這個(gè)世界很大，其中有些東西非常神秘，叫人無法推測(cè)。于是，這些東西便蒙上了一層玄妙的色彩，難以捉摸；任憑你怎么去琢磨，也琢磨不透；任憑你怎么去猜測(cè)，也不得結(jié)果。

神秘莫測(cè)的，有自然界的奇觀，可謂“鬼斧神工”。面對(duì)隆隆作響、飛瀉而下、勢(shì)不可擋的瀑布，有誰會(huì)不驚嘆，驚嘆大自然的神秘莫測(cè)呢？就連“詩(shī)仙”李白——盛唐時(shí)期偉大的浪漫主義詩(shī)人，也發(fā)出感嘆和疑問，從而成就了千古名篇：

日照香爐生紫煙，遙看瀑布掛前川。

飛流直下三千尺，疑是銀河落九天。

神秘莫測(cè)的，有人世間的事務(wù)，可謂“滄海桑田”，瞬息萬變，正如唐代詩(shī)人杜甫所言：“古往今來共一時(shí)，人生萬事無不有。”人生萬事，猶如一出出戲，有悲有喜，神秘莫測(cè)。面對(duì)王季友的人生，難怪杜甫會(huì)發(fā)出這樣的感慨：“天上浮云如白衣，斯須改變?nèi)缟n狗?！?sup>世事變幻，人情冷暖，恰如“白云蒼狗”。這一點(diǎn)，還是“詩(shī)圣”體會(huì)得最為深刻：

朱門酒肉臭，路有凍死骨。

榮枯咫尺異，惆悵難再述。

同樣神秘莫測(cè)的，還有英國(guó)作家羅爾德·達(dá)爾筆下的“神秘房東”以及那些“不應(yīng)老去”的人和事。和藹可親的女房東開了一家溫暖舒適的旅館，卻很是“神秘”，旅館里發(fā)生的事情令主人公比利，更是令讀者感到“莫測(cè)”；駕駛著戰(zhàn)機(jī)失蹤多日的芬恩，一天中午突然返回，但令戰(zhàn)友頗感“神秘莫測(cè)”的，是他失蹤期間的經(jīng)歷。

第一節(jié) 《神秘房東》The Landlady

羅爾德·達(dá)爾的《神秘房東》（The Landlady）首次發(fā)表在美國(guó)一本文學(xué)性刊物《紐約客》（The New Yorker）1959年11月號(hào)上。后來，這個(gè)故事被收錄到《羅爾德·達(dá)爾小說精品集》（The Best of Roald Dahl）、《出乎意料的故事集》（Tales of the Unexpected）、《完全出人意料故事集》（Completely Unexpected Tales）、《羅爾德·達(dá)爾短篇故事集錦》（The Collected Short Stories of Roald Dahl）、《五部暢銷書集》（5 Bestsellers）、《吻了又吻》（Kiss Kiss）以及《羅爾德·達(dá)爾選集》（The Roald Dahl Omnibus）等書中，可見其影響力之大。

另外，這篇小說也被改編成電視系列劇——分別是1961年2月21日播映的《阿爾弗雷德·希區(qū)柯克出品短劇選》（Alfred Hitchcock Presents）中第210集（Episode 210），以及1979年4月21日播映的《出乎意料的故事集》（Tales of the Unexpected）第一部中的第5集（Episode 1.5），更可見其影響力之大。

順便提一下，《神秘房東》是羅爾德·達(dá)爾最為有名的短篇小說之一，故事情節(jié)簡(jiǎn)單，內(nèi)容隱晦、生動(dòng)，結(jié)尾耐人尋味，但若仔細(xì)回味，則令人驚恐不已。

一、原作導(dǎo)讀

故事的主人公十七歲，名叫比利·韋弗。他從倫敦乘坐火車到巴斯出差，但是巴斯這座城市，他以前從未來過。盡管如此，他還是要到這座城市來開展一項(xiàng)新的工作，一想到這一點(diǎn)，他就有些興奮。

下車后，經(jīng)過一番打聽，他朝貝爾德拉貢酒店走去，打算在那里住一晚。但是，在去貝爾德拉貢酒店的路上，他被一扇窗戶里的招牌吸引住了：住宿加早餐。他走到那扇窗戶跟前，發(fā)現(xiàn)那座房子很令人著迷——壁爐里有火光閃耀，一只漂亮的小狗蜷縮在地板上睡覺。一閃念之間，他按響了門鈴，決定進(jìn)去一探究竟。門鈴剛一響，一位老婦人就從里面探出了頭，邀請(qǐng)比利進(jìn)屋。老婦人報(bào)完住宿價(jià)格，比利發(fā)現(xiàn)那價(jià)格比自己心里可接受的價(jià)格少了一半還多，而且還包括早餐。于是，他當(dāng)場(chǎng)就決定住下。他原以為這里的客人會(huì)很多，但沒想到只有他一個(gè)人住店。把比利領(lǐng)進(jìn)房間后，老婦人要他過一會(huì)兒到樓下登記簿上簽個(gè)名。

到樓下登記簿上簽名的時(shí)候，比利發(fā)現(xiàn)登記簿上只登記了兩個(gè)人的名字，而且那兩個(gè)人的名字還是兩年多以前登記的，這令他感到有些迷惑不解，開始納悶了。更有甚者，那兩個(gè)人的名字他感到似曾相識(shí)，好像在哪兒聽過，但一時(shí)還想不起來。于是，他絞盡腦汁，想了又想，試圖要回憶起在什么地方聽說過這兩個(gè)人的名字。就在這時(shí)，房東老婦人端來熱茶，招呼他喝茶。

比利似乎記起來，那兩個(gè)人中有一個(gè)叫馬爾霍蘭，是伊頓公學(xué)失蹤的學(xué)生，但老婦人肯定地告訴他說，在她登記簿上登記的這位馬爾霍蘭不是伊頓公學(xué)的學(xué)生，是劍橋大學(xué)的學(xué)生。比利坐到沙發(fā)邊上，老婦人將茶放到沙發(fā)前小桌子上面。比利端起杯子，小口品著茶水，不時(shí)會(huì)嗅到老婦人身上散發(fā)出來的氣味。那氣味讓比利想到了什么東西：或許是腌制的胡桃，或許是新制的皮革，或許是醫(yī)院的走廊。

比利開始跟女房東交談起來，談起了登記簿上那兩個(gè)人。老婦人說，那兩個(gè)人都是英俊瀟灑的男子，跟他一樣英俊瀟灑。他隨后問老婦人，那兩個(gè)人是否最近才離開。老婦人回答說，那兩個(gè)人還在房中，都在五樓，未曾離開過。這話令比利如墜五里云霧，于是，他岔開了話題，談起籠子里那只鸚鵡。比利對(duì)老婦人說，他原以為那只鸚鵡是活著的，但后來才意識(shí)到那只鸚鵡是填充起來的標(biāo)本。老婦人就接著他的話說，那只鸚鵡是她親手剝制、填充的——栩栩如生，所有的寵物也是她親手剝制、填充的。比利這才吃驚地注意到，一直蜷縮在地板上睡覺的那條小狗也是填充的標(biāo)本。同時(shí)，他品嘗出老婦人泡的茶帶點(diǎn)兒杏仁那種苦澀的味道。接著，比利問老婦人：

“……我問一個(gè)問題，請(qǐng)?jiān)?。在最近兩三年?nèi)，除了他們兩個(gè)人，就沒有任何其他客人嗎？”

她一只手高高地舉起茶杯，把頭稍微向左歪了一下，隨即抬起頭，從眼角處看著他，又一次沖著他輕柔地微笑一下。

“沒有，我親愛的孩子，”她說?！俺四?。”

“Gregory Temple．Excuse my asking，but haven't there been any other guests here except them in the last two or three years？”

Holding her teacup high in one hand，inclining her head slightly to the left，she looked up at him out of the corners of her eyes and gave him another gentle little smile．

“No，my dear，”she said．“Only you．”

二、原作釋讀

閱讀本篇小說，首先需要領(lǐng)會(huì)好作家羅爾德·達(dá)爾對(duì)結(jié)局那種“由淺入深”式的“滲透”，也就是說，要領(lǐng)會(huì)好達(dá)爾所做鋪墊的目的所在。否則，對(duì)于故事的結(jié)尾就會(huì)有些迷惑不解，甚至不能完全領(lǐng)會(huì)了。

The Landlady

Billy Weaver had travelled down from London on the slow afternoon train，with a change at Reading on the way，and by the time he got to Bath it was about nine o'clock in the evening and the moon was coming up out of a clear starry sky over the houses opposite the station entrance．But the air was deadly cold and the wind was like a flat blade of ice on his cheeks．

“Excuse me，”he said，“but is there a fairly cheap hotel not too far away from here？”

“Try the Bell and Dragon，”the porter answered，pointing down the road．“They might take you in．It's about a quarter of a mile along on the other side．”

Billy thanked him and picked up his suitcase and set out to walk the quarter-mile to the Bell and Dragon．He had never been to Bath before．He didn't know anyone who lived there．But Mr．Greenslade at the Head Office in London had told him it was a splendid city．“Find your own lodgings，”he had said，“and then go along and report to the Branch Manager as soon as you've got yourself settled．”

Billy was seventeen years old．He was wearing a new navy-blue overcoat，a new brown trilby hat，and a new brown suit，and he was feeling fine．He walked briskly down the street．He was trying to do everything briskly these days．

Briskness，he had decided，was the one common characteristic of all successful businessmen．The big shots up at Head Office were absolutely fantastically brisk all the time．They were amazing．

There were no shops in this wide street that he was walking along，only a line of tall houses on each side，all of them identical．They had porches and pillars and four or five steps going up to their front doors，and it was obvious that once upon a time they had been very swanky residences．But now，even in the darkness，he could see that the paint was peeling from the woodwork on their doors and windows，and that the handsome white facades were cracked and blotchy from neglect．

Suddenly，in a downstairs window that was brilliantly illuminated by a street-lamp not six yards away，Billy caught sight of a printed notice propped up against the glass in one of the upper panes．It said BED AND BREAKFAST．There was a vase of yellow chrysanthemums，tall and beautiful，standing just underneath the notice．

He stopped walking．He moved a bit closer．Green curtains（some sort of velvety material）were hanging down on either side of the window．The chrysanthemums looked wonderful beside them．He went right up and peered through the glass into the room，and the first thing he saw was a bright fire burning in the hearth．On the carpet in front of the fire，a pretty little dachshund was curled up asleep with its nose tucked into its belly．The room itself，so far as he could see in the half-darkness，was filled with pleasant furniture．There was a baby-grand piano and a big sofa and several plump armchairs；and in one corner he spotted a large parrot in a cage．Animals were usually a good sign in a place like this，Billy told himself；and all in all，it looked to him as though it would be a pretty decent house to stay in．Certainly it would be more comfortable than the Bell and Dragon．

On the other hand，a pub would be more congenial than a boarding-house．There would be beer and darts in the evenings，and lots of people to talk to，and it would probably be a good bit cheaper，too．He had stayed a couple of nights in a pub once before and he had liked it．He had never stayed in any boarding-houses，and，to be perfectly honest，he was a tiny bit frightened of them．The name itself conjured up images of watery cabbage，rapacious landladies，and a powerful smell of kippers in the living-room．

After dithering about like this in the cold for two or three minutes，Billy decided that he would walk on and take a look at the Bell and Dragon before making up his mind．He turned to go．

And now a queer thing happened to him．He was in the act of stepping back and turning away from the window when all at once his eye was caught and held in the most peculiar manner by the small notice that was there．BED AND BREAKFAST，it said．BED AND BREAKFAST，BED AND BREAKFAST，BED AND BREAKFAST．Each word was like a large black eye staring at him through the glass，holding him，compelling him，forcing him to stay where he was and not to walk away from that house，and the next thing he knew，he was actually moving across from the window to the front door of the house，climbing the steps that led up to it，and reaching for the bell．

He pressed the bell．Far away in a back room he heard it ringing，and then at once—it must have been at once because he hadn't even had time to take his finger from the bell-button—the door swung open and a woman was standing there．

Normally you ring the bell and you have at least a half-minute's wait before the door opens．But this dame was like a jack-in-the-box．He pressed the bell—and out she popped！It made him jump．

She was about forty-five or fifty years old，and the moment she saw him，she gave him a warm welcoming smile．

“Please come in，”she said pleasantly．She stepped aside，holding the door wide open，and Billy found himself automatically starting forward into the house．The compulsion or，more accurately，the desire to follow after her into that house was extraordinarily strong．

“I saw the notice in the window，”he said，holding himself back．

“Yes，I know．”

“I was wondering about a room．”

“It's all ready for you，my dear，”she said．She had a round pink face and very gentle blue eyes．

“I was on my way to the Bell and Dragon，”

Billy told her．“But the notice in your window just happened to catch my eye．”

“My dear boy，”she said，“why don't you come in out of the cold？”

“How much do you charge？”

“Five and sixpence a night，including breakfast．”

It was fantastically cheap．It was less than half of what he had been willing to pay．

“If that is too much，”she added，“then perhaps I can reduce it just a tiny bit．Do you desire an egg for breakfast？Eggs are expensive at the moment．It would be sixpence less without the egg．”

“Five and sixpence is fine，”he answered．“I should like very much to stay here．”

“I knew you would．Do come in．”

She seemed terribly nice．She looked exactly like the mother of one's best school-friend welcoming one into the house to stay for the Christmas holidays．Billy took off his hat，and stepped over the threshold．

“Just hang it there，”she said，“and let me help you with your coat．”

There were no other hats or coats in the hall．There were no umbrellas，no walking-sticks—nothing．

“We have it all to ourselves，”she said，smiling at him over her shoulder as she led the way upstairs．“You see，it isn't very often I have the pleasure of taking a visitor into my little nest．”

The old girl is slightly dotty，Billy told himself．But at five and sixpence a night，who gives a damn about that？“I should've thought you'd be simply swamped with applicants，”he said politely．

“Oh，I am，my dear，I am，of course I am．But the trouble is that I'm inclined to be just a teeny weeny bit choosey and particular—if you see what I mean．”

“Ah，yes．”

“But I'm always ready．Everything is always ready day and night in this house just on the off-chance that an acceptable young gentleman will come along．And it is such a pleasure，my dear，such a very great pleasure when now and again I open the door and I see someone standing there who is just exactly right．”She was half-way up the stairs，and she paused with one hand on the stair-rail，turning her head and smiling down at him with pale lips．“Like you，”she added，and her blue eyes travelled slowly all the way down the length of Billy's body，to his feet，and then up again．

On the second-floor landing she said to him，“This floor is mine．”

They climbed up a second flight．“And this one is all yours，”she said．“Here's your room．I do hope you'll like it．”She took him into a small but charming front bedroom，switching on the light as she went in．

“The morning sun comes right in the window，Mr．Perkins．It is Mr．Perkins，isn't it？”

“No，”he said．“It's Weaver．”

“Mr．Weaver．How nice．I've put a water-bottle between the sheets to air them out，Mr．Weaver．It's such a comfort to have a hot water-bottle in a strange bed with clean sheets，don't you agree？And you may light the gas fire at any time if you feel chilly．”

“Thank you，”Billy said．“Thank you ever so much．”He noticed that the bedspread had been taken off the bed，and that the bedclothes had been neatly turned back on one side，all ready for someone to get in．

“I'm so glad you appeared，”she said，looking earnestly into his face．“I was beginning to get worried．”

“That's all right，”Billy answered brightly．“You mustn't worry about me．”He put his suitcase on the chair and started to open it．

“And what about supper，my dear？Did you manage to get anything to eat before you came here？”

“I'm not a bit hungry，thank you，”he said．“I think I'll just go to bed as soon as possible because tomorrow I've got to get up rather early and report to the office．”

“Very well，then．I'll leave you now so that you can unpack．But before you go to bed，would you be kind enough to pop into the sitting-room on the ground floor and sign the book？Everyone has to do that because it's the law of the land，and we don't want to go breaking any laws at this stage in the proceedings，do we？”She gave him a little wave of the hand and went quickly out of the room and closed the door．

Now，the fact that his landlady appeared to be slightly off her rocker didn't worry Billy in the least．After all，she was not only harmless—there was no question about that—but she was also quite obviously a kind and generous soul．He guessed that she had probably lost a son in the war，or something like that，and had never got over it．

So a few minutes later，after unpacking his suitcase and washing his hands，he trotted downstairs to the ground floor and entered the living-room．His landlady wasn't there，but the fire was glowing in the hearth，and the little dachshund was still sleeping in front of it．The room was wonderfully warm and cosy．I'm a lucky fellow，he thought，rubbing his hands．This is a bit of all right．

He found the guest-book lying open on the piano，so he took out his pen and wrote down his name and address．There were only two other entries above his on the page，and，as one always does with guest-books，he started to read them．One was a Christopher Mulholland from Cardiff．The other was Gregory W．Temple from Bristol．

That's funny，he thought suddenly．Christopher Mulholland．It rings a bell．

Now where on earth had he heard that rather unusual name before？

Was he a boy at school？No．Was it one of his sister's numerous young men，perhaps，or a friend of his father's？No，no，it wasn't any of those．He glanced down again at the book．

Christopher Mulholland 231 Cathedral Road，Cardiff

Gregory W．Temple 27 Sycamore Drive，Bristol

As a matter of fact，now he came to think of it，he wasn't at all sure that the second name didn't have almost as much of a familiar ring about it as the first．

“Gregory Temple？”he said aloud，searching his memory．“Christopher Mulholland？…”

“Such charming boys，”a voice behind him answered，and he turned and saw his landlady sailing into the room with a large silver tea-tray in her hands．She was holding it well out in front of her，and rather high up，as though the tray were a pair of reins on a frisky horse．

“They sound somehow familiar，”he said．

“They do？How interesting．”

“I'm almost positive I've heard those names before somewhere．Isn't that queer？Maybe it was in the newspapers．They weren't famous in any way，were they？I mean famous cricketers or footballers or something like that？”

“Famous，”she said，setting the tea-tray down on the low table in front of the sofa．“Oh no，I don't think they were famous．But they were extraordinarily handsome，both of them，I can promise you that．They were tall and young and handsome，my dear，just exactly like you．”

Once more，Billy glanced down at the book．

“Look here，he said，noticing the dates．This last entry is over two years old．”

“It is？”

“Yes，indeed．And Christopher Mulholland's is nearly a year before that—more than three years ago．”

“Dear me，”she said，shaking her head and heaving a dainty little sigh．“I would never have thought it．How time does fly away from us all，doesn't it，Mr．Wilkins？”

“It's Weaver，”Billy said．“W-e-a-v-e-r．”

“Oh，of course it is！”she cried，sitting down on the sofa．“How silly of me．I do apologize．In one ear and out the other，that's me，Mr．Weaver．”

“You know something？”Billy said．“Something that's really quite extraordinary about all this？”

“No，dear，I don't．”

“Well，you see both of these names，Mulholland and Temple，I not only seem to remember each of them separately，so to speak，but somehow or other，in some peculiar way，they both appear to be sort of connected together as well．As though they were both famous for the same sort of thing，if you see what I mean—like…well…like Dempsey and Tunney，for example，or Churchill and Roosevelt．”

“How amusing，”she said．“But come over here now，dear，and sit down beside me on the sofa and I'll give you a nice cup of tea and a ginger biscuit before you go to bed．”

“You really shouldn't bother，”Billy said．“I didn't mean you to do anything like that．”He stood by the piano，watching her as she fussed about with the cups and saucers．He noticed that she had small，white，quickly moving hands，and red finger-nails．

“I'm almost positive it was in the newspapers I saw them，”Billy said．“I'll think of it in a second．I'm sure I will．”

There is nothing more tantalizing than a thing like this which lingers just outside the borders of one's memory．He hated to give up．

“Now wait a minute，”he said．“Wait just a minute．Mulholland…Christopher Mulholland…wasn't that the name of the Eton schoolboy who was on a walking-tour through the West Country，and then all of a sudden…”

“Milk？”she said．“And sugar？”

“Yes，please．And then all of a sudden…”

“Eton schoolboy？”she said．“Oh no，my dear，that can't possibly be right because my Mr．Mulholland was certainly not an Eton schoolboy when he came to me．He was a Cambridge undergraduate．Come over here now and sit next to me and warm yourself in front of this lovely fire．Come on．Your tea's all ready for you．”She patted the empty place beside her on the sofa，and she sat there smiling at Billy and waiting for him to come over．

He crossed the room slowly，and sat down on the edge of the sofa．She placed his teacup on the table in front of him．

“There we are，”she said．“How nice and cosy this is，isn't it？”

Billy started sipping his tea．She did the same．For half a minute or so，neither of them spoke．But Billy knew that she was looking at him．Her body was half-turned towards him，and he could feel her eyes resting on his face，watching him over the rim of her teacup．Now and again，he caught a whiff of a peculiar smell that seemed to emanate directly from her person．It was not it，the least unpleasant，and it reminded him well，he wasn't quite sure what it reminded him of Pickled walnuts？New leather？Or was it the corridors of a hospital？

At length，she said，“Mr．Mulholland was a great one for his tea．Never in my life have I seen anyone drink as much tea as dear，sweet Mr．Mulholland．”

“I suppose he left fairly recently，”Billy said．He was still puzzling his head about the two names．He was positive now that he had seen them in the newspapers—in the headlines．

“Left？”she said，arching her brows．“But my dear boy，he never left．He's still here．Mr．Temple is also here．They're on the third floor，both of them together．”

Billy set down his cup slowly on the table，and stared at his landlady．She smiled back at him，and then she put out one of her white hands and patted him comfortingly on the knee．“How old are you，my dear？”she asked．

“Seventeen．”

“Seventeen！”she cried．“Oh，it's the perfect age！Mr．Mulholland was also seventeen．But I think he was a trifle shorter than you are，in fact I'm sure he was，and his teeth weren't quite so white．You have the most beautiful teeth，Mr．Weaver，did you know that？”

“They're not as good as they look，”Billy said．“They've got simply masses of fillings in them at the back．”

“Mr．Temple，of course，was a little older，”she said，ignoring his remark．“He was actually twenty-eight．And yet I never would have guessed it if he hadn't told me，never in my whole life．There wasn't a blemish on his body．”

“A what？”Billy said．

“His skin was just like a baby's．”

There was a pause．Billy picked up his teacup and took another sip of his tea，then he set it down again gently in its saucer．He waited for her to say something else，but she seemed to have lapsed into another of her silences．He sat there staring straight ahead of him into the far corner of the room，biting his lower lip．

“That parrot，”he said at last．“You know something？It had me completely fooled when I first saw it through the window from the street．I could have sworn it was alive．”

“Alas，no longer．”

“It's most terribly clever the way it's been done，”he said．“It doesn't look in the least bit dead．Who did it？”

“I did．”

“You did？”

“Of course，”she said．“And have you met my little Basil as well？”She nodded towards the dachshund curled up so comfortably in front of the fire．Billy looked at it．And suddenly，he realized that this animal had all the time been just as silent and motionless as the parrot．He put out a hand and touched it gently on the top of its back．The back was hard and cold，and when he pushed the hair to one side with his fingers，he could see the skin underneath，greyish-black and dry and perfectly preserved．

“Good gracious me，”he said．“How absolutely fascinating．”He turned away from the dog and stared with deep admiration at the little woman beside him on the sofa．“It must be most awfully difficult to do a thing like that．”

“Not in the least，”she said．“I stuff all my little pets myself when they pass away．Will you have another cup of tea？”

“No，thank you，”Billy said．The tea tasted faintly of bitter almonds，and he didn't much care for it．

“You did sign the book，didn't you？”

“Oh，yes．”

“That's good．Because later on，if I happen to forget what you were called，then I can always come down here and look it up．I still do that almost every day with Mr．Mulholland and Mr…．Mr…．”

“Temple，”Billy said．“Gregory Temple．Excuse my asking，but haven't there been any other guests here except them in the last two or three years？”

Holding her teacup high in one hand，inclining her head slightly to the left，she looked up at him out of the corners of her eyes and gave him another gentle little smile．

“No，my dear，”she said．“Only you．”

三、翻譯探索

在本篇小說的翻譯中，某些地方為求譯文的可讀性，適當(dāng)加詞表達(dá)，這也算是翻譯的一種技巧吧。對(duì)于主人公比利·韋弗心態(tài)的細(xì)膩刻畫，翻譯時(shí)要盡量真實(shí)加以再現(xiàn)。

神秘房東

比利·韋弗下午從倫敦上的車，那是一列慢行火車，途中在雷丁站換乘了一次，最終到達(dá)了巴斯。到達(dá)巴斯的時(shí)候，大約是晚上九點(diǎn)。站在火車站大門口，他看到，對(duì)面一排排房子的上空，月亮已經(jīng)升起來了，可謂月朗星疏。但是，天卻冷得要命，風(fēng)拂過臉頰，如同一面冰制的光滑刀片剮過一般。

“勞駕，請(qǐng)問，”他說，“離這兒近一點(diǎn)的地方，有沒有什么價(jià)格便宜而又說得過去的賓館呢？”

“去貝爾德拉貢酒店看看吧，”行李搬運(yùn)工指著馬路下行的方向回答?！澳抢飼?huì)有人接待你的。過馬路，走另一邊，才四百米的距離?！?/p>

比利謝過搬運(yùn)工，拎起手提箱，拔腿就朝貝爾德拉貢酒店走去，不過就四百米的距離嘛。他以前從沒有到過巴斯，巴斯也沒有他認(rèn)識(shí)的人。但是，倫敦總公司的格林斯萊德先生告訴他，那個(gè)城鎮(zhèn)很氣派?！白约合日业胤阶∠拢彼f?！耙磺型桩?dāng)下來后，立即去分公司經(jīng)理那兒報(bào)到?！?/p>

比利已經(jīng)十七歲了。他里面穿一身新買的棕色套裝，外面披一件深藍(lán)色的大衣，頭戴一頂嶄新的棕色窄邊軟氈帽，自我感覺還不錯(cuò)。他沿著街道下行的方向輕快、敏捷地走去。這些日子以來，他做什么事情都盡量要做到輕快、敏捷。他認(rèn)為，對(duì)于所有成功的商界人士而言，唯一的共同特點(diǎn)就是輕快、敏捷。公司總部那些大腕人物無論何時(shí)都是絕對(duì)的輕快、敏捷，他們十分出色，令人驚嘆。

他走的這條街道，雖然很寬，但是一家商店都沒有，只有高高的房子沿著街道兩側(cè)一字排開。這些房子都是一個(gè)模樣：都有柱子支起的門廊，還有四五級(jí)臺(tái)階通向房子的正門。很顯然，它們一度是十分豪華的住宅，但是現(xiàn)在，即使在黑暗之中，他也能看得出，門窗木質(zhì)部分的油漆正日漸脫落，房屋漂亮的白色正臉部分，由于好久無人打理，已經(jīng)出現(xiàn)了裂縫，斑痕累累。

突然，在不到五米遠(yuǎn)樓下的一扇窗戶里，比利看到了一塊印刷的牌子，那牌子緊緊貼到了上層窗格的玻璃上。街燈把那扇窗戶照得锃亮，牌子上的內(nèi)容看得清楚，上面寫著：住宿加早餐。牌子下面放了一只花瓶，上面插了一束黃菊花。那只花瓶高高的，很漂亮，就放在那塊牌子的下方。

他停下腳步，走近一些。窗戶的兩側(cè)有窗簾垂下來，窗簾是綠色的，像是某種絲絨材料做成的。黃菊花擺在中間，看起來非常協(xié)調(diào)、漂亮。他走到窗前，貼著窗玻璃，往屋內(nèi)觀瞧。第一眼就看到壁爐爐膛里有火在燃燒，明亮而閃耀。壁爐前面的地毯上，一條漂亮好看的達(dá)克斯小狗身體蜷縮成一團(tuán)，躺在那兒睡覺，小狗的鼻子偎在肚子那里。半明半暗之中，他睜大眼睛觀察著，發(fā)現(xiàn)這間屋子擺滿了家具，看起來很舒服。里面有一架小型三角鋼琴、一張大沙發(fā)、幾把胖墩墩的扶手椅。他看到屋子的一角有一只籠子，籠子里裝著一只大鸚鵡。比利對(duì)自己說，像在這樣的地方，能看到動(dòng)物通常是一種好跡象?？偠灾?，這地方在他看來，是住宿的好地方，既舒服又體面。當(dāng)然啦，這里會(huì)比貝爾德拉貢酒店要舒服多了。

但從另一方面考慮，酒店會(huì)比寄宿公寓更合心意的：晚上有啤酒喝，有飛鏢玩，有很多人可以交談，或許價(jià)錢還會(huì)便宜一點(diǎn)點(diǎn)。以前他住過一次酒店，一住就是好幾宿，很喜歡的?？墒?，他從來沒有住過寄宿公寓，而且老老實(shí)實(shí)地說，對(duì)住寄宿公寓他有一點(diǎn)點(diǎn)害怕，因?yàn)檫@個(gè)名字本身就會(huì)喚起這樣一些意象：淌出汁液來的卷心菜、貪心不足的女房東，還有起居室里散發(fā)出來的、強(qiáng)烈刺鼻的熏魚氣味。

就這樣，在寒風(fēng)中，比利猶豫再三，兩三分鐘過去了。緊接著，他決定繼續(xù)往前走，看一眼貝爾德拉貢酒店，再最終做決定。于是，他轉(zhuǎn)身要走。

就在此時(shí)，一件稀奇古怪的事情發(fā)生了。他正欲回轉(zhuǎn)身體離開那扇窗的時(shí)候，突然之間，異常奇怪的是，他的眼神又被那兒的那塊小牌子吸引過去，整個(gè)人就動(dòng)彈不得了。“住宿加早餐”，牌子上這樣寫著?！白∷藜釉绮?、住宿加早餐、住宿加早餐?！鄙厦娴拿恳粋€(gè)字都像一只睜得大大的黑色眼睛，透過玻璃盯著他、抓牢他，迫使他、強(qiáng)迫他待在原地，不得離開半步。他知道，下一步要做的，實(shí)際上就是：經(jīng)過窗戶，踏上那幾級(jí)臺(tái)階，走到房子的正門跟前，抬手按門鈴。

他按下門鈴，聽到里面稍遠(yuǎn)一點(diǎn)的一間黑屋子里響起了門鈴聲。緊接著，“嗖”的一下，門就打開了，一個(gè)婦女站在他面前。對(duì)，一定是“嗖”的一下，因?yàn)樗€沒有來得及把手指從門鈴的按鈕上移開呢。

正常情況下按門鈴，至少要等上半分鐘時(shí)間，門方能打開。但是，這位夫人就像裝在匣內(nèi)、打開匣蓋就自行彈起的玩偶一樣，他一按門鈴，她就騰地彈了出來。這倒讓他驚跳了一下。

這名婦女的年紀(jì)就算是不到五十的話，也有四十五了。一見到他，她就露出微笑，表示歡迎，讓人感覺暖意融融的。

“請(qǐng)進(jìn)，”她滿臉愉悅地說道。隨即，她敞開門，緊握住門把手不讓其關(guān)閉，隨即跨到一旁。比利發(fā)現(xiàn)自己竟然自動(dòng)自覺地要開始往門里邁步了。這種自覺性，或者準(zhǔn)確說，這種渴望感，驅(qū)使他要跟隨她進(jìn)入那所房子，而且，這種渴望是極其強(qiáng)烈的。

“我看見窗戶里的那塊牌子，”他有些猶豫不決地說，還是控制住沒有邁步進(jìn)去。

“是的，我知道?！?/p>

“我想知道是否有房間。”

“我親愛的孩子，都為你準(zhǔn)備好了?！彼f。她長(zhǎng)著一張粉紅色的圓臉，一雙藍(lán)色的眼睛盡顯溫柔之情。

“我要去貝爾德拉貢酒店，路上經(jīng)過你這兒，”比利對(duì)她說?！翱墒?，巧得很，你窗戶里的那塊牌子吸引了我?！?/p>

“我親愛的孩子，”她說道，“那還有什么理由不進(jìn)來，站在外面任寒風(fēng)吹呢？”

“價(jià)格是多少呢？”

“住一晚是五英鎊六便士，早餐包括在內(nèi)。”

真是便宜極了，還不到他樂意承受價(jià)格的一半呢。

“要是嫌貴的話，”她補(bǔ)充道，“或許可以給你再降一點(diǎn)點(diǎn)。早餐很想吃一個(gè)雞蛋嗎？雞蛋這時(shí)候很貴的，所以不要雞蛋的話，可以便宜六便士?！?/p>

“五英鎊六便士。這個(gè)價(jià)格可以的，”他回答。“我很想住在這里?！?/p>

“我知道你會(huì)住這兒的?？爝M(jìn)來吧?！?/p>

她這個(gè)人簡(jiǎn)直是太好了?？雌饋恚拖駥W(xué)校里自己最要好的一個(gè)朋友的母親，歡迎客人來家里過圣誕節(jié)一樣。比利摘下帽子，跨過門檻，走進(jìn)屋子。

“帽子掛那兒，就可以了，”她說?！拔?guī)湍銙焱庖掳伞！?/p>

大廳里看不到其他人的帽子或外衣，也看不到雨傘、拐杖什么的，什么都看不到。

“屋里所有的東西都是自家用的，”她帶著他走上樓梯，邊說邊回頭沖他微笑?！耙?，有幸?guī)Э腿松蠘?，住進(jìn)我這溫馨的小屋，這事兒不是很經(jīng)常發(fā)生的?！?/p>

比利對(duì)自己說，這位老婦人的言行有點(diǎn)瘋瘋癲癲的?？墒牵瑢?duì)于一晚五英鎊六便士的價(jià)格，誰還會(huì)挑三揀四的呢？“我原以為你這里客人很多，你簡(jiǎn)直忙不過來了，看來我不該那樣想。”他彬彬有禮地說。

“哦，我忙，我親愛的孩子。我忙，我當(dāng)然忙?？陕闊┲幘驮谟?，我這個(gè)人就是一貫地有點(diǎn)喜歡挑剔，有點(diǎn)喜歡窮講究。不知道你是否明白我的意思?！?/p>

“啊，明白的。”

“但是，我總是做好準(zhǔn)備，隨時(shí)迎接客人。這所房子里的一切，不管是白天還是夜晚，一直都是準(zhǔn)備得好好的，準(zhǔn)備一有機(jī)會(huì)——哪怕機(jī)會(huì)很是罕見——就接待符合心意的年輕紳士前來投宿。時(shí)不時(shí)地打開門，看見有人站在外邊，對(duì)這里感到稱心如意，我親愛的孩子，那將真的是我榮幸的事，真的是我萬分榮幸的事啊。”樓梯上到一半，她暫停下來，一只手扶著樓梯邊的欄桿，轉(zhuǎn)過頭，微笑地俯視著他，雙唇有些灰白?！熬徒哟衲氵@樣的客人，”她補(bǔ)充道。她那兩只藍(lán)色的眼睛，從上至下慢慢移動(dòng)、打量著比利，然后從腳往頭，又打量了一遍。

走到三樓緩步臺(tái)的時(shí)候，她對(duì)他說：“這層樓歸我用?！?/p>

他們又爬完一段樓梯?！斑@一層全部歸你用，”她說。“這是你的房間，真心希望你會(huì)喜歡?！彼龓哌M(jìn)正面的一間臥室，隨手打開燈的開關(guān)。這間臥室很小，但很讓人喜歡。

“早晨，太陽(yáng)光能直接從窗戶照射進(jìn)來的，珀金斯先生。你就是珀金斯先生，是不是呢？”

“不是，”他回答?！拔倚枕f弗。”

“韋弗先生，多好的名字啊。韋弗先生，我在被單中間放上了熱水袋，保持通風(fēng)、干燥。一張陌生的床上鋪上干干凈凈的被單，再放上一個(gè)熱水袋，那就太舒服愜意了，你不這么認(rèn)為嗎？要是感到冷的話，你可以隨時(shí)點(diǎn)燃煤氣取暖器?！?/p>

“謝謝你，”比利說。“十分感謝。”他注意到，床罩已經(jīng)從床上揭下來，鋪蓋整整齊齊地翻到了一邊，就等來人鉆進(jìn)去睡覺了。

“你的出現(xiàn)令我十分高興，”她邊說，邊用熱切的目光看著他的臉?！拔覄偛胚€有點(diǎn)擔(dān)心呢?！?/p>

“不必客氣，”比利充滿活力地說。“不必為我擔(dān)心。”他把手提箱放到椅子上，就要開箱。

“我親愛的孩子，需要晚飯嗎？來這兒之前，有沒有吃什么東西呢？”

“我一點(diǎn)也不餓，謝謝你，”他回答，“我想，我還是盡早上床睡覺，因?yàn)槊魈煳乙茉缙鸫?，到公司?bào)道。”

“很不錯(cuò)。我就不打擾了，你開箱取東西吧。但是睡覺前，到一樓的起居室去一趟，在登記簿上簽個(gè)名，可以嗎？這是這里的法律規(guī)定，每個(gè)人都要簽的，我們誰都不想在整個(gè)程序的這個(gè)環(huán)節(jié)上違反什么法律規(guī)定，你說對(duì)吧？”她朝他輕輕揮揮手，快速走出房間，隨手關(guān)上了門。

現(xiàn)在，這位女房東看起來有點(diǎn)瘋瘋癲癲這件事，比利一點(diǎn)也沒有放在心上。她畢竟是沒有惡意的，這一點(diǎn)毫無疑問。相反，十分明顯的是，她這個(gè)人還很仁慈，頗為大度。他猜測(cè)，或許在戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)中，她失去了一個(gè)兒子，或者失去類似的什么東西。因此，她永遠(yuǎn)無法釋懷。

沒過幾分鐘，他就開箱取完?yáng)|西、上完廁所。然后，一路小跑下到一樓，走進(jìn)起居室。女房東不在那兒，可是壁爐爐膛里的火仍在燃燒，那只達(dá)克斯小狗仍然躺在壁爐前，睡得呼呼的。整個(gè)屋子溫暖、舒適，令人感到愜意無比。他一邊搓著手一邊想，我很幸運(yùn)啊，這里還是有點(diǎn)合意的感覺。

他看到了客人登記簿，打開著，放在那架鋼琴上。于是，他就拿起筆寫下了自己的姓名和地址。登記簿的同一頁(yè)上，他簽名的上方只有兩條其他人的簽名信息。人在登記簿上簽名時(shí)的一貫做法一樣，簽完名，他也開始閱讀起來。在登記簿上面，其中一個(gè)人是來自加的夫，名叫克里斯托弗·馬爾霍蘭，另一個(gè)是來自布里斯托爾，名叫格雷戈里·W·坦普爾。

他突然間想，那可真有意思啊?？死锼雇懈ァゑR爾霍蘭，這個(gè)名字似曾相識(shí)。

現(xiàn)在想想，以前到底在什么地方聽說過這個(gè)很是不同尋常的名字呢？

是學(xué)校里的一個(gè)男生嗎？不是。是他姐姐無數(shù)年輕的男朋友當(dāng)中的一個(gè)，或者是他父親的一個(gè)朋友嗎？不，不是的，上述的一個(gè)都不是。他又看了登記簿一眼，上面寫著：

克里斯托弗·馬爾霍蘭 加的夫市卡西德勒爾路231號(hào)

格雷戈里·W·坦普爾 布里斯托爾錫卡莫爾大道27號(hào)

現(xiàn)在很顯然，他開始回想了。第二個(gè)人的名字幾乎跟第一個(gè)人的名字一樣，似曾相識(shí)，可是，他不敢肯定。

“格雷戈里·坦普爾？”他一邊大聲說出來，一邊在記憶中搜索者?！翱死锼雇懈ァゑR爾霍蘭？……”

“很是了不起的兩名男子吧。”一個(gè)聲音從后面回答道。他轉(zhuǎn)過身，看到女房東雙手托著一個(gè)大大的銀色茶盤，如揚(yáng)帆行船般飄了進(jìn)來。她把茶盤穩(wěn)穩(wěn)地舉到前面，舉得高高的，那托盤好似一副韁繩，套在一匹活蹦亂跳的馬身上。

“這兩個(gè)名字聽起來很耳熟?！彼f。

“是嗎？多有意思啊?！?/p>

“我?guī)缀蹩梢钥隙ǎ乙郧霸谑裁吹胤铰牭竭^，是不是太奇怪呢？或許從報(bào)紙上看到過。不管怎么說，他們都不是有名的人，對(duì)吧？我的意思是說，有名的板球選手，或者足球選手，或者類似的名人?！?/p>

“名人？”她邊說，邊把茶盤放到沙發(fā)前的矮桌子上?！班蓿皇堑?。我認(rèn)為，他們不是什么名人。但是，他們兩個(gè)都英俊瀟灑、氣度不凡，這一點(diǎn)我能向你保證。我親愛的孩子，這兩個(gè)人都個(gè)子高高、年紀(jì)輕輕、英俊瀟灑，簡(jiǎn)直跟你一模一樣?！?/p>

比利又一次低頭看了地址簿一眼?！翱催@兒啊，”他說，注意到上面所寫的日期了?！白詈笠粭l是兩年多以前登記的?！?/p>

“是嗎？”

“是的，確確實(shí)實(shí)。而克里斯托弗·馬爾霍蘭登記的這一條比那還早將近一年，也就是三年多以前登記的。”

“我的天吶，”她說完，搖了搖頭，輕輕發(fā)出一聲嘆息，帶點(diǎn)兒挑剔的口吻?！斑@一點(diǎn)，我從來沒有想過。時(shí)光飛逝，離我們大家越來越遠(yuǎn)，對(duì)吧，威爾金斯先生？”

“我姓韋弗，”比利說?！皐-éi——韋，f-ú——弗?！?/p>

“哦，當(dāng)然，那才是你的姓！”她叫了起來，然后坐到沙發(fā)上。“看我多糊涂，深感抱歉。韋弗先生，我就是這個(gè)樣子，一只耳朵進(jìn)，另一只耳朵出?！?/p>

“你知道嗎？”比利問?！澳阒绬?？這一切真的十分怪異?！?/p>

“不，親愛的孩子，我不知道?！?/p>

“噢，要知道，馬爾霍蘭和坦普爾這兩個(gè)名字，可以說，我似乎不僅僅都記得，而且頗為奇特的是，不管從哪一個(gè)角度來說，這兩個(gè)名字看上去也有某種聯(lián)系，這兩個(gè)人仿佛都是因?yàn)橥瑯右环N事情而聞名遐邇的。你明白我的意思吧，比如像……噢……像登普西跟滕尼——都是拳擊手。再比如，像丘吉爾跟羅斯?！謩e是一個(gè)國(guó)家的頭頭?！?/p>

“多么有趣兒啊，”她說?！暗牵H愛的孩子，現(xiàn)在到我這兒，坐到沙發(fā)上，坐到我旁邊。在你睡覺前，我給你喝一杯很不錯(cuò)的茶，給你吃一塊姜味餅干?！?/p>

“真的不用那樣麻煩的，”比利說。“我不想讓你為我做那樣的事情?！彼驹阡撉倥?，看著她，她正擺弄著杯子、盤子，為他忙活著。他注意到，她那雙手很小、很白，移動(dòng)速度很快，指甲是紅色的。

“我?guī)缀蹩梢钥隙?，是在?bào)紙上看到的那兩個(gè)名字，”比利說?！拔乙粫?huì)兒就能想起來，我敢肯定，我會(huì)想起來的?！?/p>

一件像這樣的事情就在一個(gè)人記憶的邊緣之外徘徊，就是想不起來，但卻不愿意放棄，硬是要去回憶。沒有什么比這更逗弄、折磨人的啦。

“現(xiàn)在，稍等一下，”他說?！熬偷纫恍?huì)兒。馬爾霍蘭……克里斯托弗·馬爾霍蘭……難道不是伊頓公學(xué)那個(gè)男學(xué)生的名字嗎？他穿越我國(guó)西南部各個(gè)郡作徒步旅行，然后就突然之間，一下子……”

“邁克，”她說，“要加糖嗎？”

“好的，加。然后，突然之間，一下子……”

“伊頓公學(xué)男學(xué)生？”她問。“噢，不，我親愛的孩子，不可能是那樣的，因?yàn)?span >我這里的馬爾霍蘭先生來的時(shí)候，肯定不是伊頓公學(xué)的學(xué)生。他當(dāng)時(shí)是劍橋的大學(xué)生?，F(xiàn)在，坐到我旁邊，在這個(gè)可愛的壁爐前暖和一下。來吧。茶為你沏好了?！彼谏嘲l(fā)上，拍了拍旁邊的空位，微笑著等待他走過來。

他慢慢穿過屋子，坐到沙發(fā)邊上。于是，她把茶杯放到了他面前的桌子上。

“這樣就對(duì)啦，”她說道。“多么舒適、愜意啊，對(duì)吧？”

比利開始小口品茶，她也小口品著茶。大約半分鐘過去了，誰都沒有說話，但是比利知道，她正看著他。她的身體只是轉(zhuǎn)過來一半，但他感覺到，她的雙眼正透過茶杯邊沿，落到他的臉上。他時(shí)不時(shí)地就會(huì)聞到一股怪異的味道，似乎是直接從她身上散發(fā)出來的。這氣味并不令人生厭。但是，這氣味讓他想起了什么，怎么說呢，他還不敢肯定到底讓他想起的是什么。想起了腌制的胡桃？新制的皮革？或者，醫(yī)院的走廊？

過了很長(zhǎng)時(shí)間，她終于說：“馬爾霍蘭先生以前很喜歡喝茶的，我一生中從來沒有看到過有誰喝的茶能超過親愛的、可愛的馬爾霍蘭先生?！?/p>

“我想，他是前不久才離開的吧，”比利說，仍然沉浸在對(duì)這兩個(gè)名字的思考之中?，F(xiàn)在，他敢肯定的是，他在報(bào)紙上看到過這兩個(gè)名字——在大字標(biāo)題上看到的。

“離開？”她彎起眉毛問道?！翱墒牵矣H愛的孩子，他從未離開過，他還在這里。坦普爾先生也在這里。他倆就在五樓，在一起呢?！?/p>

比利慢慢把茶杯放到桌子上，盯著眼前這個(gè)神秘房東。只見她沖他微微一笑，然后伸出一只白白的手，拍了拍他的膝蓋，令人感到安慰。“你多大了，我親愛的孩子？”她問。

“十七?！?/p>

“十七啊！”她叫道?！班?，多么完美的年齡??！馬爾霍蘭先生當(dāng)時(shí)也是十七，但我想他比起你來，個(gè)頭有點(diǎn)矮。事實(shí)上，我敢肯定他比你矮。那時(shí)，他的牙齒也沒有這么白。韋弗先生，你的牙齒極其漂亮，你知道嗎？”

“看起來不錯(cuò)，實(shí)際上沒有那么漂亮，”比利回答?！澳憧床灰姷牡胤?，填滿了大量的補(bǔ)牙材料。”

“當(dāng)然，坦普爾先生當(dāng)時(shí)年紀(jì)稍大一點(diǎn)，”她沒有理會(huì)他說的話，繼續(xù)說道。“他的實(shí)際年齡是二十八。要是他不告訴我，而是要我猜的話，我一輩子都猜不出來的。他身上那時(shí)一個(gè)斑痕都沒有。”

“一個(gè)什么？”比利問。

“我是說，他的皮膚簡(jiǎn)直就像是嬰兒的皮膚?！?/p>

暫停了一會(huì)兒。比利端起茶杯，又品了一小口。然后，又把杯子輕輕地放到托盤上，等著她再說點(diǎn)什么?？墒牵坪跤忠淮蜗萑氤聊?。他坐在那兒，咬著下嘴唇，直視前方屋子遠(yuǎn)處的一個(gè)角落。

“那只鸚鵡，”他終于說道。“你知道嗎？透過窗戶第一眼看到它的時(shí)候，我完完全全被蒙蔽了。我當(dāng)時(shí)一口咬定，那鸚鵡就是活的?！?/p>

“哎呀呀，已經(jīng)不再是活的啦?！?/p>

“把這只鸚鵡弄得這樣栩栩如生，真是絕頂聰明之人所為，”他說?！翱雌饋?，一點(diǎn)也不像是死的。誰弄的？”

“我弄的?！?/p>

“你弄的？”

“當(dāng)然啦，”她說?！澳憧吹轿业男“推潬枦]有呢？”說完，她沖著那只躺在壁爐前、蜷縮著身體、舒舒服服睡覺的達(dá)克斯小狗點(diǎn)了點(diǎn)頭。比利也隨之看了一眼。突然之間，他一下子意識(shí)到，這個(gè)小家伙自始至終一直像那只鸚鵡一樣，一聲不響、一動(dòng)不動(dòng)。他伸出一只手，輕輕地摸了摸小狗的后背，后背很硬、很涼。他用手指把毛捋到一邊，看到下面的皮膚，保存得十分完好，很干燥，呈黑色，略微有點(diǎn)灰白。

“我的老天啊，”他說。“太迷人了，絕對(duì)地迷人?！彼麖男」纺莾恨D(zhuǎn)過身來，看著身旁沙發(fā)坐著的這個(gè)小女人，不覺深深欽佩起來。“事情做到那個(gè)程度。一定是難上加難的?！?/p>

“一點(diǎn)也不難，”她說。“我所有可愛的寵物死去后，我都親自動(dòng)手填料剝制。你還要喝杯茶嗎？”

“不了，謝謝你，”比利回答。她泡的茶喝起來輕微有點(diǎn)杏仁那種苦澀的味道，而他不喜歡這種味道的茶。

“登記簿你簽完了，對(duì)吧？”

“哦，是的?！?/p>

“好極了，因?yàn)橐院笪乙坏┩浤憬惺裁疵?，我就總能下到一樓這兒看一看、查一查?，F(xiàn)在，幾乎每天我仍然這樣做，下來看看、查查馬爾霍蘭先生，還有什么先生——什么先生來著？”

“坦普爾，”比利回答?！案窭赘昀铩ぬ蛊諣?。我問一個(gè)問題，請(qǐng)?jiān)彙Ｔ谧罱鼉扇陜?nèi)，除了他們兩個(gè)人，就沒有任何其他客人嗎？”

她一只手高高地舉起茶杯，把頭稍微向左歪了一下，隨即抬起頭，從眼角處看著他，又一次沖著他輕柔地微笑一下。

“沒有，我親愛的孩子，”她說。“除了你。”

第二節(jié) 《不應(yīng)老去》They Shall not Grow Old

羅爾德·達(dá)爾的《不應(yīng)老去》（They Shall not Grow Old）收錄在《羅爾德·達(dá)爾短篇故事集錦》（The Collected Short Stories of Roald Dahl）、《向你飛躍》（Over to You）、《精彩飛行故事集》（Great Flying Stories）以及《五部暢銷書集》（5 Bestsellers）等書中。

有意思的是，達(dá)爾這篇戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)題材短篇小說中的一個(gè)人物“斯塔格”（Stag）跟他另外一篇小說《大兵“救美”》（Madame Rosette）中一個(gè)同樣叫這個(gè)名字的人物“如出一轍”，這說明作家羅爾德·達(dá)爾擅長(zhǎng)對(duì)人物素材加以循環(huán)利用，類似的現(xiàn)象在莫言——中國(guó)獲諾貝爾文學(xué)獎(jiǎng)第一人的短篇小說中也有所體現(xiàn)。

一、原作導(dǎo)讀

這篇故事是以第一人稱“我”的視角展開的，但敘述者“我”是“隱身”的，起到了“紐帶”或者“橋梁”的作用，可以看成作家達(dá)爾本人的化身。

第二次世界大戰(zhàn)期間，某一天中午艷陽(yáng)高照，熱浪如同火堆在眼前燃燒。當(dāng)時(shí)，“我”和斯塔格都是英國(guó)皇家空軍的飛行員，與維希法國(guó)傀儡政府軍交戰(zhàn)。小說開始的時(shí)候，我們倆正焦急地等待另一名隊(duì)友芬恩返航。兩個(gè)半小時(shí)前，芬恩接到命令起飛，去偵查敵軍船艦的動(dòng)向，但到現(xiàn)在還沒有飛回。等待過程中，我們談起了芬恩的女朋友尼基，她在海法的一個(gè)場(chǎng)所表演卡巴萊歌舞。左等右等都不見芬恩的身影，于是，“我”知道他肯定是遇難了——不是燃油耗盡，就是被敵方擊落。

兩天后，空軍基地上空傳來飛機(jī)的轟鳴聲。飛機(jī)著陸后大家驚奇地發(fā)現(xiàn)，那是芬恩和他駕駛的戰(zhàn)機(jī)。驚奇之余，大家都問他去了哪里。聽到這句問話，他倒是大吃一驚，以為戰(zhàn)友們跟自己開玩笑呢，于是不斷聲稱自己只不過離開了一小時(shí)零五分鐘而已。到指揮官那里匯報(bào)完情況后，芬恩才意識(shí)到問題的嚴(yán)重性：自己真的離開了兩天時(shí)間，但又解釋不清楚到底發(fā)生了什么。至此，他才感到惶恐不安。戰(zhàn)友們沒有再逼迫他，而是決定給他一些時(shí)間，讓他慢慢回憶。

一周后，我們飛行中隊(duì)外出執(zhí)行任務(wù)，轟炸敵機(jī)。戰(zhàn)斗中，一個(gè)名叫帕迪的隊(duì)友駕駛的颶風(fēng)戰(zhàn)機(jī)被擊中，帕迪身亡。就在此時(shí)，無線電里傳來芬恩跟另一名隊(duì)友蒙凱的對(duì)話：

“我記起來了。嗨，蒙凱，我記起來了?！泵蓜P緩慢而鎮(zhèn)定地回答：“好的，芬恩，好的。一定要記住?！?/p>

“I've remembered it．Hello，Monkey，I've remembered it all，”and Monkey's calm slow reply，“OK Fin，OK；don't forget it．”

返回基地后，芬恩完全恢復(fù)了記憶，講述了自己的遭遇。正在執(zhí)行飛行任務(wù)的過程中，他突然連人帶機(jī)陷入一層厚厚的迷霧之中。無論怎么做，都無法擺脫，沮喪之中他被迫降低飛行高度，以甩開迷霧。降到了不能再降低的程度，迷霧依然籠罩，無法脫身。此時(shí)，他頓時(shí)感覺下方什么都沒有——沒有海洋，沒有大地，沒有任何東西存在。于是，他任由飛機(jī)繼續(xù)俯沖……突然之間，

“我一下子鉆出了云層，速度之快猝不及防，來不及眨眼，頓時(shí)我什么都看不見了。在身陷云霧和云開霧散之間，沒有了時(shí)間的界限：一瞬間，我身陷云層，濃密的白霧圍繞左右，可就在同一瞬間，我又鉆了出來，光線如此明亮，刺得雙眼什么都看不見。我瞇起眼睛，緊緊地閉上，閉了好幾秒鐘的時(shí)間?！?/p>

“I came out of the cloud so suddenly and so quickly that I was blinded．There was no space of time between being in it and being out of it．One moment I was in it and the whiteness was thick around me and in that same moment I was out of it and the light was so bright that I was blinded．I screwed up my eyes and held them tight closed for several seconds．”

接下來，他看到地平線處有一列飛機(jī)在飛行——各種型號(hào)的飛機(jī)都有?？粗@些飛機(jī)和里面的乘員，不知怎么的，他恍然大悟——“里面坐著的都是一些在戰(zhàn)斗中死去的飛行員和機(jī)務(wù)人員?，F(xiàn)在，他們乘坐自己的飛機(jī)做最后的飛行，飛完最后的旅程”（…these were the pilots and air crews who had been killed in battle，who now，in their own aircraft were making their last flight，their last journey）。而他自己的飛機(jī)則被一股巨大的旋渦拉起、吸走，直奔那些飛機(jī)而去，跟著那些飛機(jī)自動(dòng)飛行，任憑怎么操縱也控制不了。那些飛機(jī)里的飛行員向他招手，他也向他們揮手示意，他感到開心無比。

他記不清到底跟著他們飛了多久，最終，那列飛機(jī)開始下滑、轉(zhuǎn)向，要降落到下方那片平原上——“那片平原碧綠、平滑、美麗，一直延伸到很遠(yuǎn)的地平線邊緣，在那里，藍(lán)藍(lán)的天空與綠綠的平原融合到了一起”（It was green and smooth and beautiful；it reached to the far edges of the horizon where the blue of the sky came down and merged with the green of the plain）。那些飛機(jī)一個(gè)接著一個(gè)在那片平原上降落，他也試圖讓自己的飛機(jī)降落，但是飛機(jī)就是不聽使喚，一個(gè)勁兒向前飛去……他只是無精打采地坐在駕駛艙里，似乎進(jìn)入了夢(mèng)鄉(xiāng)，夢(mèng)見了……

“緊接著，我就回到這里。一著陸，你們大家都奔了過來，擠到我周圍，問我這兩天去哪里了，但是，我當(dāng)時(shí)什么都記不得了。除了飛到貝魯特港這件事，我當(dāng)時(shí)什么都不記得了。就在剛才，我看到帕迪被擊中，他的飛機(jī)墜落地面時(shí)，我對(duì)自己說道：‘你是個(gè)幸運(yùn)的混蛋。你這個(gè)混蛋真幸運(yùn)，真幸運(yùn)啊?！f完這話，我也就明白自己為什么這么說，也就記起了一切。一記起來，我就通過無線電沖著你們呼喊來著。那時(shí)候，我什么都記起來了?！?/p>

“Then I came back here．When I landed，you all crowded around me and asked me where I had been for two days，but I could remember nothing．I did not remember anything except the flight to Beyrouth until just now，when I saw Paddy being shot down．As his machine hit the ground，I found myself saying，‘You lucky bastard．You lucky，lucky bastard，’ and as I said it，I knew why I was saying it and remembered everything．That was when I shouted to you over the radio．That was when I remembered．”

聽完芬恩的講述，整個(gè)中隊(duì)恢復(fù)了正常，但陷入了沉默，沒有誰再提起這件事兒。戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)就要接近尾聲了，在最后一次戰(zhàn)斗中，“我”看見芬恩的飛機(jī)被擊中、著火，通過無線電喊叫，要他跳傘。芬恩回應(yīng)說，那不是件容易的事，兩只胳膊受傷了，無法解開安全帶。眼看著芬恩的飛機(jī)扎向大海，“我”聽見無線電里傳來芬恩的聲音——清晰而緩慢：

“我是個(gè)幸運(yùn)的混蛋，”他當(dāng)時(shí)這樣說道?！拔疫@個(gè)混蛋真幸運(yùn)，真幸運(yùn)啊?！?/p>

“I'm a lucky bastard，”he was saying．“A lucky，lucky bastard．”

二、原作釋讀

這部小說集現(xiàn)實(shí)和夢(mèng)幻為一體，但結(jié)構(gòu)的安排并不復(fù)雜，雖然在某些方面有點(diǎn)兒“意識(shí)流動(dòng)”的成分，但閱讀起來，難度不大。

They Shall not Grow Old

The two of us sat outside the hangar on wooden boxes．

It was noon．The sun was high and the heat of the sun was like a close fire．It was hotter than hell out there by the hangar．We could feel the hot air touching the inside of our lungs when we breathed and we found it better if we almost closed our lips and breathed in quickly；it was cooler that way．The sun was upon our shoulders and upon our backs，and all the time the sweat seeped out from our skin，trickled down our necks，over our chests and down our stomachs．It collected just where our belts were tight around the tops of our trousers and it filtered under the tightness of our belts where the wet was very uncomfortable and made prickly heat on the skin．

Our two Hurricanes were standing a few yards away，each with that patient，smug look which fighter planes have when the engine is not turning，and beyond them the thin black strip of the runway sloped down towards the beaches and towards the sea．The black surface of the runway and the white grassy sand on the sides of the runway shimmered and shimmered in the sun．The heat haze hung like a vapour over the aerodrome．

The Stag looked at his watch．

“He ought to be back，”he said．

The two of us were on readiness，sitting there for orders to take off．The Stag moved his feet on the hot ground．

“He ought to be back，”he said．

It was two and a half hours since Fin had gone and he certainly should have come back by now．I looked up into the sky and listened．There was the noise of airmen talking beside the petrol wagon and there was the faint pounding of the sea upon the beaches；but there was no sign of an aeroplane．We sat a little while longer without speaking．

“It looks as though he's had it，”I said．

“Yep，”said the Stag．“It looks like it．”

The Stag got up and put his hands into the pockets of his khaki shorts．I got up too．We stood looking northwards into the clear sky，and we shifted our feet on the ground because of the softness of the tar and because of the heat．

“What was the name of that girl？”said the Stag without turning his head．

“Nikki，”I answered．

The Stag sat down again on his wooden box，still with his hands in his pockets and he looked down at the ground between his feet．The Stag was the oldest pilot in the squadron；he was twenty-seven．He had a mass of coarse ginger hair which he never brushed．His face was pale，even after all this time in the sun，and covered with freckles．His mouth was wide and tight closed．He was not tall but his shoulders under his khaki shirt were broad and thick like those of a wrestler．He was a quiet person．

“He'll probably be all right，”he said，looking up．“And anyway，I'd like to meet the Vichy Frenchman who can get Fin．”

We were in Palestine fighting the Vichy French in Syria．We were at Haifa，and three hours before the Stag，F(xiàn)in and I had gone on readiness．Fin had flown off in response to an urgent call from the Navy，who had phoned up and said that there were two French destroyers moving out of Beyrouth harbour．Please go at once and see where they are going，said the Navy．Just fly up the coast and have a look and come back quickly and tell us where they are going．

So Fin had flown off in his Hurricane．The time had gone by and he had not returned．We knew that there was no longer much hope．If he hadn't been shot down，he would have run out of petrol some time ago．

I looked down and I saw his blue RAF cap which was lying on the ground where he had thrown it as he ran to his aircraft，and I saw the oil stains on top of the cap and the shabby bent peak．It was difficult now to believe that he had gone．He had been in Egypt，in Libya and in Greece．On the aerodrome and in the mess we had had him with us all of the time．He was gay and tall and full of laughter，this Fin，with black hair and a long straight nose which he used to stroke up and down with the tip of his finger．He had a way of listening to you while you were telling a story，leaning back in his chair with his face to the ceiling but with his eyes looking down on the ground，and it was only last night at supper that he had suddenly said，“You know，I wouldn't mind marrying Nikki．I think she's a good girl．”

The Stag was sitting opposite him at the time，eating baked beans．

“You mean just occasionally，”he said．

Nikki was in a cabaret in Haifa．

“No，”said Fin．“Cabaret girls make fine wives．They are never unfaithful．There is no novelty for them in being unfaithful；that would be like going back to the old job．”

The Stag had looked up from his beans．“Don't be such a bloody fool，”he said．“You wouldn't really marry Nikki．”

“Nikki，”said Fin with great seriousness，“comes of a fine family．She is a good girl．She never uses a pillow when she sleeps．Do you know why she never uses a pillow when she sleeps？”

“No．”

The others at the table were listening now．Everyone was listening to Fin talking about Nikki．

“Well，when she was very young she was engaged to be married to an officer in the French Navy．She loved him greatly．Then one day when they were sunbathing together on the beach he happened to mention to her that he never used a pillow when he slept．It was just one of those little things which people say to each other for the sake of conversation．But Nikki never forgot it．From that time onwards she began to practise sleeping without a pillow．One day the French officer was run over by a truck and killed；but although to her it was very uncomfortable，she still went on sleeping without a pillow to preserve the memory of her lover．”

Fin took a mouthful of beans and chewed them slowly．“It is a sad story，”he said．“It shows that she is a good girl．I think I would like to marry her．”

That was what Fin had said last night at supper．Now he was gone and I wondered what little thing Nikki would do in his memory．

The sun was hot on my back and I turned instinctively in order to take the heat upon the other side of my body．As I turned，I saw Carmel and the town of Haifa．I saw the steep pale-green slope of the mountain as it dropped down towards the sea，and below it I saw the town and the bright colours of the houses shining in the sun．The houses with their white-washed walls covered the sides of Carmel and the red roofs of the houses were like a rash on the face of the mountain．

Walking slowly towards us from the grey corrugated iron hangar，came the three men who were the next crew on readiness．They had their yellow Mae Wests slung over their shoulders and they came walking slowly towards us，holding their helmets in their hands as they came．

When they were close，the Stag said，“Fin's had it，”and they said，“Yes，we know．”They sat down on the wooden boxes which we had been using，and immediately the sun was upon their shoulders and upon their backs and they began to sweat．The Stag and I walked away．

The next day was a Sunday and in the morning we flew up the Lebanon valley to ground-strafe an aerodrome called Rayak．We flew past Hermon who had a hat of snow upon his head，and we came down out of the sun on to Rayak and on to the French bombers on the aerodrome and began our strafing．I remember that as we flew past，skimming low over the ground，the doors of the French bombers opened．I remember seeing a whole lot of women in white dresses running out across the aerodrome；I remember particularly their white dresses．

You see，it was a Sunday and the French pilots had asked their ladies out from Beyrouth to look over the bombers．The Vichy pilots had said，come out on Sunday morning and we will show you our aeroplanes．It was a very Vichy French thing for them to do．

So when we started shooting，they all tumbled out and began to run across the aerodrome in their white Sunday dresses．

I remember hearing Monkey's voice over the radio，saying，“Give them a chance，give them a chance，”and the whole squadron wheeled around and circled the aerodrome once while the women ran over the grass in every direction．One of them stumbled and fell twice and one of them was limping and being helped by a man，but we gave them time．I remember watching the small bright flashes of a machine gun on the ground and thinking that they should at least have stopped their shooting while we were waiting for their white-dressed women to get out of the way．

That was the day after Fin had gone．The next day the Stag and I sat once more at readiness on the wooden boxes outside the hangar．Paddy，a big fair-haired boy，had taken Fin's place and was sitting with us．

It was noon．The sun was high and the heat of the sun was like a close fire．The sweat ran down our necks，down inside our shirts，over our chests and stomachs，and we sat there waiting for the time when we would be relieved．The Stag was sewing the strap on to his helmet with a needle and cotton and telling of how he had seen Nikki the night before in Haifa and of how he had told her about Fin．

Suddenly we heard the noise of an aeroplane．The Stag stopped his talking and we all looked up．The noise was coming from the north，and it grew louder and louder as the aeroplane flew closer，and then the Stag said suddenly，“It's a Hurricane．”

The next moment it was circling the aerodrome，lowering its wheels to land．

“Who is it？”said the fair-haired Paddy．“No one's gone out this morning．”

Then，as it glided past us on to the runway，we saw the number on the tail of the machine，H.4427，and we knew that it was Fin．

We were standing up now，watching the machine as it taxied towards us，and when it came up close and swung round for parking we saw Fin in the cockpit．He waved his hand at us，grinned and got out．We ran up and shouted at him，“Where've you been？”“Where in the hell have you been？“Did you force-land and get away again？”“Did you find a woman in Beyrouth？”“Fin，where in the hell have you been？”

Others were coming up and crowding around him now，fitters and riggers and the men who drove the fire tender，and they all waited to hear what Fin would say．He stood there pulling off his helmet，pushing back his black hair with his hand，and he was so astonished at our behaviour that at first he merely looked at us and did not speak．Then he laughed and he said，“What in the hell's the matter？What's the matter with all of you？”

“Where have you been？”we shouted．“Where have you been for two days？”

Upon the face of Fin there was a great and enormous astonishment．He looked quickly at his watch．

“Five past twelve，”he said．“I left at eleven，one hour and five minutes ago．Don't be a lot of damn fools．I must go and report quickly．The Navy will want to know that those destroyers are still in the harbour at Beyrouth．”

He started to walk away；I caught his arm．

“Fin，”I said quietly，“you've been away since the day before yesterday．What's the matter with you？”

He looked at me and laughed．

“I've seen you organize much better jokes than this one，”he said．“It isn't so funny．It isn't a bit funny．”And he walked away．

We stood there，the Stag，Paddy and I，the fitters，the riggers and the men who drove the fire-engine，watching Fin as he walked away．We looked at each other，not knowing what to say or to think，understanding nothing，knowing nothing except that Fin had been serious when he spoke and that what he said he had believed to be true．We knew this because we knew Fin，and we knew it because when one has been together as we had been together，then there is never any doubting of anything that anyone says when he is talking about his flying；there can only be a doubting of one's self．These men were doubting themselves，standing there in the sun doubting themselves，and the Stag was standing by the wing of Fin's machine peeling off with his fingers little flakes of paint which had dried up and cracked in the sun．

Someone said，“Well，I'll be buggered，”and the men turned and started to walk quietly back to their jobs．The next three pilots on readiness came walking slowly towards us from the grey corrugated-iron hangar，walking slowly under the heat of the sun and swinging their helmets in their hands as they came．The Stag，Paddy and I walked over to the pilots' mess to have a drink and lunch．

The mess was a small white wooden building with a verandah．Inside there were two rooms，one a sitting room with armchairs and magazines and a hole in the wall through which you could buy drinks，and the other a dining room with one long wooden table．In the sitting room we found Fin talking to Monkey，our CO．The other pilots were sitting around listening and everybody was drinking beer．We knew that it was really a serious business in spite of the beer and the armchairs；that Monkey was doing what he had to do and doing it in the only way possible．Monkey was a rare man，tall with a handsome face，an Italian bullet wound in his leg and a casual friendly efficiency．He never laughed out loud，he just choked and grunted deep in his throat．

Fin was saying，“You must go easy，Monkey；you must help me to stop thinking that I've gone mad．”

Fin was being serious and sensible，but he was worried as hell．

“I have told you all I know，”he said．“That I took off at eleven o'clock，that I climbed up high，that I flew to Beyrouth，saw the two French destroyers and came back，landing at five past twelve．I swear to you that that is all I know．”

He looked around at us，at the Stag and me，at Paddy and Johnny and the half-dozen other pilots in the room，and we smiled at him and nodded to show him that we were with him，not against him，and that we believed what he said．

Monkey said，“What in the hell am I going to say to Headquarters at Jerusalem？I reported you missing．Now I've got to report your return．They'll insist on knowing where you've been．”

The whole thing was getting to be too much for Fin．He was sitting upright，tapping with the fingers of his left hand on the leather arm of his chair，tapping with quick sharp taps，leaning forward，thinking，thinking，fighting to think，tapping on the arm of the chair and then he began tapping the floor with his foot as well．

The Stag could stand it no longer．

“Monkey，”he said，“Monkey，let's just leave it all for a bit．Let's leave it and perhaps Fin will remember something later on．”

Paddy，who was sitting on the arm of the Stag's chair，said，“Yes，and meanwhile we could tell HQ that Fin had force-landed in a field in Syria，taken two days to repair his aircraft，then flown home．”

Everybody was helping Fin．The pilots were all helping him．In the mind of each of us was the certain knowledge that here was something that concerned us greatly．Fin knew it，although that was all he knew，and the others knew it because one could see it upon their faces．There was a tension，a fine high-drawn tension in the room，because here for the first time was something which was neither bullets nor fire nor the coughing of an engine nor burst tyres nor blood in the cockpit nor yesterday nor today，nor even tomorrow．Monkey felt it too，and he said，“Yes，let's have another drink and leave it for a bit．I'll tell HQ that you force-landed in Syria and managed to get off again later．”

We had some more beer and went in to lunch．Monkey ordered bottles of Palestine white wine with the meal to celebrate Fin's return．

After that no one mentioned the thing at all；we did not even talk about it when Fin wasn't there．But each one of us continued to think about it secretly，knowing for certain that it was something important and that it was not finished．The tension spread quickly through the squadron and it was with all the pilots．

Meanwhile the days went by and the sun shone upon the aerodrome and upon the aircraft and Fin took his place among us flying in the normal way．

Then one day，I think it was about a week later，we did another ground-strafe of Rayak aerodrome．There were six of us，with Monkey leading and Fin flying on his starboard side．We came in low over Rayak and there was plenty of light flak，and as we went in on the first run，Paddy's machine was hit．As we wheeled for the second run we saw his Hurricane wing gently over and dive straight to the ground at the edge of the aerodrome．There was a great billow of white smoke as it hit，then the flames，and as the flames spread the smoke turned from white to black and Paddy was with it．Immediately there was a crackle over the radio and I heard Fin's voice，very excited，shouting into his microphone，shouting，“I've remembered it．Hello，Monkey，I've remembered it all，”and Monkey's calm slow reply，“OK Fin，OK；don't forget it．”

We did our second run and then Monkey led us quickly away，weaving in and out of the valleys，with the bare grey brown hills far above us on either side，and all the way home，all through the half-hour's flight，F(xiàn)in never stopped shouting over the RT．First he would call to Monkey and say，“Hello，Monkey，I've remembered it，all of it；every bit of it．”Then he would say，“Hello，Stag，I've remembered it，all of it；I can't forget it now．”He called me and he called Johnny and he called Wishful；he called us all separately over and over again，and he was so excited that sometimes he shouted too loudly into his mike and we could not hear what he was saying．

When we landed，we dispersed our aircraft and because Fin for some reason had to park his at the far side of the aerodrome，the rest of us were in the Operations room before him．

The Ops room was beside the hangar．It was a bare place with a large table in the middle of the floor on which there was a map of the area．There was another smaller table with a couple of telephones，a few wooden chairs and benches and at one end the floor was stacked with Mae Wests，parachutes and helmets．We were standing there taking off our flying clothing and throwing it on to the floor at the end of the room when Fin arrived．He came quickly into the doorway and stopped．His black hair was standing up straight and untidy because of the way in which he had pulled off his helmet；his face was shiny with sweat and his khaki shirt was dark and wet．His mouth was open and he was breathing quickly，He looked as though he had been running．He looked like a child who had rushed downstairs into a room full of grown-ups to say that the cat has had kittens in the nursery and who does not know how to begin．

We had all heard him coming because that was what we had been waiting for．Everyone stopped what they were doing and stood still，looking at Fin．

Monkey said，“Hello Fin，”and Fin said，“Monkey，you've got to believe this because it's what happened．”

Monkey was standing over by the table with the telephones；the Stag was near him，square short ginger-haired Stag，standing up straight，holding a Mae West in his hand，looking at Fin．The others were at the far end of the room．When Fin spoke，they began to move up quietly until they were closer to him，until they reached the edge of the big map table which they touched with their hands．There they stood，looking at Fin，waiting for him to begin．

He started at once，talking quickly，then calming down and talking more slowly as he got into his story．He told everything，standing there by the door of the Ops room，with his yellow Mae West still on him and with his helmet and oxygen mask in his hand．The others stayed where they were and listened，and as I listened to him，I forgot that it was Fin speaking and that we were in the Ops room at Haifa；I forgot everything and went with him on his journey，and did not come back until he had finished．

“I was flying at about twenty thousand，”he said．“I flew over Tyre and Sidon and over the Damour River and then I flew inland over the Lebanon hills，because I intended to approach Beyrouth from the east．Suddenly I flew into cloud，thick white cloud which was so thick and dense that I could see nothing except the inside of my cockpit．I couldn't understand it，because a moment before everything had been clear and blue and there had been no cloud anywhere．”

“I started to lose height to get out of the cloud and I went down and down and still I was in it．I knew that I must not go too low because of the hills，but at six thousand the cloud was still around me．It was so thick that I could see nothing，not even the nose of my machine nor the wings，and the cloud condensed on the windshield and little rivers of water ran down the glass and got blown away by the slipstream．I have never seen cloud like that before．It was thick and white right up to the edges of the cockpit．I felt like a man on a magic carpet，sitting there alone in this little glass-topped cockpit，with no wings，no tail，no engine and no aeroplane．”

“I knew that I must get out of this cloud，so I turned and flew west over the sea away from the mountains；then I came down low by my altimeter．I came down to five hundred feet，four hundred，three hundred，two hundred，one hundred，and the cloud was still around me．For a moment I paused．I knew that it was unsafe to go lower．Then，quite suddenly，like a gust of wind，came the feeling that there was nothing below me；no sea nor earth nor anything else and slowly，deliberately，I opened the throttle，pushed the stick hard forward and dived．”

“I did not watch the altimeter；I looked straight ahead through the windshield at the whiteness of the cloud and I went on diving．I sat there pressing the stick forward，keeping her in the dive，watching the vast clinging whiteness of the cloud and I never once wondered where I was going．I just went．”

“I do not know how long I sat there；it may have been minutes and it may have been hours；I know only that as I sat there and kept her diving，I was certain that what was below me was neither mountains nor rivers nor earth nor sea and I was not afraid．”

“Then I was blinded．It was like being half asleep in bed when someone turns on the light．”

“I came out of the cloud so suddenly and so quickly that I was blinded．There was no space of time between being in it and being out of it．One moment I was in it and the whiteness was thick around me and in that same moment I was out of it and the light was so bright that I was blinded．I screwed up my eyes and held them tight closed for several seconds．”

“When I opened them everything was blue，more blue than anything that I had ever seen．It was not a dark blue，nor was it a bright blue；it was a blue blue，a pure shining colour which I had never seen before and which I cannot describe．I looked around．I looked up above me and behind me．I sat up and peered below me through the glass of the cockpit and everywhere it was blue．It was bright and clear，like pleasant sunlight，but there was no sun．”

“Then I saw them．”

“Far ahead and above I saw a long thin line of aircraft flying across the sky．They were moving forward in a single black line，all at the same speed，all in the same direction，all close up，following one behind the other，and the line stretched across the sky as far as the eye could see．It was the way they moved ahead，the urgent way in which they pressed forward forward forward like ships sailing before a great wind，it was from this that I knew everything．I do not know why or how I knew it，but I knew as I looked at them that these were the pilots and air crews who had been killed in battle，who now，in their own aircraft were making their last flight，their last journey．”

“As I flew higher and closer I could recognize the machines themselves．I saw in that long procession nearly every type there was．I saw Lancasters and Dorniers，Halifaxes and Hurricanes，Messerschmitts，Spitfires，Stirlings，Savoia 79s，Junker 88s，Gladiators，Hampdens，Macchi 200s，Blenheims，F(xiàn)ocke Wulfs，Beaufighters，Swordfish and Heinkels．All these and many more I saw，and the moving line reached across the blue sky both to the one side and to the other until it faded from sight．”

“I was close to them now and I began to sense that I was being sucked towards them regardless of what I wished to do．There was a wind which took hold of my machine，blew it over and tossed it about like a leaf and I was pulled and sucked as by a giant vortex towards the other aeroplanes．There was nothing I could do for I was in the vortex and in the arms of the wind．This all happened very quickly，but I remember it clearly．I felt the pull of my aircraft becoming stronger；I was whisked forward faster and faster，and then suddenly I was flying in the procession itself，moving forward with the others，at the same speed and on the same course．Ahead of me，close enough for me to see the colour of the paint on its wings，was a Swordfish，an old Fleet Air Arm Swordfish．I could see the heads and helmets of the observer and the pilot as they sat in their cockpits，the one behind the other．Ahead of the Swordfish there was a Dornier，a Flying Pencil，and beyond the Dornier there were others which I could not recognize from where I was．”

“We flew on and on．I could not have turned and flown away even if I had wanted to．I do not know why，although it may have been something to do with the vortex and with the wind，but I knew that it was so．Moreover，I was not really flying my aircraft；it flew itself．There was no manoeuvring to reckon with，no speed，no height，no throttle，no stick，no nothing．Once I glanced down at my instruments and saw that they were all dead，just as they are when the machine is sitting on the ground．”

“So we flew on．I had no idea how fast we went．There was no sensation of speed and for all I know，it was a million miles an hour．Now I come to think of it，I never once during that time felt either hot or cold or hungry or thirsty；I felt none of those things．I felt no fear，because I knew nothing of which to be afraid．I felt no worry，because I could remember nothing or think of nothing about which to be worried．I felt no desire to do anything that I was not doing or to have anything that I did not have，because there was nothing that I wished to do and there was nothing that I wished to have．I felt only pleasure at being where I was，at seeing the wonderful light and the beautiful colour around me．Once I caught sight of my face in the cockpit mirror and I saw that I was smiling，smiling with my eyes and with my mouth，and when I looked away I knew that I was still smiling，simply because that was the way I felt．Once，the observer in the Swordfish ahead of me turned and waved his hand．I slid back the roof of my cockpit and waved back．I remember that even when I opened the cockpit，there was no rush of air and no rush of cold or heat，nor was there any pressure of the slipstream on my hand．Then I noticed that they were all waving at each other，like children on a roller-coaster and I turned and waved at the man in the Macchi behind me．”

“But there was something happening along the line．Far up in front I could see that the aeroplanes had changed course，were wheeling around to the left and losing height．The whole procession，as it reached a certain point，was banking around and gliding downwards in a wide，sweeping circle．Instinctively I glanced down over the cockpit，and there I saw spread out below me a vast green plain．It was green and smooth and beautiful；it reached to the far edges of the horizon where the blue of the sky came down and merged with the green of the plain．”

“And there was the light．Over to the left，far away in the distance was a bright white light，shining bright and without any colour．It was as though the sun，but something far bigger than the sun，something without shape or form whose light was bright but not blinding，was lying on the far edge of the green plain．The light spread outwards from a centre of brilliance and it spread far up into the sky and far out over the plain．When I saw it，I could not at first look away from it．I had no desire to go towards it，into it，and almost at once the desire and the longing became so intense that several times I tried to pull my aircraft out of the line and fly straight towards it；but it was not possible and I had to fly with the rest．”

“As they banked around and lost height I went with them，and we began to glide down towards the green plain below．Now that I was closer，I could see the great mass of aircraft upon the plain itself．They were everywhere，scattered over the ground like currants upon a green carpet．There were hundreds and hundreds of them，and each minute，each second almost，their numbers grew as those in front of me landed and taxied to a standstill．”

“Quickly we lost height．Soon I saw that the ones just in front of me were lowering their wheels and preparing to land．The Dornier next but one to me levelled off and touched down．Then the old Swordfish．The pilot turned a little to the left out of the way of the Dornier and landed beside him．I turned to the left of the Swordfish and levelled off．I looked out of the cockpit at the ground，judging the height，and I saw the green of the ground blurred as it rushed past me and below me．”

“I waited for my aircraft to sink and to touch down．It seemed to take a long time．‘Come on，’ I said．‘Come on，come on．’ I was only about six feet up，but she would not sink．‘Get down，’ I shouted，‘please get down．’ I began to panic．I became frightened．Suddenly I noticed that I was gaining speed．I cut all the switches but it made no difference．The aircraft was gathering speed，going faster and faster，and I looked around and saw behind me the long procession of aircraft dropping down out of the sky and sweeping in to land．I saw the mass of machines upon the ground，scattered far across the plain and away on one side I saw the light，that shining white light which shone so brightly over the great plain and to which I longed to go．I know that had I been able to land，I would have started to run towards that light the moment I got out of my aircraft．”

“And now I was flying away from it．My fear grew．As I flew faster and farther away，the fear took hold of me until soon I was fighting crazy mad，pulling at the stick，wrestling with the aeroplane，trying to turn it around，back towards the light．When I saw that it was impossible，I tried to kill myself．I really wanted to kill myself then．I tried to dive the aircraft into the ground，but it flew on straight．I tried to jump out of the cockpit，but there was a hand upon my shoulder which held me down．I tried to bang my head against the sides of the cockpit，but it made no difference and I sat there fighting with my machine and with everything until suddenly I noticed that I was in cloud．I was in the same thick white cloud as before；and I seemed to be climbing．I looked behind me，but the cloud had closed in all round．There was nothing now but this vast impenetrable whiteness．I began to feel sick and giddy．I did not care any longer what happened one way or the other，I just sat there limply，letting the machine fly on by itself．”

“It seemed a long time and I am sure that I sat there for many hours．I must have gone to sleep．As I slept，I dreamed．I dreamed not of the things that I had just seen，but of the things of my ordinary life，of the squadron，of Nikki and of the aerodrome here at Haifa．I dreamed that I was sitting at readiness outside the hangar with two others，that a request came from the Navy for someone to do a quick recce over Beyrouth；and because I was first up，I jumped into my Hurricane and went off．I dreamed that I passed over Tyre and Sidon and over the Damour River，climbing up to twenty thousand as I went．Then I turned inland over the Lebanon hills，swung around and approached Beyrouth from the east．I was above the town，peering over the side of the cockpit，looking for the harbour and trying to find the two French destroyers．Soon I saw them，saw them clearly，tied up close alongside each other by the wharf，and I banked around and dived for home as fast as I could．”

“The Navy's wrong，I thought to myself as I flew back．The destroyers are still in the harbour．I looked at my watch．An hour and a half．‘I've been quick，’ I said．‘They'll be pleased．’ I tried to call up on the radio to give the information，but I couldn't get through．”

“Then I came back here．When I landed，you all crowded around me and asked me where I had been for two days，but I could remember nothing．I did not remember anything except the flight to Beyrouth until just now，when I saw Paddy being shot down．As his machine hit the ground，I found myself saying，‘You lucky bastard．You lucky，lucky bastard，’ and as I said it，I knew why I was saying it and remembered everything．That was when I shouted to you over the radio．That was when I remembered．”

Fin had finished．No one had moved or said anything all the time that he had been talking．Now it was only Monkey who spoke．He shuffled his feet on the floor，turned and looked out of the window and said quietly，almost in a whisper，“Well，I'll be damned，”and the rest of us went slowly back to the business of taking off our flying clothing and stacking it in the corner of the room on the floor；all except the Stag，square short Stag，who stood there watching Fin as Fin walked slowly across the room to put away his clothing．

After Fin's story，the squadron returned to normal．The tension which had been with us for over a week，disappeared．The aerodrome was a happier place in which to be．But no one ever mentioned Fin's journey．We never once spoke about it together，not even when we got drunk in the evening at the Excelsior in Haifa．

The Syrian campaign was coming to an end．Everyone could see that it must finish soon，although the Vichy people were still fighting fiercely south of Beyrouth．We were still flying．We were flying a great deal over the fleet，which was bombarding the coast，for we had the job of protecting them from the Junker 88s which came over from Rhodes．It was on the last one of these flights over the fleet that Fin was killed．

We were flying high above the ships when the Ju-88s came over in force and there was a battle．We had only six Hurricanes in the air；there were many of the Junkers and it was a good fight．I do not remember much about what went on at the time．One never does．But I remember that it was a hectic，chasing fight，with the Junkers diving for the ships，with the ships barking at them，throwing up everything into the air so that the sky was full of white flowers which blossomed quickly and grew and blew away with the wind．I remember the German who blew up in mid-air，quickly，with just a white flash，so that where the bomber had been，there was nothing left except tiny little pieces falling slowly downwards．I remember the one that had its rear turret shot away，which flew along with the gunner hanging out of the tail by his straps，struggling to get back into the machine．I remember one，a brave one who stayed up above to fight us while the others went down to dive-bomb．I remember that we shot him up and I remember seeing him turn slowly over on to his back，pale green belly upwards like a dead fish，before finally he spun down．

And I remember Fin．

I was close to him when his aircraft caught fire．I could see the flames coming out of the nose of his machine and dancing over the engine cowling．There was black smoke coming from the exhaust of his Hurricane．

I flew up close and I called to him over the RT．“Hello，F(xiàn)in，”I called，“you'd better jump．”

His voice came back，calm and slow．“It's not so easy．”

“Jump，”I shouted，“jump quickly．”

I could see him sitting there under the glass roof of the cockpit．He looked towards me and shook his head．

“It's not so easy，”he answered．“I'm a bit shot up．My arms are shot up and I can't undo the straps．”

“Get out，”I shouted．“For God's sake，get out，”but he did not answer．For a moment his aircraft flew on，straight and level，then gently，like a dying eagle，it dipped a wing and dived towards the sea．I watched it as it went；I watched the thin trail of black smoke which it made across the sky，and as I watched，F(xiàn)in's voice came again over the radio，clear and slow．“I'm a lucky bastard，”he was saying．“A lucky，lucky bastard．”

三、翻譯探索

本篇小說的翻譯中，主要問題是一些涉及飛行的用語(yǔ)及表達(dá)的處理，要力求準(zhǔn)確。另外，為貼近目標(biāo)語(yǔ)——漢語(yǔ)的讀者，使他們獲得直觀的感受，一些英制的飛行速度和高度單位，在翻譯中統(tǒng)一轉(zhuǎn)化為公制的單位。這樣的處理，幾乎貫穿于本書的始終，算是翻譯上的一個(gè)“歸化”探索吧。

不應(yīng)老去

我們兩個(gè)人坐在機(jī)庫(kù)外面的木頭箱子上。

時(shí)值正午，艷陽(yáng)高照，熱浪如同火堆在眼前燃燒。外面靠近機(jī)庫(kù)的地方熱浪炙烤得更厲害，比地獄還熱。呼吸的時(shí)候，我們可以感覺到熱空氣鉆到了肺部。我們發(fā)現(xiàn)，要是雙唇處于近乎緊閉狀態(tài)，快速呼吸，會(huì)更好些，那樣也會(huì)感覺更涼爽一些。陽(yáng)光曬在我們的雙肩和后背，汗水沒有停歇過，始終從皮膚里往外滲，滲出后就沿著脖子流淌，淌過胸部，流向腹部，聚集到腰帶將褲子緊緊勒住的地方，然后在勒緊的地方慢慢往下滲透，弄得腰帶下面的部位濕漉漉的，很不舒服，那里的皮膚也起了疹子。

我們那兩架“颶風(fēng)”戰(zhàn)機(jī)立在幾米遠(yuǎn)的地方，看起來都有一副又耐心而又得意的樣子——只要引擎不旋轉(zhuǎn)，戰(zhàn)斗機(jī)都是這種模樣。在比兩架飛機(jī)遠(yuǎn)的地方，細(xì)窄的跑道如同黑色的帶子直指大海，向海灘延伸過去。跑道黑幽幽的表面，還有跑道兩邊似綠草般起伏不平的白色沙浪，在太陽(yáng)的照耀下，一閃一閃地發(fā)著微光。熱浪形成的薄霧就像一層水蒸氣，在機(jī)場(chǎng)上空懸浮著。

斯塔格看了眼手表。

“他應(yīng)該回來了?！彼f。

我們兩個(gè)處于待命狀態(tài)，坐在那兒等待指令，隨時(shí)起飛。斯塔格在炙熱的地面上蹭了蹭雙腳。

“他應(yīng)該回來了?！彼f。

芬恩飛走已經(jīng)兩個(gè)半小時(shí)了，現(xiàn)在也應(yīng)該回來了。我抬頭往天空中觀望，聽著動(dòng)靜，能夠聽到加油車旁邊空軍士兵交談的聲音，還能聽見海浪沖擊海岸發(fā)出的微弱聲音，但是，就是聽不到飛機(jī)飛來的聲響。我們彼此沒有交談，又稍微多坐了一會(huì)。

“看來，他似乎是遭遇不幸了。”我說。

“嗯，”斯塔格說?！翱磥硐癜　！?/p>

斯塔格站起身，雙手插進(jìn)卡其布短褲的褲兜里，我也隨即站了起來。我們兩個(gè)站立著，眼睛看向北部清澈的天空，不時(shí)地在地面上交換著雙腳的位置，因?yàn)榘赜吐访姹谎谉岬年?yáng)光烤得軟軟的。

“那個(gè)女孩子叫什么來著？”斯塔格頭也沒回地問道。

“尼基，”我回答。

斯塔格又坐到了他方才坐的木箱上，低頭看著兩腳之間的地面，但雙手并沒有從褲兜里拿出來。整個(gè)飛行中隊(duì)里，斯塔格年紀(jì)最大，已經(jīng)二十七了。他滿腦袋都是亂蓬蓬的姜黃色頭發(fā)，從未梳過。即使在陽(yáng)光底下曬了這么久，他臉也是蒼白的，上面雀斑點(diǎn)點(diǎn)。他寬寬的嘴巴緊緊閉著。他個(gè)頭不算高，但是，卡其布襯衫下的雙肩卻很寬闊，就像摔跤運(yùn)動(dòng)員的雙肩。他這個(gè)人少言寡語(yǔ)、不善言談。

“或許，他會(huì)平安無事的，”他抬起頭說道?！安还苁鞘裁礃拥慕Y(jié)果，我很想會(huì)一會(huì)膽敢惹芬恩的維希法國(guó)傀儡政府軍的那個(gè)家伙?！?/p>

當(dāng)時(shí)，我們?cè)诎屠账固古c盤踞在敘利亞的維希法國(guó)傀儡政府軍交戰(zhàn)。在以色列的海法港，我和芬恩先于斯塔格三個(gè)小時(shí)就進(jìn)入了備戰(zhàn)狀態(tài)。為響應(yīng)海軍部發(fā)來的一個(gè)緊急呼叫，芬恩就先起飛升空。當(dāng)時(shí)，海軍部打來電話，說有兩艘法國(guó)驅(qū)逐艦駛出了貝魯特港，要求立即起飛察看其動(dòng)向，還要求只需飛到海岸線上空察看一下，快速返回，告知其去向就可以了。

因此，芬恩就駕駛著他的那架颶風(fēng)升空。時(shí)間過去很久了，但他還沒有返回。我們知道，不會(huì)再有什么希望了。就算他未被擊落，在這之前，燃油也該耗盡了。

我低頭看去，看見了芬恩那頂皇家空軍軍帽，軍帽是在他奔向戰(zhàn)機(jī)時(shí)扔到地面上的。我還看見帽子上的油跡，還有那上面拱起的破舊帽舌。現(xiàn)在，很難相信他已經(jīng)離去。在埃及、利比亞、希臘，他都奮戰(zhàn)過。不管是在飛機(jī)場(chǎng)，還是在軍隊(duì)食堂，我們跟他始終形影不離。這個(gè)叫芬恩的伙計(jì)，一頭黑發(fā)，個(gè)子高高，很是快活，總是笑聲不斷。他長(zhǎng)了個(gè)又長(zhǎng)又直的鼻子，經(jīng)常用手指尖輕輕地、上下摸弄著鼻子。你一講故事，他就擺出一副聽你講話的姿態(tài)：身體在椅子上向后一靠，臉向上沖著天花板，雙眼卻向下看著地面。就在昨晚吃飯的時(shí)候，他突然說道：“聽著，娶尼基我不介意的。我想，她是個(gè)好姑娘?！?/p>

當(dāng)時(shí)，斯塔格坐在他對(duì)面，吃著炒豆。

“你是不是想說，那只是你一時(shí)的想法吧，”斯塔格說。

當(dāng)時(shí)，尼基在海法的一個(gè)場(chǎng)所表演卡巴萊歌舞。

“不，”芬恩說?！氨硌菘ò腿R歌舞的女孩子都是好妻子的料，永遠(yuǎn)都會(huì)忠心耿耿。對(duì)她們來說，朝三暮四沒有任何新鮮感可言，就等于枯燥地重操舊業(yè)?！?/p>

斯塔格吃著炒豆的同時(shí)，抬起了頭?！安灰盗税蛇蟮睦?，”他說?！澳悴粫?huì)真娶尼基吧?！?/p>

“尼基，”芬恩極其嚴(yán)肅地說，“出身名門，是大家閨秀，睡覺從來不枕枕頭。你知道為什么嗎？”

“不知道?！?/p>

現(xiàn)在，桌旁邊的其他人也來了興致，大家都聽著芬恩講尼基的事兒。

“嗯，這樣的。年輕時(shí)，她訂婚了，要嫁給一名法國(guó)海軍軍官。她非常愛他。有一天，他倆在海灘上一起曬太陽(yáng)，他湊巧跟她說，說他睡覺時(shí)從來不枕枕頭。那樣的話語(yǔ)，只是人們出于交談的目的隨便說說的一件小小的事情，但是，尼基卻銘記在心。從那時(shí)起，她就練習(xí)不枕枕頭睡覺。有一天，這名法國(guó)軍官被一輛卡車碾到底下，丟掉了性命?？墒?，不管多么不舒服，她睡覺時(shí)仍然不枕枕頭，以保留對(duì)自己心愛之人的一份記憶?！?/p>

芬恩將嘴塞滿炒豆，慢慢地嚼了起來?！斑@個(gè)故事很傷感，”他說，“但卻表明，她是個(gè)好女孩。我想，我愿意娶她為妻?！?/p>

這些話是芬恩昨天吃晚飯的時(shí)候說的?，F(xiàn)在，他已經(jīng)離開了，于是，我就尋思：尼基會(huì)做出什么樣的小事情來記住他呢。

太陽(yáng)灼燒著我的后背，我本能地轉(zhuǎn)身，好將熱量轉(zhuǎn)移到身體的另一側(cè)。轉(zhuǎn)身時(shí)，我看到了卡爾邁勒山以及海法鎮(zhèn)。卡爾邁勒山陡峭的淡綠色山坡伸向大海的懷抱，山下就是海法鎮(zhèn)，鎮(zhèn)上的房屋色彩鮮艷，在太陽(yáng)的照耀下，閃閃發(fā)光。這些房屋粉刷的墻壁遮住了卡爾邁勒山的山坡，紅色的屋頂就像卡爾邁勒山的臉上起的疹子。

下一批要進(jìn)入待命狀態(tài)的三名飛行員已經(jīng)走出機(jī)庫(kù)，慢慢地向我們這邊走來。機(jī)庫(kù)是用灰色波狀鐵搭建起來的。這三名飛行員肩上搭著救生背心，手里拎著頭盔，慢悠悠地朝我們這邊走來。

等到他們走近后，斯塔格說：“芬恩遇難了?！彼麄兟牶笠捕颊f：“是的，我們知道了?！闭f完，他們就在我們一直坐著的木頭箱子上坐下。幾乎與此同時(shí)，太陽(yáng)照到了他們的肩膀和后背，汗水也就開始流淌開來。我和斯塔格走開了。

第二天是星期天。早晨，我們飛到黎巴嫩山谷上空對(duì)那里的一座叫“瑞亞克”的機(jī)場(chǎng)進(jìn)行低空掃射。我們先飛過赫爾蒙山，山頂覆蓋著積雪。接著，我們從陽(yáng)光里向瑞亞克機(jī)場(chǎng)俯沖下去，飛到機(jī)場(chǎng)上法國(guó)轟炸機(jī)的上方就開始掃射。我記得，我們低空掠過地面的時(shí)候，法國(guó)轟炸機(jī)的機(jī)門打開了，我看見一大幫穿著白色衣服的婦女從里面跑出來，穿過機(jī)場(chǎng)。我記得特別清楚的就是她們所穿的白色衣服。

你瞧，當(dāng)時(shí)是星期天，維希法國(guó)傀儡政府軍的飛行員們邀請(qǐng)他們的妻子從貝魯特港趕來，參觀他們的轟炸機(jī)。這些飛行員說，星期天早晨過來吧，我們帶你們看看我們的飛機(jī)。這是維希法國(guó)傀儡政府軍當(dāng)時(shí)很典型的做法。

所以嘛，我們射擊時(shí)，她們身著周日盛裝，跌跌撞撞跑了出來，穿越機(jī)場(chǎng)四處奔散。我記得，當(dāng)時(shí)無線電里傳來蒙凱的聲音：“給她們留條活路，給她們留條活路?！庇谑牵麄€(gè)中隊(duì)調(diào)轉(zhuǎn)機(jī)頭，又一次盤旋到機(jī)場(chǎng)上空，好讓這些婦女越過草地，四下跑開。其中一個(gè)女子絆了腳，兩次跌倒。另一個(gè)則一瘸一拐的，一名男子前來攙扶。不管怎樣，我們給她們留出了時(shí)間。我記得，當(dāng)時(shí)看見地面一挺機(jī)關(guān)槍噴射出一陣陣細(xì)小、明亮的火焰，我就想，他們至少應(yīng)該歇一會(huì)兒，畢竟我們是在給那些女人機(jī)會(huì)，他們的那些穿著白衣服的女人，等待她們四下散開啊。

那是芬恩離開后第二天的事情了。緊接著的一天，我和斯塔格再次坐到機(jī)庫(kù)外的木箱子上待命。取代芬恩的是一個(gè)大塊頭的金發(fā)男子，名字叫帕迪，也跟我們坐在那兒待命。

時(shí)值正午，艷陽(yáng)高照，熱浪如同火堆在眼前燃燒。汗水順著脖子流淌，淌進(jìn)了襯衫，流到胸部和腹部。我們坐在那兒等待著，等著換班時(shí)間的到來。斯塔格正用針和棉線往頭盔上縫帶子，邊縫邊講頭天晚上在海法看到尼基的事情，他也跟尼基講了芬恩的事情。

突然之間，我們聽到了飛機(jī)的噪聲，斯塔格不再說話，我們也都抬頭看去。噪聲是從北面?zhèn)鱽淼?，隨著飛機(jī)飛得越來越近，噪聲也越來越大。接著，斯塔格說：“是架颶風(fēng)啊?！?/p>

緊接著，這架飛機(jī)盤旋于機(jī)場(chǎng)上空，放低輪子著陸了。

“誰呢？”帕迪問道?！敖裉煸绯繘]人起飛啊?！?/p>

飛機(jī)從我們身旁滑過、沖向跑道時(shí)，我們看清了機(jī)尾部的編號(hào)：H.4427。我們知道，那是芬恩的飛機(jī)。

現(xiàn)在，我們大家都站了起來，看著這架飛機(jī)慢慢地向我們這邊滑行。等到飛機(jī)滑到近前、掉頭停靠的時(shí)候，我們卻看到芬恩坐在駕駛艙里面，只見他的一只手沖我們揮舞，露出牙齒微笑著出了艙。我們跑到他跟前，沖著他大喊：“你去哪兒了？”“你究竟去哪兒了？”“是否迫降后又逃生了？”“你在貝魯特港找女人了嗎？”“芬恩，你到底去哪里了？”

現(xiàn)在，其他人也都跑了上來——有些是安裝工，有些是裝配工，還有些是開輔助救火車的——都擁擠到他的周圍，等著聽他會(huì)怎么說。只見芬恩站在那兒，脫掉頭盔，用手將頭發(fā)往后一攏?？吹轿覀兊囊慌e一動(dòng)后，他感到十分吃驚，以至于剛開始的時(shí)候，他只是看著我們，說不出話來。接下來，他大笑起來，問道：“到底出了什么事兒了？你們大家這都是怎么了??？”

“你去哪兒了？”我們大家喊道?！斑@兩天，你去哪兒了？”

聽到這話，芬恩的臉上露出了極其吃驚的表情，而且吃驚得不得了。他快速看了看手表。

“現(xiàn)在是十二點(diǎn)過五分，”他說?！拔沂鞘稽c(diǎn)離開的，也就是一小時(shí)零五分鐘以前離開的。你們大家伙不要像傻帽似的啊。我必須立刻去報(bào)告了。那幾艘驅(qū)逐艦仍然?？吭谪愻斕馗?，這個(gè)消息海軍部需要?！?/p>

說完，他就要走開，我一把拉住他的胳膊。

“芬恩，”我悄悄地說，“從前天起，你就不在了。出什么事兒了？”

他看了看我，大笑起來。

“你以前開的那些玩笑都比這個(gè)高明多了，”他說?！斑@個(gè)玩笑可不那么好笑啊，一點(diǎn)也不好笑?！闭f完，他走開了。

我們大家——我、斯塔格、帕迪、安裝工、裝配工，還有開輔助救火車的——都站在那兒，眼巴巴看著芬恩走遠(yuǎn)。然后，我們大家你看看我，我看看你，不知道該說什么，也不知道該怎么去想。我們大家什么都搞不清楚，也一無所知。我們只知道，芬恩的話不是在開玩笑，而且芬恩相信自己說的話沒有半點(diǎn)虛假。對(duì)此，我們很清楚，因?yàn)槲覀兞私夥叶鳌?duì)此，我們很清楚，因?yàn)橄裎覀冞@樣一些總在一起混的人，要是有誰談起飛行方面的事情，沒有誰會(huì)持任何懷疑態(tài)度的。要是有所懷疑的話，那么，只能是自己懷疑自己了。站在陽(yáng)光下的那些人就是在懷疑他們自己，懷疑他們自己的耳朵，斯塔格就是其中之一。只見他站在芬恩開的那架飛機(jī)的機(jī)翼旁邊，用手指將上面的油漆一小片、一小片往下剝落。油漆干透了，在陽(yáng)光的曝曬下，裂開了一道道紋路。

有人說：“哇噻，真是天方夜譚?！庇谑?，大家轉(zhuǎn)身散開，悄無聲息地回去工作了。下一批待命的三名飛行員已經(jīng)走出機(jī)庫(kù)，慢慢地向我們這邊走來。機(jī)庫(kù)是用灰色波狀鐵搭建起來的。他們?nèi)齻€(gè)頂著炎炎烈日，手里拎著頭盔，慢悠悠地朝我們這邊走來接替我們。于是，我、斯塔格以及帕迪就走進(jìn)飛行員食堂，先喝點(diǎn)東西，再吃午飯。

食堂是一座白色的、木結(jié)構(gòu)的小小建筑，外面帶一個(gè)陽(yáng)臺(tái)。再往里走，有兩間屋子：一間是客廳，里面擺放些扶手椅，還陳列了幾本雜志，墻上開了一個(gè)口，可以通過這個(gè)口買喝的；另一間是餐廳，里面擺了張長(zhǎng)長(zhǎng)的木桌子。在客廳，我們看見了芬恩，正在跟我們的指揮官蒙凱說話，其他幾名飛行員則坐在周圍聽著。大家喝的都是啤酒。我們清楚，盡管大家都坐在扶手椅上喝著啤酒，可是，這件事情卻非同小可，絕非兒戲。我們也清楚，蒙凱是在行使職權(quán)、盡職盡責(zé)、別無他法。蒙凱是個(gè)非凡之人，他個(gè)子高高的，長(zhǎng)了一張俊朗的臉，人很隨和、友好，辦事效率高。意大利兵的一顆子彈傷了他的一條腿。他從不出聲大笑，笑聲就在嗓子眼噎住，然后沉悶地發(fā)出來。

芬恩說：“蒙凱，你一定要放輕松些，你一定得幫幫我，不要讓我認(rèn)為我自己是一個(gè)瘋子?！?/p>

芬恩當(dāng)時(shí)很認(rèn)真、很審慎，但同時(shí)也很焦慮。

“我知道的一切，都告訴你了，”他說?！拔沂鞘稽c(diǎn)起飛的，然后爬升，飛到貝魯特港，看見了那兩艘法國(guó)驅(qū)逐艦后，就返回。著陸時(shí)間是十二點(diǎn)零五分。我向你發(fā)誓，我就知道這么多?！?/p>

他向四周看了看，看了看我們每一個(gè)人：看了看我，看了看斯塔格，看了看帕迪，看了看約翰尼，還看了看屋子里另外六名飛行員。我們大家沖著他微笑著、點(diǎn)著頭，那意思是向他表明：我們跟他站在一起，并無二心，相信他說的話。

蒙凱說：“我到底該向耶路撒冷的總部說些什么呢？我當(dāng)時(shí)報(bào)告說你失蹤了，現(xiàn)在卻要報(bào)告說你回來了?？偛磕沁呉欢〞?huì)調(diào)查，你到底去了哪里?！?/p>

芬恩快要受不住了。只見他筆直坐著，左手手指不斷敲著椅子的皮革扶手，敲的速度很快，發(fā)出尖銳的聲音。同時(shí)，身體前傾，腦子里在思來想去、思前想后，邊想邊用手指敲著椅子的扶手，一只腳也跟著一起敲打著地板。這時(shí)，斯塔格受不了了。

“蒙凱，”斯塔格說，“我說蒙凱，我們就把這事兒先放放。先放放，或許芬恩過后會(huì)記起點(diǎn)什么來的?！?/p>

一直坐在斯塔格椅子扶手上的帕迪也附和道：“是啊，至于總部那邊，我們可以這樣說，就說芬恩迫降到敘利亞的一片田野里，花了兩天時(shí)間修好了飛機(jī)，然后才返回。”

大家都幫著芬恩說話，所有飛行員都幫著芬恩說話。我們每個(gè)人心中都有某個(gè)想法，認(rèn)為這事與我們關(guān)系極大。芬恩了解這一點(diǎn)，盡管他能說出的就那么多。其他人也清楚這一點(diǎn)，因?yàn)檫@一點(diǎn)從他們的臉上看得出來。頓時(shí)，屋子里生出一種緊張的氣氛，而這種氣氛也令人越來越緊張，因?yàn)檫@里發(fā)生的事情與子彈無關(guān)，與戰(zhàn)火無關(guān)，與引擎發(fā)出的噪聲無關(guān)，與輪胎爆裂無關(guān)，與駕駛艙里的流血無關(guān)，與昨天無關(guān)，與今天無關(guān)，甚至與明天也無關(guān)——這樣的事情還是第一次發(fā)生。蒙凱也感覺到這一點(diǎn)了，于是，他說：“好吧，我們?cè)俸纫槐瑫簳r(shí)把這事兒放放。我會(huì)對(duì)總部說，你在敘利亞緊急迫降，后來又設(shè)法化險(xiǎn)為夷?！?/p>