ANNA

SATURDAY, AUGUST 3, 2013
EVENING
Tom is meeting some of his army buddies¹ for adrink and Evie’s down for her nap. I’m sitting in thekitchen, doors and windows closed despite the heat.
The rain of the past week has stopped at last; nowit’s stiflingly² close.
I’m bored. I can’t think of anything to do. I fancygoing shopping, spending a bit of money on myself,but it’s hopeless with Evie. She gets irritable³ and Iget stressed. So I’m just hanging round the house. Ican’t watch television or look at a newspaper. I don’twant to read about it, I don’t want to see Megan’sface, I don’t want to think about it.
How can I not think about it when we’re here, justfour doors away?
I rang around to see if anyone was up for aplaydate, but everyone’s got plans. I even called mysister, but of course you’ve got to book her at leasta week in advance. In any case, she said she wastoo hungover to spend time with Evie. I felt ahorrible pang⁴ of envy then, a longing⁵ for Saturdaysspent lying on the sofa with the newspapers and ahazy memory of leaving the club the night before.
Stupid, really, because what I’ve got now is a milliontimes better, and I made sacrifices to secure it. NowI just need to protect it. So here I sit in mysweltering house, trying not to think about Megan. Itry not to think about her and I jump every time Ihear a noise, I flinch⁶ when a shadow passes thewindow. It’s intolerable.
What I can’t stop thinking about is the fact thatRachel was here the night Megan went missing,stumbling around, totally pissed, and then she justdisappeared. Tom looked for her for ages, but hecouldn’t find her. I can’t stop wondering what shewas doing.
There is no connection between Rachel and MeganHipwell. I spoke⁷ to the police officer, Detective Riley,about it after we saw Rachel at the Hipwells’ house,and she said it was nothing to worry about. “She’s arubbernecker,” she said. “Lonely, a bit desperate. Shejust wants to be involved in something.”
She’s probably right. But then I think about hercoming into my house and taking my child, Iremember the terror I felt when I saw her with Eviedown by the fence. I think about that horrible,chilling little smile she gave me when I saw heroutside the Hipwells’ house. Detective Riley doesn’tknow just how dangerous Rachel can be.

1 buddies   

n.密友( buddy的名词复数 )；同伴；弟兄；（用于称呼男子，常带怒气）家伙v.（如密友、战友、伙伴、弟兄般）交往( buddy的第三人称单数 )；做朋友；亲近（…）；伴护艾滋病人

参考例句：

• We became great buddies. 我们成了非常好的朋友。 来自辞典例句
• The two of them have become great buddies. 他们俩成了要好的朋友。 来自辞典例句

2 stiflingly   

adv. 令人窒息地(气闷地，沉闷地)

参考例句：

• It was stiflingly hot inside the bus, which reeked of petrol. 公共汽车里面闷热得很，充满汽油味。
• Offices, shopscinemas in Asia's big buildings tend bitterly cold in mid-summer, stiflingly hot in winter. 亚洲大型建筑物中的办公室、商店和电影院往往在盛夏冷得令人发抖，在冬季热得让人窒息。

3 irritable   

adj.急躁的；过敏的；易怒的

参考例句：

• He gets irritable when he's got toothache.他牙一疼就很容易发脾气。
• Our teacher is an irritable old lady.She gets angry easily.我们的老师是位脾气急躁的老太太。她很容易生气。

4 pang   

n.剧痛，悲痛，苦闷

参考例句：

• She experienced a sharp pang of disappointment.她经历了失望的巨大痛苦。
• She was beginning to know the pang of disappointed love.她开始尝到了失恋的痛苦。

5 longing   

n.（for）渴望

参考例句：

• Hearing the tune again sent waves of longing through her.再次听到那首曲子使她胸中充满了渴望。
• His heart burned with longing for revenge.他心中燃烧着急欲复仇的怒火。

6 flinch   

v.畏缩，退缩

参考例句：

• She won't flinch from speaking her mind.她不会讳言自己的想法。
• We will never flinch from difficulties.我们面对困难决不退缩。

7 spoke   

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

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。