13

Rowley said beavers are DANGEROUS, and that he saw a show on TV where a beaver attacked a PERSON. But Rowley's an idiot. The show he was talking about was a CARTOON, and I was actually WITH him when he watched it. Still, I couldn't convince Rowley to stay near the creek, so we had to turn around AGAIN. And by now it was REALLY dark. After walking a few more minutes, something bright caught my eye. I thought maybe it was the headlights from a car, and we ran toward it.

罗利说河狸很危险，他说自己在电视上见过河狸袭击人的节目。 不过罗利就是个笨蛋。 他说的那个节目其实是卡通片，而且他看电视的时候我明明就在他旁边。 可我还是没法说服罗利留在小溪边，我们只好又往回走了。 这时候天已经黑透了。 又走了几分钟，一个亮闪闪的东西吸引了我的目光。 我以为那是汽车的前灯，就拉着罗利往那边跑。

It turned out the light WAS coming from a car, but it was just a rusted-out piece of junk in the middle of the woods. And what caught my eye was the reflection of the MOON on the bumper. When my eyes adjusted to the light, I realized there were a LOT of abandoned cars and trucks all around us.

那亮光是真的从汽车上发出来的，可那不过是扔在树林中间的一堆锈破烂罢了。 吸引我的是月亮照在保险杠上的反光。 等我的眼睛适应了光线，才发现我们四周全都是废弃的轿车和卡车。

I saw something shiny sitting on a stump and I picked it up. The thing was cold and metal, and when I held it up to my face to take a closer look, I knew EXACTLY what it was. It was a BELT BUCKLE, and it belonged to MECKLEY MINGO. That meant me and Rowley were smack in the middle of the Mingos" CAMP. People in my town have always wondered where the Mingos live, and now me and Rowley had stumbled into their HEADQUARTERS.

我看见树桩上放着个亮晶晶的东西，就把它捡了起来。 这东西凉凉的是金属做的，我举到眼前仔细一看，一下子就认出它是什么了。 这是梅克利·明戈的皮带扣！ 也就是说，我和罗利正好闯进了明戈家的营地。 我们镇上的人一直都不知道明戈一家住在哪，结果我和罗利误打误撞找到了他们的大本营。

I thought we were LUCKY, because at least there was no one THERE. But when I turned to LEAVE, something grabbed my HAND. Well, technically, something grabbed Mr. Morsels. I thought for SURE it was Meckley Mingo and he was gonna KILL me for touching his belt buckle. Thankfully, I was WRONG. The puppet was snagged on a truck's door handle, so I tried to pull it free.

我还觉得我们挺走运，至少这儿一个人都没有。 可我刚转身要走，就有东西抓住了我的手。 其实准确说，它抓住的是莫塞尔先生（我的木偶）。 我当时百分百确定是梅克利·明戈，他肯定要因为我碰了他的皮带扣杀了我。 幸好我猜错了。 木偶勾在了卡车的门把手上，我正试着把它扯下来。

That's when we heard noises coming from INSIDE THE TRUCK. I realized I had to choose between saving MYSELF and saving a PUPPET, and it was no contest. Me and Rowley tore out of there. But when we were a good distance away from the Mingos" camp, we heard a sound that made my blood run cold. I didn't know if it was the GOAT MAN or the MINGO KIDS.

就在这时，我们听见卡车里面传出了动静。 我得选是救我自己还是救木偶，答案根本不用想。 我和罗利拼了命地往外跑。 可等我们离明戈营地够远了，却听见了一个让我浑身发冷的声音。 我不知道那是山羊人还是明戈家的小孩。

All I knew for sure was that if we stopped RUNNING, we'd be DEAD. I could hear shouting behind us, and it was getting CLOSER. But just when it felt like the voices were right on TOP of us, we broke through the trees and into the open. Luckily, Dad was paying ATTENTION, or me and Rowley would've been ROADKILL. But at least it would've been over QUICK. Because if the MINGOS caught us, I'm sure they would've taken their TIME.

我只确定一件事：我们要是停下不跑，就死定了。 我能听见身后的叫喊声，越来越近了。 就在感觉喊声都追到后脑勺的时候，我们冲出树林，跑到了开阔的路上。 幸好爸爸注意力集中，不然我和罗利就成轮下的肉饼了。 不过话说回来，那样死得至少还痛快些。 要是被明戈一家抓到，他们肯定会慢慢折磨我们的。