Chapter 9

CHAPTER 9 "Should we open it?" Josh asked. Without answering, Dink grabbed the handle and pulled. The door came up easily. Beneath it were stone stairs leading down. They heard something skittering about in the darkness below. "Yuck, rats!" Josh said. "If you think I'm going —" "Shhh, I heard something else!" Ruth Rose said. Then they all heard it. It was a squeaking, crying noise. "That's Winnie!" Ruth Rose said. She ran down the stairs. Dink and Josh were right behind her.

第九章“我们应该打开它吗?”杰克问。 丁克没有回答，抓住把手拉了拉。 这扇门很容易打开。下面是通往楼下的石阶。 他们听到有什么东西在下面的黑暗中跳跃。 “啐,老鼠!”杰克说。“如果你认为我要——”“嘘，我听到别的声音!”露丝·罗斯说。 然后他们都听到了。那是一种吱吱声、哭泣声。 “这是温妮!”露丝·罗斯说。 她跑下楼梯。丁克和乔希就在她后面。

The air at the bottom of the steps was filled with some kind of dust. It stung their eyes. The only light came through the open trapdoor. "Guys, I think we're in an old coal cellar," Josh said. "My grandfather has one, and it's just like this!" Dink could feel the coal dust in his eyes and nose and on his lips. He began to cough. "Look, there's Winnie!" Ruth Rose whispered. Across the room glowed a pair of eyes. Suddenly the trapdoor slammed shut. Instantly they were in total darkness. Then they heard the sound of metal on metal. "Someone locked us in!" Josh said. "I can't see anything!" "Let's not panic, okay?" Ruth Rose said. "Let's just sit down where we are," Dink suggested. "But I can't see!" Josh complained. "This place is disgusting!"

台阶下面的空气中充满了某种灰尘。 这刺痛了他们的眼睛。唯一的光线是从敞开的活板门透进来的。 “伙计们，我想我们是在一个旧煤窖里，”乔希说。 “我爷爷有一个，就像这样!”丁克的眼睛、鼻子和嘴唇都能感觉到煤尘。 他开始咳嗽。“看，那是温妮!”露丝·罗斯低声说。 房间的另一头有一双眼睛闪闪发光。 突然，活板门砰地关上了。 他们立刻陷入一片漆黑之中。 然后他们听到了金属碰撞的声音。 “有人把我们锁在里面了!”杰克说。 “我什么也看不见!”“别慌，好吗?”露丝·罗斯说。 “我们就坐在这儿吧，”丁克建议道。 “但是我看不见!”杰克抱怨道。 “这地方真恶心!”

Dink sat down. Underneath him, he felt a few lumps of coal. He brushed them aside. "I'll bet Flip locked us in," Ruth Rose said. "He must have figured out where we went." Dink heard Josh standing up. "What're you doing, Josh?" "This building is old, so maybe the lock is, too," Josh said. "I might be able to force it." "I'll help you," Dink said. He and Josh stumbled up the steps and shoved against the trapdoor. It didn't move. "Well, it was a good idea, Josh," Dink said. They found their way back down the steps and sat next to Ruth Rose. "How are we supposed to get out of here?" Josh asked in a shaky voice. "Maybe there's a window," Ruth Rose said. "Don't basements have windows?" "But it's not a basement," Josh said. "It's just a room where they kept the coal in the old days." "I bet no one ever comes down here anymore," Dink said. "It was a good place to hide Winnie." "Where is she, I wonder?" Ruth Rose said. "She's probably hiding," Dink said. "If only we had a light."

丁克坐了下来。他感到下面有几块煤。 他把他们撇在一边。“我敢打赌Flip把我们锁在里面了，”Ruth Rose说。 “他一定知道我们去哪儿了。” 丁克听到乔希站了起来。 “你在干什么，乔希?”“这栋楼很旧了，也许锁也很旧，”乔希说。 “我也许能强迫他。” “我会帮你的，”丁克说。 他和乔希跌跌撞撞地走上台阶，撞在活板门上。 它没有动。“嗯，这是个好主意，乔希，”丁克说。 他们走下台阶，坐在露丝·罗斯旁边。 “我们怎么才能离开这里?”乔希用颤抖的声音问道。 “也许有机会，”露丝·罗斯说。 “地下室没有窗户吗?”“但这不是地下室，”乔希说。 “在过去，这只是一个放煤的房间。” “我敢打赌再也没有人来这里了，”丁克说。 “那是个藏温妮的好地方。” “不知道她在哪儿?”露丝·罗斯说。 “她可能躲起来了，”丁克说。 “要是我们有灯就好了。”

"Gee, if I'd known I was gonna be trapped underground," Josh said, "I'd have brought my flashlight." "Don't worry," Ruth Rose said. "Flip will let us out after he collects his money at midnight." "Well, I'm not sitting here till midnight," Josh said, standing up again. "I have a plan!" "You do?" Dink said. "Yeah," Josh said, sliding lumps of coal out of the way with his bare feet. "Let's hold hands and try to find the walls. Then we can feel around the whole room." "What're we feeling for?" Ruth Rose asked. "The coal chute," Josh said. "The coal shoot?" Dink said. "Like in a gun?" "The coal chute, Dinkus. C-H-U-T-E," Josh said. "My grandfather told me how coal used to get delivered. They slid it down a chute right into the basement." "So you're saying there's one of those slide things here somewhere?" Ruth Rose asked.

“哎呀，如果我早知道我会被困在地下，”乔希说，“我就带着手电筒了。” “别担心，”露丝·罗斯说。 “Flip在午夜收了钱后会放我们出去的。” “好吧，我不会在这里坐到半夜。”乔希说着又站了起来。 “我有个计划!”“你做什么?”丁克说。 “是啊。”乔什说着，光着脚把煤块挪开。 “让我们手牵手，试着找到墙。” 然后我们就可以在整个房间里摸索了。” “我们在感受什么?”露丝·罗斯问。 “煤槽。”乔希说。 “射煤?”丁克说。 “像枪里的那种?”“煤槽，丁库斯。 C-H-U-T-E，”乔希说。“我祖父告诉我煤过去是如何被运送的。 他们把它顺着滑道滑进了地下室。” “所以你是说这里某处有那种滑梯?”露丝·罗斯问。

"Yeah, and it'll lead to the outside!" The kids held hands, with Ruth Rose in the middle. Dink and Josh reached out and groped for the walls. Seconds later, Dink tripped over something. He landed on his knees in a pile of coal. "I found a shovel," Dink said, running a hand over the metal shape. He used the shovel to help him stand. He lost his balance and fell against a wall. "Okay," he said, rubbing his elbow. "I found a wall. Now what?" "Feel along for some kind of opening," Josh said. "It might be kind of high up." All three kids moved along the wall, feeling their way. Dink used the shovel like a cane as he shuffled along. Once Dink heard a whimper. "It's okay, Winnie," he said into the darkness. "We're the good guys." Suddenly Ruth Rose shouted, "I FOUND SOMETHING!" "What's it feel like?" Josh asked. "Like a window frame," she said. "But there's no glass—there's a piece of board or something

“是的，它会通向外面!”孩子们手牵着手，露丝·罗斯站在中间。 丁克和乔希伸出手去摸索墙壁。 几秒钟后，丁克被什么东西绊倒了。 他跪在一堆煤上。 “我找到了一把铲子，”丁克说，用一只手摸了摸那个金属形状的东西。 他用铲子扶着自己站起来。 他失去平衡，摔在墙上。 “好吧，”他搓着胳膊肘说。 “我发现了一堵墙。现在怎么办呢?”“等待着某种开口，”乔希说。 “可能有点高。” 三个孩子都沿着墙摸索着前进。 丁克慢吞吞地走着，把铲子当手杖一样使用。 有一次丁克听到一阵呜咽声。 “没事的，温妮，”他对着黑暗说。 “我们是好人。”突然，露丝·罗斯喊道:“我找到东西了!”“那是什么感觉?”杰克问。 “就像一个窗框，”她说。 “但是没有玻璃——有一块木板什么的

where the glass should be." "That must be the chute," Josh said. "How high up is it?" "A little above my head," Ruth Rose said. "But I can reach it." Dink and Josh felt their way along the wall until they were standing next to Ruth Rose. "I think you found it, Ruth Rose," Josh said. "But how do we get it open?" Dink lifted the heavy metal shovel. "Will this do?" he asked.

玻璃应该在的地方。” “那一定是降落伞。”乔希说。 “它有多高?”“在我头顶上方一点，”露丝·罗斯说。 “但是我能够到它。”丁克和乔希沿着墙摸索着走，一直走到露丝·罗斯旁边。 “我想你找到了，露丝·罗斯，”乔希说。 “但是我们怎么把它打开呢?”丁克举起沉重的金属铲子。 “这样行吗?”他问。