I“I suppose it couldn’t possibly have been the mayor?” said Inspector1 Cornish wistfully.
He tapped the paper with the list of names on it with his pencil. Dermot Craddock grinned.
“Wishful thinking?” he asked.
“You could certainly call it that,” said Cornish. “Pompous, canting old hypocrite!” he went on. “Everybody’s got itin for him. Throws his weight about, ultra sanctimonious2, and neck deep in graft3 for years past!”
“Can’t you ever bring it home to him?”
“No,” said Cornish. “He’s too slick for that. He’s always just on the right side of the law.”
“It’s tempting4, I agree,” said Dermot Craddock, “but I think you’ll have to banish5 that rosy6 picture from your mind,Frank.”
“I know, I know,” said Cornish. “He’s a possible, but a wildly improbable. Who else have we got?”
Both men studied the list again. There were still eight names on it.
“We’re pretty well agreed,” said Craddock, “that there’s nobody missed out from here?” There was a faint questionin his voice. Cornish answered it.
“I think you can be pretty sure that’s the lot. After Mrs. Bantry came the vicar, and after that the Badcocks. Therewere then eight people on the stairs. The mayor and his wife, Joshua Grice and wife from Lower Farm. DonaldMcNeil of the Much Benham Herald7 & Argus. Ardwyck Fenn, USA, Miss Lola Brewster, USA, Moving Picture Star.
There you are. In addition there was an arty photographer from London with a camera set up on the angle of the stairs.
If, as you suggest, this Mrs. Bantry’s story of Marina Gregg having a ‘frozen look’ was occasioned by someone shesaw on the stairs, you’ve got to take your pick among that lot. Mayor regretfully out. Grices out—never been awayfrom St. Mary Mead8 I should say. That leaves four. Local journalist unlikely, photographer girl had been there for halfan hour already, so why should Marina react so late in the day? What does that leave?”
“Sinister strangers from America,” said Craddock with a faint smile.
“You’ve said it.”
“They’re our best suspects by far, I agree,” said Craddock. “They turned up unexpectedly. Ardwyck Fenn was anold flame of Marina’s whom she had not seen for years. Lola Brewster was once married to Marina Gregg’s thirdhusband, who got a divorce from her in order to marry Marina. It was not, I gather, a very amicable9 divorce.”
“I’d put her down as Suspect Number One,” said Cornish.
“Would you, Frank? After a lapse10 of about fifteen years or so, and having remarried twice herself since then?”
Cornish said that you never knew with women. Dermot accepted that as a general dictum, but remarked that itseemed odd to him to say the least of it.
“But you agree that it lies between them?”
“Possibly. But I don’t like it very much. What about the hired help who were serving the drinks?”
“Discounting the ‘frozen look’ we’ve heard so much about? Well, we’ve checked up in a general way. Localcatering firm from Market Basing had the job—for the fête, I mean. Actually in the house, there was the butler,Giuseppe, in charge; and two local girls from the studios canteen. I know both of them. Not over bright, but harmless.”
“Pushing it back at me, are you? I’ll go and have a word with the reporter chap. He might have seen somethinghelpful. Then to London. Ardwyck Fenn, Lola Brewster—and the photographer girl—what’s her name?—MargotBence. She also might have seen something.”
Cornish nodded. “Lola Brewster is my best bet,” he said. He looked curiously12 at Craddock. “You don’t seem assold on her as I am.”
“I’m thinking of the difficulties,” said Dermot slowly.
“Difficulties?”
“Of putting poison into Marina’s glass without anybody seeing her.”
“Well, that’s the same for everybody, isn’t it? It was a mad thing to do.”
“Agreed it was a mad thing to do, but it would be a madder thing for someone like Lola Brewster than for anybodyelse.”
“Why?” asked Cornish.
“Because she was a guest of importance. She’s a somebody, a big name. Everyone would be looking at her.”
“True enough,” Cornish admitted.
“The locals would nudge each other and whisper and stare, and after Marina Gregg and Jason Rudd greeted hershe’d have been passed on for the secretaries to look after. It wouldn’t be easy, Frank. However adroit13 you were, youcouldn’t be sure someone wouldn’t see you. That’s the snag there, and it’s a big snag.”
“As I say, isn’t that snag the same for everybody?”
“No,” said Craddock. “Oh no. Far from it. Take the butler now, Giuseppe. He’s busy with the drinks and glasses,with pouring things out, with handing them. He could put a pinch or a tablet or two of Calmo in a glass easilyenough.”
“Giuseppe?” Frank Cornish reflected. “Do you think he did?”
“No reason to believe so,” said Craddock, “but we might find a reason. A nice solid bit of motive14, that is to say.
Yes, he could have done it. Or one of the catering11 staff could have done it—unfortunately they weren’t on the spot—apity.”
“Someone might have managed to get himself or herself deliberately15 planted in the firm for the purpose.”
“You mean it might have been as premeditated as all that?”
“We don’t know anything about it yet,” said Craddock, vexedly. “We absolutely don’t know the first thing about it.
Not until we can prise what we want to know out of Marina Gregg, or out of her husband. They must know or suspect—but they’re not telling. And we don’t know yet why they’re not telling. We’ve a long way to go.”
He paused and then resumed: “Discounting the ‘frozen look’ which may have been pure coincidence, there areother people who could have done it fairly easily. The secretary woman, Ella Zielinsky. She was also busy withglasses, with handing things to people. Nobody would be watching her with any particular interest. The same appliesto that willow16 wand of a young man—I’ve forgotten his name. Hailey—Hailey Preston? That’s right. There wouldhave been a good opportunity for either of them. In fact if either of them had wanted to do away with Marina Gregg itwould have been far safer to do so on a public occasion.”
“Anyone else?”
“Well, there’s always the husband,” said Craddock.
“Back to the husbands again,” said Cornish, with a faint smile. “We thought it was that poor devil, Badcock, beforewe realised that Marina was the intended victim. Now we’ve transferred our suspicions to Jason Rudd. He seemsdevoted enough though, I must say.”
“He has the reputation of being so,” said Craddock, “but one never knows.”
“If he wanted to get rid of her, wouldn’t divorce be much easier?”
“It would be far more usual,” agreed Dermot, “but there may be a lot of ins and outs to this business that we don’tknow yet.”
The telephone rang. Cornish took up the receiver.
“What? Yes? Put them through. Yes, he’s here.” He listened for a moment then put his hand over the receiver andlooked at Dermot. “Miss Marina Gregg,” he said, “is feeling very much better. She is quite ready to be interviewed.”
“I’d better hurry along,” said Dermot Craddock, “before she changes her mind.”
II
At Gossington Hall Dermot Craddock was received by Ella Zielinsky. She was, as usual, brisk and efficient.
“Miss Gregg is waiting for you, Mr. Craddock,” she said.
Dermot looked at her with some interest. From the beginning he had found Ella Zielinsky an intriguing17 personality.
He had said to himself, “A poker18 face if I ever saw one.” She had answered any questions he had asked with theutmost readiness. She had shown no signs of keeping anything back, but what she really thought or felt or even knewabout the business, he still had no idea. There seemed to be no chink in the armour19 of her bright efficiency. She mightknow more than she said she did; she might know a good deal. The only thing he was sure of—and he had to admit tohimself that he had no reasons to adduce for that surety—was that she was in love with Jason Rudd. It was, as he hadsaid, an occupational disease of secretaries. It probably meant nothing. But the fact did at least suggest a motive andhe was sure, quite sure, that she was concealing20 something. It might be love, it might be hate. It might, quite simply,be guilt21. She might have taken her opportunity that afternoon, or she might have deliberately planned what she wasgoing to do. He could see her in the part quite easily, as far as the execution of it went. Her swift but unhurriedmovements, moving here and there, looking after guests, handing glasses to one or another, taking glasses away, hereyes marking the spot where Marina had put her glass down on the table. And then, perhaps at the very moment whenMarina had been greeting the arrivals from the States, with surprise and joyous22 cries and everybody’s eyes turnedtowards their meeting, she could have quietly and unobtrusively dropped the fatal dose into that glass. It would requireaudacity, nerve, swiftness. She would have had all those. Whatever she had done, she would not have looked guiltywhilst she was doing it. It would have been a simple, brilliant crime, a crime that could hardly fail to be successful.
But chance had ruled otherwise. In the rather crowded floorspace someone had joggled Heather Badcock’s arm. Herdrink had been spilt, and Marina, with her natural impulsive23 grace, had quickly proffered24 her own glass, standing25 thereuntouched. And so the wrong woman had died.
A lot of pure theory, and probably hooey at that, said Dermot Craddock to himself at the same time as he wasmaking polite remarks to Ella Zielinsky.
“One thing I wanted to ask you, Miss Zielinsky. The catering was done by a Market Basing firm, I understand?”
“Yes.”
“Why was that particular firm chosen?”
“I really don’t know,” said Ella. “That doesn’t lie amongst my duties. I know Mr. Rudd thought it would be moretactful to employ somebody local rather than to employ a firm from London. The whole thing was really quite a smallaffair from our point of view.”
“Quite.” He watched her as she stood frowning a little and looking down. A good forehead, a determined26 chin, afigure which could look quite voluptuous27 if it was allowed to do so, a hard mouth, an acquisitive mouth. The eyes? Helooked at them in surprise. The lids were reddened. He wondered. Had she been crying? It looked like it. And yet hecould have sworn she was not the type of young woman to cry. She looked up at him, and as though she read histhoughts, she took out her handkerchief and blew her nose heartily28.
“You’ve got a cold,” he said.
“Not a cold. Hay fever. It’s an allergy29 of some kind, really. I always get at it this time of year.”
There was a low buzz. There were two phones in the room, one on the table and one on another table in the corner.
It was the latter one that was beginning to buzz. Ella Zielinsky went over to it and picked up the receiver.
“Yes,” she said, “he’s here. I’ll bring him up at once.” She put the receiver down again. “Marina’s ready for you,”
she said.
III
Marina Gregg received Craddock in a room on the first floor, which was obviously her own private sitting roomopening out of her bedroom. After the accounts of her prostration30 and her nervous state, Dermot Craddock hadexpected to find a fluttering invalid31. But although Marina was half reclining on a sofa her voice was vigorous and hereyes were bright. She had very little makeup32 on, but in spite of this she did not look her age, and he was struck veryforcibly by the subdued33 radiance of her beauty. It was the exquisite34 line of cheek and jawbone, the way the hair fellloosely and naturally to frame her face. The long sea-green eyes, the pencilled eyebrows35, owing something to art butmore to nature, and the warmth and sweetness of her smile, all had a subtle magic. She said:
“Chief-Inspector Craddock? I’ve been behaving disgracefully. I do apologize. I just let myself go to pieces afterthis awful thing. I could have snapped out of it but I didn’t. I’m ashamed of myself.” The smile came, rueful, sweet,turning up the corners of the mouth. She extended a hand and he took it.
“It was only natural,” he said, “that you should feel upset.”
“Well, everyone was upset,” said Marina. “I’d no business to make out it was worse for me than anyone else.”
“Hadn’t you?”
She looked at him for a minute and then nodded. “Yes,” she said, “you’re very perceptive36. Yes, I had.” She lookeddown and with one long forefinger37 gently stroked the arm of the sofa. It was a gesture he had noticed in one of herfilms. It was a meaningless gesture, yet it seemed fraught38 with significance. It had a kind of musing39 gentleness.
“I’m a coward,” she said, her eyes still cast down. “Somebody wanted to kill me and I didn’t want to die.”
“Why do you think someone wanted to kill you?”
Her eyes opened wide. “Because it was my glass—my drink—that had been tampered40 with. It was just a mistakethat that poor stupid woman got it. That’s what’s so horrible and so tragic41. Besides—”
“Yes, Miss Gregg?”
She seemed a little uncertain about saying more.
“You had other reasons perhaps for believing that you were the intended victim?”
She nodded.
“What reasons, Miss Gregg?”
She paused a minute longer before saying, “Jason says I must tell you all about it.”
“You’ve confided42 in him then?”
“Yes… I didn’t want to at first—but Dr. Gilchrist put it to me that I must. And then I found that he thought so too.
He’d thought it all along but—it’s rather funny really”—rueful smile curled her lips again—“he didn’t want to alarmme by telling me. Really!” Marina sat up with a sudden vigorous movement. “Darling Jinks! Does he think I’m acomplete fool?”
“You haven’t told me yet, Miss Gregg, why you should think anyone wanted to kill you.”
She was silent for a moment and then with a sudden brusque gesture, she stretched out for her handbag, opened it,took out a piece of paper and thrust it into his hand. He read it. Typed on it was one line of writing.
Don’t think you’ll escape next time.
Craddock said sharply, “When did you get this?” “It was on my dressing43 table when I came back from the bath.”
“So someone in the house—”
“Not necessarily. Someone could have climbed up the balcony outside my window and pushed it through there. Ithink they meant it to frighten me still more, but actually it didn’t. I just felt furiously angry and sent word to you tocome and see me.”
Dermot Craddock smiled. “Possibly a rather unexpected result for whoever sent it. Is this the first kind of messagelike that you’ve had?”
Again Marina hesitated. Then she said, “No, it isn’t.”
“Will you tell me about any other?”
“It was three weeks ago, when we first came here. It came to the studio, not here. It was quite ridiculous. It was justa message. Not typewritten that time. In capital letters. It said, ‘Prepare to die.’” She laughed. There was perhaps avery faint tinge44 of hysteria in the laugh. The mirth was genuine enough. “It was so silly,” she said. “Of course oneoften gets crank messages, threats, things like that. I thought it was probably religious you know. Someone who didn’tapprove of film actresses. I just tore it up and threw it into the wastepaper basket.”
“Did you tell anyone about it, Miss Gregg?”
Marina shook her head. “No, I never said a word to anyone. As a matter of fact, we were having a bit of worry atthe moment about the scene we were shooting. I just couldn’t have thought of anything but that at the moment.
Anyway, as I say, I thought it was either a silly joke or one of those religious cranks who write and disapprove45 ofplayacting and things like that.”
“And after that, was there another?”
“Yes. On the day of the fête. One of the gardeners brought it to me, I think. He said someone had left a note for meand was there any answer? I thought perhaps it had to do with the arrangements. I just tore it open. It said ‘Today willbe your last day on earth.’ I just crumpled47 it up and said, ‘No answer.’ Then I called the man back and asked him whogave it to him. He said it was a man with spectacles on a bicycle. Well, I mean, what could you think about that? Ithought it was more silliness. I didn’t think—I didn’t think for a moment, it was a real genuine threat.”
“Where’s that note now, Miss Gregg?”
“I’ve no idea. I was wearing one of those coloured Italian silk coats and I think, as far as I remember, that Icrumpled it up and shoved it into the pocket of it. But it’s not there now. It probably fell out.”
“And you’ve no idea who wrote these silly notes, Miss Gregg? Who inspired them? Not even now?”
Her eyes opened widely. There was a kind of innocent wonder in them that he took note of. He admired it, but hedid not believe in it.
“How can I tell? How can I possibly tell?”
“I think you might have quite a good idea, Miss Gregg.”
“I haven’t. I assure you I haven’t.”
“You’re a very famous person,” said Dermot. “You’ve had great successes. Successes in your profession, andpersonal successes, too. Men have fallen in love with you, wanted to marry you, have married you. Women have beenjealous and envied you. Men have been in love with you and been rebuffed by you. It’s a pretty wild field, I agree, butI should think you must have some idea who could have written these notes.”
“It could have been anybody.”
“No, Miss Gregg, it couldn’t have been anybody. It could possibly have been one of quite a lot of people. It couldbe someone quite humble48, a dresser, an electrician, a servant; or it could be someone among the ranks of your friends,or so-called friends. But you must have some idea. Some name, more than one name, perhaps, to suggest.”
The door opened and Jason Rudd came in. Marina turned to him. She swept out an arm appealingly.
“Jinks, darling, Mr. Craddock is insisting that I must know who wrote those horrid49 notes. And I don’t. You know Idon’t. Neither of us knows. We haven’t got the least idea.”
“Very urgent about that,” thought Craddock. “Very urgent. Is Marina Gregg afraid of what her husband mightsay?”
Jason Rudd, his eyes dark with fatigue50 and the scowl51 on his face deeper than usual, came over to join them. Hetook Marina’s hand in his.
“I know it sounds unbelievable to you, Inspector,” he said, “but honestly neither Marina nor I have any idea aboutthis business.”
“So you’re in the happy position of having no enemies, is that it?” The irony52 was manifest in Dermot’s voice.
Jason Rudd flushed a little. “Enemies? That’s a very biblical word, Inspector. In that sense, I can assure you I canthink of no enemies. People who dislike one, would like to get the better of one, would do a mean turn to one if theycould, in malice53 and uncharitableness, yes. But it’s a long step from that to putting an overdose of poison in a drink.”
“Just now, in speaking to your wife, I asked her who could have written or inspired those letters. She said shedidn’t know. But when we come to the actual action, it narrows it down. Somebody actually put the poison in thatglass. And that’s a fairly limited field, you know.”
“I saw nothing,” said Jason Rudd.
“I certainly didn’t,” said Marina. “Well, I mean—if I had seen anyone putting anything in my glass, I wouldn’thave drunk the stuff, would I?”
“I can’t help believing, you know,” said Dermot Craddock gently, “that you do know a little more than you’retelling me.”
“It’s not true,” said Marina. “Tell him that that isn’t true, Jason.”
“I assure you,” said Jason Rudd, “that I am completely and absolutely at a loss. The whole thing’s fantastic. I mightbelieve it was a joke—a joke that had somehow gone wrong—that had proved dangerous, done by a person who neverdreamt that it would be dangerous….”
There was a slight question in his voice, then he shook his head. “No. I see that idea doesn’t appeal to you.”
“There’s one more thing I should like to ask you,” said Dermot Craddock. “You remember Mr. and Mrs.
Badcock’s arrival, of course. They came immediately after the vicar. You greeted them, I understand, Miss Gregg, inthe same charming way as you had received all your guests. But I am told by an eyewitness54 that immediately aftergreeting them you looked over Mrs. Badcock’s shoulder and that you saw something which seemed to alarm you. Isthat true, and if so, what was it?”
Marina said quickly, “Of course it isn’t true. Alarm me—what should have alarmed me?”
“That’s what we want to know,” said Dermot Craddock patiently. “My witness is very insistent55 on the point, youknow.”
“Who was your witness? What did he or she say she saw?”
“You were looking at the staircase,” said Dermot Craddock. “There were people coming up the staircase. Therewas a journalist, there was Mr. Grice and his wife, elderly residents in this place, there was Mr. Ardwyck Fenn whohad just arrived from the States and there was Miss Lola Brewster. Was it the sight of one of those people that upsetyou, Miss Gregg?”
“I tell you I wasn’t upset.” She almost barked the words.
“And yet your attention wavered from greeting Mrs. Badcock. She had said something to you which you leftunanswered because you were staring past her at something else.”
Marina Gregg took hold on herself. She spoke56 quickly and convincingly.
“I can explain, I really can. If you knew anything about acting46 you’d be able to understand quite easily. Therecomes a moment, even when you know a part well—in fact it usually happens when you do know a part well—whenyou go on with it mechanically. Smiling, making the proper movements and gestures, saying the words with the usualinflexions. But your mind isn’t on it. And quite suddenly there’s a horrible blank moment when you don’t know whereyou are, where you’ve got to in the play, what your next lines are! Drying up, that’s what we call it. Well, that’s whathappened to me. I’m not terribly strong, as my husband will tell you. I’ve had rather a strenuous57 time, and a good dealof nervous apprehension58 about this film. I wanted to make a success of this fête and to be nice and pleasant andwelcoming to everybody. But one does say the same things over and over again, mechanically, to the people who arealways saying the same things to you. You know, how they’ve always wanted to meet you. How they once saw yououtside a theatre in San Francisco—or travelled in a plane with you. Something silly really, but one has to be niceabout it and say things. Well, as I’m telling you, one does that automatically. One doesn’t need to think what to saybecause one’s said it so often before. Suddenly, I think, a wave of tiredness came over me. My brain went blank. ThenI realized that Mrs. Badcock had been telling me a long story which I hadn’t really heard at all, and was now lookingat me in an eager sort of way and that I hadn’t answered her or said any of the proper things. It was just tiredness.”
“Just tiredness,” said Dermot Craddock slowly. “You insist on that, Miss Gregg?”
“Yes, I do. I can’t see why you don’t believe me.”
Dermot Craddock turned towards Jason Rudd. “Mr. Rudd,” he said, “I think you’re more likely to understand mymeaning than your wife is. I am concerned, very much concerned, for your wife’s safety. There has been an attempt onher life, there have been threatening letters. That means, doesn’t it, that there is someone who was here on the day ofthe fête and possibly is still here, someone in very close touch with this house and what goes on in it. That person,whoever it is, may be slightly insane. It’s not just a question of threats. Threatened men live long, as they say. Thesame goes for women. But whoever it was didn’t stop at threats. A deliberate attempt was made to poison Miss Gregg.
Don’t you see in the whole nature of things, that the attempt is bound to be repeated? There’s only one way to achievesafety. That is to give me all the clues you possibly can. I don’t say that you know who that person is, but I think thatyou must be able to give a guess or to have a vague idea. Won’t you tell me the truth? Or if, which is possible, youyourself do not know the truth, won’t you urge your wife to do so. It’s in the interests of her own safety that I’masking you.”
Jason Rudd turned his head slowly. “You hear what Inspector Craddock says, Marina,” he said. “It’s possible, as hesays, that you may know something that I do not. If so, for God’s sake, don’t be foolish about it. If you’ve the leastsuspicion of anyone, tell it to us now.”
“But I haven’t.” Her voice rose in a wail59. “You must believe me.”
“Who were you afraid of that day?” asked Dermot.
“I wasn’t afraid of anyone.”
“Listen, Miss Gregg, of the people on the stairs or coming up it, there were two friends whom you were surprisedto see, whom you had not seen for a long time and whom you did not expect to see that day. Mr. Ardwyck Fenn andMiss Brewster. Had you any special emotions when you suddenly saw them coming up the stairs? You didn’t knowthey were coming, did you?”
“No, we’d no idea they were even in England,” said Jason Rudd.
“I was delighted,” said Marina, “absolutely delighted!”
“Delighted to see Miss Brewster?”
“Well—” She shot him a quick, faintly suspicious glance.
Craddock said, “Lola Brewster was, I believe, originally married to your third husband Robert Truscott?”
“Yes, that’s so.”
“He divorced her in order to marry you.”
“Oh, everyone knows about that,” said Marina Gregg impatiently. “You needn’t think it’s anything you’ve foundout. There was a bit of a rumpus at the time, but there wasn’t any bad feeling about it in the end.”
“Did she make threats against you?”
“Well—in a way, yes. But, oh dear, I wish I could explain. No one takes those sort of threats seriously. It was at aparty, she’d had a lot of drink. She might have taken a pot-shot at me with a pistol if she’d had one. But luckily shedidn’t. All that was years ago! None of these things last, these emotions! They don’t, really they don’t. That’s true,isn’t it, Jason?”
“I’d say it was true enough,” said Jason Rudd, “and I can assure you, Mr. Craddock, that Lola Brewster had noopportunity on the day of the fête of poisoning my wife’s drink. I was close beside her most of the time. The idea thatLola would suddenly, after a long period of friendliness60, come to England, and arrive at our house all prepared topoison my wife’s drink—why the whole idea’s absurd.”
“I appreciate your point of view,” said Craddock.
“It’s not only that, it’s a matter of fact as well. She was nowhere near Marina’s glass.”
“And your other visitor— Ardwyck Fenn?”
There was, he thought, a very slight pause before Jason Rudd spoke.
“He’s a very old friend of ours,” he said. “We haven’t seen him for a good many years now, though weoccasionally correspond. He’s quite a big figure in American television.”
“Was he an old friend of yours too?” Dermot Craddock asked Marina.
Her breath came rather quickly as she replied. “Yes, oh yes. He—he was quite a friend of mine always, but I’verather lost sight of him of late years.” Then with a sudden quick rush of words, she went on, “If you think that I lookedup and saw Ardwyck and was frightened of him, it’s nonsense. It’s absolute nonsense. Why should I be frightened ofhim, what reason would I have to be frightened of him? We were great friends. I was just very, very pleased when Isuddenly saw him. It was a delightful61 surprise, as I told you. Yes, a delightful surprise.” She raised her head, lookingat him, her face vivid and defiant62.
“Thank you, Miss Gregg,” said Craddock quietly. “If you should feel inclined at any moment to take me a littlefurther into your confidence I should strongly advise you to do so.”
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inspector
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sanctimonious
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graft
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tempting
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banish
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rosy
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herald
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mead
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amicable
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lapse
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catering
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curiously
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adroit
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| adj.熟练的，灵巧的 | |
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motive
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| n.动机，目的；adv.发动的，运动的 | |
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deliberately
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| adv.审慎地；蓄意地；故意地 | |
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willow
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| n.柳树 | |
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intriguing
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| adj.有趣的；迷人的v.搞阴谋诡计(intrigue的现在分词)；激起…的好奇心 | |
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poker
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| n.扑克；vt.烙制 | |
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armour
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| （=armor）n.盔甲；装甲部队 | |
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concealing
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| v.隐藏，隐瞒，遮住( conceal的现在分词 ) | |
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guilt
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| n.犯罪；内疚；过失，罪责 | |
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joyous
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| adj.充满快乐的；令人高兴的 | |
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impulsive
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| adj.冲动的，刺激的；有推动力的 | |
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proffered
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| v.提供，贡献，提出( proffer的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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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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determined
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| adj.坚定的；有决心的 | |
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voluptuous
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| adj.肉欲的，骄奢淫逸的 | |
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heartily
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| adv.衷心地，诚恳地，十分，很 | |
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allergy
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| n.(因食物、药物等而引起的)过敏症 | |
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prostration
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| n. 平伏, 跪倒, 疲劳 | |
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invalid
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| n.病人，伤残人；adj.有病的，伤残的；无效的 | |
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makeup
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| n.组织；性格；化装品 | |
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subdued
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| adj. 屈服的，柔和的，减弱的 动词subdue的过去式和过去分词 | |
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exquisite
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| adj.精美的；敏锐的；剧烈的，感觉强烈的 | |
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eyebrows
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| 眉毛( eyebrow的名词复数 ) | |
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perceptive
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| adj.知觉的，有洞察力的，感知的 | |
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forefinger
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| n.食指 | |
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fraught
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| adj.充满…的，伴有(危险等)的；忧虑的 | |
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musing
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| n. 沉思，冥想 adj. 沉思的, 冥想的 动词muse的现在分词形式 | |
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tampered
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| v.窜改( tamper的过去式 )；篡改；（用不正当手段）影响；瞎摆弄 | |
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tragic
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| adj.悲剧的，悲剧性的，悲惨的 | |
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confided
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| v.吐露（秘密，心事等）( confide的过去式和过去分词 )；（向某人）吐露（隐私、秘密等） | |
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dressing
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| n.(食物)调料；包扎伤口的用品，敷料 | |
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tinge
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| vt.(较淡)着色于，染色；使带有…气息；n.淡淡色彩，些微的气息 | |
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disapprove
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| v.不赞成，不同意，不批准 | |
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acting
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| n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的 | |
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crumpled
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| adj. 弯扭的, 变皱的 动词crumple的过去式和过去分词形式 | |
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humble
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| adj.谦卑的，恭顺的；地位低下的；v.降低，贬低 | |
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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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fatigue
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| n.疲劳，劳累 | |
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scowl
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| vi.(at)生气地皱眉，沉下脸，怒视；n.怒容 | |
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irony
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| n.反语，冷嘲；具有讽刺意味的事，嘲弄 | |
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malice
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| n.恶意，怨恨，蓄意；[律]预谋 | |
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eyewitness
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| n.目击者，见证人 | |
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insistent
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| adj.迫切的，坚持的 | |
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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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strenuous
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| adj.奋发的，使劲的；紧张的；热烈的，狂热的 | |
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apprehension
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| n.理解，领悟；逮捕，拘捕；忧虑 | |
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wail
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| vt./vi.大声哀号，恸哭；呼啸，尖啸 | |
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friendliness
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| n.友谊，亲切，亲密 | |
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delightful
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| adj.令人高兴的，使人快乐的 | |
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defiant
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| adj.无礼的，挑战的 | |
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