2 Chabela’s Choice

Chapter 2 Chabela's Choice As the cousins quickly slipped out the door, Malia glanced back. Susana pointed to her cell phone and mouthed the words take pictures. Malia gave her a thumbs-up. In the hallway, Ivan reviewed their plan. "We go to Do.a Chabela's house and talk to her. She obviously knows how to open portals, or where to find them." "I bet she just wants her grandson to come home," Malia added. "So we're going to ask her to help send us back to 13th Street."

第二章 查韦拉的选择 表兄妹们快步溜出门时，马莉娅回头瞥了一眼。 苏珊娜指着自己的手机，用口型比出“拍照片”三个字。 马莉娅冲她比了个大拇指。 走廊里，伊万把他们的计划又梳理了一遍。 “我们去查韦拉夫人家里，和她谈谈。 她明显知道怎么开传送门，也知道去哪儿能找到传送门。” “我猜她就是盼着自己的孙子能回家。”马莉娅补充道。 “所以我们要请她帮忙，把我们送回十三号街去。”

There was a bus stop right outside the aquarium. Within a few minutes, they were whisked into the neighborhood of Little Mexico. There was another bus stop right on 11th Street, where both Aunt Lucy and Chabela Aguilar lived. Malia and her cousins walked away from Lucy's apartment complex as fast as they could. The last thing they needed was for her to spot them playing hooky. The gate to Chabela's house was open. The three cousins hurried down her sidewalk and up her stairs. Malia rang the doorbell.

水族馆门外就有一个公交站。 没几分钟，他们就坐车到了小墨西哥社区。 十一号街上就有另一个公交站，露西姨妈和查韦拉·阿吉拉尔都住在这条街上。 马莉娅和表兄妹们飞快地从露西姨妈的公寓楼旁走开。 他们最不想撞见的就是姨妈发现他们逃学。 查韦拉家的大门开着。 三个孩子快步走过她家的人行道，爬上台阶。 马莉娅按响了门铃。

"Do.a Chabela!" she called. "Please open up! We found your grandson!" The door swung open almost immediately. Chabela stood there, shocked. Then her eyes filled with tears and a huge smile spread across her wrinkled face. "Ay, ni.os benditos. You lovely children. Thank you. Please, come inside." Her living room was full of wooden furniture and

“查韦拉夫人！” 她喊道。 “请开开门！ 我们找到您孙子了！” 门几乎立刻就开了。 查韦拉站在门口，满脸震惊。 紧接着她眼里泛起泪光，爬满皱纹的脸上绽开了大大的笑容。 “哎呀，上帝保佑的好孩子啊。 你们这些可爱的小家伙。 谢谢你们。 快，请进来吧。” 她家客厅摆满了木质家具，还有

bright colors, like Lucy's apartment. But there was a sadness that Malia could feel all around her—the kind of sadness that comes when you lose something very important to you. "We need answers, ma'am. You've tricked us into going to 13th Street three times. Why?" Malia asked. "I'm so, so sorry," Chabela said, dropping into a chair. "Let me explain. The day I met you was the fourth anniversary of Mickey's disappearance. His parents are still looking for him, but I always believed there was something supernatural at work. So that night, I prayed as hard as I could for help." Malia noticed the house had gotten very still. Somewhere, an old clock was ticking. "Finally, I fell asleep," Chabela continued. "And in a dream, I saw a strange woman with hair as white as bone. She told me about the entrance in the alley.

各种鲜亮的色彩，和露西姨妈的公寓很像。 但马莉娅能感觉到整座房子都笼罩着悲伤——那种失去了无比重要的东西才会有的悲伤。 “夫人，我们需要您给我们一个答案。 您已经骗我们去了三次十三号街了。 为什么要这么做？” 马莉娅问道。 “我真的、真的很抱歉。”查韦拉说着，坐到了椅子上。 “听我跟你们解释。 我第一次遇见你们那天，正好是米奇失踪四周年的日子。 他的父母还在找他，但我一直觉得这事和某种超自然的力量有关。 所以那天晚上，我拼尽全力祈祷，希望能有人帮帮我。” 马莉娅注意到房子里变得格外安静。 某个地方，有座老时钟正滴答作响。 “最后我睡着了，”查韦拉接着说道， “梦里我见到了一个陌生的女人，头发白得像骨头一样。 她告诉了我小巷里的入口的事。”

"If you want to see your grandson again," she said, "send a child." When I woke up, I swore I would do no such thing. I visited the spot, found a strange shimmer in the air, and tried to step through into the Underworld. But adults can't enter." Malia sighed. "So you sent us." "It seemed like a sign," Chabela said, a tear running down her cheek. "You walked right by me on the very day Mickey had vanished. Then you returned, gracias a Dios. You're special."

“‘你要是想再见到你孙子，’她说，‘就送个孩子进去。’ 我醒过来的时候，发誓绝对不会做这种事。 我去了那个地方，发现空中有一片奇怪的微光，我试着穿过去到冥界去。 但成年人进不去。” 马莉娅叹了口气。 “所以你就把我们送进去了。” “那看起来就像是个预兆，”查韦拉说，一滴眼泪顺着她的脸颊滑下来， “米奇失踪的同一天，你们刚好从我身边走过。 然后你们还平安回来了，感谢上帝。 你们是特别的孩子。”