Eight
A T ALK WITH E STHER W ALTERS
“T his place isn’t what it used to be,” said Mr. Rafiel, irritably¹, as he observed Miss Marple approaching the spotwhere he and his secretary were sitting. “Can’t move a step without some old hen getting under your feet. What do oldladies want to come to the West Indies for?”
“Where do you suggest they should go?” asked Esther Walters.
“To Cheltenham,” said Mr. Rafiel promptly². “Or Bournemouth,” he offered, “or Torquay or Llandrindod Wells.
Plenty of choice. They like it there—they’re quite happy.”
“They can’t often afford to come to the West Indies, I suppose,” said Esther. “It isn’t everyone who is as lucky asyou are.”
“That’s right,” said Mr. Rafiel. “Rub it in. Here am I, a mass of aches and pains and disjoints. You grudge³ me anyalleviation! And you don’t do any work—Why haven’t you typed out those letters yet?”
“I haven’t had time.”
“Well, get on with it, can’t you? I bring you out here to do a bit of work, not to sit about sunning yourself andshowing off your figure.”
Some people would have considered Mr. Rafiel’s remarks quite insupportable but Esther Walters had worked forhim for some years and she knew well enough that Mr. Rafiel’s bark was a great deal worse than his bite. He was aman who suffered almost continual pain, and making disagreeable remarks was one of his ways of letting off steam.
No matter what he said she remained quite imperturbable⁴.
“Such a lovely evening, isn’t it?” said Miss Marple, pausing beside them.
“Why not?” said Mr. Rafiel. “That’s what we’re here for, isn’t it?”
Miss Marple gave a tinkly⁵ little laugh.
“You’re so severe—of course the weather is a very English subject of conversation—one forgets—Oh dear—this isthe wrong coloured wool.” She deposited her knitting bag on the garden table and trotted

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1 irritably
ad.易生气地
参考例句：
He lost his temper and snapped irritably at the children. 他发火了，暴躁地斥责孩子们。 On this account the silence was irritably broken by a reproof. 为了这件事，他妻子大声斥责，令人恼火地打破了宁静。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹

2 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。

3 grudge
n.不满，怨恨，妒嫉；vt.勉强给，不情愿做
参考例句：
I grudge paying so much for such inferior goods.我不愿花这么多钱买次品。 I do not grudge him his success.我不嫉妒他的成功。

4 imperturbable
adj.镇静的
参考例句：
Thomas,of course,was cool and aloof and imperturbable.当然，托马斯沉着、冷漠，不易激动。 Edward was a model of good temper and his equanimity imperturbable.爱德华是个典型的好性子，他总是沉着镇定。

5 tinkly
叮当响的
参考例句：

6 trotted
小跑，急走( trot的过去分词 )； 匆匆忙忙地走
参考例句：
She trotted her pony around the field. 她骑着小马绕场慢跑。 Anne trotted obediently beside her mother. 安妮听话地跟在妈妈身边走。

7 bungalow
n.平房，周围有阳台的木造小平房
参考例句：
A bungalow does not have an upstairs.平房没有上层。 The old couple sold that large house and moved into a small bungalow.老两口卖掉了那幢大房子，搬进了小平房。

8 massage
n.按摩，揉；vt.按摩，揉，美化，奉承，篡改数据
参考例句：
He is really quite skilled in doing massage.他的按摩技术确实不错。 Massage helps relieve the tension in one's muscles.按摩可使僵硬的肌肉松弛。

9 chattering
n. （机器振动发出的）咔嗒声，(鸟等)鸣，啁啾 adj. 喋喋不休的，啾啾声的 动词chatter的现在分词形式
参考例句：
The teacher told the children to stop chattering in class. 老师叫孩子们在课堂上不要叽叽喳喳讲话。 I was so cold that my teeth were chattering. 我冷得牙齿直打战。

10 deftly
adv.灵巧地，熟练地，敏捷地
参考例句：
He deftly folded the typed sheets and replaced them in the envelope. 他灵巧地将打有字的纸折好重新放回信封。 来自《简明英汉词典》 At last he had a clew to her interest, and followed it deftly. 这一下终于让他发现了她的兴趣所在，于是他熟练地继续谈这个话题。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹

11 conversing
v.交谈，谈话( converse的现在分词 )
参考例句：
I find that conversing with her is quite difficult. 和她交谈实在很困难。 来自《简明英汉词典》 They were conversing in the parlor. 他们正在客厅谈话。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

12 fully
adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地
参考例句：
The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。 They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

13 contradictory
adj.反驳的，反对的，抗辩的；n.正反对，矛盾对立
参考例句：
The argument is internally contradictory.论据本身自相矛盾。 What he said was self-contradictory.他讲话前后不符。

14 bully
n.恃强欺弱者，小流氓；vt.威胁，欺侮
参考例句：
A bully is always a coward.暴汉常是懦夫。 The boy gave the bully a pelt on the back with a pebble.那男孩用石子掷击小流氓的背脊。

15 devoted
adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的
参考例句：
He devoted his life to the educational cause of the motherland.他为祖国的教育事业贡献了一生。 We devoted a lengthy and full discussion to this topic.我们对这个题目进行了长时间的充分讨论。

16 flamboyant
adj.火焰般的，华丽的，炫耀的
参考例句：
His clothes were rather flamboyant for such a serious occasion.他的衣着在这种严肃场合太浮夸了。 The King's flamboyant lifestyle is well known.国王的奢华生活方式是人尽皆知的。

17 reminders
n.令人回忆起…的东西( reminder的名词复数 )；提醒…的东西；（告知该做某事的）通知单；提示信
参考例句：
The film evokes chilling reminders of the war. 这部电影使人们回忆起战争的可怕场景。 The strike has delayed the mailing of tax reminders. 罢工耽搁了催税单的投寄。

18 jolt
v.（使）摇动，（使）震动，（使）颠簸
参考例句：
We were worried that one tiny jolt could worsen her injuries.我们担心稍微颠簸一下就可能会使她的伤势恶化。 They were working frantically in the fear that an aftershock would jolt the house again.他们拼命地干着，担心余震可能会使房子再次受到震动。

19 desperately
adv.极度渴望地，绝望地，孤注一掷地
参考例句：
He was desperately seeking a way to see her again.他正拼命想办法再见她一面。 He longed desperately to be back at home.他非常渴望回家。

20 cerebral
adj.脑的，大脑的；有智力的，理智型的
参考例句：
Your left cerebral hemisphere controls the right-hand side of your body.你的左半脑控制身体的右半身。 He is a precise,methodical,cerebral man who carefully chooses his words.他是一个一丝不苟、有条理和理智的人，措辞谨慎。

21 fend
v.照料（自己），（自己）谋生，挡开，避开
参考例句：
I've had to fend for myself since I was 14.我从十四岁时起就不得不照料自己。 He raised his arm up to fend branches from his eyes.他举手将树枝从他眼前挡开。

22 lipstick
n.口红，唇膏
参考例句：
Taking out her lipstick,she began to paint her lips.她拿出口红，开始往嘴唇上抹。 Lipstick and hair conditioner are cosmetics.口红和护发素都是化妆品。

23 sedative
adj.使安静的，使镇静的；n. 镇静剂，能使安静的东西
参考例句：
After taking a sedative she was able to get to sleep.服用了镇静剂后，她能够入睡了。 Amber bath oil has a sedative effect.琥珀沐浴油有镇静安神效用。