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双语·魔法师的外甥 第七章 前门事发

所属教程:译林版·魔法师的外甥

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2022年04月26日

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“Now, slave, how long am I to wait for my chariot?” thundered the Witch. Uncle Andrew cowered away from her. Now that she was really present, all the silly thoughts he had had while looking at himself in the glass were oozing out of him. But Aunt Letty at once got up from her knees and came over to the centre of the room.

“And who is this young person, Andrew, may I ask?” said Aunt Letty in icy tones.

“Distinguished foreigner—v-very important p-person,” he stammered.

“Rubbish!” said Aunt Letty, and then, turning to the Witch. “Get out of my house this moment, you shameless hussy, or I’ll send for the police.” She thought the Witch must be someone out of a circus and she did not approve of bare arms.

“What woman is this?” said Jadis. “Down on your knees, minion, before I blast you.”

“No strong language in this house if you please, young woman,” said Aunt Letty.

Instantly, as it seemed to Uncle Andrew, the Queen towered up to an even greater height. Fire flashed from her eyes: she flung out her arm with the same gesture and the same horrible-sounding words that had lately turned the palace-gates of Charn to dust. But nothing happened except that Aunt Letty, thinking that those horrible words were meant to be ordinary English, said:

“I thought as much. The woman is drunk. Drunk! She can’t even speak clearly.”

It must have been a terrible moment for the Witch when she suddenly realized that her power of turning people into dust, which had been quite real in her own world, was not going to work in ours. But she did not lose her nerve even for a second. Without wasting a thought on her disappointment, she lunged forward, caught Aunt Letty round the neck and the knees, raised her high above her head as if she had been no heavier than a doll, and threw her across the room. While Aunt Letty was still hurtling through the air, the housemaid (who was having a beautifully exciting morning) put her head in at the door and said, “If you please, sir, the ’ansom’s come.”

“Lead on, Slave,” said the Witch to Uncle Andrew. He began muttering something about “regrettable violence—must really protest,” but at a single glance from Jadis he became speechless. She drove him out of the room and out of the house; and Digory came running down the stairs just in time to see the front door close behind them.

“Jiminy!” he said. “She’s loose in London. And with Uncle Andrew. I wonder what on earth is going to happen now.”

“Oh, Master Digory,” said the housemaid (who was really having a wonderful day), “I think Miss Ketterley’s hurt herself somehow.” So they both rushed into the drawing-room to find out what had happened.

If Aunt Letty had fallen on bare boards or even on the carpet, I suppose all her bones would have been broken: but by great good luck she had fallen on the mattress. Aunt Letty was a very tough old lady: aunts often were in those days. After she had had some sal volatile and sat still for a few minutes, she said there was nothing the matter with her except a few bruises. Very soon she was taking charge of the situation.

“Sarah,” she said to the housemaid (who had never had such a day before), “go around to the police station at once and tell them there is a dangerous lunatic at large. I will take Mrs. Kirke’s lunch up myself.” Mrs. Kirke was, of course, Digory’s mother.

When Mother’s lunch had been seen to, Digory and Aunt Letty had their own. After that he did some hard thinking.

The problem was how to get the Witch back to her own world, or at any rate out of ours, as soon as possible. Whatever happened, she must not be allowed to go rampaging about the house. Mother must not see her. And, if possible, she must not be allowed to go rampaging about London either. Digory had not been in the drawing-room when she tried to “blast” Aunt Letty, but he had seen her “blast” the gates at Charn: so he knew her terrible powers and did not know that she had lost any of them by coming into our world. And he knew she meant to conquer our world. At the present moment, as far as he could see, she might be blasting Buckingham Palace or the Houses of Parliament: and it was almost certain that quite a number of policemen had by now been reduced to little heaps of dust. And there didn’t seem to be anything he could do about that. “But the rings seem to work like magnets,” thought Digory. “If I can only touch her and then slip on my yellow, we shall both go into the Wood between the Worlds. I wonder will she go all faint again there? Was that something the place does to her, or was it only the shock of being pulled out of her own world? But I suppose I’ll have to risk that. And how am I to find the beast? I don’t suppose Aunt Letty would let me go out, not unless I said where I was going. And I haven’t got more than twopence. I’d need any amount of money for buses and trams if I went looking all over London. Anyway, I haven’t the faintest idea where to look. I wonder if Uncle Andrew is still with her.”

It seemed in the end that the only thing he could do was to wait and hope that Uncle Andrew and the Witch would come back. If they did, he must rush out and get hold of the Witch and put on his yellow Ring before she had a chance to get into the house. This meant that he must watch the front door like a cat watching a mouse’s hole; he dared not leave his post for a moment. So he went into the dining-room and “glued his face” as they say, to the window. It was a bow-window from which you could see the steps up to the front door and see up and down the street, so that no one could reach the front door without your knowing. “I wonder what Polly’s doing?” thought Digory.

He wondered about this a good deal as the first slow half-hour ticked on. But you need not wonder, for I am going to tell you. She had got home late for her dinner, with her shoes and stockings very wet. And when they asked her where she had been and what on earth she had been doing, she said she had been out with Digory Kirke. Under further questioning she said she had got her feet wet in a pool of water, and that the pool was in a wood. Asked where the wood was, she said she didn’t know. Asked if it was in one of the parks, she said truthfully enough that she supposed it might be a sort of park. From all of this Polly’s mother got the idea that Polly had gone off, without telling anyone, to some part of London she didn’t know, and gone into a strange park and amused herself jumping into puddles. As a result she was told that she had been very naughty indeed and that she wouldn’t be allowed to play with “that Kirke boy” any more if anything of the sort ever happened again. Then she was given dinner with all the nice parts left out and sent to bed for two solid hours. It was a thing that happened to one quite often in those days.

So while Digory was staring out of the dining-room window, Polly was lying in bed, and both were thinking how terribly slowly the time could go. I think, myself, I would rather have been in Polly’s position. She had only to wait for the end of her two hours: but every few minutes Digory would hear a cab or a baker’s van or a butcher’s boy coming round the corner and think “Here she comes,” and then find it wasn’t. And in between these false alarms, for what seemed hours and hours, the clock ticked on and one big fly—high up and far out of reach—buzzed against the window. It was one of those houses that get very quiet and dull in the afternoon and always seem to smell of mutton.

During his long watching and waiting one small thing happened which I shall have to mention because something important came of it later on. A lady called with some grapes for Digory’s Mother; and as the dining-room door was open, Digory couldn’t help overhearing Aunt Letty and the lady as they talked in the hall.

“What lovely grapes!” came Aunt Letty’s voice. “I’m sure if anything could do her good these would. But poor, dear little Mabel! I’m afraid it would need fruit from the land of youth to help her now. Nothing in this world will do much.” Then they both lowered their voices and said a lot more that he could not hear.

If he had heard that bit about the land of youth a few days ago he would have thought Aunt Letty was just talking without meaning anything in particular, the way grown-ups do, and it wouldn’t have interested him. He almost thought so now. But suddenly it flashed upon his mind that he now knew (even if Aunt Letty didn’t) that there really were other worlds and that he himself had been in one of them. At that rate there might be a real Land of Youth somewhere. There might be almost anything. There might be fruit in some other world that would really cure his mother! And oh, oh—Well, you know how it feels if you begin hoping for something that you want desperately badly; you almost fight against the hope because it is too good to be true; you’ve been disappointed so often before. That was how Digory felt. But it was no good trying to throttle this hope. It might—really, really, it just might be true. So many odd things had happened already. And he had the magic rings. There must be worlds you could get to through every pool in the wood. He could hunt through them all. And then—Mother well again. Everything right again. He forgot all about watching for the Witch. His hand was already going into the pocket where he kept the yellow ring, when all at once he heard a sound of galloping.

“Hullo! What’s that?” thought Digory. “Fire-engine? I wonder what house is on fire. Great Scott, it’s coming here. Why, it’s Her.”

I needn’t tell you who he meant by Her.

First came the hansom. There was no one in the driver’s seat. On the roof—not sitting, but standing on the roof—swaying with superb balance as it came at full speed round the corner with one wheel in the air—was Jadis the Queen of Queens and the Terror of Charn. Her teeth were bared, her eyes shone like fire, and her long hair streamed out behind her like a comet’s tail. She was flogging the horse without mercy. Its nostrils were wide and red and its sides were spotted with foam. It galloped madly up to the front door, missing the lamp-post by an inch, and then reared up on its hind legs. The hansom crashed into the lamp-post and shattered into several pieces. The Witch, with a magnificent jump, had sprung clear just in time and landed on the horse’s back. She settled herself astride and leaned forward, whispering things in its ear. They must have been things meant not to quiet it but to madden it. It was on its hind legs again in a moment, and its neigh was like a scream; it was all hoofs and teeth and eyes and tossing mane. Only a splendid rider could have stayed on its back.

Before Digory had recovered his breath a good many other things began to happen. A second hansom dashed up close behind the first: out of it there jumped a fat man in a frock-coat and a policeman. Then came a third hansom with two more policemen in it. After it, came about twenty people (mostly errand boys) on bicycles, all ringing their bells and letting out cheers and cat-calls. Last of all came a crowd of people on foot: all very hot with running, but obviously enjoying themselves. Windows shot up in all the houses of that street and a housemaid or a butler appeared at every front door. They wanted to see the fun.

Meanwhile an old gentleman had begun to struggle shakily out of the ruins of the first hansom. Several people rushed forward to help him; but as one pulled him one way and another another, perhaps he would have got out quite as quickly on his own. Digory guessed that the old gentleman must be Uncle Andrew but you couldn’t see his face; his tall hat had been bashed down over it.

Digory rushed out and joined the crowd.

“That’s the woman, that’s the woman,” cried the fat man, pointing at Jadis. “Do your duty, Constable. Hundreds and thousands of pounds’ worth she’s taken out of my shop. Look at that rope of pearls round her neck. That’s mine. And she’s given me a black eye too, what’s more.”

“That she ’as, guv’nor,” said one of the crowd. “And as lovely a black eye as I’d wish to see. Beautiful bit of work that must ’ave been. Gor! ain’t she strong then!”

“You ought to put a nice raw beefsteak on it, Mister, that’s what it wants,” said a butcher’s boy.

“Now then,” said the most important of the policemen, “what’s all this ’ere?”

“I tell you she—” began the fat man, when someone else called out:

“Don’t let the old cove in the cab get away. ’E put ’er up to it.”

The old gentleman, who was certainly Uncle Andrew, had just succeeded in standing up and was rubbing his bruises. “Now then,” said the policeman, turning to him. “What’s all this?”

“Womfle—pomfy—shomf,” came Uncle Andrew’s voice from inside the hat.

“None of that now,” said the policeman sternly. “You’ll find this is no laughing matter. Take that ’at off, see?”

This was more easily said than done. But after Uncle Andrew had struggled in vain with the hat for some time, two other policemen seized it by the brim and forced it off.

“Thank you, thank you,” said Uncle Andrew in a faint voice. “Thank you. Dear me, I’m terribly shaken. If someone could give me a small glass of brandy—”

“Now you attend to me, if you please,” said the policeman, taking out a very large note book and a very small pencil. “Are you in charge of that there young woman?”

“Look out!” called several voices, and the policeman jumped a step backward just in time. The horse had aimed a kick at him which would probably have killed him. Then the Witch wheeled the horse round so that she faced the crowd and its hind-legs were on the footpath. She had a long, bright knife in her hand and had been busily cutting the horse free from the wreck of the hansom.

All this time Digory had been trying to get into a position from which he could touch the Witch. This wasn’t at all easy because, on the side nearest to him, there were too many people. And in order to get round to the other side he had to pass between the horse’s hoofs and the railings of the “area” that surrounded the house; for the Ketterleys’ house had a basement. If you know anything about horses, and especially if you had seen what a state that horse was in at the moment, you will realize that this was a ticklish thing to do. Digory knew lots about horses, but he set his teeth and got ready to make a dash for it as soon as he saw a favourable moment.

A red-faced man in a bowler hat had now shouldered his way to the front of the crowd.

“Hi! P’leeceman,” he said, “that’s my ’orse what she’s sitting on, same as it’s my cab what she’s made matchwood of.”

“One at a time, please, one at a time,” said the policeman.

“But there ain’t no time,” said the Cabby. “I know that ’orse better’n you do. ’Tain’t an ordinary ’orse. ’Is father was a hofficer’s charger in the cavalry, ’e was. And if the young woman goes on hexcitin’ ’im, there’ll be murder done. ’Ere, let me get at him.”

The policeman was only too glad to have a good reason for standing further away from the horse. The Cabby took a step nearer, looked up at Jadis, and said in a not unkindly voice:

“Now, Missie, let me get at ’is ’ead, and just you get off. You’re a Lidy, and you don’t want all these roughs going for you, do you? You want to go ’ome and ’ave a nice cup of tea and a lay down quiet like; then you’ll feel ever so much better.” At the same time he stretched out his hand toward the horse’s head with the words, “Steady, Strawberry, old boy. Steady now.”

Then for the first time the Witch spoke.

“Dog!” came her cold, clear voice, ringing loud above all the other noises. “Dog, unhand our royal charger. We are the Empress Jadis.”

“喂,奴才,还要让我等多久才有马车?”女巫的嗓门像雷震一般。安德鲁舅舅缩到了一边躲着她。这会儿女巫真站到他跟前了,照镜子时的那些想入非非早已消失得无影无踪。这时,蕾蒂姨妈站了起来,走到了屋子中央。

“这位年轻女郎是谁?安德鲁,能告诉我吗?”蕾蒂姨妈冷冷地问。

“尊贵的外国人——非非——非常重要的人物,”他结结巴巴地说。

“胡说!”蕾蒂姨妈说完这话,便转向女巫。“立马从我家滚出去,你这不要脸的荡妇,不然我可要报警啦。”她以为那女巫一定是从马戏团里偷跑出来的,而且,她对女巫裸着两只胳膊也颇有意见。

“这女人是谁?”简蒂丝问。“快跪下,奴才,别逼我动手。”

“请你不要在这所房子里出口伤人,女士,”蕾蒂姨妈说。

那女王立刻挺直了腰板,安德鲁舅舅觉得她比以前更高大了。她目露凶光,甩出一条胳膊,口中念念有词,发出恐怖的声音。以前,她正是这样将恰恩城宫门化成灰烬的。然而,这回却什么事也没有发生。蕾蒂姨妈以为那些可怕的咒语也就是普通的人话,便说:

“果然不出我所料,这女人喝多了。你看她醉得!连话都说不清了。”

女巫突然反应过来,在她的世界里能把人化为灰烬的魔力,在我们的世界里却失效了,这一刻对她来说一定异常可怕。但她没有片刻的手忙脚乱,也没有丝毫的沮丧失望。她扑了过去,一把抓住蕾蒂姨妈的脖子和膝盖,把她拎起来举过头顶,像举一个玩具娃娃那么轻松,一下把她甩到屋子的另一头。蕾蒂姨妈腾空而起,没等落地,一位女佣(她觉得那是个美妙的早晨,过得很爽)探进头来说:“打扰了,先生,马车已准备好了。”

“带路,奴才,”女巫对安德鲁舅舅下达命令。他口中嘀咕着“遗憾的暴行——必须抗议”之类的话,但简蒂丝白了他一眼,他便住口了。她撵他出了房间,来到屋子外面;迪格雷跑下楼来,刚好看见前门在他们身后关上了。

“真见鬼!”他说。“这下她可要在伦敦闹开了,还带了个安德鲁舅舅,真不知道会闹出什么事情来。”

“喂,迪格雷少爷,”女佣喊道(那天她别提有多开心了),“我看凯特利小姐是伤着了。”于是他俩冲到客厅里去看出了什么事儿。

要是刚才蕾蒂姨妈直接摔在地板上,或即使落在地毯上,我看都会摔得粉身碎骨。但她运气好,落在了床垫上。蕾蒂姨妈是个强悍的老妇人:那年头的姨妈们都很健壮。她吃了些提神药,静静地坐了几分钟,然后就说不碍事了,只是碰破了几块皮。很快,她就发号施令起来。

“莎拉,”她对女佣说(那天对她来说可不同往常),“快去警察局,告诉他们有个危险的精神病人跑出来了。柯克夫人的午饭我自己来弄吧。”柯克夫人嘛,自然就是迪格雷的母亲了。

照料过迪格雷的母亲吃完,迪格雷和蕾蒂姨妈才去吃午饭。饭后,他认真地思索了起来。

眼下的问题是如何把女巫给弄回去,不管怎样,也得让她尽快离开我们的世界。无论如何也不能让她在这所房子里撒野了。千万不能让妈妈看见她。还要尽可能不准她在伦敦城里横冲直撞。她企图“击垮”蕾蒂姨妈时,迪格雷不在客厅,但他曾目睹她“击垮”恰恩城的宫门;所以,他知道她有骇人的魔力,然而并不知道一旦到了我们的世界,她的魔力已经丧失殆尽。他还知道她想要征服我们的世界。据他所料,这会儿她很可能正在捣毁白金汉宫或议会大厦;几乎可以肯定,不少警察已化为一堆灰烬了。他真有点不知所措。“不过,那些戒指倒是很像磁铁,”迪格雷心想,“只要我触着她,一摸我的黄戒指,我俩就将回到各世界间的树林中去。不知道她在那里会不会又变得虚弱无力呢?是那个地方在作怪呢,还是她从自己的世界被抛到那里而受了震荡?不过,我看我是没办法了,只能去冒这个险。那么,要我上哪里找这个畜生呢?我看蕾蒂姨妈是不会让我出去的,除非向她坦白我去哪里。而我手头的钱还不到两个便士呢。我要是跑遍伦敦去找他们,得花不少钱坐汽车和电车。再说了,我压根儿不知道从哪儿找起。不知道安德鲁舅舅还是不是跟她在一起。”

到头来,他唯一能做的只是等候并盼望安德鲁舅舅和女巫回来了。他们一回来,他就得冲上去抓住女巫,然后戴上黄戒指,不要让她有机会踏进房子。这就意味着他必须像猫守着老鼠洞一样盯着前门,一刻都不能离岗。于是,他进了饭厅,像人们常说的那样,把脸“贴”在窗户上。那是一扇往外凸的窗,望出去可以看见通向前门的台阶,整条街看得一清二楚。因此,只要有人走到前门,都逃不过他的眼睛。“不知道波莉在干什么?”迪格雷心想。

他反复思考着这个问题,半小时就这么过去了,过得好慢。但你们可不要性急,让我来继续把故事讲下去吧。波莉回家吃饭迟到了,鞋袜也湿透了。大人们问她去了哪里,干了些什么,她说是跟迪格雷·柯克一块儿出去了。再盘问下去,她就说是在一个水潭里把脚弄湿的,那水潭在一个树林里。问她树林在哪儿,她说不知道。又问她是不是在一个公园里,她只好老老实实承认那地方好像是一个公园。波莉的妈妈由此断定,波莉刚才一定偷跑出去,到了伦敦某个她不知道的地方,溜进一个陌生的公园,在水坑里跳来跳去取乐来着。结果,波莉被责备太调皮了,要是以后再这样,就不准她再和“那个姓柯克的男孩子”一起玩了。这以后,她才被允许在剩菜剩饭里挑些好吃的填饱肚子。吃完后她就被打发到了床上,足足待了两个小时。那年头,这种事儿可是家常便饭。

因此,当迪格雷透过饭厅的窗户留意外面的动静时,波莉正躺在床上。他俩都诧异,时间怎么过得那么慢啊。要是换了我,我想我宁愿处在波莉的位置上。她只要熬过那两个小时就行了。而迪格雷呢,每隔几分钟,只要一有马车或面包师傅送货车的响动传来,或听到肉铺小伙计拐过街角,他就以为“她来了”,结果却是一场空。就这么时不时地使人一惊,接着又是度日如年的嘀嗒的钟声。还有一只大苍蝇——在你头顶够不着的地方——嗡嗡地撞着玻璃窗。这儿的房子到了下午总是静悄悄、昏沉沉的,而且老是有一股羊臊味儿。这所房子也不例外。

在他漫长的监视与等待中,有一个小插曲,我在这儿要提一提,因为下文发生的一件大事儿要以它为铺垫。有一位女士带了些葡萄来探望迪格雷的妈妈,因为饭厅的门开着,所以蕾蒂姨妈和那位女士在客厅里的谈话就传到了迪格雷的耳朵里。

“多好的葡萄呀!”这是蕾蒂姨妈的声音。“要是吃些什么能让她的病好起来,这些葡萄一定管用。唉,亲爱的小玛贝尔,多可怜呀!现在恐怕只有青春之土培育出的果实能治好她的病了吧。这个世界里啥都不管用了。”她俩接着谈了更多的话,但声音压得很低,迪格雷听不清楚。

要是他前几天听到什么“青春之土”,准以为那是蕾蒂姨妈的信口胡说,大人们老是这么说话,这种话根本不会引起他的兴趣。现在他差不多也这么认为。然而,他一拍脑袋,想起了的确存在着别的世界(即使蕾蒂姨妈不知道),他还到过其中的一个呢。这样看来,也许在那儿真有一片“青春之土”。什么东西都有可能存在。在别的世界里,或许真有种果子能治好妈妈的病!哦——要知道,想一样东西都想疯了该是种什么感受啊。你简直要打消那种念头了,它美得像个泡影,曾让你尝尽了失望的滋味。这就是迪格雷当时的感受,但他却遏制不住这种期望。有可能——真的,真的有那种可能。已经发生了那么多稀奇古怪的事儿了。他还有魔法戒指呢。从树林里每个水潭进去都有一个世界,他能寻遍所有的世界。终有一天,妈妈的病会好的,一切都会好的。他把留意女巫的事儿全给忘了。他的手已经向放着黄戒指的口袋伸去了,恰在此时,他突然听到一阵疾驰而来的马蹄声。

“嘿!那是什么?”迪格雷心里想。“救火车吗?不知道哪幢房子起火了。好家伙,过来了。哎呀,是她!”

用不着我告诉你他说的“她”是谁了。

最先疾驰而来的是一辆双座马车,车夫座位上空无一人。马车全速奔来,一个急拐弯,一只轮子腾空而起。车顶上——不是坐着,而是站着的——怎么晃都四平八稳的——正是女王之王,恰恩的邪神简蒂丝。只见她龇牙咧嘴,眼冒火光,长发像彗星尾巴似的飘在脑后。她毫不留情地用鞭子抽打着马。马大张着红红的鼻孔,两肋满是汗珠。它疯狂地冲向前门,然后抬起前腿,用后腿立了起来,差点儿撞上灯柱,而车厢则与灯柱撞成了碎片。女巫优美地一跳,顺利脱险,并落到了马背上。她跨上马背,俯身向前,对马耳语了几句。那一定是些让马狂躁不安,而不是使它镇静的话。马儿又立刻抬起前腿,尖厉地长啸一声,四蹄腾空,龇牙瞪眼,马鬃飞扬。只有出色的骑手才驾驭得了它。

还没等迪格雷喘口气,又有许多事情接二连三地发生了。第二辆马车紧随而来:车上跳下一个身穿礼服的胖子和一名警察。紧接着,载着另外两名警察的第三辆马车也快速赶到了。马车后面跟上来二十几个人(大多是童仆),他们骑着车,打着铃,一边喝彩一边吹口哨。还有一群人步行跟在队伍的最后面:一个个跑得浑身发热,但又乐不可支。所有临街的窗户全哗啦啦地打开了。每一座房子的前门都立着一个女佣或男仆,他们都等着看好戏呢。

这时,一位老绅士晃晃悠悠地从第一辆撞烂了的马车里挣扎着往外爬。几个人见状冲过去帮他,但这个往这儿扯,那个往那儿拉,也许没人帮他的话,他倒早爬出来了。迪格雷猜到那位老绅士一定是安德鲁舅舅,虽然看不清他的脸:他的高筒礼帽被撞下来正好扣住了他的脸。

迪格雷冲进了人群。

“就是这个女人,就是她,”一位胖子指着简蒂丝大喊。“把她抓起来,警察!她从我店里抢了价值成千上万的东西。瞧她脖子上的珍珠项链,那是我的。她还给了我的眼睛一拳,都打青了。”

“她真是好身手哇,长官,”人群中有人说。“好一只青眼睛,我最乐意看。她一定干得很漂亮。哇!她真强悍!”

“你该在青眼睛上搁上块好吃的生牛排,先生,那才般配呢,”一个肉铺小伙计说。

“喂,”那个警察头子说,“这里到底出了什么事?”

“我来说,她——”那个胖子刚开口,就有人喊了起来:

“别让马车里那老家伙溜走,是他唆使她干的。”

那位老绅士,自然就是安德鲁舅舅了。这会儿他已经站了起来,正揉着身上摔坏的地方。“那么,你说,”警察转过身对着他,“到底出了什么事儿?”

“嗡嗡——噗噗——嘘嘘——”安德鲁舅舅的声音从帽子里传了出来。

“行了行了,”警察厉声说,“你知道这可不容你胡闹。摘掉帽子,听到了没有?”

这可是说来容易做来难。安德鲁舅舅怎么也不能把头从帽子里挣脱出来,另外两位警察一把抓住帽檐,硬把帽子拔了下来。

“谢谢,谢谢,”安德鲁舅舅有气无力地说,“谢天谢地,可把我吓坏了。哪位行行好,给我一小杯白兰地——”

“好了,请注意回答我的问题,”那位警察说着掏出一个大笔记本和一小截铅笔。“那个年轻妇人归你管吗?”

“小心!”几个人异口同声地喊道,还好那位警察及时向后跳了一步,那匹马朝他踢了过来,差点将他踢死。接着,女巫掉转马头,面对着人群,马的后腿踏在了人行道上。她手里挥着一把明晃晃的长刀,一阵猛砍,想把马与撞烂了的马车分开。

在这段时间里,迪格雷一直候着机会触到女巫。这可不太容易,因为离他最近的一边人太多了,而要绕到另一边,就得从马蹄和栅栏之间穿过去,栅栏围着一片空地,下面是凯特利家的地下室。如果你了解马的脾气,特别是看到那匹马那会儿的样子,就知道不容易穿过去了。迪格雷很了解马,但他还是咬紧牙关,一瞅准时机就准备冲过去。

这时候,一个脸涨得通红,戴着圆顶礼帽的男子,用肩膀拱开人群,挤到了最前面。

“嘿,警察,”他说,“她骑的那匹马是俺的,撞烂的那辆马车也是俺的。”

“一次说一件事,一样一样地来,”警察说。

“可来不及了呀,”马车夫说。“俺比你了解这马,它可不是一般的马,它爹当过骑兵队长官的坐骑。要是这女人再激它,可要出人命了。唉,把它交给我吧。”

警察巴不得找个理由离那匹马远些呢。马车夫走近了一步,抬头看着简蒂丝,客客气气地说:

“来吧,小姐,我抓住马头,您下来吧。您是位小姐,不想惹上麻烦,是不是?您想回家,喝上杯香茶,静静地打个盹儿,这就感觉舒坦啦。”他一边说,一边伸手去牵马头,嘴里嘀咕着:“镇静,‘草莓’,老伙计。你可要镇静呀。”

这时,女巫终于开口说话了。

“狗东西!”她冷酷、洪亮的嗓音震荡起来,盖过了其他所有的声音,“狗东西,放开我的皇家战马。我是女王简蒂丝。”

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