Chapter 112

  LINC WEBER SAID he was “honored” to meet us. He indicated two soft plastic-covered cubes as chairs, and he offered us bottled water from the cooler behind his desk.

  We sat on his cubes, turned down the water.

  “We read your commentary on the Web site,” said Conklin, casually¹. “We were wondering about your take on whoever set the Malone and Meacham fires.”

  The kid said, “Why don’t I start at the beginning?”

  Normally that was a good idea, but today my nerves were so close to the snapping point, I just wanted two questions answered, and as succinctly² as possible: Why did you use a Latin phrase on your Web site? Do you know someone who goes by the name of Pidge?

  But Weber said he’d never had a visit from cops before, and meeting in his office had legitimized his purpose and his Web site beyond his expectations. In fifteen minutes, he told us that his father owned Damned Spot, that he’d been a crime-story aficionado³ since he was old enough to read. He said that he wanted to publish crime fiction and true-crime books as soon as he got out of school.

  “Linc, you said ‘Have a nice day’ in Latin on your Web site. Why did you do that?” I said, breaking into his life’s story.

  “Oh. The Latin. I got the idea from this.”

  Linc shuffled⁴ the piles on his desk, at last finding a soft-cover book, about 8½ by 11, with an elegant font spelling out the words 7th Heaven. He handed the book to me. I held my breath as I flipped⁵ through the pages. Although it resembled a big, fat comic book, it was a graphic⁶ novel.

  “It was published first as a blog,” Weber told us. “Then my dad staked the first edition.”

  “And the Latin?” I asked again, my throat tightening⁷ from the strain and the possibilities I could almost see.

  “It’s all in there,” Weber told me. “The characters in this novel use Latin catchphrases. Listen, can I say on my Web site that you used me as a consultant⁸? You have no idea what that would mean to me.”

  I was looking at the title page of the book I held in my hands. Under the title were the names of the illustrator and the writer.

  Hans Vetter and Brett Atkinson.

  There was an icon⁹ under each of their names.

  Hans Vetter was the pigeon and Brett Atkinson, a hawk¹⁰.

1 casually   

adv.漠不关心地，无动于衷地，不负责任地

参考例句：

• She remarked casually that she was changing her job.她当时漫不经心地说要换工作。
• I casually mentioned that I might be interested in working abroad.我不经意地提到我可能会对出国工作感兴趣。

2 succinctly   

adv.简洁地；简洁地，简便地

参考例句：

• He writes simply and succinctly, rarely adding too much adornment. 他的写作风格朴实简练，很少添加饰词。 来自互联网
• No matter what question you are asked, answer it honestly and succinctly. 总之，不管你在面试中被问到什么问题，回答都要诚实而简明。 来自互联网

3 aficionado   

n.…迷；运动迷

参考例句：

• This is good news for postcard aficionado Drene Brennan.这对明信片迷杰纳•布雷南来说是个好消息。
• I'm a real opera aficionado.我是个真正的歌剧迷。

4 shuffled   

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

参考例句：

• He shuffled across the room to the window. 他拖着脚走到房间那头的窗户跟前。
• Simon shuffled awkwardly towards them. 西蒙笨拙地拖着脚朝他们走去。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 flipped   

轻弹( flip的过去式和过去分词 )； 按（开关）； 快速翻转； 急挥

参考例句：

• The plane flipped and crashed. 飞机猛地翻转，撞毁了。
• The carter flipped at the horse with his whip. 赶大车的人扬鞭朝着马轻轻地抽打。

6 graphic   

adj.生动的，形象的，绘画的，文字的，图表的

参考例句：

• The book gave a graphic description of the war.这本书生动地描述了战争的情况。
• Distinguish important text items in lists with graphic icons.用图标来区分重要的文本项。

7 tightening   

上紧，固定，紧密

参考例句：

• Make sure the washer is firmly seated before tightening the pipe. 旋紧水管之前，检查一下洗衣机是否已牢牢地固定在底座上了。
• It needs tightening up a little. 它还需要再收紧些。

8 consultant   

n.顾问；会诊医师，专科医生

参考例句：

• He is a consultant on law affairs to the mayor.他是市长的一个法律顾问。
• Originally,Gar had agreed to come up as a consultant.原来，加尔只答应来充当我们的顾问。

9 icon   

n.偶像，崇拜的对象，画像

参考例句：

• They found an icon in the monastery.他们在修道院中发现了一个圣像。
• Click on this icon to align or justify text.点击这个图标使文本排齐。

10 hawk   

n.鹰，骗子；鹰派成员

参考例句：

• The hawk swooped down on the rabbit and killed it.鹰猛地朝兔子扑下来,并把它杀死。
• The hawk snatched the chicken and flew away.老鹰叼了小鸡就飞走了。