Chapter 5

Chapter 5 A small sign on the side of the fire station said DEP—DOWNSTAIRS. A green arrow pointed the way. At the bottom of the stairs, the kids came to a door that said DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION. No one was in the office. There were a few desks and a bunch of file cabinets against one wall. A stuffed owl in a glass case stood on a counter.

第五章消防站旁边的一块小牌子上写着“楼下”。 一个绿色的箭头指明了方向。 在楼梯底下，孩子们来到一扇门前，门上写着“环境保护部”。 办公室里没有人。靠墙放着几张桌子和一堆文件柜。 柜台上放着一只装在玻璃柜里的猫头鹰标本。

Just then, the door opened and a woman dressed in a T-shirt and tan shorts walked in. "Can I help you?" she asked the kids. "We're looking for Curt," Josh said. "Mr. Striker usually goes home to eat lunch," she said. "Do you want to come back later?" "It's kind of important," Josh said. "Does he live in Green Lawn? We could walk over." The woman pointed to a map of the town on the wall. "He's new here, but I think he's renting a cabin out on Bridge Lane. Do you know where that is?"

就在这时，门开了，一个穿着t恤和棕褐色短裤的女人走了进来。 “我能帮你们吗?”她问孩子们。 “我们在找科特，”乔希说。 “斯特莱克先生通常回家吃午饭，”她说。 “你想待会儿再来吗?”“这挺重要的，”乔希说。 “他住在绿草坪吗?” 我们可以走过去。”女人指了指墙上的城镇地图。 “他是新来的，但我想他在桥巷租了一间小屋。 你知道它在哪儿吗?”

"Sure," Dink said. "He must live near the river, right?" The woman nodded. "That's right. Just look for his brown pickup truck." The kids left the fire station and hiked over to Bridge Lane. There were only a few houses in this part of town. Most of them were surrounded by trees and thick shrubbery. "That must be it," Josh said. They were standing in front of a wooden fence near a group of pine trees. A gravel driveway cut through the trees, leading to a small cabin. "Look, there's a brown truck," Dink said. When the kids walked through the gate, they saw Curt Striker sitting on the cabin's small porch. He was eating a sandwich. Curt jumped down off the porch and headed toward them. "Hi, kids," he said. "What brings you way out here?"

“当然，”丁克说。“他一定住在河边，对吗?”女人点点头。 “这是正确的。找他那辆棕色小货车就行了。” 孩子们离开消防站，步行到桥巷。 城镇的这一地区只有几所房子。 他们中的大多数都被树木和茂密的灌木丛包围着。 “一定是这个。”乔希说。 他们站在一排松树旁的木栅栏前。 一条砾石车道穿过树林，通向一间小木屋。 “看，有一辆棕色的卡车，”丁克说。 当孩子们穿过大门时，他们看见科特·斯特莱克坐在小屋的小门廊上。 他正在吃三明治。柯特从门廊上跳下来，朝他们走去。 “嗨，孩子们，”他说。“什么风把你吹到这儿来了?”

Josh told him about how they'd found one of the baby falcons in the woods. "Not only that," Ruth Rose said, "someone put a tag on his leg and clipped his wings!" "Really?" Curt said. He looked thoughtful. "Sounds like I owe you an apology, Josh. A person did take that falcon." Josh grinned shyly. "Why would someone clip his wings?" Dink asked. "Well," Curt said, "the most likely reason is that someone was training him to do something." "Like what?" asked Ruth Rose. Curt shrugged. "Could have been a lot of different things." While they talked, Curt walked them back toward Bridge Lane. "Where is this falcon now?"

乔什告诉他他们在树林里发现了一只小猎鹰。 “不仅如此，”露丝·罗斯说，“有人在他腿上绑了个标签，剪断了他的翅膀!”“真的吗?”简略的说。 他看上去若有所思。“听起来我欠你一个道歉，乔希。 确实有人把那只猎鹰带走了。” 乔希害羞地笑了。“为什么有人要剪他的翅膀?”丁克问道。 “嗯，”柯特说，“最可能的原因是有人在训练他做某事。” “比如什么?”露丝·罗斯问。 Curt耸耸肩。“可能有很多不同的原因。” 在他们谈话的时候，柯特陪他们走回桥巷。 “这只猎鹰现在在哪儿?”

he asked. "We took him to the vet," Josh said. "Doc Henry said he'd take care of him." Curt nodded. "Thanks for letting me know. I'll be sure to check in with Doc Henry." The kids said good-bye and headed back toward Main Street. "I hope he catches whoever took those falcons," Ruth Rose said. "Cutting a bird's feathers off is just plain mean!" Josh nodded. "Yeah, but at least it doesn't hurt. I think it's like cutting your toenails." They walked past Ellie's Diner. Grace Lockwood was sitting at the window, reading and eating lunch. When she noticed the kids watching her, she stared back at them through the glass. Her face was blank, but her eyes made the kids hurry away. "She looks upset about something," Ruth Rose said. "Maybe she just doesn't like kids gawking at her while she eats," Dink said. "Did you guys see what she was reading?" Josh asked. "Some magazine," Dink said.

他问道。“我们带它去看兽医了，”乔希说。 “亨利医生说他会照顾他的。” Curt点点头。“谢谢你告诉我。 我一定会向亨利医生汇报的。” 孩子们道了别，朝主街走去。 露丝·罗斯说:“我希望他能抓住偷走猎鹰的人。” “剪掉鸟的羽毛真是太卑鄙了!”杰克点了点头。 “是啊，但至少不疼。 我觉得这就像剪脚趾甲一样。” 他们走过埃莉餐厅。 格蕾丝·洛克伍德坐在窗前，一边看书，一边吃午饭。 当她注意到孩子们在看着她时，她隔着玻璃回望着他们。 她面无表情，但她的眼神让孩子们赶紧走开了。 “她好像有什么事不高兴，”露丝·罗斯说。 丁克说:“也许她只是不喜欢孩子们在她吃东西的时候盯着她看。” “你们看到她在读什么了吗?”杰克问。 “某本杂志，”丁克说。

"Not just some magazine," Josh said, looking at Dink and Ruth Rose. "I recognized the cover. It was Falconry Today."

“不只是什么杂志，”乔希看着丁克和露丝·罗斯说。 “我认出了封面。今天是训鹰会。”