8:30 AM
IT took Craig a long time to work up the courage to look again at the motionless form of Daisy.
The sight of her mangled1 body, even viewed from a distance, had made him throw up. When there was nothing left in him to come out, he had tried to clean his mouth with handfuls of fresh snow. Then Sophie came to him and put her arms around his waist, and he hugged her, keeping his back to Daisy. They had stood like that until at last the nausea2 passed and he felt able to turn and see what he had done.
Sophie said, "What are we going to do now?"
Craig swallowed. It was not over yet. Daisy was only one of three thugs—and then there was Uncle Kit3. "We'd better take her gun," he said.
Her expression told him she hated that idea. She said, "Do you know how to use it?"
"How hard can it be?"
She looked unhappy, but just said, "Whatever."
Craig hesitated a moment longer; then he took her hand and they walked toward the body.
Daisy was lying face down, her arms beneath her. Although she had tried to kill Craig, he still found it horrible to look at a human being so mangled. The legs were the worst. Her leather trousers had been ripped to shreds4. One leg was twisted unnaturally5 and the other was gashed6 and bloody7. The leather jacket seemed to have protected her arms and body, but her shaved head was covered with blood. Her face was hidden, buried in the snow.
They stopped six feet away. "I can't see the gun," Craig said. "It must be underneath8 her."
They stepped closer. Sophie said, "I've never seen a dead person."
"I saw Mamma Marta in the funeral parlor9."
"I want to see her face." Letting go of Craig's hand, Sophie went down on one knee and reached out to the bloodstained body.
Quick as a snake, Daisy lifted her head, grabbed Sophie's wrist, and brought her right hand out from under her with the gun in it.
Sophie screamed in terror.
Craig felt as if he had been struck by lightning. He shouted: "Christ!" and jumped back.
Daisy jammed the snout of the little gray pistol into the soft skin of Sophie's throat. "Stand still, laddie!" she yelled.
Craig froze.
Daisy wore a cap of blood. One ear was almost completely ripped from her head and hung grotesquely10 by a narrow strip of skin. But her face was unmarked, and now showed an expression of pure hatred11. "For what you've done to me, I should shoot her in the belly12 and let you watch her bleed to death, screaming in agony."
Craig shook with horror.
"But I need your help," Daisy went on. "If you want to save your little girlfriend's life, just do everything I tell you, instantly. Hesitate, and she dies."
Craig felt she really meant it.
"Get over here," she said.
He had no choice. He stepped closer.
"Kneel down."
Craig knelt beside her.
She turned her hateful eyes on Sophie. "Now, you little whore, I'm going to let go of your arm, but don't you try to move away, or I'll shoot you, and enjoy it." She took her left hand off Sophie's arm, but kept the gun pushed into the flesh of Sophie's neck. Then she put her left arm around Craig's shoulders. "Hold my wrist, lad," she said.
Craig grasped Daisy's wrist as it dangled13 over his shoulder.
"You, lassie, get under my right arm."
Sophie changed her position slowly, and Daisy put her right arm over Sophie's shoulders, managing all the time to keep the gun pointed14 at Sophie's head.
"Now, you're going to lift me up and carry me to the house. But do it gently. I think I've got a broken leg. If you jog me it might hurt, and if I flinch15 I might accidentally pull the trigger. So, easy does it... and lift."
Craig tightened16 his grip on Daisy's wrist and raised himself from the kneeling position. To ease the burden on Sophie, he put his right arm around Daisy's waist and took some of her weight. The three of them slowly stood upright.
Daisy was gasping17 with pain, and as pale as the snow on the ground all around them; but, when Craig looked sideways and caught her eye, he saw that she was watching him intently.
When they were upright, Daisy said, "Forward, slowly."
They walked forward, Daisy dragging her legs.
"I bet you two were hidden away somewhere all night," she said. "What were you up to, eh?"
Craig said nothing. He could hardly believe that she had enough breath and malice18 left to rail at them.
"Tell me, laddie," she jeered19. "Did you put your finger in her little pussy20, eh? You dirty little bastard21, I bet you did."
Craig felt dirty when she talked like that. She was able to sully an experience that had been carefree. He hated her for spoiling his memory. He longed to drop her on the ground, but he felt sure she would pull the trigger.
"Wait," she said. "Stop." They halted, and she put some of her weight on her left leg, the one that was not twisted.
Craig looked at her terrible face. Her black-lined eyes were closed in pain. She said, "We'll just rest here for a minute, then we'll go on."
* * *
TONI stepped out of the barn. Now she could be seen. By her calculations, there were two of the gang in the house—Nigel and Kit— and either of them might look out of a window at any moment. But she had to take the risk. Listening for the shot that would kill her, she walked as fast as she could, pushing through the snow, to the guest cottage. She reached it without incident and dodged22 around the corner of the building, out of sight.
She had left Caroline searching tearfully for her pet rats. Elton was trussed up under the billiard table, blindfolded23 and gagged to make sure that when he came round he could not talk dopey Caroline into untying24 him.
Toni circled the cottage and approached the main house from the side. The back door stood open, but she did not go in. She needed to reconnoiter. She crept along the back of the building and peeped in at the first window.
She was looking into the pantry. Six people were crammed25 in there, bound hand and foot but standing26: Olga; Hugo, who seemed to be naked; Miranda; her son Tom; Ned; and Stanley. A wave of happiness washed over Toni when she saw Stanley. She realized she had feared, in the back of her mind, that he might be dead. She caught her breath when she saw his bruised27 and bloody face. Then he spotted28 her, and his eyes widened with surprise and pleasure. He did not appear to be seriously wounded, she saw with relief. He opened his mouth to speak. Quickly, Toni raised a finger to her lips for silence. Stanley closed his mouth and nodded understanding.
Toni moved to the next window and looked into the kitchen. Two men sat with their backs to the window. One was Kit. Toni felt a surge of pity for Stanley, having a son who would do something like this to his family. The other man wore a pink sweater. He must be the one Kit had called Nigel. They were looking at a small television set, watching the news. The screen showed a snowplow clearing a motorway29 in the light of early morning.
Toni chewed her lip, thinking. She had a gun now but, even so, it could be difficult to control the two of them. But she had no choice.
As she hesitated, Kit stood up, and she quickly ducked back out of sight.
收听单词发音 |
1
mangled
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| vt.乱砍（mangle的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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nausea
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| n.作呕，恶心；极端的憎恶(或厌恶) | |
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3
kit
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| n.用具包，成套工具；随身携带物 | |
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shreds
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| v.撕碎，切碎( shred的第三人称单数 )；用撕毁机撕毁（文件） | |
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unnaturally
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| adv.违反习俗地；不自然地；勉强地；不近人情地 | |
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gashed
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| v.划伤，割破( gash的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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bloody
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| adj.非常的的；流血的；残忍的；adv.很；vt.血染 | |
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8
underneath
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| adj.在...下面，在...底下；adv.在下面 | |
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parlor
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| n.店铺，营业室；会客室，客厅 | |
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10
grotesquely
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| adv. 奇异地,荒诞地 | |
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11
hatred
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| n.憎恶，憎恨，仇恨 | |
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12
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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13
dangled
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| 悬吊着( dangle的过去式和过去分词 )； 摆动不定； 用某事物诱惑…； 吊胃口 | |
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14
pointed
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| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
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flinch
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| v.畏缩，退缩 | |
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tightened
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| 收紧( tighten的过去式和过去分词 )； （使）变紧； （使）绷紧； 加紧 | |
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gasping
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| adj. 气喘的, 痉挛的 动词gasp的现在分词 | |
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18
malice
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| n.恶意，怨恨，蓄意；[律]预谋 | |
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jeered
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| v.嘲笑( jeer的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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pussy
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| n.(儿语)小猫，猫咪 | |
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21
bastard
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| n.坏蛋，混蛋；私生子 | |
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22
dodged
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| v.闪躲( dodge的过去式和过去分词 )；回避 | |
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23
blindfolded
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| v.（尤指用布）挡住（某人）的视线( blindfold的过去式 )；蒙住（某人）的眼睛；使不理解；蒙骗 | |
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24
untying
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| untie的现在分词 | |
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crammed
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| adj.塞满的，挤满的；大口地吃；快速贪婪地吃v.把…塞满；填入；临时抱佛脚( cram的过去式) | |
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26
standing
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| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
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27
bruised
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| [医]青肿的，瘀紫的 | |
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spotted
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| adj.有斑点的，斑纹的，弄污了的 | |
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motorway
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| n.高速公路，快车道 | |
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