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儿童英语读物 The Ghost Town Mystery CHAPTER 5 “Get Off My Land!”

时间:2017-09-20 05:51来源:互联网 提供网友:qing   字体: [ ]
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“What are you going to do?” Benny asked Grandfather.

“Well, first I must call Jay Murphy, my friend who sold me the property, and see what he thinks about Mr. Lacey’s offer,” said Grandfather. “I’ve only owned the property a few weeks. But Jay had that land for years. He knows more about this area than I do.”

“There’s a phone in the dining hall,” Violet said.

James Alden glanced back at the log building. “Yes, it’s on the small table for the guests’ use. However, it’s too public. I’ll use the phone in my cabin.”

The children followed him inside. Grandfather’s cabin was as shabby as the others. A broken shade was tacked1 crookedly2 at the window. The carpet was stained and ripped.

Grandfather picked up the receiver and jiggled the connector button. “No dial tone,” he said, frowning.

“Ours was dead last night,” said Jessie. “When I tried to call for towels.”

At that moment, Marianne Harrington passed by the open door.

“Miss,” Grandfather called. “Our phone is dead.”

“They’re all dead,” Marianne replied. “It happens a lot up here.”

“But we didn’t have a storm last night,” said Henry. “What would cause the phone service to go out?”

Marianne merely shrugged3 and continued on her way.

“Now what?” Violet said.

Grandfather sighed. “I’ll have to drive into Beaverton. That’s the nearest town with a phone.”

“Would you buy us some food?” Benny asked. “I’m still hungry from breakfast!”

“I can top that. I’m still hungry from dinner last night,” Henry added.

“I’ll get some snacks and juices,” Grandfather promised.

“Do you want us to come with you?” Jessie asked.

Grandfather smiled. “You children stay here and enjoy this gorgeous day.” Then he climbed into his rental4 car and drove away.

The other guests were off on various pursuits. Victor Lacey and Robert Williams had gone fishing. Corey had strapped5 on a huge backpack and left on a long hike.

Except for Marianne and Mrs. Harrington, who were busy, the Alden children were alone at Eagles Nest.

“I wish we could take a hike, too,” said Violet. “The mountains are so beautiful.”

Just then Mrs. Harrington came out of the dining hall with a garbage can. She overheard Violet’s remark.

“You can go hiking,” the owner suggested. “There’s an easy trail just past the last cabin. It’s well marked. You’ll be perfectly6 safe.”

Excited, the kids changed into hiking boots and shorts. Marianne fixed7 them paper sack lunches with sandwiches, little bags of potato chips, apples, and bottles of water.

Beyond the last cabin, they found the trail and began the climb uphill.

This time Violet brought her camera. She stopped often to snap pictures of breathtaking views. She kept hoping they’d see an animal, but the wildlife must have heard their clumping8 boots and stayed hidden.

When they reached a flat spot in the trail, the children sat down to eat.

Benny opened his bag eagerly. Then he stared at his sandwich.

“Peanut butter and cucumbers?” he exclaimed in disbelief. “Who ever heard of a peanut-butter-and-cucumber sandwich?”

“You got the good one,” Jessie said, peeking9 between two slices of stale bread. “I have grape jelly and spinach10. Left over from last night’s dinner, I bet.”

Henry’s and Violet’s sandwiches were just as awful. The children made do by pulling out the vegetables and eating the bread. At least the potato chips and apples were okay.

When lunch was over, the children perched on a large boulder11 and stretched out in the noonday sun.

“Look!” Henry cried. “An eagle!”

Fascinated, they watched the eagle’s lazy flight.

“I wish I could fly,” Benny said dreamily. The warm sun made him sleepy. He closed his eyes for a second.

Then Jessie was shaking him. “Benny, wake up.”

“I’m awake,” he said, sitting up. “Where are we?”

“We’re still on the mountain, but we should head back to the motel,” Violet said as she gathered their trash into one sack.

Henry slid down off the rock and helped the others.

“Here’s the trail,” he said. But it seemed different. Were those three round rocks there before? he wondered.

At first no one else noticed if the trail looked different.

Then Jessie said, “I don’t remember that raggedy mountain peak way off in the distance.”

“I don’t, either,” said Violet. “I took lots of pictures, but not one of that mountain.”

“We’re going downhill,” Benny pointed12 out. “We must be on the right trail.”

But the more they walked, the more Henry realized they were on the wrong trail.

“Stop, guys. We’re lost,” he admitted. “It’s my fault. I should have looked around for a second trail.”

“We all should have been paying attention,” Jessie said, trying to make him feel better.

Benny climbed onto a fallen tree. “Hey!” he yelled. “I see smoke!”

Henry quickly joined him. “Smoke means a campsite or maybe even a cabin! Let’s go down.”

They followed the trail to a sunlit clearing. In the center was an old but well-built cabin. Smoke curled from its stone chimney.

“Somebody’s home,” Violet said excitedly. “I’m sure they’ll help us find our way back to Eagles Nest.”

Jessie walked up to the solid door and knocked.

At once, the door flung inward and a huge figure filled the doorway13.

“What do you want?” a booming voice demanded.

Benny immediately thought of a giant in a fairy tale.

“I — uh — ” Jessie stammered14. She fell back a step, startled.

The large figure was a woman. She wore a red-and-black flannel15 shirt over at least two other shirts and men’s jeans. Her large feet were laced into stout16 work boots. The woman’s iron-gray hair was cut short and jaggedly, as if she’d cut it herself with scissors and no mirror.

“What do you want?” the woman demanded again.

This time Henry spoke17 up. “We were hiking and we got on the wrong trail — ”

“You sure did!” the woman boomed. “This is private property. Get off my land!”

“But — ” Before Henry could finish his sentence, the woman went back into the cabin and slammed the door.

The Aldens stared at one another, astonished by the huge, unfriendly woman.

“We won’t find any help here,” Henry said. “Let’s get off the lady’s property like she asked. Maybe we’ll find the right trail if we keep looking.”

In the end, Benny found a fork in the trail. Soon they were back at Eagles Nest.

“Just in time for afternoon refreshments,” Mrs. Harrington told them, setting out a bowl of olives.

Benny didn’t like olives with pits. “No, thanks,” he said. “But something happened up on the trail!”

“You didn’t see a bear, did you?” asked Mrs. Harrington.

“Worse! We saw this lady who was almost as big as a bear!”

Jessie giggled18 at her brother’s description. “We got on the wrong trail and wound up at a cabin. The lady who lived there wasn’t very friendly.”

“She told us to get off her land,” Violet added. “She shut the door in our faces.”

Mrs. Harrington nodded. “That was Old Gert you ran into. She’s harmless, unless she catches you trespassing19.”

“Why would a woman want to live in the woods by herself? Doesn’t she get lonely?” Jessie asked.

Mrs. Harrington shrugged. “Old Gert’s been on that mountain since my Walt brought me here as a bride. She likes to be alone. Just remember she’s harmless, but tough,” she warned. “Don’t cross her path.”

Violet knew Gert was scary, but there was something familiar about the old woman. Something she couldn’t put her finger on.

The kids went outside to wait for Grandfather, who hadn’t returned from Beaverton yet.

“Do you think Old Gert could be the ghost?” Jessie suggested. “She doesn’t like people around. It would be a good way to scare off people.”

Violet shook her head. “She’s too big. The Lady in Gray is smaller and thinner.” Was that what was bothering her? No, it was something else.

“It was hard to tell how thin Old Gert is, with all those shirts she had on,” Henry said. “But I think Violet’s right. Gert was too tall to be the ghost.”

Just then Grandfather’s rental car pulled up. As he climbed out, the children ran over.

“Did you talk to Mr. Murphy?” asked Benny. “What did he say?”

“Yes, I did,” Grandfather answered. “Jay reminded me the property had just been assessed.”

“What does that mean?” Violet wanted to know.

Henry replied, “It’s when someone figures out the value of the land.”

Grandfather nodded. “The assessed value is often higher than a buyer’s asking price. People want to save some money and everyone expects it. But Victor’s offer is a lot more than I paid. And way above the assessed value. It doesn’t make sense.”

Jessie frowned. “Mr. Lacey said your land is worthless. What did Mr. Murphy say about that?”

“Jay didn’t know why Mr. Lacey said the land was worthless,” Grandfather went on. “There isn’t anything wrong with that property. It’s just not worth a lot.”

But Mr. Lacey wants it, Jessie thought. Bad enough to pay a whole lot of money.

That night the lights went out during dinner. The food was so horrible it was just as well they didn’t have to look at it, Violet decided20.

“We have electricity problems here,” Mrs. Harrington said, lighting21 a single lantern and setting it on the table. “The power truck should come out tonight to fix it.”

Mr. Williams tossed his napkin beside his plate. “Mrs. Harrington, if I catch some trout22 tomorrow, would you cook it for supper?”

Benny’s mouth watered at the thought of trout, even though he didn’t like fish that much. But anything would be better than the barely warmed frozen pizza they were eating.

“Sure,” said Mrs. Harrington. “But don’t get your hopes up. Tincup Creek23 is all fished out.”

“How can a stream be fished out?” asked Benny.

Corey explained, “A lot of streams in the West are in danger. There are more people catching24 fish than fish being born. The streams need to be restocked with trout.”

No fish in the stream, falling-down cabins, poor food, electricity and phones that went out for no reason. No wonder Eagles Nest had so few tourists, Henry thought as he and Benny went to their cabin.

“I can’t see,” said Benny. “It’s so dark!”

“Let’s open the shade,” Henry suggested. “Maybe a little moonlight will shine in.”

But clouds covered the moon and stars. Henry and Benny couldn’t see anything. But they heard voices arguing.

“It’s only for a couple more days,” said a shrill25 voice.

“I don’t care! I don’t want to!” whispered a lower voice.

Benny put his hand on Henry’s arm. “Who’s out there?”

“Two women,” said his brother. “I think it’s Marianne and her mother.”

“Or Old Gert,” supplied Benny.

“That’s possible,” Henry said.

Then the one with the shrill voice said, “It’s for a good cause!”

“I don’t care!” said the whisperer. “I won’t do it! I won’t!” Sobbing26, she ran down the path.

As Benny got ready for bed in the dark, he wondered about the whisperer. What was it she didn’t want to do? And who was making her do it?


点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 tacked d6b486b3f9966de864e3b4d2aa518abc     
用平头钉钉( tack的过去式和过去分词 ); 附加,增补; 帆船抢风行驶,用粗线脚缝
参考例句:
  • He tacked the sheets of paper on as carefully as possible. 他尽量小心地把纸张钉上去。
  • The seamstress tacked the two pieces of cloth. 女裁缝把那两块布粗缝了起来。
2 crookedly crookedly     
adv. 弯曲地,不诚实地
参考例句:
  • A crow flew crookedly like a shadow over the end of the salt lake. 一只乌鸦像个影子般地在盐湖的另一边鬼鬼祟祟地飞来飞去的。
3 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》
4 rental cBezh     
n.租赁,出租,出租业
参考例句:
  • The yearly rental of her house is 2400 yuan.她这房子年租金是2400元。
  • We can organise car rental from Chicago O'Hare Airport.我们可以安排提供从芝加哥奥黑尔机场出发的租车服务。
5 strapped ec484d13545e19c0939d46e2d1eb24bc     
adj.用皮带捆住的,用皮带装饰的;身无分文的;缺钱;手头紧v.用皮带捆扎(strap的过去式和过去分词);用皮带抽打;包扎;给…打绷带
参考例句:
  • Make sure that the child is strapped tightly into the buggy. 一定要把孩子牢牢地拴在婴儿车上。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • The soldiers' great coats were strapped on their packs. 战士们的厚大衣扎捆在背包上。 来自《简明英汉词典》
6 perfectly 8Mzxb     
adv.完美地,无可非议地,彻底地
参考例句:
  • The witnesses were each perfectly certain of what they said.证人们个个对自己所说的话十分肯定。
  • Everything that we're doing is all perfectly above board.我们做的每件事情都是光明正大的。
7 fixed JsKzzj     
adj.固定的,不变的,准备好的;(计算机)固定的
参考例句:
  • Have you two fixed on a date for the wedding yet?你们俩选定婚期了吗?
  • Once the aim is fixed,we should not change it arbitrarily.目标一旦确定,我们就不应该随意改变。
8 clumping 34893707d59e433d1c7d9dc03740fa1e     
v.(树、灌木、植物等的)丛、簇( clump的现在分词 );(土、泥等)团;块;笨重的脚步声
参考例句:
  • Wipe the wand off before the first coat to prevent clumping. 把睫毛棒刷干净,避免结块。 来自互联网
  • Fighting gravitational clumping would take a wavelength of a few dozen light-years. 为了对抗重力造成的聚集,这些粒子的波长可能会长达好几十光年的距离。 来自互联网
9 peeking 055254fc0b0cbadaccd5778d3ae12b50     
v.很快地看( peek的现在分词 );偷看;窥视;微露出
参考例句:
  • I couldn't resist peeking in the drawer. 我不由得偷看了一下抽屉里面。
  • They caught him peeking in through the keyhole. 他们发现他从钥匙孔里向里窥视。 来自辞典例句
10 spinach Dhuzr5     
n.菠菜
参考例句:
  • Eating spinach is supposed to make you strong.据说吃菠菜能使人强壮。
  • You should eat such vegetables as carrot,celery and spinach.你应该吃胡萝卜、芹菜和菠菜这类的蔬菜。
11 boulder BNbzS     
n.巨砾;卵石,圆石
参考例句:
  • We all heaved together and removed the boulder.大家一齐用劲,把大石头搬开了。
  • He stepped clear of the boulder.他从大石头后面走了出来。
12 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。
13 doorway 2s0xK     
n.门口,(喻)入门;门路,途径
参考例句:
  • They huddled in the shop doorway to shelter from the rain.他们挤在商店门口躲雨。
  • Mary suddenly appeared in the doorway.玛丽突然出现在门口。
14 stammered 76088bc9384c91d5745fd550a9d81721     
v.结巴地说出( stammer的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • He stammered most when he was nervous. 他一紧张往往口吃。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
  • Barsad leaned back in his chair, and stammered, \"What do you mean?\" 巴萨往椅背上一靠,结结巴巴地说,“你是什么意思?” 来自英汉文学 - 双城记
15 flannel S7dyQ     
n.法兰绒;法兰绒衣服
参考例句:
  • She always wears a grey flannel trousers.她总是穿一条灰色法兰绒长裤。
  • She was looking luscious in a flannel shirt.她穿着法兰绒裙子,看上去楚楚动人。
16 stout PGuzF     
adj.强壮的,粗大的,结实的,勇猛的,矮胖的
参考例句:
  • He cut a stout stick to help him walk.他砍了一根结实的枝条用来拄着走路。
  • The stout old man waddled across the road.那肥胖的老人一跩一跩地穿过马路。
17 spoke XryyC     
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
参考例句:
  • They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
  • The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。
18 giggled 72ecd6e6dbf913b285d28ec3ba1edb12     
v.咯咯地笑( giggle的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • The girls giggled at the joke. 女孩子们让这笑话逗得咯咯笑。
  • The children giggled hysterically. 孩子们歇斯底里地傻笑。 来自《简明英汉词典》
19 trespassing a72d55f5288c3d37c1e7833e78593f83     
[法]非法入侵
参考例句:
  • He told me I was trespassing on private land. 他说我在擅闯私人土地。
  • Don't come trespassing on my land again. 别再闯入我的地界了。
20 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。
21 lighting CpszPL     
n.照明,光线的明暗,舞台灯光
参考例句:
  • The gas lamp gradually lost ground to electric lighting.煤气灯逐渐为电灯所代替。
  • The lighting in that restaurant is soft and romantic.那个餐馆照明柔和而且浪漫。
22 trout PKDzs     
n.鳟鱼;鲑鱼(属)
参考例句:
  • Thousands of young salmon and trout have been killed by the pollution.成千上万的鲑鱼和鳟鱼的鱼苗因污染而死亡。
  • We hooked a trout and had it for breakfast.我们钓了一条鳟鱼,早饭时吃了。
23 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。
24 catching cwVztY     
adj.易传染的,有魅力的,迷人的,接住
参考例句:
  • There are those who think eczema is catching.有人就是认为湿疹会传染。
  • Enthusiasm is very catching.热情非常富有感染力。
25 shrill EEize     
adj.尖声的;刺耳的;v尖叫
参考例句:
  • Whistles began to shrill outside the barn.哨声开始在谷仓外面尖叫。
  • The shrill ringing of a bell broke up the card game on the cutter.刺耳的铃声打散了小汽艇的牌局。
26 sobbing df75b14f92e64fc9e1d7eaf6dcfc083a     
<主方>Ⅰ adj.湿透的
参考例句:
  • I heard a child sobbing loudly. 我听见有个孩子在呜呜地哭。
  • Her eyes were red with recent sobbing. 她的眼睛因刚哭过而发红。
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