George looked as if she had seen a ghost. 'Jo!' she whispered. 'It can't really be you.'
'It is. Feel,' said Jo, and pattered across the room to give George quite a hard pinch. Then she pulledat her arm.
'Come on,' she said. 'We must go before Red comes. Hurry! I don't want to be caught.'
George got up as if she was in a dream. She went across to the door. She and Jo slipped out, andstood at the top of the spiral staircase.
'Have to go down here, I suppose,' said Jo. She cocked her head and listened. Then she went down afew steps and turned the first spiral bend.
But before she had gone down more than a dozen steps she stopped in fright. Somebody was comingup!
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In panic Jo ran up again and pushed George roughly into the room she had climbed into first of all.
'Someone's coming,' she panted. 'Now we're finished.'
'It's that red-haired man, I expect,' said George. 'He comes up three or four times a day and tries tomake me tell him about my father's work. But I don't know a thing. What are we to do?'
The slow steps came up and up, sounding hollowly on the stone stairs. They could hear a pantingbreath now, too.
An idea came to Jo. She put her mouth close to George's ear. 'Listen! We look awfully1 alike. I'll letmyself be caught and locked up in that room - and you take the chance to slip down and go to Dickand Julian. Red will never know I'm not you - we've even got the same clothes on now, because Joangave me old ones of yours.'
'No,' said George, astounded2. 'You'll be caught. I don't want you to do that.'
'You've got to,' whispered Jo, fiercely. 'Don't be daft. I can open the window and climb down the ivy,easy as winking3, when Red's gone. It's your only chance. They're going to take you off in thathelicopter tonight.'
The footsteps were now at the top. Jo pushed George well behind a curtain and whispered fiercelyagain: 'Anyway, I'm not really doing this for you. I'm doing it for Dick. You keep there and I'll do therest.'
There was a loud exclamation4 when the man outside discovered the door of George's room open.
He went in quickly and found nobody there. Out he came and yelled down the stairs.
'Markhoff! The door's open and the girl's gone! Who opened the door?'
Markhoff came up two steps at a time, looking bewildered. 'No one! Who could? Anyway, the girlcan't be far off! I've been in the room below all the time since I locked her in last time. I'd have seenher if she's gone.'
'Who unlocked the door?' screamed Red, quite beside himself with anger. 'We've got to have that girlto bargain with.'
'Well, she must be in one of the other rooms,' said Markhoff, stolidly5, quite unmoved by his master'sfury. He went into one on the opposite side to the room where Jo and George crouched6 trembling.
Then he came into their room, and at once saw the top of Jo's head showing behind the chair.
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He pounced7 on her and dragged her out. 'Here she is!' he said, and didn't seem to realize that it wasnot George at all, but Jo. With their short hair, freckled8 faces and their similar clothes they reallywere alike. Jo yelled and struggled most realistically. Nobody would have guessed that she hadplanned to be caught and locked up!
George shook and shivered behind the curtain, longing9 to go to Jo's help, but knowing that it wouldn'tbe of the least use. Besides - there might be a chance now of finding Timmy. It had almost brokenGeorge's heart to be parted from him for so long.
Jo was dragged yelling and kicking into the room and locked in again. Red and Markhoff began toquarrel about which of them must have left the door unlocked.
'You were there last,' said Red.
'Well, if I was, I tell you I didn't leave the door unlocked,' Markhoff raged back. 'I wouldn't be sofatheaded. That's the kind of thing you do.'
'That'll do,' snapped Red. 'Have you shot that dog yet? No, you haven't! Go down and do it before heescapes too!'
George's heart went stone-cold. Shoot Timmy! Oh no! Dear darling old Timmy. She couldn't let himbe shot!
She didn't know what to do. She heard Red and Markhoff go down the stone stairway, their bootsmaking a terrific noise at first, and then gradually becoming fainter.
She slipped down after them. They went into a nearby room, still arguing. George risked being seenand shot past the open door. She came to another stairway, not a spiral one this time, and went downit so fast that she almost lost her footing. Down and down and down. She met nobody at all. What avery strange place this was!
She came into a dark, enormous hall that smelt10 musty and old. She ran to the great door at the frontand tried to open it. It was very heavy, but at last it swung slowly back.
She stood there in the bright sunlight, peering out cautiously. She knew where Timmy was. She hadbeen able to see him sometimes, flopping11 queerly in and out of the summer-house. She knew thatbecause of his continual barking he had been doped. Red had told her that when she had asked him.
He enjoyed making her miserable12. Poor George!
She tore across the courtyard and came to the summerhouse. Timmy was there, lying as if he wereasleep. George flung herself on him, her arms round his thick neck.
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'Timmy, oh Timmy!' she cried, and couldn't see him for tears. Timmy, far away in some druggeddream, heard the voice he loved best in all the world. He stirred. He opened his eyes and saw George!
He was too heavy with his sleep to do more than lick her face. Then his eyes dosed again.
George was in despair. She was afraid Markhoff would come and shoot him in a very short time.
'Timmy! she called in his ear. 'TIMMY! Do wake up. TIMMY!'
Tim opened his eyes again. What - his mistress still here! Then it couldn't be a dream. Perhaps hisworld would soon be right again. Timmy didn't understand at all what had been happening the lastfew days. He staggered to his feet somehow and stood swaying there, shaking his head.
George put her hand on his collar. 'That's right, Tim,' she said. 'Now you come with me. Quick!'
But Timmy couldn't walk, though he had managed to stand. In despair George glanced over thecourtyard, fearful that she would see Markhoff coming at any moment.
She saw somebody else. She saw Julian standing13 in an archway opposite, staring at her. She was tooupset about Timmy even to feel much astonishment14.
'Ju!' she called. 'Come and help me with Timmy. They're going to shoot him!'
In a trice Julian and Dick shot across the courtyard to George. 'What happened, Jo?' said Julian.
'Did you find George?'
'Ju - it's me, George!' said George, and Julian suddenly saw that indeed it was George herself. He hadbeen so certain that it was still Jo that he hadn't known it was George!
'Help me with Timmy,' said George, and she pulled at the heavy dog. 'Where shall we hide him?'
'Down underground,' said Dick. 'It's the only place. Come on!'
How they managed it they never quite knew, but they did drag the heavy, stupid Timmy all the wayacross the yard and into the archway. They opened the door and shoved him inside. Poor Timmy fellover and immediately rolled down the steep steps, landing at the bottom with a frightful15 thud. Georgegave a little scream.
'He'll be hurt!'
But astonishingly enough Timmy didn't seem to be hurt at all. In fact the shaking seemed to havedone him good. He got up and looked round him in rather a surprised way. Then he whined16 andlooked up at George. He tried to climb the steep steps, but wasn't lively enough.
George was down beside him in a moment, patting him and stroking him. The two boys joined in.
Timmy began to feel that things might be all right again, if only he could get rid of the 81dreadful, heavy feeling in his head. He couldn't understand why he kept wanting to lie down and goto sleep.
'Bring him right down to the caves,' said Dick. 'Those men are sure to hunt for him and for us toowhen they find Timmy gone, and us not in the shed.'
So down the narrow passages and into the little cave with the hole in the roof they all went, Timmyfeeling as if he didn't quite know which of his legs to use next.
They all sat down in a heap together when they got there, and George got as close to Timmy as shecould. She was glad when the boys switched off their torches. She badly wanted to cry, and as shenever did cry it was most embarrassing if anyone saw her.
She told the boys in a low voice all that had happened with Jo. 'She made me stay hidden so that shecould be caught,' she said. 'She's wonderful. She's the bravest girl I ever knew. And she did it all eventhough she doesn't like me.'
'She's a queer one,' said Dick. 'She's all right at heart, though - very much all right.'
They talked quickly, in low voices, exchanging their news. George told them how she had beencaught and taken to the caravan17 with Timmy, who had been knocked out with a cudgel.
'We saw where you had written Red's name,' said Dick. 'That gave us the clue to come here!'
'Listen,' said Julian, suddenly. 'I think we ought to make a plan quickly. I keep thinking I hear things.
We're sure to be looked for soon, you know. What can we do?'
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收听单词发音
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1
awfully
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| adv.可怕地，非常地，极端地 | |
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astounded
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| v.使震惊(astound的过去式和过去分词)；愕然；愕；惊讶 | |
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3
winking
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| n.瞬眼，目语v.使眼色( wink的现在分词 )；递眼色（表示友好或高兴等）；（指光）闪烁；闪亮 | |
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exclamation
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| n.感叹号，惊呼，惊叹词 | |
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stolidly
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| adv.迟钝地，神经麻木地 | |
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crouched
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| v.屈膝，蹲伏( crouch的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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pounced
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| v.突然袭击( pounce的过去式和过去分词 )；猛扑；一眼看出；抓住机会（进行抨击） | |
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freckled
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| adj.雀斑；斑点；晒斑；（使）生雀斑v.雀斑，斑点( freckle的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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9
longing
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| n.（for）渴望 | |
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smelt
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| v.熔解，熔炼；n.银白鱼，胡瓜鱼 | |
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flopping
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| n.贬调v.（指书、戏剧等）彻底失败( flop的现在分词 )；（因疲惫而）猛然坐下；（笨拙地、不由自主地或松弛地）移动或落下；砸锅 | |
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miserable
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| adj.悲惨的，痛苦的；可怜的，糟糕的 | |
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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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astonishment
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| n.惊奇，惊异 | |
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frightful
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| adj.可怕的；讨厌的 | |
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whined
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| v.哀号( whine的过去式和过去分词 )；哀诉，诉怨 | |
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caravan
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| n.大蓬车；活动房屋 | |
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