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儿童英语读物 The Cereal Box Mystery CHAPTER 2 The Stolen Rubies

时间:2017-09-11 06:21来源:互联网 提供网友:qing   字体: [ ]
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    (单词翻译:双击或拖选)

A police officer raced past the Aldens, almost crashing into Henry. She didn’t even see him.

The police officer disappeared around the corner.

The Aldens looked back in the direction from which the officer had come. They saw a man and a woman standing1 outside an antiques store. The woman pointed2 and the man waved his arms in excitement.

“There must have been a robbery,” Jessie said. “Let’s go find out.”

The Aldens hurried up to the two people outside the store. “What happened?” Jessie asked as they got closer.

The woman turned. She was a short woman, not much taller than Henry, with round blue eyes and long dark brown hair pulled into a French braid. Strands3 of hair were sticking out from the braid and one sleeve of her shirt was torn. “A robbery!” she gasped4. “I tried to stop him, but he got away. He tore my shirt!”

“Did the robber wear a mask?” asked Benny.

The man shook his head. He was a small, thin man wearing thick glasses. “I’m Will Bellows5. I own Antique Treasures.” He pointed to the sign above the shop. “This thief was quite bold. He just grabbed something and ran out when I was helping6 Ms. Smitts here and another customer. Ms. Smitts was very brave. She ran after the thief and caught him right outside the door, but he pulled free.”

“What did he look like?” asked Henry.

Ms. Smitts said, “I don’t know . . . it all happened so fast. He wasn’t very tall. But he had a hat pulled low over his forehead and a scarf pulled up around the lower part of his face. He might have had a mustache. He pushed me away and ran.”

Mr. Bellows couldn’t remember, either. “He stayed in the darkest part of the shop,” he said. “And he kept his shoulders hunched7 and his face turned away. He had on a tan raincoat and a brown hat, but that’s all I remember. I only noticed the raincoat because it wasn’t raining outside. I thought that it was odd.”

“What was stolen?” Violet asked.

Mr. Bellows clapped his hand to his forehead. “The rings!” he said. “I left the tray of rings I was showing to a customer right out on the counter.”

Turning, Mr. Bellows rushed back into his shop with the Aldens and Ms. Smitts behind him. Inside, they found a small room filled with all kinds of old furniture, lamps, and books. A glass case displayed jewelry8. An anxious-looking young man with round wire-rimmed glasses was hovering9 near one end of the glass case.

“Did you catch the thief?” the man asked.

“Not yet,” Mr. Bellows said.

“Who are you?” Benny asked.

The man peered at Benny through his glasses and said, “I’m David. David Darden. I’m trying to find an engagement ring.” He blushed slightly. Then he said to Benny, “Who are you?”

“I’m Benny Alden,” Benny said.

Meanwhile, Mr. Bellows had hurried over to the blue velvet10 tray at David’s elbow. “They’re all here,” he said, sounding relieved. “All the rings are still here!”

Now David Darden looked surprised and a little hurt. “Of course they are. I stayed in the shop to make sure nothing would happen to them.”

“Oh,” Mr. Bellows said. He looked slightly embarrassed. “Sorry. Thank you.” Then he glanced toward another corner of the store and his face grew grim. “Oh, no,” he said.

“What’s wrong?” asked Jessie.

“The thief took the most valuable thing in the store — a necklace set — a matching necklace, bracelet11, and ring.” Mr. Bellows pointed toward a small case. “They were especially valuable because they were made of rubies12.”

The Aldens went over to the small case. “The lock isn’t broken,” said Henry. “Did it have a key in it?”

“No,” said Mr. Bellows. “I keep the key on my key ring.”

“Could the thief have picked the lock while you were helping other customers?” asked Henry.

“It’s possible,” said Mr. Bellows.

“Or maybe you left it open the last time you unlocked it,” Violet said.

“Oh, no. You locked it,” said Mr. Darden.

“Are you sure?” asked Mr. Bellows.

“Yes,” said Mr. Darden. “Right after you showed the jewels to me.” He smiled and shook his head. “They were beautiful, but much too expensive for me. I just want an engagement ring.”

“It’s true,” Ms. Smitts chimed in. “I was here when you showed the jewelry to Mr. Darden. I saw you lock the case, too.”

“It’s amazing that anybody could pick that lock in that short a time,” said Mr. Bellows. He looked very unhappy. “They were particularly fine rubies. I was delighted when their owner offered to sell them to me.”

“Rubies,” Violet said softly.

“Yes,” said Mr. Bellows. “And these were particularly beautiful and rare, a perfectly13 matched set.” He sat down heavily in a nearby chair. A puff14 of dust came up around him, but he didn’t seem to notice. “Oh, dear. Oh, dear,” he said. “I hope they catch the thief.”

“Don’t worry,” said Benny. “If they don’t, we will.”

Ms. Smitts laughed. Benny put his hands on his hips15. “We can,” he said. “We’ve solved lots of mysteries.”

Although she stopped laughing, Ms. Smitts still kept smiling. The Aldens could tell that she didn’t believe Benny.

Mr. Bellows shook his head. “If someone doesn’t catch the thief,” he said, “I’m ruined.”

“We’d better go,” said Henry. “Let us know if we can do anything to help.”

Fumbling16 in his pocket, Mr. Bellows brought out a small notebook and a pencil. He said to Ms. Smitts and Mr. Darden, “You’d better leave your names in case the police want to talk to you.”

Mr. Darden said, “Are you sure that is necessary? . . . I mean, I don’t want my name to be in the newspaper.”

Ms. Smitts gave Mr. Darden a suspicious look. “Well, I don’t have anything to hide,” she said. She took the notebook and pencil and wrote “Tori Smitts” and her phone number in the notebook. Reluctantly, Mr. Darden wrote in his name, address, and phone number as well.

Then Ms. Smitts and Mr. Darden walked out of the store with the Aldens. When they got outside, Benny raised his hand and pointed. “Oh, no!” he cried. “My bike. Look what happened to my bike!”

Benny’s bike was no longer parked where he had left it. It was lying in the middle of the sidewalk, with groceries spilled out all around it.

Quickly the Aldens hurried toward the bicycles. Mr. Darden and Ms. Smitts went with them. They helped the Aldens pick up the scattered17 cans and boxes from the grocery bag.

“There,” said Ms. Smitts. She looked inside the basket and shifted the open box of Silver Frosted Stars. “It looks like one of your boxes of cereal got broken open when your bike fell over. You want me to throw it away?”

She held up the box, but Benny shook his head. “No, I’d already opened it. It’s okay.”

He took the box from Ms. Smitts and put it back in the basket.

“Thank you for helping us,” said Henry.

“Of course,” said Mr. Darden. He shook his head and smiled a little. “I guess I wasn’t meant to buy an engagement ring today.”

“We’re just lucky no one got hurt,” Ms. Smitts said. She waved at the Aldens and walked briskly away.

“Maybe I’ll do a little more shopping,” Mr. Darden said. He smiled again and made his way slowly down the sidewalk, stopping to peer into the different windows.

“Wow,” said Benny. “A robbery. With rubies! We’ve found another mystery to solve, haven’t we?”

“Yes,” Jessie said. “Maybe we can help Mr. Bellows.”

Benny grinned. “Hooray,” he said. “Now we have a party and a mystery!”

“Whoever took the jewels must have known they were the most valuable thing in the store,” said Henry. “It had to be somebody who knew about jewelry.”

“But no one even knows what he looks like,” said Violet.

“The police will probably catch the thief,” Henry said. But even though he said that and his brother and sisters agreed, they still talked about the mystery of the stolen rubies all the way home.

They were so busy talking that they didn’t even notice the person who followed them.


点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 standing 2hCzgo     
n.持续,地位;adj.永久的,不动的,直立的,不流动的
参考例句:
  • 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。
2 pointed Il8zB4     
adj.尖的,直截了当的
参考例句:
  • He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。
  • She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。
3 strands d184598ceee8e1af7dbf43b53087d58b     
n.(线、绳、金属线、毛发等的)股( strand的名词复数 );缕;海洋、湖或河的)岸;(观点、计划、故事等的)部份v.使滞留,使搁浅( strand的第三人称单数 )
参考例句:
  • Twist a length of rope from strands of hemp. 用几股麻搓成了一段绳子。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • She laced strands into a braid. 她把几股线编织成一根穗带。 来自《简明英汉词典》
4 gasped e6af294d8a7477229d6749fa9e8f5b80     
v.喘气( gasp的过去式和过去分词 );喘息;倒抽气;很想要
参考例句:
  • She gasped at the wonderful view. 如此美景使她惊讶得屏住了呼吸。
  • People gasped with admiration at the superb skill of the gymnasts. 体操运动员的高超技艺令人赞叹。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
5 bellows Ly5zLV     
n.风箱;发出吼叫声,咆哮(尤指因痛苦)( bellow的名词复数 );(愤怒地)说出(某事),大叫v.发出吼叫声,咆哮(尤指因痛苦)( bellow的第三人称单数 );(愤怒地)说出(某事),大叫
参考例句:
  • His job is to blow the bellows for the blacksmith. 他的工作是给铁匠拉风箱。 来自辞典例句
  • You could, I suppose, compare me to a blacksmith's bellows. 我想,你可能把我比作铁匠的风箱。 来自辞典例句
6 helping 2rGzDc     
n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的,辅助的
参考例句:
  • The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
  • By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。
7 hunched 532924f1646c4c5850b7c607069be416     
(常指因寒冷、生病或愁苦)耸肩弓身的,伏首前倾的
参考例句:
  • He sat with his shoulders hunched up. 他耸起双肩坐着。
  • Stephen hunched down to light a cigarette. 斯蒂芬弓着身子点燃一支烟。
8 jewelry 0auz1     
n.(jewllery)(总称)珠宝
参考例句:
  • The burglars walked off with all my jewelry.夜盗偷走了我的全部珠宝。
  • Jewelry and lace are mostly feminine belongings.珠宝和花边多数是女性用品。
9 hovering 99fdb695db3c202536060470c79b067f     
鸟( hover的现在分词 ); 靠近(某事物); (人)徘徊; 犹豫
参考例句:
  • The helicopter was hovering about 100 metres above the pad. 直升机在离发射台一百米的上空盘旋。
  • I'm hovering between the concert and the play tonight. 我犹豫不决今晚是听音乐会还是看戏。
10 velvet 5gqyO     
n.丝绒,天鹅绒;adj.丝绒制的,柔软的
参考例句:
  • This material feels like velvet.这料子摸起来像丝绒。
  • The new settlers wore the finest silk and velvet clothing.新来的移民穿着最华丽的丝绸和天鹅绒衣服。
11 bracelet nWdzD     
n.手镯,臂镯
参考例句:
  • The jeweler charges lots of money to set diamonds in a bracelet.珠宝匠要很多钱才肯把钻石镶在手镯上。
  • She left her gold bracelet as a pledge.她留下她的金手镯作抵押品。
12 rubies 534be3a5d4dab7c1e30149143213b88f     
红宝石( ruby的名词复数 ); 红宝石色,深红色
参考例句:
  • a necklace of rubies intertwined with pearls 缠着珍珠的红宝石项链
  • The crown was set with precious jewels—diamonds, rubies and emeralds. 王冠上镶嵌着稀世珍宝—有钻石、红宝石、绿宝石。
13 perfectly 8Mzxb     
adv.完美地,无可非议地,彻底地
参考例句:
  • The witnesses were each perfectly certain of what they said.证人们个个对自己所说的话十分肯定。
  • Everything that we're doing is all perfectly above board.我们做的每件事情都是光明正大的。
14 puff y0cz8     
n.一口(气);一阵(风);v.喷气,喘气
参考例句:
  • He took a puff at his cigarette.他吸了一口香烟。
  • They tried their best to puff the book they published.他们尽力吹捧他们出版的书。
15 hips f8c80f9a170ee6ab52ed1e87054f32d4     
abbr.high impact polystyrene 高冲击强度聚苯乙烯,耐冲性聚苯乙烯n.臀部( hip的名词复数 );[建筑学]屋脊;臀围(尺寸);臀部…的
参考例句:
  • She stood with her hands on her hips. 她双手叉腰站着。
  • They wiggled their hips to the sound of pop music. 他们随着流行音乐的声音摇晃着臀部。 来自《简明英汉词典》
16 fumbling fumbling     
n. 摸索,漏接 v. 摸索,摸弄,笨拙的处理
参考例句:
  • If he actually managed to the ball instead of fumbling it with an off-balance shot. 如果他实际上设法拿好球而不是fumbling它。50-balance射击笨拙地和迅速地会开始他的岗位移动,经常这样结束。
  • If he actually managed to secure the ball instead of fumbling it awkwardly an off-balance shot. 如果他实际上设法拿好球而不是fumbling它。50-50提议有时。他从off-balance射击笨拙地和迅速地会开始他的岗位移动,经常这样结束。
17 scattered 7jgzKF     
adj.分散的,稀疏的;散步的;疏疏落落的
参考例句:
  • Gathering up his scattered papers,he pushed them into his case.他把散乱的文件收拾起来,塞进文件夹里。
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