Chapter 73

Raych entered, looking about, clearly intimidated¹. The forefinger² of his right hand reached for his upper lip as though wondering when he would begin to feel the first downy hairs there.
He turned to the clearly outraged³ Mistress Tisalver and bowed clumsily. "Thank ya, Missus. Ya got a lovely place."
Then, as the door slammed behind him, he turned to Seldon and Dors with an air of easy connoisseurship⁴. "Nice place, guys."
"Im glad you like it," said Seldon solemnly. "How did you know we were here?"
"Followed ya. Howd ya think? Hey, lady"--he turned to Dors--"you dont fight like no dame⁵."
"Have you watched many dames⁶ fight?" asked Dors, amused.
Raych rubbed his nose, "No, never seen none whatever. They dont carry knives, except little ones to scare kids with. Never scared me."
"Im sure they didnt. What do you do to make dames draw their knives?"
"Nothin. You just kid around a little. You holler, Hey, lady, lemme-- " He thought about it for a moment and said, "Nothin."
Dors said, "Well, dont try that on me."
"Ya kiddin? After what ya did to Marron? Hey, lady, whered you learn to fight that way?"
"On my own world."
"Could ya teach me?"
"Is that what you came here to see me about?"
"Akchaly, no. I came to bring ya a kind of message."
"From someone who wants to fight me?"
"No one wants to fight ya, lady. Listen, lady, ya got a reputation now. Everybody knows ya. You just walk down anywhere in old Billibotton and all the guys will step aside and let ya pass and grin and make sure they dont look cross-eyed at ya. Oh, lady, ya got it made. Thats why he wants to see ya."
Seldon said, "Raych, just exactly who wants to see us?"
"Guy called Davan."
"And who is he?"
"Just a guy. He lives in Billibotton and dont carry no knife."
"And he stays alive, Raych?"
"He reads a lot and he helps the guys there when they get in trouble with the govment. They kinda leave him alone. He dont need no knife."
"Why didnt he come himself, then?" said Dors. "Why did he send you?"
"He dont like this place. He says it makes him sick. He says all the people here, they lick the govments--" He paused, looked dubiously⁷ at the two Outworlders, and said, "Anyway, he wont⁸ come here. He said theyd let me in cause I was only a kid." He grinned. "They almost didnt, did they? I mean that lady there who looked like she was smellin somethin?" He stopped suddenly, abashed⁹, and looked down at himself. "Ya dont get much chance to wash where I come from."
"Its all right," said Dors, smiling. "Where are we supposed to meet, then, if he wont come here? After all--if you dont mind--we dont feel like going to Billibotton."
"I told ya," said Raych indignantly. "Ya get free run of Billibotton, I swear. Besides, where he lives no one will bother ya."
"Where is it?" asked Seldon.
"I can take ya there. It aint far."
"And why does he want to see us?" asked Dors.
"Dunno. But he says like this--" Raych half-closed his eyes in an effort to remember. " Tell them I wanna see the man who talked to a Dahlite heatsinker like he was a human being and the woman who beat Marron with knives and didnt kill him when she mighta done so. I think I got it right."
Seldon smiled. "I think you did. Is he ready for us now?"
"Hes waiting."
"Then well come with you." He looked at Dors with a trace of doubt in his eyes.
She said, "All right. Im willing. Perhaps it wont be a trap of some sort. Hope springs eternal--"

1 intimidated   

v.恐吓；威胁adj.害怕的；受到威胁的

参考例句：

• We try to make sure children don't feel intimidated on their first day at school. 我们努力确保孩子们在上学的第一天不胆怯。
• The thief intimidated the boy into not telling the police. 这个贼恫吓那男孩使他不敢向警察报告。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 forefinger   

n.食指

参考例句：

• He pinched the leaf between his thumb and forefinger.他将叶子捏在拇指和食指之间。
• He held it between the tips of his thumb and forefinger.他用他大拇指和食指尖拿着它。

3 outraged   

a.震惊的，义愤填膺的

参考例句：

• Members of Parliament were outraged by the news of the assassination. 议会议员们被这暗杀的消息激怒了。
• He was outraged by their behavior. 他们的行为使他感到愤慨。

4 connoisseurship   

n.鉴赏家（或鉴定家、行家）身份，鉴赏（或鉴定）力

参考例句：

• For centuries art detectives had to rely mainly on connoisseurship. 几个世纪以来，侦探必须主要依赖其鉴赏力。 来自互联网

5 dame   

n.女士

参考例句：

• The dame tell of her experience as a wife and mother.这位年长妇女讲了她作妻子和母亲的经验。
• If you stick around,you'll have to marry that dame.如果再逗留多一会，你就要跟那个夫人结婚。

6 dames   

n.（在英国）夫人（一种封号），夫人（爵士妻子的称号）( dame的名词复数 )；女人

参考例句：

• Dames would not comment any further. Dames将不再更多的评论。 来自互联网
• Flowers, candy, jewelry, seemed the principal things in which the elegant dames were interested. 鲜花、糖果和珠宝看来是那些贵妇人的主要兴趣所在。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹

7 dubiously   

adv.可疑地，怀疑地

参考例句：

• "What does he have to do?" queried Chin dubiously. “他有什么心事？”琴向觉民问道，她的脸上现出疑惑不解的神情。 来自汉英文学 - 家（1-26） - 家（1-26）
• He walked out fast, leaving the head waiter staring dubiously at the flimsy blue paper. 他很快地走出去，撇下侍者头儿半信半疑地瞪着这张薄薄的蓝纸。 来自辞典例句

8 wont   

adj.习惯于；v.习惯；n.习惯

参考例句：

• He was wont to say that children are lazy.他常常说小孩子们懒惰。
• It is his wont to get up early.早起是他的习惯。

9 abashed   

adj.窘迫的，尴尬的v.使羞愧，使局促，使窘迫( abash的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He glanced at Juliet accusingly and she looked suitably abashed. 他怪罪的一瞥，朱丽叶自然显得很窘。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The girl was abashed by the laughter of her classmates. 那小姑娘因同学的哄笑而局促不安。 来自《简明英汉词典》