Chapter 4

Chapter 4 "What do you mean?" Dink's uncle asked. "I don't see how it could be fake." Dr. Pitts rested a finger on the jewel. "This is not the original emerald," he explained. "In fact, it is not an emerald at all." "But how could that be?" Dink's uncle cried.

第四章“你是什么意思?”丁克的叔叔问。 “我不明白这怎么可能是假的。” 皮茨医生把手指放在珠宝上。 “这不是原来的祖母绿，”他解释说。 “事实上，它根本不是绿宝石。” “但这怎么可能呢?”丁克的叔叔哭了。

"Look. I will show you," Dr. Pitts said. He took a small flashlight from his pocket. "Will you please pull the shades and turn off the lights?" he asked. Dink was closest to the windows, so he pulled the shades down and clicked off the light over the fish tank. Josh hurried over to the switches on the wall. When the room was dark, Dr. Pitts turned on his flashlight and shone the beam on the jewel. Suddenly, the flashlight went out. Dink heard something hit the desktop, then roll off and make a soft thud on the carpet. "Sorry," Dr. Pitts muttered. "I seem to have dropped my flashlight. Can someone please…" "I'll get it!" Josh said in the dark. He knelt down and fumbled around under the desk. "Found it," he said a moment later. He stood, switched it on, and aimed the light at the desk. "Thank you, young man," Dr. Pitts said. He took the flashlight and pointed it at the jewel once more. "You see, if this were a real emerald, the light would penetrate," he explained. "The light beam would go to the heart of the jewel."

“看。我会展示给你看的。 皮特说。他从口袋里拿出一个小手电筒。 “请你把窗帘拉上，把灯关掉好吗?”他问道。 丁克离窗户最近，所以他拉下窗帘，咔哒一声关掉了鱼缸上方的灯。 乔希急忙走到墙上的开关旁。 房间里一片漆黑。 皮茨打开手电筒，把光束照在宝石上。 突然，手电筒熄灭了。 丁克听到有什么东西砸在桌面上，然后滚下来，在地毯上发出一声柔和的声音。 “对不起，”皮茨医生喃喃地说。 “我好像把手电筒掉了。 谁能……”“我去拿!”乔希在黑暗中说。 他跪下来，在桌子底下摸索着。 “找到了。”过了一会儿他说。 他站起来，打开灯，把灯对准桌子。 “谢谢你，年轻人。” 皮特说。他拿起手电筒，再次对准珠宝。 “你看，如果这是一块真正的祖母绿，光线就能穿透，”他解释说。 “光束会射入宝石的中心。”

He tapped a finger against the jewel. "But this is just glass. Notice how the light bounces off the surface. The light does not enter the stone." He shone the light on his own face. "Of course, that is just my opinion. You are welcome to get another, Mr. Duncan." "I certainly will!" Dink's uncle said. He walked over to the wall and switched on the lights. Dink blinked at the sudden brightness. His uncle looked very upset. "But I simply can't understand how the real emerald could have been switched for a fake one!" Dink's uncle continued. "Are you absolutely sure?" Dr. Pitts nodded. "Unfortunately, yes. I am sure." "Then the swap must have taken place before the crate arrived," Uncle Warren declared. "Perhaps it happened in South America, when the jaguar was wrapped." Dr. Pitts shook his head. "I'm sorry, but I was there for the packing. I assure you, when the jaguar was put into this crate, the emerald was real."

他用手指轻敲珠宝。 “但这只是玻璃。注意光线是如何从表面反射回来的。 光无法进入石头。” 他把灯照在自己的脸上。 “当然，这只是我的看法。 邓肯先生，欢迎您再来一杯。” “我当然愿意!”丁克的叔叔说。 他走到墙边，打开了灯。 丁克对突如其来的光亮眨了眨眼。 他的叔叔看起来很沮丧。 “但我就是不明白，真祖母绿怎么会被人拿去换假的!”丁克的叔叔继续说。 “你绝对确定吗?”博士。 皮特点点头。“不幸的是,是的。 我敢肯定。”“那么交换肯定是在板条箱到达之前进行的，”沃伦叔叔宣称。 “也许发生在南美洲，当时美洲虎被包裹起来了。” 皮茨医生摇了摇头。“对不起，我是去打包的。 我向你保证，当美洲虎被放进这个箱子的时候，那块翡翠是真的。”

Dink's uncle stared at the jaguar. "I just don't see how it was possible!" he repeated. Dr. Pitts shrugged. "Of course, I will have to report this to the police," he said. "If you want that second opinion…" Dink's uncle hurried across the room and opened the door to James Pride's office. "James, please call Empire Jewelry on Broadway. Ask Regina Wu to come immediately. Tell her it's urgent!" While they waited, Dr. Pitts examined the lock on the office door, then wrote something on a small pad. Uncle Warren slumped in his chair and stared at the statue. The kids sat on the rug and waited. Dink wanted to say something to his uncle, but he looked too upset. Long minutes passed, then a knock sounded at the door. Uncle Warren jumped up. He let in a tall woman wearing a black raincoat. "Warren, I came as fast as I could," she said. "The streets are a mess!" They shook hands, and Dink's uncle explained about the jaguar's jewel. "Dr. Pitts claims it's a

丁克的叔叔盯着那只美洲虎。 “我就是不明白这怎么可能!”他重复道。 皮茨医生耸了耸肩。“当然，我必须向警方报告这件事，”他说。 “如果你想听听另外的意见……”丁克的叔叔匆匆穿过房间，打开詹姆斯·普赖德办公室的门。 詹姆斯，请给百老汇的帝国珠宝公司打电话。 叫吴瑞吉娜马上来。 告诉她有急事!”在他们等待的时候。 皮茨检查了办公室门上的锁，然后在一个小本子上写了些什么。 沃伦叔叔瘫坐在椅子上，盯着雕像。 孩子们坐在地毯上等着。 丁克想对叔叔说点什么，但他看起来太沮丧了。 好长一段时间过去了，这时有人敲门。 沃伦叔叔跳了起来。他让一个穿黑色雨衣的高个子女人进来。 “沃伦，我以最快的速度赶来了，”她说。 “街上一片狼藉!”他们握了握手，丁克的叔叔解释了美洲虎的宝石。 皮茨博士声称这是一种

fake!" "May I?" Using a jeweler's magnifying glass, Ms. Wu examined the stone for a few minutes. Then she removed a small bottle from her pocket and squeezed a drop of liquid onto the jewel. When the liquid dried, she wiped the stone with a cloth. She shook her head. "He's right," she said. "This is a glass replica." Uncle Warren fell back into his chair. "I am simply dumbfounded! Where did the switch take place? How? Who could possibly…" "Pardon me," Dr. Pitts said. "The lock on the door does not appear to have been forced. Who besides you has a key to this office?" "Mr. James Pride, my assistant, for one," Dink's uncle said. "And my friend Jean-Paul. He owns the restaurant next door to the museum. He let the delivery-men into my office yesterday." "So this Jean-Paul has a key?" Dr. Pitts asked. Uncle Warren shook his head. "Not to keep. I lent him my key, since the crate was due while James and I were away from the museum." "So two people besides yourself had access to the jaguar, is that right?" Dr. Pitts asked. "Your

假的!”“我可以吗?”用珠宝商的放大镜，她说。 吴检查了那块石头几分钟。 然后她从口袋里拿出一个小瓶子，在珠宝上挤了一滴液体。 等液体干了，她就用一块布擦石头。 她摇了摇头。“他说得对，”她说。 “这是一个玻璃复制品。” 沃伦叔叔倒在椅子上。 “我简直惊呆了!”转换发生在哪里? 如何?谁可能……”“对不起。” 皮特说。“门上的锁似乎没有被撬过。 除了你，还有谁有这间办公室的钥匙?”“先生。 比如我的助手詹姆斯·普赖德，”丁克的叔叔说。 “还有我的朋友让-保罗。他是博物馆隔壁餐馆的老板。 他昨天让送货员进了我的办公室。” “所以这个让-保罗有钥匙?”博士。 皮特问。沃伦叔叔摇了摇头。 “不保留。我把钥匙借给了他，因为我和詹姆斯不在博物馆的时候，板条箱就要到期了。” “那么除了你之外，还有两个人可以接近那只美洲虎，对吗?”博士。 皮特问。“你的

assistant and your friend?" "That is correct, but I assure you, neither of them has touched that statue. The idea is absurd!" "Um, excuse me, Uncle Warren?" Dink said. Everyone turned to look at Dink. "Wouldn't there be fingerprints? I mean, if someone did take the real jewel, they'd leave prints on the fake one, right?" No one spoke for a minute. Then Dr. Pitts smiled at Dink. "That's an excellent idea," he said. "And I think we should ask the police to look for fingerprints. They will, of course, find mine. But unless I miss my guess, no others." "Why do you say that?" Ruth Rose asked. "Because, young lady," Dr. Pitts said, "this thief was very clever. And clever thieves wear gloves." Uncle Warren nodded at the phone. "Please call the police," he told Dr. Pitts. "They will prove that Jean-Paul and James are innocent!" Dr. Pitts looked at Dink's uncle. "Excuse me, sir, but there is another suspect." "And who would that be?" Uncle Warren asked. "Yourself," Dr. Pitts said quietly.

你的助手和你的朋友?”“没错，但我向你保证，他们俩谁也没有碰过那座雕像。 这想法太荒唐了!”“嗯，打扰一下，沃伦叔叔?”丁克说。 每个人都转过身来看着丁克。 “不会留下指纹吗?” 我是说，如果有人拿了真珠宝，他们会在假珠宝上留下指纹的，对吧?”一时间谁也没有说话。 皮茨医生对丁克笑了笑。 “这是个好主意，”他说。 “我认为我们应该要求警察寻找指纹。 当然，他们会找到我的。 不过，除非我猜错了，否则别无他人。” “你为什么这么说?”露丝·罗斯问。 “因为，小姐。” 皮茨说:“这个小偷很聪明。 聪明的小偷都戴手套。” 沃伦叔叔对着电话点了点头。 “请叫警察，”他告诉医生。 皮特。“他们会证明让-保罗和詹姆斯是无辜的!”博士。 皮茨看着丁克的叔叔。 “对不起，先生，还有一个嫌疑犯。” “那是谁呢?”沃伦叔叔问。 “你自己，”皮茨医生平静地说。