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Mr. Farrier said the gate was mostly wrought1 iron, remember?” said Jessie. “But it’s not. It’s cast iron. See all these molds? That’s how Mr. Farrier said cast iron was made — by pouring molten iron into molds.”
“Like cake batter2 into a cake pan,” remembered Benny.
“Right,” said Jessie.
“How could Mr. Farrier make a mistake like that?” asked Violet.
“He didn’t,” said Henry, who’d been studying the gate design intently. “He just didn’t want to tell us that he’d discovered the secret of the gate.” He pointed3 to the design. “Old Mr. Fitzhugh made cast-iron molds — hollow ones — and filled them up with gold. It says so right here.”
“Where?” asked Benny. “Where does it say gold?”
“It doesn’t say gold, Benny,” explained Jessie. “But look. It does say, ‘Molds received and filled by F. Fitzhugh.’ ”
“Why would Mr. Fitzhugh want hollow molds? Why would he want to fill them himself unless he had something to hide?”
“That’s exactly it,” said Jessie. “And the only parts of the gate that weren’t cast iron were the outer decorations and parts. Look what it says above the design: Fill and hang.’ ”
“Fill the hollow gate and hang it,” translated Violet in an awed4 voice. “He poured it full of molten gold, just like we saw Mr. Farrier do with the cast-iron molds at his studio.”
“Pirate’s treasure!” cried Benny. “Pirate’s gold!”
“The gold, the gold, we found the gold!” said Violet. Watch barked and pranced5 around.
“Let’s go get the gate,” said Benny.
“And tell Mrs. Ashleigh,” said Jessie.
“Wait!” Henry cried.
They all looked at him in surprise.
“We’ve solved the mystery of the Pirate’s Gate,” said Henry. “But we haven’t solved the mystery of who else knows that the gate is the key to the treasure.”
“Mr. Farrier knows. That’s why he didn’t hang the gate back up,” said Violet. “He must have discovered it when he was fixing it. That’s what made it so important for him to talk to Mrs. Ashleigh. So he could tell her.”
“And whoever tried to break into Mr. Farrier’s shop knows, too,” said Jessie. “Remember? That’s why he was making iron grills6 for his windows. Because someone had tried to break in.”
Henry said, “Of course! And that’s why he asked us so many questions. He wanted to know if we knew.”
“If we hang it up, I think whoever is after the gate will come back for it,” said Jessie. “I think they’ve been following us, watching us. They’ll see us put the gate up. They’ll think we haven’t figured out its secret.”
“Yes. We’ll hang the gate. We’ll set a trap and catch the thief,” said Henry.
The Boxcar Children hurried downstairs. They discovered that Mr. Farrier had opened the kitchen door and leaned the gate against the wall inside.
They looked at the gate with new eyes. It was hard to believe it was made of gold. The cast iron was pretty and graceful7. No sign of gold or treasure showed anywhere.
Very carefully, the four Aldens lifted the gate up and carried it out to the fence. It was heavy, so they had to stop and rest twice. But at last the gate was mounted on its hinges.
“There,” said Jessie in a satisfied voice. “Now the trap is set. All we have to do is watch and wait.”
“It’s getting late,” said Henry. “Almost nighttime. I think the thief will come tonight.”
Just then thunder rumbled9 overhead. They looked up to see the sky filling with clouds. A gust10 of wind blew, and then another, stronger gust. With the third gust, the wind was blowing steadily11. Lightning flashed across the ominous13 clouds.
Mrs. Ashleigh drove up to the house and got out. Grandfather was with her.
“We have good news,” Jessie began.
“Not now, Jessie,” said Mrs. Ashleigh. She didn’t even seem to notice the gate. Her face was worried. “Hurry into the house. We have to get ready. Another hurricane may be on its way!”
“We have a lot of work to do to get ready for it in case it does come,” added Grandfather. “And not much time!”
After that, they didn’t stop moving for a minute. Mrs. Ashleigh checked her supplies to make sure she had plenty of fresh water and flashlight batteries. She told the Aldens to pack up their things, in case they had to evacuate14 the island. Then they went around closing shutters15 over the windows and moving things from outside into the house.
Meanwhile, the wind grew louder and stronger. It howled across the narrow, flat island. Rain began to fall in sheets.
“My hat!” cried Henry as the wind blew it away. The hat flew into the air and whirled out of sight before Henry could even chase it.
“The shutters are all up,” said Grandfather. “Time to go inside.”
They gathered around the kitchen table to eat dinner and watch the weather news on the small television that Mrs. Ashleigh kept there.
“What began as a minor17 storm in the Caribbean has been growing steadily stronger as it moves up the coast,” the weather announcer said. She was standing18 at the foot of a pier19, wearing a raincoat. Behind her, angry waves lashed12 the pilings and sent spray high into the air. “It has now crossed Florida and reached Georgia. Winds of over a hundred miles per hour have been reported. Residents along the coast of Georgia are being evacuated20.” The picture changed to show cars creeping down an interstate highway. Along the edges of the highway, trees whipped back and forth21 in the wind.
“Are we going to have to evacuate like that?” asked Benny, his eyes huge.
“We’ll know in another hour or two,” said Mrs. Ashleigh calmly. “Now let’s make sure all of our flashlights are working. Here are extra batteries in case we need them. There’s a flashlight for everyone.”
Something banged hard against the side of the house. Watch began to bark and Benny jumped. “W-what is that?” he asked. “Is it the hurricane?”
“It sounds as if a shutter16 has come loose,” said Grandfather. “Henry, will you come help me fasten it down?”
Hearing how calm his grandfather sounded, Benny was a little less worried about the storm. When Watch whimpered, he said, “Don’t worry, Watch. I won’t let anything happen to you. If the storm gets too bad, we will leave. Won’t we, Mrs. Ashleigh?”
“Of course, dear,” answered Mrs. Ashleigh.
Even though they wore raincoats and hats and boots, Grandfather and Henry were soaking wet when they came back inside.
On the television, the announcer appeared in front of a map showing where the hurricane was.
“It looks awfully22 close to us,” said Violet.
“The hurricane is moving closer to the South Carolina coast,” said the announcer. “Residents may have to begin evacuation procedures. Stay tuned23 — ”
Just then the lights all flickered24 and went out.
“Oh, no!” cried Benny. Then he hugged Watch and said, “Don’t worry, boy. We have flashlights.”
Even as Benny spoke25, Mrs. Ashleigh turned her flashlight on. Then she lit candles and set them in the middle of the table. She gave flashlights to Henry and Grandfather Alden so they could go to their bedrooms and change into dry clothes.
“When you come back down,” Mrs. Ashleigh said, “we’ll get a puzzle out of the closet and put it together at the kitchen table by candlelight.”
“Sort of like camping out and sitting around a campfire,” said Jessie bravely.
“May I pick out the puzzle?” asked Benny.
Mrs. Ashleigh nodded. “Take a flashlight to the den8. The puzzles are in the cabinet there.”
“I know where they are,” said Violet. “Jessie and I brought them back downstairs and put them there.”
“You can come help me and Watch pick out a puzzle, then,” said Benny. The walk from the kitchen to the den in the dark, with the storm roaring outside, was a little scary. But now that Violet was coming with him, Benny wasn’t worried. He turned on his flashlight and pointed it down the hallway. “Just follow me.”
When Benny and Violet returned to the kitchen, Henry and Grandfather were sitting at the kitchen table.
“We picked out a good puzzle,” said Benny. “With five hundred pieces.”
“It’s a picture of a garden,” added Violet, thinking of the Pirate’s Gate on the fence by the garden outside.
Jessie, who was standing near the kitchen window, leaned over to look out. But the shutters had been closed and she couldn’t see anything. She began to worry. What if the thief came and stole the gate in the middle of the hurricane? They wouldn’t even be able to hear it.
As if reading her thoughts, Henry said, “No one could be out in weather like this, could they, Grandfather? The wind is blowing too hard.”
“I don’t think so,” said Grandfather.
Jessie didn’t think so, either. But still, she decided26 to listen very, very carefully for the thief, just in case.
Mrs. Ashleigh finished putting batteries in the radio and set it on the kitchen counter. They listened as the announcer said, “Still no decision to evacuate . . .”
Then Mrs. Ashleigh turned the puzzle upside down on the table. “Let’s get to work on this puzzle,” she said.
Outside, the storm screamed and howled. Rain battered27 the house and rattled28 against the shutters. But inside the house, in the flickering29 light of the candles, the Boxcar Children were able to stay calm and brave. As the hours passed, even Watch settled down, curling up beneath Benny’s feet as Benny sorted out pieces of the puzzle and fit them into place.
Then suddenly Watch raised his head.
Henry looked up. “Do you hear that?” he asked.
Violet looked up, too. She cocked her head. “It’s not as noisy,” she said. “Is the storm going away?”
“I think it is,” said Grandfather.
Mrs. Ashleigh reached over and fiddled30 with the dials of the radio. Static crackled through the air. Then the announcer’s voice said, “The hurricane has veered31 away from the coast. It is going out to sea. Evacuation will not be necessary. Stay tuned for further details.”
Benny dropped the puzzle piece he was holding. “Is the hurricane gone?” he said.
“Almost,” said Jessie.
“Hooray!” said Benny. “Hooray! Do you hear that, Watch? We don’t have to worry anymore.”
But Watch didn’t agree. He ran out from under the table and leaped at the kitchen door and began to bark with all his might.
收听单词发音 |
1
wrought
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| v.引起；以…原料制作；运转；adj.制造的 | |
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batter
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| v.接连重击；磨损；n.牛奶面糊；击球员 | |
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pointed
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| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
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awed
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| adj.充满敬畏的，表示敬畏的v.使敬畏，使惊惧( awe的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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pranced
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| v.（马）腾跃( prance的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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grills
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| n.烤架( grill的名词复数 )；（一盘）烤肉；格板；烧烤餐馆v.烧烤( grill的第三人称单数 )；拷问，盘问 | |
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graceful
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| adj.优美的，优雅的；得体的 | |
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den
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| n.兽穴；秘密地方；安静的小房间，私室 | |
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rumbled
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| 发出隆隆声，发出辘辘声( rumble的过去式和过去分词 )； 轰鸣着缓慢行进； 发现…的真相； 看穿（阴谋） | |
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gust
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| n.阵风，突然一阵（雨、烟等），（感情的）迸发 | |
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steadily
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| adv.稳定地；不变地；持续地 | |
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lashed
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| adj.具睫毛的v.鞭打( lash的过去式和过去分词 )；煽动；紧系；怒斥 | |
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ominous
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| adj.不祥的，不吉的，预兆的，预示的 | |
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evacuate
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| v.遣送；搬空；抽出；排泄；大(小)便 | |
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shutters
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| 百叶窗( shutter的名词复数 )； （照相机的）快门 | |
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shutter
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| n.百叶窗；(照相机)快门；关闭装置 | |
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minor
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| adj.较小(少)的，较次要的；n.辅修学科；vi.辅修 | |
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standing
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| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
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pier
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| n.码头；桥墩，桥柱；[建]窗间壁，支柱 | |
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evacuated
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| 撤退者的 | |
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forth
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| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
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awfully
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| adv.可怕地，非常地，极端地 | |
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tuned
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| adj.调谐的，已调谐的v.调音( tune的过去式和过去分词 )；调整；（给收音机、电视等）调谐；使协调 | |
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24
flickered
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| （通常指灯光）闪烁，摇曳( flicker的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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25
spoke
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| 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 | |
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decided
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| adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的 | |
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battered
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| adj.磨损的；v.连续猛击；磨损 | |
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rattled
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| 慌乱的，恼火的 | |
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flickering
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| adj.闪烁的，摇曳的，一闪一闪的 | |
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fiddled
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| v.伪造( fiddle的过去式和过去分词 )；篡改；骗取；修理或稍作改动 | |
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veered
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| v.（尤指交通工具）改变方向或路线( veer的过去式和过去分词 )；（指谈话内容、人的行为或观点）突然改变；（指风） （在北半球按顺时针方向、在南半球按逆时针方向）逐渐转向；风向顺时针转 | |
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