The whistling came from behind the hotel, and although it ended as soon as he reached the veranda1 of the building, Buck2 Daniels hurried to the rear of the place. There were the long, low sheds of the barn, and behind these, he knew, must be the corrals. He raced around the corner of the shed and there came to a halt, for he saw a thing that turned his blood to ice.
One of those rare rains of the mountain-desert had recently fallen and the corrals behind the barn were carpeted with a short, thick grass. In the small corral nearest him he beheld3, rolling on that carpet of grass, a great wolf—or a dog as large and as rough-coated as a wolf, and a man; and they were engaged in a desperate and silent struggle for mastery. Their movements were so lightning fast that Buck Daniels could not make out distinct forms from the tangle4. But he saw the great white teeth of the wolf flash in the sun one instant, and the next the man had whirled on top. It was Dan and Bart at play.
No outcry from Dan; no growl5 from the wolf. Buck felt the old chill which never left him when he saw the fierce game of the wolf and the wolf-man. All this passed in the twinkling of an eye, and then Dan, by a prodigious6 effort, had thrown the great beast away from him, so that Bart fell upon its back. Dan leaped with outstretched arms upon the fallen animal, and buried his clutching hands in the throat of the beast.
Yet still there was a thrill to add to these, for now a black horse appeared in the picture, a miracle of slender, shimmering7 grace—and he rushed with flattened8 ears upon the two twisting, writhing9, prostrate10 figures. His teeth were bared—he was more like a prodigious dog than a horse. And those teeth closed on the back of the man's neck—or did they merely pinch his shirt?—and then Dan was dragged bodily away from the wolf and thrown through the air by a flirt11 of the stallion's head.
The instant the man was torn away by the intercession of the horse, the wolf regained15 its feet and rushed upon him; but Dan had landed from his fall upon his feet, with catlike agility16, and now he dodged17 the rush of the wolf and the arrowy spring of the creature, and sprang in his turn towards the stallion.
The black met this attack by rearing, his ears flattened, his teeth bared, his eyes terrible to behold18. As the man raced close the stallion struck with lightning hoofs19, but the blow failed of its mark—by the breadth of a hair. And the assailant, swerving20 like a will-o'-the-wisp, darted21 to the side of the animal and leaped upon its back. At the same instant the wolf left the ground with terribly gaping22 mouth in a spring for the rider; but Dan flattened himself along the shining back of his mount and the wolf catapulted harmlessly past.
After this failure the wolf-dog seemed to desire no further active part in the struggle, but took up a position to one side, and there, with lolling tongue and red-stained eyes, watched the battle continue. The stallion, to be sure, kept up the conflict with a whole-hearted energy. Never had Buck Daniels in a long and varied23 career seen such wild pitching. The black leaped here and there, doubling about with the sinuous24 speed of a snake, springing high in the air one instant, and landing the next on stiff legs; dropping to the ground the next second, and rolling to crush the rider; up again like a leaf jerked up by a gale25 of wind, and so the fierce struggle continued, with the wild rider slapping the neck of the horse as if he would encourage it to more terrible efforts, and drumming its round barrel with vindictive26 heels. His hair blew black; his face flushed; and in his eyes there was the joy of the sailor, long land-bound, who climbs at last the tallest mast and feels it pitch beneath him and catches the sharp tang of the travelled wind.
The struggle ceased as if in obedience27 to an inaudible command. From the full frenzy28 of motion horse and man were suddenly moveless. Then Dan slipped from his seat and stood before his mount. At once the ears of the stallion, which had been flat back, pricked29 sharply forward; the eyes of the animal grew luminous30 and soft as the eyes of a woman, and he dropped the black velvet31 of his muzzle32 beneath the master's chin. As for Dan Barry, he rewarded this outburst of affection with no touch of his hand; but his lips moved, and he seemed to be whispering a secret to his horse. The wolf in the meantime had viewed this scene with growing unrest, and now it trotted33 up and placed itself at the side of the man. Receiving no attention in this position, it caught the arm of the man between its great fangs34 and drew his hands down. The stallion, angered by this interruption, raised a delicate forefoot to strike, and was received with a terrific snarl35—the first sound of the entire scene.
"Bart," said the man, and his voice was not raised or harsh, but came as softly as running water, "if you ain't going to be a gentleman, I got to teach you manners. Get up on Satan's back and lie down till I tell you to get off."
The wolf received this command with a snarl even more blood-curdling than before, but he obeyed, slinking sidewise a reluctant pace or two, and then springing to the back of the stallion with a single bound. There he crouched36, still snarling37 softly until his master raised a significant forefinger38. At that he lowered his head and maintained a fiercely observant silence.
"Dan!" called Buck Daniels.
The other whirled.
"Speakin' of pets," observed Buck Daniels, "I heard tell once about a gent that had a tame lion. Which you got the outbeatingest pair I ever see, Dan. Gentle, ain't they, like a stampede of cows!"
But Barry left this remark unanswered. He ran to the tall fence, placed his hand on the top rail, and vaulted40 lightly over it. Then he clasped the hand of the larger man, and his face lighted.
"Buck," he said, "I been sort of lonesome. It feels pretty good to see you agin."
"Oh man," answered Buck Daniels, "speakin' of bein' lonesome———" He checked himself. "How about steppin' inside and havin' a talk?"
The other started forward agreeably, but stopped almost at once.
"Heel!" he called, without turning his head.
Black Bart left the back of the stallion in a long bound that carried him half way to the fence. His next leap brought him over the rail and beside his master. Buck Daniels moved back a step involuntarily.
"Bart," he said, "d'you know me?"
He stretched out his hand; and was received with a sudden baring of the fangs.
"Nice dog!" said Buck sarcastically41. "Regular house-pet, ain't he?"
The other apparently42 missed the entire point of this remark. He said in his gentle, serious way: "He used to be real wild, Buck. But now he don't mind people. He let the cook feed him a chunk43 o' meat the other day; and you remember he don't usually touch stuff that other men have handled."
"Yep," grunted Buck, "it's sure disgustin' to have a dog as tame as that. I'd bet he ain't killed another dog for a whole day, maybe!"
He answered, as gravely as before: "No, it was the day before yesterday.
Somebody come to town and got drunk. He had two dogs, and sicked 'em on
Bart."
"Both dead?"
"I was inside the house," said Dan sadly, "and it took me a couple of seconds to get outside. Of course by that time Bart had cut their throats."
"Of course. Didn't the drunk guy try to pot Bart?"
"Yes, he got out his gun; but, Mr. O'Brien, the bartender, persuaded him out of it. I was glad there wasn't no trouble."
"My God!" exclaimed Buck Daniels. And then: "Well, let's go inside.
We'll take your man-eater along, if you want to."
A shadow came in the eyes of Barry.
"Can't we talk jest as well out here?"
"What's the matter with findin' some chairs?"
"Because I don't like to get inside walls. You know how four walls seem like so many pairs of eyes standin' around you?"
"No," said Buck bluntly, "I don't know nothin' of the kind. What d'you mean?"
"I dunno," answered Barry, depressed46. "It jest seems that way. Ain't you noticed how sort of close it is in a house? Hard to breathe? Like you had on a shirt too small for you."
"We'll stay out here, then."
The other nodded, smiled, and made a gesture to the dog behind him. Black Bart crouched on the ground, and Dan Barry sat down cross-legged, his shoulders leaning against the shaggy pelt47 of Bart. Daniels followed the example with less grace. He was thinking very hard and fast, and he rolled a Durham cigarette to fill the interlude.
"I s'pose you're bustin' to find out the news about the folks," he said dryly, at last.
The other sat with his hands loosely clasped in his lap. His wide eyes looked far away, and there was about his lips that looseness, that lack of compression, which one sees so often in children. He might have sat, in that posture48, for the statue of thoughtlessness.
"What folks?" he asked at last
Buck Daniels had lighted a match, but now he sat staring blank until the match burned down to his fingers. With an oath he tossed the remnant away and lighted another. He had drawn49 down several long breaths of smoke to the bottom of his lungs before he could speak again.
"Some people you used to know; I suppose you've forgotten all about 'em, eh?" His eyes narrowed; there was a spark of something akin39 to dread50 in them. "Kate Cumberland?" he queried51.
A light came in the face of Dan Barry.
"Kate Cumberland?" he repeated. "How is she, Buck? Lately, I been thinkin' about her every day."
A trembling took the body and the voice of Daniels; his errand, after all, might meet some success.
"Kate?" he repeated. "Oh, ay, she's well enough. But Joe Cumberland ain't."
"No?"
"He's dyin' Dan."
And Dan replied calmly. "He's kind of old, I s'pose."
"Old?" said Buck, with a sort of horror. "Yes, he's old, right enough.
D'you know why he's dying? It's because you went away the way you done,
Dan. That's what's killin' him."
Something of thought came in the face of Barry.
"Maybe I understand," he said slowly. "If I was to lose Satan, or Bart—" here the great dog whined52 at the mention of his name, and Barry dropped a slender hand across the scarred forehead of his servant. "If I was to lose 'em, I'd sort of mourn for 'em, maybe."
Buck Daniels set his teeth.
"I don't suppose it seems possible," he said, "that a man could miss another man the way you could miss your—dog, eh? But it is! Joe Cumberland is dying for you, Dan, as sure as if you'd put a bullet in his bowels53."
The other hesitated and then frowned and made a gesture of vague dismissal.
"Don't you figure on doin' nothing about it?" asked Buck softly.
"What could I do?"
"My God A'mighty, ain't you got no human feelin's?"
"I dunno what you mean," said the soft voice.
"This! Can't you git on your hoss and ride back with me to Cumberland Ranch54? Stay with the old man till he gets back on his feet. Ain't that easy to do? Is your time so damned valuable you can't spare a few days for that?"
"But I am goin' back," answered Dan, in a rather hurt voice. "They ain't no need for cussin' me, Buck. I been thinkin' of Kate, every day, almost."
"Since when?"
"I dunno." Dan stirred uneasily. He looked up, and far above Buck, following the direction of Dan's eyes, saw a pattern of wild geese. "I been sort of driftin' North towards the Cumberland Ranch and Kate," went on Dan. He sighed: "I been thinkin' of her eyes, which is blue, Buck, and her hair, and the soft sound of her voice. They been hangin' in my ears, stayin' behind my eyes, lately, and I been driftin' up that way steady."
"Why, man," cried Buck, "then what's there to keep you here? Jump on your hoss, and we'll head North in ten minutes."
"I will!" said Dan, full as eagerly. "We'll start full speed."
"Come on, then."
"Wait a minute!" said Dan, his voice growing suddenly cold. "I been forgettin' something."
Buck Daniels turned and found his companion strangely changed. There was a set expression of coldness about his face, and a chill glitter in his eyes.
"I got to wait here for something."
"What's that?"
"They's a man in town that may want to see me."
"Mac Strann! I've heard about him. Dan, are you goin' to let Joe Cumberland die because you want to stay here and fight it out with a dirty cutthroat?"
"I don't want to fight," protested Barry. "No, there ain't nothin' I like less than fightin'!"
Buck Daniels cursed softly and continuously to himself.
"Dan," he said, "can you sit there and lie like that to me? Ain't I seen you in action? Don't I remember the way you trailed Jim Silent? Don't I remember how we all got down and prayed you to keep away from Jim? Don't I remember how you threw everything to hell so's you could get your hands on Jim? My God A'mighty, man, didn't I see your face when you had your fingers in Silent's throat?"
Barry.
"Stop!" he commanded softly, and raised his slender hand. "Don't keep on talkin' about it. It makes me sick—all through. Oh, Buck, they's a tingle56 in the tips of my fingers still from the time I had 'em in his throat. And it makes me feel unclean—the sort of uncleanness that won't wash out with no kind of soap and water. Buck, I'd most rather die myself than fight a man!"
A vast amazement57 overspread the countenance58 of Buck Daniels as he listened to this outburst; it was as if he had heard a healthy man proclaim that he had no desire for bread and meat. Something rose to his lips, but he swallowed it.
"Then it looks kind of simple to me," he said. "You hate fightin'. This gent Mac Strann likes it; he lives on it; he don't do nothing but wait from day to day hungerin' for a scrap59. What's the out? Jest this! You hop60 on your hoss and ride out with me. Young Jerry Strann kicks out—Mac Strann starts lookin' for you—he hears that you've beat it—he goes off and forgets about you. Ain't that simple?"
The old uneasiness returned to the far-seeing eyes of Dan Barry.
"I dunno," he said, "maybe——"
Then he paused again.
"Have you got anything to say agin it?" urged Buck, arguing desperately61.
"I dunno," repeated Barry, confused, "except that I keep thinking what a terrible disappointment it'll be to this Mac Strann when his brother dies and I ain't around."
Buck Daniels stared, blinked, and then burst into unmelodious laughter. Satan trotted across the corral and raised his head above the fence, whinnying softly. Barry turned his head and smiled up to the horse.
Then he said: "Seems like if Jerry Strann dies I owe somebody something. Who? Mac Strann, I reckon. I sort of got to stay and give him his chance."
"I hope to God," burst out Daniels, smashing his hands together, "that
The eyes of Dan Barry widened.
"Why d'you hope that?" he asked gently.
It brought Daniels again to speechlessness.
"Is it possible?" he growled63 to himself. "Are you a human bein' and yet you think more of your hoss and your damned wolf-dog than you do of the life of a man? Dan, I'm askin' you straight, is that a square thing to do?"
The fragile hands went out to him, palm up.
"Don't you see, Buck? I don't want to be this way. I jest can't help it!"
"Then the Lord help poor old Joe Cumberland—him that took you in out of the desert—him that raised you from the time you was a kid—him that nursed you like you was his own baby—him that loved you more'n he loved Kate—him that's lyin' back there now with fire in his eyes, waitin', waitin', waitin', for you to come back. Dan, if you was to see him you'd go down on your knees and ask him to forgive you!"
"I s'pose I would," murmured Barry thoughtfully.
"Dan, you're goin' to go with me!"
"I don't somehow think its my time for movin', Buck."
"Is that all you got to say to me?"
"I guess maybe it is, Buck."
"If I was to beg you to come for old-time's sake, and all we been through together, you and me, wouldn't it make no difference to you?"
The large, gentle eyes focused far beyond Buck Daniels, somewhere on a point in the pale, hazy64 blue of the spring sky.
"I'm kind of tired of talkin', Buck," he said at length.
And Buck Daniels rose and walked slowly away, with his head fallen. Behind him the stallion neighed suddenly and loud, and it was so much like a blast of defiant65 triumph that Buck whirled and shook his clenched66 fist at Satan.
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收听单词发音
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1
veranda
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| n.走廊；阳台 | |
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buck
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| n.雄鹿，雄兔；v.马离地跳跃 | |
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beheld
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| v.看，注视( behold的过去式和过去分词 )；瞧；看呀；（叙述中用于引出某人意外的出现）哎哟 | |
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4
tangle
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| n.纠缠；缠结；混乱；v.(使)缠绕；变乱 | |
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growl
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| v.（狗等）嗥叫，（炮等）轰鸣；n.嗥叫，轰鸣 | |
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prodigious
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| adj.惊人的，奇妙的；异常的；巨大的；庞大的 | |
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7
shimmering
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| v.闪闪发光，发微光( shimmer的现在分词 ) | |
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flattened
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| [医]（水）平扁的，弄平的 | |
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writhing
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| （因极度痛苦而）扭动或翻滚( writhe的现在分词 ) | |
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prostrate
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| v.拜倒，平卧，衰竭；adj.拜倒的，平卧的，衰竭的 | |
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flirt
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| v.调情，挑逗，调戏；n.调情者，卖俏者 | |
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shudder
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| v.战粟，震动，剧烈地摇晃；n.战粟，抖动 | |
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13
shuddered
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| v.战栗( shudder的过去式和过去分词 )；发抖；（机器、车辆等）突然震动；颤动 | |
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14
grunted
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| （猪等）作呼噜声( grunt的过去式和过去分词 )； （指人）发出类似的哼声； 咕哝着说 | |
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regained
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| 复得( regain的过去式和过去分词 )； 赢回； 重回； 复至某地 | |
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agility
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| n.敏捷，活泼 | |
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dodged
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| v.闪躲( dodge的过去式和过去分词 )；回避 | |
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behold
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| v.看，注视，看到 | |
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hoofs
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| n.（兽的）蹄，马蹄( hoof的名词复数 )v.（兽的）蹄，马蹄( hoof的第三人称单数 ) | |
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20
swerving
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| v.（使）改变方向，改变目的( swerve的现在分词 ) | |
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darted
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| v.投掷，投射( dart的过去式和过去分词 )；向前冲，飞奔 | |
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gaping
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| adj.口的；张口的；敞口的；多洞穴的v.目瞪口呆地凝视( gape的现在分词 )；张开，张大 | |
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varied
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| adj.多样的，多变化的 | |
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sinuous
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| adj.蜿蜒的，迂回的 | |
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gale
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| n.大风，强风，一阵闹声（尤指笑声等） | |
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vindictive
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| adj.有报仇心的，怀恨的，惩罚的 | |
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obedience
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| n.服从，顺从 | |
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frenzy
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| n.疯狂，狂热，极度的激动 | |
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pricked
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| 刺，扎，戳( prick的过去式和过去分词 )； 刺伤； 刺痛； 使剧痛 | |
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luminous
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| adj.发光的，发亮的；光明的；明白易懂的；有启发的 | |
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velvet
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| n.丝绒，天鹅绒；adj.丝绒制的，柔软的 | |
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muzzle
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| n.鼻口部；口套；枪(炮)口；vt.使缄默 | |
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trotted
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| 小跑，急走( trot的过去分词 )； 匆匆忙忙地走 | |
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fangs
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| n.（尤指狗和狼的）长而尖的牙( fang的名词复数 )；（蛇的）毒牙；罐座 | |
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snarl
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| v.吼叫，怒骂，纠缠，混乱；n.混乱，缠结，咆哮 | |
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crouched
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| v.屈膝，蹲伏( crouch的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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snarling
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| v.（指狗）吠，嗥叫， （人）咆哮( snarl的现在分词 )；咆哮着说，厉声地说 | |
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forefinger
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| n.食指 | |
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akin
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| adj.同族的，类似的 | |
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vaulted
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| adj.拱状的 | |
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sarcastically
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| adv.挖苦地，讽刺地 | |
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42
apparently
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| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
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chunk
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| n.厚片，大块，相当大的部分（数量） | |
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irony
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| n.反语，冷嘲；具有讽刺意味的事，嘲弄 | |
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incipient
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| adj.起初的，发端的，初期的 | |
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depressed
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| adj.沮丧的，抑郁的，不景气的，萧条的 | |
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pelt
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| v.投掷，剥皮，抨击，开火 | |
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posture
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| n.姿势，姿态，心态，态度；v.作出某种姿势 | |
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drawn
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| v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的 | |
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50
dread
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| vt.担忧，忧虑；惧怕，不敢；n.担忧，畏惧 | |
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51
queried
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| v.质疑，对…表示疑问( query的过去式和过去分词 )；询问 | |
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52
whined
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| v.哀号( whine的过去式和过去分词 )；哀诉，诉怨 | |
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53
bowels
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| n.肠，内脏，内部；肠( bowel的名词复数 )；内部，最深处 | |
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ranch
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| n.大牧场，大农场 | |
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rippled
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| 使泛起涟漪（ripple的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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56
tingle
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| vi.感到刺痛，感到激动；n.刺痛，激动 | |
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57
amazement
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| n.惊奇，惊讶 | |
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countenance
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| n.脸色，面容；面部表情；vt.支持，赞同 | |
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59
scrap
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| n.碎片；废料；v.废弃，报废 | |
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60
hop
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| n.单脚跳，跳跃；vi.单脚跳，跳跃；着手做某事；vt.跳跃，跃过 | |
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61
desperately
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| adv.极度渴望地，绝望地，孤注一掷地 | |
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62
pulp
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| n.果肉，纸浆；v.化成纸浆，除去...果肉，制成纸浆 | |
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63
growled
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| v.（动物）发狺狺声， （雷）作隆隆声( growl的过去式和过去分词 )；低声咆哮着说 | |
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64
hazy
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| adj.有薄雾的，朦胧的；不肯定的，模糊的 | |
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defiant
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| adj.无礼的，挑战的 | |
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66
clenched
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| v.紧握，抓紧，咬紧( clench的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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