儿童英语读物 Mystery in the Sand CHAPTER 8 An Invitation

Violet¹ was hardly in the car when the questions began.

“What happened in there?” Benny asked.

“You’re all right?” Jessie wanted to know.

“Miss Smith didn’t scare² you today, did she?” asked Henry.

Violet laughed. “It was all a surprise,” she said. “It’s hard to know where to begin.”

“Begin at the beginning,” said Benny.

“First,” Violet said, “we were wrong about Miss Smith. So is everyone else, too. She isn’t an artist at all.”

“But—” Benny said.

“Miss Lane³, Miss Ruth Lane, is the artist,” Violet explained. “She’s a tiny little woman. That big window at the back of the Tower House is the room where she works⁴.”

Henry said, “Wait a minute. You said Ruth Lane. We know the house was owned by the Lane family. But no one ever said anything about a Ruth Lane.”

Benny said, “Ruth Lane—R.L. There we are! Those are the initials⁵ on the locket. Now we’re getting somewhere.”

Jessie said, “So there are two women who live in the Tower House.”

“And ten cats,” Violet added⁶. “It’s funny, you don’t notice the way the house smells after you’ve been inside for a little bit.”

The talking stopped for a moment. Then Benny said, “So it looks as if Miss Smith keeps house for Miss Lane.”

“Yes,” Violet agreed. “Miss Lane says she doesn’t like people. She just likes cats. But she was very nice to me. Maybe she surprised herself and liked having company.”

“She probably thinks you are all right because you saved her cat,” Benny said.

“Did Miss Lane paint your picture?” asked Henry.

Violet shook her head. “No, she just made a pencil drawing while I held Ali. She wants me to come back tomorrow at the same time. She gave me this little note. I guess she doesn’t want me to forget.”

“Let’s see,” Benny said. He unfolded⁷ the paper Violet gave him and read, “‘Please be ready for me at 10. Thank you.’”

Suddenly Benny began to feel in all of his pockets until at last he pulled out another paper. He unfolded it and put it beside Miss Lane’s note.

“Look at that!” he said. “I think I understand something now.”

All the Aldens looked at the two notes.

“The same kind of paper!” Violet said.

“And the same writing, I’m almost sure,” Henry said, beginning to smile. “See the ‘thank you’?”

Benny said, “That’s what I think. But what about that funny sentence, ‘All thanks you’? Miss Lane wouldn’t write that, would she, Violet?”

Then Violet made a clever guess. “Let me see those notes,” she said. “Look, Benny, the word isn’t all. It’s the name Ali. The letter i looks like the letter l.”

Benny said, “Then the note says ‘Ali thanks you. We all thank you.’ And Ali Baba is Miss Lane’s favorite cat, so she must have written the note and put it by our trailer. Well, that’s another mystery solved.”

“Not quite,” Henry said. “That thank-you note was written after the grass fire in the Tower House yard. But Miss Lane and Miss Smith didn’t know who we were or where we were living. How did the note get delivered?”

Violet said, “I don’t know. But the note fits with the ladies being so shy. I really never met anyone as shy as Miss Lane and Miss Smith.”

“I wish Miss Lane wanted to paint my picture,” Benny said. “Maybe I could find out how she knew us and where we lived at the beach.”

Just before sunset⁸ that evening, Mr. Lee walked down the beach with Richard. He did not have his metal-finder with him. He was interested in hearing about Violet’s visit.

When he had heard all the news, he said, “There are famous paintings of cats, and the artist’s name is Ruth Lane. There are a lot of people who buy and collect those paintings. In fact I’ve seen cat portraits⁹ by Ruth Lane in New York shops. But I just happen to like dogs better than cats.”

Mr. Lee patted¹⁰ Richard, and the big dog wagged¹¹ his tail.

The Aldens walked with Mr. Lee along the beach until he was nearly home.

“I don’t think I’ll be taking any midnight walks,” Mr. Lee said as they told him goodnight. “I mean I feel I’ll sleep well tonight,” he added quickly.

As the Aldens walked back toward¹² the trailer, Benny said, “I wonder what Mr. Lee meant about not taking a midnight walk. That remark just slipped¹³ out. He seemed sorry right after he said it.”

Henry laughed at Benny and said, “There you go again. Still looking for mysteries.”

But Benny was stubborn¹⁴. “Well, there are still a few mysteries. One big one is why Miss Smith doesn’t want that locket. It just has to have something to do with her or Miss Lane.”

Jessie said, “Tomorrow’s another day. Maybe we’ll find the answer then. I think it’s time for bed.”

On her second visit to Miss Lane, Violet knew what to expect. She knew that the little artist had a sharp tongue, and she didn’t mind too much. Violet felt sorry for the little lady who had shut herself off from people.

As Violet sat down in the chair, Miss Lane said, “Never mind holding the cat. I can paint him in any time. I’ve drawn¹⁵ your arms.”

Then Violet noticed that Miss Lane was painting today, not drawing. She worked quickly, almost as if she were painting a house, Violet thought.

“You paint fast,” Violet remarked.

“I have to,” answered the artist. “This paint dries in twenty minutes. It’s not oil. It’s acrylic paint. Look right at me. Never mind smiling.”

This amused¹⁶ Violet. She couldn’t help smiling a little. She knew Miss Lane was painting her eyes.

Suddenly without any warning¹⁷, Miss Lane said, “Good. That’s enough. Come day after tomorrow.”

Violet got up and started to go out. Miss Lane said, “Look at the picture if you want to.”

“Oh, may I?” asked Violet, surprised. She took one look at the picture. “That looks exactly like me!” she said.

“Yes, it does. Today was easy. Everything came right, and the colors are just right.” Miss Lane looked very much pleased.

Violet said, “It must be wonderful to paint so well. You must be very happy.”

Miss Lane shrugged¹⁸ but said nothing.

Violet asked, “Will you sell this?”

“Probably.”

“I hope people won’t know it is my picture,” Violet exclaimed¹⁹. “You aren’t going to put my name on it, are you?”

“No,” Miss Lane said gruffly. “The name of the picture is ‘Girl with Cat.’”

“Oh, thank you,” Violet said.

“I’ll do more than that,” Miss Lane went on. “I’ll change the mouth so the picture doesn’t look like you. I’ve never changed a picture before for anybody.”

“Oh, that’s very kind of you!” Violet burst²⁰ out. “I know an artist doesn’t like to change his picture.”

Miss Lane had certainly never been called kind before in her life. But this time she did feel kind—and it was odd²¹, she liked it.

Violet said, “Please don’t change the picture. My grandfather might want to buy it. I do wish you’d paint Benny. But nobody could paint him. He’s never still a minute.”

“I expect he can look straight at me for one minute and then later for another minute?”

“Oh, yes. He’d try. He might not like the idea of sitting still to have his picture painted, but he would do it for Grandfather.”

“Who is this grandfather?” Miss Lane asked.

“Grandfather? Well, we live with him. Our parents died years ago. He is James Henry Alden, and my brother Henry is Henry James Alden. He is the best grandfather anyone ever had.”

“You do sound like a very happy family,” Miss Lane said, and Violet thought her voice had a sad sound. The sharpness that had been there earlier was gone.

Violet said slowly, “I have an idea I hope you will like. Here at the beach we have picnics all the time. We like to eat outdoors. Couldn’t you and Miss Smith take the noon hour and come to have lunch with us? It is really not very far. I’d love to have you know Henry and Jessie and Benny.”

Miss Lane shook her head. “No, I don’t think we’d better.”

“Oh, dear!” Violet said. “We’d all like it so much. I’ll tell you how to make it easier. Henry will come for you about noon, and you won’t have to do a thing but get in the car.”

Something in Violet’s voice and in her smile must have touched Miss Lane. She said, “It is very kind of you. Yes, we can come after all. What time did you say?”

“Well, I said noon, but let’s call it quarter of twelve. By that time Benny will be shouting for lunch. He is always hungry. I’ll tell Jessie.”

“Don’t you have to ask her?”

“Oh, no. Jessie is the housekeeper²². She expects things like this—company for lunch.”

Miss Lane called Miss Smith and said, “Mary, we are going out for lunch today.”

Miss Smith looked very surprised.

Violet saw her family waiting in the blue car. She said, “Oh, do please come and meet my family.”

The two women went with Violet to the door. In an instant²³ both Benny and Henry were out of the car. Violet introduced everyone, and the ladies said “How do you do” to each one and nodded stiffly²⁴.

The Aldens tried not to look too surprised to see the two women no one in Beachwood knew.

When the blue car was well on its way, Violet said, “Jessie, I’ve asked Miss Lane and Miss Smith to come for a picnic lunch—today.”

“And are they really coming?” asked Benny.

“Yes, they are!” Violet answered.

Henry laughed and said, “Violet, sometimes you can really surprise us.”

“It wasn’t so hard,” Violet said. “I think no one has ever tried to ask the ladies before. People have thought they were unfriendly. They’re really just shy.”

“And independent, too,” Jessie said. “They have thought they could get along without people.”

Benny said, “Have you ever noticed that cats are like that, too? They are always independent and like to be free. They don’t make the kind of pets dogs do.”

“Perhaps that’s why the Tower House is a home for ten cats,” Henry said. “But I’d still like to know if Miss Lane and Miss Smith left us that note.”

1 violet   

adj.紫色的；n.紫罗兰

参考例句：

• She likes to wear violet dresses.他喜欢穿紫色的衣服。
• Violet is the color of wisdom,peace and strength.紫色是智慧的，和平的和力量的颜色。

2 scare   

vt.恐吓；vi.受惊吓

参考例句：

• I like reading scare stories.我喜欢读恐怖故事。
• The sound of the explosion gave me quite a scare.爆炸声把我吓了一跳。

3 lane   

n.(乡间)小路(巷)；车(跑，泳)道；航道

参考例句：

• There is a shop at the end of this lane.这条胡同的顶头有一家商店。
• The champion is running in lane five.冠军跑在第五跑道上。

4 works   

n.作品，著作；工厂，活动部件，机件

参考例句：

• We expect writers to produce more and better works.我们期望作家们写出更多更好的作品。
• The novel is regarded as one of the classic works.这篇小说被公认为是最优秀的作品之一。

5 initials   

n.首字母，姓名

参考例句：

• a glass tankard with his initials etched on it 刻有他姓名首字母的玻璃大酒杯
• All the towels were personalized with their initials. 所有毛巾上都标有物主姓名的首字母。

6 added   

adj.更多的，附加的，额外的

参考例句：

• They have added a new scene at the beginning.在开头他们又增加了一场戏。
• The pop music added to our enjoyment of the film.片中的流行音乐使我们对这部电影更加喜爱。

7 unfolded   

adj.展开的，解开的v.显露，展现( unfold的过去式和过去分词 )；展开，打开

参考例句：

• As I opened the scroll, a panorama of the Yellow River unfolded. 我打开卷轴时，黄河的景象展现在眼前。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The children listened enthralled as the storyteller unfolded her tale. 讲故事的人一步步展开故事情节，孩子们都听得入迷了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 sunset   

n.日落；衰落时期(尤指人的晚年)

参考例句：

• They'll work on till sunset.他们将继续工作，直到日落。
• The sunset was a very beautiful sight.那落日真是一幅美景。

9 portraits   

n.肖像，画像( portrait的名词复数 )；生动的描写

参考例句：

• Jenny was taken aback by some of the portraits. 其中一些肖像画使詹妮大吃一惊。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• These portraits are great pieces of paint. 这肖像画都是艺术精品。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 patted   

v.轻拍( pat的过去式和过去分词 )；拍成，拍至；表扬，称赞（某人/自己）

参考例句：

• She patted the dog on the head. 她轻轻地拍着狗的头。
• He leaned forward and patted me on the shoulder. 他向前倾着身子并拍我的肩膀。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 wagged   

v.（使）摇动，摇摆( wag的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The dog wagged its tail with pleasure. 那条狗高兴得直摇尾巴。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• She wagged her finger with mock severity. 她故作严厉地摆了摆手指。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 toward   

prep.对于，关于，接近，将近，向，朝

参考例句：

• Suddenly I saw a tall figure approaching toward the policeman.突然间我看到一个高大的身影朝警察靠近。
• Upon seeing her,I smiled and ran toward her. 看到她我笑了，并跑了过去。

13 slipped   

adj.打滑，打滑的v.滑( slip的过去式和过去分词 )；滑脱；下降；（健康状况等）变差

参考例句：

• She had slipped and badly bruised her face. 她滑了一跤，摔得鼻青脸肿。
• The climber slipped and dropped to his death. 攀登者一失足掉下去摔死了。

14 stubborn   

adj.难以移动，去除的，固执的，顽固的

参考例句：

• I can not cope with that boy;he is stubborn.我对付不了那个孩子，他很固执。
• When he's in his stubborn mood,he isn't easily talked round.他那股牛劲上来了，一时不容易说服。

15 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。

16 amused   

adj.被逗笑的；愉快的；顽皮的v.“amuse”的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• My funny drawings amused the kids. 我的滑稽图画把孩子们逗乐了。
• There was an amused look on the President's face. 总统面带愉悦的神情。

17 warning   

n.警告，告诫，训诫，警戒，警报

参考例句：

• The other side paid no attention to our warning.对方不重视我方的警告。
• He realized that his doctor was warning him off drink.他意识到医生在告诫他戒酒。

18 shrugged   

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》

19 exclaimed   

vt.exclaim的过去式v.呼喊，惊叫，大声说( exclaim的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• "We have a good chance of winning," he exclaimed optimistically. “我们很可能获胜。”他乐观地喊道。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• She exclaimed in delight when she saw the presents. 她见到礼品高兴得叫了起来。 来自《简明英汉词典》

20 burst   

vi.（burst，burst）爆炸；爆破；爆裂；爆发；vt.使…破裂；使…炸破；n.突然破裂；爆发

参考例句：

• We all held our breath till the bomb burst.我们屏住呼吸直到炸弹爆炸。
• She suddenly burst into song.她突然唱起歌来。

21 odd   

adj.奇特的；临时的；奇数的；n.[pl.]机会

参考例句：

• She looks a bit odd.I wonder what has happened to her.她的神色有些异样，不知出了什么事。
• He's an odd character and no mistake!他的确是个怪人！

22 housekeeper   

n.管理家务的主妇，女管家

参考例句：

• A spotless stove told us that his mother is a diligent housekeeper.炉子清洁无瑕就表明他母亲是个勤劳的主妇。
• She is an economical housekeeper and feeds her family cheaply.她节约持家，一家人吃得很省。

23 instant   

adj.紧迫的；立即的；本月的；已配制好的时刻；瞬息，霎时

参考例句：

• If you don't leave this instant,I will scream.你要是不马上离开，我就喊了。
• It all happened in an instant.这一切都发生在一刹那间。

24 stiffly   

adv. 顽固地, 硬

参考例句：

• His manner was stiffly formal.他的举止十分僵硬。
• He got out of bed stiffly.他手脚不灵便地起了床。