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儿童英语读物 The Seattle Puzzle CHAPTER 4 Sniffing Out Clues

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“Hurry, Jessie!” said Benny, who never liked to be kept waiting in suspense1. “Read the note, okay?” The four Alden children had just stepped into their hotel suite2 after saying good-bye to Reena.

“Don’t worry, Benny!” Jessie laughed. “I’ve been itching3 to get a good look at it.” As they sat together on the couch, she read the latest message aloud.

    Beneath all the traffic

    seek out the troll

    guarding a message

    way down below.

“A … a troll?” Benny looked scared. “I heard a story about a troll—and guess what? A troll is a monster!”

“It’s also just make-believe, Benny,” Violet assured him. “Trolls are only in fairy tales.”

“Let’s talk about it while we get dinner started,” Jessie suggested, glancing at her watch.

“Grandfather mentioned getting a pizza tonight,” Benny reminded her.

“Oh, that’s right,” Jessie recalled. “I’d forgotten all about it.”

Violet had a thought. “Why don’t we surprise Grandfather with a homemade pizza?”

“Homemade?” Benny frowned. “But we’re not at home, Violet.”

“That’s just an expression, Benny,” Henry explained. “It means we’ll make it ourselves.”

“Can we make an extra-large pizza?” Benny asked hopefully.

“Sure,” said Jessie. “We’ll make the pizza now, then pop it into the oven when Grandfather gets back from his meeting.”

After washing their hands, the four Alden children set to work. They discussed the mystery while they chopped and shredded4 and stirred.

“Where in the world will we find a troll?” Violet wondered.

“Beneath all the traffic,” Jessie answered, as she stirred the sauce at the stove. “At least, that’s what the riddle5 says.”

“Wait a minute,” cried Benny, rolling out the dough6. “I know what’s beneath all the traffic!” The youngest Alden was up to his elbows in flour.

“What’s that, Benny?” asked Henry.

“The underground city.”

“Oh!” Violet put a hand over her mouth is surprise. “You’re right, Benny! An underground city is way down below.”

Benny beamed. It was always fun figuring out clues.

Henry sounded doubtful. “A troll in an underground city?” He paused as he grated mozzarella cheese. “It seems a bit far-fetched, don’t you think?”

“It’s worth checking out,” Benny insisted.

Violet, who was chopping onions and green peppers, looked over. “I agree.”

“It was on our list of places to see,” Jessie admitted, as she tasted the sauce.

“Okay, Benny,” Henry said. “We’ll take the underground tour tomorrow.”

Benny’s face lit up. “Really?”

“We promise,” Jessie said, turning to her little brother. Then she giggled7. “Oh, Benny! You look like you’re going out trick-or-treating.”

“I do?” Benny went to look at himself in the hall mirror. He had flour on the tip of his nose, on his chin, and in his hair. “Oops! How did that happen?” Benny couldn’t help grinning. “I look like I just saw a ghost,” he said, as he went back to rolling out the pizza dough.

The others burst out laughing. “You look like you are a ghost, Benny,” corrected Violet.

“A ghost looking for a troll!” said Benny.

“Keep looking, Benny,” Henry shot back.

Jessie turned down the heat under the pan. The sauce was bubbling nicely. “What I can’t figure out,” she said, “is who would leave such a weird8 note.”

“One thing’s for sure,” said Benny, “somebody knows we’re detectives.”

Violet looked over at her younger brother. “What makes you say that, Benny?”

“Well, why else would there be a mysterious message under our table?”

“Good point,” said Violet. “But who knows us in Seattle?”

“Only Finn and Reena,” said Henry. “And I don’t think they know we’re detectives.”

“Besides,” Violet added, “we can’t be sure that note was meant for us. Don’t forget, we weren’t even sitting at that booth at first.”

This got Jessie thinking. “That’s true, Violet,” she said, spooning tomato sauce evenly over the dough. “That waitress—I think her name was Gwen—insisted we move over there.”

“That’s because we were at the wrong table,” Benny pointed9 out. “That section was closed, remember?”

Jessie put the empty pan in the sink. “But she let somebody else sit there.”

“You think the waitress wanted us to find the riddle?” Violet questioned. “Is that what you’re saying, Jessie?” She topped the sauce with layers of mushrooms, green peppers, tomatoes, and onions.

“It’s possible,” said Jessie.

Henry looked over at her. “That doesn’t add up, Jessie. Why would she do that?”

“She’d never even met us before today,” put in Benny.

“True enough,” said Jessie. Then after a moment’s thought, she added, “Unless …”

“Unless what?” Benny asked.

“Unless she was working with somebody else.” Jessie spoke10 slowly as if trying to sort out her thoughts. “Somebody who made sure we’d be there. At the Hungry Heart Diner, I mean.”

“You don’t really believe Reena was behind this, do you, Jessie?” Violet asked.

“Well, she did suggest eating at the Hungry Heart Diner,” Jessie pointed out.

Violet shrugged11. “The diner’s just down the street from the hotel.”

“But Violet,” said Jessie, “Reena also took us to the Space Needle.”

Henry nodded as he sprinkled cheese over the pizza. “And that’s where we found the second note.”

“You think it’s more than just a coincidence, Henry?” Benny wondered.

“I’m not sure what to think,” Henry answered. “But it is a bit suspicious.”

But Violet wasn’t convinced. “Anybody could’ve put that note under our table. Even that look-alike.”

Benny frowned. “Who … ?”

“You’re thinking about that woman with the blue umbrella. Right, Violet?” said Jessie. “The one who reminds you of Aunt Jane.”

“She was coming out of the diner,” Violet said. “Then we saw her getting off the elevator at the Space Needle.”

“You think there’s someone—who reminds you of Aunt Jane—going around the city planting clues, Violet?” It didn’t make sense to Henry.

“Maybe she wasn’t planting them, Henry,” Violet said. “Maybe she was looking for clues.”

The others had to admit it was possible. “Well, if she was looking for clues, she didn’t find them,” said Benny. “We did!”

“Now, if only we could find some answers,” said Henry.

“What now?” Benny asked when the pizza was ready for the oven.

“Toby mentioned an indoor pool,” said Henry. “Why don’t we go for a swim before Grandfather gets back for dinner?”

Everyone thought that was a great idea. As Jessie tucked the notes into a drawer, she couldn’t help wondering if they would ever be able to solve such a strange mystery.


点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 suspense 9rJw3     
n.(对可能发生的事)紧张感,担心,挂虑
参考例句:
  • The suspense was unbearable.这样提心吊胆的状况实在叫人受不了。
  • The director used ingenious devices to keep the audience in suspense.导演用巧妙手法引起观众的悬念。
2 suite MsMwB     
n.一套(家具);套房;随从人员
参考例句:
  • She has a suite of rooms in the hotel.她在那家旅馆有一套房间。
  • That is a nice suite of furniture.那套家具很不错。
3 itching wqnzVZ     
adj.贪得的,痒的,渴望的v.发痒( itch的现在分词 )
参考例句:
  • The itching was almost more than he could stand. 他痒得几乎忍不住了。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
  • My nose is itching. 我的鼻子发痒。 来自《简明英汉词典》
4 shredded d51bccc81979c227d80aa796078813ac     
shred的过去式和过去分词
参考例句:
  • Serve the fish on a bed of shredded lettuce. 先铺一层碎生菜叶,再把鱼放上,就可以上桌了。
  • I think Mapo beancurd and shredded meat in chilli sauce are quite special. 我觉得麻婆豆腐和鱼香肉丝味道不错。 来自《简明英汉词典》
5 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。
6 dough hkbzg     
n.生面团;钱,现款
参考例句:
  • She formed the dough into squares.她把生面团捏成四方块。
  • The baker is kneading dough.那位面包师在揉面。
7 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》
8 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。
9 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。
10 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。
11 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》
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