Chapter 1

The Kidnapped King

被绑架的国王

Chapter 1 "Done!" Dink said to himself, smiling. He had solved the last problem on his math paper. He wrote Donald D. Duncan at the top, then glanced

第一章“完成了!”丁克微笑着自言自语道。 他解出了数学试卷上的最后一道题。 他在上面写上唐纳德·d·邓肯，然后扫了一眼

up at the classroom clock: two-fifteen. In just twenty minutes, spring vacation would begin! "Class, please get ready for DEAR time," Mrs. Eagle said. "Take out your books and find a cozy place to read until the bell rings, please." DEAR stood for Drop Everything and Read. This was Dink's favorite time of the day. Dink was reading Kidnapped by Robert Louis Stevenson. He had seen the movie, but he still loved the story. He took the book to the reading corner and flopped onto a beanbag chair. Josh and Ruth Rose joined him, sprawling on the carpet with their books. The classroom grew quiet, except for the clock's ticking and the sound of pages being turned. Suddenly the room phone rang. Mrs. Eagle answered it, then walked to the reading corner. "Dink," she said quietly, "you're wanted in Mr. Dillon's office." Josh grinned at Dink and raised his eyebrows. "You're in trouble!" he said. "Mr. Dillon wants me?" Dink asked. "Why?" Mrs. Eagle shrugged. "Hurry back," she whispered. Dink put down his book and left the room.

在教室的钟上:两点十五分。 再过二十分钟，春假就要开始了!“同学们，请为亲爱的时间做好准备，”鹰夫人说。 “请拿出你们的书，找一个舒适的地方读到下课铃响。” “亲爱的”代表“放下一切，阅读”。 这是丁克一天中最喜欢的时光。 丁克正在读罗伯特·路易斯·史蒂文森的《绑架》。 他看过这部电影，但他仍然喜欢这个故事。 他把书拿到阅读角，扑通一声坐在豆袋椅上。 约什和露丝·罗斯也跟他一起躺在地毯上，手里拿着书。 教室里静了下来，只有钟的嘀嗒声和翻页的声音。 突然，房间里的电话响了。 鹰夫人接了电话，然后走向阅读角。 “丁克，”她平静地说，“狄龙先生的办公室找你。” 乔希朝丁克咧嘴一笑，扬起了眉毛。 “你有麻烦了!”他说。 “狄龙先生找我?”丁克问道。 “为什么?”伊格尔夫人耸了耸肩。 “快回来。”她小声说。 丁克放下书，离开了房间。

Walking down the quiet hall, Dink tried to figure out why the principal wanted to see him. He couldn't think of anything he'd done wrong! Outside Mr. Dillon's office, Dink took a deep breath, then walked in. Mrs. Waters, the principal's secretary, was sitting at her desk outside his door. She smiled. "Hi, Donald. You can go right in. And don't look so scared!" she said. "Mr. Dillon doesn't eat children!" Dink grinned, then opened the door to Mr. Dillon's office. The first person he saw was his mother! She patted the empty chair next to hers, and Dink slid into it. There were three other people in the room: Mr. Dillon, a woman with yellow hair, and a kid about Dink's age.

在安静的大厅里走着，丁克试图弄清楚校长为什么要见他。 他想不出自己做错了什么!在狄龙先生的办公室外，丁克深吸了一口气，然后走了进去。 校长的秘书沃特斯太太正坐在他门外的写字台旁。 她笑了。“嗨,唐纳德。你可以直接进去。 别那么害怕!”她说。 “狄龙先生不吃小孩!”丁克咧嘴一笑，然后打开了狄龙先生办公室的门。 他看到的第一个人是他的母亲!她拍了拍她旁边的空椅子，丁克滑了进去。 房间里还有另外三个人:狄龙先生，一个黄头发的女人，还有一个和丁克年龄相仿的孩子。

The kid was dressed like someone in a movie. He had on a long dark blue robe and sandals. "Hi, Donald," Mr. Dillon said. Mr. Dillon was shaped like a football. His hair was cut short and his eyeglasses gleamed under the lights. "Let me introduce my guests," he said. He nodded at the woman with yellow hair. "This is Ms. Joan Klinker. And this," he added, smiling at the boy, "is Sammi Bin Oz." Dink mumbled, "Hi," then stared at the boy. He was about Dink's size and had black hair and dark skin. His eyes were the color of honey. "Sammi is from Costra," Mr. Dillon said, "a small island country in the Indian Ocean. He's come to the United States to learn English." "I already speak English," the boy said. He had a soft voice and an accent. Dink thought he looked and sounded kind of sad. "Actually Sammi will live here for a year," Joan Klinker said. "I am his tutor. His parents want him to learn American customs." Mr. Dillon looked at Dink. "Sammi will be in third grade with you. We thought you might want to show him around the school," he said.

那孩子穿得像电影里的人。 他穿着深蓝色长袍和凉鞋。 “你好，唐纳德，”狄龙说。 狄龙先生的体型像个足球。 他的头发剪短了，眼镜在灯光下闪闪发光。 “让我来介绍一下我的客人，”他说。 他朝那个黄头发的女人点了点头。 “我是琼·克林克女士。 而这位，”他对男孩微笑着补充说，“就是萨米·本·奥芝。” 丁克咕哝着，“嗨，”然后盯着男孩。 他和丁克差不多大，黑头发，黑皮肤。 他的眼睛是蜂蜜的颜色。 “萨米来自科斯特拉，”狄龙说，“那是印度洋上的一个小岛国。 他是来美国学英语的。” “我已经会说英语了，”男孩说。 他声音柔和，有口音。 丁克觉得他看起来和听起来都有点悲伤。 “事实上，萨米要在这里住一年，”琼·克林克说。 “我是他的家庭教师。他的父母想让他学习美国习俗。” 狄龙先生看着丁克。 “萨米会和你一起上三年级。 我们想你可能想带他参观一下学校，”他说。

Everyone looked at Dink. He felt himself blushing. His mother gave his hand a squeeze. "And Sammi will be staying with us for a few weeks, Dink," she explained. "Your name is Dink?" Sammi asked. Dink nodded at the boy. "Dink," Sammi repeated. "That rhymes with think and pink and… stink!" "Making rhymes helps Sammi remember new words," his tutor explained. "Sammi can have the spare room," Dink's mother said. "With Daddy away on business, it'll be nice to have a guest in the house. I hope Sammi will be friends with you and Josh and Ruth Rose." Sammi giggled. "Rose rhymes with toes and nose!" Dink grinned. Wait'll Josh and Ruth Rose meet him, he thought.

每个人都看着丁克。他觉得自己脸红了。 他妈妈紧紧地捏了捏他的手。 “萨姆米要和我们一起住几个星期，丁克，”她解释说。 “你叫丁克?”三美问道。 丁克朝男孩点了点头。“丁克，”萨米重复道。 “这和think、pink还有……臭!”他的导师解释说:“押韵可以帮助萨米记住新单词。” “萨姆米可以住空房间，”丁克的妈妈说。 “爸爸出差了，家里有个客人真好。 我希望萨米能成为你、乔什和露丝·罗斯的朋友。” 三美咯咯笑了。“玫瑰与脚趾和鼻子押韵!”丁克咧嘴一笑。 他想，等乔希和露丝·罗斯来接他吧。