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儿童英语读物 The Spy Game CHAPTER 9 The Plot Thickens

时间:2017-12-08 03:24来源:互联网 提供网友:qing   字体: [ ]
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    (单词翻译:双击或拖选)

When the Aldens arrived back at the Penner place, they headed straight for the attic1. They checked every inch of the hope chest for secret compartments2. But they turned up nothing.

“I don’t get it,” Benny said, the game of checkers tucked under his arm. “I was so sure we were on the right track this time.”

Jessie could feel her brother’s disappointment. “Never mind,” she said, putting a comforting arm around him. “We’ll have a nice game of checkers tonight. That’ll be fun, right?”

Benny gave a half-hearted smile.

“Do you think we should’ve checked with Amanda first?” Violet wondered. “Before bringing the game downstairs, I mean.”

“I’m sure it’ll be fine, Violet,” Jessie said as they walked along the hallway.

Once again, the four children paused in front of the photograph of Dora. “There must be a clue we’re not seeing,” Henry said thoughtfully.

Nobody said anything for a moment. Then Violet suddenly gasped4.

“Carly Boyd!” she cried, her eyes wide.

“Are you talking about the waitress at the diner?” Benny asked.

Violet nodded. “I couldn’t figure out where I’d seen her before.” Seeing their puzzled faces, she added, “Don’t you get it? Carly Boyd looks exactly like Dora!”

“What?” Henry laughed. “You’re kidding, right?”

Violet pulled the flyer from her back pocket. “Take a look for yourself,” she said, flattening5 out the creases6.

The other Aldens looked from the flyer to the photograph and back again. “I can’t believe it!” Jessie said in astonishment7.

“Carly looks enough like Dora to be her twin sister,” added Henry.

“They have the same heart-shaped faces and fair hair,” said Violet, who had an artist’s eye for detail.

“And they’re both tall and slim,” added Jessie. “Carly’s the spitting image of Dora, as Grandfather would say.”

“It’s the strangest thing.” Violet felt an icy chill up her spine8. “What do you think it means?”

“Maybe Carly’s related to the Penner family,” Jessie said. “That would explain why they look so much alike.”

“We can ask Amanda about it when she gets home,” Violet proposed.

Henry had an idea. “Why don’t we cool off in the creek9 while we’re waiting?” And the others were quick to agree.

The Aldens changed into their swimsuits, then made their way to Fudge Hollow. They lost all track of time as they splashed around in the creek. The afternoon shadows were growing longer when they finally headed back to the house. After changing back into T-shirts and shorts, they went downstairs to help Mrs. Dawson with dinner. But when they got close to the kitchen, they paused at the sound of Mrs. Dawson’s voice.

“No, I’m sure they don’t suspect a thing, Steve,” Mrs. Dawson was saying. She was talking on the phone, her back to the children. “Yes … I know it would ruin everything if they figure out what’s really going on.”

The Aldens couldn’t believe their ears. Was it possible that Mrs. Dawson and Steve Kooner were partners in crime?

“No, not yet,” Mrs. Dawson went on. “But I’m keeping my fingers crossed … If I can open Pandora’s box, my dreams will finally come true.”

This made Benny gasp3, and Mrs. Dawson whirled around. Her eyes widened when she saw the Aldens in the kitchen doorway10.

“Oh, you gave me a start!” she cried, hanging up the phone. “I … um, was just …” She didn’t seem to know what to say. It was almost as though she’d been caught doing something wrong.

“We thought we’d help with dinner,” Violet said quietly.

“Oh, everything’s ready, Violet,” Mrs. Dawson told her. “I thought chicken and salads would hit the spot. I always say, nothing beats a cold dinner on a hot day.” She seemed relieved to be talking about something else.

As the Aldens sat down at the table, Mrs. Dawson hurried out of the room, looking troubled.

“Can you believe it?” Jessie said, keeping her voice low. “Steve and Mrs. Dawson are working together.”

“You don’t really think they’re trying to steal Amanda’s gold, do you?” Violet asked.

“I don’t want to think that, Violet,” Jessie said. “But she was talking about Pandora’s box. What else can it mean?”

“It means she’s tracking down clues,” said Benny.

“And did you notice?” Henry added. “Mrs. Dawson couldn’t even look us in the eye.”

Violet had to admit it seemed suspicious. But she didn’t want to believe Mrs. Dawson would do something so awful.

They were quiet for a while as they ate their dinner. It wasn’t until they were clearing the table that Benny spoke11 up.

“Mrs. Dawson’s dream is to open a bookstore,” he reminded them. “And that costs a lot of money.”

Henry stacked the plates on the counter. “Maybe she’ll do whatever it takes to make her dream come true.”

“Even stealing from Amanda?” cried Violet.

“We all like her,” Jessie told her sister. “But we have to consider every possibility.”

Violet opened a drawer. She was looking for a dishtowel. “I know how it sounds, but—” She suddenly stopped talking.

“What’s wrong, Violet?” asked Jessie, who was up to her elbows in soapy water.

“There’s something here I think you should see.” Violet’s eyes were huge. “Something very strange.”

The other Aldens hurried over. “I found this under the dishtowels,” Violet said, as she removed a photograph from the drawer.

The photo, badly faded with age, showed a dark-haired young woman in a white gown. There was a man in the picture, too. He had a mustache, and his hair was parted in the middle.

Benny had a thought. “I bet that’s the missing picture from the family album.”

Jessie was staring hard at the photo. “Isn’t that Brandon Penner?”

“Got to be,” said Henry.

“How can you be so sure?” Benny asked.

“Remember the photo in the family album?” Jessie reminded her little brother. “The one of Brandon Penner, I mean.”

“Oh, right!” said Benny. “That does look like the man in the album.”

“There’s only one problem,” Jessie said. “Who’s the woman in this photo?”

“Turn it over,” Violet instructed her sister.

Jessie flipped12 the photograph. She read the words on the back aloud: “The Penners’ wedding day—February, 1904.”

For a moment, the Aldens just stared at one other in stunned13 silence. Finally, Henry spoke up.

“How can that be Brandon’s wedding day?” he said. “The woman in the wedding dress sure isn’t Dora.”

“Then … who is she?” Benny asked in a hushed voice.

“It must be Abigail,” Violet said as she put the photograph back in the drawer.

Jessie nodded. “Grandfather seemed sure Brandon had married someone named Abigail.”

Benny scratched his head. “But … how can there be two brides?”

Jessie shrugged14. Benny looked at Henry and then at Violet. They didn’t seem to have any answers, either.

“If Brandon married Abigail,” said Violet, “then who on earth was Dora?”

“I was just wondering the same thing,” said Henry. “I can’t get my head around it. Can you, Jessie?”

But Jessie didn’t answer. She was thinking hard. She had the strangest feeling that she knew something—something important. But it was stuck in the back of her mind and she couldn’t shake it loose. Then a funny look suddenly came over her face.

“Don’t keep us in the dark, Jessie,” Henry pleaded. “What are you thinking?”

“Remember when Amanda dropped a business card the other day?” Jessie said.

Violet nodded. “She tore it up.”

“Well, I just remembered something,” Jessie continued. “It was a business card for the Greenfield Modeling Agency!”

Henry’s eyebrows15 shot up. “Are you sure, Jessie?”

“Very sure.”

“Hey!” said Benny. “Isn’t that where Carly Boyd works?”

“Yes, it is,” Jessie said with a nod.

“Do you think it’s just a coincidence?” asked Violet.

“Maybe,” said Jessie. “Or maybe … maybe Carly Boyd doesn’t just look like Dora Penner—maybe she is Dora Penner.”

“What do you mean?” Henry asked.

“Listen, Carly looks just like Dora, right? Plus, she’s a model for the Greenfield Modeling Agency,” said Jessie. “And on top of that, Amanda just happened to have their business card.”

“You mean … you think Amanda hired Carly to pose for that photo?” Violet wondered.

“I think it’s possible,” Jessie replied.

“Amanda tried to fool us?” Benny asked. A frown crossed his round face.

“I can’t be sure,” said Jessie. “But it looks that way.”

“That’s interesting Jessie,” Henry said. “But why would she do such a thing?”

Before Jessie could answer, they heard the front door open.

“That must be Amanda!” said Violet.

“Let’s find out what this is all about,” Henry said.

Violet wasn’t so sure about this. “But … what if we’re wrong?”

“Don’t worry, Violet,” Henry assured her. “We’ll just ask a few questions and see how Amanda reacts. There’s nothing wrong with that, is there?”

“No, I suppose not,” Violet said.

The Aldens had plenty of questions. The problem was, they didn’t have any answers.
 


点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 attic Hv4zZ     
n.顶楼,屋顶室
参考例句:
  • Leakiness in the roof caused a damp attic.屋漏使顶楼潮湿。
  • What's to be done with all this stuff in the attic?顶楼上的材料怎么处理?
2 compartments 4e9d78104c402c263f5154f3360372c7     
n.间隔( compartment的名词复数 );(列车车厢的)隔间;(家具或设备等的)分隔间;隔层
参考例句:
  • Your pencil box has several compartments. 你的铅笔盒有好几个格。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • The first-class compartments are in front. 头等车室在前头。 来自《简明英汉词典》
3 gasp UfxzL     
n.喘息,气喘;v.喘息;气吁吁他说
参考例句:
  • She gave a gasp of surprise.她吃惊得大口喘气。
  • The enemy are at their last gasp.敌人在做垂死的挣扎。
4 gasped e6af294d8a7477229d6749fa9e8f5b80     
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:
  • She gasped at the wonderful view. 如此美景使她惊讶得屏住了呼吸。
  • People gasped with admiration at the superb skill of the gymnasts. 体操运动员的高超技艺令人赞叹。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
5 flattening flattening     
n. 修平 动词flatten的现在分词
参考例句:
  • Flattening of the right atrial border is also seen in constrictive pericarditis. 右心房缘变平亦见于缩窄性心包炎。
  • He busied his fingers with flattening the leaves of the book. 他手指忙着抚平书页。
6 creases adfbf37b33b2c1e375b9697e49eb1ec1     
(使…)起折痕,弄皱( crease的第三人称单数 ); (皮肤)皱起,使起皱纹
参考例句:
  • She smoothed the creases out of her skirt. 她把裙子上的皱褶弄平。
  • She ironed out all the creases in the shirt. 她熨平了衬衣上的所有皱褶。
7 astonishment VvjzR     
n.惊奇,惊异
参考例句:
  • They heard him give a loud shout of astonishment.他们听见他惊奇地大叫一声。
  • I was filled with astonishment at her strange action.我对她的奇怪举动不胜惊异。
8 spine lFQzT     
n.脊柱,脊椎;(动植物的)刺;书脊
参考例句:
  • He broke his spine in a fall from a horse.他从马上跌下摔断了脊梁骨。
  • His spine developed a slight curve.他的脊柱有点弯曲。
9 creek 3orzL     
n.小溪,小河,小湾
参考例句:
  • He sprang through the creek.他跳过小河。
  • People sunbathe in the nude on the rocks above the creek.人们在露出小溪的岩石上裸体晒日光浴。
10 doorway 2s0xK     
n.门口,(喻)入门;门路,途径
参考例句:
  • They huddled in the shop doorway to shelter from the rain.他们挤在商店门口躲雨。
  • Mary suddenly appeared in the doorway.玛丽突然出现在门口。
11 spoke XryyC     
n.(车轮的)辐条;轮辐;破坏某人的计划;阻挠某人的行动 v.讲,谈(speak的过去式);说;演说;从某种观点来说
参考例句:
  • They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
  • The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。
12 flipped 5bef9da31993fe26a832c7d4b9630147     
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。
13 stunned 735ec6d53723be15b1737edd89183ec2     
adj. 震惊的,惊讶的 动词stun的过去式和过去分词
参考例句:
  • The fall stunned me for a moment. 那一下摔得我昏迷了片刻。
  • The leaders of the Kopper Company were then stunned speechless. 科伯公司的领导们当时被惊得目瞪口呆。
14 shrugged 497904474a48f991a3d1961b0476ebce     
vt.耸肩(shrug的过去式与过去分词形式)
参考例句:
  • Sam shrugged and said nothing. 萨姆耸耸肩膀,什么也没说。
  • She shrugged, feigning nonchalance. 她耸耸肩,装出一副无所谓的样子。 来自《简明英汉词典》
15 eyebrows a0e6fb1330e9cfecfd1c7a4d00030ed5     
眉毛( eyebrow的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • Eyebrows stop sweat from coming down into the eyes. 眉毛挡住汗水使其不能流进眼睛。
  • His eyebrows project noticeably. 他的眉毛特别突出。
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