Chapter 6 ODD HAPPENINGS

　　Chapter 6 ODD HAPPENINGS
　　They all thought it really was a little odd to disappear so suddenly like that, with just a casual good-bye. Julian wondered if he ought to have gone with him and delivered him safely on the door-step.
　　'Don't be an ass¹, Julian,' said Dick, scornfully. 'What do you think can happen to him from the frontgate to the front door!'
　　'Nothing, of course. It's just that I don't trust that young fellow,' said Julian. 'You know I really wasn'tsure he had asked his mother if he could come with us, to tell you the truth.'
　　'I thought that too,' said Anne. 'He did get to Croker's Corner so very quickly, didn't he? - and he hadquite a long way to go really, and he had to find his mother, and talk to her, and all that.'
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　　'Yes. I've half a mind to pop up to the aunt's house and see if she expected him,' said Julian. But onsecond thoughts he didn't go. He would feel so silly if the aunt was there with Richard, and all waswell - they would think that he and the others ought to be asked in.
　　So, after debating the matter for a few minutes they all rode off again. They wanted to get toMiddlecombe Woods fairly soon, because there were no villages between Great Giddings andMiddlecombe, so they would have to find the woods and then go on to find a farm-house somewhereto buy food for supper and breakfast. They hadn't been able to buy any in the shops at Great Giddingsbecause it was early closing day, and they hadn't liked to ask the tea-shop woman to sell themanything. They felt they had taken quite enough of her food already!
　　They came to Middlecombe Woods, and found a very fine place to camp in for the night. It was in alittle dell, set with primroses² and violets, a perfectly³ hidden place, secure from all prying⁴ eyes, andsurely unknown even to tramps.
　　'This is glorious,' said Anne. 'We must be miles away from anywhere: I hope we can find some farm-house or something that will sell us food, though! I know we don't feel hungry now, but we shall!'
　　'I think I've got a puncture⁵, blow it,' said Dick, looking at his back tyre. 'It's a slow one, fortunately.
　　But I think I won't risk coming along to look for farmhouses⁶ till I've mended it.'
　　'Right,' said Julian. 'And Anne needn't come either. She looks a bit tired. George and I will go.
　　We won't take our bikes. It's easier to walk through the woods. We may be an hour or so, but don'tworry, Timmy will know the way back all right, so we shan't lose you!'
　　Julian and George set off on foot, with Timmy following. Timmy too was tired, but nothing wouldhave made him stay behind with Anne and Dick. He must go with his beloved George!
　　Anne put her bicycle carefully into the middle of a bush. You never knew when a tramp might beabout, watching to steal something! It didn't matter when Timmy was there, because he would growlif a tramp came within a mile of them. Dick called out that he would mend his puncture now. He hadfound the hole already, where a small nail had gone in.
　　She sat near to Dick, watching him. She was glad to rest. She wondered if the others had found afarmhouse yet.
　　Dick worked steadily⁸ at mending the puncture. They had been there together about half an hour whenthey heard sounds.
　　Dick lifted his head and listened. 'Can you hear something?' he said to Anne. She nodded.
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　　'Yes. Somebody's shouting. I wonder why!'
　　They both listened again. Then they distinctly heard yells. 'Help! Julian! Where are you? Help!'
　　They shot to their feet. Who was calling Julian for help? It wasn't George's voice. The yells grewlouder, to panic-stricken shrieks⁹.
　　'JULIAN! Dick!'
　　'Why - it must be Richard,' said Dick, amazed. 'What in the world does he want? What's happened?'
　　Anne was pale. She didn't like sudden happenings like this. 'Shall we - shall we go and find him?'
　　she said.
　　There was a crashing not far off, as if somebody was making his way through the undergrowth.
　　It was rather dark among the trees, and Anne and Dick could see nothing at first. Dick yelled loudly.
　　'Hey! Is that you, Richard! We're here!'
　　The crashing noise redoubled. 'I'm coming!' squealed¹⁰ Richard. 'Wait for me, wait for me!'
　　They waited. Soon they saw Richard coming, stumbling as fast as he could between the trees.
　　'Here we are,' called Dick. 'Whatever's the matter?'
　　Richard staggered towards them. He looked frightened out of his life. 'They're after me,' he panted.
　　'You must save me. I want Timmy. He'll bite them.'
　　'Who's after you?' asked Dick, amazed.
　　'Where's Timmy? Where's Julian?' cried Richard, looking round in despair.
　　They've gone to the farm-house to get some food,' said Dick. They'll be back soon, Richard.
　　Whatever's the matter? Are you mad? You look awful.'
　　The boy took no notice of the questions. 'Where has Julian gone? I want Timmy. Tell me the waythey went. I can't stay here. They'll catch me!'
　　They went along there,' said Dick, showing Richard the path. 'You can just see the tracks of their feet.
　　Richard, whatever is . . .?'
　　But Richard was gone! He fled down the path at top speed, calling at the top of his voice, 'Julian!
　　Timmy!'
　　Anne and Dick stared at one another in surprise. What had happened to Richard? Why wasn't he athis aunt's house? He must be mad!
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　　'It's no good going after him,' said Dick. 'We shall only lose the way and not be able to find this placeagain - and the others will miss us and go hunting and get lost too! What is the matter with Richard?'
　　'He kept saying somebody was after him - they were after him!' said Anne. 'He's got some bee in hisbonnet about something.'
　　'Bats in the belfry,' said Dick. 'Mad, dippy, daft! Well, he'll give Julian and George a shock when heruns into them - if he does! The odds¹¹ are he will miss them altogether.'
　　'I'm going to climb this tree and see if I can see anything of Richard or the others,' said Anne. 'It's tall,and it's easy to climb. You finish mending your puncture. I should just love to know what happens toRichard.'
　　Dick went back to his bicycle, puzzled. Anne climbed the tree. She climbed well, and was soon at thetop. She gazed out over the countryside. There was an expanse of fields on one side, and woodsstretched away on the other. She looked over the darkening fields, trying to see if a farmhouse⁷ wasanywhere near. But she could see nothing.
　　Dick was just finishing his puncture when he heard another noise in the woods. Was it that idiot of aRichard coming back? He listened.
　　The noise came nearer. It wasn't a crashing noise, like Richard had made. It was a stealthy noise as ifpeople were gradually closing in. Dick didn't much like it. Who was coming? Or perhaps -what was coming? Was it some wild animal - perhaps a badger¹² and its mate? The boy stood listening.
　　A silence came. No more movements. No more rustling¹³. Had he imagined it all? He wished Anne andthe others were near him. It was eerie¹⁴, standing¹⁵ there in the darkening wood, waiting and watching.
　　He decided¹⁶ that he had imagined it all. He thought it would be a very good idea if he lighted hisbicycle lamp, then the light would soon dispel¹⁷ his silly ideas! He fumbled¹⁸ about for it on the front ofhis handlebars. He switched it on and a very comforting little glow at once spread a circle of light inthe little dell.
　　Dick was just about to call up to Anne to tell her his absurd fears when the noises came again!
　　There was absolutely no mistake about them this time.
　　A brilliant light suddenly pierced through the trees and fell on Dick. He blinked.
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　　'Ah - so there you are, you little misery¹⁹!' said a harsh voice, and someone came striding over to thedell. Somebody else followed behind.
　　'What do you mean?' asked Dick, amazed. He could not see who the men were because of thebrilliant torch-light in his eyes.
　　'We've been chasing you for miles, haven't we? And you thought you'd get away. But we'd got youall the time!' said the voice.
　　'I don't understand this,' said Dick, putting on a bold voice. 'Who are you?'
　　'You know very well who we are,' said the voice. 'Didn't you run away screaming as soon as you sawRooky? He went one way after you, and we went another - and we soon got you, didn't we?
　　Now, you come along with us, my pretty!'
　　All this explained one thing clearly to Dick - that it was Richard they had been after, for some reasonor other - and they thought he was Richard!
　　'I'm not the boy you're looking for,' he said. 'You'll get into trouble if you touch me!'
　　'What's your name, then?' asked the first man.
　　Dick told him.
　　'Oh - so you're Dick - and isn't Dick short for Richard? You can't fool us with that baby-talk,'
　　said the first man. 'You're the Richard we want, all right. Richard Kent, see?'
　　'I'm not Richard Kent!' shouted Dick, as he felt the man's hand clutching his arm suddenly. 'You takeyour hands off me. You wait till the police hear of this!'
　　'They won't hear of it,' said the man. 'They won't hear anything at all! Come on - and don't struggle orshout or you'll be sorry. Once you're at Owl's Dene we'll deal properly with you!'
　　Anne was sitting absolutely petrified²⁰ up in the tree. She couldn't move or speak. She tried to call outto poor Dick, but her tongue wouldn't say a word. She had to sit there and hear her brother beingdragged away by two strange ruffians. She almost fell out of the tree in fright, and she heard himshouting and yelling when he was dragged away. She could hear the sound of crashing for a longtime.
　　She began to cry. She didn't dare to climb down because she was trembling so much she was afraidshe would lose her hold and fall.
　　She must wait for George and Julian to come back. Suppose they didn't? Suppose they had beencaught too? She would be all by herself in the tree all night long. Anne sobbed²¹ up in the tree-top,holding on tightly.
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　　The stars came out above her head, and she saw the very bright one again.
　　And then she heard the sound of footsteps and voices. She stiffened²² up in the tree. Who was it thistime? Oh let it be Julian and George and Timmy; let it be Julian, George and Timmy!

1 ass   

n.驴；傻瓜，蠢笨的人

参考例句：

• He is not an ass as they make him.他不象大家猜想的那样笨。
• An ass endures his burden but not more than his burden.驴能负重但不能超过它能力所负担的。

2 primroses   

n.报春花( primrose的名词复数 )；淡黄色；追求享乐（招至恶果）

参考例句：

• Wild flowers such as orchids and primroses are becoming rare. 兰花和报春花这类野花越来越稀少了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The primroses were bollming; spring was in evidence. 迎春花开了，春天显然已经到了。 来自互联网

3 perfectly   

adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The witnesses were each perfectly certain of what they said.证人们个个对自己所说的话十分肯定。
• Everything that we're doing is all perfectly above board.我们做的每件事情都是光明正大的。

4 prying   

adj.爱打听的v.打听，刺探（他人的私事）( pry的现在分词 )；撬开

参考例句：

• I'm sick of you prying into my personal life! 我讨厌你刺探我的私生活！
• She is always prying into other people's affairs. 她总是打听别人的私事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 puncture   

n.刺孔，穿孔；v.刺穿，刺破

参考例句：

• Failure did not puncture my confidence.失败并没有挫伤我的信心。
• My bicycle had a puncture and needed patching up.我的自行车胎扎了个洞，需要修补。

6 farmhouses   

n.农舍，农场的主要住房( farmhouse的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Then perhaps she is staying at one of cottages or farmhouses? 那么也许她现在住在某个农舍或哪个农场的房子里吧？ 来自辞典例句
• The countryside was sprinkled with farmhouses. 乡间到处可见农家的房舍。 来自辞典例句

7 farmhouse   

n.农场住宅（尤指主要住房）

参考例句：

• We fell for the farmhouse as soon as we saw it.我们对那所农舍一见倾心。
• We put up for the night at a farmhouse.我们在一间农舍投宿了一夜。

8 steadily   

adv.稳定地；不变地；持续地

参考例句：

• The scope of man's use of natural resources will steadily grow.人类利用自然资源的广度将日益扩大。
• Our educational reform was steadily led onto the correct path.我们的教学改革慢慢上轨道了。

9 shrieks   

n.尖叫声( shriek的名词复数 )v.尖叫( shriek的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• shrieks of fiendish laughter 恶魔般的尖笑声
• For years, from newspapers, broadcasts, the stages and at meetings, we had heard nothing but grandiloquent rhetoric delivered with shouts and shrieks that deafened the ears. 多少年来， 报纸上， 广播里， 舞台上， 会场上的声嘶力竭，装腔做态的高调搞得我们震耳欲聋。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

10 squealed   

v.长声尖叫，用长而尖锐的声音说( squeal的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He squealed the words out. 他吼叫着说出那些话。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The brakes of the car squealed. 汽车的刹车发出吱吱声。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 odds   

n.让步，机率，可能性，比率；胜败优劣之别

参考例句：

• The odds are 5 to 1 that she will win.她获胜的机会是五比一。
• Do you know the odds of winning the lottery once?你知道赢得一次彩票的几率多大吗？

12 badger   

v.一再烦扰，一再要求，纠缠

参考例句：

• Now that our debts are squared.Don't badger me with them any more.我们的债务两清了。从此以后不要再纠缠我了。
• If you badger him long enough,I'm sure he'll agree.只要你天天纠缠他，我相信他会同意。

13 rustling   

n. 瑟瑟声，沙沙声 adj. 发沙沙声的

参考例句：

• the sound of the trees rustling in the breeze 树木在微风中发出的沙沙声
• the soft rustling of leaves 树叶柔和的沙沙声

14 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。

15 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

16 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。

17 dispel   

vt.驱走，驱散，消除

参考例句：

• I tried in vain to dispel her misgivings.我试图消除她的疑虑，但没有成功。
• We hope the programme will dispel certain misconceptions about the disease.我们希望这个节目能消除对这种疾病的一些误解。

18 fumbled   

（笨拙地）摸索或处理（某事物）( fumble的过去式和过去分词 )； 乱摸，笨拙地弄； 使落下

参考例句：

• She fumbled in her pocket for a handkerchief. 她在她口袋里胡乱摸找手帕。
• He fumbled about in his pockets for the ticket. 他（瞎）摸着衣兜找票。

19 misery   

n.痛苦，苦恼，苦难；悲惨的境遇，贫苦

参考例句：

• Business depression usually causes misery among the working class.商业不景气常使工薪阶层受苦。
• He has rescued me from the mire of misery.他把我从苦海里救了出来。

20 petrified   

adj.惊呆的；目瞪口呆的v.使吓呆，使惊呆；变僵硬；使石化(petrify的过去式和过去分词)

参考例句：

• I'm petrified of snakes. 我特别怕蛇。
• The poor child was petrified with fear. 这可怜的孩子被吓呆了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

21 sobbed   

哭泣，啜泣( sob的过去式和过去分词 )； 哭诉，呜咽地说

参考例句：

• She sobbed out the story of her son's death. 她哭诉着她儿子的死。
• She sobbed out the sad story of her son's death. 她哽咽着诉说她儿子死去的悲惨经过。

22 stiffened   

加强的

参考例句：

• He leaned towards her and she stiffened at this invasion of her personal space. 他向她俯过身去，这种侵犯她个人空间的举动让她绷紧了身子。
• She stiffened with fear. 她吓呆了。