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儿童英语读物 The Mystery on the Train CHAPTER 7 Shadowing Vincent

时间:2017-08-21 07:11来源:互联网 提供网友:qing   字体: [ ]
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When the Boxcar Children woke up the train was slowing down and Aunt Jane was knocking on their door. “We’re almost in Denver,” she called. “Time to get up.”

They were dressed in just a few minutes. “Why don’t we have breakfast in the station,” Henry suggested. He wanted to make sure no one got off the train with Annie’s portfolio1.

Aunt Jane said that would be fine and so the Aldens got off the train and went into the Denver station. They watched the train exits at the same time they bought postcards and ate cinnamon rolls, orange juice, and milk.

After breakfast, they walked around a little bit. They all agreed it felt funny to be on solid ground again.

“That’s what sailors used to call getting sea legs,” Henry said. “Even after you get off the train you feel as though you’re still on it. It’s the same on a boat.”

“See, I told you riding a train is a lot like sailing,” Benny said. “I guess it’s because you need sea legs for both.”

“Look over there.” Violet pointed2 to a magazine stand.

“That’s Mr. Reeves,” Jessie said. “I wonder why he got off the train? I thought he was going to San Francisco.”

“Maybe he wanted to stretch his legs like us,” Benny said.

“Maybe,” Jessie said. “But let’s watch him carefully. It’s very odd that he collects movie posters, and Annie’s movie posters were stolen.”

“No portfolio in sight,” Henry said. “He’s just buying a newspaper.” The children watched as Mr. Reeves put the newspaper under his arm and headed back for the train.

They hurried to catch up with him. “There you are,” Mr. Reeves said, as though he had been looking for them. “I was wondering what happened to you nice young people and your lovely aunt. Perhaps we can have lunch together? Of course, we can’t all lunch at one table. But we could sit side by side and pass the rolls or something. Right?”

“That would be nice,” Henry said.

“Good,” Mr. Reeves said. “How about lunch today? No—I’m busy today. Tomorrow at noon? Is it a date?”

As Mr. Reeves went on his way, Jessie whispered to Henry, “He sure looks cheerful. Do you think it’s possible . . . ?”

“I can’t believe he’s a thief,” Benny said. “I like Mr. Reeves.”

“He was awfully3 happy. Maybe it’s because he got what he wanted,” Henry said. “Let’s wait as long as we can before we get back on the train and make sure no one comes off carrying a portfolio.”

Mr. Reeves went back into the train with his newspaper tucked under his arm. The Aldens watched carefully as a few more passengers got off and others got on the train. No one saw anything out of the ordinary.

Henry said, “I wish we could help Annie find her portfolio.”

“I just hope we can find Annie,” Violet said softly. “I’d like to talk with her again.”

“Where do you think she might be?” Jessie asked.

“Let’s go to our compartment4 and go over the clues,” Henry said. “Then we can decide what to do.”

Aunt Jane was surprised when the children said they were going back to their compartment. “I thought you would want to ride in the observation car all day. We could have snacks instead of lunch and then have a really nice dinner to celebrate crossing the Continental5 Divide.”

“What’s the Continental Divide?” Benny asked.

“It’s a high ridge6 of mountains that divides the United States,” Henry explained. “All the rivers on the east side of the Continental Divide flow into the Mississippi River. All the rivers on the west side of the Continental Divide run into the Colorado River or the Pacific Ocean.”

“This train is tilting7 up,” Violet said. “Are we going up the mountains now?”

“We’re beginning our steep climb,” Aunt Jane said. “It’s very steep for the next two hours. I think you’d see more in the observation car.”

“We’ll be up there soon,” Henry promised. “We just need to talk something over. You go on up and we’ll meet you.”

The Alden children went into the girls’ compartment and sat down to think. Henry started the conversation by saying, “I think we need to go over our questions and clues. We can’t help Annie unless we know what is going on.”

“The man with the beard and sunglasses is a clue,” Benny said promptly8.

“Why do you think that?” Henry asked.

“I don’t know,” Benny said. “I just have a feeling he’s connected to Annie. Also, who is he? Why was he talking so long to Vincent?”

“The money Annie’s aunt gave Vincent is a clue,” said Jessie. “It was a lot of money for a tip. Why would her aunt pay Vincent to look after Annie if she was angry?”

“She was angry,” Violet said. “Do you think she really paid Vincent to steal the posters?”

“Maybe Vincent is working with the bearded man to steal Annie’s portfolio,” Benny suggested.

“We don’t really know what was in Annie’s portfolio,” Henry said. “We didn’t see the movie posters. And we do know Annie doesn’t always tell the truth.”

“I think Annie was telling the truth about the posters,” Violet said quietly.

“How do you know?” Jessie asked.

Violet began, “I notice things. When people don’t tell the truth, they don’t like to look at you. Annie looked right at me when she talked about going to live with her uncle and selling her posters.”

“But she wouldn’t look at me last night, after we helped her look for anyone who was getting off the train with her portfolio,” Henry said. “Plus, she definitely did not want to tell me where her room was. She was hiding something last night.”

“That’s another clue,” Benny said. Then he asked, “What about Mr. Reeves? Don’t you think it’s strange he’s on the same train as Annie? He collects old movie posters and he says he’s going to San Francisco to buy some. But what if he really planned to steal them from Annie?”

“Yes, Mr. Reeves is definitely a suspect,” Jessie agreed.

“So we have Annie, the bearded man with the sunglasses, Vincent, and Mr. Reeves,” Jessie said. “Any one of them could be the thief.”

“Not Annie,” Violet said. “The posters are hers.”

“We don’t know that for sure,” Henry reminded his sister. “How do we know they’re really hers? Maybe she stole them from her aunt.”

Violet frowned because she didn’t like that idea. She said, “Annie is a nice person and I believe she was telling the truth about the posters.”

“It sounds like we have some good ideas,” Henry said, “but we don’t know where any of these people are. Let’s go up to the observation lounge and see the Rocky Mountains. Sooner or later one of our suspects will show up to see the scenery.”

“The observation lounge sounds like a good place to start,” Violet said. “I’ll take my sketch9 pad.”

The Aldens went up to the observation car where Aunt Jane waited for them. She said, “I’m so happy you’re here. This is the most fabulous10 scenery I’ve ever seen. But there aren’t any more chairs, I’m afraid.”

“That’s okay,” Jessie said.

The children settled down on the floor close to their aunt. They gazed out the window as the train twisted through narrow canyons11 and around the high mountain peaks. They had spectacular views of the beautiful Rocky Mountains.

Vincent came to the observation lounge and stopped in the entrance. He looked up and down the car and when he saw the Aldens he turned away.

Henry stood up. “I think I’ll see where he is going. I’ll be back soon.”

Henry followed Vincent from a distance, making sure that the porter didn’t notice him. He watched as Vincent went up and down the aisles12 of the coach cars, bringing pillows and blankets to people who wanted them. After about ten minutes, Vincent knocked on the door of a sleeping compartment. The door opened and Vincent went in.

Henry stood outside the door, trying to hear what Vincent was saying. All he could make out was that the porter was talking to a man. Then the door started to open again. Vincent stepped out into the hallway.

Henry was bending down, pretending to tie his sneaker. He heard Vincent say, “Then it’s settled. You’ll be leaving the train at Salt Lake City?”

“It’s settled,” the man said in a gruff voice.

Henry followed Vincent into the kitchen where he saw the porter sit down at a table. He had a cup of coffee and a newspaper in front of him.

Henry went back and knocked on the door of the sleeping compartment, where he had seen Vincent before. The door opened a bit and someone said, “Yes?”

“Is Billy there?” Henry asked, making up a name. The door was open just a crack and Henry could see only a part of the man’s face, but he recognized the sunglasses and beard.

“No. I don’t know any Billy.” The man shut the door in Henry’s face.

Henry went quickly back to the observation lounge and sat down on the floor beside the others. Violet looked up from her sketching13 and asked Henry, “Any news?”

“I followed Vincent and he talked to the bearded man. He’s getting off at Salt Lake City tonight.”

“I really wish we could find Annie’s room,” Violet said. “I’m worried about her.”

Aunt Jane left her card game and came over to the children. She said, “Good, you are all here. We are going through Moffat Tunnel now. This is the way we cross the Continental Divide.”

The tunnel seemed very long and the children were glad they were all together. The train wasn’t dark but it was very dark outside. Most of the people in the observation lounge sat quietly and looked out at the black walls of the tunnel without saying anything.

When they came out into the daylight, Violet looked up and smiled. “There’s Annie,” she said. She called over to Annie and said, “Come join us.”

Annie waved to Violet and started toward them. She was limping and as she sat down on the floor beside Henry, she winced14 with pain. She bent15 over to stroke her ankle and said, “It’s good to see you all. I didn’t thank you for helping16 me last night.”

“Why are you limping?” Violet asked.

“I sprained17 my ankle this morning,” Annie said. “I thought I saw someone with a package that looked like my portfolio leaving the train in Denver and I jumped off to try and catch up with him. I fell and sprained my ankle.”

“Did you catch the person?” Violet asked.

“No.” Annie frowned. Then she said, “It will be all right, though. I’m not worried about the portfolio anymore because the insurance company will cover the loss.”

“We watched people get off in Denver,” Henry said. “It’s funny we didn’t see you fall.”

Annie ignored Henry’s comment and asked, “Isn’t this a fabulous trip?”

“I wish I had seen your posters,” Benny said. “I’d like to see movie posters which are worth so much money.”

Annie said, “The posters are gone—that’s all there is to it. So let’s not talk about sad things. I think we’re about to go down the mountain.”

Annie sat with them for a little while. Her ankle obviously hurt her a lot but she said she was all right. “The conductor helped me bandage my ankle,” she said. “I’ll be all right.”

Annie watched Violet sketch interesting people in the observation lounge. About five o’clock, the bearded man with the sunglasses came in for a drink and Violet made a quick sketch of him while he stood at the drinks counter. He took his drink with him and left the car quickly.

Violet showed the sketch to Annie and asked, “Doesn’t he have unusual ears? They are flat on the side but a little pointed on top.”

“Yes, his ears are certainly different.” Annie studied it carefully and said, “You know, there’s something familiar about that man.”

“Do you know him?” Henry asked.

Annie looked carefully at the sketch and shook her head. “No. I’ve never seen him before in my life.”

“Are you sure?” Henry asked.

Annie looked at him with a steady gaze. “I’ve never seen him before in my life,” she repeated quietly. “Why do you ask?”

Henry answered, “Annie, we want to be your friends but we aren’t certain you’ve told us everything.”

“Of course I have,” Annie answered quickly. But this time she flushed and looked away.
 


点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 portfolio 9OzxZ     
n.公事包;文件夹;大臣及部长职位
参考例句:
  • He remembered her because she was carrying a large portfolio.他因为她带着一个大公文包而记住了她。
  • He resigned his portfolio.他辞去了大臣职务。
2 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。
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 compartment dOFz6     
n.卧车包房,隔间;分隔的空间
参考例句:
  • We were glad to have the whole compartment to ourselves.真高兴,整个客车隔间由我们独享。
  • The batteries are safely enclosed in a watertight compartment.电池被安全地置于一个防水的隔间里。
5 continental Zazyk     
adj.大陆的,大陆性的,欧洲大陆的
参考例句:
  • A continental climate is different from an insular one.大陆性气候不同于岛屿气候。
  • The most ancient parts of the continental crust are 4000 million years old.大陆地壳最古老的部分有40亿年历史。
6 ridge KDvyh     
n.山脊;鼻梁;分水岭
参考例句:
  • We clambered up the hillside to the ridge above.我们沿着山坡费力地爬上了山脊。
  • The infantry were advancing to attack the ridge.步兵部队正在向前挺进攻打山脊。
7 tilting f68c899ac9ba435686dcb0f12e2bbb17     
倾斜,倾卸
参考例句:
  • For some reason he thinks everyone is out to get him, but he's really just tilting at windmills. 不知为什么他觉得每个人都想害他,但其实他不过是在庸人自扰。
  • So let us stop bickering within our ranks.Stop tilting at windmills. 所以,让我们结束内部间的争吵吧!再也不要去做同风车作战的蠢事了。
8 promptly LRMxm     
adv.及时地,敏捷地
参考例句:
  • He paid the money back promptly.他立即还了钱。
  • She promptly seized the opportunity his absence gave her.她立即抓住了因他不在场给她创造的机会。
9 sketch UEyyG     
n.草图;梗概;素描;v.素描;概述
参考例句:
  • My sister often goes into the country to sketch. 我姐姐常到乡间去写生。
  • I will send you a slight sketch of the house.我将给你寄去房屋的草图。
10 fabulous ch6zI     
adj.极好的;极为巨大的;寓言中的,传说中的
参考例句:
  • We had a fabulous time at the party.我们在晚会上玩得很痛快。
  • This is a fabulous sum of money.这是一笔巨款。
11 canyons 496e35752729c19de0885314bcd4a590     
n.峡谷( canyon的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • This mountain range has many high peaks and deep canyons. 这条山脉有许多高峰和深谷。 来自辞典例句
  • Do you use canyons or do we preserve them all? 是使用峡谷呢还是全封闭保存? 来自互联网
12 aisles aisles     
n. (席位间的)通道, 侧廊
参考例句:
  • Aisles were added to the original Saxon building in the Norman period. 在诺曼时期,原来的萨克森风格的建筑物都增添了走廊。
  • They walked about the Abbey aisles, and presently sat down. 他们走到大教堂的走廊附近,并且很快就坐了下来。
13 sketching 2df579f3d044331e74dce85d6a365dd7     
n.草图
参考例句:
  • They are sketching out proposals for a new road. 他们正在草拟修建新路的计划。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • "Imagination is busy sketching rose-tinted pictures of joy. “飞舞驰骋的想象描绘出一幅幅玫瑰色欢乐的场景。 来自英汉文学 - 汤姆历险
14 winced 7be9a27cb0995f7f6019956af354c6e4     
赶紧避开,畏缩( wince的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • He winced as the dog nipped his ankle. 狗咬了他的脚腕子,疼得他龇牙咧嘴。
  • He winced as a sharp pain shot through his left leg. 他左腿一阵剧痛疼得他直龇牙咧嘴。
15 bent QQ8yD     
n.爱好,癖好;adj.弯的;决心的,一心的
参考例句:
  • He was fully bent upon the project.他一心扑在这项计划上。
  • We bent over backward to help them.我们尽了最大努力帮助他们。
16 helping 2rGzDc     
n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的,辅助的
参考例句:
  • The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
  • By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。
17 sprained f314e68885bee024fbaac62a560ab7d4     
v.&n. 扭伤
参考例句:
  • I stumbled and sprained my ankle. 我摔了一跤,把脚脖子扭了。
  • When Mary sprained her ankles, John carried her piggyback to the doctors. 玛丽扭伤了足踝,约翰驮她去看医生。
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