他。

26 depict   

vt.描画，描绘；描写，描述

参考例句：

• I don't care to see plays or films that depict murders or violence.我不喜欢看描写谋杀或暴力的戏剧或电影。
• Children's books often depict farmyard animals as gentle,lovable creatures.儿童图书常常把农场的动物描写得温和而可爱。

27 wade   

v.跋涉，涉水；n.跋涉

参考例句：

• We had to wade through the river to the opposite bank.我们只好涉水过河到对岸。
• We cannot but wade across the river.我们只好趟水过去。

28 fugitive   

adj.逃亡的，易逝的；n.逃犯，逃亡者

参考例句：

• The police were able to deduce where the fugitive was hiding.警方成功地推断出那逃亡者躲藏的地方。
• The fugitive is believed to be headed for the border.逃犯被认为在向国境线逃窜。

29 wrangling   

v.争吵，争论，口角( wrangle的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The two sides have spent most of their time wrangling over procedural problems. 双方大部分时间都在围绕程序问题争论不休。 来自辞典例句
• The children were wrangling (with each other) over the new toy. 孩子为新玩具（互相）争吵。 来自辞典例句

30 exultant   

adj.欢腾的，狂欢的，大喜的

参考例句：

• The exultant crowds were dancing in the streets.欢欣的人群在大街上跳起了舞。
• He was exultant that she was still so much in his power.他仍然能轻而易举地摆布她，对此他欣喜若狂。

31 limbo   

n.地狱的边缘；监狱

参考例句：

• His life seemed stuck in limbo and he could not go forward and he could not go back.他的生活好像陷入了不知所措的境地，进退两难。
• I didn't know whether my family was alive or dead.I felt as if I was in limbo.我不知道家人是生是死，感觉自己茫然无措。

32 crooks   

n.骗子( crook的名词复数 )；罪犯；弯曲部分；（牧羊人或主教用的）弯拐杖v.弯成钩形( crook的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• The police are getting after the crooks in the city. 警察在城里追捕小偷。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The cops got the crooks. 警察捉到了那些罪犯。 来自《简明英汉词典》

33 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

34 exigencies   

n.急切需要

参考例句：

• Many people are forced by exigencies of circumstance to take some part in them. 许多人由于境况所逼又不得不在某种程度上参与这种活动。
• The people had to accept the harsh exigencies of war. 人们要承受战乱的严酷现实。

35 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

36 trudge   

v.步履艰难地走；n.跋涉，费力艰难的步行

参考例句：

• It was a hard trudge up the hill.这趟上山是一次艰难的跋涉。
• The trudge through the forest will be tiresome.长途跋涉穿越森林会令人疲惫不堪。

37 proprietor   

n.所有人；业主；经营者

参考例句：

• The proprietor was an old acquaintance of his.业主是他的一位旧相识。
• The proprietor of the corner grocery was a strange thing in my life.拐角杂货店店主是我生活中的一个怪物。

38 misgiving   

n.疑虑，担忧，害怕

参考例句：

• She had some misgivings about what she was about to do.她对自己即将要做的事情存有一些顾虑。
• The first words of the text filled us with misgiving.正文开头的文字让我们颇为担心。