After a year, my nocturnal visits to their home ceased as suddenly as they’d started. So did my visits to the school to see Jonah, and the site of the accident. The only place I continued to visit with regularity¹ after that was Missy’s grave, and it became part of my weekly schedule, mentally penciled into its Thursday slot. I never missed a day. Rain or shine, I went to the cemetery² and traced the path to her grave. I never looked to see if anyone was watching anymore. And always, I brought flowers.

The end of the other visits came as a surprise. Though you might think that the year would have diminished the intensity³ of my obsession⁴, that wasn’t the case at all. But just as I’d been compelled to watch them for a year, the compulsion suddenly reversed itself and I knew I had to let them live in peace, without me spying on them.

The day it happened was a day I’ll never forget.

It was the first anniversary of Missy’s death. By then, after a year of creeping through the darkness, I was almost invisible as I moved. I knew every twist and turn I had to make, and the time it took to reach their home had dropped by half. I’d become a professional voyeur⁵: In addition to peering through their windows, I had been bringing binoculars⁶ with me for months. There were times, you see, when others were around, either on the roads or in their yards, and I hadn’t been able to get close to the windows. Other times, Miles closed the living room drapes, but because the itch⁷ was not satisfied by failure, I had to do something. The binoculars solved my problem. Off to the side of their property, close to the river, there is an ancient, giant oak. The branches are low and thick, some run parallel to the ground, and that was where I sometimes made my camp. I found that if I perched high enough, I could see right through the kitchen window, my view unobstructed. I watched for hours, until Jonah went to bed, and

点击收听单词发音  

1 regularity
n.规律性，规则性；匀称，整齐
参考例句：
The idea is to maintain the regularity of the heartbeat.问题就是要维持心跳的规律性。 He exercised with a regularity that amazed us.他锻炼的规律程度令我们非常惊讶。

2 cemetery
n.坟墓，墓地，坟场
参考例句：
He was buried in the cemetery.他被葬在公墓。 His remains were interred in the cemetery.他的遗体葬在墓地。

3 intensity
n.强烈，剧烈；强度；烈度
参考例句：
I didn't realize the intensity of people's feelings on this issue.我没有意识到这一问题能引起群情激奋。 The strike is growing in intensity.罢工日益加剧。

4 obsession
n.困扰，无法摆脱的思想(或情感)
参考例句：
I was suffering from obsession that my career would be ended.那时的我陷入了我的事业有可能就此终止的困扰当中。 She would try to forget her obsession with Christopher.她会努力忘记对克里斯托弗的迷恋。

5 voyeur
n.窥淫狂者，窥隐私者
参考例句：
The media has made unfeeling voyeurs of all of us.媒体把我们所有人都变成了无情刺探他人隐私的人。 A voyeur was seen lurking around the girl's dormitory.有人看到一位偷窥狂躲藏在女生宿舍附近。

6 binoculars
n.双筒望远镜
参考例句：
He watched the play through his binoculars.他用双筒望远镜看戏。 If I had binoculars,I could see that comet clearly.如果我有望远镜，我就可以清楚地看见那颗彗星。

7 itch
n.痒，渴望，疥癣；vi.发痒，渴望
参考例句：
Shylock has an itch for money.夏洛克渴望发财。 He had an itch on his back.他背部发痒。

8 afterward
adv.后来；以后
参考例句：
Let's go to the theatre first and eat afterward. 让我们先去看戏，然后吃饭。 Afterward,the boy became a very famous artist.后来，这男孩成为一个很有名的艺术家。

9 flipped
轻弹( flip的过去式和过去分词 )； 按（开关）； 快速翻转； 急挥
参考例句：
The plane flipped and crashed. 飞机猛地翻转，撞毁了。 The carter flipped at the horse with his whip. 赶大车的人扬鞭朝着马轻轻地抽打。

10 drawn
v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的
参考例句：
All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。 Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。

11 slivers
（切割或断裂下来的）薄长条，碎片( sliver的名词复数 )
参考例句：
Margret had eight slivers of glass removed from her cheek. 从玛格列特的脸颊取出了八片碎玻璃。 Eight slivers are drawn together to produce the drawn sliver. 在末道并条机上，八根棉条并合在一起被牵伸成熟条。

12 jumbled
adj.混乱的；杂乱的
参考例句：
Books, shoes and clothes were jumbled together on the floor. 书、鞋子和衣服胡乱堆放在地板上。 The details of the accident were all jumbled together in his mind. 他把事故细节记得颠三倒四。

13 squeal
v.发出长而尖的声音；n.长而尖的声音
参考例句：
The children gave a squeal of fright.孩子们发出惊吓的尖叫声。 There was a squeal of brakes as the car suddenly stopped.小汽车突然停下来时，车闸发出尖叫声。

14 obsessive
adj. 着迷的, 强迫性的, 分神的
参考例句：
Some people are obsessive about cleanliness.有些人有洁癖。 He's becoming more and more obsessive about punctuality.他对守时要求越来越过分了。

15 guilt
n.犯罪；内疚；过失，罪责
参考例句：
She tried to cover up her guilt by lying.她企图用谎言掩饰自己的罪行。 Don't lay a guilt trip on your child about schoolwork.别因为功课责备孩子而使他觉得很内疚。

16 anguish
n.(尤指心灵上的)极度痛苦，烦恼
参考例句：
She cried out for anguish at parting.分手时，她由于痛苦而失声大哭。 The unspeakable anguish wrung his heart.难言的痛苦折磨着他的心。

17 dormant
adj.暂停活动的；休眠的；潜伏的
参考例句：
Many animals are in a dormant state during winter.在冬天许多动物都处于睡眠状态。 This dormant volcano suddenly fired up.这座休眠火山突然爆发了。

18 hibernating
（某些动物）冬眠，蛰伏( hibernate的现在分词 )
参考例句：
The hibernating animals reduce movement to far below the ordinary level. 冬眠的动物把活动量大大减少到低于一般的水平。 People find hibernating animals asleep. 人们发现冬眠动物处于休眠状态。