Chapter 2

United States Army Lieutenant¹ Martha Wiatt and her boyfriend, Sergeant² Davis O’Hara, moved at a fast pace as the evening fog began to roll in like a sulfurous cloud across Golden Gate Park in San Francisco. The couple looked sleek³, even beautiful, in the waning⁴ light of day.
Martha heard the first low growl⁵ and thought that it must be a dog on the loose in the lovely section of park that stretched from Haight Ashbury to the ocean. It came from far enough behind them that she wasn’t worried.
‘The Big Dawg!’ she kidded Davis as they jogged up a steep hill that held a stellar view of the stunning⁶ suspension bridge connecting San Francisco to Marin County.’Big Dawg’was a pet expression they used for everything over-sized - from jet-liners, to sexual apparatus⁷, to very large canines⁸.
Soon the thick fog would blanket the bridge and bay completely, but for now it was a gorgeous sight, incomparable, one of their favorite things in San Francisco.
‘I love this run, that beautiful bridge, the sunset - the whole ball of wax,’ Martha said in a steady, relaxed cadence⁹. ‘But enough bad poetry. It’s time for me to kick your well-formed, athletic-looking butt¹⁰, O’Hara.’
‘That sounds like cheap-shot female chauvinism to me,’ he grunted¹¹, but he was grinning, showing off some of the whitest teeth she had ever seen, or run her tongue across.
Martha kicked up her pace a notch¹². She’d been a cross-country star at Pepperdine University, and she was still in great shape. ‘And that sounds like the beginnings of a gracious loser’s speech/she said. ‘We’ll see about that, won’t we. Loser buys at The Abbey.’
‘I can already taste a dos Equis. Mmm, mmm, good.’ Suddenly the two runners’ playful exchange was interrupted by a much louder growl. It was closer, too.
It didn’t seem possible that a dog had covered so much ground so fast. Maybe there were a couple of’Big Dawgs’loose in the area.  ‘There aren’t any cats in this park?’ Davis asked. ‘I mean, like a mountain lion variety of cat?’
‘No. Of course not. Get real, pal¹³. We’re in San Francisco, not the middle of Montana.’ Martha shook her head. Moisture jumped off her close-cropped reddish-brown hair. Then she thought she heard footsteps. A runner and a large dog?
‘Let’s get out of these woods, okay?’ Davis said.  ‘I hear you. I don’t necessarily disagree. Last one to the parking lot is dog chow.’
‘Not funny. Lieutenant Martha. Bad joke. This is getting a little spooky.’
‘I don’t know about big cats around these parts, but I think I just spotted¹⁴ a little pussy¹⁵.’
Another loud growl - and this time it was really close. Right on the heels of the two of them. Gaining ground fast.  ‘C’mon! Let’s go. Let’s move it,’said Martha Wiatt. She was a little afraid now, running as fast as she could, and that was very fast.  Another eerie¹⁶ growl pierced the gathering¹⁷ fog.

1 lieutenant   

n.陆军中尉，海军上尉；代理官员，副职官员

参考例句：

• He was promoted to be a lieutenant in the army.他被提升为陆军中尉。
• He prevailed on the lieutenant to send in a short note.他说动那个副官，递上了一张简短的便条进去。

2 sergeant   

n.警官，中士

参考例句：

• His elder brother is a sergeant.他哥哥是个警官。
• How many stripes are there on the sleeve of a sergeant?陆军中士的袖子上有多少条纹？

3 sleek   

adj.光滑的，井然有序的；v.使光滑，梳拢

参考例句：

• Women preferred sleek,shiny hair with little decoration.女士们更喜欢略加修饰的光滑闪亮型秀发。
• The horse's coat was sleek and glossy.这匹马全身润泽有光。

4 waning   

adj.（月亮）渐亏的，逐渐减弱或变小的n.月亏v.衰落( wane的现在分词 )；（月）亏；变小；变暗淡

参考例句：

• Her enthusiasm for the whole idea was waning rapidly. 她对整个想法的热情迅速冷淡了下来。
• The day is waning and the road is ending. 日暮途穷。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

5 growl   

v.（狗等）嗥叫，（炮等）轰鸣；n.嗥叫，轰鸣

参考例句：

• The dog was biting,growling and wagging its tail.那条狗在一边撕咬一边低声吼叫，尾巴也跟着摇摆。
• The car growls along rutted streets.汽车在车辙纵横的街上一路轰鸣。

6 stunning   

adj.极好的；使人晕倒的

参考例句：

• His plays are distinguished only by their stunning mediocrity.他的戏剧与众不同之处就是平凡得出奇。
• The finished effect was absolutely stunning.完工后的效果非常美。

7 apparatus   

n.装置，器械；器具，设备

参考例句：

• The school's audio apparatus includes films and records.学校的视听设备包括放映机和录音机。
• They had a very refined apparatus.他们有一套非常精良的设备。

8 canines   

n.犬齿( canine的名词复数 )；犬牙；犬科动物

参考例句：

• For example, the teeth are more primitive. There are large canines and unusually shaped incisors. 譬如，牙齿更为原始，有大的犬齿和非常合适的门齿。 来自辞典例句
• Well-to-canines can attend doggy daycare centers while their owners work. 富人家的狗在主人上班的时候可以去狗狗托管中心。 来自互联网

9 cadence   

n.（说话声调的）抑扬顿挫

参考例句：

• He delivered his words in slow,measured cadences.他讲话缓慢而抑扬顿挫、把握有度。
• He liked the relaxed cadence of his retired life.他喜欢退休生活的悠闲的节奏。

10 butt   

n.笑柄；烟蒂；枪托；臀部；v.用头撞或顶

参考例句：

• The water butt catches the overflow from this pipe.大水桶盛接管子里流出的东西。
• He was the butt of their jokes.他是他们的笑柄。

11 grunted   

（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

参考例句：

• She just grunted, not deigning to look up from the page. 她只咕哝了一声，继续看书，不屑抬起头来看一眼。
• She grunted some incomprehensible reply. 她咕噜着回答了些令人费解的话。

12 notch   

n.(V字形)槽口，缺口，等级

参考例句：

• The peanuts they grow are top-notch.他们种的花生是拔尖的。
• He cut a notch in the stick with a sharp knife.他用利刃在棒上刻了一个凹痕。

13 pal   

n.朋友，伙伴，同志；vi.结为友

参考例句：

• He is a pal of mine.他是我的一个朋友。
• Listen,pal,I don't want you talking to my sister any more.听着，小子，我不让你再和我妹妹说话了。

14 spotted   

adj.有斑点的，斑纹的，弄污了的

参考例句：

• The milkman selected the spotted cows,from among a herd of two hundred.牛奶商从一群200头牛中选出有斑点的牛。
• Sam's shop stocks short spotted socks.山姆的商店屯积了有斑点的短袜。

15 pussy   

n.(儿语)小猫，猫咪

参考例句：

• Why can't they leave my pussy alone?为什么他们就不能离我小猫咪远一点？
• The baby was playing with his pussy.孩子正和他的猫嬉戏。

16 eerie   

adj.怪诞的；奇异的；可怕的；胆怯的

参考例句：

• It's eerie to walk through a dark wood at night.夜晚在漆黑的森林中行走很是恐怖。
• I walked down the eerie dark path.我走在那条漆黑恐怖的小路上。

17 gathering   

n.集会，聚会，聚集

参考例句：

• He called on Mr. White to speak at the gathering.他请怀特先生在集会上讲话。
• He is on the wing gathering material for his novels.他正忙于为他的小说收集资料。