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Chapter 23
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I BOLTED TOWARD the village square, the pallor of a ghost upon my face.

Children stared at me, then ran toward their houses. It is Hugh. Hugh De Luc. He's back from the war, they shouted.

All that could have seemed familiar about me was my mane of red hair. People rushed up to me, neighbors I recognized, whom I had not set eyes upon in two years, their faces caught between shock and joy. Hugh, praise God, it is you.

But I pushed past, barely acknowledging them. I was drawn1 on a direct path to our inn.

Our home... My heart sank as I came to the spot.

A burned-out hole was left where our inn had once been.

Among the cinders2 stood a single charred3 support post that had once held up a two-story structure, built by the hands of my wife's father.

Our inn had been burned to the ground.

Where is Sophie? I muttered, first to the charred ruins of the inn, then to faces in the gathered crowd.

I went from person to person, sure that any moment I would spot her coming back from the well. But everyone stood silently.

My heart began to beat insanely.Where is Sophie ? I shouted. Where is my wife?

Sophie's older brother, Matthew, finally pushed out of the crowd. When he saw me, his expression shifted-from surprise to a look of deep concern. He stepped forward, hurling4 his arms around me. Hugh, I can't believe it. Thank God you've come back.

I knew the worst had happened. I searched his eyes. What's happened, Matthew? Tell me, where is my wife?

A look of deep sorrow came onto his face.Oh ,God...I almost did not want him to tell me the rest. He led me by the arm to the remains5 of our home. There were riders, Hugh. Ten, twelve... They swept in, in the dead of night, like devils, burning everything they could. Black crosses on their chests. They wore no colors. We had no hint of who they were. Just the crosses.

Riders... ? My blood was frozen with dread6. What riders, Matthew? What did they do to Sophie?

He placed a hand gently upon my shoulder. They burned three dwellings7 in their path. Paul the carter, Sam, old Gilles, their wives and children, killed as they fled. Then they came to the inn. I tried to stop them, Hugh, I did, he cried.

I seized him by the shoulders.And Sophie ? I knew the worst had happened.No, this could not be. Not now...

She's gone, Hugh. Matthew shook his head.

Gone?

She tried to run, but the men took her inside. They beat her, Hugh.... He pursed his lips and bowed his head. They did worse. I heard her screams. They held me as they beat and raped8 her. Knights9 tore up the place, ripping it post by post. Then they dragged her out. She was like a lifeless thing, barely alive. I was sure they would leave her to die, but the leader threw her over his horse while the others released their torches. It was then that...

I could barely hear him. A distant voice was echoing,No, this cannot be! My eyes welled up with tears. It was then thatwhat , Matthew?

He bowed his head. They dragged her away, Hugh. I know she is dead.

All strength drained from my legs. I sank to my knees.Oh, God ,how could this-have happened? How could I have left her to this fate? My Sophie gone.... I gazed upon the charred ruins of my former life.

Norcross did this, didn't he?Baldwin... ?

We do not know for certain. Matthew shook his head. If I did, I would go after them myself. They were beasts, but faceless ones. They wore no crests10. Their visors were down. Everyone ran to the woods for cover. Yours was the only house they entered. It was as if they came for you.

For me...Those bastards11. I had fought two years for Baldwin's own liege. I had marched across half the world and seen the worst things. And still, they took from me the one thing I loved.

I grabbed some dust from the rubble12 and let it slip through my fists. My poor Sophie...

Matthew knelt down beside me. Hugh, there's more....

More?What could be more? I looked into his eyes.

He put a hand on my face. After you left, Sophie had a son.


点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 drawn MuXzIi     
v.拖,拉,拔出;adj.憔悴的,紧张的
参考例句:
  • All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
  • Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。
2 cinders cinders     
n.煤渣( cinder的名词复数 );炭渣;煤渣路;煤渣跑道
参考例句:
  • This material is variously termed ash, clinker, cinders or slag. 这种材料有不同的名称,如灰、炉渣、煤渣或矿渣。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • Rake out the cinders before you start a new fire. 在重新点火前先把煤渣耙出来。 来自《简明英汉词典》
3 charred 2d03ad55412d225c25ff6ea41516c90b     
v.把…烧成炭( char的过去式);烧焦
参考例句:
  • the charred remains of a burnt-out car 被烧焦的轿车残骸
  • The intensity of the explosion is recorded on the charred tree trunks. 那些烧焦的树干表明爆炸的强烈。 来自《简明英汉词典》
4 hurling bd3cda2040d4df0d320fd392f72b7dc3     
n.爱尔兰式曲棍球v.猛投,用力掷( hurl的现在分词 );大声叫骂
参考例句:
  • The boat rocked wildly, hurling him into the water. 这艘船剧烈地晃动,把他甩到水中。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • Fancy hurling away a good chance like that, the silly girl! 想想她竟然把这样一个好机会白白丢掉了,真是个傻姑娘! 来自《简明英汉词典》
5 remains 1kMzTy     
n.剩余物,残留物;遗体,遗迹
参考例句:
  • He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
  • The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。
6 dread Ekpz8     
vt.担忧,忧虑;惧怕,不敢;n.担忧,畏惧
参考例句:
  • We all dread to think what will happen if the company closes.我们都不敢去想一旦公司关门我们该怎么办。
  • Her heart was relieved of its blankest dread.她极度恐惧的心理消除了。
7 dwellings aa496e58d8528ad0edee827cf0b9b095     
n.住处,处所( dwelling的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • The development will consist of 66 dwellings and a number of offices. 新建楼区将由66栋住房和一些办公用房组成。
  • The hovels which passed for dwellings are being pulled down. 过去用作住室的陋屋正在被拆除。 来自《简明英汉词典》
8 raped 7a6e3e7dd30eb1e3b61716af0e54d4a2     
v.以暴力夺取,强夺( rape的过去式和过去分词 );强奸
参考例句:
  • A young woman was brutally raped in her own home. 一名年轻女子在自己家中惨遭强暴。 来自辞典例句
  • We got stick together, or we will be having our women raped. 我们得团结一致,不然我们的妻女就会遭到蹂躏。 来自辞典例句
9 knights 2061bac208c7bdd2665fbf4b7067e468     
骑士; (中古时代的)武士( knight的名词复数 ); 骑士; 爵士; (国际象棋中)马
参考例句:
  • stories of knights and fair maidens 关于骑士和美女的故事
  • He wove a fascinating tale of knights in shining armour. 他编了一个穿着明亮盔甲的骑士的迷人故事。
10 crests 9ef5f38e01ed60489f228ef56d77c5c8     
v.到达山顶(或浪峰)( crest的第三人称单数 );到达洪峰,达到顶点
参考例句:
  • The surfers were riding in towards the beach on the crests of the waves. 冲浪者们顺着浪头冲向岸边。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • The correspondent aroused, heard the crash of the toppled crests. 记者醒了,他听见了浪头倒塌下来的轰隆轰隆声。 来自辞典例句
11 bastards 19876fc50e51ba427418f884ba64c288     
私生子( bastard的名词复数 ); 坏蛋; 讨厌的事物; 麻烦事 (认为别人走运或不幸时说)家伙
参考例句:
  • Those bastards don't care a damn about the welfare of the factory! 这批狗养的,不顾大局! 来自子夜部分
  • Let the first bastards to find out be the goddam Germans. 就让那些混账的德国佬去做最先发现的倒霉鬼吧。 来自演讲部分
12 rubble 8XjxP     
n.(一堆)碎石,瓦砾
参考例句:
  • After the earthquake,it took months to clean up the rubble.地震后,花了数月才清理完瓦砾。
  • After the war many cities were full of rubble.战后许多城市到处可见颓垣残壁。


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