Chapter 14

CHAPTER 14 The entire building shook. A window shattered, and snow and ice exploded into the schoolhouse. But John hardly noticed. He barely heard the screeching wind or the cries of the little kids. He was looking all around. Where was Franny? It was very dark inside the schoolhouse. Miss Ruell struggled to light a lantern. But John could

整座建筑都在摇晃。 一扇窗户碎了，雪和冰炸进了校舍。 但是约翰几乎没有注意到。他几乎没有听到刺耳的风声和孩子们的哭声。 他环顾四周。 弗兰妮在哪里？学校里很黑。 鲁埃尔小姐挣扎着点燃一盏灯笼。 但是约翰可以

see well enough to know that Franny wasn't there. A crack of fear almost knocked him off his feet. She'd been playing hide-and-seek. She'd probably found some perfect hiding spot off in a corner of the schoolyard. And when everyone ran inside, she'd been left behind. How had John let that happen? How could he have forgotten his sister? John rushed to the door and flung it open. A vicious blast of wind and snow nearly knocked him down. He clung to the doorframe to keep his balance. "Franny!" he cried. Miss Ruell called to him. "John! No!" But John couldn't wait. Franny was out there! The storm's icy hooks seemed to snatch him from the doorway. The wind roared in his ears and yanked him down the stairs. It threw him onto the ground. Ice and snow lashed his face. He gasped for breath as the freezing air shocked his lungs.

我看得很清楚，知道弗兰妮不在那儿。 一阵恐惧几乎把他震倒在地。 她一直在玩捉迷藏。 她可能在校园的某个角落里找到了一个完美的藏身之处。 当所有人都跑进去时，她已经被抛在后面了。 约翰怎么会让这种事发生？ 他怎么会忘了他妹妹呢？ 约翰冲到门口，猛地把门打开。 一阵猛烈的狂风和大雪几乎把他打倒在地。 他紧紧抓住门框以保持身体平衡。 “弗兰妮！”鲁埃尔小姐叫他。 “约翰!不!”但是约翰等不及了。 弗兰妮在外面！风暴冰冷的钩子似乎要把他从门口拖走。 风在他耳边呼啸，把他拽下楼梯。 它把他摔在地上。 冰雪拍打着他的脸。 冰冷的空气使他的肺受到冲击，他喘不过气来。

John grabbed the stair railing and struggled to his feet. He pushed himself forward, staggering into the frozen darkness that had swallowed the schoolyard. "Franny!" he cried. ROOOOARRR! the storm screamed back. He looked around, but it was impossible to see. The snow gushed down from the sky and churned in the wind. Ground-up ice flew into John's eyes, coating his lashes and lids. With each blink, the ice scraped painfully against his eyeballs. But even worse was the furious wind, which slashed at him from every direction. John felt as if he was locked in a cage with a pack of wild beasts, all trying to tear him to bits. He thought of that farmer who'd died in last year's blizzard. It hadn't really made sense to John, how a strong man could get lost and freeze to death, just a few yards from his house. But now, as John staggered blindly along, spinning in the wind, he understood all too well.

约翰抓住楼梯栏杆挣扎着站了起来。 他向前挤了挤，摇摇晃晃地走进了吞没了整个校园的冰冷的黑暗中。 “弗兰妮！”ROOOOARRR !暴风雨呼啸而来。 他环顾四周，但什么也看不见。 雪从天上倾泻而下，在风中翻腾。 碎冰飞进了约翰的眼睛，覆盖了他的睫毛和眼睑。 每眨一次眼，冰就痛苦地摩擦着他的眼球。 但更糟糕的是狂风从四面八方向他猛烈袭来。 约翰觉得自己好像和一群野兽关在一个笼子里，所有野兽都想把他撕成碎片。 他想起了在去年暴风雪中死去的那个农民。 约翰真的不明白，一个强壮的人怎么会在离家几码远的地方迷路并冻死。 但是现在，当约翰盲目地蹒跚前行，在风中旋转时，他明白得太清楚了。

Crushed bits of snow sifted down his collar and blew up his sleeves and trouser legs. Soon, every inch of his skin was crusted with ice. The cold seeped through his flesh and muscles, and stabbed into his bones. John was shivering so hard his bones felt as if they would crack apart. A gust of wind smashed against him. He fell back, into the snow. And now he couldn't stand up. The wind pressed down on him, like a giant boot crushing him into the ground. Ice was filling his nose, making it harder and harder to breathe. A feeling of terror came over John. He had never felt so tiny, and so helpless. He'd made a terrible mistake, he realized. There was no way he would be able to find Franny in this blizzard. He was going to freeze to death.

碎雪从他的衣领上滚落下来，吹起了他的袖子和裤腿。 很快，他的每一寸皮肤都结了一层冰。 寒冷渗进他的肉和肌肉，刺进他的骨头。 约翰冻得骨头都要裂了。 一阵风吹在他身上。 他向后倒在雪地里。 现在他站不起来了。 风压在他身上，就像一只巨大的靴子把他压在地上。 冰填满了他的鼻子，使他呼吸越来越困难。 约翰感到一阵恐惧。 他从未感到如此渺小，如此无助。 他意识到自己犯了一个严重的错误。 在这样的暴风雪中，他是不可能找到弗兰妮的。 他要被冻死了。