Chapter 6

CHAPTER 6 George didn't tell Phoebe or Aunt Daisy about his plan. He figured he'd head down to the first class baggage room after they went to sleep. He'd find Mr. Burrows's crate, pry it open, and take a quick peek at the mummy. He'd be back in bed and snoring away before anyone knew he was gone. It was almost eleven-fifteen when Phoebe was finally asleep and the light was out under Aunt Daisy's door. George crept out of bed. He quickly got dressed and put his knife in his pocket. He'd need it for prying off the lid of the crate. And who

第六章乔治没有把他的计划告诉菲比和黛西姨妈。 他想等他们睡着后，他就去头等舱行李室。 他会找到巴罗斯先生的板条箱，撬开板条箱，快速瞥一眼木乃伊。 在别人发现他走了之前，他就已经躺在床上打呼噜了。 菲比终于睡着了，快十一点十五分了，黛西姨妈家门下的灯灭了。 乔治爬下床。他很快穿好衣服，把刀放进口袋里。 他撬开板条箱的盖子需要用它。 和谁

knew? Maybe there was a live cobra in the box too. George could hope, couldn't he? George opened the door and peeked into the hallway. He wanted to avoid Henry, who seemed to have eyes in the back of his bright orange head. He wouldn't like George creeping around so late at night. But the hallway was quiet. There was no noise at all except for the quiet hum of the engines, rising up from the bottom of the ship. George loved that noise. It made him think of crickets in the woods at night. In fact, being out here all by himself reminded him of the nights at home when he sneaked out into the woods while Papa and Phoebe were asleep. He'd head out when his mind was filled with restless thoughts. About why Papa was always mad at him, or why he didn't try harder in school. And of course Mama. Almost three years had passed since she died. George tried not to think about her too much. But some nights when he closed his eyes, he'd

知道呢?也许盒子里也有一条活的眼镜蛇。 乔治有希望，不是吗? 乔治打开门，朝走廊里瞥了一眼。 他想避开亨利，因为他那亮橙色的后脑勺上似乎长着眼睛。 他不喜欢乔治在这么晚的时候鬼鬼祟祟的。 但走廊里很安静。 除了从船底传来的发动机的嗡嗡声外，什么声音也没有。 乔治喜欢那种声音。这让他想起了夜晚树林里的蟋蟀。 事实上，独自一人在这里，让他想起了在家里的那些夜晚，当爸爸和菲比睡着时，他偷偷溜到树林里。 当他满脑子都是不安的想法时，他就会离开。 为什么爸爸总是生他的气，或者为什么他在学校没有更加努力。 当然还有妈妈。从她去世到现在已经快三年了。 乔治尽量不去想她太多。 但有些夜晚，当他闭上眼睛，他会

remember her smile. Or her smell when she hugged him close. Like fresh grass and sweet flowers. And that song she'd sing to wake George up in the morning: "Awake, awake. It's now daybreak! But don't forget your dreams…." Thinking about Mama was like standing close to a fire. Warm at first. But get too close and it hurt too much. Much better to stay clear of those thoughts. Nothing cleared George's mind quicker than being in the woods. He never stayed out for more than an hour or two…. Except for that night back in October. George was heading back toward home when he heard a terrible sound, like a little girl screaming. He turned around, and in the dark distance he saw two glowing yellow eyes. Some old-timers said there were black panthers in the woods, but George never believed it.

记住她的笑容。或者她紧紧拥抱他时的气味。 像新鲜的草和甜美的花。 还有她早上唱的那首叫乔治起床的歌:“醒醒，醒醒。 现在天亮了!但不要忘记你的梦想....” 想到妈妈就像站在火炉旁。 一开始很温暖。但靠得太近，伤得太深。 最好远离这些想法。 没有什么比在树林里更能让乔治清醒的了。 他从不在外面呆超过一两个小时.... 除了十月的那个晚上。 乔治正在回家的路上，突然听到一个可怕的声音，像是一个小女孩在尖叫。 他转过身来，在黑暗的远处，他看到两只闪闪发光的黄眼睛。 一些老前辈说树林里有黑豹，但乔治不相信。

But as the yellow eyes got closer, George could see the outline of a huge cat, with two glistening fangs. George told himself not to run. He knew he'd never outrun the panther. But he couldn't help it — he ran as fast as he could. Branches cut his face, but he didn't slow down. Any second the panther would leap up and tackle George. Its claws would tear him apart. George could feel the cat right behind him; he could smell its breath, like rotting meat. George grabbed a fallen branch. He turned and waved it in front of him. The panther lunged and grabbed the branch in its jaws.

但当那双黄眼睛靠近时，乔治看到了一只大猫的轮廓，它长着两颗闪闪发光的尖牙。 乔治告诉自己不要跑。 他知道他永远也跑不过黑豹。 但他忍不住——他拼命地跑。 树枝划破了他的脸，但他没有放慢速度。 黑豹随时都可能跳起来抓住乔治。 它的爪子会把他撕碎。 乔治能感觉到那只猫就在他后面;他能闻到它的气息，像腐肉一样。 乔治抓住一根倒下来的树枝。 他转过身来，在面前挥舞着它。 黑豹猛扑过去，咬住了树枝。

George let go of the stick and scrambled up a tree, climbing as high as he could go. The cat dropped the branch and came after him, like a shadow with glowing eyes. George pulled out his knife.

乔治放开棍子，爬上一棵树，尽可能地爬得高。 那只猫扔下树枝，跟在他后面，像一个眼睛发光的影子。 乔治拔出了他的刀。

He waited until the cat's front paws were on the small branch just below him. And then, with all his might, he chopped at the branch with his knife. Crack. The branch broke free. The giant cat tumbled through the air, screaming and crashing through the branches, and then hit the ground with a thud. There was silence. And then the cat stood up. It looked up at George for a long moment. And it turned and walked slowly back into the woods. George stayed in the tree until it was just about light, and made it into bed just before Papa woke up. His friends at school refused to believe George when he told them, even when he swore on his heart. "No way." "Big fat lie." "Next thing you'll be saying is that you've been signed by the Giants." Their laughter rose up

他一直等到猫的前爪碰到他下面的小树枝。 然后，他用他所有的力量，用他的刀砍树枝。 裂缝。树枝挣脱了。 那只大猫在空中翻滚着，尖叫着穿过树枝，然后砰地一声摔在地上。 一阵沉默。然后猫站了起来。 它抬头看了乔治很长时间。 它转过身，慢慢地走回树林里。 乔治一直待在树上，直到天快亮的时候，才在爸爸醒来之前上床睡觉。 他在学校的朋友们不相信乔治告诉他们的事，即使他发誓也不相信。 “没有办法”。“弥天大谎。”“接下来你要说的就是你被巨人队签了。” 他们笑了起来