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儿童英语读物 The Great Bicycle Race Mystery CHAPTER 10 Journey’s End

时间:2017-09-27 06:19来源:互联网 提供网友:qing   字体: [ ]
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“Oh, no you don’t,” said Henry. He caught Nan’s shirt.

She yanked and twisted, but it was too late. Benny grabbed one leg and the others surrounded her.

Gasping1 and red-faced, she stopped. “I didn’t do anything,” she said. “I was just checking on my bike.”

“With these?” Jessie asked, holding up the wire cutters.

Anna had been inspecting the damage. “About ten bicycles have at least one cut spoke2,” she reported. “Our repair people can fix that.”

“How many spokes3 were you going to cut?” Violet asked.

Nan’s friendly smile was gone. She pressed her lips together and said, “It didn’t damage the bicycles permanently4. Spokes can be fixed5.”

“You’re the one who leaked the water at the first water stop,” Jessie said.

“No, I didn’t leak the water. I would never do anything to harm a rider’s health!”

“But you did change the signs so the riders would get lost,” Soo Lee said. “You were ahead of us. You could have done it easily.”

“And you rigged the row of tents so it would fall,” Henry said. He pointed6. “You got that bruise7 sneaking8 around in the dark last night. And you changed the detour9 sign today. And I bet you put glue in the lock on the food wagon10, too.”

“And what about switching the helmets?” said Benny.

“You can’t prove any of it,” Nan muttered.

“I can prove that you sabotaged12 me,” Henry said. “You told me the exact opposite of what I should do to fix my flat tire. That’s the reason I kept getting flats—because I wasn’t putting enough air in my tires.”

“So?” Nan’s eyes shifted.

“So you’d do anything to eliminate as many riders as possible from this ride,” Violet said. “To win that raffle13.”

“You won’t win it now,” Anna said. She motioned and the Aldens saw flashlights in the dark and realized that other crew members were headed for the corral. “I doubt you’ll be allowed to finish the ride.”

Nan drew herself up to her fall height. “Fine. I did all that. It was you who gave me the idea, when I heard you talking to Al about your bike getting sabotaged. Why not sabotage11 a few more riders? The fewer who finished, the better chance I had at that bike. And I need a new bike. A really good new bike. With a really good bike I could win races and lots of prize money. ...” She let her voice trail off as several crew members approached. One of them had a shirt on that said, SECURITY CREW CHIEF.

The security chief folded her arms as the Aldens and Anna told her what had happened. When they’d finished, she turned to Nan.

“I think we’d better take a look at your bike kit14, Nan,” she said.

Reluctantly, Nan took them to her bike and the security crew chief looked in the small pouch15 of emergency tools most cyclists keep just behind their seat.

“Just as I expected,” she said as she drew from the small leather pouch a tube of glue.

“That’s not bike patch glue. That’s what she used to glue the lock on the food wagon,” said Benny.

“And how do you explain these?” continued the security chief, looking at Nan sternly. In her hand she held four packets of raffle tickets. It looked as though they had all been filled out with Nan’s name. “I’d be willing to bet we’ll discover some missing raffle tickets.”

“Wow,” said Jessie. “There are twenty-five tickets in each pack. That’s a hundred tickets. If those were somehow all put into the raffle at the end of the race ...”

“And if dozens of riders had gotten lost—and disqualified—by following the wrong signs ...” said Henry.

“And if more riders got discouraged and quit the race because of late food, collapsing16 tents, and no water ...” continued Violet.

“Nan would have a pretty good chance of winning the new bike at the raffle. Right?” finished Benny.

“Right,” said Jessie quietly.

The chief of security turned to Nan. “What do you have to say for yourself?” she asked.

With a toss of her head, Nan said, “Nothing. I’m going to be a famous bike rider someday, and to get famous you have to be tough.”

“But not mean and stupid,” the security chief said. “And what you did was mean-spirited and stupid. Let’s go. We’re going to pack up your stuff and escort you out of here in the sweep van. You’re out of the ride.”

Anna spoke up. “The rest of us will fix these spokes.”

“Good,” said the chief. She turned to the Aldens and nodded. “And good work,” she told them.

“Thank you,” said Benny modestly. “We solve mysteries all the time. If you ever need us to solve another one, we live in Greenfield. We—”

“Benny, let’s go get some sleep,” Violet said, patting her little brother’s shoulder.

“Okay,” said Benny. He looked at the others solemnly and added, “It’s important for a bike rider to get lots of sleep. Especially if he’s going to solve mysteries, too.”

“Eagle Mountain is saved!” Jessie announced as she led the way into Greenfield Wheels two days later.

“There was a huge crowd at the end of the race,” Violet said. “And the governor made a speech!”

“I know. I heard,” said Thelma. “Congratulations.”

“And your bike is ready, Henry. And paid for. A young man came in very early this morning and insisted on taking care of the bill,” Louis said.

Henry was glad Al had done what he’d promised.

“We didn’t win the fancy bicycle,” Soo Lee said. “Someone else did.”

Benny said, “But we got to use this tandy.” He patted the bicycle that he and Henry had brought to the store to return.

“Good,” said Louis.

“And we solved a mystery, too,” Benny said.

Thelma gave Benny a sly grin. “I don’t guess you’re going to tell me about it, are you?”

“Oh, yes,” said Benny. But it wasn’t just Benny who told the story of the great bicycle race while Thelma and Louis listened and asked questions and exclaimed in amazement17.

When the Aldens had finished, Thelma said, “There’s one thing I don’t understand. Who leaked the water the first day?”

Jessie said, “Ronald, Ms. Whatney’s chauffeur18. When she heard what had happened, she remembered him stopping at the water wagon. He thought he was doing what she wanted him to do, but it turned out he was wrong.”

“She fired him!” Benny cried.

“I’m glad of that,” Louis said.

“And the mystery man?” asked Thelma.

“With the backward hat?” Soo Lee said. “That’s what Benny called him, the backward-hat man. He worked for the governor. He was observing the ride for her. His report is one of the things that helped persuade the governor to save the park.”

“How did you find that out?” Louis wanted to know.

“We saw him talking to her,” Violet explained. “And we just went up and asked him.”

Thelma laughed. “I’d say solving a mystery is just a matter of asking the right questions,” she said.

Henry said, “And setting the right trap.”

Benny had wandered away to look at the bike shop bulletin board. He called out, “What does this say?” and pointed at a brightly colored sign.

Violet went to the bulletin board. “It’s about another bike ride,” she said. “In California. Five nights, six days.”

“Wow,” Benny said. He clapped his hands. His eyes sparkled. “When is it? Should we start practicing now?”

“Oh, Benny,” Jessie said.

Benny grinned. “What?” he said. He put his hands on his hips19. “I like to bike race. And solve mysteries, and I’m ready for the next one!”

“Even if someone puts glue in the lock of the food wagon again and dinner is hours late?” asked Violet.

Benny frowned and stroked his chin thoughtfully for a moment, then broke into a grin. “Maybe we can bring our own food,” he suggested brightly.

The bike shop rang with the laughter of Violet, Jessie, Henry, and Louis and Thelma.

“What’s so funny?” he asked. “You know you can’t solve a mystery on an empty stomach!”


点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 gasping gasping     
adj. 气喘的, 痉挛的 动词gasp的现在分词
参考例句:
  • He was gasping for breath. 他在喘气。
  • "Did you need a drink?""Yes, I'm gasping!” “你要喝点什么吗?”“我巴不得能喝点!”
2 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。
3 spokes 6eff3c46e9c3a82f787a7c99669b9bfb     
n.(车轮的)辐条( spoke的名词复数 );轮辐;破坏某人的计划;阻挠某人的行动
参考例句:
  • Her baby caught his fingers in the spokes of the pram wheel. 她宝宝的手指被婴儿车轮的辐条卡住了。 来自辞典例句
  • The new edges are called the spokes of the wheel. 新的边称为轮的辐。 来自辞典例句
4 permanently KluzuU     
adv.永恒地,永久地,固定不变地
参考例句:
  • The accident left him permanently scarred.那次事故给他留下了永久的伤疤。
  • The ship is now permanently moored on the Thames in London.该船现在永久地停泊在伦敦泰晤士河边。
5 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。
6 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。
7 bruise kcCyw     
n.青肿,挫伤;伤痕;vt.打青;挫伤
参考例句:
  • The bruise was caused by a kick.这伤痕是脚踢的。
  • Jack fell down yesterday and got a big bruise on his face.杰克昨天摔了一跤,脸上摔出老大一块淤斑。
8 sneaking iibzMu     
a.秘密的,不公开的
参考例句:
  • She had always had a sneaking affection for him. 以前她一直暗暗倾心于他。
  • She ducked the interviewers by sneaking out the back door. 她从后门偷偷溜走,躲开采访者。
9 detour blSzz     
n.绕行的路,迂回路;v.迂回,绕道
参考例句:
  • We made a detour to avoid the heavy traffic.我们绕道走,避开繁忙的交通。
  • He did not take the direct route to his home,but made a detour around the outskirts of the city.他没有直接回家,而是绕到市郊兜了个圈子。
10 wagon XhUwP     
n.四轮马车,手推车,面包车;无盖运货列车
参考例句:
  • We have to fork the hay into the wagon.我们得把干草用叉子挑进马车里去。
  • The muddy road bemired the wagon.马车陷入了泥泞的道路。
11 sabotage 3Tmzz     
n.怠工,破坏活动,破坏;v.从事破坏活动,妨害,破坏
参考例句:
  • They tried to sabotage my birthday party.他们企图破坏我的生日晚会。
  • The fire at the factory was caused by sabotage.那家工厂的火灾是有人蓄意破坏引起的。
12 sabotaged 033e2d75029aeb415d2358fe4bf61adb     
阴谋破坏(某事物)( sabotage的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • The main pipeline supplying water was sabotaged by rebels. 供水主管道被叛乱分子蓄意破坏了。
  • They had no competition because competitors found their trucks burned and sabotaged. 他们之所以没有竞争对象,那是因为竞争对象老是发现自己的卡车遭火烧或被破坏。 来自教父部分
13 raffle xAHzs     
n.废物,垃圾,抽奖售卖;v.以抽彩出售
参考例句:
  • The money was raised by the sale of raffle tickets.这笔款子是通过出售购物彩券筹集的。
  • He won a car in the raffle.他在兑奖售物活动中赢得了一辆汽车。
14 kit D2Rxp     
n.用具包,成套工具;随身携带物
参考例句:
  • The kit consisted of about twenty cosmetic items.整套工具包括大约20种化妆用品。
  • The captain wants to inspect your kit.船长想检查你的行装。
15 pouch Oi1y1     
n.小袋,小包,囊状袋;vt.装...入袋中,用袋运输;vi.用袋送信件
参考例句:
  • He was going to make a tobacco pouch out of them. 他要用它们缝制一个烟草袋。
  • The old man is always carrying a tobacco pouch with him.这老汉总是随身带着烟袋。
16 collapsing 6becc10b3eacfd79485e188c6ac90cb2     
压扁[平],毁坏,断裂
参考例句:
  • Rescuers used props to stop the roof of the tunnel collapsing. 救援人员用支柱防止隧道顶塌陷。
  • The rocks were folded by collapsing into the center of the trough. 岩石由于坍陷进入凹槽的中心而发生褶皱。
17 amazement 7zlzBK     
n.惊奇,惊讶
参考例句:
  • All those around him looked at him with amazement.周围的人都对他投射出惊异的眼光。
  • He looked at me in blank amazement.他带着迷茫惊诧的神情望着我。
18 chauffeur HrGzL     
n.(受雇于私人或公司的)司机;v.为…开车
参考例句:
  • The chauffeur handed the old lady from the car.这个司机搀扶这个老太太下汽车。
  • She went out herself and spoke to the chauffeur.她亲自走出去跟汽车司机说话。
19 hips f8c80f9a170ee6ab52ed1e87054f32d4     
abbr.high impact polystyrene 高冲击强度聚苯乙烯,耐冲性聚苯乙烯n.臀部( hip的名词复数 );[建筑学]屋脊;臀围(尺寸);臀部…的
参考例句:
  • She stood with her hands on her hips. 她双手叉腰站着。
  • They wiggled their hips to the sound of pop music. 他们随着流行音乐的声音摇晃着臀部。 来自《简明英汉词典》
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