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儿童英语读物 The Chocolate Sundae Mystery CHAPTER 10 Confession

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Benny gulped1. Henry peered through the keyhole. What he saw made him shake his head sadly.

Brian was leading four skinny boys into the parlor2’s kitchen. The boys wore T-shirts that looked much too big for them, and worn-out shoes.

As Henry watched, Brian seated the boys at the big kitchen table. “Can we have chocolate sundaes tonight?” one of the boys asked.

“Sure,” Brian said. “You know this is the last night we can do this,” he added as he went to the counter to bring back the container of vanilla3 ice cream.

“But Brian, you promised,” the tallest boy protested.

“I know, Eric,” Brian said as he scooped4 out four generous portions of vanilla ice cream and put them in special sundae dishes. “But the owner knows something is up.”

“Was he mad about those glasses we broke?” one of the boys asked.

“No,” Brian said as he poured chocolate sauce on the ice cream.

“We didn’t do it on purpose,” Eric said. He got up to help Brian finish making the sundaes. “Paul tripped on a crack in the sidewalk and dropped the package.”

“I don’t think Mr. Brown even noticed those glasses,” Brian said as he put cherries on all the sundaes. “But we have to remember to put everything back in the refrigerator. One night we left the cream out and it spoiled.”

“I guess it didn’t help when we broke that big window,” Eric said glumly5. “But we were just trying to help you clean up. I was chasing Paul with the broom and the next thing I knew, the handle went through the window.”

“I know you didn’t do it on purpose,” Brian said as he brought the sundaes to the kitchen table with Eric’s help. “But we should have tried to keep Robbie from scribbling6 on the menus.”

The boy called Robbie shook his head sadly. “I’m sorry, Brian,” he said softly.

Brian patted the little boy’s shoulder. “I know you were very excited when you saw all those crayons in the kitchen drawer.”

Brian seated himself at the table while the boys ate hungrily. Henry, who was still watching through the crack, noticed that Brian did not eat anything himself.

“Oh, I’m starving,” the boy called Paul said as he scraped the bottom of his dish. “This is the first meal I’ve had all day.”

For some time now, Benny’s foot had been asleep. He shifted uncomfortably and tried to wiggle his foot. It tingled7 so much, he jumped and banged against Jessie, who gave him a warning look in the dark. Benny moved the other way and knocked over the big mop. It clattered8 loudly to the floor and hit Violet.

“Ouch!” she yelped9, then quickly clapped her hands to her mouth.

The boys in the kitchen all jumped and looked toward the closet.

“What was that?” Eric said. He stopped eating and held his spoon in midair.

“Something fell down in the closet,” Brian answered.

“I heard someone talking in there,” Eric insisted. He advanced warily10 toward the closet, still holding his spoon.

Henry took that moment to open the closet door and step out. Jessie, Violet, and Benny followed him.

The boys stared at the Aldens in horror. “Who are you?” Eric asked sharply.

“It’s okay. I know them. They work here,” Brian explained.

He turned to the Aldens. “I know what you must be thinking,” he said sheepishly. “I can explain.”

“Maybe we should leave now,” Eric said quietly. Brian nodded.

When the boys had left, Brian sat at the kitchen table and told the Aldens everything, everything they hadn’t already guessed.

The boys lived at the edge of town in a very run-down neighborhood. Brian was very good friends with the oldest one.

“Is that Eric?” Benny asked.

“Yes,” Brian nodded. “When he heard I had a job here, he thought I’d be able to help him and his little brothers. You see, Eric’s father lost his job a year ago and his family is very poor. Sometimes, this is the only meal they get all day.”

At first the Aldens had been angry at the boys for eating the Shoppe’s ice cream without paying. Now they felt so sorry for them they nodded sympathetically.

“Could Eric get a job at the parlor?” Jessie suggested. “I’m sure Mr. Brown would hire him.”

Brian shook his head. “No, he has to stay home and baby-sit his little brothers. His mother works, and his father left the family a few months ago.”

Jessie looked down at her hands. “I see,” she said gently.

Brian shifted uncomfortably in his chair. “I knew what I was doing was wrong,” he said. “But they’d all come to depend on me.”

“How did you get in?” Henry wondered.

Brian’s face turned bright red. “We used a coat hanger11 to pick the lock,” he admitted. “We never broke it.”

“I know,” Henry said. “That’s why Mr. Brown never found any sign of a break-in.”

Brian pulled a notebook out of his apron12. He lay it on the table and opened it to a page filled with a neat row of numbers. “I was keeping track of what they ate and how much it cost,” he explained. “I was planning to pay Mr. Brown back out of my salary. But after that window broke, I didn’t know what to do.”

Henry patted Brian gently on the arm. “Don’t worry, Brian, we believe you,” he said. “But you have to tell Mr. Brown about all this.”

Brian hung his head. “I know I do,” he said. “I feel awful that I helped ruin the parlor’s good reputation.”

“It’s not ruined yet,” Jessie assured him. “Once all this is explained, the customers will be back in no time.”

Brian smiled, giving Violet a shy admiring look.

The following day, the Aldens and Grandfather came to the Shoppe a little late. They wanted to give Mr. Brown and Brian plenty of time to talk.

When they arrived, Mr. Brown had his arm around Brian. “I can’t thank you enough for getting to the bottom of this mystery,” Mr. Brown said when he saw the Aldens.

The Aldens beamed and proudly introduced Mr. Brown to their grandfather.

“If I’d known your grandchildren were going to stay here after closing, I wouldn’t have allowed it,” Mr. Brown said shaking his head. “But I’m glad they did,” he added, winking13.

“I just told Mr. Brown the whole story,” Brian said. “I have to work at the parlor one month for free.” He looked at Mr. Brown and grinned. “But Eric and his brothers can still come to the Shoppe and get a free treat every week.”

Grandfather said, “I’ll talk to Eric’s parents. I’m sure the children and I can help in some way.”

“Yes,” Mr. Brown said nodding. “I’ll also give them our leftover14 food. We always have lunch fixings left over at the end of the day. That would be better for them than ice cream.”

“All I have to do now is think of a way to bring customers back to the parlor,” Brian said.

“You know,” Jessie said grinning, “I think I have an idea.”


点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 gulped 4873fe497201edc23bc8dcb50aa6eb2c     
v.狼吞虎咽地吃,吞咽( gulp的过去式和过去分词 );大口地吸(气);哽住
参考例句:
  • He gulped down the rest of his tea and went out. 他把剩下的茶一饮而尽便出去了。
  • She gulped nervously, as if the question bothered her. 她紧张地咽了一下,似乎那问题把她难住了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
2 parlor v4MzU     
n.店铺,营业室;会客室,客厅
参考例句:
  • She was lying on a small settee in the parlor.她躺在客厅的一张小长椅上。
  • Is there a pizza parlor in the neighborhood?附近有没有比萨店?
3 vanilla EKNzT     
n.香子兰,香草
参考例句:
  • He used to love milk flavoured with vanilla.他过去常爱喝带香草味的牛奶。
  • I added a dollop of vanilla ice-cream to the pie.我在馅饼里加了一块香草冰激凌。
4 scooped a4cb36a9a46ab2830b09e95772d85c96     
v.抢先报道( scoop的过去式和过去分词 );(敏捷地)抱起;抢先获得;用铲[勺]等挖(洞等)
参考例句:
  • They scooped the other newspapers by revealing the matter. 他们抢先报道了这件事。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • The wheels scooped up stones which hammered ominously under the car. 车轮搅起的石块,在车身下发出不吉祥的锤击声。 来自《简明英汉词典》
5 glumly glumly     
adv.忧郁地,闷闷不乐地;阴郁地
参考例句:
  • He stared at it glumly, and soon became lost in thought. 他惘然沉入了瞑想。 来自子夜部分
  • The President sat glumly rubbing his upper molar, saying nothing. 总统愁眉苦脸地坐在那里,磨着他的上牙,一句话也没有说。 来自辞典例句
6 scribbling 82fe3d42f37de6f101db3de98fc9e23d     
n.乱涂[写]胡[乱]写的文章[作品]v.潦草的书写( scribble的现在分词 );乱画;草草地写;匆匆记下
参考例句:
  • Once the money got into the book, all that remained were some scribbling. 折子上的钱只是几个字! 来自汉英文学 - 骆驼祥子
  • McMug loves scribbling. Mama then sent him to the Kindergarten. 麦唛很喜欢写字,妈妈看在眼里,就替他报读了幼稚园。 来自互联网
7 tingled d46614d7855cc022a9bf1ac8573024be     
v.有刺痛感( tingle的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • My cheeks tingled with the cold. 我的脸颊冻得有点刺痛。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • The crowd tingled with excitement. 群众大为兴奋。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
8 clattered 84556c54ff175194afe62f5473519d5a     
发出咔哒声(clatter的过去式与过去分词形式)
参考例句:
  • He dropped the knife and it clattered on the stone floor. 他一失手,刀子当啷一声掉到石头地面上。
  • His hand went limp and the knife clattered to the ground. 他的手一软,刀子当啷一声掉到地上。
9 yelped 66cb778134d73b13ec6957fdf1b24074     
v.发出短而尖的叫声( yelp的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • He yelped in pain when the horse stepped on his foot. 马踩了他的脚痛得他喊叫起来。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
  • A hound yelped briefly as a whip cracked. 鞭子一响,猎狗发出一阵嗥叫。 来自《简明英汉词典》
10 warily 5gvwz     
adv.留心地
参考例句:
  • He looked warily around him,pretending to look after Carrie.他小心地看了一下四周,假装是在照顾嘉莉。
  • They were heading warily to a point in the enemy line.他们正小心翼翼地向着敌人封锁线的某一处前进。
11 hanger hanger     
n.吊架,吊轴承;挂钩
参考例句:
  • I hung my coat up on a hanger.我把外衣挂在挂钩上。
  • The ship is fitted with a large helicopter hanger and flight deck.这艘船配备有一个较大的直升飞机悬挂装置和飞行甲板。
12 apron Lvzzo     
n.围裙;工作裙
参考例句:
  • We were waited on by a pretty girl in a pink apron.招待我们的是一位穿粉红色围裙的漂亮姑娘。
  • She stitched a pocket on the new apron.她在新围裙上缝上一只口袋。
13 winking b599b2f7a74d5974507152324c7b8979     
n.瞬眼,目语v.使眼色( wink的现在分词 );递眼色(表示友好或高兴等);(指光)闪烁;闪亮
参考例句:
  • Anyone can do it; it's as easy as winking. 这谁都办得到,简直易如反掌。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
  • The stars were winking in the clear sky. 星星在明亮的天空中闪烁。 来自《简明英汉词典》
14 leftover V97zC     
n.剩货,残留物,剩饭;adj.残余的
参考例句:
  • These narrow roads are a leftover from the days of horse-drawn carriages.这些小道是从马车时代沿用下来的。
  • Wonder if that bakery lets us take leftover home.不知道那家糕饼店会不会让我们把卖剩的带回家。
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