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儿童英语读物 The Seattle Puzzle CHAPTER 7 Who Is Rachel?

时间:2017-11-29 06:24来源:互联网 提供网友:qing   字体: [ ]
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The afternoon sun was getting warm by the time the Aldens got back to the hotel. Toby waved to them from behind the front desk.

“Hi, kids!” he said. “Enjoying our beautiful city?”

“We sure are.” Henry returned the desk clerk’s friendly smile. “We’ve been checking out the sights.”

“Any luck?” Toby asked.

The four Aldens exchanged glances. Did Toby know they were trying to track down clues?

Seeing the children’s startled faces, the clerk added, “I, uh … I meant finding your way around. That’s all I meant about—” He stopped suddenly. “By the way, your grandfather just got back. He’s waiting for you upstairs.”

“Thanks, Toby,” Henry called back over his shoulder as they headed for the elevator.

“That was pretty strange, wasn’t it?” remarked Jessie. “Toby was awfully1 nervous.” She pressed the elevator button.

Henry nodded. He’d picked up on this, too. “He was acting2 as if he’d said the wrong thing.”

Benny crinkled his brow. “Do you think he knows something about the mystery?”

“Toby just started a new job,” Violet was quick to remind them. “That’s why he was nervous. What’s wrong with that?”

“Nothing,” Henry said, as the elevator doors opened. “Not if that’s all it was.”

“Just acting nervous doesn’t make him suspicious,” Violet insisted. Violet was shy, and being around a lot of people made her nervous, too.

“You’re right,” said Jessie. “Still, it wouldn’t hurt to keep an eye on him.”

As they stepped inside the hotel suite3, they heard Grandfather talking on the phone in the other room.

“We have to hope for the best,” he was saying. “Yes, yes, I know… everything depends on finding Rachel.”

The four Alden children didn’t like the sound of this. Who was Rachel? And why was she missing?

A surprised look crossed Grandfather’s face as he came into the room. “Oh!” he said. “I didn’t hear you come in.”

“Is everything all right, Grandfather?” asked Violet.

James Alden gave his youngest granddaughter a warm smile. “What could be wrong, Violet? It’s a beautiful afternoon and the ferry awaits!”

Jessie and Henry exchanged glances.

Whatever was going on, it was clear Grandfather didn’t want to talk about it. But why? And who in the world was Rachel?

“This was a wonderful idea, Grandfather!” said Jessie.

They were standing4 on the deck, enjoying the warm sun on their faces and the sea breeze in their hair. They had traveled all the way to Bainbridge Island, and now they were heading back.

Grandfather looked pleased. “It’s always nice to get out on the water.”

“I took so many great pictures,” said Violet. “I just hope they all turn out.”

It wasn’t long before they were following a long line of people off the ferry and onto the dock. Violet turned around to take one last picture.

“I want to get the ferry in this shot,” she said.

“No problem,” said Grandfather. “That’ll be a nice photo to put in our—wait!”

“What is it, Grandfather?” asked Jessie.

James Alden hurried them along. “I’m afraid we don’t have time for any more pictures.”

“But—” Violet began.

“Sorry, Violet,” Grandfather cut in. “But I still have a … a business call to make. I, uh … left my cell phone back at the hotel.”

Jessie glanced at Henry. This was strange. She could tell by the look on his face that he was thinking the same thing she was. It wasn’t like Grandfather to be forgetful.

As soon as they were back at the hotel,

Grandfather went upstairs to make his phone call. Henry, Jessie, Violet, and Benny decided5 to head down the street to the one-hour photo shop. While Violet was waiting in line to get her film developed, Jessie caught sight of Reena Evans through the store window. But Finn’s daughter wasn’t alone. Walking beside her was a young woman with curly red hair. It was Gwen—the waitress from the Hungry Heart Diner!

“Things are getting weirder7 and weirder,” said Benny, who was perched on the bed. The four Alden children were having a late-night meeting in the room that Jessie and Violet were sharing.

“You can say that again!” said Jessie. She was sitting cross-legged on the floor, the street map opened in front of her.

“I don’t get it.” Henry was shaking his head in disbelief. “Reena made a big point of looking at the name on the waitress’s uniform,” he recalled. “Why would she pretend she didn’t know Gwen?”

Violet was standing by the window looking out at the city lights. “Reena’s been so nice. Why would she want to fool us?”

“We all like her, Violet,” said Henry. “But it is suspicious.”

Jessie nodded. “It’s beginning to look like Reena and Gwen are up to something.”

“Like what, Jessie?” Violet wondered.

At this, Jessie shrugged8. “I’m not sure,” she said. “But what if these riddles9 are just a way of distracting us.”

“What do you mean, Jessie?” asked Benny.

Jessie quickly told her sister and brothers about the conversation she’d overheard between Reena and Toby. “Reena was saying, ‘If they find out something fishy10 is going on, it’ll ruin everything.’ ”

“You really think something fishy is going on?” Violet asked. She looked at Jessie, then over at Benny and Henry. She could see they believed it was possible.

“I bet it has something to do with Rachel,” said Benny. “Whoever that is.”

“We’ll, whoever it is,” put in Jessie, “she seems to be missing.”

Henry nodded. “And Grandfather said everything depends on finding her.”

“Wecan’t be sure Reena has anything to do with Rachel,” insisted Violet. “Or the notes.” She still had a hunch11 Aunt Jane’s look-alike was behind everything.

“You’re right, Violet,” Henry agreed. “We shouldn’t jump to any conclusions until we have more evidence.”

“So what should we do?” Benny wanted to know.

Jessie looked up from the map. “I guess we’ll just keep following the clues.”

“Easier said than done,” remarked Violet.

“That’s true,” Jessie said, glancing down at the map. “With so many bridges, we really have our work cut out for us.”

Nobody said anything for a while. Then Jessie came across something that made her eyes widen.

“I think we can narrow our search,” she announced, slowly raising her gaze.

The others were instantly curious. “Don’t keep us in the dark, Jessie,” Henry pleaded. “What’s going on?”

“Well, maybe this is just a weird6 coincidence,” Jessie began, “but I just found Troll Avenue on the map!”

“What?” Henry blinked in surprise.

As they crowded around, Jessie pointed12 a finger. “It’s right here in the Fremont neighborhood.”

Henry studied the map closely. “You’re right, Jessie,” he said. “And Troll Avenue leads under the Aurora13 Bridge.”

Violet pressed her hands against her cheeks. “I can’t believe it!”

“Then … that means—” began Benny.

Henry cut in. “It means the troll must be under the Aurora Bridge!”

“Now we’re getting somewhere!” Benny rubbed his hands together.

“We can’t be sure,” said Jessie. “But it’s worth checking out.”

Benny was already halfway14 to the door. “What are we waiting for?”

“Daylight,” Henry said with a laugh. “It’s late, Benny. Remember?”

Benny looked over at the darkened window. “Oh, right!”

“I vote we get a good night’s sleep,” Henry said in the middle of a yawn.

“Good idea,” said Jessie. “Tomorrow we have a date with a troll!”
 


点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 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。
2 acting czRzoc     
n.演戏,行为,假装;adj.代理的,临时的,演出用的
参考例句:
  • Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她,她只是假装的。
  • During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代,她的表演生涯黯然失色。
3 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。
4 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。
5 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。
6 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。
7 weirder cd9463d25463f72eab49f2343155512f     
怪诞的( weird的比较级 ); 神秘而可怕的; 超然的; 古怪的
参考例句:
  • Actually, things got a little weirder when the tow truck driver showed up. 事实上,在拖吊车司机出现后,事情的发展更加怪异。
8 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》
9 riddles 77f3ceed32609b0d80430e545f553e31     
n.谜(语)( riddle的名词复数 );猜不透的难题,难解之谜
参考例句:
  • Few riddles collected from oral tradition, however, have all six parts. 但是据收集的情况看,口头流传的谜语很少具有这完整的六部分。 来自英汉非文学 - 民俗
  • But first, you'd better see if you can answer riddles. 但是你首先最好想想你会不会猜谜语。 来自辞典例句
10 fishy ysgzzF     
adj. 值得怀疑的
参考例句:
  • It all sounds very fishy to me.所有这些在我听起来都很可疑。
  • There was definitely something fishy going on.肯定当时有可疑的事情在进行中。
11 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。
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 aurora aV9zX     
n.极光
参考例句:
  • The aurora is one of nature's most awesome spectacles.极光是自然界最可畏的奇观之一。
  • Over the polar regions we should see aurora.在极地高空,我们会看到极光。
14 halfway Xrvzdq     
adj.中途的,不彻底的,部分的;adv.半路地,在中途,在半途
参考例句:
  • We had got only halfway when it began to get dark.走到半路,天就黑了。
  • In study the worst danger is give up halfway.在学习上,最忌讳的是有始无终。
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