Today the two girls roamed slowly through the gardens of the great court, their arms about each other's waists, pouring the last confidences into each other's ears, for tomorrow Bertrade had elected to return to Leicester.
“Methinks thou be very rash indeed, my Bertrade,” said Mary. “Wert my father here he would, I am sure, not permit thee to leave with only the small escort which we be able to give.”
“Fear not, Mary,” replied Bertrade. “Five of thy father's knights1 be ample protection for so short a journey. By evening it will have been accomplished2; and, as the only one I fear in these parts received such a sound set back from Roger de Conde recently, I do not think he will venture again to molest3 me.”
“But what about the Devil of Torn, Bertrade?” urged Mary. “Only yestereve, you wot, one of Lord de Grey's men-at-arms came limping to us with the news of the awful carnage the foul4 fiend had wrought5 on his master's household. He be abroad, Bertrade, and I canst think of naught6 more horrible than to fall into his hands.”
“Why, Mary, thou didst but recently say thy very self that Norman of Torn was most courteous7 to thee when he sacked this, thy father's castle. How be it thou so soon has changed thy mind?”
“Yes, Bertrade, he was indeed respectful then, but who knows what horrid8 freak his mind may take, and they do say that he be cruel beyond compare. Again, forget not that thou be Leicester's daughter and Henry's niece; against both of whom the Outlaw9 of Torn openly swears his hatred10 and his vengeance11. Oh, Bertrade, wait but for a day or so, I be sure my father must return ere then, and fifty knights shall accompany thee instead of five.”
“What be fifty knights against Norman of Torn, Mary? Thy reasoning is on a parity12 with thy fears, both have flown wide of the mark.
“If I am to meet with this wild ruffian, it were better that five knights were sacrificed than fifty, for either number would be but a mouthful to that horrid horde13 of unhung murderers. No, Mary, I shall start tomorrow and your good knights shall return the following day with the best of word from me.”
“If thou wilst, thou wilst,” cried Mary petulantly14. “Indeed it were plain that thou be a De Montfort; that race whose historic bravery be second only to their historic stubbornness.”
Bertrade de Montfort laughed, and kissed her friend upon the cheek.
“Mayhap I shall find the brave Roger de Conde again upon the highroad to protect me. Then indeed shall I send back your five knights, for of a truth, his blade is more powerful than that of any ten men I ere saw fight before.”
“Methinks,” said Mary, still peeved15 at her friend's determination to leave on the morrow, “that should you meet the doughty16 Sir Roger all unarmed, that still would you send back my father's knights.”
Bertrade flushed, and then bit her lip as she felt the warm blood mount to her cheek.
“Thou be a fool, Mary,” she said.
Mary broke into a joyful17, teasing laugh; hugely enjoying the discomfiture18 of the admission the tell-tale flush proclaimed.
“Ah, I did but guess how thy heart and thy mind tended, Bertrade; but now I seest that I divined all too truly. He be indeed good to look upon, but what knowest thou of him?”
“Hush, Mary!” commanded Bertrade. “Thou know not what thou sayest. I would not wipe my feet upon him, I care naught whatever for him, and then—it has been three weeks since he rode out from Stutevill and no word hath he sent.”
“Oh, ho,” cried the little plague, “so there lies the wind? My Lady would not wipe her feet upon him, but she be sore vexed19 that he has sent her no word. Mon Dieu, but thou hast strange notions, Bertrade.”
“I will not talk with you, Mary,” cried Bertrade, stamping her sandaled foot, and with a toss of her pretty head she turned abruptly20 toward the castle.
In a small chamber21 in the castle of Colfax two men sat at opposite sides of a little table. The one, Peter of Colfax, was short and very stout22. His red, bloated face, bleary eyes and bulbous nose bespoke23 the manner of his life; while his thick lips, the lower hanging large and flabby over his receding25 chin, indicated the base passions to which his life and been given. His companion was a little, grim, gray man but his suit of armor and closed helm gave no hint to his host of whom his guest might be. It was the little armored man who was speaking.
“Is it not enough that I offer to aid you, Sir Peter,” he said, “that you must have my reasons? Let it go that my hate of Leicester be the passion which moves me. Thou failed in thy attempt to capture the maiden26; give me ten knights and I will bring her to you.”
“How knowest thou she rides out tomorrow for her father's castle?” asked Peter of Colfax.
“That again be no concern of thine, my friend, but I do know it, and, if thou wouldst have her, be quick, for we should ride out tonight that we may take our positions by the highway in ample time tomorrow.”
Still Peter of Colfax hesitated, he feared this might be a ruse27 of Leicester's to catch him in some trap. He did not know his guest—the fellow might want the girl for himself and be taking this method of obtaining the necessary assistance to capture her.
“Come,” said the little, armored man irritably28. “I cannot bide29 here forever. Make up thy mind; it be nothing to me other than my revenge, and if thou wilst not do it, I shall hire the necessary ruffians and then not even thou shalt see Bertrade de Montfort more.”
“It is agreed,” he said. “The men shall ride out with you in half an hour. Wait below in the courtyard.”
When the little man had left the apartment, Peter of Colfax summoned his squire32 whom he had send to him at once one of his faithful henchmen.
“Guy,” said Peter of Colfax, as the man entered, “ye made a rare fizzle of a piece of business some weeks ago. Ye wot of which I speak?”
“Yes, My Lord.”
“It chances that on the morrow ye may have opportunity to retrieve33 thy blunder. Ride out with ten men where the stranger who waits in the courtyard below shall lead ye, and come not back without that which ye lost to a handful of men before. You understand?”
“Yes, My Lord!”
“And, Guy, I half mistrust this fellow who hath offered to assist us. At the first sign of treachery, fall upon him with all thy men and slay34 him. Tell the others that these be my orders.”
“Yes, My Lord. When do we ride?”
“At once. You may go.”
The morning that Bertrade de Montfort had chosen to return to her father's castle dawned gray and threatening. In vain did Mary de Stutevill plead with her friend to give up the idea of setting out upon such a dismal35 day and without sufficient escort, but Bertrade de Montfort was firm.
“Already have I overstayed my time three days, and it is not lightly that even I, his daughter, fail in obedience36 to Simon de Montfort. I shall have enough to account for as it be. Do not urge me to add even one more day to my excuses. And again, perchance, my mother and my father may be sore distressed37 by my continued absence. No, Mary, I must ride today.” And so she did, with the five knights that could be spared from the castle's defence.
Scarcely half an hour had elapsed before a cold drizzle38 set in, so that they were indeed a sorry company that splashed along the muddy road, wrapped in mantle39 and surcoat. As they proceeded, the rain and wind increased in volume, until it was being driven into their faces in such blinding gusts40 that they must needs keep their eyes closed and trust to the instincts of their mounts.
Less than half the journey had been accomplished. They were winding41 across a little hollow toward a low ridge42 covered with dense43 forest, into the somber44 shadows of which the road wound. There was a glint of armor among the drenched45 foliage46, but the rain-buffeted eyes of the riders saw it not. On they came, their patient horses plodding47 slowly through the sticky road and hurtling storm.
Now they were half way up the ridge's side. There was a movement in the dark shadows of the grim wood, and then, without cry or warning, a band of steel-clad horsemen broke forth48 with couched spears. Charging at full run down upon them, they overthrew49 three of the girl's escort before a blow could be struck in her defense50. Her two remaining guardians51 wheeled to meet the return attack, and nobly did they acquit52 themselves, for it took the entire eleven who were pitted against them to overcome and slay the two.
In the melee53, none had noticed the girl, but presently one of her assailants, a little, grim, gray man, discovered that she had put spurs to her palfrey and escaped. Calling to his companions he set out at a rapid pace in pursuit.
Reckless of the slippery road and the blinding rain, Bertrade de Montfort urged her mount into a wild run, for she had recognized the arms of Peter of Colfax on the shields of several of the attacking party.
Nobly, the beautiful Arab bent54 to her call for speed. The great beasts of her pursuers, bred in Normandy and Flanders, might have been tethered in their stalls for all the chance they had of overtaking the flying white steed that fairly split the gray rain as lightning flies through the clouds.
But for the fiendish cunning of the little grim, gray man's foresight55, Bertrade de Montfort would have made good her escape that day. As it was, however, her fleet mount had carried her but two hundred yards ere, in the midst of the dark wood, she ran full upon a rope stretched across the roadway between two trees.
As the horse fell, with a terrible lunge, tripped by the stout rope, Bertrade de Montfort was thrown far before him, where she lay, a little, limp bedraggled figure, in the mud of the road.
There they found her. The little, grim, gray man did not even dismount, so indifferent was he to her fate; dead or in the hands of Peter of Colfax, it was all the same to him. In either event, his purpose would be accomplished, and Bertrade de Montfort would no longer lure56 Norman of Torn from the path he had laid out for him.
That such an eventuality threatened, he knew from one Spizo the Spaniard, the single traitor57 in the service of Norman of Torn, whose mean aid the little grim, gray man had purchased since many months to spy upon the comings and goings of the great outlaw.
The men of Peter of Colfax gathered up the lifeless form of Bertrade de Montfort and placed it across the saddle before one of their number.
“Come,” said the man called Guy, “if there be life left in her, we must hasten to Sir Peter before it be extinct.”
“I leave ye here,” said the little old man. “My part of the business is done.”
And so he sat watching them until they had disappeared in the forest toward the castle of Colfax.
Then he rode back to the scene of the encounter where lay the five knights of Sir John de Stutevill. Three were already dead, the other two, sorely but not mortally wounded, lay groaning58 by the roadside.
The little grim, gray man dismounted as he came abreast59 of them and, with his long sword, silently finished the two wounded men. Then, drawing his dagger60, he made a mark upon the dead foreheads of each of the five, and mounting, rode rapidly toward Torn.
“And if one fact be not enough,” he muttered, “that mark upon the dead will quite effectually stop further intercourse61 between the houses of Torn and Leicester.”
Henry de Montfort, son of Simon, rode fast and furious at the head of a dozen of his father's knights on the road to Stutevill.
Bertrade de Montfort was so long overdue62 that the Earl and Princess Eleanor, his wife, filled with grave apprehensions63, had posted their oldest son off to the castle of John de Stutevill to fetch her home.
With the wind and rain at their backs, the little party rode rapidly along the muddy road, until late in the afternoon they came upon a white palfrey standing64 huddled65 beneath a great oak, his arched back toward the driving storm.
“By God,” cried De Montfort, “tis my sister's own Abdul. There be something wrong here indeed.” But a rapid search of the vicinity, and loud calls brought no further evidence of the girl's whereabouts, so they pressed on toward Stutevill.
Some two miles beyond the spot where the white palfrey had been found, they came upon the dead bodies of the five knights who had accompanied Bertrade from Stutevill.
Dismounting, Henry de Montfort examined the bodies of the fallen men. The arms upon shield and helm confirmed his first fear that these had been Bertrade's escort from Stutevill.
As he bent over them to see if he recognized any of the knights, there stared up into his face from the foreheads of the dead men the dreaded66 sign, NT, scratched there with a dagger's point.
“The curse of God be on him!” cried De Montfort. “It be the work of the Devil of Torn, my gentlemen,” he said to his followers67. “Come, we need no further guide to our destination.” And, remounting, the little party spurred back toward Torn.
When Bertrade de Montfort regained68 her senses, she was in bed in a strange room, and above her bent an old woman; a repulsive69, toothless old woman, whose smile was but a fangless70 snarl71.
“Ho, ho!” she croaked72. “The bride waketh. I told My Lord that it would take more than a tumble in the mud to kill a De Montfort. Come, come, now, arise and clothe thyself, for the handsome bridegroom canst scarce restrain his eager desire to fold thee in his arms. Below in the great hall he paces to and fro, the red blood mantling73 his beauteous countenance74.”
“Who be ye?” cried Bertrade de Montfort, her mind still dazed from the effects of her fall. “Where am I?” and then, “O, Mon Dieu!” as she remembered the events of the afternoon; and the arms of Colfax upon the shields of the attacking party. In an instant she realized the horror of her predicament; its utter hopelessness.
Beast though he was, Peter of Colfax stood high in the favor of the King; and the fact that she was his niece would scarce aid her cause with Henry, for it was more than counter-balanced by the fact that she was the daughter of Simon de Montfort, whom he feared and hated.
In the corridor without, she heard the heavy tramp of approaching feet, and presently a man's voice at the door.
“Yes, Sir Peter,” replied the old woman, “I was but just urging her to arise and clothe herself, saying that you awaited her below.”
“Haste then, My Lady Bertrade,” called the man, “no harm will be done thee if thou showest the good sense I give thee credit for. I will await thee in the great hall, or, if thou prefer, wilt76 come to thee here.”
The girl paled, more in loathing77 and contempt than in fear, but the tones of her answer were calm and level.
“I will see thee below, Sir Peter, anon,” and rising, she hastened to dress, while the receding footsteps of the Baron diminished down the stairway which led from the tower room in which she was imprisoned78.
The old woman attempted to draw her into conversation, but the girl would not talk. Her whole mind was devoted79 to weighing each possible means of escape.
A half hour later, she entered the great hall of the castle of Peter of Colfax. The room was empty. Little change had been wrought in the apartment since the days of Ethelwolf. As the girl's glance ranged the hall in search of her jailer it rested upon the narrow, unglazed windows beyond which lay freedom. Would she ever again breathe God's pure air outside these stifling80 walls? These grimy hateful walls! Black as the inky rafters and wainscot except for occasional splotches a few shades less begrimed, where repairs had been made. As her eyes fell upon the trophies81 of war and chase which hung there her lips curled in scorn, for she knew that they were acquisitions by inheritance rather than by the personal prowess of the present master of Colfax.
A single cresset lighted the chamber, while the flickering82 light from a small wood fire upon one of the two great hearths83 seemed rather to accentuate84 the dim shadows of the place.
Bertrade crossed the room and leaned against a massive oak table, blackened by age and hard usage to the color of the beams above, dented85 and nicked by the pounding of huge drinking horns and heavy swords when wild and lusty brawlers had been moved to applause by the lay of some wandering minstrel, or the sterner call of their mighty86 chieftains for the oath of fealty87.
Her wandering eyes took in the dozen benches and the few rude, heavy chairs which completed the rough furnishings of this rough room, and she shuddered88. One little foot tapped sullenly89 upon the disordered floor which was littered with a miscellany of rushes interspread with such bones and scraps90 of food as the dogs had rejected or overlooked.
But to none of these surroundings did Bertrade de Montfort give but passing heed91; she looked for the man she sought that she might quickly have the encounter over and learn what fate the future held in store for her.
Her quick glance had shown her that the room was quite empty, and that in addition to the main doorway92 at the lower end of the apartment, where she had entered, there was but one other door leading from the hall. This was at one side, and as it stood ajar she could see that it led into a small room, apparently93 a bedchamber.
As she stood facing the main doorway, a panel opened quietly behind her and directly back of where the thrones had stood in past times. From the black mouth of the aperture95 stepped Peter of Colfax. Silently, he closed the panel after him, and with soundless steps, advanced toward the girl. At the edge of the raised dais he halted, rattling96 his sword to attract her attention.
If his aim had been to unnerve her by the suddenness and mystery of his appearance, he failed signally, for she did not even turn her head as she said:
“What explanation hast thou to make, Sir Peter, for this base treachery against thy neighbor's daughter and thy sovereign's niece?”
“When fond hearts be thwarted98 by a cruel parent,” replied the pot-bellied old beast in a soft and fawning99 tone, “love must still find its way; and so thy gallant100 swain hath dared the wrath101 of thy great father and majestic102 uncle, and lays his heart at thy feet, O beauteous Bertrade, knowing full well that thine hath been hungering after it since we didst first avow103 our love to thy hard-hearted sire. See, I kneel to thee, my dove!” And with cracking joints104 the fat baron plumped down upon his marrow105 bones.
“Thou art a fool, Sir Peter,” she said, “and, at that, the worst species of fool—an ancient fool. It is useless to pursue thy cause, for I will have none of thee. Let me hence, if thou be a gentleman, and no word of what hath transpired108 shall ever pass my lips. But let me go, 'tis all I ask, and it is useless to detain me for I cannot give what you would have. I do not love you, nor ever can I.”
Her first words had caused the red of humiliation109 to mottle his already ruby110 visage to a semblance111 of purple, and now, as he attempted to rise with dignity, he was still further covered with confusion by the fact that his huge stomach made it necessary for him to go upon all fours before he could rise, so that he got up much after the manner of a cow, raising his stern high in air in a most ludicrous fashion. As he gained his feet he saw the girl turn her head from him to hide the laughter on her face.
“Return to thy chamber,” he thundered. “I will give thee until tomorrow to decide whether thou wilt accept Peter of Colfax as thy husband, or take another position in his household which will bar thee for all time from the society of thy kind.”
The girl turned toward him, the laugh still playing on her lips.
“I will be wife to no buffoon112; to no clumsy old clown; to no debauched, degraded parody113 of a man. And as for thy other rash threat, thou hast not the guts114 to put thy wishes into deeds, thou craven coward, for well ye know that Simon de Montfort would cut out thy foul heart with his own hand if he ever suspected thou wert guilty of speaking of such to me, his daughter.” And Bertrade de Montfort swept from the great hall, and mounted to her tower chamber in the ancient Saxon stronghold of Colfax.
The old woman kept watch over her during the night and until late the following afternoon, when Peter of Colfax summoned his prisoner before him once more. So terribly had the old hag played upon the girl's fears that she felt fully115 certain that the Baron was quite equal to his dire94 threat, and so she had again been casting about for some means of escape or delay.
The room in which she was imprisoned was in the west tower of the castle, fully a hundred feet above the moat, which the single embrasure overlooked. There was, therefore, no avenue of escape in this direction. The solitary116 door was furnished with huge oaken bars, and itself composed of mighty planks117 of the same wood, cross barred with iron.
If she could but get the old woman out, thought Bertrade, she could barricade118 herself within and thus delay, at least, her impending119 fate in the hope that succor120 might come from some source. But her most subtle wiles121 proved ineffectual in ridding her, even for a moment, of her harpy jailer; and now that the final summons had come, she was beside herself for a lack of means to thwart97 her captor.
Her dagger had been taken from her, but one hung from the girdle of the old woman and this Bertrade determined122 to have.
Feigning123 trouble with the buckle124 of her own girdle, she called upon the old woman to aid her, and as the hag bent her head close to the girl's body to see what was wrong with the girdle clasp, Bertrade reached quickly to her side and snatched the weapon from its sheath. Quickly she sprang back from the old woman who, with a cry of anger and alarm, rushed upon her.
“Back!” cried the girl. “Stand back, old hag, or thou shalt feel the length of thine own blade.”
The woman hesitated and then fell to cursing and blaspheming in a most horrible manner, at the same time calling for help.
Bertrade backed to the door, commanding the old woman to remain where she was, on pain of death, and quickly dropped the mighty bars into place. Scarcely had the last great bolt been slipped than Peter of Colfax, with a dozen servants and men-at-arms, were pounding loudly upon the outside.
“What's wrong within, Coll,” cried the Baron.
“An' that I will truly do, Peter of Colfax,” spoke24 Bertrade, “if you do not immediately send for my friends to conduct me from thy castle, for I will not step my foot from this room until I know that mine own people stand without.”
Peter of Colfax pled and threatened, commanded and coaxed127, but all in vain. So passed the afternoon, and as darkness settled upon the castle the Baron desisted from his attempts, intending to starve his prisoner out.
Within the little room, Bertrade de Montfort sat upon a bench guarding her prisoner, from whom she did not dare move her eyes for a single second. All that long night she sat thus, and when morning dawned, it found her position unchanged, her tired eyes still fixed128 upon the hag.
Early in the morning, Peter of Colfax resumed his endeavors to persuade her to come out; he even admitted defeat and promised her safe conduct to her father's castle, but Bertrade de Montfort was not one to be fooled by his lying tongue.
“Then will I starve you out,” he cried at length.
“Gladly will I starve in preference to falling into thy foul hands,” replied the girl. “But thy old servant here will starve first, for she be very old and not so strong as I. Therefore, how will it profit you to kill two and still be robbed of thy prey129?”
Peter of Colfax entertained no doubt but that his fair prisoner would carry out her threat and so he set his men to work with cold chisels130, axes and saws upon the huge door.
For hours, they labored131 upon that mighty work of defence, and it was late at night ere they made a little opening large enough to admit a hand and arm, but the first one intruded132 within the room to raise the bars was drawn133 quickly back with a howl of pain from its owner. Thus the keen dagger in the girl's hand put an end to all hopes of entering without completely demolishing134 the door.
To this work, the men without then set themselves diligently135 while Peter of Colfax renewed his entreaties137, through the small opening they had made. Bertrade replied but once.
“Seest thou this poniard?” she asked. “When that door falls, this point enters my heart. There is nothing beyond that door, with thou, poltroon138, to which death in this little chamber would not be preferable.”
As she spoke, she turned toward the man she was addressing, for the first time during all those weary, hideous139 hours removing her glance from the old hag. It was enough. Silently, but with the quickness of a tigress the old woman was upon her back, one claw-like paw grasping the wrist which held the dagger.
“Quick, My Lord!” she shrieked, “the bolts, quick.”
Instantly Peter of Colfax ran his arm through the tiny opening in the door and a second later four of his men rushed to the aid of the old woman.
Easily they wrested the dagger from Bertrade's fingers, and at the Baron's bidding, they dragged her to the great hall below.
As his retainers left the room at his command, Peter of Colfax strode back and forth upon the rushes which strewed140 the floor. Finally he stopped before the girl standing rigid141 in the center of the room.
“Hast come to thy senses yet, Bertrade de Montfort?” he asked angrily. “I have offered you your choice; to be the honored wife of Peter of Colfax, or, by force, his mistress. The good priest waits without, what be your answer now?”
“The same as it has been these past two days,” she replied with haughty scorn. “The same that it shall always be. I will be neither wife nor mistress to a coward; a hideous, abhorrent142 pig of a man. I would die, it seems, if I felt the touch of your hand upon me. You do not dare to touch me, you craven. I, the daughter of an earl, the niece of a king, wed136 to the warty143 toad144, Peter of Colfax!”
“Hold, chit!” cried the Baron, livid with rage. “You have gone too far. Enough of this; and you love me not now, I shall learn you to love ere the sun rises.” And with a vile145 oath he grasped the girl roughly by the arm, and dragged her toward the little doorway at the side of the room.
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1
knights
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| 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 | |
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accomplished
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| adj.有才艺的；有造诣的；达到了的 | |
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molest
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| vt.骚扰，干扰，调戏 | |
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4
foul
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| adj.污秽的；邪恶的；v.弄脏；妨害；犯规；n.犯规 | |
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5
wrought
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| v.引起；以…原料制作；运转；adj.制造的 | |
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naught
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| n.无，零 [=nought] | |
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courteous
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| adj.彬彬有礼的，客气的 | |
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horrid
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| adj.可怕的；令人惊恐的；恐怖的；极讨厌的 | |
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outlaw
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| n.歹徒，亡命之徒；vt.宣布…为不合法 | |
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hatred
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| n.憎恶，憎恨，仇恨 | |
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vengeance
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| n.报复，报仇，复仇 | |
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parity
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| n.平价，等价，比价，对等 | |
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horde
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| n.群众，一大群 | |
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petulantly
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peeved
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| adj.恼怒的，不高兴的v.（使）气恼，（使）焦躁，（使）愤怒( peeve的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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doughty
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| adj.勇猛的，坚强的 | |
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joyful
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| adj.欢乐的，令人欢欣的 | |
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discomfiture
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| n.崩溃；大败；挫败；困惑 | |
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vexed
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| adj.争论不休的；（指问题等）棘手的；争论不休的问题；烦恼的v.使烦恼( vex的过去式和过去分词 )；使苦恼；使生气；详细讨论 | |
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abruptly
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| adv.突然地，出其不意地 | |
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chamber
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| n.房间，寝室；会议厅；议院；会所 | |
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bespoke
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| adj.（产品）订做的；专做订货的v.预定( bespeak的过去式 )；订（货）；证明；预先请求 | |
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spoke
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| 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 | |
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receding
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| v.逐渐远离( recede的现在分词 )；向后倾斜；自原处后退或避开别人的注视；尤指问题 | |
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26
maiden
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| n.少女，处女；adj.未婚的，纯洁的，无经验的 | |
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27
ruse
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| n.诡计，计策；诡计 | |
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28
irritably
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| ad.易生气地 | |
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29
bide
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| v.忍耐；等候；住 | |
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30
decided
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| adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的 | |
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31
baron
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| n.男爵；(商业界等)巨头，大王 | |
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32
squire
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| n.护卫, 侍从, 乡绅 | |
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33
retrieve
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| vt.重新得到，收回；挽回，补救；检索 | |
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34
slay
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| v.杀死，宰杀，杀戮 | |
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35
dismal
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| adj.阴沉的，凄凉的，令人忧郁的，差劲的 | |
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36
obedience
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| n.服从，顺从 | |
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37
distressed
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| 痛苦的 | |
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38
drizzle
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| v.下毛毛雨；n.毛毛雨，蒙蒙细雨 | |
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39
mantle
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| n.斗篷，覆罩之物，罩子；v.罩住，覆盖，脸红 | |
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40
gusts
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| 一阵强风( gust的名词复数 )； （怒、笑等的）爆发； （感情的）迸发； 发作 | |
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41
winding
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| n.绕，缠，绕组，线圈 | |
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42
ridge
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| n.山脊；鼻梁；分水岭 | |
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43
dense
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| a.密集的，稠密的，浓密的；密度大的 | |
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44
somber
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| adj.昏暗的，阴天的，阴森的，忧郁的 | |
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45
drenched
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| adj.湿透的；充满的v.使湿透( drench的过去式和过去分词 )；在某人（某物）上大量使用（某液体） | |
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46
foliage
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| n.叶子，树叶，簇叶 | |
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47
plodding
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| a.proceeding in a slow or dull way | |
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48
forth
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| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
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49
overthrew
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| overthrow的过去式 | |
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50
defense
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| n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩 | |
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51
guardians
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| 监护人( guardian的名词复数 )； 保护者，维护者 | |
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52
acquit
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| vt.宣判无罪；(oneself)使(自己)表现出 | |
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53
melee
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| n.混战；混战的人群 | |
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54
bent
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| n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的 | |
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55
foresight
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| n.先见之明，深谋远虑 | |
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56
lure
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| n.吸引人的东西，诱惑物；vt.引诱，吸引 | |
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57
traitor
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| n.叛徒，卖国贼 | |
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58
groaning
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| adj. 呜咽的, 呻吟的 动词groan的现在分词形式 | |
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59
abreast
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| adv.并排地；跟上(时代)的步伐，与…并进地 | |
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60
dagger
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| n.匕首，短剑，剑号 | |
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61
intercourse
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| n.性交；交流，交往，交际 | |
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62
overdue
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| adj.过期的，到期未付的；早该有的，迟到的 | |
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63
apprehensions
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| 疑惧 | |
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64
standing
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| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
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65
huddled
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| 挤在一起（huddle的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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66
dreaded
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| adj.令人畏惧的；害怕的v.害怕，恐惧，担心( dread的过去式和过去分词) | |
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67
followers
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| 追随者( follower的名词复数 )； 用户； 契据的附面； 从动件 | |
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68
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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69
repulsive
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| adj.排斥的，使人反感的 | |
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70
fangless
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| Fangless | |
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71
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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72
croaked
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| v.呱呱地叫( croak的过去式和过去分词 )；用粗的声音说 | |
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73
mantling
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| 覆巾 | |
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74
countenance
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| n.脸色，面容；面部表情；vt.支持，赞同 | |
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75
awakened
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| v.（使）醒( awaken的过去式和过去分词 )；（使）觉醒；弄醒；（使）意识到 | |
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76
wilt
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| v.(使)植物凋谢或枯萎；(指人)疲倦，衰弱 | |
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77
loathing
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| n.厌恶，憎恨v.憎恨，厌恶( loathe的现在分词)；极不喜欢 | |
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78
imprisoned
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| 下狱，监禁( imprison的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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79
devoted
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| adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的 | |
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80
stifling
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| a.令人窒息的 | |
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81
trophies
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| n.（为竞赛获胜者颁发的）奖品( trophy的名词复数 )；奖杯；（尤指狩猎或战争中获得的）纪念品；（用于比赛或赛跑名称）奖 | |
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82
flickering
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| adj.闪烁的，摇曳的，一闪一闪的 | |
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83
hearths
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| 壁炉前的地板，炉床，壁炉边( hearth的名词复数 ) | |
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84
accentuate
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| v.着重，强调 | |
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85
dented
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| v.使产生凹痕( dent的过去式和过去分词 )；损害；伤害；挫伤（信心、名誉等） | |
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86
mighty
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| adj.强有力的；巨大的 | |
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87
fealty
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| n.忠贞，忠节 | |
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88
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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89
sullenly
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| 不高兴地，绷着脸，忧郁地 | |
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90
scraps
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| 油渣 | |
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91
heed
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| v.注意，留意；n.注意，留心 | |
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92
doorway
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| n.门口，(喻)入门；门路，途径 | |
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93
apparently
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| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
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94
dire
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| adj.可怕的，悲惨的，阴惨的，极端的 | |
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95
aperture
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| n.孔，隙，窄的缺口 | |
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96
rattling
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| adj. 格格作响的, 活泼的, 很好的 adv. 极其, 很, 非常 动词rattle的现在分词 | |
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97
thwart
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| v.阻挠，妨碍，反对；adj.横(断的) | |
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98
thwarted
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| 阻挠( thwart的过去式和过去分词 )； 使受挫折； 挫败； 横过 | |
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99
fawning
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| adj.乞怜的，奉承的v.（尤指狗等）跳过来往人身上蹭以示亲热( fawn的现在分词 )；巴结；讨好 | |
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100
gallant
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| adj.英勇的，豪侠的；(向女人)献殷勤的 | |
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101
wrath
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| n.愤怒，愤慨，暴怒 | |
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102
majestic
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| adj.雄伟的，壮丽的，庄严的，威严的，崇高的 | |
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103
avow
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| v.承认，公开宣称 | |
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104
joints
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| 接头( joint的名词复数 )； 关节； 公共场所（尤指价格低廉的饮食和娱乐场所） （非正式）； 一块烤肉 （英式英语） | |
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105
marrow
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| n.骨髓；精华；活力 | |
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106
haughty
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| adj.傲慢的，高傲的 | |
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107
sneering
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| 嘲笑的，轻蔑的 | |
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108
transpired
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| （事实，秘密等）被人知道( transpire的过去式和过去分词 )； 泄露； 显露； 发生 | |
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109
humiliation
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| n.羞辱 | |
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110
ruby
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| n.红宝石，红宝石色 | |
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111
semblance
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| n.外貌，外表 | |
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112
buffoon
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| n.演出时的丑角 | |
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113
parody
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| n.打油诗文，诙谐的改编诗文，拙劣的模仿；v.拙劣模仿，作模仿诗文 | |
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114
guts
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| v.狼吞虎咽，贪婪地吃，飞碟游戏（比赛双方每组5人，相距15码，互相掷接飞碟）；毁坏（建筑物等）的内部( gut的第三人称单数 )；取出…的内脏n.勇气( gut的名词复数 )；内脏；消化道的下段；肠 | |
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115
fully
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| adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地 | |
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116
solitary
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| adj.孤独的，独立的，荒凉的；n.隐士 | |
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117
planks
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| （厚）木板( plank的名词复数 )； 政纲条目，政策要点 | |
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118
barricade
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| n.路障，栅栏，障碍；vt.设路障挡住 | |
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119
impending
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| a.imminent, about to come or happen | |
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120
succor
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| n.援助，帮助；v.给予帮助 | |
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121
wiles
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| n.（旨在欺骗或吸引人的）诡计，花招；欺骗，欺诈( wile的名词复数 ) | |
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122
determined
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| adj.坚定的；有决心的 | |
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123
feigning
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| 假装，伪装( feign的现在分词 )； 捏造（借口、理由等） | |
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124
buckle
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| n.扣子，带扣；v.把...扣住，由于压力而弯曲 | |
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125
wrested
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| （用力）拧( wrest的过去式和过去分词 )； 费力取得； （从…）攫取； （ 从… ） 强行取去… | |
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126
shrieked
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| v.尖叫( shriek的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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127
coaxed
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| v.哄，用好话劝说( coax的过去式和过去分词 )；巧言骗取；哄劝，劝诱 | |
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128
fixed
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| adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的 | |
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129
prey
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| n.被掠食者，牺牲者，掠食；v.捕食，掠夺，折磨 | |
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130
chisels
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| n.凿子，錾子( chisel的名词复数 )；口凿 | |
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131
labored
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| adj.吃力的，谨慎的v.努力争取(for)( labor的过去式和过去分词 )；苦干；详细分析；（指引擎）缓慢而困难地运转 | |
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132
intruded
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| n.侵入的，推进的v.侵入，侵扰，打扰( intrude的过去式和过去分词 )；把…强加于 | |
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133
drawn
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| v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的 | |
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134
demolishing
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| v.摧毁( demolish的现在分词 )；推翻；拆毁（尤指大建筑物）；吃光 | |
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135
diligently
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| ad.industriously;carefully | |
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136
wed
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| v.娶，嫁，与…结婚 | |
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137
entreaties
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| n.恳求，乞求( entreaty的名词复数 ) | |
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138
poltroon
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| n.胆怯者；懦夫 | |
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139
hideous
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| adj.丑陋的，可憎的，可怕的，恐怖的 | |
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140
strewed
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| v.撒在…上( strew的过去式和过去分词 )；散落于；点缀；撒满 | |
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141
rigid
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| adj.严格的，死板的；刚硬的，僵硬的 | |
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142
abhorrent
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| adj.可恶的，可恨的，讨厌的 | |
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143
warty
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| adj.有疣的，似疣的；瘤状 | |
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144
toad
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| n.蟾蜍，癞蛤蟆 | |
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145
vile
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| adj.卑鄙的，可耻的，邪恶的；坏透的 | |
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