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儿童英语读物 The Disappearing Friend Mystery CHAPTER 8 What’s Wrong with Beth?

时间:2017-07-21 08:13来源:互联网 提供网友:qing   字体: [ ]
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That evening The Boxcar Helpers got a late night phone call. Jessie answered the phone. “Hello?”

“This is Gail Jackson. I’m sorry to call you so late,” a woman’s pleasant voice sounded on the phone. “But it’s something of an emergency, and I saw your signs for the helper service.”

“We’ll help you if we can,” said Jessie.

“Oh, I hope you can. I need a baby-sitter for Shirley. She’s three. I have a meeting I must attend, and her regular baby-sitter canceled.”

“I think we can help,” said Jessie. “But let me call you back.”

She carefully wrote down the time and place of the baby-sitting job, then hung up the phone and turned around to talk to the others.

“Mrs. Jackson, over on Walnut1 Street, needs us to baby-sit for her daughter Shirley tomorrow afternoon from one until four-thirty,” she told them.

“Uh-oh,” said Henry. “I’m weeding Mrs. Paul’s flowerbeds tomorrow afternoon.”

“And I’m walking the Peterson’s Great Dane,” said Jessie.

“I don’t think I could baby-sit for a three-year-old by myself,” said Violet.

They all looked at Benny. “I’m too young,” said Benny. “Aren’t I?”

“I’m afraid so, Benny,” said Henry.

“Beth and I could do it together,” suggested Violet.

“I don’t know if we should ask her, Violet. She’s been acting2 awfully3 strange lately,” said Jessie.

“I don’t think so,” said Violet stubbornly.

“Well.” Henry looked thoughtful. “If the two of you were together, what could go wrong?”

“That’s true,” agreed Jessie.

“Good,” said Violet. “Then I’ll call Beth and ask her.”

Violet did just that, and Beth sounded surprised and pleased. “I’ll be there,” she assured Violet.

Mrs. Jackson was also pleased when Jessie called her back. “I am so glad,” she told Jessie. “Your helper service is a life-saver!”

The next day, Violet rode her bike over to the Jacksons’. The Jacksons lived on a quiet, shady street near the Aldens. The white house had cheerful blue shutters4 on the windows, and a big old apple tree out front. Squirrels were running around as Violet pedaled up the driveway.

Violet propped5 her bicycle against the garage and turned, laughing, to watch the squirrels scampering6 about. Just then, Beth came riding up the driveway. She skidded7 to a halt and sent the squirrels scurrying8 away in fright.

Violet was a little surprised, too.

Beth put her bicycle beside Violet’s then walked with Violet up to the front door.

“Right on time,” said a firm voice as the front door opened.

“Hello,” said Violet softly. “I’m Violet Alden, and . . . oh!”

The woman in the door was tall and thin, and she had bright red hair. She was the angry doctor from the Greenfield Hospital!

“Hello,” said the woman. “I’m Dr. Jackson.”

“I’m Beth Simon,” said Beth.

Violet didn’t know quite what to say.

As if she could understand how surprised Violet was, Dr. Jackson said, “Come on in. I had to have a baby-sitter, and I didn’t know whom to call. Then I remembered seeing your sign in the flower shop. And, for that matter, seeing the rest of your signs all over Greenfield.”

“Oh,” said Violet.

“Your service is a good one,” said Dr. Jackson. “I don’t agree that a new hospital wing is the best idea, but it is better than nothing.” She paused and looked thoughtful. “And I admire people, especially young people, who are willing to work for something they believe in. So I decided9 to call you.” Dr. Jackson didn’t smile, but she didn’t look so stern now.

“Th-thank you,” said Violet, still very surprised.

“This is Shirley,” said Dr. Jackson. A little girl in neat blue denim10 overalls11, with her hair in two fat pigtails, came up to Dr. Jackson and grabbed her hand.

Violet smiled. “Hello, Shirley.”

Shirley looked at Violet thoughtfully. “I’m three,” she announced.

Dr. Jackson smiled. “Shirley just had a birthday,” she explained. “Shirley, this is Beth and this is . . . ?”

“Violet Alden,” said Violet.

“Violet,” repeated Dr. Jackson. “They will be staying with you until I come back in a little while. Remember, I told you about that?”

Shirley nodded solemnly.

“Good,” said Dr. Jackson. “Now, Beth and Violet, here is a phone number where I can be reached if anything comes up. There’s a snack for Shirley when she gets hungry this afternoon in the kitchen—banana pudding and milk. There are other things, too, if you get hungry, so please make yourselves at home. I’ll be back by four-thirty.”

Dr. Jackson kissed Shirley good-bye and hurried out the door.

Violet took Shirley’s hand. “You know, I have a brother a little bit older than you. His name is Benny.”

Shirley looked at Violet and at Beth. Then she let go of Violet’s hand and sat down on the floor and began to cry.

“Mammaaa,” howled Shirley.

“Oh, Shirley. Don’t cry. Your mother will be back in just a little while.”

“Mammmaa,” cried Shirley louder.

“Shhh,” said Violet soothingly12.

“Good grief,” said Beth.

Violet took Shirley’s hand and pulled her to her feet. “You take her other hand, Beth,” she said.

“Why?” asked Beth.

“We’ll take her outside in the backyard. If we can get her to play, she’ll forget about her mother and stop crying.”

In the backyard was a big sandbox full of toys. “Here,” said Violet. “We’ll build sand castles. Would you like to build sand castles, Shirley?”

Shirley kept crying.

“Good grief, stop it!” snapped Beth, snatching her hand free from Shirley’s.

Violet looked at Beth in surprise.

“What a brat,” said Beth.

“She’s just scared because her mother’s gone and we’re strangers. If you try to understand, it’s not so hard,” Violet said.

Beth folded her arms and sat down on the edge of the sandbox. “Well . . . do something.”

Beth is acting so strangely, thought Violet. Gently she led Shirley into the sandbox. She sat down by her and began to pour sand into the different colored containers.

Watching Violet, Shirley gradually began to stop crying. Then she was only sniffling. Suddenly, she reached out for a container.

“Mine,” she said, turning the container upside down to make a square sand tower.

“Good, Shirley,” said Violet.

As they played in the sandbox, Violet told Beth about Dr. Jackson and the conversation the Aldens had overheard at the hospital. “We wondered if Dr. Jackson might be the one who didn’t want us to raise money for the hospital,” said Violet. “But it doesn’t look that way, does it? I don’t think she played all those terrible tricks on us, do you?”

Beth, who had been sitting on the edge of the sandbox watching, folded her arms. “You never know,” she said.

“Well, I don’t think it is Dr. Jackson,” said Violet. “Are you hungry, Shirley? I think it’s time for your snack.”

The two girls took Shirley inside for her snack and sat with her. While she ate her banana pudding, Beth and Violet had milk.

“Can you say banana pudding?” Violet asked Shirley.

“Nannaning,” said Shirley.

Violet smiled, then looked up. Beth was staring at her.

“Is something wrong?” asked Violet.

Beth jumped. “Wrong? No. Of course not.”

But Violet couldn’t help but notice how uncomfortable Beth seemed. She wasn’t acting like herself at all.

Maybe her brothers and sister had been right about Beth, thought Violet. But she didn’t want to believe it.

Violet was relieved when Dr. Jackson came back, and it was time to go home. Beth said a quick good-bye to Violet and dashed off on her bicycle.

That night after dinner, Violet told everyone about the baby-sitting job and Dr. Jackson.

“Dr. Jackson?” asked Grandfather. “I know Dr. Jackson. She speaks her mind. But she is a good doctor, and a good person.”

“We wondered if she would not like us raising money for the new wing, since she was against building it,” said Jessie. “But it doesn’t look that way now.”

“No,” said Grandfather. He got up from the dinner table. “I’ll be in my study for a little while.”

After Grandfather left, Jessie said thoughtfully, “Still, something strange is going on. Maybe it is Beth. You did say she was acting nervous, Violet.”

“Maybe we shouldn’t be friends with Beth,” said Benny.

“That’s not fair,” protested Violet angrily. “You can’t just stop being friends with someone. You have to at least give her a chance.”

Henry nodded. “You’re right, Violet. Besides, the person who’s doing all these mean things could be Charlie the Fix-it Man.”

“Well,” said Jessie, “I hope we solve this mystery soon. But how are we going to do that?”

No one had an answer.


点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 walnut wpTyQ     
n.胡桃,胡桃木,胡桃色,茶色
参考例句:
  • Walnut is a local specialty here.核桃是此地的土特产。
  • The stool comes in several sizes in walnut or mahogany.凳子有几种尺寸,材质分胡桃木和红木两种。
2 acting czRzoc     
n.演戏,行为,假装;adj.代理的,临时的,演出用的
参考例句:
  • Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她,她只是假装的。
  • During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代,她的表演生涯黯然失色。
3 awfully MPkym     
adv.可怕地,非常地,极端地
参考例句:
  • Agriculture was awfully neglected in the past.过去农业遭到严重忽视。
  • I've been feeling awfully bad about it.对这我一直感到很难受。
4 shutters 74d48a88b636ca064333022eb3458e1f     
百叶窗( shutter的名词复数 ); (照相机的)快门
参考例句:
  • The shop-front is fitted with rolling shutters. 那商店的店门装有卷门。
  • The shutters thumped the wall in the wind. 在风中百叶窗砰砰地碰在墙上。
5 propped 557c00b5b2517b407d1d2ef6ba321b0e     
支撑,支持,维持( prop的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • He sat propped up in the bed by pillows. 他靠着枕头坐在床上。
  • This fence should be propped up. 这栅栏该用东西支一支。
6 scampering 5c15380619b12657635e8413f54db650     
v.蹦蹦跳跳地跑,惊惶奔跑( scamper的现在分词 )
参考例句:
  • A cat miaowed, then was heard scampering away. 马上起了猫叫,接着又听见猫逃走的声音。 来自汉英文学 - 家(1-26) - 家(1-26)
  • A grey squirrel is scampering from limb to limb. 一只灰色的松鼠在树枝间跳来跳去。 来自辞典例句
7 skidded 35afc105bfaf20eaf5c5245a2e8d22d8     
v.(通常指车辆) 侧滑( skid的过去式和过去分词 );打滑;滑行;(住在)贫民区
参考例句:
  • The car skidded and hit a lamp post. 那辆汽车打滑撞上了路灯杆。
  • The car skidded and overturned. 汽车打滑翻倒了。
8 scurrying 294847ddc818208bf7d590895cd0b7c9     
v.急匆匆地走( scurry的现在分词 )
参考例句:
  • We could hear the mice scurrying about in the walls. 我们能听见老鼠在墙里乱跑。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
  • We were scurrying about until the last minute before the party. 聚会开始前我们一直不停地忙忙碌碌。 来自辞典例句
9 decided lvqzZd     
adj.决定了的,坚决的;明显的,明确的
参考例句:
  • This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
  • There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。
10 denim o9Lya     
n.斜纹棉布;斜纹棉布裤,牛仔裤
参考例句:
  • She wore pale blue denim shorts and a white denim work shirt.她穿着一条淡蓝色的斜纹粗棉布短裤,一件白粗布工作服上衣。
  • Dennis was dressed in denim jeans.丹尼斯穿了一条牛仔裤。
11 overalls 2mCz6w     
n.(复)工装裤;长罩衣
参考例句:
  • He is in overalls today.他今天穿的是工作裤。
  • He changed his overalls for a suit.他脱下工装裤,换上了一套西服。
12 soothingly soothingly     
adv.抚慰地,安慰地;镇痛地
参考例句:
  • The mother talked soothingly to her child. 母亲对自己的孩子安慰地说。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • He continued to talk quietly and soothingly to the girl until her frightened grip on his arm was relaxed. 他继续柔声安慰那姑娘,她那因恐惧而紧抓住他的手终于放松了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
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