CHAPTER XLIII. THE HYPNOTIC SPELL.

 “That fiend is slowly killing¹ him!” It was Sunday evening, just after eight o’clock, and the little ward² in which Nick Carter found himself was deserted³ save for its two inmates⁴. On his bed lay James Stone, motionless and mute, just as he had lain there all through the day. Over him bent⁵ Nick, and there was a pitying look in the detective’s eyes as they rested on the white face.

 

Dropping his hand gently on Stone’s eyelids⁶, he lifted them and looked at the set, fixed⁷ pupils. They were small, almost the size of pin heads.

 

“There isn’t the slightest doubt about it,” the detective decided⁸, “this man is under some powerful narcotic⁹, which means that Follansbee has his own reasons for keeping him thus. I’d give a good deal to know just what is at the bottom of it, but, after all, it doesn’t greatly matter. I know that Follansbee means no good, and I’m here to see that he fails; that’s the important thing.”

 

During the day Nick had kept to his room, and the nurse, a gentle little woman, had decided that he was a model patient. He had, however, ventured to make a few inquiries¹⁰ about the inanimate man in the next bed, and the nurse had given him several details.

 

“He came from St. Swithin’s,” she said. “Doctor Follansbee—the head there you know—is looking after him, so he must consider it a very important case. The doctor says that he doesn’t expect the patient to awaken¹¹ for at least another twenty-four hours. He’s in an unusual sort of coma¹².”

 

There was nothing to be gained by revealing his suspicions to the nurse; therefore Nick kept his peace. He knew, however, that Follansbee would have to return again to see the man, and it was for that visit he was waiting—waiting with an impatience¹³ which proved the hold the case had upon him.

 

Another hour passed before Stephen Follansbee’s voice warned him that the long-looked-for moment had arrived. The detective had been sitting up much of the time, but at the sound he stripped off his bath robe and jumped into bed, the nurse being absent. In a few seconds the covers were pulled up to his chin and his face was turned to the wall.

 

It would have taken a clever observer to notice that on the wall, almost level with his head, hung a small mirror. It had been tilted¹⁴ at such an angle that the detective, although he had his back to the bed occupied by Stone, could see everything that happened there.

 

The door opened, and he heard a soft footfall. He lay quite still, breathing easily and regularly.

 

There was only one light in the room, a shaded bulb, which was suspended above a small table that stood close to Stone’s bed. The rest of the little ward was in semidarkness.

 

“Another patient?”

 

The detective recognized an undercurrent of disagreeable surprise, if not of anger, in Follansbee’s voice.

 

 

Miss Worth had accompanied the physician into the room. “Yes, a typhoid convalescent,” she answered, in a low voice. “He came last night, and there was no other place to put him. He seems to be asleep now.”

 

Nick could hear Follansbee’s footfalls as the latter came across the room and halted by the side of the bed. The hawklike¹⁵ face bent over him and the beady eyes searched his features for a few moments.

 

The pains which Nick had taken in his disguise justified¹⁶ themselves, however, and Follansbee presently straightened up.

 

“Very well, Miss Worth,” he said, turning to the matron, “you need not wait. If I want the nurse I shall call her.”

 

The woman left the ward. Nick heard the door close softly behind her, and then he cautiously opened his eyes a little and glanced up at the tilted mirror. It caught the glow from the electric bulb, and he could see every movement that the doctor made—could even mark the sinister¹⁷ expression on Follansbee’s face. The head of St. Swithin’s had been carrying a little bag, and this he placed on the table, bringing out various articles and placing them in readiness. Then, from the inside pocket, the scientific criminal withdrew a small case containing a number of glass tubes.

 

When his preparations were completed, Follansbee seated himself on the bed and made a swift examination of the helpless man. The expression on his face was almost fiendish now, and the lids were curled in a mocking smile. Evidently the callous¹⁸ scoundrel was gloating over his triumph.

 

Nick held his breath as he watched, for Follansbee had set to work now. The swift, capable fingers reached out toward the little table, selected one of the vials, and dropped its contents on a little pad of cotton. When the pad was saturated¹⁹, the doctor bent closer over Stone in such a way that the detective was unable to see what happened; but a moment later, when Follansbee straightened up, the first sign of life appeared in the motionless figure.

 

The head moved restlessly from side to side and the eyes fluttered open. Very slowly Stone lifted himself up until he was in a sitting position. His eyes were wide and staring now, and he looked about him with the half-vacant expression of a dazed man.

 

Follansbee had stepped back as Stone sat up, and now, reseating himself on the edge of the bed, the criminal craned his lean neck forward, so that his face was on a level with that of his victim.

 

Stone’s eyes, which had been wavering about the room, seemed to fix themselves on the hard, little ones which met them; whereupon Follansbee raised his hands and began to make passes in front of the staring, intent face.

 

The meaning of his actions was at once revealed to the detective: Follansbee had brought his man back to life only to hypnotize him. For what purpose?

 

1 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

2 ward   

n.守卫，监护，病房，行政区，由监护人或法院保护的人（尤指儿童）；vt.守护，躲开

参考例句：

• The hospital has a medical ward and a surgical ward.这家医院有内科病房和外科病房。
• During the evening picnic,I'll carry a torch to ward off the bugs.傍晚野餐时，我要点根火把，抵挡蚊虫。

3 deserted   

adj.荒芜的，荒废的，无人的，被遗弃的

参考例句：

• The deserted village was filled with a deathly silence.这个荒废的村庄死一般的寂静。
• The enemy chieftain was opposed and deserted by his followers.敌人头目众叛亲离。

4 inmates   

n.囚犯( inmate的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• One of the inmates has escaped. 被收容的人中有一个逃跑了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The inmates were moved to an undisclosed location. 监狱里的囚犯被转移到一个秘密处所。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 bent   

n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的

参考例句：

• He was fully bent upon the project.他一心扑在这项计划上。
• We bent over backward to help them.我们尽了最大努力帮助他们。

6 eyelids   

n.眼睑( eyelid的名词复数 )；眼睛也不眨一下；不露声色；面不改色

参考例句：

• She was so tired, her eyelids were beginning to droop. 她太疲倦了，眼睑开始往下垂。
• Her eyelids drooped as if she were on the verge of sleep. 她眼睑低垂好像快要睡着的样子。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 fixed   

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 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

9 narcotic   

n.麻醉药，镇静剂；adj.麻醉的，催眠的

参考例句：

• Opium is classed under the head of narcotic.鸦片是归入麻醉剂一类的东西。
• No medical worker is allowed to prescribe any narcotic drug for herself.医务人员不得为自己开处方使用麻醉药品。

10 inquiries   

n.调查( inquiry的名词复数 )；疑问；探究；打听

参考例句：

• He was released on bail pending further inquiries. 他获得保释，等候进一步调查。
• I have failed to reach them by postal inquiries. 我未能通过邮政查询与他们取得联系。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

11 awaken   

vi.醒，觉醒；vt.唤醒，使觉醒，唤起，激起

参考例句：

• Old people awaken early in the morning.老年人早晨醒得早。
• Please awaken me at six.请于六点叫醒我。

12 coma   

n.昏迷，昏迷状态

参考例句：

• The patient rallied from the coma.病人从昏迷中苏醒过来。
• She went into a coma after swallowing a whole bottle of sleeping pills.她吃了一整瓶安眠药后就昏迷过去了。

13 impatience   

n.不耐烦，急躁

参考例句：

• He expressed impatience at the slow rate of progress.进展缓慢，他显得不耐烦。
• He gave a stamp of impatience.他不耐烦地跺脚。

14 tilted   

v. 倾斜的

参考例句：

• Suddenly the boat tilted to one side. 小船突然倾向一侧。
• She tilted her chin at him defiantly. 她向他翘起下巴表示挑衅。

15 hawklike   

参考例句：

16 justified   

a.正当的，有理的

参考例句：

• She felt fully justified in asking for her money back. 她认为有充分的理由要求退款。
• The prisoner has certainly justified his claims by his actions. 那个囚犯确实已用自己的行动表明他的要求是正当的。

17 sinister   

adj.不吉利的，凶恶的，左边的

参考例句：

• There is something sinister at the back of that series of crimes.在这一系列罪行背后有险恶的阴谋。
• Their proposals are all worthless and designed out of sinister motives.他们的建议不仅一钱不值，而且包藏祸心。

18 callous   

adj.无情的，冷淡的，硬结的，起老茧的

参考例句：

• He is callous about the safety of his workers.他对他工人的安全毫不关心。
• She was selfish,arrogant and often callous.她自私傲慢，而且往往冷酷无情。

19 saturated   

a.饱和的，充满的

参考例句：

• The continuous rain had saturated the soil. 连绵不断的雨把土地淋了个透。
• a saturated solution of sodium chloride 氯化钠饱和溶液