2 No More Running

Chapter 2 NO MORE RUNNING Coke McDonald looked up and saw blue sky overhead, crisscrossed by a series of wires stretching on into what appeared to be infinity. He was lying on a hard surface that seemed to be vibrating. It was windy and cold, and he couldn't move. Of course he couldn't move. His legs were tied together with rope, and his wrists were shackled by handcuffs.

麦当劳可乐抬起头来，看到头顶上的蓝天被一系列的电线纵横交错，似乎延伸到无穷无尽的地方。 他躺在坚硬的表面上，表面似乎在震动。 寒风凛冽，他动弹不得。 他当然动不了。 他的腿被绳子绑在一起，手腕被手铐铐着。

He saw something else too. The horrible smiling face of Dr. Herman Warsaw leaning over him. His breath was bad. "I had thought that you, and geniuses like you, would be able to solve the problems of the world," Dr. Warsaw told him. "That was my grand plan. But then I realized you were just like all the other kids—snotty, disrespectful, disobedient, and immoral. You killed my young assistant Archie. Then you killed my wife. And you almost killed me. So now I'm going to kill you, at last!" Coke trembled with fear. Out of the corner

他还看到了别的东西。 医生可怕的笑脸。 赫尔曼·华沙俯身看着他。 他的口气很难闻。“我原以为你和像你这样的天才能够解决世界上的问题。” 华沙告诉他。“这就是我的宏伟计划。 但后来我意识到你和其他孩子一样——流鼻涕、无礼、不听话、不道德。 你杀了我年轻的助手阿奇。 然后你杀了我妻子。你差点杀了我。 所以现在我终于要杀了你！”可乐吓得浑身发抖。 走出角落

of his eye, he could see he was on the roadway of a long suspension bridge. Cars and trucks were whizzing by, but none of them were stopping. "I didn't mean to do anything!" Coke pleaded. "I'm just an ordinary kid. I didn't ask to be part of your stupid Genius Files program!" "Shut up!" Dr. Warsaw hissed. "I'm finished arguing with you! This is the end of the line." "That's right!" The voice came from behind, and Coke realized the two bowler dudes were kneeling there, hovering over him. "You tell 'im, boss," said the mustachioed bowler dude. His clean-shaven brother just snickered in the background. On Coke's other side was the maniacally grinning face of Mrs. Higgins, his health teacher. "No more running," she said, touching the scar on her neck that she received back at The House on the Rock. "No more hiding. Finally, we have you right where we want you, and this

他的眼睛，他可以看到他是在一个长长的悬索桥的道路上。 汽车和卡车呼啸而过，但没有一辆停下来。 “我不是故意的！”可口可乐承认。 “我只是一个普通的孩子。 我可没要求加入你那愚蠢的天才档案计划！”“闭嘴!”博士。 华沙发出嘘嘘的声音。“我和你吵够了！”到此为止了。” “没错!”声音从后面传来，可口可乐意识到那两个玩保龄球的家伙正跪在那里，在他身边盘旋。 “你告诉他，老板，”那个大胡子的保龄球手说。 他那刮得干干净净的弟弟只是在后面窃笑。 在可乐的另一边，是他的健康老师希金斯太太疯狂地笑着的脸。 “别再跑了。”她说着，摸了摸脖子上的伤疤，那是她在岩石上的房子里留下的。 “别再躲了。终于，你在我们想要的地方了，还有这个

time none of your pals are around to bail you out." She was right. Coke looked around frantically. Mya and Bones weren't anywhere to be seen. Neither was his sister. "Where's Pep?" Coke shouted. "Where's my sister? What did you do to her?" "She's dead!" yelled Mrs. Higgins. "We threw her off the bridge." "Noooooooo!" Coke screamed. Why weren't the cars stopping? Where were the police? "Mrs. Higgins," Dr. Warsaw said politely, "would you like the honor of sending this young man to his watery grave?" "Oh, I'm flattered and honored that you would even consider me for such an important task," Mrs. Higgins said, smiling girlishly. "But this is your moment, Doctor. It would only be right if you did the deed yourself. The boys and I will assist you, of course." "If you wish."

是时候让你身边没有朋友来救你了。” 她是对的。可口可乐疯狂地环顾四周。 米亚和骨头不见了。 他的妹妹也没有。“Pep在哪儿?”可口可乐喊道。 “我妹妹呢？”你对她做了什么？”“她死了！”希金斯太太喊道。 “我们把她从桥上扔下去了。” “错了”,可口可乐尖叫。 汽车为什么不停车？ 警察在哪里？“夫人。 “希金斯，”华沙医生礼貌地说，“你愿意赏光把这个年轻人送进水里的坟墓吗？”“哦，你能考虑让我承担如此重要的任务，我感到受宠若惊，也感到荣幸，”希金斯太太说，脸上带着少女般的微笑。 “但这是你的时刻，医生。 只有你亲自动手才是对的。 我和孩子们当然会帮助你。” “如果你愿意的话。”

The bowler dudes grabbed Coke by his legs while Dr. Warsaw and Mrs. Higgins hoisted him up under each arm. Coke looked around and saw they were in the middle of the bridge. It would be a long way down to the water. He knew from skimming a physics textbook years earlier that for a body falling from a great height, hitting the water would be like hitting concrete. Mentally, Coke began calculating the angle and velocity his body would reach just before impact with the water. He remembered that the kinetic energy in different parts of his body was greater than the binding energy keeping them connected, so when it struck the surface his body would act more like a fluid, in the most disgusting possible way. In simpler terms, he was about to die. "Any last words?" Dr. Warsaw asked, interrupting Coke's train of thought. "No!" Coke shouted. "I'll do anything you want! Anything! Just let me go!"

那些玩保龄球的家伙抓住了科克的腿。 华沙和希金斯太太把他抱在腋下。 可乐环顾四周，看到他们在桥中央。 到水边要走很长一段路。 几年前，他从一本物理教科书上略读到，对于一个从高处坠落的人来说，撞到水里就像撞到混凝土一样。 在心里，科克开始计算他的身体在与水撞击之前所能达到的角度和速度。 他记得他身体不同部位的动能大于使它们连接在一起的结合能，所以当它撞击表面时，他的身体会表现得更像液体，以一种最恶心的方式。 简单来说，他就要死了。 “有什么遗言吗？”华沙博士打断了可口可乐的思路，问道。 “不!”可口可乐喊道。“你要我干什么我就干什么！”任何事情!让我走吧！”

"Too late for negotiations," Dr. Warsaw said. "It's the real thing, Coke." "Good one, boss," said the bowler dudes. "Shut up!" Dr. Warsaw barked at them. "Help me throw him over this railing." "No!" Coke protested as they swung his body backward, and then forward. "One! Two!" the bowler dudes counted off. The four of them swung Coke's body back once more, and this time they let go, heaving him over the railing and off the bridge. He was falling. He was helpless. It was all over.

谈判已经太晚了。 华沙说。“这是真的，可乐。” “干得好，老大。” “闭嘴!”华沙医生对他们吼叫。 “帮我把他扔过栏杆。” “不!”当他们把他的身体向后摇晃，然后向前摇晃时，科克抗议道。 ”一个!两个！”那些打保龄球的人数着。 他们四个人又把科克的身体甩了回来，这次他们松手了，把他扔过栏杆，扔下了桥。 他在坠落。他很无助。 一切都结束了。