16 Blackmail2.docx

16 Blackmail2.docx

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16Blackmail2

Lesson6

Blackmail

ArthurHailey

ArthurHailey（1920-2004）wasborninEnglandandbeganhiswritingcareerduringtheSecondWorldWar.AfterthewarhelivedandwroteinCanada,becomingaCanadiancitizenaswellasBritish;healsolivedbrieflyintheUnitedStates.MostofhisbookshavebeenmadeintofilmsorTVseries.

NovelsbyArthurHailey:

TheFinalDiagnosis（1959）

InHighPlaces（1960）

Hotel（1965）

Airport（1968）

Wheels（1971）

TheMoneychangers（1975）

StrongMedicine（1975）

Overload（1978）

TheEveningNews（1990）

Detective（1997）

Blackmail

Thechiefhouseofficer,Ogilvie,whohaddeclaredhewouldappearattheCroydonssuiteanhourafterhiscryptictelephonecallactuallytooktwicethattime.AsaresultthenervesofboththeDukeandDuchesswereexcessivelyfrayedwhenthemutedbuzzeroftheouterdooreventuallysounded.

TheDuchesswenttothedoorherself.Earliershehaddispatchedhermaidonaninventederrandand,cruelly,instructedthemoon-facedmalesecretary–whowasterrifiedofdogs–toexercisetheBedlingtonterriers.Herowntensionwasnotlessenedbytheknowledgethatbothmightreturnatanymoment.

AwaveofcigarsmokeaccompaniedOgilviein.Whenhehadfollowedhertothelivingroom,theDuchesslookedpointedlyatthehalf-burnedcigarinthefatman’smouth.“MyhusbandandIfindstrongsmokeoffensive.Wouldyoukindlyputthatout."

Thehousedetective'spiggyeyessurveyedhersardonicallyfromhisgrossjowledface.Hisgazemovedontosweepthespacious,well-appointedroom,encompassingtheDukewhofacedthemuncertainly,hisbacktoawindow.

"Prettyneatset-upyoufolksgot.”Takinghistime,Ogilvieremovedtheoffendingcigar,knockedofftheashandflippedthebutttowardanornamentalfireplaceonhisright.Hemissed,andthebuttfelluponthecarpetwhereheignoredit.

TheDuchess'slipstightened.Shesaidsharply,“Iimagineyoudidnotcomeheretodiscussdécor”.Theobesebodyshookinanappreciativechuckle."No,ma'am,can'tsayIdid.Ilikenicethings,though."Heloweredthelevelofhisincongruousfalsettovoice."Likethatcarofyours.Theoneyoukeephereinthehotel.Jaguar,ain'tit?

"

blackmail（n.）theobtainingofmoneybythreateningtomakeknownunpleasantfactsaboutaperson敲诈；勒索

chiefhouseofficer:

chiefdetectiveinchargeofhotelsecurity

suite[swi:

t]（n.）agroupofconnectedroomsusedasaunit一套房间

cryptic['kriptik]（adj.）havingahiddenorambiguousmeaning；mysterious隐蔽的，秘密的；神秘的

dukeanoblemanwiththehighesthereditaryrank公爵：

具有最高世袭身份的贵族

fray（v．）makeorbecomeweakenedorstrained（使）变弱；（使）紧张

dispatch（v．）sendoffpromptly，usuallyonaspecificerrandorofficialbusiness（迅速地）派遣，派出（常指特别差事或公事）

errand（n.）atriptocarryamessageordoadefinitething，esp.forsomeoneelse差事（尤指为别人送信或办事）

piggy（adj.）likeapig；piggish猪一般的；贪婪的

sardonic[sɑ:

'dɔnik]（adj.）bitter，scornful,disdainfullyorbitterlysneering，ironicorsarcastic讥讽的；嘲笑的

gross[grəus]（adj.）bigorfatandcoarse-looking；corpulent；burly肥胖的，臃肿的；粗壮的

jowl[dʒaul]（n.）thefleshy，hangingpartunderthelowerjaw下颚的下垂部分

encompass[in'kʌmpəs]（v．）surround；encircle围绕，环绕

flip（v．）tossormovewithaquickjerk；flick轻弹；轻拂

décor['deikɔ:

/dei'kɔ:

r]（n.）[Fr.]decoration[法语]装饰，装潢

obese[əu'bi:

s]（adj.）veryfat；stout；corpulent过度肥胖的；肥大的

appreciative（adj.）feelingorshowingappreciation欣赏的；有眼力的；有鉴赏力的

incongruous[in'kɔŋgruəs]（adj.）lackingharmonyoragreement不和谐的；不相容的；自相矛盾的

falsetto[fɔ:

l'setəu]①n．anartificialwayofsingingorspeaking，inwhichthevoiceisplacedinaregistermuchhigherthanthatofthenaturalvoice假声（说、唱）②adj.假声的；用假声唱的

décor

"Aah!

"Itwasnotaspokenword,butanemissionofbreathfromtheDukeofCroydon.Hiswifeshothimaswift,warningglance.

"Inwhatconceivablewaydoesourcarconcernyou?

”

AsifthequestionfromtheDuchesshadbeenasignal,thehousedetective'smannerchanged.Heinquiredabruptly,"Whoelseisinthisplace?

"

ItwastheDukewhoanswered,"Noone.Wesentthemout."

"There’sthingsitpaystocheck."Movingwithsurprisingspeed,thefatmanwalkedaroundthesuite,openingdoorsandinspectingthespacebehindthem.Obviouslyheknewtheroomarrangementwell.Afterreopeningandclosingtheouterdoor,hereturned,apparentlysatisfied,tothelivingroom.

TheDuchesshadseatedherselfinastraight-backedchair.Ogilvieremainedstanding.

"Nowthen,"hesaid."Youtwowasinthehit-’n-run."

Shemethiseyesdirectly."Whatareyoutalkingabout?

"

"Don'tplaygames,lady.Thisisforreal."Hetookoutafreshcigarandbitofftheend,"Yousawthepapers.There'sbeenplentyonradio,too."

TwohighpointsofcolorappearedinthepalenessoftheDuchessofCroydon’scheeks."Whatyouaresuggestingisthemostdisgusting,ridiculous..."

"Itoldyou–Cutitout!

”Thewordsspatforthwithsuddensavagery,allpretenseofblandnessgone.IgnoringtheDuke,Ogilviewavedtheunlightedcigarunderhisadversary’snose."Youlistentome,yourhigh-an’-mightiness.Thiscity’sburnin’mad–cops,mayor,everybodyelse.Whentheyfindwhodonethatlastnight,whokilledthatkidan’itsmother,thenhigh-tailedit,they’llthrowthebook,andnevermindwhoithits,orwhethertheygotfancytitlesneither.NowIknowwhatIknow,andifIdowhatbyrightsIshould,there'llbeasquadofcopsinheresofastyou'llhardlysee’em.ButIcometoyoufirst,infairness,so'syoucouldtellyoursideofittome."Thepiggyeyesblinked,thenhardened."’fyouwantittheotherway,justsayso."

TheDuchessofCroydon–threecenturiesandahalfofinbredarrogancebehindher–didnotyieldeasily.Springingtoherfeet,herfacewrathful,gray-greeneyesblazing,shefacedthegrossnessofthehousedetectivesquarely.Hertonewouldhavewitheredanyonewhoknewherwell.“Youunspeakableblackguard!

Howdareyou!

”

Eventheself-assuranceofOgilvieflickeredforaninstant.ButitwastheDukeofCroydonwhointerjected,"It'snogo,oldgirl.I'mafraid.Itwasagoodtry."FacingOgilvie,hesaid,"Whatyouaccuseusofistrue.Iamtoblame.Iwasdrivingthecarandkilledthelittlegirl."

"That'smorelikeit,"Ogilviesaid.Helitthefreshcigar."Nowwe'regettingsomewhere."

Wearily,inagestureofsurrender,theDuchessofCroydonsankbackintoherchair.Claspingherhandstoconcealtheirtrembling,sheasked."Whatisityouknow?

"

"Wellnow,I'llspellitout."Thehousedetectivetookhistime,leisurelypuffingacloudofbluecigarsmoke,hiseyessardonicallyontheDuchessasifchallengingherobjection.Butbeyondwrinklinghernoseindistaste,shemadenocomment.OgilviepointedtotheDuke."Lastnight,earlyon,youwenttoLindy’sPlace（anightclub）inIrishBayou['baiu:

].YoudrovethereinyourfancyJaguar,andyoutookaladyfriend.Leastways,Iguessyou'dcallherthatifyou'renottoofussy."

捷豹牌汽车JAGUAR

emission（n.）theactofsendingoutorgivingforth（heat，light，smell）；theactionofuttering（sound）（热、光、气味等的）散发，（声音等的）发出

pay[intransitiveverb]ifaparticularactionpays,itbringsagoodresultoradvantageforyou,e.g.

Crimedoesn’tpay.

Itpaystogetsomeprofessionaladvicebeforeyoumakeadecision.

hit-’n-run

Ahit-and-runmotorvehicleaccidentisaviolationinwhichonepartyleavesthescenewithoutrenderingaidoridentifyingthemselves.

cutout

stop;cease停止

spit（v．）eject，throw（out），emit，orutterexplosively喷出，吐出；激烈地说出

savagery（n.）savageact暴行

pretense[pri'tens]falseappearanceoractionintendedtodeceive虚假,伪装

blandness（n.）beingmildandpleasantinmanner温和，和蔼

adversary['ædvəsəri]（n.）personwhoopposesorfightsagainstanother；opponent敌手；敌方；对手

high-an’-mightiness

thecorrectwaytoaddressadukeoraduchessis“yourGrace”（Graceisatitleandformofaddressforaduke,aduchess,oranarchbishop.大人，夫人：

作为公爵，公爵夫人或大主教的头衔或称谓的形式）Highnessisatitleandformofaddressforaprinceorprincess:

Highness用来称呼王子（亲王）或公主（王妃）,殿下

high-tail（v.）[colloq．]leaveinahurry（chieflyusedin“high-tailit”）[口]匆忙离开，迅速逃走（主要用于high-tailit）

throwthebook

tomakeallpossiblechargesagainst（alawbreaker）对（被告）做出所有可能的指控

toreprimandorpunishseverely.严厉申斥：

严厉指责或惩罚

blink（v．）wink（theeyes）rapidly眨（眼）

inbred（adj.）innateordeeplyinstilled天生的，先天的

unspeakablebeyonddescription无法描绘的Inexpressiblybadorobjectionable无法形容地糟糕的或令人讨厌的

blackguard[olduse]amanwhotreatsotherpeopleverybadly

flicker（v．）movewithaquick，light，waveringmotion摇曳（yè），摇动，晃动

interject（v．）throwinbetween；interruptwith打断；插话

nogo:

tonoavail:

useless

That'smorelikeit

That'smoreacceptable.

Nowwe'regettingsomewhere.

Nowwe'remakingsomeprogress.

surrendergiveup放弃

clasp（v．）holdtightly；graspfirmly握住；紧握

conceal（v．）putoutofsight；hide把……藏起来，隐藏，隐匿

spelloutmakeperfectlyclear讲清楚,清楚地说明

puff（v．）blowwithshort,forcefulexhalationofbreath一阵阵地吹；喷出

sardonicscornfullyorcynicallymocking讥讽的或嘲笑的

jaguar['dʒægwɑ:

]alargefeline（['fi:

lain]猫科的）mammalofCentralandSouthAmerica,closelyrelatedtotheleopardandhavingatawny（['tɔ:

ni]黄褐色的）coatspottedwithblackrosettes（[rəu'zet]玫瑰形圆花饰）美洲虎：

一种产自中美及南美地区的大型猫科哺乳动物，与豹有很近的血缘关系，长有黄褐色带黑色花斑的皮毛

leastways（adv．）（chieflydial．）leastwise；anyway（多用于口语）至少；无论如何

fussyeasilyupset;givento（惯于）bouts（发作）ofilltemper:

易激怒的：

易发脾气的

AsOgilvieglanced,grinning,attheDuchess,theDukesaidsharply,"Getonwithit!

"

"Well"–thesmugfatfaceswungback–"thewayIhearit,youwonahundredatthetables,thenlostitatthebar.Youwereintoasecondhundred–witharealswingingparty–whenyourwifehere