Chapter 25

CHAPTER 25 Karachi. The name had been in Amy's mind for days, but it was now struggling for space against thoughts of an easy smile and a singing voice that gave her chills. Back in Sydney, while threatening to feed Amy to sharks, Isabel Kabra had listed the places Dan and Amy had been. For some reason, she'd included a place they'd never visited: Karachi, Pakistan. Amy had to accept that they were done in South Africa. Lingering any longer would be a mistake. The Holts were still out there, and angry. But that didn't make it any easier to leave. "Let's keep in touch," Kurt had said before they'd parted. "I hope we meet again."

第25章卡拉奇这个名字在艾米的脑海里已经有好几天了，但现在它正在与一个轻松的微笑和一个让她不寒而栗的歌声相抗衡。 回到悉尼，伊莎贝尔·卡布拉一边威胁要把艾米喂鲨鱼，一边列出了丹和艾米去过的地方。 出于某种原因，她写了一个他们从未去过的地方：巴基斯坦的卡拉奇。 艾米不得不接受这是在南非完成的。 再拖延下去将是一个错误。 霍尔特一家还在外面，很生气。 但这并没有让我更容易离开。 “让我们保持联系，”库尔特在他们分手前说。 “我希望我们能再见面。”

Amy hoped so, too. She couldn't expect it, though. She couldn't expect anything other than constant change. "Flight 796, Johannesburg to Karachi, will be boarding in ten minutes," a voice echoed through the terminal. "Hey, gotta go," Dan said. Amy hugged Professor Bardsley. "Thanks for your help." "Yeah, and the tunes you let me upload onto my iPod," Nellie said unenthusiastically. "Can't wait to listen to Renaissance church music." "I suppose," Professor Bardsley said, "I cannot convince you to remain." "Sorry," Amy said sadly. Professor Bardsley had been kind to them. He had driven the Yugo all the way back to Johannesburg, allowing Nellie, Dan, and Amy to sleep. He had found food for Saladin, helped book the flights, and even offered to pay. "We know how you feel about the thirty-nine clues, Professor Bardsley. But we have to continue. We were given a challenge, and we have to see it through."

艾米也希望如此。不过，她没料到会这样。 除了不断的变化，她别无他法。 “从约翰内斯堡飞往卡拉奇的796次航班，将在十分钟后登机。”一个声音在航站楼回荡。 “嘿，我得走了，”丹说。 艾米拥抱了巴德斯利教授。 “谢谢你的帮助。”“是啊，还有你让我上传到iPod上的那些曲子，”内莉冷淡地说。 “等不及要听文艺复兴时期的教堂音乐了” “我想，”巴德斯利教授说，“我无法说服你留下来。” “对不起，”艾米伤心地说。巴德斯利教授待他们很好。 他一路把尤戈车开回了约翰内斯堡，让内莉、丹和艾米睡觉。 他给萨拉丁找了吃的，帮他订了机票，甚至还出钱。 “我们知道你对这三十九条线索的看法，巴德斯利教授。 但我们必须继续。我们面临着挑战，我们必须坚持到底。”

"By grace," he murmured. His face crinkled, and he gave a small wink. Amy wasn't expecting that response. "Grace…?" "She was a remarkable, lovely, generous woman," Professor Bardsley said. "You knew her?" Amy said. "Did she know everyone in South Africa?" Dan said. Professor Bardsley nodded, smiling. "Grace had many friends here. Does this surprise you?" Amy smiled. Bardsley had a long history with the 39 Clues and the Tomas. He knew Winifred Thembeka. Of course it made sense that he'd known Grace. "Let's stay in contact, Professor." "Godspeed," he replied. She, Dan, and Nellie turned to the security line. It was quicker than they expected. After passing through the scanner, they followed the sign for the boarding gates, but a man with a mustache gestured toward a motor cart. "This way, please," he said.

“上帝保佑。”他喃喃地说。他的脸皱了起来，轻轻地眨了眨眼睛。 艾米没想到会有这样的反应。 “恩…?”“她是一个了不起的、可爱的、慷慨的女人，”巴德斯利教授说。 “你认识她？”艾米说。“她认识南非的每个人吗？”丹说。 巴德斯利教授点点头，微笑着。 “格蕾丝在这里有很多朋友。 这让你感到惊讶吗？”艾米笑了。 巴德斯利和39条线索还有托马斯有很长一段交情。 他认识Winifred Thembeka。 他认识格蕾丝当然说得通。 “让我们保持联系，教授。” “祝你好运，”他回答。她、丹和内莉转向安全线。 这比他们预期的要快。 通过扫描仪后，他们跟着登机口的标志走，但一个留着胡子的男人指着一辆手推车。 “这边请，”他说。

"No, thanks," Amy replied. "We'll walk." The man moved closer. "This way." "Just give him some baksheesh and tell him to go away," Dan murmured. "Wrong country, dude," Nellie said. The man stepped quickly in Dan's path. In his right hand was a small knife. "What the—?" Dan looked around frantically. Behind him, Nellie drew in a breath. "Better do what he says. Now." Amy trembled. She and Dan climbed into the back of the cart as Nellie took the front passenger seat. The man sped away from the gates, driving out a back door and across a tarmac. Small craft buzzed overhead and cargo carriers rolled by. Soon they raced around the corner of a hangar. If the coast was clear, they could make a run for it. Dan poked Amy. She eyed him and nodded ever so slightly. The driver swerved around the building. Suddenly, Dan felt a bag come down over his head. "Hey!" he shouted.

“不，谢谢，”艾米回答。 “我们走。”那人走得更近了。 “这种方式。”“给他一些钱，叫他走开，”丹低声说。 “搞错国家了，伙计，”内莉说。 那人迅速拦住丹的去路。 他的右手拿着一把小刀。 ——“什么?”丹疯狂地环顾四周。 在他身后，内利吸了一口气。 “最好照他说的去做。现在。” 艾米颤抖。她和丹爬到车的后面，内莉坐在前排的乘客座位上。 那名男子迅速离开大门，从后门驶出，穿过停机坪。 小船在头顶嗡嗡作响，货轮驶过。 很快，他们在一个机库的拐角处跑了起来。 如果没有危险，他们就可以逃跑。 丹戳了戳艾米。她看着他，轻轻地点了点头。 司机在大楼周围急转弯。 突然，丹感到一个袋子落在他的头上。 “嘿！”他喊道。

Amy and Nellie were screaming. Dan tried to stand, but his arms were yanked behind him. He felt a coarse rope tightening around his wrists and a gag around his mouth. In moments, he was being shoved from behind. They were walking on concrete. A rush of wind lifted his shirttail as a low-flying plane passed. He felt himself being pushed through a door. Then two hands were shoving him downward, into a chair. On either side of him, he could hear Amy and Nellie grunting against the gags. "One… two… three… all present." The voice felt like a scrape of acid down Dan's back. "Let's be civilized about this, shall we?" The bag was pulled up over his head, and he was staring into the face of Isabel Kabra. "Diamond," Isabel Kabra said, filing her fingernails and looking out of place in a molded plastic chair. "You came to South Africa and discovered the clue was diamond. Aren't they clever, children?" "Hope it wasn't too… erm, hard for you,"

艾米和内莉在尖叫。 丹想站起来，但他的胳膊被拽到了身后。 他感到一根粗糙的绳子在他的手腕上绷紧了，嘴巴被塞住了。 不一会儿，他就被人从后面推了出去。 他们走在水泥地上。 一架低空飞行的飞机经过时，一阵风掀起了他的衬衫下摆。 他觉得自己被人推了出去。 然后两只手把他往下推，推到一把椅子上。 在他的两边，他能听到艾米和内莉对插科打诨的抱怨。 “一……二……三……都到了。” 那声音就像酸液在丹的背上刮了一下。 “让我们文明一点，好吗？”包被拉到他头上，他盯着伊莎贝尔·卡布拉的脸。 “钻石，”伊莎贝尔·卡布拉一边说，一边整理指甲，在一张模塑的塑料椅子上显得格格不入。 “你来到南非，发现线索是钻石。 难道他们不聪明吗，孩子们？”“希望这对你来说不会太……嗯，太难了。”

Natalie said, snickering. "A pity you had to strain yourselves," Ian continued, "when we could have easily told you." The mustached man squatted behind Amy, Dan, and Nellie, tying their legs to the chair. Isabel, Ian, and Natalie faced them across the cement floor of a storage shed. Shelves were crammed with cans, boxes, tools, and parts. Behind Ian's head was a huge, dented propeller lying sideways on a machine with a fan belt. Amy pulled at her restraints. Isabel knew about the Clue. Somehow she'd tracked them down. But Amy was no longer surprised at Isabel. No longer scared. At this point, all she wanted to do was one thing. Get her. "How did you know? Dan sputtered. "This was a Tomas clue!" "Churchill was a Lucian, dear," Isabel said with a chortle. "He found the Tomas clue a hundred years ago. Did you really think we wouldn't know?" "Indeed," Ian piped up. "Well put, Mother."

娜塔莉窃笑着说。“真遗憾，你们得费点劲，”伊恩接着说，“我们本可以很容易地告诉你们的。” 大胡子男人蹲在艾米、丹和内莉身后，把她们的腿绑在椅子上。 伊莎贝尔、伊恩和娜塔莉隔着储藏室的水泥地面对着他们。 货架上堆满了罐头、盒子、工具和零件。 在伊恩的头后面，有一个巨大的、凹陷的螺旋桨横躺在一个带风扇皮带的机器上。 艾米挣脱了她的束缚。 伊莎贝尔知道线索的事。 不知怎么的，她找到了他们。 但艾美对伊莎贝尔不再感到惊讶了。 不再害怕。此时此刻，她只想做一件事。 得到她。“你怎么知道的？” 丹气急败坏的说。“这是托马斯的线索！”“丘吉尔是卢西亚人，亲爱的，”伊莎贝尔笑着说。 “他一百年前就发现了托马斯的线索。 你真以为我们不知道吗？”“的确，”伊恩尖声说。 “说得好，妈妈。”