死亡约会 Part II Chapter 15（2）

 

Poirot cast a quick glance at the little group of three people on his right, then turned his gaze tothe five people huddled¹ together on his left—a group of people with frightened eyes.

Poirot said quietly: ‘When Colonel Carbury mentioned this business to me, I gave him myopinion as an expert. I told him that it might not be possible to bring proof—such proof as wouldbe admissible in a court of law—but I told him very definitely that I was sure I could arrive at thetruth — simply by questioning the people concerned. For let me tell you this, my friends, toinvestigate a crime it is only necessary to let the guilty party or parties talk—always, in the end,they tell you what you want to know!’ He paused.

‘So, in this case, although you have lied to me, you have also, unwittingly, told me the truth.’

He heard a faint sigh, the scrape of a chair on the floor to his right, but he did not look round.

He continued to look at the Boyntons.

‘First, I examined the possibility of Mrs Boynton having died a natural death—and I decidedagainst it. The missing drug—the hypodermic syringe—and above all, the attitude of the deadlady’s family all convinced me that that supposition could not be entertained.

‘Not only was Mrs Boynton killed in cold blood—but every member of her family was aware ofthe fact! Collectively they reacted as guilty parties.

‘But there are degrees in guilt². I examined the evidence carefully with a view to ascertainingwhether the murder—yes, it was murder—had been committed by the old lady’s family acting⁴ ona concerted plan.

‘There was, I may say, overwhelming motive⁵. One and all stood to gain by her death—both inthe financial sense—for they would at once attain⁶ financial independence and indeed enjoy veryconsiderable wealth—and also in the sense of being freed from what had become an almostinsupportable tyranny.

‘To continue: I decided³, almost immediately, that the concerted theory would not hold water.

The stories of the Boynton family did not dovetail neatly⁷ into each other, and no system ofworkable alibis⁸ had been arranged. The facts seemed more to suggest that one—or possibly two—members of the family had acted in collusion and that the others were accessories after the fact. Inext considered which particular member or members—were indicated. Here, I may say, I wasinclined to be biased⁹ by a certain piece of evidence known only to myself.’

Here Poirot recounted his experience in Jerusalem.

‘Naturally, that pointed¹⁰ very strongly to Mr Raymond Boynton as the prime mover in the affair.

Studying the family, I came to the conclusion that the most likely recipient¹¹ of his confidences thatnight would be his sister Carol. They strongly resembled each other in appearance andtemperament, and so would have a keen bond of sympathy and they also possessed¹³ the nervousrebellious temperament¹² necessary for the conception of such an act. That their motive was partlyunselfish—to free the whole family and particularly their younger sister—only made the planningof the deed more plausible¹⁴.’ Poirot paused a minute.

Raymond Boynton half opened his lips, then shut them again. His eyes looked steadily¹⁵ at Poirotwith a kind of dumb agony in them.

‘Before I go into the case against Raymond Boynton, I would like to read to you a list ofsignificant points which I drew up and submitted to Colonel Carbury this afternoon.

Significant points

1. Mrs Boynton was taking a mixture containing digitalin.

2. Dr Gerard missed a hypodermic syringe.

3. Mrs Boynton took definite pleasure in keeping her family from enjoying themselves with otherpeople.

4. Mrs Boynton, on the afternoon in question, encouraged her family to go away and leave her.

5. Mrs Boynton is a mental sadist.

6. The distance from the marquee to the place where Mrs Boynton was sitting is (roughly) twohundred yards.

7. Mr Lennox Boynton said at first he did not know what time he returned to the camp, but later headmitted having set his mother’s wrist-watch to the right time.

8. Dr Gerard and Miss Genevra Boynton occupied tents next door to each other.

9. At half-past six, when dinner was ready, a servant was dispatched to announce the fact to MrsBoynton.

10. Mrs Boynton, in Jerusalem, used these words: “I never forget. Remember that. I’ve neverforgotten anything.”

‘Although I have numbered the points separately, occasionally they can be bracketed in pairs.

That is the case, for instance, with the first two. Mrs Boynton taking a mixture containing digitalis.

Dr Gerard had missed a hypodermic syringe. Those two points were the first thing that struck meabout the case, and I may say to you that I found them most extraordinary — and quiteirreconcilable. You do not see what I mean? No matter. I will return to the point presently. Let itsuffice that I noticed those two points as something that had definitely got to be explainedsatisfactorily.

 

1 huddled   

挤在一起（huddle的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• We huddled together for warmth. 我们挤在一块取暖。
• We huddled together to keep warm. 我们挤在一起来保暖。

2 guilt   

n.犯罪；内疚；过失，罪责

参考例句：

• She tried to cover up her guilt by lying.她企图用谎言掩饰自己的罪行。
• Don't lay a guilt trip on your child about schoolwork.别因为功课责备孩子而使他觉得很内疚。

3 decided   

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。

4 acting   

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。

5 motive   

n.动机，目的；adv.发动的，运动的

参考例句：

• The police could not find a motive for the murder.警察不能找到谋杀的动机。
• He had some motive in telling this fable.他讲这寓言故事是有用意的。

6 attain   

vt.达到，获得，完成

参考例句：

• I used the scientific method to attain this end. 我用科学的方法来达到这一目的。
• His painstaking to attain his goal in life is praiseworthy. 他为实现人生目标所下的苦功是值得称赞的。

7 neatly   

adv.整洁地，干净地，灵巧地，熟练地

参考例句：

• Sailors know how to wind up a long rope neatly.水手们知道怎样把一条大绳利落地缠好。
• The child's dress is neatly gathered at the neck.那孩子的衣服在领口处打着整齐的皱褶。

8 alibis   

某人在别处的证据( alibi的名词复数 )； 不在犯罪现场的证人； 借口； 托辞

参考例句：

• The suspects all had alibis for the day of the robbery. 嫌疑人均有证据证明抢劫当天不在犯罪现场。
• I'm not trying to beat your alibis any more than I'm trying to prove 'em. 我并不是不让你辩护，我只是想把那个人找出来。

9 biased   

a.有偏见的

参考例句：

• a school biased towards music and art 一所偏重音乐和艺术的学校
• The Methods: They employed were heavily biased in the gentry's favour. 他们采用的方法严重偏袒中上阶级。

10 pointed   

adj.尖的，直截了当的

参考例句：

• He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。
• She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。

11 recipient   

a.接受的,感受性强的 n.接受者,感受者,容器

参考例句：

• Please check that you have a valid email certificate for each recipient. 请检查是否对每个接收者都有有效的电子邮件证书。
• Colombia is the biggest U . S aid recipient in Latin America. 哥伦比亚是美国在拉丁美洲最大的援助对象。

12 temperament   

n.气质，性格，性情

参考例句：

• The analysis of what kind of temperament you possess is vital.分析一下你有什么样的气质是十分重要的。
• Success often depends on temperament.成功常常取决于一个人的性格。

13 possessed   

adj.疯狂的；拥有的，占有的

参考例句：

• He flew out of the room like a man possessed.他像着了魔似地猛然冲出房门。
• He behaved like someone possessed.他行为举止像是魔怔了。

14 plausible   

adj.似真实的，似乎有理的，似乎可信的

参考例句：

• His story sounded plausible.他说的那番话似乎是真实的。
• Her story sounded perfectly plausible.她的说辞听起来言之有理。

15 steadily   

adv.稳定地；不变地；持续地

参考例句：

• The scope of man's use of natural resources will steadily grow.人类利用自然资源的广度将日益扩大。
• Our educational reform was steadily led onto the correct path.我们的教学改革慢慢上轨道了。