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儿童英语读物 The Ghost of the Chattering Bones CHAPTER 5 The Bones Chatter Again

时间:2017-11-16 07:40来源:互联网 提供网友:qing   字体: [ ]
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Benny was checking himself out in the hall mirror when Mrs. McGregor came down the stairs in a peach-colored dress. “Doesn’t everyone look wonderful!” she said, smiling fondly at the children.

Henry Jessie, Violet, and Benny were ready for the potluck dinner. Jessie was wearing a watermelon-pink dress with pearly buttons. Violet had changed into a lavender T-shirt and pale blue skirt with lace pockets. Henry wore a blue shirt and black pants. And Benny had on a short-sleeved white shirt and tan pants.

Just then, Pam came out of the kitchen holding a covered dish. The cream-colored headband in her hair matched her dress. Norah, in a ruffled1 blue dress, was right behind her.

“Pam made pasta salad for the potluck,” Norah said proudly as they headed out to the car.

“Oh, do you enjoy cooking, Pam?” Violet asked.

Pam nodded. “I’m not very good at it yet,” she said. “But I’m learning.”

“Pam’s being modest,” Mrs. McGregor said as they pulled out of the driveway. “It just so happens I had a taste—and it was delicious!”

“It smells delicious!” Benny piped up from the backseat.

Pam, who was sitting up front between her great-aunt and Mrs. McGregor, turned around and smiled. “I’m making cookies tomorrow, Benny. You can help me decorate them if you want.”

“Sure!” Benny was grinning from ear to ear.

Pam was being very nice to Benny, Jessie thought.

“I was hoping Annette would join us,” Norah said as they drove through the peaceful countryside. “She doesn’t know a soul around here. I wanted to introduce her to a few people, but she said she’d rather work.”

“You certainly have a dedicated2 assistant,” Mrs. McGregor remarked.

Norah nodded, then she added, “By the way, if anyone comes across that tape recorder of mine, please let me know right away. Annette and I both use it for research.”

“You mean, it’s still missing, Norah?” Mrs. McGregor was surprised to hear this.

“I’m afraid so.”

“We’ll keep an eye out for it,” Jessie promised. And the others nodded.

“Oh, Pam,” Violet said, “speaking of lost things, are you missing a headband? A braided green headband?”

Pam whirled around. “Yes, did you find it?”

Violet nodded. “We came across it when we were out today.”

“That’s great!” said Pam. “It’s my favorite.”

The Aldens looked at each other. Pam said she never went into the woods. Why would she lie to them?

Just then, Norah pulled into the busy parking lot at the community center. “I wonder what everybody’s bringing for the potluck,” said Benny. He sounded excited.

“One thing’s for sure,” said Norah, parking in an empty space. “You’ll be stuffed to the gills by the time we leave!”

Benny jumped out of the car. “Let’s go,” he said, heading for the door.

Henry laughed. “When it comes to food, there’s no stopping Benny.”

Inside the packed center, people were already helping3 themselves to the hot and cold food set out on a long table. Pam went over to add her dish to the others.

“Wow, there sure are a lot of potluckers here,” Benny said as he looked around. “I hope they save some food for us.”

Jessie smiled at her little brother and brushed her fingers across his hair. “Don’t worry, Benny. I’m sure there’s plenty to go around.”

Norah put a hand to her cheek. “Oh, no. There he is again!” she said, keeping her voice low.

The Aldens and Mrs. McGregor looked at Norah, then in the direction she was staring. A man in gold-rimmed glasses was eating dinner at a small table in the corner. The man was Spence Morton!

“Never mind, now. We’ll just keep out of his way,” Mrs. McGregor told her friend.

Henry noticed that Benny was eyeing the buffet4 table again. “I think there’s still plenty of food there, Benny,” he teased.

Norah smiled at the youngest Alden. “Getting hungry?”

“Sort of,” Benny said, looking at her expectantly. “Is it time to eat yet?”

Norah laughed. “Go ahead.”

The Aldens quickly made their way over to the buffet while Norah and Mrs. McGregor mingled5 with the other guests. The children followed the line of people moving slowly around the table. After helping themselves to the different dishes, they carried their heaping plates to a small table and sat down.

“Mmm,” said Jessie, digging in. “Have you tried Pam’s pasta salad? It really is great.”

Henry nodded. “I’ll second that.”

“Don’t all look at once,” said Violet, “but Spence Morton has company.”

One by one, the other Aldens peeked6 over to take a look. Someone with gray streaks7 in her dark hair was sitting across from Spence. They seemed to be deep in conversation.

“Isn’t that Darlene?” Jessie said in surprise, trying not to stare.

“You mean the lady from the gas station?” asked Benny.

Violet turned around slowly to take another glance. “Yes, I think you’re right, Jessie.”

“I wonder what that’s all about,” said Henry

But they soon forgot about Spence Morton as Norah and Mrs. McGregor joined them, with Pam close behind. They all enjoyed a cheerful dinner together. Even Pam was all smiles.

Benny was just polishing off his second helping of chocolate cake when he spotted8 someone waving. “I think someone’s trying to get your attention, Norah.” He nodded in the direction of a man seated a few tables away.

“You’re right, Benny.” Norah smiled and waved, too. “That’s Bob Ferber. He did the work on my house.”

A young man of about thirty came over. He had sandy-colored hair and a golden tan.

“Good to see you, Norah!” He put out his hand. “And you, too, Pam.”

“How are you, Bob?” Norah responded, shaking hands. Then she introduced Mrs. McGregor and the Aldens.

“I’m afraid I ate too much,” Bob confessed, after saying hello to everyone. “I seldom get a chance to enjoy such great cooking.”

Norah smiled. “I hope business is going well,” she said. “I know it’s been quite a struggle to get it off the ground.”

“Oh, it’s not as bad as all that,” said Bob. “I’ll have my bills paid off soon—then it’ll be smooth sailing.”

Norah seemed surprised to hear this. “That’d be an amazing thing to do in such a short time.”

Changing the subject, Bob turned to the Aldens. “So, are you enjoying your visit with Norah?”

Benny nodded. “We’re solving a mystery,” he said, his eyes shining.

“Oh?” Bob looked startled.

“At least, we’re trying to solve one,” added Henry.

Norah laughed a little. “I’ll have to tell you about that mystery sometime, Bob.”

“Right.” Smiling uneasily, the young man glanced at his watch. “Well, now, just look at the time. Guess I’d better be off. Good luck with the old mystery, kids,” he said, seeming eager to get away.

Jessie stared after him, puzzled. Nobody had mentioned it was an old mystery. How did he know?

That night, after the Aldens had gone to bed, Violet lay awake thinking about Eton’s Loop. What in the world was it? All day they’d kept their eyes peeled for clues. But they’d found nothing that would help solve the mystery. Was the answer somewhere in the verse itself?

When last goes first,

and first goes last,

Eton’s Loop will show you

a clue from the past.

Violet, who knew the verse by heart, was repeating the lines to herself when she suddenly heard something. What on earth was that noise? What could be—wait! She recognized that sound!

Violet slipped quickly out of bed. She gave her sister a shake. “Jessie,” she whispered. “Jessie, wake up. Benny was right!”

Jessie sat up in bed. “What …?” Her voice was thick with sleep.

“I can hear water rushing over rocks!” Violet cried, rubbing her arms to take away the chill. “Listen.”

Jessie sat very still for a moment. Then she said, “Your ears must be sharper than mine, Violet. I can’t hear any—oh!”

Violet looked at her sister. “You can hear it, too, can’t you?”

Jessie nodded her head slowly. For a moment, she was too astonished to speak. But she quickly pulled herself together. She was out of bed in a flash. She went over to the window and looked out. All she could see was inky darkness.

“Do you think it’s true, Jessie?” asked Violet, who had just come up behind her. “Do you think that’s the ghost of the Chattering9 Bones?”

“I don’t know what to think,” Jessie admitted in a hushed voice. “But one thing’s for sure,” she added. “Something very definitely odd is going on!”

Violet looked at Jessie. Jessie nodded back. They were remembering their promise to Benny. It was time to do some investigating.

As they stepped out into the hall, another door opened. It was Henry and Benny.

“You were right, Benny,” said Violet. “We just heard it.”

“It’s the ghost of the Chattering Bones,” Benny stated. “Henry heard it, too.”

“I heard something,” Henry corrected as he led the way downstairs. “But that doesn’t mean there’s a ghost out there.”

When they got to the kitchen, Henry reached for a long flashlight that was hanging on a hook by the back door. Then he turned to his little brother.

“Are you sure about this, Benny?” he asked. “Are you sure you want to go out there?”

“I’m sure,” Benny said bravely.

With a nod, Henry opened the door and they filed outside. Closing the door behind them, they tiptoed down the creaky porch steps. Then, with the beam of the flashlight sweeping10 across the grass, they made their way closer to the bridge—and to the sound of rushing water. Then Benny suddenly stopped. He had seen something the others hadn’t.

“There’s somebody up there,” he whispered.

Sure enough, a shadowy figure was moving across the bridge.

Henry beamed his flashlight upward. “Who’s there?” he yelled.

As the Aldens gave chase, Benny suddenly tripped and went sprawling11. The others waited while he scrambled12 to his feet. But when they raced off again, it was too late.

Whoever had been on that bridge had escaped.


点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 ruffled e4a3deb720feef0786be7d86b0004e86     
adj. 有褶饰边的, 起皱的 动词ruffle的过去式和过去分词
参考例句:
  • She ruffled his hair affectionately. 她情意绵绵地拨弄着他的头发。
  • All this talk of a strike has clearly ruffled the management's feathers. 所有这些关于罢工的闲言碎语显然让管理层很不高兴。
2 dedicated duHzy2     
adj.一心一意的;献身的;热诚的
参考例句:
  • He dedicated his life to the cause of education.他献身于教育事业。
  • His whole energies are dedicated to improve the design.他的全部精力都放在改进这项设计上了。
3 helping 2rGzDc     
n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的,辅助的
参考例句:
  • The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
  • By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。
4 buffet 8sXzg     
n.自助餐;饮食柜台;餐台
参考例句:
  • Are you having a sit-down meal or a buffet at the wedding?你想在婚礼中摆桌宴还是搞自助餐?
  • Could you tell me what specialties you have for the buffet?你能告诉我你们的自助餐有什么特色菜吗?
5 mingled fdf34efd22095ed7e00f43ccc823abdf     
混合,混入( mingle的过去式和过去分词 ); 混进,与…交往[联系]
参考例句:
  • The sounds of laughter and singing mingled in the evening air. 笑声和歌声交织在夜空中。
  • The man and the woman mingled as everyone started to relax. 当大家开始放松的时候,这一男一女就开始交往了。
6 peeked c7b2fdc08abef3a4f4992d9023ed9bb8     
v.很快地看( peek的过去式和过去分词 );偷看;窥视;微露出
参考例句:
  • She peeked over the top of her menu. 她从菜单上往外偷看。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • On two occasions she had peeked at him through a crack in the wall. 她曾两次透过墙缝窥视他。 来自辞典例句
7 streaks a961fa635c402b4952940a0218464c02     
n.(与周围有所不同的)条纹( streak的名词复数 );(通常指不好的)特征(倾向);(不断经历成功或失败的)一段时期v.快速移动( streak的第三人称单数 );使布满条纹
参考例句:
  • streaks of grey in her hair 她头上的绺绺白发
  • Bacon has streaks of fat and streaks of lean. 咸肉中有几层肥的和几层瘦的。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
8 spotted 7FEyj     
adj.有斑点的,斑纹的,弄污了的
参考例句:
  • The milkman selected the spotted cows,from among a herd of two hundred.牛奶商从一群200头牛中选出有斑点的牛。
  • Sam's shop stocks short spotted socks.山姆的商店屯积了有斑点的短袜。
9 chattering chattering     
n. (机器振动发出的)咔嗒声,(鸟等)鸣,啁啾 adj. 喋喋不休的,啾啾声的 动词chatter的现在分词形式
参考例句:
  • The teacher told the children to stop chattering in class. 老师叫孩子们在课堂上不要叽叽喳喳讲话。
  • I was so cold that my teeth were chattering. 我冷得牙齿直打战。
10 sweeping ihCzZ4     
adj.范围广大的,一扫无遗的
参考例句:
  • The citizens voted for sweeping reforms.公民投票支持全面的改革。
  • Can you hear the wind sweeping through the branches?你能听到风掠过树枝的声音吗?
11 sprawling 3ff3e560ffc2f12f222ef624d5807902     
adj.蔓生的,不规则地伸展的v.伸开四肢坐[躺]( sprawl的现在分词 );蔓延;杂乱无序地拓展;四肢伸展坐着(或躺着)
参考例句:
  • He was sprawling in an armchair in front of the TV. 他伸开手脚坐在电视机前的一张扶手椅上。
  • a modern sprawling town 一座杂乱无序拓展的现代城镇
12 scrambled 2e4a1c533c25a82f8e80e696225a73f2     
v.快速爬行( scramble的过去式和过去分词 );攀登;争夺;(军事飞机)紧急起飞
参考例句:
  • Each scrambled for the football at the football ground. 足球场上你争我夺。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
  • He scrambled awkwardly to his feet. 他笨拙地爬起身来。 来自《简明英汉词典》
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