2 A vampire in the village

Chapter 2 A vampire in the village Transylvania, 1898 The moon shone on the empty village square. Most villagers were tucked up in bed, but 16-year-old Clara was wide awake. She lived at the top of her father's noisy inn, so she rarely went to bed before midnight. It was now after one.

第2章吸血鬼在村庄特兰西瓦尼亚（1898）月亮照耀着空荡荡的村庄广场。 大多数村民都躺在床上，但16岁的克拉拉完全醒着。 她住在父亲喧闹的客栈的顶楼，所以她很少在午夜之前睡觉。 现在是1点多了。

As the muffled singing rose up through the floor, Clara gazed out of the window. A shadowy figure in a black cloak was creeping across the square. He looked like a man, but not like any man she'd ever seen. His skin was white as ivory, his eyes flashed green in the dark, and his lips were stained a ruby red.

随着低沉的歌声从地板上传来，克拉拉凝视着窗外。 一个披着黑斗篷的黑影悄悄穿过广场。 他看起来像个男人，但不像她见过的任何男人。 他的皮肤像象牙一样白，眼睛在黑暗中闪着绿光，嘴唇染成宝石红色。

The figure was surely moving faster than any human being could. Then, all of a sudden, he was gone. "It must be a trick of the light," Clara thought. But, as she got into bed, her mind kept whirring. Could it be a vampire? "Don't be silly," she told herself. "Vampires are just an old wives' tale."

这个身影的移动速度肯定比任何人都快。 然后，突然间，他走了。 “这一定是光的把戏，”克拉拉想。 但是，当她躺在床上时，她的脑子里一直在嗡嗡作响。 会是吸血鬼吗？“别傻了，”她对自己说。 “吸血鬼只是无稽之谈。”

As a young girl, she'd listened eagerly as the old women of the village told tales of these creatures, and she found herself remembering snatches as she tried to sleep. They're monsters who look like handsome men and beautiful women. They drink human blood by night. They have no reflections. A vampire leaves only two tiny wounds in his victim's neck. Eventually, after much tossing and turning, Clara fell asleep. The next thing she knew, it was morning and someone was shouting.

当她还是个小女孩的时候，她就急切地听村里的老妇人讲述这些生物的故事，她发现自己在试图入睡的时候会想起一些片段。 他们是看起来像帅哥美女的怪物。 他们晚上喝人血。 它们没有反射。吸血鬼只会在受害者脖子上留下两个小伤口。 最后，在辗转反侧之后，克拉拉睡着了。 她所知道的下一件事，是早上，有人在大喊大叫。

"Dead! It's old Mr. Goga. He's dead!" In a panic, Clara dressed as quickly as she could and ran downstairs, her skirts flying out behind her. The whole village was pouring out into the square. Clara rushed to where the village policeman was standing, beside the lifeless body of Mr. Goga. As Clara leaned closer, she saw two tiny puncture wounds on the old man's wrinkled neck. She shivered.

“死了!是老戈加先生。他已经死了!”克拉拉惊慌失措地尽快穿好衣服，跑下楼去，裙子在身后飞扬。 全村的人涌向广场。 克拉拉冲到村警察站的地方，戈加先生的尸体旁边。 克拉拉凑近一些，看到老人皱巴巴的脖子上有两个小小的刺伤。 她哆嗦了一下。

"Be off with you, Clara!" said the policeman. "This is no place for you." Clara scurried away. What should she do? She had no doubt at all that Mr. Goga had been killed by a vampire. But who would believe her? And even if some of the older, crazier ladies of the village believed her... who'd believe them?

“你走吧，克拉拉！”警察说。 “这里不适合你。” 克拉拉匆匆走开了。她该怎么办呢？ 她毫不怀疑戈加先生是被吸血鬼杀死的。 但谁会相信她呢？ 即使村里一些年纪更大、更疯狂的女人相信她…… 谁会相信他们呢？