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31.Gold
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Gold
Alone, she bargains with the gold man.
First they pretend to offer what the other won’t accept.
She offers the debt paid at sundown, in gold, if he’ll let them go off and collect it.
He offers a cloak made from Sam’s skin.
She offers double the debt paid tomorrow morning.
He offers Sam’s limbs broken into pretty shapes.
She offers a game of cards, right then and there, for triple the debt.
He offers Sam’s lying tongue cut out and served to her.
She offers her loyalty1. Her smarts. Her clean hands.
He offers Sam’s hands chopped and worn as a necklace.
She offers him the services of a prospector’s daughter, a knowledge of these hills that she was born to.
He offers her two graves dug so deep in these hills that no one will find them.
They sit in silence, then. A known silence, as if of old friends swapping2 a story they’ve each heard before. She examines her hands, her feet, her skin, as if seeing them for the first time. Always ask why,she remembers someone telling her. Always know what part of you they want.
The gold man accepts her offer immediately. As if he knew the bargain she would strike before she did. Elske might say he saw her value.
—
And for a small price, a nothing price atop the existing debt, Lucy buys the right to lie.
She meets Sam alone in the shadow of the ship. In a few minutes it’ll be noon. In a few minutes the ship will sail.
She tells Sam she’s reached an agreement. She’ll work for the gold man. A secretary, of sorts, doing sums and writing histories. A year or two, three at most, and she’ll pay off the debt. After that she’ll take the next ship over.
Sam’s chin goes up, the stubbornness in Sam—
There is only one way.
Lucy leans back through the years and hits Sam across the face. Gulls3 screech4 and rise in the hard, clear air. The shadows of their wings darken Sam’s cheeks. Sam’s eyes. When the gulls pass, the mark remains5. Lucy learned from the best. How to pivot
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收听单词发音

1
loyalty
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n.忠诚,忠心 | |
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2
swapping
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交换,交换技术 | |
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3
gulls
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n.鸥( gull的名词复数 )v.欺骗某人( gull的第三人称单数 ) | |
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4
screech
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n./v.尖叫;(发出)刺耳的声音 | |
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5
remains
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n.剩余物,残留物;遗体,遗迹 | |
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6
pivot
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v.在枢轴上转动;装枢轴,枢轴;adj.枢轴的 | |
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7
silt
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n.淤泥,淤沙,粉砂层,泥沙层;vt.使淤塞;vi.被淤塞 | |
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8
afterward
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adv.后来;以后 | |
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9
tugs
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n.猛拉( tug的名词复数 );猛拖;拖船v.用力拉,使劲拉,猛扯( tug的第三人称单数 ) | |
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10
crooked
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adj.弯曲的;不诚实的,狡猾的,不正当的 | |
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11
fabric
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n.织物,织品,布;构造,结构,组织 | |
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12
slit
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n.狭长的切口;裂缝;vt.切开,撕裂 | |
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13
illegible
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adj.难以辨认的,字迹模糊的 | |
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14
remarkably
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ad.不同寻常地,相当地 | |
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15
blur
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n.模糊不清的事物;vt.使模糊,使看不清楚 | |
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16
accede
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v.应允,同意 | |
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17
wail
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vt./vi.大声哀号,恸哭;呼啸,尖啸 | |
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18
erasing
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v.擦掉( erase的现在分词 );抹去;清除 | |
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19
marvels
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n.奇迹( marvel的名词复数 );令人惊奇的事物(或事例);不平凡的成果;成就v.惊奇,对…感到惊奇( marvel的第三人称单数 ) | |
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20
spun
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v.纺,杜撰,急转身 | |
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21
mumbles
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含糊的话或声音,咕哝( mumble的名词复数 ) | |
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22
babbling
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n.胡说,婴儿发出的咿哑声adj.胡说的v.喋喋不休( babble的现在分词 );作潺潺声(如流水);含糊不清地说话;泄漏秘密 | |
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23
bruises
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n.瘀伤,伤痕,擦伤( bruise的名词复数 ) | |
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24
razed
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v.彻底摧毁,将…夷为平地( raze的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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grit
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n.沙粒,决心,勇气;v.下定决心,咬紧牙关 | |
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spike
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n.长钉,钉鞋;v.以大钉钉牢,使...失效 | |
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27
drawn
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v.拖,拉,拔出;adj.憔悴的,紧张的 | |
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28
buffalo
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n.(北美)野牛;(亚洲)水牛 | |
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29
flicker
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vi./n.闪烁,摇曳,闪现 | |
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30
mirage
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n.海市蜃楼,幻景 | |
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31
itch
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n.痒,渴望,疥癣;vi.发痒,渴望 | |
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32
smeared
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弄脏; 玷污; 涂抹; 擦上 | |
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33
grasslands
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n.草原,牧场( grassland的名词复数 ) | |
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numb
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adj.麻木的,失去感觉的;v.使麻木 | |
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winding
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n.绕,缠,绕组,线圈 | |
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behold
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v.看,注视,看到 | |
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37
immortal
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adj.不朽的;永生的,不死的;神的 | |
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38
bleaches
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使(颜色)变淡,变白,漂白( bleach的第三人称单数 ) | |
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39
shimmer
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v./n.发微光,发闪光;微光 | |
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40
countless
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adj.无数的,多得不计其数的 | |
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41
generosity
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n.大度,慷慨,慷慨的行为 | |
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42
veins
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n.纹理;矿脉( vein的名词复数 );静脉;叶脉;纹理 | |
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43
gouged
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v.凿( gouge的过去式和过去分词 );乱要价;(在…中)抠出…;挖出… | |
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44
blisters
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n.水疱( blister的名词复数 );水肿;气泡 | |
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parched
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adj.焦干的;极渴的;v.(使)焦干 | |
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30.Gold
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32.Acknowledgments
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