儿童英语读物 The Old Motel Mystery CHAPTER 8 The Lights Go Out
时间:2018-12-06 作者:英语课 分类:23 The Old Motel Mystery
The four Aldens watched the yellow eyes, too scared to move. Closer and closer they came.
All at once Benny began to laugh. “It’s Willie,” he hooted 1 gleefully.
Henry held the flashlight steady, and sure enough, as the cat crept to the edge of the roof, they could see Willie’s furry 2 form.
With a meow, Willie leapt to a tree limb and scampered 3 away up to Kay’s house.
“Whew!” Henry said. “Am I glad the prowler turned out to be Willie!”
“But I saw a person in my window,” Violet protested.
“You must be mistaken,” Jessie said quietly as she opened the door of their motel. “You may have imagined a shadow, Violet, but it was only a cat.”
“No,” Violet murmured. “I know it was a person!”
But either they didn’t hear Violet’s words or they didn’t believe her. Everyone went to bed, relieved it had been only Willie.
With a sigh, Violet snuggled beneath the covers and tried to sleep. It was a long time, however, before she dreamed of shadows and faces at the window.
In the morning after a breakfast of orange juice, Shredded 4 Wheat with sliced bananas, and toast, they sat awhile and discussed Kay’s motel.
“You know,” Jessie said, resting her folded hands on the table, “Millicent is always buzzing in and out and asking questions.”
“I know,” Violet answered. “What do you suppose she’s up to?”
“Nothing!” Benny protested. “Millicent brings us good things to eat.”
“You’re right, Benny,” Jessie agreed. “I’m a little suspicious of Catherine. Remember how she wanted us to stop picking oranges?”
“She asks questions, too,” Violet responded.
“I don’t know,” Henry said, his dark eyes serious. “It could be Rolf. Did you hear him say he thinks Kay should sell.”
“That’s right,” Jessie said.
“I think he likes Kay,” Benny said.
“I agree, Benny,” Violet said. “I’ve seen Rolf’s eyes light up when he looks at her.”
“Millicent isn’t the one,” Benny said, nodding his head. “And Catherine isn’t either. Rolf couldn’t be. They’re all too nice.”
“What if it’s just a prowler?” Jessie asked. “Maybe it’s no one we know.”
Henry shook his head doubtfully. “Someone’s after Kay and her motel, and I’ll bet it’s someone we know.”
“Enough guessing,” Jessie said, standing 5. “Let’s help Kay get the motel ready for the bank inspector 6.”
“Yes,” Violet agreed. “Let’s go up to Kay’s house.”
The Aldens, wearing jeans, T-shirts, and sneakers, went outside. They were upset at how dark and gloomy the day had become. Thunder rumbled 7 in the distance.
“Isn’t it too bad the sun isn’t shining?” Violet said.
Jessie nodded. “Yes. The motel is so much prettier in the bright sunshine.”
Violet said, “Let’s turn on the lamps in each unit.”
“Good idea, Violet,” Jessie said. “I still have the key Kay gave us when the bedspreads arrived.”
Benny looked up at the sky. “Look how dark it is, and how fast the clouds are flying!”
“Yes, I’m afraid it’s going to pour any minute,” Henry said.
“No matter,” Jessie said, smiling. “We’ll make each motel room bright and cheery with lots of light.”
They began at Catherine’s unit since she wasn’t home. Benny flipped 8 on the switch. Frowning, he muttered, “Where’s the light?”
Henry chuckled 9. “Did you see if the cord is plugged into the outlet 10?”
Benny followed the cord to the outlet, and wiggled it back and forth 11. “It’s plugged in!” he said. “I tested it!”
“Hmmmm,” Jessie said. “Let’s see if the bulb is screwed tightly into the socket 12.” She twisted the bulb and it was tight.
Violet tried the bathroom light. Nothing!
Henry said in a worried voice, “Let’s see if the lights are off in the other units.”
Sure enough, there were no lights.
Millicent Fair came out of her unit. “My lights won’t work,” she complained. “I’m not staying here! I’ve called a cab, and I’m going to the Adventure Hotel for breakfast!”
“Millicent!” Benny said. “Somebody fixed 13 the lights so they wouldn’t light.”
Millicent stared with wide eyes at Benny. “Why, that’s terrible,” she said, grabbing her purse. “You know what I think?” She leaned forward and whispered, “I think this place is jinxed!”
Soon a yellow taxi pulled up to Millicent’s unit and she hurried in. She shut the door with a bang, not once looking back at the children.
Jessie’s forehead wrinkled. “What if new tourists who rent Kay’s units find out what’s been happening?”
Violet bit her lip. “They won’t stay here.”
“It’s jinxed!” Benny yelled. “Millicent said so.”
“No, Benny,” Henry said firmly. “The motel is not jinxed! That’s why we’ve got to get to the bottom of who’s doing these things!”
Just then a car door slammed. Violet glanced toward Kay’s house. A blue car with the words BANK OF LYNDALE was parked in front.
“The inspector is here,” Violet said in a low sad voice. “He won’t be able to see how pretty the motel really is.”
“If only the sun could have shone like yesterday,” Jessie said. “The place looks lovely in the sun.”
“Here he comes,” Henry warned.
Kay and the inspector walked down the hill. Kay gestured with her hands as she eagerly talked to the tall skinny man at her side. The bank inspector, dressed in a black suit and carrying a black umbrella, pressed his lips together in a thin line.
“Oh, oh,” Benny said. “He won’t like it ’cause it looks like he doesn’t like anything. Besides, it’s so dark he can’t see the motel very well!”
“I think he’ll be able to see enough,” Jessie said encouragingly. But in her heart she wondered. They could have made the motel look so cozy 14 and bright in the lamplight. Who turned off the lights? She was certain it was no accident.
Lightning zigzagged 15 across the black sky, and a crack of thunder boomed. The Aldens hurried inside where they sat huddled 16 around a table, waiting for the inspector.
Jessie rose and found two candles, then she quietly sat down again. Poor Kay, she thought. She has the worst luck in the world. If she didn’t get the loan, the roof wouldn’t be repaired, and all the other things she wanted to fix would go undone 17. She would have to sell.
- An owl hooted nearby. 一只猫头鹰在附近啼叫。
- The crowd hooted and jeered at the speaker. 群众向那演讲人发出轻蔑的叫嚣和嘲笑。
- This furry material will make a warm coat for the winter.这件毛皮料在冬天会是一件保暖的大衣。
- Mugsy is a big furry brown dog,who wiggles when she is happy.马格斯是一只棕色大长毛狗,当她高兴得时候她会摇尾巴。
- The cat scampered away. 猫刺棱一下跑了。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
- The rabbIt'scampered off. 兔子迅速跑掉了。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
- Serve the fish on a bed of shredded lettuce. 先铺一层碎生菜叶,再把鱼放上,就可以上桌了。
- I think Mapo beancurd and shredded meat in chilli sauce are quite special. 我觉得麻婆豆腐和鱼香肉丝味道不错。 来自《简明英汉词典》
- After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
- They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。
- The inspector was interested in everything pertaining to the school.视察员对有关学校的一切都感兴趣。
- The inspector was shining a flashlight onto the tickets.查票员打着手电筒查看车票。
- The machine rumbled as it started up. 机器轰鸣着发动起来。
- Things rapidly became calm, though beneath the surface the argument rumbled on. 事情迅速平静下来了,然而,在这种平静的表面背后争论如隆隆雷声,持续不断。
- The plane flipped and crashed. 飞机猛地翻转,撞毁了。
- The carter flipped at the horse with his whip. 赶大车的人扬鞭朝着马轻轻地抽打。
- She chuckled at the memory. 想起这件事她就暗自发笑。
- She chuckled softly to herself as she remembered his astonished look. 想起他那惊讶的表情,她就轻轻地暗自发笑。
- The outlet of a water pipe was blocked.水管的出水口堵住了。
- Running is a good outlet for his energy.跑步是他发泄过剩精力的好方法。
- The wind moved the trees gently back and forth.风吹得树轻轻地来回摇晃。
- He gave forth a series of works in rapid succession.他很快连续发表了一系列的作品。
- He put the electric plug into the socket.他把电插头插入插座。
- The battery charger plugs into any mains socket.这个电池充电器可以插入任何类型的电源插座。
- Have you two fixed on a date for the wedding yet?你们俩选定婚期了吗?
- Once the aim is fixed,we should not change it arbitrarily.目标一旦确定,我们就不应该随意改变。
- I like blankets because they are cozy.我喜欢毛毯,因为他们是舒适的。
- We spent a cozy evening chatting by the fire.我们在炉火旁聊天度过了一个舒适的晚上。
- The office buildings were slightly zigzagged to fit available ground space. 办公大楼为了配合可用的地皮建造得略呈之字形。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
- The lightning zigzagged through the church yard. 闪电呈之字形划过教堂的院子。 来自《简明英汉词典》