The night was very dark, and there was not even a hint of starshine to light the room. A dog was barking on the Home Farm just outside the park enclosure, but not another sound broke the silence. I rolled over, and shut my eyes, and promptly7 sat up in bed. I thought I had heard another sound. What it was I could not say. It was very faint, a gentle burring rip.
I swung out of bed, reached for a candle, thought better of it, and crossed to the door communicating with Hugh's room. It was ajar, and as I poked8 my head in, I could hear his gentle breathing. Nikka's room, beyond his, was quiet. Outside of us three, only Watkins slept in that part of the house. The servants' quarters were in the rear over the kitchens.
My first instinct was to laugh at myself, but I opened the door from my room into the hall and listened there. At first, I heard nothing. Then it seemed to me that I detected a creaking, as of subdued10 footfalls. I strained my faculties11 in tense concentration, but the creaking was not repeated, and I began to believe that my imagination was playing tricks with me.
To make sure, I crossed the hall in my bare feet, and listened at Watkins's door. Watkins, I regret to say, snored quite audibly, and I was inclined to suspect that he had been responsible for arousing me. But I could not quell12 the uneasiness which possessed13 me. I started to call Hugh and Nikka, and stopped with my hand raised to knock on Nikka's door. It would be a fool stunt14 to wake them for nothing but my own fancies.
After a moment's further hesitation15, I crept downstairs into the entrance hall, groping my way in the pitch darkness. Feeling more than ever like a fool, I looked into the dining room and music room. I had just stepped back into the hall when a chink of light shone out of the short passage that led from the hall into the Gunroom. It flickered16 away, and returned.
Wishing now that I had taken the automatic that lay on the table beside my bed, I stole into the Gunroom passage. I still thought I might have to deal with one of the servants. In fact, I didn't think very much of anything, except the necessity of discovering the identity of the intruder.
The door of the Gunroom opened into the passage. It was ajar, but not sufficiently17 to permit me to see inside. I drew it cautiously toward me. The chink of light was more pronounced. A brief mutter of voices, hoarse18 and restrained, reached my ears. As the crack widened, I adjusted my eye to the opening and peered in.
The Gunroom was a pool of shadows, save only in front of the fireplace, where a single ray of light played upon a preposterous19 figure crouched20 on the mantle-shelf. The light came from an electric torch in the hand of a second figure outlined against the dying coals of the woodfire on the hearth21. They mumbled22 back and forth23 to each other, and now I caught once more the faint noise like the prolonged ripping of tough cloth which had attracted my attention upstairs.
The light flashed on steel, and I realized that the figure on the mantle-shelf was working with a small saw on the panel of the over-mantle containing Lady Jane's verse. As I watched, he suspended his efforts and barked impatiently at his assistant. The ray of light quivered and shifted upward. For a fleeting25 section of a second it traversed the figure on the mantle-shelf and focussed momentarily on his head and shoulders.
I gasped26. The figure on the mantle-shelf was Professor Teodoreschi, the Italian chemist who had accompanied the Hilyer's party. There was no mistaking the tremendous shoulders, the long ape-arms, the pallid27 face, with its high forehead and heavy jaw28. He wore the same costume of shooting-coat and knickerbockers that he had had on in the afternoon.
In my amazement29 my hand tightened30 involuntarily its grip on the door, which swung out past me with a loud groan31. Another beam of light flashed from the shadows close by, focussed on me and snapped off.
"Amerikansky!" cried a man's voice.
I heard him leap through the litter of furniture, and dimly saw him fling his torch at me. It crashed against the door, and I snatched up a chair, stooped low and lashed24 at his legs. He tumbled in a heap.
"Hugh! Nikka!" I shouted at the top of my lungs.
I had my hands full on the instant. The man who had flung the torch at me was already scrambling32 to his feet. The gorilla33-like Italian had jumped from the mantle-shelf with the alert energy of a big cat. He and the man who had been helping34 him were now dodging35 towards me.
"Ne tirez pas!" hissed36 Teodoreschi in throaty accents that were vaguely37 familiar. "Percez! Attende, Serge, Vlada! Percez! Poignardez!"
The Italian's helper reached me first. I saw his knife in his hand, and struck out with my fist. Being a knife-fighter, it was what he least expected, and he went over. I ran behind the large center table, and as the Italian and the other man closed in, I reared it on end and toppled it at them. They jumped apart, and I found opportunity to heave another chair at the chap I had just knocked down.
But I was in for a bad time. Teodoreschi and the man who had first rushed me were ugly customers. I evaded38 them, slipped behind the couch that stood in front of the fireplace and tried to make for the window. They headed me off, and I drove a right hook to the jaw of my original foe39 that sent him reeling. Then the Italian was on me like a human juggernaut. He swept aside my blows as though they were harmless, folded me in his great arms and tossed me from him. I spun40 across the hearth into the fireplace, and brought up on all-fours in the ashes.
Every tooth in my head was jarred by the crash, but I had no time to think of pain. I heard the guttural snarl41 of the gorilla-man behind me, and looked up to see his knife descending42 in a stab that was aimed inside my collarbone. Desperate, I threw myself backward against his legs, and he fell on the couch. Yet he was up again in an instant, and chopping at me, with foam43 dripping from his lips.
I had to run, and as I ran, I kicked the fire-irons in his way. They tripped him and his knife went hurtling across the room into a bookcase. But I could not escape. His companions herded44 me back towards him, and presently I was battling to avoid his clutch. Once within his reach, I was helpless as a child.
His arms wrapped me like cables; his wicked green eyes blazed at me with insane ferocity; his teeth gnashed at my throat. And his two friends hovered45 near, watching for an opportunity to finish me with their knives.
Then I heard feet pattering in the hall, a cry of encouragement. I summoned all my strength for one last struggle.
"Shoot! Hugh! Nikka! Shoot!" I yelled.
Teodoreschi lifted me from my feet, and turned me face upward in his arms. I honestly think he meant to gnaw46 through my throat. His pallid cheeks gleamed with sweat. His eyes were utterly47 inhuman48. His mouth dribbled49 saliva50. But an automatic cracked in the doorway51, and was followed by a choking cry. He hesitated, glaring down at me, and I could almost see the human intelligence returning to his face. There were two more shots, and he slammed me on the floor, with a barking screech52 of defiance53.
The next thing I remember was Hugh pouring raw Scotch54 whiskey down my throat—and how good it tasted.
"We got one fellow," answered Hugh grimly. "Or I should say, Nikka did."
I staggered to my feet with Hugh's arm around me. In the doorway I saw Watkins, a nightshirt flapping around his calves56, forcing back a motley group of servants. Nikka had picked up the electric torch which had been flung at me, and was examining by its light the body of a man that lay between the couch and the fireplace.
"Did they see this?" he asked shortly, pointing to the body.
"No, sir. None of them got inside, and it's quite impossible to see be'ind the couch 'ere, sir."
"I'm right as can be," I insisted, which was the truth. "Nothing bothered me, except having the wind squeezed out of me by that gorilla."
"What gorilla?"
"The Italian—Teodoresehi."
"Oh, was he in it?"
Hugh and Nikka exchanged glances.
"Well, take a look at this fellow," suggested Nikka.
He switched the torch on the body by the hearth. There was a red splotch over the heart. The right hand still clutched convulsively a long knife, with a slight curve near the keen point of the blade. The light settled on a dark, thin, hooknosed face.
"Ever seen him before?" inquired Hugh.
"No," I admitted regretfully.
"Oh, Watty!" called Hugh.
"Yes, your ludship."
Watkins maintained all his usual dignity of demeanor59, notwithstanding that he was in his nightshirt and bare feet, with a snuffed-out candle in one hand and an automatic in the other.
"Ever seen this man before?"
"It's 'im, your ludship! It's the man that told us 'e came from you. On the Aquitania, sir! A just and 'Eavenly punishment, indeed, your ludship!"
"I'll take a little credit for it, if you don't mind," said Nikka, grinning.
"Jack, did you recognize the third man?"
I shook my head.
"The Italian was the only one whose face I saw.'
"Well, I had a glimpse of Number Three as he escaladed through the window after Teodoreschi—I'll take your word for the Italian! He—Number Three, I mean—looked very much like the Russian, the brother of that Countess you were so smitten61 with."
"I wasn't smitten with her," I denied indignantly. "Here, Hugh, don't drink all that whiskey."
"I like your nerve," he retorted. "Didn't I pour a quarter of the bottle down your throat?"
"Be that as it may," I went on when he had surrendered it, "I shouldn't be surprised if Number Three was the Count. Now I think of it, the Italian called 'Serge!' when they first jumped me.'
He touched the dead man with his foot.
"He called 'Vlada!' at the same time."
"That sounds reasonable, too," said Nikka, deep in thought.
"Why?"
"The man is a—what you would call a countryman of mine. He is a Gypsy. I tell you, my friends—"
He broke off, and stared down at the body on the floor.
"What?" asked Hugh.
"Why, this. Our task grows as we draw nearer to it. I have said before that we face a gang of international thieves. But see how their importance swells63. Hugh, this man Hilyer—when all is said and done, an English country gentleman, living to outward seeming within the law—is one of them. They have a pair of shady Russian nobles, probably with ex-spy records. We have seen a Levantine financier with them. We know they have powerful connections in America. We know they have access to the criminal organization of the Gypsies. We have seen an Italian scientist—"
"He's no more Italian than you are," I interrupted. "He may be a scientist, but he's French."
Hugh leaped up.
"How do you know that, Jack?"
"I just know, that's all. Yesterday afternoon I saw him, although I did not recognize him, as he normally is. He's fearsome enough in that mood, God knows! Well, a few minutes ago I saw him blood-crazed. He wanted to bite my throat out like a tiger. Oh, he's Toutou, all right."
Hugh's face grew bitter-hard.
"In that case," he said, "I am going to drive over to Little Depping, and do a bit of killing66 on my own."
Watkins, without a word, deposited his snuffed candle on the mantel-shelf next an open kit9 of burglar's tools, and stepped up beside his master.
"You can't do that sort of thing, Hugh," I urged.
"Why not? He's a murderer, isn't he? He killed my uncle—butchered the poor old chap! D'you suppose Hilyer would dare to complain to the police?"
"What you say is right enough, Hugh," said Nikka quietly, "but you forget that Hilyer's gang are hardly the kind to give up without a fight, especially when the man you want is their leader. Also, I fancy you under-rate your enemies' intelligence, if you suppose Toutou or Teodoreschi or whatever his name is will return to Little Depping."
"They prepared an alibi67 for him when they were here," I cried. "Don't you remember? When they were leaving, Mrs. Hilyer said that they had to put him on the London train before they drove home."
"And you can depend upon it that he took the train," added Nikka. "He probably dropped off at another station, and they met him with a car."
Hugh sat down gloomily.
"I suppose you are right," he admitted. "But I should like to shoot the swine."
"You are very likely to have the opportunity," Nikka comforted him. "That is, supposing you shoot first. Now, see here, you chaps, what are we going to do with this fellow I shot? We can't have any publicity68, and while you may persuade servants not to talk about an ordinary burglary, you can't hush69 them up if it includes a killing."
"What's your suggestion?" asked Hugh.
"Remove him secretly, and tell the servants that nothing is missing and we don't want the affair talked about."
"The idea is good," assented70 Hugh. "I'm not anxious to have any more sensational71 interest attached to me, But what can you do with him? The body is in this room. It's got to be taken out. You can't bury a body without digging a grave. That means leaving a trace. Suppose some one should see us or suppose some one should find the grave and investigate. Mind you, old top, whatever our motives72, we are violating the law if we don't report the man's death."
"There may be a way out of your difficulty," I remarked.
"What is it?"
They both looked at me as if I had gone mad. Even Watkins regarded me with stern disapproval74.
"What are you talking about?" demanded Nikka.
"This is serious," reproved Hugh. "Just because you find a silly cipher—"
"I am serious," I insisted. "This has been an eventful evening. Among other things, I think I have found the Prior's Vent."
Hugh shook his head sadly.
"There's been too much talk of secrets," he said. "Watty, go and ring up Dr. North. He must have hurt his head in that mix-up."
点击
收听单词发音
收听单词发音 |
1
cipher
|
|
| n.零；无影响力的人；密码 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
2
dozed
|
|
| v.打盹儿，打瞌睡( doze的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
3
monks
|
|
| n.修道士，僧侣( monk的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
4
stouter
|
|
| 粗壮的( stout的比较级 )； 结实的； 坚固的； 坚定的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
5
babbled
|
|
| v.喋喋不休( babble的过去式和过去分词 )；作潺潺声（如流水）；含糊不清地说话；泄漏秘密 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
6
profanely
|
|
| adv.渎神地，凡俗地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
7
promptly
|
|
| adv.及时地，敏捷地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
8
poked
|
|
| v.伸出( poke的过去式和过去分词 )；戳出；拨弄；与（某人）性交 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
9
kit
|
|
| n.用具包，成套工具；随身携带物 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
10
subdued
|
|
| adj. 屈服的，柔和的，减弱的 动词subdue的过去式和过去分词 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
11
faculties
|
|
| n.能力( faculty的名词复数 )；全体教职员；技巧；院 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
12
quell
|
|
| v.压制，平息，减轻 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
13
possessed
|
|
| adj.疯狂的；拥有的，占有的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
14
stunt
|
|
| n.惊人表演，绝技，特技；vt.阻碍...发育，妨碍...生长 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
15
hesitation
|
|
| n.犹豫，踌躇 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
16
flickered
|
|
| （通常指灯光）闪烁，摇曳( flicker的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
17
sufficiently
|
|
| adv.足够地，充分地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
18
hoarse
|
|
| adj.嘶哑的，沙哑的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
19
preposterous
|
|
| adj.荒谬的，可笑的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
20
crouched
|
|
| v.屈膝，蹲伏( crouch的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
21
hearth
|
|
| n.壁炉炉床，壁炉地面 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
22
mumbled
|
|
| 含糊地说某事，叽咕，咕哝( mumble的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
23
forth
|
|
| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
24
lashed
|
|
| adj.具睫毛的v.鞭打( lash的过去式和过去分词 )；煽动；紧系；怒斥 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
25
fleeting
|
|
| adj.短暂的，飞逝的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
26
gasped
|
|
| v.喘气( gasp的过去式和过去分词 )；喘息；倒抽气；很想要 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
27
pallid
|
|
| adj.苍白的，呆板的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
28
jaw
|
|
| n.颚，颌，说教，流言蜚语；v.喋喋不休，教训 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
29
amazement
|
|
| n.惊奇，惊讶 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
30
tightened
|
|
| 收紧( tighten的过去式和过去分词 )； （使）变紧； （使）绷紧； 加紧 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
31
groan
|
|
| vi./n.呻吟，抱怨；(发出)呻吟般的声音 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
32
scrambling
|
|
| v.快速爬行( scramble的现在分词 )；攀登；争夺；（军事飞机）紧急起飞 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
33
gorilla
|
|
| n.大猩猩，暴徒，打手 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
34
helping
|
|
| n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
35
dodging
|
|
| n.避开，闪过，音调改变v.闪躲( dodge的现在分词 )；回避 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
36
hissed
|
|
| 发嘶嘶声( hiss的过去式和过去分词 )； 发嘘声表示反对 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
37
vaguely
|
|
| adv.含糊地，暖昧地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
38
evaded
|
|
| 逃避( evade的过去式和过去分词 )； 避开； 回避； 想不出 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
39
foe
|
|
| n.敌人，仇敌 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
40
spun
|
|
| v.纺，杜撰，急转身 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
41
snarl
|
|
| v.吼叫，怒骂，纠缠，混乱；n.混乱，缠结，咆哮 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
42
descending
|
|
| n. 下行 adj. 下降的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
43
foam
|
|
| v./n.泡沫，起泡沫 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
44
herded
|
|
| 群集，纠结( herd的过去式和过去分词 )； 放牧； （使）向…移动 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
45
hovered
|
|
| 鸟( hover的过去式和过去分词 )； 靠近（某事物）； （人）徘徊； 犹豫 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
46
gnaw
|
|
| v.不断地啃、咬；使苦恼，折磨 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
47
utterly
|
|
| adv.完全地，绝对地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
48
inhuman
|
|
| adj.残忍的，不人道的，无人性的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
49
dribbled
|
|
| v.流口水( dribble的过去式和过去分词 )；（使液体）滴下或作细流；运球，带球 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
50
saliva
|
|
| n.唾液，口水 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
51
doorway
|
|
| n.门口，(喻)入门；门路，途径 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
52
screech
|
|
| n./v.尖叫；(发出)刺耳的声音 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
53
defiance
|
|
| n.挑战，挑衅，蔑视，违抗 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
54
scotch
|
|
| n.伤口，刻痕；苏格兰威士忌酒；v.粉碎，消灭，阻止；adj.苏格兰(人)的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
55
stammered
|
|
| v.结巴地说出( stammer的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
56
calves
|
|
| n.(calf的复数)笨拙的男子，腓；腿肚子( calf的名词复数 )；牛犊；腓；小腿肚v.生小牛( calve的第三人称单数 )；（冰川）崩解；生（小牛等），产（犊）；使（冰川）崩解 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
57
beckoned
|
|
| v.（用头或手的动作）示意，召唤( beckon的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
58
jack
|
|
| n.插座，千斤顶，男人；v.抬起，提醒，扛举；n.（Jake）杰克 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
59
demeanor
|
|
| n.行为；风度 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
60
erect
|
|
| n./v.树立，建立，使竖立；adj.直立的，垂直的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
61
smitten
|
|
| 猛打，重击，打击( smite的过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
62
carrion
|
|
| n.腐肉 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
63
swells
|
|
| 增强( swell的第三人称单数 )； 肿胀； （使）凸出； 充满（激情） | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
64
placidly
|
|
| adv.平稳地，平静地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
65
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： |
|
|
|
|
66
killing
|
|
| n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
67
alibi
|
|
| n.某人当时不在犯罪现场的申辩或证明；借口 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
68
publicity
|
|
| n.众所周知，闻名；宣传，广告 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
69
hush
|
|
| int.嘘，别出声；n.沉默，静寂；v.使安静 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
70
assented
|
|
| 同意，赞成( assent的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
71
sensational
|
|
| adj.使人感动的，非常好的，轰动的，耸人听闻的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
72
motives
|
|
| n.动机，目的( motive的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
73
vent
|
|
| n.通风口，排放口；开衩；vt.表达，发泄 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
74
disapproval
|
|
| n.反对，不赞成 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
| 欢迎访问英文小说网 |