Twelve THE ARREST

Twelve THE ARREST

On her return to the Three Crowns, Emily had the good fortune to runright into Mrs. Belling who was standing¹ in the hallway.
“Oh! Mrs. Belling,” she exclaimed. “I am leaving this afternoon.”
“Yes, Miss. By the four ten train to Exeter, Miss?”
“No, I am going up to Sittaford.”
“To Sittaford?”
Mrs. Belling’s countenance³ showed the most lively curiosity.
“Yes, and I wanted to ask you if you knew of anywhere there where Icould stay.”
“You want to stay up there?”
The curiosity was heightened.
“Yes, that is—Oh! Mrs. Belling, is there somewhere I could speak to youprivately for a moment?”
With something like alacrity⁴ Mrs. Belling led the way to her own privatesanctum. A small comfortable room with a large fire burning.
“You won’t tell anyone, will you?” began Emily, knowing well that of allopenings on earth this one is the most certain to provoke interest andsympathy.
“No, indeed, Miss, that I won’t,” said Mrs. Belling her dark eyes aglitterwith interest.
“You see, Mr. Pearson—you know—”
“The young gentleman that stayed here on Friday? And that the policehave arrested?”
“Arrested? Do you mean really arrested?”
“Yes, Miss. Not half an hour ago.”
Emily had gone very white.
“You—you’re sure of that?”
“Oh! yes, Miss. Our Amy had it from the Sergeant⁵.”
“It’s too awful!” said Emily. She had been expecting this, but it was nonethe better for that. “You see, Mrs. Belling, I—I’m engaged to him. And hedidn’t do it, and, oh dear, it’s all too dreadful!”
And here Emily began to cry. She had, earlier in the day, announced herintention to Charles Enderby of doing so, but what appalled⁷ her so waswith what ease the tears came. To cry at will is not an easy accomplish-ment. There was something much too real about these tears. It frightenedher. She mustn’t really give way. Giving way wasn’t the least use to Jim. Tobe resolute⁸, logical and clear-sighted—these were the qualities that weregoing to count in this game. Sloppy⁹ crying had never helped anyone yet.
But it was a relief all the same, to let yourself go. After all she had meantto cry. Crying would be an undeniable passport to Mrs. Belling’s sympathyand help. So why not have a good cry while she was about it? A real orgyof weeping in which all her troubles, doubts and unacknowledged fearsmight find vent¹⁰ and be swept away.
“There, there, my dear, don’t ee take on so,” said Mrs. Belling.
She put a large motherly arm round Emily’s shoulders and patted herconsolingly.
“Said from the start I have that he didn’t do it. A regular nice young gen-tleman. A lot of chuckleheads the police are, and so I’ve said before now.
Some thieving tramp is a great deal more likely. Now, don’t ee fret¹¹, mydear, it’ll all come right, you see if it don’t.”
“I am so dreadfully fond of him,” wailed¹² Emily.
Dear Jim, dear, sweet, boyish, helpless, impractical¹³ Jim. So utterly¹⁴ to bedepended on to do the wrong thing at the wrong moment. What possiblechance had he got against that steady, resolute Inspector¹⁵ Narracott?
“We must save him,” she wailed.
“Of course, we will. Of course, we will,” Mrs. Belling consoled her.
Emily dabbed¹⁶ her eyes vigorously, gave one last sniff¹⁷ and gulp¹⁸, and rais-ing her head demanded fiercely:
“Where can I stay at Sittaford?”
“Up to Sittaford? You’re set on going there, my dear?”
“Yes,” Emily nodded vigorously.
“Well, now,” Mrs. Belling cogitated¹⁹ the matter. “There’s only one placefor ee to stay. There’s not much to Sittaford. There’s the big house, Sitta-ford² House, which Captain Trevelyan built, and that’s let now to a SouthAfrican lady. And there’s the six cottages he built, and No. 5 of them cot-tages has got Curtis, what used to be gardener at Sittaford House, in it, andMrs. Curtis. She lets rooms in the summer time, the Captain allowing herto do so. There’s nowhere else you could stay and that’s a fact. There’s theblacksmith’s and the post office, but Mary Hibbert, she’s got six childrenand her sister-in-law living with her, and the blacksmith’s wife she’s ex-pecting her eighth, so there won’t be so much as a corner there. But howare you going to get up to Sittaford, Miss? Have you hired a car?”
“I am going to share Mr. Enderby’s.”
“Ah, and where will he be staying, I wonder?”
“I suppose he will have to be put up at Mrs. Curtis’s too. Will she haveroom for both of us?”
“I don’t know that that will look quite right for a young lady like you,”
said Mrs. Belling.
“He’s my cousin,” said Emily.
On no account, she felt, must a sense of propriety²⁰ intervene to workagainst her in Mrs. Belling’s mind.
The landlady’s brow cleared. “Well, that may be all right then,” she al-lowed grudgingly²¹, “and likely as not if you’re not comfortable with Mrs.
Curtis they would put you up at the big house.”
“I’m sorry I’ve been such an idiot,” said Emily mopping once more ather eyes.
“It’s only natural, my dear. And you feel better for it.”
“I do,” said Emily truthfully. “I feel much better.”
“A good cry and a cup of tea—there’s nothing to beat them, and a nicecup of tea you shall have at once, my dear, before you start off on that colddrive.”
“Oh, thank you, but I don’t think I really want—”
“Never mind what you want, it’s what you’re going to have,” said Mrs.
Belling rising with determination and moving towards the door. “And youtell Amelia Curtis from me that she’s to look after you and see you takeyour food proper and see you don’t fret.”
“You are kind,” said Emily.
“And what’s more I shall keep my eyes and ears open down here,” saidMrs. Belling entering with relish²² into her part of the romance. “There’smany a little thing that I hear that never goes to the police. And anything Ido hear I’ll pass on to you, Miss.”
“Will you really?”
“That I will. Don’t ee worry, my dear, we’ll have your young gentlemanout of his trouble in no time.”
“I must go and pack,” said Emily rising.
“I’ll send the tea up to you,” said Mrs. Belling.
Emily went upstairs, packed her few belongings²³ into her suitcase,sponged her eyes with cold water and applied²⁴ a liberal allowance ofpowder.
“You have made yourself look a sight,” she apostrophized herself in theglass. She added more powder and a touch of rouge²⁵.
“Curious,” said Emily, “how much better I feel. It’s worth the puffylook.”
She rang the bell. The chambermaid (the sympathetic sister-in-law ofConstable Graves) came promptly²⁶. Emily presented her with a pound noteand begged her earnestly to pass on any information she might acquire inroundabout ways from police circles. The girl promised readily.
“Mrs. Curtis’s up to Sittaford? I will indeed, Miss. Do anything, that Iwill. We all feel for you, Miss, more than I can say. All the time I keep say-ing to myself, ‘Just fancy if it was you and Fred,’ I keep saying. I would bedistracted—that I would. The least thing I hears I’ll pass it on to you, Miss.”
“You angel,” said Emily.
“Just like a sixpenny I got at Woolworth’s the other day, The SyringaMurders it was called. And do you know what led them to find the realmurderer, Miss. Just a bit of common sealing wax. Your gentleman isgood-looking, Miss, isn’t he? Quite unlike his picture in the papers. I’msure I’ll do anything I can, Miss, for you and for him.”
Thus the centre of romantic attention, Emily left the Three Crowns, hav-ing duly gulped²⁷ down the cup of tea prescribed by Mrs. Belling.
“By the way,” she said to Enderby as the aged⁶ Ford sprang forward, “youare my cousin, don’t forget.”
“Why?”
“They’ve got such pure minds in the country,” said Emily. “I thought itwould be better.”
“Splendid. In that case,” said Mr. Enderby rising to his opportunities, “Ihad better call you Emily.”
“All right, cousin—what’s your name?”
“Charles.”
“All right, Charles.”
The car went upwards²⁸ on the Sittaford road.

1 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。

2 Ford   

n.浅滩，水浅可涉处；v.涉水，涉过

参考例句：

• They were guarding the bridge,so we forded the river.他们驻守在那座桥上，所以我们只能涉水过河。
• If you decide to ford a stream,be extremely careful.如果已决定要涉过小溪，必须极度小心。

3 countenance   

n.脸色，面容；面部表情；vt.支持，赞同

参考例句：

• At the sight of this photograph he changed his countenance.他一看见这张照片脸色就变了。
• I made a fierce countenance as if I would eat him alive.我脸色恶狠狠地，仿佛要把他活生生地吞下去。

4 alacrity   

n.敏捷，轻快，乐意

参考例句：

• Although the man was very old,he still moved with alacrity.他虽然很老，动作仍很敏捷。
• He accepted my invitation with alacrity.他欣然接受我的邀请。

5 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？

6 aged   

adj.年老的，陈年的

参考例句：

• He had put on weight and aged a little.他胖了，也老点了。
• He is aged,but his memory is still good.他已年老，然而记忆力还好。

7 appalled   

v.使惊骇，使充满恐惧( appall的过去式和过去分词)adj.惊骇的；丧胆的

参考例句：

• The brutality of the crime has appalled the public. 罪行之残暴使公众大为震惊。
• They were appalled by the reports of the nuclear war. 他们被核战争的报道吓坏了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 resolute   

adj.坚决的，果敢的

参考例句：

• He was resolute in carrying out his plan.他坚决地实行他的计划。
• The Egyptians offered resolute resistance to the aggressors.埃及人对侵略者作出坚决的反抗。

9 sloppy   

adj.邋遢的，不整洁的

参考例句：

• If you do such sloppy work again,I promise I'll fail you.要是下次作业你再马马虎虎，我话说在头里，可要给你打不及格了。
• Mother constantly picked at him for being sloppy.母亲不断地批评他懒散。

10 vent   

n.通风口，排放口；开衩；vt.表达，发泄

参考例句：

• He gave vent to his anger by swearing loudly.他高声咒骂以发泄他的愤怒。
• When the vent became plugged,the engine would stop.当通风口被堵塞时，发动机就会停转。

11 fret   

v.(使)烦恼；(使)焦急；(使)腐蚀，(使)磨损

参考例句：

• Don't fret.We'll get there on time.别着急，我们能准时到那里。
• She'll fret herself to death one of these days.她总有一天会愁死的.

12 wailed   

v.哭叫，哀号( wail的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• She wailed over her father's remains. 她对着父亲的遗体嚎啕大哭。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• The women of the town wailed over the war victims. 城里的妇女为战争的死难者们痛哭。 来自辞典例句

13 impractical   

adj.不现实的，不实用的，不切实际的

参考例句：

• He was hopelessly impractical when it came to planning new projects.一到规划新项目，他就完全没有了实际操作的能力。
• An entirely rigid system is impractical.一套完全死板的体制是不实际的。

14 utterly   

adv.完全地，绝对地

参考例句：

• Utterly devoted to the people,he gave his life in saving his patients.他忠于人民，把毕生精力用于挽救患者的生命。
• I was utterly ravished by the way she smiled.她的微笑使我完全陶醉了。

15 inspector   

n.检查员，监察员，视察员

参考例句：

• The inspector was interested in everything pertaining to the school.视察员对有关学校的一切都感兴趣。
• The inspector was shining a flashlight onto the tickets.查票员打着手电筒查看车票。

16 dabbed   

（用某物）轻触( dab的过去式和过去分词 )； 轻而快地擦掉（或抹掉）； 快速擦拭； （用某物）轻而快地涂上（或点上）…

参考例句：

• She dabbed her eyes and blew her nose. 她轻轻擦了几下眼睛，擤了擤鼻涕。
• He dabbed at the spot on his tie with a napkin. 他用餐巾快速擦去领带上的污点。

17 sniff   

vi.嗅…味道；抽鼻涕；对嗤之以鼻，蔑视

参考例句：

• The police used dogs to sniff out the criminals in their hiding - place.警察使用警犬查出了罪犯的藏身地点。
• When Munchie meets a dog on the beach, they sniff each other for a while.当麦奇在海滩上碰到另一条狗的时候，他们会彼此嗅一会儿。

18 gulp   

vt.吞咽，大口地吸（气）；vi.哽住；n.吞咽

参考例句：

• She took down the tablets in one gulp.她把那些药片一口吞了下去。
• Don't gulp your food,chew it before you swallow it.吃东西不要狼吞虎咽，要嚼碎了再咽下去。

19 cogitated   

v.认真思考，深思熟虑( cogitate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

20 propriety   

n.正当行为；正当；适当

参考例句：

• We hesitated at the propriety of the method.我们对这种办法是否适用拿不定主意。
• The sensitive matter was handled with great propriety.这件机密的事处理得极为适当。

21 grudgingly   

参考例句：

• He grudgingly acknowledged having made a mistake. 他勉强承认他做错了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Their parents unwillingly [grudgingly] consented to the marriage. 他们的父母无可奈何地应允了这门亲事。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

22 relish   

n.滋味，享受，爱好，调味品；vt.加调味料，享受，品味；vi.有滋味

参考例句：

• I have no relish for pop music.我对流行音乐不感兴趣。
• I relish the challenge of doing jobs that others turn down.我喜欢挑战别人拒绝做的工作。

23 belongings   

n.私人物品，私人财物

参考例句：

• I put a few personal belongings in a bag.我把几件私人物品装进包中。
• Your personal belongings are not dutiable.个人物品不用纳税。

24 applied   

adj.应用的；v.应用，适用

参考例句：

• She plans to take a course in applied linguistics.她打算学习应用语言学课程。
• This cream is best applied to the face at night.这种乳霜最好晚上擦脸用。

25 rouge   

n.胭脂，口红唇膏；v.(在…上)擦口红

参考例句：

• Women put rouge on their cheeks to make their faces pretty.女人往面颊上涂胭脂，使脸更漂亮。
• She didn't need any powder or lip rouge to make her pretty.她天生漂亮，不需要任何脂粉唇膏打扮自己。

26 promptly   

adv.及时地，敏捷地

参考例句：

• He paid the money back promptly.他立即还了钱。
• She promptly seized the opportunity his absence gave her.她立即抓住了因他不在场给她创造的机会。

27 gulped   

v.狼吞虎咽地吃，吞咽( gulp的过去式和过去分词 )；大口地吸（气）；哽住

参考例句：

• He gulped down the rest of his tea and went out. 他把剩下的茶一饮而尽便出去了。
• She gulped nervously, as if the question bothered her. 她紧张地咽了一下，似乎那问题把她难住了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

28 upwards   

adv.向上，在更高处...以上

参考例句：

• The trend of prices is still upwards.物价的趋向是仍在上涨。
• The smoke rose straight upwards.烟一直向上升。