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儿童英语读物 The Great Detective Race CHAPTER 6 A Big Question Mark

时间:2017-12-05 06:14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)

“Let’s pack a lunch and take it to Potter’s Creek1 with us,” Violet suggested the next morning.

“That’s an awesome2 idea!” cried Benny. He got out the peanut butter and jelly.

Jessie reached the thermos3 down from the cupboard. “It’s a beautiful day for a picnic in the country.”

“Let’s pack lots of sandwiches,” Benny suggested. “Detective work always makes me hungry.”

This made Henry laugh. “Everything makes you hungry, Benny!” He put a loaf of bread, some cold cuts, lettuce4, and mustard on the counter.

“We’re supposed to find something weird5 at Potter’s Creek,” Violet said, as she washed the lettuce. “I wonder what we’ll find.”

Henry shrugged6. “Could be anything.”

“It’s strange how we figured out the last clue,” Violet added.

“What do you mean, Violet?” Jessie wondered.

“Well, we never did make sense of those alphabet letters.”

“Now that you mention it, Violet,” said Henry, “I guess we didn’t.” He took some apples from the refrigerator.

“We found the hopscotch7 clue without them,” Benny said proudly. “And that means we’re very good detectives.”

Violet frowned. She wasn’t so sure that’s what it meant. She didn’t like leaving any loose ends.

After cleaning up the kitchen, the children loaded their picnic lunch into Jessie’s backpack and set off for Potter’s Creek on their bicycles.

“I’m glad I brought my camera,” Violet said as she rode along. “It’s so beautiful out here in the country.” Photography was one of Violet’s hobbies. She often took her camera along when the Aldens went on trips.

Jessie nodded. “I love the smell of the wildflowers.”

Benny, who was riding in front with Henry, suddenly called back, “There’s Potter’s Creek!”

Sure enough, they soon came to a creek winding8 its way across a clover meadow and under a narrow bridge. Henry propped9 his bike against a tree. So did the others.

Benny glanced all around. “I think Amber10 was right,” he said with a grin.

“About what?” Jessie asked him.

“About us leading the pack,” said Benny. “I don’t see anybody else looking for clues.”

“That’s true.” Jessie looked off into the distance. “We seem to be the only ones here.”

“So where do we start?” Violet asked, as they scrambled11 down to the creek.

“Let’s split up,” Jessie suggested in her practical way. “We can cover more ground that way.”

“Good idea,” said Henry. “If anybody sees anything, shout.”

Jessie and Benny checked along one side of the creek. Henry and Violet searched along the other. When they reached the woods, Jessie noticed Benny eyeing her backpack. She guessed what was coming next.

“You want something to eat,” she said. “Right, Benny?”

“Well, I am kind of hungry,” Benny said with a nod. Then he called out, “Anybody else ready to eat?”

“Count me in,” Henry shouted, giving his little brother the thumbs-up sign.

Violet snapped a few photos as they made themselves comfortable on the grassy12 bank. Jessie handed out the sandwiches while Henry opened the thermos.

“Uh-oh,” said Benny. “I think somebody’s watching us.” He was holding out his special cup as Henry poured the lemonade. It was the cracked pink cup he had found when they were living in the boxcar.

Benny was right. Somebody was standing13 on the bridge in the distance—watching them through binoculars14! Then, as if realizing the Aldens were looking that way, the figure suddenly hurried away.

“I wonder who that was,” said Violet.

“I bet it was somebody else looking for a clue,” Henry said, as he unwrapped a ham sandwich.

“I’m sure you’re right, Henry,” said Jessie. She wasn’t really sure, but she didn’t want to alarm the younger children. She still couldn’t shake the feeling they were being followed.

“I guess we’re not ahead after all,” said Benny. He didn’t sound very happy.

“We still have the other side of the bridge to check out,” Violet said, trying to sound positive. “I have a feeling we’ll find a clue before too long.”

“Maybe,” Henry said. “But we might be on a wild-goose chase.”

Jessie agreed. “I’m been thinking the same thing, Henry.”

Violet had to admit it was possible. “This is a funny place to hide a clue,” she said. “In the middle of nowhere.”

“It’s not just that,” said Henry. “Potter’s Creek is outside of town.” He paused for a moment to let them think about it. “Debra Belmont said all the clues were hidden around Greenfield.”

“But the riddle15 said we’d find something weird at Potter’s Creek,” Benny reminded them.

Jessie frowned. “I have a hunch16 somebody planted a fake clue.”

“And we fell for it,” added Henry. “That’s the kicker.”

“You mean, somebody played a trick on us?” A frown crossed Benny’s round face as the idea began to sink in. “But … why?”

Jessie had an opinion about this. “To throw us off the track.”

“I guess somebody was afraid we’d beat them to the code word,” Henry concluded.

“Who would do something like that?” Benny wondered.

“You know,” said Violet, “I keep thinking about that boy on the skateboard.”

Jessie nodded. “It does seem like an awfully17 strange coincidence that he was at the Morningside playground.”

“Maybe he was tracking down clues,” Benny suggested. “Just like us.”

“I wish I could believe that,” Violet said. “But I don’t.”

“Neither do I,” said Henry. “I have a hunch he was the one who tore the page from Jessie’s notebook.”

“If he did,” Violet reasoned, “then he knew we were headed for the Morningside playground.”

Jessie bit her lip. “And when we went back to get my notebook—” she began.

“He had time to get to the playground and plant the fake clue,” finished Henry.

Jessie nodded as she poured lemonade into her cup. “Remember what he said when he was signing up for the race?”

“‘Does spelling count?’” Henry replied. “Those were his exact words.”

“That would explain the spelling mistake in the message,” said Jessie.

“That’s true,” said Henry. “But we shouldn’t jump to any conclusions until we have more evidence.”

Jessie had another thought. “The boy on the skateboard isn’t the only suspect.”

The others turned to her, puzzled.

“I think we should include Amber Madison on our list.”

Benny looked confused. “But Jessie, Amber isn’t even in the race.”

“That’s right,” Violet said with a nod. “She’s only in town to promote her book.”

“But she wants an radio interview so she can promote it,” Jessie pointed18 out. “She wasn’t very happy to be stuck on the Late Night show—but Mike Devlin will be interviewing the winner of the race on his daytime show.”

“So, if Amber wins,” said Violet, “she’ll get an interview with Mike. Is that what you’re saying, Jessie?”

“That’s exactly what I’m saying.”

“You might be on to something, Jessie,” Henry said thoughtfully. “She could’ve heard us telling Debra about all the mysteries we’ve solved.”

“That would explain why she keeps pumping us for information,” Violet realized.

Benny crunched19 into an apple. “You think Amber planted the fake clue?”

“I wouldn’t be surprised.” Jessie tossed the sandwich wrappers into her backpack. “I bet she was afraid we were close to finding the code word.”

Henry had something to add. “There’s one other person we should add to our list of suspects—Debra Belmont.”

“Debra Belmont?” said Jessie.

“You think Debra sent us on a wild-goose chase, Henry?” asked Violet.

“I don’t want to think she’d do something like that, Violet,” he told her. “But we have to consider everyone. And Mike Devlin told her to make sure a kid doesn’t win the race.”

Benny frowned. “But Debra was so nice to us.”

“I hear you, Benny,” said Henry. “But I don’t think we can rule her out as a suspect.”

“What are we going to do now?” Benny asked.

“I know what we’re not going to do,” said Henry. “We’re not going to give up.”

“No, we’re not,” Jessie agreed. “And if the hopscotch clue was a fake, then we’re back to figuring out what the alphabet letters mean.”

Benny scratched his head. “I’m not sure I remember the letters,” he said. “Oh, yes, I do!” He began to tick each one off on his fingers. “H, I, J, K, L, M, N, O.”

“What could it mean?” Jessie wondered.

Nobody had an answer.


点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 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。
2 awesome CyCzdV     
adj.令人惊叹的,难得吓人的,很好的
参考例句:
  • The church in Ireland has always exercised an awesome power.爱尔兰的教堂一直掌握着令人敬畏的权力。
  • That new white convertible is totally awesome.那辆新的白色折篷汽车简直棒极了.
3 thermos TqjyE     
n.保湿瓶,热水瓶
参考例句:
  • Can I borrow your thermos?我可以借用你的暖水瓶吗?
  • It's handy to have the thermos here.暖瓶放在这儿好拿。
4 lettuce C9GzQ     
n.莴苣;生菜
参考例句:
  • Get some lettuce and tomatoes so I can make a salad.买些莴苣和西红柿,我好做色拉。
  • The lettuce is crisp and cold.莴苣松脆爽口。
5 weird bghw8     
adj.古怪的,离奇的;怪诞的,神秘而可怕的
参考例句:
  • From his weird behaviour,he seems a bit of an oddity.从他不寻常的行为看来,他好像有点怪。
  • His weird clothes really gas me.他的怪衣裳简直笑死人。
6 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》
7 hopscotch 4rAzYB     
n.小孩独脚跳踢石子的游戏,“跳房子”游戏
参考例句:
  • The children squared off the sidewalk to play hopscotch.孩子们在人行道上划出方格,做“跳房子”的游戏。
  • At hopscotch,the best hoppers are the children.在跳房子的游戏中,孩子是最优秀的单足跳者。
8 winding Ue7z09     
n.绕,缠,绕组,线圈
参考例句:
  • A winding lane led down towards the river.一条弯弯曲曲的小路通向河边。
  • The winding trail caused us to lose our orientation.迂回曲折的小道使我们迷失了方向。
9 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。
10 amber LzazBn     
n.琥珀;琥珀色;adj.琥珀制的
参考例句:
  • Would you like an amber necklace for your birthday?你过生日想要一条琥珀项链吗?
  • This is a piece of little amber stones.这是一块小小的琥珀化石。
11 scrambled 2e4a1c533c25a82f8e80e696225a73f2     
v.快速爬行( scramble的过去式和过去分词 );攀登;争夺;(军事飞机)紧急起飞
参考例句:
  • Each scrambled for the football at the football ground. 足球场上你争我夺。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
  • He scrambled awkwardly to his feet. 他笨拙地爬起身来。 来自《简明英汉词典》
12 grassy DfBxH     
adj.盖满草的;长满草的
参考例句:
  • They sat and had their lunch on a grassy hillside.他们坐在长满草的山坡上吃午饭。
  • Cattle move freely across the grassy plain.牛群自由自在地走过草原。
13 standing 2hCzgo     
n.持续,地位;adj.永久的,不动的,直立的,不流动的
参考例句:
  • After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
  • They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。
14 binoculars IybzWh     
n.双筒望远镜
参考例句:
  • He watched the play through his binoculars.他用双筒望远镜看戏。
  • If I had binoculars,I could see that comet clearly.如果我有望远镜,我就可以清楚地看见那颗彗星。
15 riddle WCfzw     
n.谜,谜语,粗筛;vt.解谜,给…出谜,筛,检查,鉴定,非难,充满于;vi.出谜
参考例句:
  • The riddle couldn't be solved by the child.这个谜语孩子猜不出来。
  • Her disappearance is a complete riddle.她的失踪完全是一个谜。
16 hunch CdVzZ     
n.预感,直觉
参考例句:
  • I have a hunch that he didn't really want to go.我有这么一种感觉,他并不真正想去。
  • I had a hunch that Susan and I would work well together.我有预感和苏珊共事会很融洽。
17 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。
18 pointed Il8zB4     
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。
19 crunched adc2876f632a087c0c8d7d68ab7543dc     
v.嘎吱嘎吱地咬嚼( crunch的过去式和过去分词 );嘎吱作响;(快速大量地)处理信息;数字捣弄
参考例句:
  • Our feet crunched on the frozen snow. 我们的脚嘎吱嘎吱地踩在冻雪上。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • He closed his jaws on the bones and crunched. 他咬紧骨头,使劲地嚼。 来自英汉文学 - 热爱生命
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