借镜杀人20

时间：2025-10-10 07:08:39

（单词翻译:单击）

Thirteen
1
Alex Restarick was voluble. He also gestured with his hands.
“I know, I know! I’m the ideal suspect. I drive down here alone and on
the way to the house, I get a creative fit. I can’t expect you to understand.
How should you?”
“I might,” Curry1 put in drily, but Alex Restarick swept on.
“It’s just one of those things! They come upon you there’s no knowing
when or how. An effect—an idea—and everything else goes to the winds.
I’m producing Limehouse Nights next month. Suddenly—last night—the
setup was wonderful …the perfect lighting2. Fog—and the headlights cut-
ting through the fog and being thrown back—and reflecting dimly a tall
pile of buildings. Everything helped! The shots—the running footsteps—
and the chug-chugging of the electric power engine—could have been a
launch on the Thames. And I thought—that’s it—but what am I going to
use to get just these effects?—and—”
Inspector3 Curry broke in.
“You heard shots? Where?”
“Out of the fog, Inspector.” Alex waved his hands in the air—plump,
well-kept hands. “Out of the fog. That was the wonderful part about it.”
“It didn’t occur to you that anything was wrong?”
“Wrong? Why should it?”
“Are shots such a usual occurrence?”
“Ah, I knew you wouldn’t understand! The shots fitted into the scene I
was creating. I wanted shots. Danger—opium—crazy business. What did I
care what they were really? Backfires from a lorry on the road? A poacher
after rabbits?”
“They snare4 rabbits mostly round here.”
Alex swept on:
“A child letting off fireworks? I didn’t even think about them as—shots. I
was in Limehouse—or rather at the back of the stalls—looking at Lime-
house.”
“How many shots?”
“I don’t know,” said Alex petulantly5. “Two or three. Two close together, I
do remember that.”
Inspector Curry nodded.
“And the sound of running footsteps, I think you said? Where were
they?”
“They came to me out of the fog. Somewhere near the house.”
Inspector Curry said gently:
“That would suggest that the murderer of Christian6 Gulbrandsen came
from outside.”
“Of course. Why not? You don’t really suggest, do you, that he came
from inside the house?”
Still very gently, Inspector Curry said:
“We have to think of everything.”
“I suppose so,” said Alex Restarick generously. “What a soul-destroying
job yours must be, Inspector! The details, the times and places, the petti-
fogging pettiness of it. And in the end—what good is it all? Does it bring the
wretched Christian Gulbrandsen back to life?”
“There’s quite a satisfaction in getting your man, Mr. Restarick.”
“The Wild Western touch!”
“Did you know Mr. Gulbrandsen well?”
“Not well enough to murder him, Inspector. I had met him, off and on,
since I lived here as a boy. He made brief appearances from time to time.
One of our captains of industry. The type does not interest me. He has
quite a collection, I believe, of Thorwaldsen’s statuary—” Alex shuddered7.
“That speaks for itself, does it not? My God, these rich men!”
Inspector Curry eyed him meditatively8. Then he said, “Do you take any
interest in poisons, Mr. Restarick?”
“In poisons? My dear man, he was surely not poisoned first and shot af-
terwards. That would be too madly detective story.”
“He was not poisoned. But you haven’t answered my question.”
“Poison has a certain appeal … It has not the crudeness of the revolver
bullet or the blunt weapon. I have no special knowledge of the subject, if
that is what you mean.”
“Have you ever had arsenic9 in your possession?”
“In sandwiches—after the show? The idea has its allurements10. You don’t
know Rose Glidon? These actresses who think they have a name! No, I
have never thought of arsenic. One extracts it from weed killer11 or flypa-
pers, I believe.”
“How often are you down here, Mr. Restarick?”
“It varies, Inspector. Sometimes not for several weeks. But I try to get
down for weekends whenever I can. I always regard Stonygates as my
true home.”
“Mrs. Serrocold has encouraged you to do so?”
“What I owe Mrs. Serrocold can never be repaid. Sympathy, under-
standing12, affection—”
“And quite a lot of solid cash as well, I believe?”
Alex looked faintly disgusted.
“She treats me as a son, and she has belief in my work.”
“Has she ever spoken to you about her will?”
“Certainly. But may I ask what is the point of all these questions, In-
spector? There is nothing wrong with Mrs. Serrocold.”
“There had better not be,” said Inspector Curry grimly.
“Now what can you possibly mean by that?”
“If you don’t know, so much the better,” said Inspector Curry. “And if
you do—I’m warning you.”
When Alex had gone Sergeant13 Lake said:
“Pretty bogus, would you say?”
Curry shook his head.
“Difficult to say. He may have genuine creative talent. He may just like
living soft and talking big. One doesn’t know. Heard running footsteps, did
he? I’d be prepared to bet he made that up.”
“For any particular reason?”
“Definitely for a particular reason. We haven’t come to it yet, but we
will.”
“After all, sir, one of those smart lads may have got out of the College
buildings unbeknownst. Probably a few cat burglars amongst them, and if
so—”
“That’s what we’re meant to think. Very convenient. But if that’s so,
Lake, I’ll eat my new soft hat.”

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1 curry xnozh     
n.咖哩粉，咖哩饭菜；v.用咖哩粉调味，用马栉梳，制革
参考例句：
  • Rice makes an excellent complement to a curry dish.有咖喱的菜配米饭最棒。
  • Add a teaspoonful of curry powder.加一茶匙咖喱粉。
2 lighting CpszPL     
n.照明，光线的明暗，舞台灯光
参考例句：
  • The gas lamp gradually lost ground to electric lighting.煤气灯逐渐为电灯所代替。
  • The lighting in that restaurant is soft and romantic.那个餐馆照明柔和而且浪漫。
3 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。
4 snare XFszw     
n.陷阱，诱惑，圈套；（去除息肉或者肿瘤的）勒除器；响弦，小军鼓；vt.以陷阱捕获，诱惑
参考例句：
  • I used to snare small birds such as sparrows.我曾常用罗网捕捉麻雀等小鸟。
  • Most of the people realized that their scheme was simply a snare and a delusion.大多数人都认识到他们的诡计不过是一个骗人的圈套。
5 petulantly 6a54991724c557a3ccaeff187356e1c6     
参考例句：
  • \"No; nor will she miss now,\" cries The Vengeance, petulantly. “不会的，现在也不会错过，”复仇女神气冲冲地说。 来自英汉文学 - 双城记
6 Christian KVByl     
adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒
参考例句：
  • They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
  • His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。
7 shuddered 70137c95ff493fbfede89987ee46ab86     
v.战栗( shudder的过去式和过去分词 )；发抖；（机器、车辆等）突然震动；颤动
参考例句：
  • He slammed on the brakes and the car shuddered to a halt. 他猛踩刹车，车颤抖着停住了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • I shuddered at the sight of the dead body. 我一看见那尸体就战栗。 来自《简明英汉词典》
8 meditatively 1840c96c2541871bf074763dc24f786a     
adv.冥想地
参考例句：
  • The old man looked meditatively at the darts board. 老头儿沉思不语，看着那投镖板。 来自英汉文学
  • "Well,'said the foreman, scratching his ear meditatively, "we do need a stitcher. “这--"工头沉思地搔了搔耳朵。 "我们确实需要一个缝纫工。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
9 arsenic 2vSz4     
n.砒霜，砷；adj.砷的
参考例句：
  • His wife poisoned him with arsenic.他的妻子用砒霜把他毒死了。
  • Arsenic is a poison.砒霜是毒药。
10 allurements d3c56c28b0c14f592862db1ac119a555     
n.诱惑( allurement的名词复数 )；吸引；诱惑物；有诱惑力的事物
参考例句：
  • The big cities are full of allurements on which to spend money. 大城市充满形形色色诱人花钱的事物。 来自《简明英汉词典》
11 killer rpLziK     
n.杀人者，杀人犯，杀手，屠杀者
参考例句：
  • Heart attacks have become Britain's No.1 killer disease.心脏病已成为英国的头号致命疾病。
  • The bulk of the evidence points to him as her killer.大量证据证明是他杀死她的。
12 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。
13 sergeant REQzz     
n.警官，中士
参考例句：
  • His elder brother is a sergeant.他哥哥是个警官。
  • How many stripes are there on the sleeve of a sergeant?陆军中士的袖子上有多少条纹？

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