黑麦奇案29

时间：2025-10-10 08:32:11

（单词翻译:单击）

II
At the Golf Hotel, Inspector1 Neele found Vivian Dubois nervously2 await-
ing his arrival. Dubois had been on the point of leaving, indeed his bags
were packed, when he had received over the telephone a civil request
from Inspector Neele to remain. Inspector Neele had been very pleasant
about it, quite apologetic. But behind the conventional words the request
had been an order. Vivian Dubois had demurred3, but not too much.
He said now:
“I do hope you realize, Inspector Neele, that it is very inconvenient4 for
me to have to stay on. I really have urgent business that needs attending
to.”
“I didn’t know you were in business, Mr. Dubois,” said Inspector Neele,
genially5.
“I’m afraid none of us can be as leisured as we would like to appear to
be nowadays.”
“Mrs. Fortescue’s death must have been a great shock to you, Mr.
Dubois. You were great friends, were you not?”
“Yes,” said Dubois, “she was a charming woman. We played golf quite
often together.”
“I expect you’ll miss her very much.”
“Yes, indeed.” Dubois sighed. “The whole thing is really quite, quite ter-
rible.”
“You actually telephoned her, I believe, on the afternoon of her death?”
“Did I? I really cannot remember now.”
“About four o’clock, I understand.”
“Yes, I believe I did.”
“Don’t you remember what your conversation was about, Mr. Dubois?”
“It wasn’t of any significance. I think I asked her how she was feeling
and if there was any further news about her husband’s death—a more or
less conventional inquiry6.”
“I see,” said Inspector Neele. He added: “And then you went out for a
walk?”
“Er—yes—yes, I—I did, I think. At least, not a walk, I played a few holes
of golf.”
Inspector Neele said gently:
“I think not, Mr. Dubois … Not that particular day … The porter here no-
ticed you walking down the road towards Yewtree Lodge7.”
Dubois’s eyes met his, then shied away again nervously.
“I’m afraid I can’t remember, Inspector.”
“Perhaps you actually went to call upon Mrs. Fortescue?”
Dubois said sharply:
“No. No, I didn’t do that. I never went near the house.”
“Where did you go, then?”
“Oh, I—went on down the road, down as far as the Three Pigeons and
then I turned around and came back by the links.”
“You’re quite sure you didn’t go to Yewtree Lodge?”
“Quite sure, Inspector.”
The inspector shook his head.
“Come, now, Mr. Dubois,” he said, “it’s much better to be frank with us,
you know. You may have had some quite innocent reason for going
there.”
“I tell you I never went to see Mrs. Fortescue that day.”
The inspector stood up.
“You know, Mr. Dubois,” he said pleasantly, “I think we’ll have to ask
you for a statement and you’ll be well- advised and quite within your
rights in having a solicitor8 present when you are making that statement.”
The colour fled from Mr. Dubois’s face, leaving it a sickly greenish col-
our.
“You’re threatening me,” he said. “You’re threatening me.”
“No, no, nothing of the kind.” Inspector Neele spoke9 in a shocked voice.
“We’re not allowed to do anything of that sort. Quite the contrary. I’m ac-
tually pointing out to you that you have certain rights.”
“I had nothing to do with it at all, I tell you! Nothing to do with it.”
“Come now, Mr. Dubois, you were at Yewtree Lodge round about half
past four on that day. Somebody looked out of the window, you know, and
saw you.”
“I was only in the garden. I didn’t go into the house.”
“Didn’t you?” said Inspector Neele. “Are you sure? Didn’t you go in by
the side door and up the stairs to Mrs. Fortescue’s sitting room on the first
floor? You were looking for something, weren’t you, in the desk there?”
“You’ve got them, I suppose,” said Dubois sullenly10. “That fool Adele kept
them, then—she swore she burnt them—But they don’t mean what you
think they mean.”
“You’re not denying, are you, Mr. Dubois, that you were a very close
friend of Mrs. Fortescue’s?”
“No, of course I’m not. How can I when you’ve got the letters? All I say
is, there’s no need to go reading any sinister11 meaning into them. Don’t
think for a moment that we—that she—ever thought of getting rid of Rex
Fortescue. Good God, I’m not that kind of man!”
“But perhaps she was that kind of woman?”
“Nonsense,” cried Vivian Dubois, “wasn’t she killed too?”
“Oh yes, yes.”
“Well, isn’t it natural to believe that the same person who killed her hus-
band killed her?”
“It might be. It certainly might be. But there are other solutions. For in-
stance—(this is quite a hypothetical case, Mr. Dubois) it’s possible that
Mrs. Fortescue got rid of her husband, and that after his death she became
somewhat of a danger to someone else. Someone who had, perhaps, not
helped her in what she had done but who had at least encouraged her and
provided, shall we say, the motive12 for the deed. She might be, you know, a
danger to that particular person.”
Dubois stammered13:
“You c-c-can’t build up a case against me. You can’t.”
“She made a will, you know,” said Inspector Neele. “She left all her
money to you. Everything she possessed14.”
“I don’t want the money. I don’t want a penny of it.”
“Of course, it isn’t very much really,” said Inspector Neele. “There’s jew-
ellery and some furs, but I imagine very little actual cash.”
Dubois stared at him, his jaw15 dropping.
“But I thought her husband—”
He stopped dead.
“Did you, Mr. Dubois?” said Inspector Neele, and there was steel now in
his voice. “That’s very interesting. I wondered if you knew the terms of
Rex Fortescue’s will—”

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点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 inspector q6kxH     
n.检查员，监察员，视察员
参考例句：
  • The inspector was interested in everything pertaining to the school.视察员对有关学校的一切都感兴趣。
  • The inspector was shining a flashlight onto the tickets.查票员打着手电筒查看车票。
2 nervously tn6zFp     
adv.神情激动地，不安地
参考例句：
  • He bit his lip nervously,trying not to cry.他紧张地咬着唇，努力忍着不哭出来。
  • He paced nervously up and down on the platform.他在站台上情绪不安地走来走去。
3 demurred demurred     
v.表示异议，反对( demur的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
  • At first she demurred, but then finally agreed. 她开始表示反对，但最终还是同意了。
  • They demurred at working on Sundays. 他们反对星期日工作。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
4 inconvenient m4hy5     
adj.不方便的，令人感到麻烦的
参考例句：
  • You have come at a very inconvenient time.你来得最不适时。
  • Will it be inconvenient for him to attend that meeting?他参加那次会议会不方便吗？
5 genially 0de02d6e0c84f16556e90c0852555eab     
adv.亲切地，和蔼地；快活地
参考例句：
  • The white church peeps out genially from behind the huts scattered on the river bank. 一座白色教堂从散布在岸上的那些小木房后面殷勤地探出头来。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • "Well, It'seems strange to see you way up here,'said Mr. Kenny genially. “咳，真没想到会在这么远的地方见到你，"肯尼先生亲切地说。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
6 inquiry nbgzF     
n.打听，询问，调查，查问
参考例句：
  • Many parents have been pressing for an inquiry into the problem.许多家长迫切要求调查这个问题。
  • The field of inquiry has narrowed down to five persons.调查的范围已经缩小到只剩5个人了。
7 lodge q8nzj     
v.临时住宿，寄宿，寄存，容纳；n.传达室，小旅馆
参考例句：
  • Is there anywhere that I can lodge in the village tonight?村里有我今晚过夜的地方吗？
  • I shall lodge at the inn for two nights.我要在这家小店住两个晚上。
8 solicitor vFBzb     
n.初级律师，事务律师
参考例句：
  • The solicitor's advice gave me food for thought.律师的指点值得我深思。
  • The solicitor moved for an adjournment of the case.律师请求将这个案件的诉讼延期。
9 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。
10 sullenly f65ccb557a7ca62164b31df638a88a71     
不高兴地，绷着脸，忧郁地
参考例句：
  • 'so what?" Tom said sullenly. “那又怎么样呢？”汤姆绷着脸说。
  • Emptiness after the paper, I sIt'sullenly in front of the stove. 报看完，想不出能找点什么事做，只好一人坐在火炉旁生气。
11 sinister 6ETz6     
adj.不吉利的，凶恶的，左边的
参考例句：
  • There is something sinister at the back of that series of crimes.在这一系列罪行背后有险恶的阴谋。
  • Their proposals are all worthless and designed out of sinister motives.他们的建议不仅一钱不值，而且包藏祸心。
12 motive GFzxz     
n.动机，目的；adv.发动的，运动的
参考例句：
  • The police could not find a motive for the murder.警察不能找到谋杀的动机。
  • He had some motive in telling this fable.他讲这寓言故事是有用意的。
13 stammered 76088bc9384c91d5745fd550a9d81721     
v.结巴地说出( stammer的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
  • He stammered most when he was nervous. 他一紧张往往口吃。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
  • Barsad leaned back in his chair, and stammered, \"What do you mean?\" 巴萨往椅背上一靠，结结巴巴地说，“你是什么意思？” 来自英汉文学 - 双城记
14 possessed xuyyQ     
adj.疯狂的；拥有的，占有的
参考例句：
  • He flew out of the room like a man possessed.他像着了魔似地猛然冲出房门。
  • He behaved like someone possessed.他行为举止像是魔怔了。
15 jaw 5xgy9     
n.颚，颌，说教，流言蜚语；v.喋喋不休，教训
参考例句：
  • He delivered a right hook to his opponent's jaw.他给了对方下巴一记右钩拳。
  • A strong square jaw is a sign of firm character.强健的方下巴是刚毅性格的标志。

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