-
(单词翻译:双击或拖选)
“Did anyone call about Dragon?” asked the children as they walked in to breakfast.
“Not yet,” said Cookie. “But it’s still early. Not everyone has seen our flyers.” The children ate quietly, then went to do their chores. “Please, ring the cowbell if anyone calls,” said Jessie.
“I will,” promised Cookie. All morning, the children listened for the bell, but it didn’t ring until it called the ranch1 hands to lunch.
At lunchtime, Cookie set a big platter of chicken on the table. “I talked to a friend who works at the newspaper. He said I should bring him one of our flyers and he’ll put it in tomorrow’s paper.” She pressed her lips together. “He said a couple of other people have called him the past few days about missing horses. It looks like horse thieves might be working in this area.”
The children stared at the food in their plates. Not even Benny was hungry.
Cookie wiped her hands on her apron2. “Today is Alyssa’s day off, but you four can go on a ride by yourselves after lunch. It will help take your minds off Dragon. I’ll bring the flyer over to the newspaper.” She took off her apron. “Try to eat a little something,” she said, leaving. “I’ll see you later.”
Benny nibbled4 a chicken leg. Henry made a sandwich from the peanut butter and jelly Cookie kept on the table. Violet sipped5 vegetable soup. Jessie pushed a cucumber around her plate. “It’s so hard to sit here doing nothing,” Jessie said. Suddenly, she jumped up. “I know what we can do!” And with that, she ran to Cookie’s office and turned on the computer. The others gathered around as she typed in the words “Stolen Horses.” The screen filled with websites listing missing horses. Jessie typed Dragon’s description on one website after another.
Every time Jessie went to a new website, the children looked at the photos of missing horses. Some of the horses had been found. Some were still missing. Jessie clicked to a new website. Violet gasped6. “Oh!” she said, pointing to a photo.
“It’s Lots-o’-Dots!” cried Benny. Sure enough, there on the screen was Benny’s little spotted7 horse. The writing under the photo said:
POLKY-DOTS
MISSING FOR ONE MONTH
from Edie’s Bead8 Shop, Big Piney, Wyoming
Our friendly horse is so much more than a pet. Everyone who visited our little bead shop loved our funny little Polky-Dots. He often walked right through our shop to say “Howdy” to our customers. Polky-Dots loves his treats and will poke9 his nose right into your pocket looking for a sugar cube or apple or carrot. If you have seen our wonderful horse, please call Edie’s Bead Shop.
“That’s why he had beads10 stuck in his hooves,” said Benny.
Henry picked up the phone and called the number for Edie’s Bead Shop. A woman answered.
“I’m calling from the Dare to Dream Rescue Ranch,” Henry told her. “Polky-Dots is safe and happy.” The children heard the woman laughing and crying. “Polky-Dots must have wandered away from your place,” Henry explained. “Then someone rescued him and sent him here.” Henry listened for a few minutes. His smile disappeared.
“What’s wrong?” asked Jessie, as he hung up the phone.
Henry looked troubled. “The woman said Lots-o’-Dots didn’t walk away. She said someone broke into her barn and stole him last month.”
Jessie pointed11 to the address on the screen. “Edie’s Bead Shop is in Wyoming,” she said.
“And Benny said the truck that brought Honey and Bunny back had Wyoming license12 plates.”
“Was that truck pulling a small silver trailer with dinosaur13 stickers on it?” Henry asked.
Benny’s mouth dropped open. “How did you know?”
Henry explained, “Because the thieves also stole the bead store owner’s trailer. She said her little boy liked to decorate the trailer with dinosaur stickers.”
Benny gulped14. He’d been face to face with a horse thief and didn’t even know it! He thought about the red-haired man with the backward baseball cap. “But the man wasn’t stealing Honey and Bunny,” said Benny. “He was bringing them back.”
Henry paced the small office. Walking back and forth15 helped him think better. “Maybe,” he said, “he wanted to throw us off the trail. Maybe he really wanted to steal Dragon. If we thought Honey and Bunny just walked away, we would think Dragon walked away, too.”
Jessie looked at the computer picture of Lots-o’-Dots. “Why would someone bring a stolen horse here to the ranch?”
Henry paced faster and faster. “What if the thief didn’t bring Lots-o’-Dots here to stay? What if he’s hiding him here until he can sell him?”
“Sell!” cried Violet. “Oh, Jessie, remember when we were taking pictures of horses in the west pasture and the man in the striped shirt tried to stop us? And an envelope full of money fell out of his pocket.”
Henry stopped pacing. “What if the thief brought Lots-o’-Dots and other horses here to hide them until he can sell them? What better place to hide a horse than on a horse ranch?”
“Cookie said the west pasture hadn’t been used in years, “Jessie said. “Until Slim decided16 to use it for his rescue horses.”
“Maybe the rescue horses need to be rescued,” said Benny.
“Let’s ride out there and take a look,” said Henry. “Let’s see what horses are out in the old barn.”
Violet looked unsure. “Shouldn’t we wait for Cookie?”
“She might not be back for hours,” said Jessie. “What if stolen horses are in the old barn? What if Dragon is out there? The thieves could take him away by the time Cookie comes home. We have to go right now!”
They went to saddle their horses but Lots-o’-Dots was not in the corral. “Maybe he’s in the pasture,” Henry said. “We don’t have time to look for him now.” Henry quickly saddled another little horse for Benny.
The four children rode out across the ranch. They saw many horses grazing in the pastures. But Lots-o’-Dots wasn’t among them.
Far off, in the west pasture, a long silver truck stood near the old barn. “I saw that truck before,” Benny said. “It has holes in the side so the cows can breathe.”
“It’s a horse trailer, too,” said Henry.
“It could be bringing in new rescue horses,” said Violet.
“Or stolen ones,” said Henry.
The children rode their horses through a field of tall hay toward the trailer. The truck’s back gate was down. But, instead of taking horses off, the man in the striped shirt was loading a white horse onto the truck.
“I saw Slim riding that horse,” said Benny. “Slim says he’s a good rider. But he holds onto the saddle horn with both hands.”
The man in the striped shirt gripped the horse’s bridle17. He pulled the horse up the ramp18 into the truck.
“That’s the man who yelled at us for taking pictures,” said Violet.
Henry held up his hand. Everyone stopped. The man went back into the barn and soon led out a beautiful gray horse with a white patch on its nose. Its tail was white and black.
“That’s Buttercup,” whispered Jessie, “the stolen horse on the purple flyer! She’s been here the whole time!”
“We need to get closer,” Henry said, “but I don’t want that man to see us.” Henry climbed off his horse and let go of the reins19. He motioned the others to do the same. The horses walked off.
“They’ll run away,” said Benny.
“They’ll look for a place to graze,” said Henry. “We’ll find them later.”
The children crouched20 low, moving silently through the tall hay. Soon, they were close to the barn.
“Come on, you stubborn horse!” a man growled21. The children fell to their stomachs so that they were hidden by the hay. They peered out as a man tugged22 a big black horse out of the barn.
Jessie’s hands flew to her mouth. “Dragon!”
“Where?” Benny whispered.
“Right there.” The horse was all black. There was no big white dragon on its back. “I’m telling you, it’s Dragon,” said Jessie.
“The shoe polish,” said Henry. “They used that black shoe polish to cover his white dragon. That way, even if someone saw him, they wouldn’t recognize him.”
“I would,” said Jessie. “I’d know him anywhere.”
Dragon wouldn’t get into the truck. He reared up, whinnying. The man yanked the reins. “Come on!” he shouted. “Git in there!” He yanked the reins again.
Jessie started to get up but Henry pulled her back down. “Not yet. Wait until they’re inside the trailer. Then we’ll all make a run for the barn.” They watched as the man pulled Dragon up the ramp. It seemed to take forever. Finally, Dragon disappeared into the trailer.
The children raced from the field to the barn. Inside, four horses stood tied near the door. “Lots-o’-Dots!” said Benny, hugging his horse.
“Not now.” Henry pulled his little brother into one of the back stalls. The children huddled23 in a dark corner as the man walked into the barn. They held their breath as he untied24 a pretty red horse and led it out to the truck. A piece of paper was tacked25 to the stall wall. Someone had written a list of horses: Palomino, quarter horse, gray Arabian, brown spotted pony26. “These are the horses he’s stealing,” said Henry. “We have to stop him.”
Jessie jumped up. “I can slow him down!” She darted27 to the last three horses and untied their ropes. Then she slapped them on the rear. They bolted out of the barn.
The man on the truck saw the horses escaping. “Hey!” he yelled. He jumped off the truck, chasing them. “Hey!”
The children peeked28 out from the barn. The man ran one way, then the other. “Roy!” the man yelled. “Come help me!”
The children ducked back as the truck door swung open and the driver stepped down. He had bright red hair and wore a white baseball cap turned backwards29.
“That’s the man who brought back Honey and Bunny,” said Benny. “He drove the trailer with the dinosaur stickers.”
The man in the striped shirt captured one of the horses and led it back to the truck. “Help me catch the other two,” he snarled30.
“No way,” said the red-haired man. He leaned against the truck, laughing. “My brother and I steal ’em and we pay you to take care of ’em. It’s your job to load ’em into the truck.”
“You and your brother are the sorriest horse thieves I ever did work for,” said the man in the striped shirt, chasing the last two horses. He kept stopping to catch his breath. Benny stared at the driver’s Adam’s apple. It bobbed up and down, just like Slim’s.
“He must be Slim’s brother,” said Benny. “Slim has black hair, but the hair on his arms is red.”
“He disguises himself,” Jessie said, “the way he disguises these horses.”
The man finally captured a silver horse that had stopped to nibble3 fruit from a crab31 apple tree. Only Lots-o’-Dots was still loose.
“We have to do something,” said Benny.
“I have an idea,” said Henry. “Violet, you go around to the front of the truck. Talk to the driver.”
The shy girl blinked. “What will I talk about?”
“Anything,” said Henry. “Just make sure you stand facing the truck. He’ll have to turn his back to it while he talks to you. That way he won’t see us.” Henry put his hands on Benny’s shoulders. “I need you to go out in the field and call Lots-o’-Dots. He’ll come to you. The man out there will try to chase you away. Stall him as long as you can.”
“What about me?” said Jessie.
Henry smiled. “You’ll come with me. It’s our turn to steal some horses.”
The children waited until the man in the striped shirt jumped off the truck and began chasing Lots-o’-Dots. “Now,” said Henry.
Violet took a deep breath and walked around to the front of the truck. “Hello,” she said. Her voice came out like a squeak32.
The driver whirled around. “Where did you come from?”
“The city,” she said. “Greenfield. In Connecticut. Of, course, this is Connecticut, too. But Greenfield is very far away. I’m a tourist. And, um, I’m interested in horses. And, um, I was wondering if you could tell me—um—something about horses and …” Violet kept talking and talking as fast as she could. She had no idea what she was going to say next until the words popped out of her mouth.
Meanwhile, Benny ran out to the pasture. The man in the striped shirt was trying to catch Lots-o’-Dots. But the little horse kept trotting33 away. The man’s shirt was all sweaty. He ran slower and slower. “Come back here,” he shouted. But Lots-o’-Dots didn’t listen.
“Here, boy,” called Benny. The little horse looked up. Benny waved. Lots-o’-Dots pranced34 over to him.
“Hey, kid,” the man ran toward Benny, panting. “Gimme … that horse. You shouldn’t … be out here,” he gasped.
While the two younger children kept the men busy, Henry and Jessie dashed up the ramp into the truck. It was packed tight with horses. Their reins were hitched35 to poles on both sides of the truck. “Untie them,” whispered Henry.
They quickly untied one horse after another. Then Henry climbed on the pretty red horse and Jessie climbed on Dragon. The children made clicking sounds with their mouths. Slowly, they eased their horses down the ramp and all the others followed. The driver spun36 around at the sound of hooves banging down the ramp.
“Hey!” he yelled, running to the back of the truck.
“Stop!” yelled the man in the striped shirt.
But the horses didn’t stop. They scattered37 in all directions.
“Oh, Henry, how will we catch them all?” cried Jessie.
“You kids!” yelled the men, running toward Benny and Violet. “Stop!”
Jessie watched in horror as the thieves closed in on the two young children.
Suddenly, a voice yelled, “Eeeeeee-haaaa!” The children looked up. “Eeeeeee-haaaa!” shouted Alyssa as her horse burst out of the hay field. The wrangler38 raced full speed, waving her red hat in the air, charging right at the men. The men turned and ran. Alyssa whirled her horse around and rode up to Benny. She reached down. “Grab my arm,” she said. Benny grabbed hold and Alyssa swung him up onto the saddle behind her. Henry pulled Violet up behind him.
“We have to save the horses,” cried Jessie.
“Round ’em up!” Alyssa commanded, galloping39 after the scattered horses.
“Eeeeeeee-haaaaa,” they all yelled, chasing the horses away from the truck. “Eeeeeeeehaaaaa,” not stopping until they rounded up every last horse and ran them back to the safety of the corral.
收听单词发音 |
1
ranch
|
|
| n.大牧场，大农场 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
2
apron
|
|
| n.围裙；工作裙 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
3
nibble
|
|
| n.轻咬，啃；v.一点点地咬，慢慢啃，吹毛求疵 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
4
nibbled
|
|
| v.啃，一点一点地咬（吃）( nibble的过去式和过去分词 )；啃出（洞），一点一点咬出（洞）；慢慢减少；小口咬 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
5
sipped
|
|
| v.小口喝，呷，抿( sip的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
6
gasped
|
|
| v.喘气( gasp的过去式和过去分词 )；喘息；倒抽气；很想要 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
7
spotted
|
|
| adj.有斑点的，斑纹的，弄污了的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
8
bead
|
|
| n.念珠；(pl.)珠子项链；水珠 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
9
poke
|
|
| n.刺，戳，袋；vt.拨开，刺，戳；vi.戳，刺，捅，搜索，伸出，行动散慢 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
10
beads
|
|
| n.（空心）小珠子( bead的名词复数 )；水珠；珠子项链 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
11
pointed
|
|
| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
12
license
|
|
| n.执照，许可证，特许；v.许可，特许 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
13
dinosaur
|
|
| n.恐龙 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
14
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： |
|
|
|
|
15
forth
|
|
| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
16
decided
|
|
| adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
17
bridle
|
|
| n.笼头，束缚；vt.抑制，约束；动怒 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
18
ramp
|
|
| n.暴怒，斜坡，坡道；vi.作恐吓姿势，暴怒，加速；vt.加速 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
19
reins
|
|
| 感情，激情； 缰( rein的名词复数 )； 控制手段； 掌管； （成人带着幼儿走路以防其走失时用的）保护带 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
20
crouched
|
|
| v.屈膝，蹲伏( crouch的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
21
growled
|
|
| v.（动物）发狺狺声， （雷）作隆隆声( growl的过去式和过去分词 )；低声咆哮着说 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
22
tugged
|
|
| v.用力拉，使劲拉，猛扯( tug的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
23
huddled
|
|
| 挤在一起（huddle的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
24
untied
|
|
| 松开，解开( untie的过去式和过去分词 )； 解除，使自由； 解决 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
25
tacked
|
|
| 用平头钉钉( tack的过去式和过去分词 )； 附加，增补； 帆船抢风行驶，用粗线脚缝 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
26
pony
|
|
| adj.小型的；n.小马 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
27
darted
|
|
| v.投掷，投射( dart的过去式和过去分词 )；向前冲，飞奔 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
28
peeked
|
|
| v.很快地看( peek的过去式和过去分词 )；偷看；窥视；微露出 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
29
backwards
|
|
| adv.往回地，向原处，倒，相反，前后倒置地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
30
snarled
|
|
| v.（指狗）吠，嗥叫， （人）咆哮( snarl的过去式和过去分词 )；咆哮着说，厉声地说 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
31
crab
|
|
| n.螃蟹，偏航，脾气乖戾的人，酸苹果；vi.捕蟹，偏航，发牢骚；vt.使偏航，发脾气 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
32
squeak
|
|
| n.吱吱声，逃脱；v.（发出）吱吱叫，侥幸通过；（俚）告密 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
33
trotting
|
|
| 小跑，急走( trot的现在分词 )； 匆匆忙忙地走 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
34
pranced
|
|
| v.（马）腾跃( prance的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
35
hitched
|
|
| （免费）搭乘他人之车( hitch的过去式和过去分词 )； 搭便车； 攀上； 跃上 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
36
spun
|
|
| v.纺，杜撰，急转身 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
37
scattered
|
|
| adj.分散的，稀疏的；散步的；疏疏落落的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
38
wrangler
|
|
| n.口角者，争论者；牧马者 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
39
galloping
|
|
| adj. 飞驰的, 急性的 动词gallop的现在分词形式 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
购买
在百度中搜索