"Open the door!" I said to the man—who greeted me with such a stare of amazement2 that I laughed outright3, though my mirth was but hollow.
He jumped into the road and did as I directed. Making sure that both windows were closed, I thrust the peacock into the cab and shut the door upon it.
"For God's sake, sir—" began the driver.
"It has probably escaped from some collector's place on the riverside," I explained, "but one never knows. See that it does not escape again, and if at the end of an hour, as arranged, you do not hear from me, take it back with you to the River Police Station."
"Right you are, sir," said the man, remounting his seat. "It's the first time I ever saw a peacock in Limehouse!"
It was the first time I had seen one, and the incident struck me as being more than odd; it gave me an idea, and a new, faint hope. I returned to the head of the steps, at the foot of which I had met with this singular experience, and gazed up at the dark building beneath which they led. Three windows were visible, but they were broken and neglected. One, immediately above the arch, had been pasted up with brown paper, and this was now peeling off in the rain, a little stream of which trickled4 down from the detached corner to drop, drearily5, upon the stone stairs beneath.
Where were the detectives? I could only assume that they had directed their attention elsewhere, for
[92]
In pursuit of my new idea, I again descended8 the steps. The persuasion9 (shortly to be verified) that I was close upon the secret hold of the Chinaman, grew stronger, unaccountably. I had descended some eight steps, and was at the darkest part of the archway or tunnel, when confirmation10 of my theories came to me.
A noose11 settled accurately12 upon my shoulders, was snatched tight about my throat, and with a feeling of insupportable agony at the base of my skull13, and a sudden supreme14 knowledge that I was being strangled—hanged—I lost consciousness!
How long I remained unconscious, I was unable to determine at the time, but I learned later that it was for no more than half an hour; at any rate, recovery was slow.
The first sensation to return to me was a sort of repetition of the asphyxia. The blood seemed to be forcing itself into my eyes—I choked—I felt that my end was come. And, raising my hands to my throat, I found it to be swollen15 and inflamed16. Then the floor upon which I lay seemed to be rocking like the deck of a ship, and I glided17 back again into a place of darkness and forgetfulness.
My second awakening18 was heralded19 by a returning sense of smell; for I became conscious of a faint, exquisite20 perfume.
It brought me to my senses as nothing else could have done, and I sat upright with a hoarse21 cry. I could have distinguished22 that perfume amid a thousand others, could have marked it apart from the rest in a scent23 bazaar24. For me it had one meaning, and one meaning only—Kâramanèh.
She was near to me, or had been near to me!
And in the first moments of my awakening I groped about in the darkness blindly seeking her. Then my swollen throat and throbbing25 head, together
[93]
with my utter inability to move my neck even slightly, reminded me of the facts as they were. I knew in that bitter moment that Kâramanèh was no longer my friend; but, for all her beauty and charm, was the most heartless, the most fiendish creature in the service of Dr. Fu-Manchu. I groaned27 aloud in my despair and misery28.
Something stirred near to me in the room, and set my nerves creeping with a new apprehension29. I became fully30 alive to the possibilities of the darkness.
To my certain knowledge, Dr. Fu-Manchu at this time had been in England for fully three months, which meant that by now he must be equipped with all the instruments of destruction, animate31 and inanimate, which dread32 experience had taught me to associate with him.
Now, as I crouched33 there in that dark apartment, listening for a repetition of the sound, I scarcely dared to conjecture34 what might have occasioned it, but my imagination peopled the place with reptiles35 which writhed36 upon the floor, with tarantulas and other deadly insects which crept upon the walls, which might drop upon me from the ceiling at any moment.
Then, since nothing stirred about me, I ventured to move, turning my shoulders, for I was unable to move my aching head; and I looked in the direction from which a faint, very faint, light proceeded.
A regular tapping sound now began to attract my attention, and, having turned about, I perceived that behind me was a broken window, in places patched with brown paper; the corner of one sheet of paper was detached, and the rain trickled down upon it with a rhythmical37 sound.
In a flash I realized that I lay in the room immediately above the archway; and listening intently, I perceived above the other faint sounds of the night, or thought that I perceived, the hissing38 of the gas from the extinguished lamp-burner.
[94]
Unsteadily I rose to my feet, but found myself swaying like a drunken man. I reached out for support, stumbling in the direction of the wall. My foot came in contact with something that lay there, and I pitched forward and fell....
I anticipated a crash which would put an end to my hopes of escape, but my fall was comparatively noiseless—for I fell upon the body of a man who lay bound up with rope close against the wall!
A moment I stayed as I fell, the chest of my fellow captive rising and falling beneath me as he breathed. Knowing that my life depended upon retaining a firm hold upon myself, I succeeded in overcoming the dizziness and nausea39 which threatened to drown my senses, and, moving back so that I knelt upon the floor, I fumbled40 in my pocket for the electric lamp which I had placed there. My raincoat had been removed whilst I was unconscious, and with it my pistol, but the lamp was untouched.
I took it out, pressed the button, and directed the ray upon the face of the man beside me.
It was Nayland Smith!
Trussed up and fastened to a ring in the wall he lay, having a cork41 gag strapped43 so tightly between his teeth that I wondered how he had escaped suffocation44.
But although a greyish pallor showed through the tan of his skin, his eyes were feverishly46 bright, and there, as I knelt beside him, I thanked Heaven silently, but fervently47.
Then, in furious haste, I set to work to remove the gag. It was most ingeniously secured by means of leather straps48 buckled49 at the back of his head, but I unfastened these without much difficulty, and he spat50 out the gag, uttering an exclamation51 of disgust.
"Thank God, old man!" he said huskily. "Thank God that you are alive! I saw them drag you in, and I thought...."
[95]
"I have been thinking the same about you for more than twenty-four hours," I said reproachfully. "Why did you start without—?"
"I did not want you to come, Petrie," he replied. "I had a sort of premonition. You see it was realized; and instead of being as helpless as I, Fate has made you the instrument of my release. Quick! You have a knife? Good!" The old, feverish45 energy was by no means extinguished in him. "Cut the ropes about my wrists and ankles, but don't otherwise disturb them."
I set to work eagerly.
"Now," Smith continued, "put that filthy52 gag in place again—but you need not strap42 it so tightly! Directly they find that you are alive, they will treat you the same—you understand? She has been here three times—"
"Kâramanèh?..."
"Ssh!"
I heard a sound like the opening of a distant door.
"Quick! the straps of the gag!" whispered Smith, "and pretend to recover consciousness just as they enter—"
Clumsily I followed his directions, for my fingers were none too steady, replaced the lamp in my pocket, and threw myself upon the floor.
Through half-shut eyes, I saw the door open and obtained a glimpse of a desolate53, empty passage beyond. On the threshold stood Kâramanèh. She held in her hand a common tin oil lamp which smoked and flickered54 with every movement, filling the already none too cleanly air with an odour of burning paraffin.
She personified the outré; nothing so incongruous as her presence in that place could well be imagined. She was dressed as I remembered once to have seen her two years before, in the gauzy silks of the harêm. There were pearls glittering like great tears amid the cloud of her wonderful hair. She wore broad gold bangles upon her bare arms, and her fingers were
[96]
laden55 with jewellery. A heavy girdle swung from her hips56, defining the lines of her slim shape, and about one white ankle was a gold band.
As she appeared in the doorway57 I almost entirely58 closed my eyes, but my gaze rested fascinatedly upon the little red slippers59 which she wore.
Again I detected the exquisite, elusive60 perfume which, like a breath of musk61, spoke62 of the Orient; and, as always, it played havoc63 with my reason, seeming to intoxicate64 me as though it were the very essence of her loveliness.
But I had a part to play, and throwing out one clenched65 hand so that my fist struck upon the floor, I uttered a loud groan26, and made as if to rise upon my knees.
One quick glimpse I had of her wonderful eyes, widely opened and turned upon me with such an enigmatical expression as set my heart leaping wildly—then, stepping back, Kâramanèh placed the lamp upon the boards of the passage and clapped her hands.
As I sank upon the floor in assumed exhaustion66, a Chinaman with a perfectly67 impassive face, and a Burman whose pock-marked, evil countenance68 was set in an apparently69 habitual70 leer, came running into the room past the girl.
With a hand which trembled violently, she held the lamp whilst the two yellow ruffians tied me. I groaned and struggled feebly, fixing my gaze upon the lamp bearer in a silent reproach which was by no means without its effect.
She lowered her eyes and I could see her biting her lip, whilst the colour gradually faded from her cheeks. Then, glancing up again quickly, and still meeting that reproachful stare, she turned her head aside altogether, and rested one hand upon the wall, swaying slightly as she did so.
It was a singular ordeal71 for more than one of that incongruous group; but in order that I may not be charged with hypocrisy72 or with seeking to hide my
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own folly73, I confess, here, that when again I found myself in darkness, my heart was leaping not because of the success of my strategy, but because of the success of that reproachful glance which I had directed toward the lovely, dark-eyed Kâramanèh, toward the faithless evil Kâramanèh! So much for myself.
The door had not been closed ten seconds, ere Smith again was spitting out the gag, swearing under his breath, and stretching his cramped74 limbs free from their binding75. Within a minute from the time of my trussing, I was a free man again; save that look where I would—to right, to left, or inward, to my own conscience—two dark eyes met mine, enigmatically.
"What now?" I whispered.
"Let me think," replied Smith. "A false move would destroy us."
"How long have you been here?"
"Since last night."
"Is Fu-Manchu—"
"Fu-Manchu is here!" replied Smith grimly, "and not only Fu-Manchu, but—another."
"Another!"
"A higher than Fu-Manchu, apparently. I have an idea of the identity of this person, but no more than an idea. Something unusual is going on, Petrie; otherwise I should have been a dead man twenty four hours ago. Something even more important than my death engages Fu-Manchu's attention—and this can only be the presence of the mysterious visitor. Your seductive friend, Kâramanèh, is arrayed in her very becoming national costume in his honour, I presume." He stopped abruptly76; then added "I would give five hundred pounds for a glimpse of that visitor's face!"
"Is Burke—?"
"God knows what has become of Burke, Petrie! We were both caught napping in the establishment of the amiable77 Shen-Yan, where, amid a very mixed company of poker78 players, we were losing our money like gentlemen."
"But Weymouth—"
"Burke and I had both been neatly79 sand-bagged, my dear Petrie, and removed elsewhere, some hours before Weymouth raided the gaming house. Oh! I don't know how they smuggled80 us away with the police watching the place; but my presence here is sufficient evidence of the fact. Are you armed?"
[98]
"No; my pistol was in my raincoat, which is missing."
In the dim light from the broken window I could see Smith tugging81 reflectively at the lobe82 of his left ear.
"It's a long drop!"
"Ah! I imagined so. If only I had a pistol, or a revolver—"
"What should you do?"
"I should present myself before the important meeting, which, I am assured, is being held somewhere in this building; and to-night would see the end of my struggle with the Fu-Manchu group—the end of the whole Yellow menace! For not only is Fu-Manchu here, Petrie, with all his gang of assassins, but he whom I believe to be the real head of the group—a certain mandarin—is here also!"
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收听单词发音
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1
enthralled
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| 迷住，吸引住( enthrall的过去式和过去分词 )； 使感到非常愉快 | |
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amazement
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| n.惊奇，惊讶 | |
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outright
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| adv.坦率地；彻底地；立即；adj.无疑的；彻底的 | |
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trickled
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| v.滴( trickle的过去式和过去分词 )；淌；使)慢慢走；缓慢移动 | |
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drearily
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| 沉寂地，厌倦地，可怕地 | |
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utterly
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| adv.完全地，绝对地 | |
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deserted
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| adj.荒芜的，荒废的，无人的，被遗弃的 | |
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8
descended
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| a.为...后裔的，出身于...的 | |
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persuasion
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| n.劝说；说服；持有某种信仰的宗派 | |
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confirmation
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| n.证实，确认，批准 | |
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noose
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| n.绳套，绞索（刑）；v.用套索捉；使落入圈套；处以绞刑 | |
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accurately
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| adv.准确地，精确地 | |
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skull
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| n.头骨；颅骨 | |
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supreme
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| adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的 | |
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swollen
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| adj.肿大的，水涨的；v.使变大，肿胀 | |
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16
inflamed
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| adj.发炎的，红肿的v.（使）变红，发怒，过热( inflame的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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17
glided
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| v.滑动( glide的过去式和过去分词 )；掠过；（鸟或飞机 ） 滑翔 | |
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awakening
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| n.觉醒，醒悟 adj.觉醒中的；唤醒的 | |
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19
heralded
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| v.预示( herald的过去式和过去分词 )；宣布（好或重要） | |
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exquisite
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| adj.精美的；敏锐的；剧烈的，感觉强烈的 | |
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21
hoarse
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| adj.嘶哑的，沙哑的 | |
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distinguished
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| adj.卓越的，杰出的，著名的 | |
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scent
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| n.气味，香味，香水，线索，嗅觉；v.嗅，发觉 | |
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24
bazaar
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| n.集市，商店集中区 | |
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25
throbbing
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| a. 跳动的,悸动的 | |
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26
groan
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| vi./n.呻吟，抱怨；(发出)呻吟般的声音 | |
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27
groaned
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| v.呻吟( groan的过去式和过去分词 )；发牢骚；抱怨；受苦 | |
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28
misery
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| n.痛苦，苦恼，苦难；悲惨的境遇，贫苦 | |
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apprehension
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| n.理解，领悟；逮捕，拘捕；忧虑 | |
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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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animate
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| v.赋于生命，鼓励；adj.有生命的，有生气的 | |
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dread
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| vt.担忧，忧虑；惧怕，不敢；n.担忧，畏惧 | |
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33
crouched
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| v.屈膝，蹲伏( crouch的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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conjecture
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| n./v.推测，猜测 | |
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35
reptiles
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| n.爬行动物，爬虫( reptile的名词复数 ) | |
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36
writhed
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| （因极度痛苦而）扭动或翻滚( writhe的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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37
rhythmical
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| adj.有节奏的，有韵律的 | |
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38
hissing
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| n. 发嘶嘶声, 蔑视 动词hiss的现在分词形式 | |
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39
nausea
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| n.作呕，恶心；极端的憎恶(或厌恶) | |
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40
fumbled
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| （笨拙地）摸索或处理（某事物）( fumble的过去式和过去分词 )； 乱摸，笨拙地弄； 使落下 | |
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41
cork
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| n.软木，软木塞 | |
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42
strap
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| n.皮带，带子；v.用带扣住，束牢；用绷带包扎 | |
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43
strapped
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| adj.用皮带捆住的，用皮带装饰的；身无分文的；缺钱；手头紧v.用皮带捆扎(strap的过去式和过去分词)；用皮带抽打；包扎；给…打绷带 | |
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suffocation
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| n.窒息 | |
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45
feverish
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| adj.发烧的，狂热的，兴奋的 | |
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feverishly
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| adv. 兴奋地 | |
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fervently
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| adv.热烈地，热情地，强烈地 | |
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48
straps
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| n.带子( strap的名词复数 )；挎带；肩带；背带v.用皮带捆扎( strap的第三人称单数 )；用皮带抽打；包扎；给…打绷带 | |
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49
buckled
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| a. 有带扣的 | |
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50
spat
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| n.口角，掌击；v.发出呼噜呼噜声 | |
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51
exclamation
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| n.感叹号，惊呼，惊叹词 | |
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52
filthy
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| adj.卑劣的；恶劣的，肮脏的 | |
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53
desolate
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| adj.荒凉的，荒芜的；孤独的，凄凉的；v.使荒芜，使孤寂 | |
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54
flickered
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| （通常指灯光）闪烁，摇曳( flicker的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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55
laden
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| adj.装满了的；充满了的；负了重担的；苦恼的 | |
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56
hips
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| abbr.high impact polystyrene 高冲击强度聚苯乙烯，耐冲性聚苯乙烯n.臀部( hip的名词复数 )；[建筑学]屋脊；臀围（尺寸）；臀部…的 | |
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57
doorway
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| n.门口，(喻)入门；门路，途径 | |
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58
entirely
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| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
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59
slippers
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| n. 拖鞋 | |
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60
elusive
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| adj.难以表达(捉摸)的；令人困惑的；逃避的 | |
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61
musk
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| n.麝香, 能发出麝香的各种各样的植物，香猫 | |
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62
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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63
havoc
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| n.大破坏，浩劫，大混乱，大杂乱 | |
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64
intoxicate
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| vt.使喝醉，使陶醉，使欣喜若狂 | |
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65
clenched
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| v.紧握，抓紧，咬紧( clench的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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66
exhaustion
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| n.耗尽枯竭，疲惫，筋疲力尽，竭尽，详尽无遗的论述 | |
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67
perfectly
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| adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地 | |
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68
countenance
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| n.脸色，面容；面部表情；vt.支持，赞同 | |
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69
apparently
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| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
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70
habitual
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| adj.习惯性的；通常的，惯常的 | |
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71
ordeal
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| n.苦难经历，（尤指对品格、耐力的）严峻考验 | |
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72
hypocrisy
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| n.伪善，虚伪 | |
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73
folly
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| n.愚笨，愚蠢，蠢事，蠢行，傻话 | |
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74
cramped
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| a.狭窄的 | |
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75
binding
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| 有约束力的，有效的，应遵守的 | |
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76
abruptly
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| adv.突然地，出其不意地 | |
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77
amiable
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| adj.和蔼可亲的，友善的，亲切的 | |
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78
poker
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| n.扑克；vt.烙制 | |
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79
neatly
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| adv.整洁地，干净地，灵巧地，熟练地 | |
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80
smuggled
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| 水货 | |
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81
tugging
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| n.牵引感v.用力拉，使劲拉，猛扯( tug的现在分词 ) | |
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82
lobe
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| n.耳垂，（肺，肝等的）叶 | |
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83
mused
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| v.沉思，冥想( muse的过去式和过去分词 )；沉思自语说（某事） | |
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