4 A Deadly Leak

Chapter 4 A Deadly Leak Max, Sofia, and Maisie climbed on board Wind Rider. Max walked over to the helm while Sofia and Maisie raised the sails. As soon as they were in the air, the boat veered left and out of the harbor, back toward where they had last seen Bonnie. "Whoa," said Maisie, her eyes wide. "Who's actually sailing this thing?" Max and Sofia shared a glance. "Erm," said Sofia. "The truth is..."

第4章致命的泄漏麦克斯、索菲亚和麦奇爬上了风骑士号。 马克斯走到舵边，索菲亚和麦奇扬起了帆。 他们一到空中，船就向左转驶出了港口，向他们最后一次见到邦妮的地方驶去。 “哇，”麦茜说，眼睛睁得大大的。 “到底是谁在驾驶这艘船？”马克斯和索菲亚互相看了一眼。 “嗯，”索菲亚说。“事实是……”

"It sails itself," said Max. Maisie looked puzzled. "It's a smart boat!" Max added, with a chuckle Sofia understood. Maisie frowned but let it go. Max stood near the helm while Maisie and Sofia headed to the bow, scanning the sea for the tiny yellow boat. It was far more pleasant to be sailing without the driving wind and rain, even though it was still very cold. "Look at all those black-and-white birds!" Max called, pointing overhead. Maisie shaded her eyes. "Guillemots," she said with a smile. "See their bright red feet?" Max nodded. As another black bird with white wings swooped past, it cooed a hello. Then it rejoined two others soaring toward the rocky cliffs along the shore. "What are those birds with yellowish heads?" asked Sofia. "They're so big!" She pointed at a bird with black-tipped wings and a long bill circling the boat.

“它自己航行，”马克斯说。 麦齐看起来很困惑。“这是一条聪明的船！”马克斯接着说，索非亚笑了笑，明白了。 麦茜皱了皱眉头，但还是让它过去了。 马克斯站在舵边，麦茜和索非亚向船头走去，扫视着海面，寻找那艘黄色的小船。 尽管天气仍然很冷，但在没有风和雨的情况下航行要愉快得多。 “看那些黑白相间的鸟！”麦克斯指着头顶喊道。 麦茜蒙上了眼睛。“海鸠。”她笑着说。 “看到它们鲜红的脚了吗？”马克斯点点头。 当另一只长着白色翅膀的黑鸟飞过时，它低声打招呼。 然后它又和另外两个人会合，朝着岸边的岩石峭壁飞去。 “那些黄脑袋的鸟是什么？”索非亚问。 “它们太大了！”她指着一只长着黑尖翅膀、长着长嘴的鸟，它围着船转。

Maisie followed her gaze. "That's a gannet," she said. "The largest seabirds here in the North Sea. With a bit of luck, you'll see—" Before she could finish, the bird dove, tucked its wings, and sailed straight toward the water. Moments later, it popped out and took flight again. Max sucked in his breath. "We'll see what now?" "You'll see a gannet dive for fish," said Maisie, chuckling. "Granddad says they reach nearly a hundred kilometers per hour!" Sofia's eyes were glued to the shoreline, where a cluster of black-and-white birds with bright orange beaks waddled across the rocks. "Are those what I think

麦齐顺着她的目光望去。“那是塘鹅，”她说。 “北海最大的海鸟。 运气好的话，你会看到——”她还没说完，那只鸟就俯冲下来，收起翅膀，径直飞向水面。 过了一会儿，它跳出来又飞了起来。 马克斯吸了口气。“我们现在要看看什么？”“你会看到塘鹅潜水抓鱼，”麦齐笑着说。 “爷爷说它们每小时能达到将近一百公里！”索非亚的眼睛盯着海岸线，一群黑白相间的鸟在岩石上摇摇摆摆地走着，它们的喙是亮橙色的。 “我是这么想的吗？

they are?" she asked. "Puffins," said Maisie, her eyes sparkling. Sofia was so pleased she'd been right. She'd heard about puffins in stories of her grandparents' vacation, and the birds were one of the reasons she'd wanted to see Scotland. "They visit us only during summer. We call them clowns of the sea. They're so silly! See how they play and squabble?" As one waddled after another, joining the clown parade, Sofia laughed. "They're so cute!" "There's more," said Maisie. "Look." She pointed toward the water. Sofia gasped as a dolphin leaped out of the sea. Others playfully nudged one another as they raced through the waves. "There are so many!" She started counting the fins but lost track at nine. "Are they bottlenose dolphins?" asked Max, who had seen the gray dolphins with short snouts near Starry Bay. "I didn't know there were any in Scotland!" Maisie's cheeks turned pink with pride. "The only dolphins in the North Sea live in Scotland. Tourists flock here to Seal Bay to see the wildlife. We're very lucky. The selkies, the seals, are my favorite. Sometimes they swim alongside people who are swimming or kayaking."

是吗？”她问。“海雀，”麦茜说，她的眼睛闪闪发光。 索菲亚很高兴自己是对的。 她在祖父母度假的故事中听说过海雀，这种鸟是她想去苏格兰的原因之一。 “他们只在夏天来拜访我们。 我们称他们为海上小丑。 他们太蠢了！看到他们怎样玩耍和争吵了吗？”当一个又一个摇摇摆摆地加入小丑游行时，索菲亚笑了。 “他们太可爱了！”“还有呢，”麦奇说。 “看。”她指着水。 当一只海豚跃出海面时，索菲亚倒吸了一口气。 其他人在海浪中奔跑时开玩笑地互相推着。 “有这么多！”她开始数鱼鳍，但在9的时候就忘了。 “它们是宽吻海豚吗？”马克斯问，他曾在星空湾附近看到过短鼻子的灰海豚。 “我不知道苏格兰有这样的房子！”麦齐的脸颊因骄傲而涨得通红。 “北海唯一的海豚生活在苏格兰。 游客们成群结队地来到海豹湾看野生动物。 我们很幸运。海豹是我的最爱。 有时它们会和游泳或皮划艇的人一起游泳。”

"We saw the seals. And a seal pup!" said Sofia. Then her worries rushed back like water into a leaky boat. "I hope it survived the storm." Maisie squeezed Sofia's shoulder. "The pup will be all right. Its ma will look after it. But Bonnie might have been done in by the storm. My ma and dad will be devastated if that wee boat is lost..." She bit her lip. "We'll find it," Sofia promised. Moments later, as Wind Rider slid up alongside the rocks of Seal Bay, Maisie let out a small cry. A tiny yellow boat, no longer than two seals stretched out end to end, lay cockeyed across the rocks. Even from the deck of Wind Rider, Max could see the gaping hole in the side of the little boat. "Maybe we can fix it," he said quickly. "My grandpa fixes boats—I've helped him!" "I'm not so sure," Maisie said sadly. As Sofia leaned over to give Maisie a hug, she spotted something. A shimmering swirl of greasy color

“我们看到了海豹。还有一只小海豹！”索菲亚说。 接着，她的忧虑又像水冲进了漏水的船上。 “我希望它能挺过这场风暴。” 麦茜捏了捏索菲亚的肩膀。 “小狗会没事的。 它的妈妈会照顾它的。 但邦妮可能是被风暴卷走了。 如果那艘小船丢了，我爸妈会伤心欲绝的……” 她咬着嘴唇。“我们会找到的。”索菲亚保证道。 过了一会儿，当风骑士沿着海豹湾的岩石滑行时，梅奇发出了一声微弱的叫声。 一艘黄色的小船歪歪扭扭地躺在岩石上，艇长不过两只海豹首尾相接。 即使站在风骑士号的甲板上，马克斯也能看到小船侧面裂开的洞。 “也许我们能修好它，”他很快地说。 “我爷爷是修船的——我帮过他！”“我不太确定，”梅奇悲伤地说。 索菲亚俯身想给麦茜一个拥抱，这时她发现了一些东西。 油光闪烁的漩涡

stretched across the water between Bonnie and Wind Rider. "Bonnie is leaking oil!" Sofia cried in alarm. "I did a school project on oil spills. Oil can poison sea animals —or get in their fur or wings. They can get waterlogged and drown!" As she pictured the baby seal, her stomach tensed. Maisie pulled a phone from her pocket. "I'll call 999 for the coast guard." She dialed the number and stepped away from the rail. Sofia paced the deck. "They won't get here soon enough. Look how the oil is spreading!" The dark, metallic liquid cast a thick sheen over the waves. "What

横跨在邦妮和风骑士之间 “邦妮漏油了！”索菲亚惊恐地叫道。 “我做了一个关于石油泄漏的学校项目。 石油可以毒害海洋动物，或者进入它们的皮毛或翅膀。 他们会被水淹淹死的！”当她想象着小海豹时，她的胃紧张起来。 麦茜从口袋里掏出一部手机。 “我打999叫海岸警卫队来。” 她拨通了电话，离开了栏杆。 索菲亚在甲板上踱来踱去。“他们不会很快赶到这里的。 看，油扩散得多厉害！”黑色的金属液体在海浪上投下一层厚厚的光泽。 “什么