"So he's married again, the sly
villain1!" muttered the stranger, as, after leaving the boys, he proceeded on his way to Mr. Craven's office. "That will be good news for my sister, won't it? And so that's his step-son? A nice-looking, well-dressed boy. Likely Craven has feathered his nest, and married a fortune. If so, all the better. I may get a few feathers for my own nest, if I work my cards right."
Meanwhile Mr. Craven had seated himself at an office table, and was looking over a paper of instructions, having been commissioned to write a will for one of the town's people. He had
drawn2 out a printed form, and had just dipped his pen in the ink, when a knock was heard at the outer door that opened upon the street.
[85]
"I suppose it's Mr. Negley, come for the will. He'll have to wait," thought Craven, and as the thought passed through his mind, he said, "Come in!"
The door opened.
He mechanically raised his eyes, and his glance rested upon the man whom we have introduced in the last chapter.
A
remarkable3 change came over Mr. Craven's face. First surprise, then palpable dismay, drove the color from his cheeks, and he stood up in silent
consternation4.
The other appeared to enjoy the sensation caused by his arrival, and laughed.
"Why, man, you look as if I were a ghost. No such thing. I'm alive and well, and delighted to see you again," he added, significantly. "By Jove, I've had hard work finding you, but here I am, you see."
"How—did—you—find—me?" asked Craven, huskily.
"How did I find you? Well, I got upon your tracks in New York. Never mind how, as long as I have found you. Well, have you no welcome for me?"
[86]
"What do you want of me?" asked Mr. Craven,
sullenly5.
"What do I want of you?" echoed the other, with a laugh. "Why, considering the relationship between us—"
Mr. Craven's pallor increased, and he shifted his position uneasily.
"Considering the relationship between us, it is only natural that I should want to see you."
点击
收听单词发音
|
1
villain
|
|
| n.反派演员，反面人物；恶棍；问题的起因 |
参考例句： |
- He was cast as the villain in the play.他在戏里扮演反面角色。
- The man who played the villain acted very well.扮演恶棍的那个男演员演得很好。
|
|
2
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。
|
|
3
remarkable
|
|
| adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的 |
参考例句： |
- She has made remarkable headway in her writing skills.她在写作技巧方面有了长足进步。
- These cars are remarkable for the quietness of their engines.这些汽车因发动机没有噪音而不同凡响。
|
|
4
consternation
|
|
| n.大为吃惊，惊骇 |
参考例句： |
- He was filled with consternation to hear that his friend was so ill.他听说朋友病得那么厉害，感到非常震惊。
- Sam stared at him in consternation.萨姆惊恐不安地注视着他。
|
|
5
sullenly
|
|
| 不高兴地，绷着脸，忧郁地 |
参考例句： |
- 'so what?" Tom said sullenly. “那又怎么样呢？”汤姆绷着脸说。
- Emptiness after the paper, I sIt'sullenly in front of the stove. 报看完，想不出能找点什么事做，只好一人坐在火炉旁生气。
|
|
6
steadily
|
|
| adv.稳定地；不变地；持续地 |
参考例句： |
- The scope of man's use of natural resources will steadily grow.人类利用自然资源的广度将日益扩大。
- Our educational reform was steadily led onto the correct path.我们的教学改革慢慢上轨道了。
|
|
7
allusion
|
|
| n.暗示，间接提示 |
参考例句： |
- He made an allusion to a secret plan in his speech.在讲话中他暗示有一项秘密计划。
- She made no allusion to the incident.她没有提及那个事件。
|
|
8
allude
|
|
| v.提及，暗指 |
参考例句： |
- Many passages in Scripture allude to this concept.圣经中有许多经文间接地提到这样的概念。
- She also alluded to her rival's past marital troubles.她还影射了对手过去的婚姻问题。
|
|
9
doggedly
|
|
| adv.顽强地，固执地 |
参考例句： |
- He was still doggedly pursuing his studies.他仍然顽强地进行着自己的研究。
- He trudged doggedly on until he reached the flat.他顽强地、步履艰难地走着，一直走回了公寓。
|
|
10
fixed
|
|
| adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的 |
参考例句： |
- Have you two fixed on a date for the wedding yet?你们俩选定婚期了吗？
- Once the aim is fixed,we should not change it arbitrarily.目标一旦确定，我们就不应该随意改变。
|
|
11
torment
|
|
| n.折磨；令人痛苦的东西(人)；vt.折磨；纠缠 |
参考例句： |
- He has never suffered the torment of rejection.他从未经受过遭人拒绝的痛苦。
- Now nothing aggravates me more than when people torment each other.没有什么东西比人们的互相折磨更使我愤怒。
|
|
12
enjoyment
|
|
| n.乐趣；享有；享用 |
参考例句： |
- Your company adds to the enjoyment of our visit. 有您的陪同，我们这次访问更加愉快了。
- After each joke the old man cackled his enjoyment.每逢讲完一个笑话，这老人就呵呵笑着表示他的高兴。
|
|
13
stammered
|
|
| v.结巴地说出( stammer的过去式和过去分词 ) |
参考例句： |
- He stammered most when he was nervous. 他一紧张往往口吃。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
- Barsad leaned back in his chair, and stammered, \"What do you mean?\" 巴萨往椅背上一靠，结结巴巴地说，“你是什么意思？” 来自英汉文学 - 双城记
|
|
14
mole
|
|
| n.胎块；痣；克分子 |
参考例句： |
- She had a tiny mole on her cheek.她的面颊上有一颗小黑痣。
- The young girl felt very self- conscious about the large mole on her chin.那位年轻姑娘对自己下巴上的一颗大痣感到很不自在。
|
|
15
apprehensions
|
|
| 疑惧 |
参考例句： |
- He stood in a mixture of desire and apprehensions. 他怀着渴望和恐惧交加的心情伫立着。
- But subsequent cases have removed many of these apprehensions. 然而，随后的案例又消除了许多类似的忧虑。
|
|
16
untold
|
|
| adj.数不清的，无数的 |
参考例句： |
- She has done untold damage to our chances.她给我们的机遇造成了不可估量的损害。
- They suffered untold terrors in the dark and huddled together for comfort.他们遭受着黑暗中的难以言传的种种恐怖，因而只好挤在一堆互相壮胆。
|
|
17
situated
|
|
| adj.坐落在...的，处于某种境地的 |
参考例句： |
- The village is situated at the margin of a forest.村子位于森林的边缘。
- She is awkwardly situated.她的处境困难。
|
|
18
suavity
|
|
| n.温和；殷勤 |
参考例句： |
- He's got a surface flow of suavity,but he's rough as a rasp underneath.他表面看来和和气气的，其实是个粗野狂暴的恶棍。
- But the well-bred,artificial smile,when he bent upon the guests,had its wonted steely suavity.但是他哈着腰向宾客招呼的那种彬彬有礼、故意装成的笑容里，却仍然具有它平时那种沉着的殷勤。
|
|
19
squire
|
|
| n.护卫, 侍从, 乡绅 |
参考例句： |
- I told him the squire was the most liberal of men.我告诉他乡绅是世界上最宽宏大量的人。
- The squire was hard at work at Bristol.乡绅在布里斯托尔热衷于他的工作。
|
|
20
adjured
|
|
| v.（以起誓或诅咒等形式）命令要求( adjure的过去式和过去分词 )；祈求；恳求 |
参考例句： |
- He adjured them to tell the truth. 他要求他们讲真话。
- The guides now adjured us to keep the strictest silence. 这时向导恳求我们保持绝对寂静。 来自辞典例句
|
|
21
incited
|
|
| 刺激，激励，煽动( incite的过去式和过去分词 ) |
参考例句： |
- He incited people to rise up against the government. 他煽动人们起来反对政府。
- The captain's example incited the men to bravery. 船长的榜样激发了水手们的勇敢精神。
|
|
22
penury
|
|
| n.贫穷，拮据 |
参考例句： |
- Hardship and penury wore him out before his time.受穷受苦使他未老先衰。
- A succession of bad harvest had reduced the small farmer to penury.连续歉收使得这个小农场主陷入了贫困境地。
|
|
24
obtuse
|
|
| adj.钝的；愚钝的 |
参考例句： |
- You were too obtuse to take the hint.你太迟钝了，没有理解这种暗示。
- "Sometimes it looks more like an obtuse triangle,"Winter said.“有时候它看起来更像一个钝角三角形。”温特说。
|
|
25
disturbance
|
|
| n.动乱，骚动；打扰，干扰；(身心)失调 |
参考例句： |
- He is suffering an emotional disturbance.他的情绪受到了困扰。
- You can work in here without any disturbance.在这儿你可不受任何干扰地工作。
|
|
26
pestilence
|
|
| n.瘟疫 |
参考例句： |
- They were crazed by the famine and pestilence of that bitter winter.他们因那年严冬的饥饿与瘟疫而折磨得发狂。
- A pestilence was raging in that area. 瘟疫正在那一地区流行。
|
|
27
paternal
|
|
| adj.父亲的，像父亲的，父系的，父方的 |
参考例句： |
- I was brought up by my paternal aunt.我是姑姑扶养大的。
- My father wrote me a letter full of his paternal love for me.我父亲给我写了一封充满父爱的信。
|
|
28
scrupulous
|
|
| adj.审慎的，小心翼翼的，完全的，纯粹的 |
参考例句： |
- She is scrupulous to a degree.她非常谨慎。
- Poets are not so scrupulous as you are.诗人并不像你那样顾虑多。
|
|
29
tremor
|
|
| n.震动，颤动，战栗，兴奋，地震 |
参考例句： |
- There was a slight tremor in his voice.他的声音有点颤抖。
- A slight earth tremor was felt in California.加利福尼亚发生了轻微的地震。
|
|
30
faltered
|
|
| （嗓音）颤抖( falter的过去式和过去分词 )； 支吾其词； 蹒跚； 摇晃 |
参考例句： |
- He faltered out a few words. 他支吾地说出了几句。
- "Er - but he has such a longhead!" the man faltered. 他不好意思似的嚅嗫着：“这孩子脑袋真长。”
|
|
31
embarrassments
|
|
| n.尴尬( embarrassment的名词复数 )；难堪；局促不安；令人难堪或耻辱的事 |
参考例句： |
- But there have been many embarrassments along the way. 但是一路走来已经是窘境不断。 来自互联网
- The embarrassments don't stop there. 让人难受的事情还没完。 来自互联网
|
|
32
accounting
|
|
| n.会计，会计学，借贷对照表 |
参考例句： |
- A job fell vacant in the accounting department.财会部出现了一个空缺。
- There's an accounting error in this entry.这笔账目里有差错。
|
|
33
iniquitous
|
|
| adj.不公正的；邪恶的；高得出奇的 |
参考例句： |
- Many historians,of course,regard this as iniquitous.当然，许多历史学家认为这是极不公正的。
- Men of feeling may at any moment be killed outright by the iniquitous and the callous.多愁善感的人会立即被罪恶的人和无情的人彻底消灭。
|
