Chapter 7

7 Back to the Top-Secret- Pigeon-Business-I'm-Afraid Room Every inch of the room was filled with cages of pigeons. Row upon row of stacked coops covered the floor, shelves and cupboards. Inside each padlocked prison were pigeons, crammed tight, squished against the metal cage bars. There were hundreds upon hundreds of pigeons. And every frightened eye was on me and Fienne. 'What is this place?' I squawked. Fienne looked at me.

7回到绝密——怕鸽子生意的房间房间里的每一寸地方都摆满了鸽笼。 一排又一排的鸡笼铺满了地板、架子和橱柜。 在每一个被锁上的监狱里都有鸽子，它们被挤得紧紧的，紧贴在金属笼子的栏杆上。 那里有成百上千的鸽子。 所有惊恐的目光都盯着我和费安。 “这是什么地方？”我大发牢骚。 费安看着我。

'OK, OK,' I said. 'It's top-secret pigeon business. I get it.' 'Actually, this bit isn't top-secret,' a small voice chimed in. 'The Human with the tiny umbrellas on his shoulders has trapped us, and he intends to turn us all into pigeon nuggets.' Every single pigeon started screeching. Wings beat hard as panicked pigeons crashed against the bars of their cage prisons, crying and pleading for their lives. 'Silence!' Fienne screeched. 'You're going to alert Reginald Grimster!' The pigeons sank back in their cages. I turned to see a pigeon standing next to us. 'This is Agent Swan,' Fienne said. 'Just call me Swan,' she said.

“好吧，好吧，”我说。“这是鸽子的绝密业务。 我明白了。“实际上，这一点并不是最高机密。”一个微弱的声音插了进来。 “那个肩上扛着小雨伞的人把我们困住了，他想把我们都变成鸽子块。”每只鸽子都开始尖叫。 惊慌失措的鸽子扑腾着翅膀，撞在笼子的栅栏上，哭喊着求上帝饶他们一命。 “安静!”Fienne尖叫声。 “你要去惊动雷金纳德·格里姆斯特！”鸽子倒在笼子里。 我转过身来，看到一只鸽子站在我们旁边。 “我是斯旺探员，”费安说。 “就叫我天鹅吧，”她说。

'Swan?' 'Don't ask,' Fienne whispered. 'She's a Stielbacht pigeon but her parents were confused about what type of bird she was when she was born, apparently. I could see why. Swan's white feathers meant it was an easy mistake to make. 'Tell me everything,' I said. 'Top-secret—' Fienne started. 'I can't help if you don't tell me what's going on.'

“天鹅吗?“别问，”费安小声说。 “她是一只斯蒂尔巴赫特鸽子，但很明显，她出生时，她的父母对她是什么鸟感到困惑。” 我知道为什么。天鹅的白色羽毛意味着很容易犯错误。 “把一切都告诉我，”我说。 “绝密——”费安说。 “如果你不告诉我发生了什么事，我也帮不了你。”

Fienne looked off into the distance for a while, then turned back to me. 'I've decided it's time you knew the truth. There is something I need to tell you.' He pulled me close. 'I'm a pigeon secret agent.' 'So that's what that cuff is,' I said, pointing at his black ankle bracelet. 'I thought you were a homing pigeon. 'Pah. Just a homing pigeon?' Fienne fanned out his wings. 'This is clearly an elite-issue black leg band, designated only for the bravest of spies.' He stuck out his foot at me, making sure I took a close look. 'And you're an agent too?' I asked Swan.

费恩向远处看了一会儿，然后转过身来看着我。 “我决定是时候让你知道真相了。 我有件事要告诉你。”他把我拉近。 “我是鸽子特工。“原来这就是那个袖口，”我指着他的黑色脚链说。 “我还以为你是一只信鸽呢。 的多环芳烃。只是一只信鸽？”费安展开了他的翅膀。 “这显然是一款专为精英设计的黑色绑腿，专为最勇敢的间谍设计。”他向我伸出一只脚，让我仔细看了看。 “你也是一名特工吗？ ”我问斯旺。