Chapter 8

Chapter 8 "Dr. Skor, my husband told me you're studying coral, is that right?" the queen asked as the lunch dishes were being cleared. "Yes," Dr. Skor said. "Coral is dying and … wait, I have some photographs." Dr. Skor left the table and returned with a photo album. They flipped through the pages as Dr. Skor showed them pictures of healthy coral and sick or dead coral. "When coral dies, other sea life dies," the scientist said.

“斯科尔博士，我丈夫告诉我你在研究珊瑚，对吗?”女王在清理午餐盘子时问道。 “是的，”斯科尔说。“珊瑚正在死亡，等等，我有一些照片。” 斯科尔博士离开了桌子，拿着一本相册回来了。 他们翻着书。 斯科尔向他们展示了健康珊瑚和生病或死亡珊瑚的照片。 “当珊瑚死亡时，其他海洋生物也会死亡，”这位科学家说。

"Is this a picture of Sundown?" Ruth Rose asked him, pointing at another photograph. "Yes, I took this with my Polaroid camera when we arrived here a few days ago," Dr. Skor said. "Isn't she beautiful?" This snapshot showed Sundown with her sails up, puffed from a breeze. The yellow paint gleamed above the green stripe. In the background, Dink could see the stone pier and the castle. "Do you fish off the boat?" Josh asked. "I don't, but my men do," Dr. Skor said. "Do you like to fish, Josh?" the king asked. "Yes, sir, I love it," Josh answered. "Then maybe we can do some fishing before you leave," the king said. "This has been lovely," the queen told Dr. Skor. "Please come have dinner with us soon. Your food was delicious, but now I need a nap!" Dr. Skor smiled. "This is my nap time, too," he said. "And I'm afraid I can't accept your kind invitation. We sail this afternoon, as soon as the breeze picks up." "I'm sorry you're leaving," the king said, "but thank you for your suggestions on my project. Do

“这是《日落》的照片吗?”露丝·罗斯指着另一张照片问他。 “是的，几天前我们到这里时，我用我的宝丽来相机拍下了这张照片。” Skor说。“她是不是很漂亮?”这张照片显示的是“日落号”扬起风帆，被微风吹动。 黄漆在绿条纹上方闪闪发光。 在背景中，丁克可以看到石头码头和城堡。 “你从船上钓鱼吗?”杰克问。 “我没有，但我的手下有。” Skor说。“你喜欢钓鱼吗，乔希?”国王问道。 “是的，先生，我很喜欢，”乔希回答。 “那么在你离开之前，也许我们可以去钓鱼。”国王说。 “这真是太好了，”女王对爱德华博士说。 Skor。“请尽快来和我们一起吃晚饭。 你的食物很美味，但现在我需要小睡一下!”博士。 Skor笑了。“这也是我的午睡时间，”他说。 “我恐怕不能接受你的盛情邀请。 只要风一起，我们今天下午就起航。” “很遗憾你要走了，”国王说，“但是谢谢你对我的计划提出的建议。 做

come back and see us when the aquarium is up and running." There was a pause, as if everyone was wondering if the aquarium would ever get finished. They said good-bye, and minutes later, Hugo's flat-bottomed boat pulled up. They all climbed aboard and headed back to the dock. Dink turned around and looked over Hugo's shoulder at Sundown. He could see Dr. Skor standing on the foredeck, watching them through binoculars. Watching the yacht get farther away, Dink didn't see the green stripe. He rubbed his eyes. How could the stripe just disappear? he wondered. While the queen napped and the king talked with the police, Sammi outfitted the kids with snorkel equipment. At three o'clock, they were waiting on the dock for Hugo. Hugo showed up a few minutes later. His boat left a small wake as it bumped gently up against the dock. "Climb in!" he said.

等水族馆开始运作了，再来看看我们。” 一阵沉默，好像每个人都在想这个水族馆到底能不能完工。 他们道了别，几分钟后，雨果的平底船停了下来。 他们都爬上了船，朝码头走去。 丁克转过身，从雨果的肩膀上看了看日落。 他看见斯科尔博士站在前甲板上，用双筒望远镜看着他们。 看着游艇越来越远，丁克没有看到那条绿条纹。 他揉了揉眼睛。条纹是怎么消失的? 他想知道。当王后打盹，国王与警察交谈时，萨米给孩子们配备了潜水设备。 三点钟，他们在码头上等雨果。 几分钟后，雨果出现了。 他的船轻轻地撞在码头上，留下了一个小小的尾迹。 “爬进去!”他说。

"Will we see any sharks?" Josh asked as the kids clambered down into the boat. "Not where we're going." Hugo pointed to the right, just outside the harbor entrance. "See that red buoy sticking up? It's marking the place where a boat sank a long time ago," he said. "The water is shallow and lots of fish hang out there. Perfect for snorkeling!" Hugo handed the four kids orange life vests and made sure they were fitted properly. He aimed the boat out into the harbor, and a few minutes later, he reached the buoy. He stopped the engine and dropped the anchor. Then he tossed a float with a small flag attached to it into the water. "This flag lets other boaters know there are people in the water here," Hugo explained. "When they see the flag, they stay away." Hugo helped the kids with their snorkels, masks, and flippers. He jumped into the water and showed them how to clamp the snorkel's mouthpiece in their teeth and breathe. When the kids were floating in the water, Hugo and Sammi showed them how to swim facedown, using just their flippers and no arms.

“我们会看到鲨鱼吗?”孩子们爬上船时，乔希问道。 “不是我们要去的地方。”雨果指了指港湾入口外的右边。 “看到那个竖起来的红色浮标了吗? 它标志着很久以前一艘船沉没的地方，”他说。 “水很浅，有很多鱼在那里闲逛。 非常适合浮潜!”雨果递给四个孩子橙色的救生衣，并确保它们合身。 他把船驶向港口，几分钟后，他到达了浮标处。 他停了引擎，下了锚。 然后，他把一个挂着小旗的漂浮物扔进水里。 “这面旗帜让其他划船的人知道这里有人在水里，”雨果解释说。 “当他们看到国旗时，他们就会走开。” 雨果帮孩子们戴上呼吸管、面罩和脚蹼。 他跳进水里，教他们如何把呼吸管的嘴夹在牙齿里呼吸。 当孩子们浮在水里时，雨果和萨米教他们如何面朝下游泳，只用鳍状肢而不用手臂。

"If you need me, just tap the top of your head with your hand like this," Hugo said, demonstrating. "If I see that signal, I'll swim right over." With Hugo leading, the four kids flippered a few yards away from the flag. When Dink put his face underwater, he was amazed. The water was as clear as glass. Hundreds of fish darted every which way. He saw yellow, purple, blue, and red fish. Ten feet below the surface lay the sunken boat. It was partly rotted away. Seaweed and barnacles clung to the boat's broken hull. Several large rocks sat on the boat's bottom. The kids stayed near each other. Hugo pointed to a creature that looked like a lobster, but it didn't have big claws. When the creature saw the humans, it darted under the boat. After about ten minutes of exploring, Hugo signaled that they should meet him at his boat. The kids paddled over and held on to the side. They removed their masks and mouthpieces so they could talk.

“如果你需要我，就像这样用手轻敲你的头顶，”雨果一边示范一边说。 “如果我看到那个信号，我就游过去。” 在雨果的带领下，四个孩子在离国旗几码远的地方蹦蹦跳跳。 当丁克把脸浸入水中时，他惊呆了。 水像玻璃一样清澈。 数百条鱼向四面八方游去。 他看到了黄色、紫色、蓝色和红色的鱼。 沉船躺在水面下十英尺处。 部分已经腐烂了。 海草和藤壶粘在小船破碎的船壳上。 几块大石头落在船底。 孩子们互相靠近。 雨果指着一个看起来像龙虾的生物，但它没有大爪子。 当那个生物看到人类时，它窜到船底下。 经过大约十分钟的探索，雨果示意他们在他的船上等他。 孩子们划过去，抓住船舷。 他们摘下面具和嘴，这样他们就可以说话了。

"This is so amazing!" Josh said. "A purple fish came right up to my mask and looked at me!" "Hugo, why are there rocks in the sunken boat?" Dink asked. "The rocks are to weigh it down so it won't drift away," Hugo said. "The boat attracts fish." Suddenly Dink knew why Sundown's green stripe was missing. He felt his heart start to race. Goose bumps marched up his arms. "Guys, I think I know where the gold is," Dink said.

“这太神奇了!”杰克说。 “一条紫色的鱼径直游到我的面具前，看着我!”“雨果，沉船里为什么有石头?”丁克问道。 “这些石头是用来压住它的，这样它就不会漂走了。”雨果说。 “船吸引鱼。”突然，丁克明白了为什么日落的绿色条纹不见了。 他感到自己的心开始狂跳。 他的手臂起了鸡皮疙瘩。 “伙计们，我想我知道金子在哪里了，”丁克说。