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Chapter 28
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It was Thursday morning and on Sunday Charles Ashby would come sailing up Southampton Water, and nothing would stop the subsequent celebrations. He followed Bee into the hall at Latchetts feeling desperate.

“Do you mind if I desert you and go into Westover?” he asked Bee.

“No, I think you are due a little rest from the family. Simon is for ever running away.”

So he took the bus into Westover and waited until it was time for Mr. Macallan to be having his mid-morning coffee. He went, to the Westover Times office and asked to see the files. The office boy, who showed no sign of ever having seen him before, took him to the cellar and showed him where they were. Brat1 read the report of the inquest all over again, but could find no help there.

Perhaps in the full report there would be something?

He went out and looked up Colonel Smollett in the telephone book. Where, he asked the Colonel, would the report of the inquest on himself be now? With the police? Well, would he make it easy for him to see it?

The Colonel would, but he considered it a most morbid3 and undesirable4 ambition, and implored5 young Ashby to think again.

So armed with the Colonel’s telephoned introduction, he went to see a highly amused police force, who sat him down in a leather armchair and offered him cigarettes, and set before him the coroner’s report of eight years ago with the empressment of a conjurer who has produced the rabbit from the hat.

He read it all through several times. It was merely the Westover Times’ report in greater detail.

He thanked the police, offered them cigarettes in his turn, and went away as empty of suggestion as he had come. He went down to the harbour and hung over the wall, staring westward6 at the cliffs.

He had a fixed7 point, anyhow. A fixed point that could not be altered. Simon Ashby was in Clare that day. That was held to by a man who had no reason for lying, and no suspicion that the fact was of any importance. Simon had never been long enough away from Mr. Pilbeam’s vicinity to make his absence felt.

Pat Ashby must have been killed between the time that old Abel met him in the early afternoon and the moment when Mr. Pilbeam had to chase Simon home for six o’clock supper.

Well, there was that old saying about Mahomet and the mountain.

He thought the Mahomet theory over, but was stumped8 by the coat on the cliff-top. It was Simon who had written that note, but Simon was never out of Clare.

It was two o’clock when he came to himself, and he went to have lunch at a small pub in the harbour. They had nothing much left, but it did not matter because he sat staring at his plate until they put the bill in front of him.

He went back to Latchetts and without going to the house went to the stables and took out one of the horses that had not been at Bures. There was no one about but Arthur, who reported that all the horses were safely back and all well except that Buster had an overreach.

“Taking him out like that, sir?” Arthur asked, nodding at Brat’s tweed suit. And Brat said that he was.

He turned up to the down as he had that first morning when he took out Timber, and did again what he had done on Timber’s back. But all the glory was gone. The whole world looked sick. Life itself tasted bad.

He dismounted and sat down where he had sat that morning a month ago, looking out over the small green valley. It had seemed paradise to him then. Even that silly girl who had come and talked to him had not sufficed to spoil it for him. He remembered how her eyes had popped when she found he was not Simon. She had come there sure of seeing Simon because it was his favourite place for exercising the horses. Because he....

The horse by his side threw up his head as Brat’s sudden movement jerked the bit in his mouth.

Because he...?

He listened to the girl’s voice in his mind. Then he got slowly to his feet and stood a long time staring across the valley.

He knew now how Simon had done it. And he also knew the answer to something that had puzzled him. He knew why Simon had been afraid that, by some miracle, it was the real Patrick who had come back.

He got on the horse and went back to the stables. The great clouds were racing9 up from the south-west and it was beginning to rain. In the saddle room he took a sheet of writing paper from the desk and wrote on it: “Out for dinner. Leave the front door on the latch2 for me, and don’t worry if I am late.” He put it in an envelope, addressed it to Bee, and asked Arthur to hand it in at the house when he was passing. He took his burberry from the back of the saddle-room door, and went out into the rain, away from Latchetts. He had the knowledge now. What was he going to do with it?

He walked without conscious purpose, unaware10 of anything but the dreadful question to be answered. He came to the smithy where Mr. Pilbeam was still working, and greeted him, and exchanged opinions on the work in hand and on the weather to come, without having for a moment ceased to battle with the thing in his mind.

He walked up the path to Tanbitches and up the hill over the wet grass to the crown of beeches11, and walked there to and fro among the great boles of the trees, distracted and stricken.

How could he bring this thing on Bee?

On Eleanor? On Latchetts?

Had he not already done Latchetts sufficient harm?

Would it matter so much if Simon were left in possession as he had been for eight years?

Who had been harmed by that? Only one person: Patrick.

If Simon was to be brought to justice for Patrick’s death, it would mean horror beyond horror for Bee and the rest.

He didn’t have to do it at all. He could go away; stage a suicide. After all, Simon had staged Patrick’s suicide, and it had passed a police investigation12. If a boy of thirteen could do that he could do it. He could just drop out, and things would be as they were a month ago.

And — Pat Ashby?

But Pat, if he could choose, would not want justice on Simon at the cost of his family’s ruin. Not Pat, who had been kind and always thought first of others.

And Simon?

Was he to make good Simon’s monstrous13 supposition that he would do nothing? Was Simon to spend a long life as the owner of Latchetts? Were Simon’s children to inherit Latchetts?

But they would still be Ashbys. If Simon were brought to justice there would be no more Ashbys at Latchetts.

And how would it advantage Latchetts to have its inheritance made safe by the condoning14 of murder?

Was it not, perhaps, to uncover that murder that he had come by such strange ways to Latchetts?

He had come half across a world to that meeting with Loding in the street, and he had said to himself that so strange a chance must be destiny. But he had not imagined it to be an important destiny. Now, it would seem, it was an all-important one.

What was he to do? Who could advise him? Decide for him? It was not fair that this should be put on his shoulders. He had not the wisdom, the experience, to deal with a thing of this magnitude.

“I am retribution,” he had said to Simon, and meant it. But that was before he had the weapon of retribution in his hand.

What was he to do?

Go to the police to-night? To-morrow?

Do nothing, and let the celebrations begin when Charles Ashby came home?

What was he to do?

It was late that night that George Peck, sitting in his study and conscious every now and then even from his distant vantage point in Thebes of the lashing15 rain on the window of the Rectory in Clare, heard a tapping at that window, and came back from Thebes and went to the front door. It was by no means the first time that people had tapped on that window late at night.

In the light from the hall he saw one of the Ashbys, he could not tell which because the soaked hat almost obscured the face.

“Rector, may I come in and talk to you?”

“Of course, Patrick. Come in.”

Brat stood on the step, the rain sluicing16 from his coat.

“I’m afraid I’m very wet,” he said vaguely17.

The Rector looked down and saw that the grey tweed of his trousers was black, and his shoes an oozing18 pulp19. His eyes went sharply to the boy’s face. Brat had taken off his limp hat and the rain-water from his soaked hair was running down his face.

“Take off your coat and leave it here,” the Rector said. “I’ll give you another one when you are ready to go.” He went to the hall cloakroom and came back with a towel. “Rub your head with that.”

Brat did as he was told, with the obedient air and fumbling20 movements of a child. The Rector went through to the empty kitchen and brought a kettle of water.

“Come in,” he said. “Just drop the towel where your wet coat is.” He led the way into his study and put the kettle on an electric ring. “That will be hot in no time. I often make tea for myself when I sit up late. What was it you wanted to talk to me about?”

“A pit in Dothan.”

“What?”

“I’m sorry. My mind has stopped working. Have you a drink of any kind?”

The Rector had meant to put the whisky in the tea, as a toddy, but he poured a stiff one now and Brat drank it.

“Thank you. I am sorry to come and worry you like this, but I had to talk to you. I hope you don’t mind.”

“I am here to be talked to. Some more whisky?”

“No, thanks.”

“Then let me give you some dry shoes.”

“Oh, no, thank you. I’m used to being wet, you know. Rector, I want your advice about something very important, but can I talk to you as if — as if it were confessional? I mean, without your feeling that you must do something about it.”

“Whatever you say I shall treat as confession21, certainly.”

“Well, first I have to tell you something. I am not Patrick Ashby.”

“No,” agreed the Rector. And Brat stared.

“You mean — you mean, you knew I wasn’t Patrick?”

“I rather thought that you weren’t.”

“Why?”

“There is more to any person than a physical presence; there is an aura, a personality, a being. And I was almost sure the first time I met you that I had never met you before. There was nothing in you that I recognised, although you have many things in common with Patrick as well as your appearance.”

“And you did nothing about it!”

“What do you suggest that I should have done? Your lawyer, your family, and your friends had all accepted and welcomed you. I had no evidence to show that you were not Patrick. Nothing but my own belief that you weren’t. What good would it have done to express my disbelief? It did not seem to me that it would be long before the situation resolved itself without my interference.”

“You mean: that I should be found out.”

“No. I mean that you did not seem to me someone who would be happy in the life you had chosen. Judging by your visit to-night, I was right.”

“But I didn’t come here to-night just to confess to not being Patrick.”

“No?”

“No, that is only — I had to tell you that because it was the only way you could understand what has — I wish my mind was clearer. I’ve been walking about trying to get things straight.”

“Perhaps if you told me first how you came to Latchetts at all, it would at least clear my mind.”

“I— I met someone in America who had lived in Clare. They — she thought I looked like an Ashby, and suggested that I should pretend to be Patrick.”

“And you were to pay her a share of the proceeds of the deception22.”

“Yes.”

“I can only say that she earned her percentage whatever it was. As a tutor she must be remarkable23. I have never seen a better piece of coaching. Are you American, then?”

“No,” said Brat, and the Rector smiled faintly at the emphasis. “I was brought up in an orphanage24. I was left on its doorstep.”

And he sketched25 for the Rector the story of his life.

“I have heard of your orphanage,” the Rector said, when he had finished. “It explains one thing that puzzled me: your good upbringing.” He poured tea, and added whisky. “Would you like something more substantial than biscuits, by the way? No? Then have the oatmeal ones; they are very filling.”

“I had to tell you all this because of something I found out. Patrick didn’t commit suicide. He was murdered.”

The Rector set down the cup he was holding. For the first time he looked startled.

“Murdered? By whom?”

“His brother.”

“Simon?”

“Yes.”

“But, Patrick! That —— What is your name, by the way?”

“You forget. I haven’t got one. I’ve always been called Brat. It was a corruption26 of Bartholomew.”

“But my dear fellow, that is absurd. What evidence have you of anything so incredible?”

“I have Simon’s word for it.”

“Simon told you?”

“He boasted about it. He said that I could never do anything about it because it would mean giving myself away. He knew as soon as he saw me that I wasn’t Patrick, you see.”

“When did this extraordinary conversation take place?”

“Last night, at the Bures ball. It wasn’t as sudden as it sounds. I began to wonder about Simon long before that, and I challenged him about it because of something he said about knowing I wasn’t Patrick, and he laughed and boasted about it.”

“I think that the setting of this scene does a lot to explain it.”

“You mean you think we were drunk?”

“Not exactly. Elated, shall we say. And you challenged Simon on the subject, and Simon with his perverted27 sense of mischief28 provided you with what you expected from him.”

“Do you really believe I have as little intelligence as that?” Brat asked quietly.

“It surprises me, I must admit. I have always considered you to be highly intelligent.”

“Then believe me, I am not here because of a piece of fooling on Simon’s part. Patrick didn’t commit suicide. Simon killed him. Deliberately29. And what is more, I know how he did it.”

And he told him.

“But Brat, you have no evidence even now. That is theory, what you have just told me. An ingenious and likely theory, I admit. It has the merit of simplicity30. But you have no evidence whatsoever31.”

“We can get the evidence, if the police once know the truth. But that isn’t what I want to know. What I want advice about is — well, whether to let sleeping dogs lie.”

And he explained his dilemma32.

But the Rector, rather surprisingly in view of his silence about his doubts of Brat’s identity, had no doubts on the subject at all. If murder had been done, then the law must be invoked33. Anything else was anarchy34.

His point was that Brat had no case against Simon. His mind had run on murder, he had taunted35 Simon with it, Simon had one of his well-known impish moments and confessed, and Brat after long thought had found a theory to fit the alleged36 confession.

“And you think that I’ve been walking about in the rain since four o’clock because of a little joke of Simon’s? You think that I came here to-night and confessed to not being Patrick because of a little joke of Simon’s?” The Rector was silent. “Tell me, Rector, were you surprised when Pat committed suicide?”

“Exceedingly.”

“Do you know anyone who wasn’t surprised?”

“No. But suicide is a surprising thing.”

“I give up,” Brat said.

In the contemplative silence that followed, the Rector said: “I see what you meant by the pit in Dothan. That was an excellent upbringing at the orphanage.”

“It was a very thoroughly37 Biblical one, if that is what you mean. Simon knows that story, too, by the way.”

“I expect so, but how do you happen to know?”

“When he heard that Patrick had come back he couldn’t help, in spite of his denials, a fear that it might be true. There had been that other case, you see. That time the victim had survived by a miracle. He was afraid that by some miracle Patrick had survived. I know, because he came into that room, the first day I was there, strung up to face something dreadful. And his relief when he saw me was almost funny.”

He drank down the rest of his tea and looked quizzically at the Rector. In spite of himself he was beginning to feel better.

“Another of Simon’s little jokes was to send me out that first day on Timber, without telling me he was a rogue38. But I suppose that was just his ‘perverted sense of mischief.’ And still another of his little jokes was to loosen my girth yesterday before I started a race on Chevron39. But I suppose that was just one of his ‘well-known impish moments’.”

The Rector’s deep eyes considered Brat.

“I am not defending Simon — he has never been an admirable character — but tricks played on an interloper, a pretender — even dangerous tricks, are one thing, and the murder of a well-loved brother is quite another. Why, by the way, did Simon not denounce you at once if he did not believe you were his brother?”

“For the same reason that you didn’t.”

“I see. He would merely be held to be — difficult.”

“And of course, having got rid of one Patrick with impunity40, he looked forward with confidence to getting rid of another.”

“Brat, I wish I could convince you that this is a figment of your imagination.”

“You must have a great respect for my imaginative powers.”

“If you look back, critically and honestly, you must see how the thing grew in your mind from quite small beginnings. An edifice41 of your own making.”

And that, when Brat took his leave towards two o’clock in the morning, was still the Rector’s opinion.

He offered Brat a bed, but Brat compromised on the loan of a waterproof42 and a torch, and found his way back to Latchetts by the soaking field-path with the rain still pouring hopelessly down.

“Come and see me again before you decide anything,” the Rector had said; but he had at least been helpful in one direction. He had answered Brat’s main question. If it was a choice between love and justice, the choice had to be justice.

He found the front door of Latchetts unlocked, a note from Bee on the hall table, saying: “Soup on the ring in the pantry,” and a silver cup on an ebony stand bearing a card in Eleanor’s writing which said: “You forgot this, you blasé rodeo hound!”

He put out the lights and crept up through the silent house to his bed in the old night nursery. Someone had put a hot-water bottle in his bed. He was asleep almost before his head touched the pillow.


点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 brat asPzx     
n.孩子;顽童
参考例句:
  • He's a spoilt brat.他是一个被宠坏了的调皮孩子。
  • The brat sicked his dog on the passer-by.那个顽童纵狗去咬过路人。
2 latch g2wxS     
n.门闩,窗闩;弹簧锁
参考例句:
  • She laid her hand on the latch of the door.她把手放在门闩上。
  • The repairman installed an iron latch on the door.修理工在门上安了铁门闩。
3 morbid u6qz3     
adj.病的;致病的;病态的;可怕的
参考例句:
  • Some people have a morbid fascination with crime.一些人对犯罪有一种病态的痴迷。
  • It's morbid to dwell on cemeteries and such like.不厌其烦地谈论墓地以及诸如此类的事是一种病态。
4 undesirable zp0yb     
adj.不受欢迎的,不良的,不合意的,讨厌的;n.不受欢迎的人,不良分子
参考例句:
  • They are the undesirable elements among the employees.他们是雇员中的不良分子。
  • Certain chemicals can induce undesirable changes in the nervous system.有些化学物质能在神经系统中引起不良变化。
5 implored 0b089ebf3591e554caa381773b194ff1     
恳求或乞求(某人)( implore的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • She implored him to stay. 她恳求他留下。
  • She implored him with tears in her eyes to forgive her. 她含泪哀求他原谅她。
6 westward XIvyz     
n.西方,西部;adj.西方的,向西的;adv.向西
参考例句:
  • We live on the westward slope of the hill.我们住在这座山的西山坡。
  • Explore westward or wherever.向西或到什么别的地方去勘探。
7 fixed JsKzzj     
adj.固定的,不变的,准备好的;(计算机)固定的
参考例句:
  • Have you two fixed on a date for the wedding yet?你们俩选定婚期了吗?
  • Once the aim is fixed,we should not change it arbitrarily.目标一旦确定,我们就不应该随意改变。
8 stumped bf2a34ab92a06b6878a74288580b8031     
僵直地行走,跺步行走( stump的过去式和过去分词 ); 把(某人)难住; 使为难; (选举前)在某一地区作政治性巡回演说
参考例句:
  • Jack huffed himself up and stumped out of the room. 杰克气喘吁吁地干完活,然后很艰难地走出房间。
  • He was stumped by the questions and remained tongue-tied for a good while. 他被问得张口结舌,半天说不出话来。
9 racing 1ksz3w     
n.竞赛,赛马;adj.竞赛用的,赛马用的
参考例句:
  • I was watching the racing on television last night.昨晚我在电视上看赛马。
  • The two racing drivers fenced for a chance to gain the lead.两个赛车手伺机竞相领先。
10 unaware Pl6w0     
a.不知道的,未意识到的
参考例句:
  • They were unaware that war was near. 他们不知道战争即将爆发。
  • I was unaware of the man's presence. 我没有察觉到那人在场。
11 beeches 7e2b71bc19a0de701aebe6f40b036385     
n.山毛榉( beech的名词复数 );山毛榉木材
参考例句:
  • The beeches, oaks and chestnuts all belong to the same family. 山毛榉树、橡树和栗子树属于同科树种。 来自互联网
  • There are many beeches in this wood. 这片树林里有许多山毛榉。 来自互联网
12 investigation MRKzq     
n.调查,调查研究
参考例句:
  • In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
  • He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。
13 monstrous vwFyM     
adj.巨大的;恐怖的;可耻的,丢脸的
参考例句:
  • The smoke began to whirl and grew into a monstrous column.浓烟开始盘旋上升,形成了一个巨大的烟柱。
  • Your behaviour in class is monstrous!你在课堂上的行为真是丢人!
14 condoning 363997b8d741b81bc5d3bbd4cc3c3b74     
v.容忍,宽恕,原谅( condone的现在分词 )
参考例句:
  • I'm not condoning what he did, all right? 我并不是宽恕他的所作所为,好吗? 来自电影对白
  • Communist Party conservatives abhor the idea of condoning explicIt'sex. 党内的保守势力痛恨对赤裸性爱内容的宽容。 来自互联网
15 lashing 97a95b88746153568e8a70177bc9108e     
n.鞭打;痛斥;大量;许多v.鞭打( lash的现在分词 );煽动;紧系;怒斥
参考例句:
  • The speaker was lashing the crowd. 演讲人正在煽动人群。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • The rain was lashing the windows. 雨急打着窗子。 来自《简明英汉词典》
16 sluicing 872b8478d56ff8a4463f047ace032623     
v.冲洗( sluice的现在分词 );(指水)喷涌而出;漂净;给…安装水闸
参考例句:
  • The ship's crew was sluicing down the deck. 船员们正在冲洗甲板。
  • An attendant was sluicing out the changing rooms. 一位服务员正在冲洗更衣室。 来自《简明英汉词典》
17 vaguely BfuzOy     
adv.含糊地,暖昧地
参考例句:
  • He had talked vaguely of going to work abroad.他含糊其词地说了到国外工作的事。
  • He looked vaguely before him with unseeing eyes.他迷迷糊糊的望着前面,对一切都视而不见。
18 oozing 6ce96f251112b92ca8ca9547a3476c06     
v.(浓液等)慢慢地冒出,渗出( ooze的现在分词 );使(液体)缓缓流出;(浓液)渗出,慢慢流出
参考例句:
  • Blood was oozing out of the wound on his leg. 血正从他腿上的伤口渗出来。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • The wound had not healed properly and was oozing pus. 伤口未真正痊瘉,还在流脓。 来自《简明英汉词典》
19 pulp Qt4y9     
n.果肉,纸浆;v.化成纸浆,除去...果肉,制成纸浆
参考例句:
  • The pulp of this watermelon is too spongy.这西瓜瓤儿太肉了。
  • The company manufactures pulp and paper products.这个公司制造纸浆和纸产品。
20 fumbling fumbling     
n. 摸索,漏接 v. 摸索,摸弄,笨拙的处理
参考例句:
  • If he actually managed to the ball instead of fumbling it with an off-balance shot. 如果他实际上设法拿好球而不是fumbling它。50-balance射击笨拙地和迅速地会开始他的岗位移动,经常这样结束。
  • If he actually managed to secure the ball instead of fumbling it awkwardly an off-balance shot. 如果他实际上设法拿好球而不是fumbling它。50-50提议有时。他从off-balance射击笨拙地和迅速地会开始他的岗位移动,经常这样结束。
21 confession 8Ygye     
n.自白,供认,承认
参考例句:
  • Her confession was simply tantamount to a casual explanation.她的自白简直等于一篇即席说明。
  • The police used torture to extort a confession from him.警察对他用刑逼供。
22 deception vnWzO     
n.欺骗,欺诈;骗局,诡计
参考例句:
  • He admitted conspiring to obtain property by deception.他承认曾与人合谋骗取财产。
  • He was jailed for two years for fraud and deception.他因为诈骗和欺诈入狱服刑两年。
23 remarkable 8Vbx6     
adj.显著的,异常的,非凡的,值得注意的
参考例句:
  • She has made remarkable headway in her writing skills.她在写作技巧方面有了长足进步。
  • These cars are remarkable for the quietness of their engines.这些汽车因发动机没有噪音而不同凡响。
24 orphanage jJwxf     
n.孤儿院
参考例句:
  • They dispensed new clothes to the children in the orphanage.他们把新衣服发给孤儿院的小孩们。
  • They gave the proceeds of the sale to the orphanage.他们把销售的收入给了这家孤儿院。
25 sketched 7209bf19355618c1eb5ca3c0fdf27631     
v.草拟(sketch的过去式与过去分词形式)
参考例句:
  • The historical article sketched the major events of the decade. 这篇有关历史的文章概述了这十年中的重大事件。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • He sketched the situation in a few vivid words. 他用几句生动的语言简述了局势。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
26 corruption TzCxn     
n.腐败,堕落,贪污
参考例句:
  • The people asked the government to hit out against corruption and theft.人民要求政府严惩贪污盗窃。
  • The old man reviled against corruption.那老人痛斥了贪污舞弊。
27 perverted baa3ff388a70c110935f711a8f95f768     
adj.不正当的v.滥用( pervert的过去式和过去分词 );腐蚀;败坏;使堕落
参考例句:
  • Some scientific discoveries have been perverted to create weapons of destruction. 某些科学发明被滥用来生产毁灭性武器。
  • sexual acts, normal and perverted 正常的和变态的性行为
28 mischief jDgxH     
n.损害,伤害,危害;恶作剧,捣蛋,胡闹
参考例句:
  • Nobody took notice of the mischief of the matter. 没有人注意到这件事情所带来的危害。
  • He seems to intend mischief.看来他想捣蛋。
29 deliberately Gulzvq     
adv.审慎地;蓄意地;故意地
参考例句:
  • The girl gave the show away deliberately.女孩故意泄露秘密。
  • They deliberately shifted off the argument.他们故意回避这个论点。
30 simplicity Vryyv     
n.简单,简易;朴素;直率,单纯
参考例句:
  • She dressed with elegant simplicity.她穿着朴素高雅。
  • The beauty of this plan is its simplicity.简明扼要是这个计划的一大特点。
31 whatsoever Beqz8i     
adv.(用于否定句中以加强语气)任何;pron.无论什么
参考例句:
  • There's no reason whatsoever to turn down this suggestion.没有任何理由拒绝这个建议。
  • All things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you,do ye even so to them.你想别人对你怎样,你就怎样对人。
32 dilemma Vlzzf     
n.困境,进退两难的局面
参考例句:
  • I am on the horns of a dilemma about the matter.这件事使我进退两难。
  • He was thrown into a dilemma.他陷入困境。
33 invoked fabb19b279de1e206fa6d493923723ba     
v.援引( invoke的过去式和过去分词 );行使(权利等);祈求救助;恳求
参考例句:
  • It is unlikely that libel laws will be invoked. 不大可能诉诸诽谤法。
  • She had invoked the law in her own defence. 她援引法律为自己辩护。 来自《简明英汉词典》
34 anarchy 9wYzj     
n.无政府状态;社会秩序混乱,无秩序
参考例句:
  • There would be anarchy if we had no police.要是没有警察,社会就会无法无天。
  • The country was thrown into a state of anarchy.这国家那时一下子陷入无政府状态。
35 taunted df22a7ddc6dcf3131756443dea95d149     
嘲讽( taunt的过去式和过去分词 ); 嘲弄; 辱骂; 奚落
参考例句:
  • The other kids continually taunted him about his size. 其他孩子不断地耻笑他的个头儿。
  • Some of the girls taunted her about her weight. 有些女孩子笑她胖。
36 alleged gzaz3i     
a.被指控的,嫌疑的
参考例句:
  • It was alleged that he had taken bribes while in office. 他被指称在任时收受贿赂。
  • alleged irregularities in the election campaign 被指称竞选运动中的不正当行为
37 thoroughly sgmz0J     
adv.完全地,彻底地,十足地
参考例句:
  • The soil must be thoroughly turned over before planting.一定要先把土地深翻一遍再下种。
  • The soldiers have been thoroughly instructed in the care of their weapons.士兵们都系统地接受过保护武器的训练。
38 rogue qCfzo     
n.流氓;v.游手好闲
参考例句:
  • The little rogue had his grandpa's glasses on.这淘气鬼带上了他祖父的眼镜。
  • They defined him as a rogue.他们确定他为骗子。
39 chevron IUxyX     
n.V形臂章;V形图案
参考例句:
  • He wore shoulderstrap rank slides with sergeant's chevrons.他佩戴标示级别的肩章,上面有中士的V形标志。
  • The chevron or arrow road sign indicates a sharp bend to the left or right.V形或箭头路标表示有向左或向右的急转弯。
40 impunity g9Qxb     
n.(惩罚、损失、伤害等的)免除
参考例句:
  • You will not escape with impunity.你不可能逃脱惩罚。
  • The impunity what compulsory insurance sets does not include escapement.交强险规定的免责范围不包括逃逸。
41 edifice kqgxv     
n.宏伟的建筑物(如宫殿,教室)
参考例句:
  • The American consulate was a magnificent edifice in the centre of Bordeaux.美国领事馆是位于波尔多市中心的一座宏伟的大厦。
  • There is a huge Victorian edifice in the area.该地区有一幢维多利亚式的庞大建筑物。
42 waterproof Ogvwp     
n.防水材料;adj.防水的;v.使...能防水
参考例句:
  • My mother bought me a waterproof watch.我妈妈给我买了一块防水手表。
  • All the electronics are housed in a waterproof box.所有电子设备都储放在一个防水盒中。


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