牛津書蟲系列 霧都孤兒 Chapter13

13 The end of the gang
13 盜竊團(tuán)伙的末日
The sun burst upon the crowded city in all its brightness.It lit up every corner of London，the great houses of the rich，and the miserable homes of the poor.Its hone everywhere，even into the room where the murdered woman lay.The horror of that scene was even more dreadful in the clear morning light.
噴薄而出的太陽懸掛在這座擁擠的城市的上空，光芒四射，它照亮了倫敦的每一個角落，照亮了有錢人家的宅院，也照亮了窮人家的陋室。它把每一處都照亮了，也照進(jìn)了被殺害了的女人橫尸的房間?？膳碌膱雒嬖谇逦某抗庀嘛@得更加令人毛骨悚然。
Sikes sat the re，unable to move，looking at the body.He had thrown the blood-covered stick into the fire，the n washed himself and his clothe s.He had cut out the bits of his clothes that were stained and burnt the m too，but the re were still bloodstains all over the floor.Even the dog’s feet were bloody.
賽克斯坐在那里看著眼前的死尸，動彈不得。他已把沾滿了血跡的木棍丟進(jìn)了爐火里，然后擦洗了自己，洗凈了衣服。他將衣服上濺上血的部分也撕下來燒掉了，即便是這樣，地上還有一片片血跡，就連狗爪子上也滿是血污。
Finally，he forced himself to leave the room，pulling the dog out with him and locking the door behind him.He walked rapidly north，towards High gate，the n on to Hampstead.On the open land of Hampstead Heath，away from people and houses，he found a place in a field where he could sleep with out being disturbed.
最后，他強(qiáng)迫自己離開了這屋子，拉出了狗，將房門上了鎖。他快速往北面走，朝著海格特墓地，然后又走向漢普斯泰德，在漢普斯泰德荒原空闊的野地里，遠(yuǎn)離人群和房屋的地方，他找到了一個能夠不受驚擾睡一覺的地方。
But before long he was up again and running.This time heran back towards London for a while.The n he turned and went north again，sometimes walking，sometimes running，with no clear purpose in his mind.Eventually，he felt hungry，and changed direction towards Hendon，a quiet place away from the crowds，where he could buy food.But even the children and chickens the re seemed to look at him with suspicion.So he turned back towards Hampstead Heath again，without having eaten，uncertain where to go.
可沒多一會兒他就起來了，拔腿就跑。這一次他先是回頭向倫敦方向跑去，沒跑出多遠(yuǎn)又折回來向北，跑跑停停，心里沒有一個明確的目的地。最后他感覺到肚子餓了，又掉轉(zhuǎn)方向朝亨頓走去。這是個人不多的僻靜的小地方，他可以在這兒買點(diǎn)東西吃。可是，連這里的孩子和雞都好像在懷疑地看著他，所以他什么也沒吃，又轉(zhuǎn)身朝漢普斯泰德荒原走去，心里還是不知該往哪兒去。
At last he turned north again，his dog still running at his heels，and set off to a village just outside London.He stopped at a small，quiet pub and bought a meal，the n went on again.It was now dark and as he continued walking，he felt as if Nancy were following him，her shadow on the road，her last low cry in the wind.If he stopped，the ghostly figure did the same.If he ran，it ran too，moving stiffly，like a corpse.Sometimes he turned，determined to drive the ghost away，but his blood ran cold with terror.Every time he turned，the ghost turned too，and was still behind him.
最終他又朝北部，朝倫敦邊上的一個村子走去，他的那條狗還一直跟在他的腳后。他到一個安靜的小酒館里買了點(diǎn)東西吃，緊接著又往前走。這時天已漸漸黑了下來，他繼續(xù)走著，總覺得南希好像跟在他的身后，她的影子就在路上，她最后那一聲低叫隨風(fēng)響著。他若停住腳步，這個鬼影也就停了下來。他若快走幾步，這個影子也跟著一路小跑，像死尸一樣僵硬地移動著。他有時轉(zhuǎn)過身去想趕走這個影子，但他竟然恐懼得連渾身的血液都凝固住了。他每一次轉(zhuǎn)身，這個鬼魂也跟著他一起轉(zhuǎn)，老是在他的身后。
Finally，he found another field where he could hide.He lay down，unable to sleep，his mind filled with visions of the dead girl.Her wide，dead eyes stared at him，watching him through a curtain of blood.
最后，他終于找到了能藏身的又一片野地，躺了下去，可是睡不著，滿腦子都是這個死了的女孩的形象。她那死氣沉沉的大眼睛盯著他，在一道血簾子后面看著他。
Suddenly he heard shouting in the distance.He jumped to his feet and saw that the sky seemed on fire.Sheets of flame shot into the air，driving clouds of smoke in his direction.He heard an alarm bell，and more shouts of ‘Fire!’Running with his dog across the fields，he joined the crowds of men and women fighting the fire.He could forget his own terror in this new danger，and he worked all night with the crowd，shouting，running and working togethe r to stop the flames destroying more buildings.
他突然聽見遠(yuǎn)處的叫喊聲，便一躍而起，看見天空好像著了火。一片片火舌噴向空中，翻滾的濃煙朝他這邊刮來。他聽見了報(bào)警的鈴聲，還有更多的人喊叫著：“火!”他帶著他的狗跑過了這片野地，也加入到了這群救火的男男女女中。在眼前的新危險(xiǎn)中，他可以忘了自己的恐懼。整整一個晚上，他都和這群人一起叫喊著，跑著，一起奮力地滅火，以免大火毀壞更多的房屋。
In the morning the mad excitement was over，and the dreadful memory of his crime returned-more terrifying than ever.In desperation，he decided to go back to London.
天亮了，這種瘋狂的激情消失了，他犯下的可怖罪行的回憶卻回來了——比以前更加可怕。在絕望中，他決定還是回倫敦去。
‘At least the re’ll be somebody I can speak to，’he thought to himself. ‘And it’s a better hiding-place than out here in the country.I’ll hide the re for a week，get some money out of Fagin，the n escape to France.’
“起碼，在那里我還有能說說話的人。”他心想。“那兒是個比鄉(xiāng)間更好的藏身的地方。我要在那兒躲一個星期，想法從費(fèi)金那兒弄點(diǎn)錢來，然后再逃到法國去。”
Suddenly he remembered the dog-people would be looking for his dog as well as himself.He decided to drown the animal.But the dog smelt the man’s fear，and turned and ran away from him faster than it had ever run in its life. ‘You have a choice，Mr Monks，’said Mr Brown low . ‘You have been kidnapped and brought here to my house.You can either tell me what I want to know，or I’ll have you arrested，instantly，for fraud and robbery.It’s your choice.And you must decide now.At once.’
他突然想到了他的狗——人們現(xiàn)在不但在找他，而且可能在找他的狗。他決定把這畜生溺死。可這狗察覺出了主人的懼怕心理，轉(zhuǎn)過身以它平生最快的速度跑開了。“蒙克斯先生，你面臨著一個選擇。”布朗洛先生說。“你是被劫持到我家里來的，你得告訴我我要知道的事，否則我會立刻讓警方拘捕你，罪名是詐騙和盜竊。你可以作出選擇，但必須馬上決定，立刻。”
Monks hesitated and looked at the old man，but Mr Brown low ‘s expression was so serious and determined that The younger man realized it was pointless to protest. ‘I didn’t expect this treatment from my father’s oldest friend，’said Monks angrily，sitting down with a frown on his face.
蒙克斯猶豫了一下，看著這老人，但布朗洛先生的神色非常嚴(yán)肅和堅(jiān)定，年輕人意識到爭辯是沒有用的。“我沒料到我父親交情最深的老朋友會這樣對待我。”蒙克斯憤怒地說著，緊皺眉頭坐了下來。
‘Yes，I was your father’s oldest friend，’said Mr Brown low . ‘And I know all about you-how your father，while still a boy，was forced by his family into an unhappy marriage with an older woman，and how you were the result of that marriage.I also know that your parents separated，hating each other by the end.’
“不錯，我曾是你父親交情最深的老朋友。”布朗洛先生說，“你的什么事我都知道——當(dāng)你的父親還是個小伙子時，他是怎樣在家庭的逼迫下與一個比他大的女人結(jié)了婚，造成了這樁不幸的婚姻;后來你又是怎樣成了這一婚姻的產(chǎn)物。另外我也知道你父母親后來又分居了，那時他們已到了互相憎恨的地步。”
‘Well-what’s so important about that?’
“那么——這有什么要緊的呢?”
‘When They’d been separated for ten years，’said Mr Brown low ， ‘your father met another family.The re were two daughters，one nineteen years old and the other only two or three.Your father became engaged to the older daughter.At this point one of his rich relations died and left him a lot of money in his will.Your father had to travel to Italy to receive his inheritance，and while the re，he became ill and died.Your mother，who was living with you in Paris，immediately rushed to Italy when she heard the news.As your father had made no will of his own，all the relation’s money came to you and her.’
“他們分居十年以后，”布朗洛先生說，“你的父親又遇到了另一家人，這家有兩個女兒，一個當(dāng)時十九歲，而另一個只有兩三歲。你父親和這家的大女兒訂了婚。就在這當(dāng)口，他的一個有錢的親戚死了，在遺囑上給他留下了一大筆錢財(cái)。你父親必須到意大利去接受這筆遺產(chǎn)?？伤麉s在那兒患了病，死在了那個地方。你的母親和你當(dāng)時住在巴黎，她得知了你父親的死訊，匆匆趕到了意大利。由于他沒有立遺囑，他親戚留給他的那一份錢就都?xì)w你和你母親所有了。”
Monks listened with close attention，biting his lip and staring at the floor.
蒙克斯聚精會神地聽著，咬著嘴唇，眼睛盯著地板。
‘Before your father went to receive that money，he came to see me，’continued Mr Brown low slowly，his eyes fixed on Monks’face.‘I never heard that before，’said Monks，looking up suddenly，a suspicious expression on his face.
“你父親去接受那筆錢之前，來看過我。”布朗洛先生盯著蒙克斯的臉，繼續(xù)慢慢地說。
‘He left me a picture of the poor girl he wanted to marry.He talked wildly about shame and guilt，and how he would give part of the money he’d inherited to his wife and to you，and use the rest to escape from England with the girl he loved.He refused to tell me any more details.’
“他給我留下了一張他要娶的那個可憐女孩的畫像。他瘋了似地說了許多感到恥辱和內(nèi)疚的話，還說要把繼承來的錢一部分給他的妻子和你，用其余的錢與他心愛的姑娘一起逃出英國。除了這些，他不愿跟我說得再詳細(xì)了。”
Monks breathe d more easily，and even smiled.
蒙克斯稍微輕松些地呼吸著，臉上甚至現(xiàn)出了笑容。
‘But，’said Mr Brown low ，pulling his chair nearer to the other man， ‘by chance I was able to rescue your brother Oliver from a life of misery and—’
“可是，”布朗洛先生說著，把椅子朝對方身邊拉了拉。“碰巧的是，我又從悲慘的生活中搭救了你的弟弟奧利弗——”
‘What!’cried Monks.
“什么?”蒙克斯叫道。
Mr Brown low continued without a pause. ‘And when he was recovering from his sickness here in my house，I noticed how similar he looked to the girl’s face in the picture.But he was taken away before I could discover his history-as you know very well.’
布朗洛先生停也不停，繼續(xù)說：“當(dāng)他在我家里養(yǎng)病時，我發(fā)現(xiàn)他與像上的女人長得是那樣相似?？蓻]等我弄清他的歷史，他又被弄走了——這些你都很清楚。”
‘You can’t prove anything!’said Monks.
“你不能證實(shí)任何事情!”蒙克斯說。
‘I can.I heard that you were in the West Indies.I went the re to try and find you to see if you knew anything about Oliver，but you’d already left.I returned to London，and was unable to find you until two hours ago.’
“我當(dāng)然能。我聽說你在西印度群島，就到那里試圖找到你，看你是否知道有關(guān)奧利弗的事，可那時你已離開了。我又回到了倫敦，直到兩小時之前才終于找到你。”
‘And now what?You can’t prove that Oliver’s my brother.’Monks smiled unpleasantly.
“可現(xiàn)在又怎么樣?你不能證實(shí)奧利弗就是我的弟弟。”蒙克斯不懷好意地咧嘴笑了笑。
‘I couldn’t before，’said Mr Brown low ，standing up. ‘But now I can.The re was a will，but your mother destroyed it.This will mentioned a child that would be born later;this was Oliver，the child you met later by accident.You noticed his resemblance to your father and you became suspicious.You the n went back to his birthplace，found proof of his birth and the fact that he’s your half-brother，and destroyed that proof.’
“在以前我不能，”布朗洛先生站了起來，說，“可現(xiàn)在我能。本來有一份遺囑，但你的母親毀了它。這份遺囑里提到了一個就要出生的孩子;這就是奧利弗，也就是你后來偶然碰到的那個孩子。你發(fā)現(xiàn)他長得像你的父親，起了疑心。后來你去了他的出生地，找到了能證實(shí)他是你異母弟弟的證據(jù)，然后又銷毀了這一證據(jù)。”
Monks sat in silence，his eyes filled with fear.
蒙克斯一聲不吭地坐在那里，眼睛里充滿了驚恐。
‘Yes，’continued Mr Brown low fiercely， ‘shadows on the wall have caught your whispers with Fagin，and brought the m to my ear.For the sake of that innocent child，whom you wanted to destroy.And now murder had been done，and you are as guilty of that as if you had struck the blow yourself!’
“是的，”布朗洛先生繼續(xù)狠狠地說道，“墻上的影子竊聽到了你和費(fèi)金的私語，并把你們的談話內(nèi)容帶給了我。為了你想毀掉的這個無辜的孩子，現(xiàn)在已然發(fā)生謀殺案了，你的罪過就如同你親手殺了人一樣嚴(yán)重!”
‘No，no，’said Monks quickly. ‘I knew nothing of that.Nothing at all.’He was silent for a while，realizing how much was known about him.Hatred and fear fought inside him，but he was a coward at heart.At last，seeing no escape，he raised his head. ‘I will admit everything-in front of witnesses，if necessary.’
“不，不，”蒙克斯趕忙說道，“我對此事一無所知，什么也不知道。”他沉默了一會兒，意識到別人已對他了解得太多了。在他內(nèi)心深處，仇恨和恐懼針鋒相對地斗爭著，但實(shí)際上他是個膽小鬼。最后，他看到無法逃脫，便抬起頭，說：“我愿承認(rèn)所有的一切——如果有必要的話，面對證人承認(rèn)我的所作所為。”
Mr Brown low nodded coldly. ‘I will prepare a document for you to sign.You must give Oliver what is really his，and the n you can go where you please.’
布朗洛先生冷冷地點(diǎn)了點(diǎn)頭。“我會準(zhǔn)備一份文件，讓你簽名。你必須給奧利弗本該屬于他的一切，完事后你隨便去哪兒都行。”
At that moment Dr Losberne rushed into the room. ‘The murderer will be taken tonight!His dog’s been found.’
正在這時，羅斯伯恩醫(yī)生沖進(jìn)房來，說：“今天晚上殺人犯要抓到了!已經(jīng)發(fā)現(xiàn)了他的狗。”
‘And Fagin?’asked Mr Brown low .
“費(fèi)金呢?”布朗洛先生問道。
‘They’re sure of him.They may have him already.’
“他們滿有把握抓到他。說不定已經(jīng)抓到了。”
Mr Brown low turned back to Monks. ‘Have you made up your mind?’
布朗洛先生轉(zhuǎn)身對蒙克斯說：“你想好了嗎?”
‘Yes，’replied Monks. ‘And you promise-it’ll remain a secret?No police，or charges of fraud against me?’
“想好了。”蒙克斯答道。“你保證——不把這事公諸于眾嗎?保證警察不來麻煩我?沒人控訴我犯了欺詐罪?”
‘Yes，’said Mr Brown low . ‘You have my promise.For now，you must remain here，locked in this room.I will come for you tomorrow evening and take you to sign a confession in front of witnesses.’
“是的，”布朗洛先生說，“我保證。現(xiàn)在你必須待在這兒，鎖在這間屋里。明天晚上我來找你，帶你去當(dāng)著證人的面簽個自白書。”
Mr Brown low the n left the room with the doctor，and They eagerly discussed the news of the hunt for the criminals. ‘My blood boils with anger，’said Mr Brown low . ‘This poor murdered girl must be revenged.You stay here and guard Monks.I’ll go out and get the latest news.’
布朗洛先生說完便和醫(yī)生離開了房間，他們急切地討論著追捕罪犯的事。“我真是太氣憤了，血液都沸騰了，”布朗洛先生說。“我們一定要為這個被謀殺的可憐姑娘報(bào)仇。你在這兒看著蒙克斯，我出去探探消息。”
The two men parted，each in a fever of excitement.Down by the river Thames was a district called Rotherhithe ，one of the dirtiest and roughest places in London.The houses next to the river had no owners;They were broken down and ruined，but could be defended against attack.In an upper room of one of the se houses，were three members of Fagin’s gang.
兩人分手了，都非常興奮、狂熱。泰晤士河岸邊有個叫做羅瑟海斯的地區(qū)，這是倫敦最骯臟、治安最差的地區(qū)之一。河邊的房子都沒有主人，已破敗不堪，近似廢墟，但仍能用來據(jù)守頑抗。費(fèi)金匪幫的三個成員就聚集在這里的一幢房子樓上的屋里。
‘When was Fagin taken，the n?’asked the man called Toby.
“費(fèi)金是什么時候被抓住的?”名叫托比的男人問道。
‘Two o’clock this afternoon.Charley and I escaped up the chimney，but Noah was caught.Bet went to see Nancy and when she saw the body，she started screaming and wouldn’t stop.She’s been taken to hospital.’
“今天下午兩點(diǎn)鐘。查理和我是鉆煙囪逃走的，但諾厄被抓獲了。蓓絲去看南希，看見尸體后，高聲尖叫不止。人們將她送進(jìn)了醫(yī)院。”
‘What’s happened to Charley Bates?’
“查理·貝茨怎么樣了?”
‘He’ll come here when it’s dark.It’s too dangerous now.’
“天黑后他會來這兒?，F(xiàn)在太危險(xiǎn)了。”
‘We’re in trouble，’said Toby. ‘Fagin’s going to hang-that’s certain.’
“我們遇到麻煩了，”托比說，“費(fèi)金要被處絞刑，這是肯定的。”
‘You should have seen him when he was caught，’said another robber. ‘The police carried him through the crowd while all the people jumped at him，screaming and trying to attack him.’
“你該看到他被捉時的情況。”另一名強(qiáng)盜說。“警察帶他從人群中穿過時，所有的人都沖向他，大叫大嚷，要打他。”
Suddenly Sikes’ dog ran into the room.All the robbers rushed out immediately to look for Sikes，but the re was no sign of him.They returned to the upstairs room.
突然，賽克斯的狗跑進(jìn)了屋里。所有的強(qiáng)盜都立即飛跑出去找賽克斯，但外面沒有他的蹤跡。他們回到樓上的房間里。
‘I hope he’s not coming here，’said Toby.
托比說：“我希望他別來這兒。”
‘The dog’s come a long way，’said another man. ‘Covered in mud，and tired out.’
另一個男人說：“這狗走了很長一段路，全身是泥，已疲憊不堪了。”
They sat the re in silence，wondering where Sikes was.It was already dark when They heard a sudden，hurried knock at the door downstairs.
他們默默地坐在那兒，猜想著賽克斯會到哪兒去了。當(dāng)他們突然聽到樓下一陣急促的敲門聲時，天已經(jīng)黑了。
Toby went to the window to look down，the n pulled his head back in，his face pale with fear.The re was no need to tell tlec others who it was.
托比走到窗口向下看了看，縮回頭來，臉嚇得煞白。不用說，其余的人也知道樓下是誰了。
‘We must let him in，’said Toby，although none of the m wanted to see him.Toby went down to the door and returned，followed by sikes.White-faced，with a three-day-old beard，hollow cheeks and staring eyes，Sikes looked like a ghost.No one said a word.
“我們得讓他進(jìn)來。”托比說，但其實(shí)誰也不想見他。托比下樓開門，回來時后面跟著賽克斯。賽克斯臉色慘白，三天未刮胡子，兩腮深陷，兩眼發(fā)直，活像個幽靈。屋里沒人吭聲。
‘Nothing to say to me?’Sikes asked.
“也不跟我說點(diǎn)什么嗎?”賽克斯問。
The only answer was a low shout of many voices from outside in the distance，coming closer.Lights appeared.Looking out，Sikes saw a stream of people crossing the bridge towards the m.The n the re was a loud knocking on the door and more shouts from the crowd.
僅有的回答就是門外遠(yuǎn)處傳來的許多人低沉的喊叫聲，而且這聲音越來越近。接著又出現(xiàn)了燈光。賽克斯向外張望，看到一股人流正過橋向他們走來。然后是咚咚的敲門聲和人群大喊大叫的聲音。
‘The doors are made of metal and They’re locked and chained，’said Toby.The three robbers watched Sikes nervously，as if he were a wild animal.
“這些門是金屬的，而且鎖得很結(jié)實(shí)，用鏈子拴住了。”托比說。三個強(qiáng)盜緊張地看著賽克斯，好像他是個野獸。
‘Bring a ladder!’shouted some of the crowd below.
“拿個梯子來!”底下的人群中有人喊道。
‘Give me a rope，quick，’Sikes said to the others. ‘I’ll go the other way，climb down the back and escape over the river.Get me a rope-now!Or I’ll do three more murders!’
“給我根繩子，快點(diǎn)，”賽克斯對其余的人說，“我走另一條路，從后面爬下去，過河逃跑。給我繩子——快點(diǎn)!不然，我會再干掉三個人!”
A minute later，Sikes appeared on the roof and the shouts from the crowd below swelled to a great roar.The n the front door was smashed down and people streamed into the house.Sikes quickly tied the rope around the chimney，the n began to tie the other end around himself，ready to lower himself to the ground behind the house.But just as he put the rope over his head，he screamed in terror and threw his arms above his head.He staggered back，slipped and fell over the edge of the roof.As he fell，the rope tightened around his neck with a horrible jerk.In a second the murderer was dead，and the re he hung，his body swinging gently from side to side.The dog，which had followed its master onto the roof，jumped down towards the lifeless body，missed，and fell dead on the stones below.
一分鐘以后，賽克斯出現(xiàn)在屋頂上，下面人群的喊聲越來越高，簡直成了吼叫聲。然后前門被撞垮，人們擁進(jìn)房子。賽克斯迅速把繩子的一頭系在煙囪上，開始把另一頭往自己身上系，準(zhǔn)備將自己順到房后的地面上。但正當(dāng)他把繩圈往頭上套時，他驚恐地叫起來，雙手向上猛伸。他趔趄著往后一退，腳下一滑，從屋頂?shù)倪吘壍袅讼氯ァＫ碌魰r，繩子死死地套住了他的脖子，猛地一拉。剎那間，這殺人犯死了，掛在那兒，尸體輕輕地左右搖晃。那條跟著主人爬上屋頂?shù)墓罚鴶嗔藲獾氖w跳過去，沒抓住，掉在下面的石頭上摔死了。