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01-04-潘德尔的巫师 [7]

By 罗伊娜·艾金耶米 Rowena Akinyemi 1088 0
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  “我叫詹妮特,”我说。“我们要去里德宅院。我想和您谈谈。”
  罗杰·诺埃尔用他那双充满热情的棕色眼睛看了看我。“很好,”他说。”跟我一起回家吧,这样我们就可以谈谈了。”他把我举起来放到他的马上,马于是迅速地沿着大道向里德村行进。詹姆斯一路跑着跟在我们后面。
  很快,我们到达了里德宅院。先生的用人打开屋门,我们走进了十分暖和的房子。詹姆斯也进来了,他挨着我坐在炉火边。
  诺埃尔先生把他的黑帽子放在桌子上。“给孩子们拿点热饮和一些吃的来。”他吩咐用人说。“他们又冷又饿。”
  用人给我们拿来了面包和热牛奶,詹姆斯和我大吃起来。在诺埃尔先生家里,我感到既温暖又快乐。我希望一辈子呆在那儿;我再也不想回到马尔金塔去了。
  我们吃完了饭,诺埃尔先生不再看书,抬起头来。“你有事想对我说,”他轻声说。“好吧,我听着呢。”
  我站起身,穿过房间,站在诺埃尔先生面前。“我害怕我妈妈,”我开始说道。“我害怕,因为她是女巫,她能杀人。”
  房间里十分安静。诺埃尔先生什么也没说,但是他的棕色眼睛是友善的。
  “现在,我妈妈和她的朋友们正聚在马尔金塔,”我告诉他说。“他们想要去兰开斯特城堡杀死看守。他们打算把老德姆代克和艾丽森带回家。”
  诺埃尔先生站起身离开了房间。过了一些时候,他和他的两个朋友一起回来了。他们全都在桌前坐了下来。
  “詹妮特,我要你再对我说一遍有关你母亲和她朋友的事。”
  “他们想杀死兰开斯特城堡的看守,然后把老德姆代克带回马尔金塔。”我说。说完,我哭了。
  “别哭,”诺埃尔先生和蔼地说。“我们能帮助你,不过我们必须先和你哥哥谈谈。詹姆斯!”他喊了一声。“给我讲讲你母亲的事。她是女巫吗?”
  “她是女巫。我们都是巫师。”詹姆斯说。“老德姆代克是个女巫。一天夜里,她去了纽丘奇村的教堂,从那里的尸体上取下了一些牙齿。魔鬼和她对了话,随后她把牙齿带回了马尔金塔,它们就在我家大门旁的地下。”
  “老德姆代克是个女巫,这我们知道,”诺埃尔先生说。“把你母亲的事告诉我们。”
  “妈妈是女巫,”詹姆斯说。“她杀死了巴利村的鲁滨逊先生。她做了一个泥像,然后把它打碎,一星期后鲁滨逊先生死去了。”詹姆斯对诺埃尔先生微笑了一下。他喜欢诺埃尔先生,因为诺埃尔先生不冲着他大喊大叫。“还有,我也是个巫师!我能害死人!”
  “不,詹姆斯!”我喊道。“你不是巫师!你不杀人!”
  “不,我杀人。”詹姆斯生气地说。他的脸红了起来。“我的狗丹迪是魔鬼,它为我杀过一个人。有一次我想要一件衬衣,达克沃思先生准备把他的一件旧衬衣给我。可是最后他没有给我,我非常生气。我差点儿杀了他!不过我喊来了丹迪,它为我杀死了达克沃思先生!”
  我哭了起来。我的哥哥也是个巫师!我的全家都是巫师!
  “别哭,詹妮特,”诺埃尔先生说。“必须有人照顾你。你可以留在里德宅院,和我在一起。”
  诺埃尔先生手下的人把我妈妈带到了里德宅院,起初她一言不发。
  “把泥塑像的事告诉我们,”诺埃尔先生说。“我手下的人在马尔金塔找到了一些泥塑像。”
  我妈妈没有作声。
  “你的母亲老德姆代克是女巫。你的女儿是女巫,”诺埃尔先生说。“你的儿子为了一件衬衣杀死了达克沃思先生。现在把泥塑像的事告诉我们。”
  我妈妈什么也没说。
  “詹姆斯对我们讲了巴利村鲁滨逊先生的事,”诺埃尔先生说。“是你杀了他吗?”
  突然间,我妈妈的脸涨红了,她冲着詹姆斯大喊:“你真是个好儿子!你把巴利村杰克·鲁滨逊的事告诉了这个有钱人。是的,你说的完全属实。是我杀了他!我做了一个泥像,然后把它打碎,一星期后他就死了。我杀了他是因为我恨他。”
  她停下来看着我。我想跑开,可是诺埃尔先生的用人正站在门前。妈妈哈哈大笑着说:“詹妮特·迪瓦斯,巫师的女儿!我知道,你恨我们。嗯,这没什么,因为你是对的:你是不一样。你是我女儿,但你不是我丈夫的女儿。你的父亲是个有钱人,可他从来不给我钱。他管你叫巫师的孩子。从你一出生,他就再也没靠近过我。杰克·鲁滨逊得知你亲生父亲的真相后,便告诉了巴利村的居民们。他们说我是坏女人,却不说你父亲是一个坏男人!从那以后,在巴利村,再也没有人给我吃的了,这都是杰克·鲁滨逊造成的。我恨他,所以我杀了他!”
  房间里静悄悄的,我的妈妈又大笑起来。
  我的手冰凉冰凉,我的脸热辣辣。不过我没有哭。迪瓦斯先生去世时,我哭了好几天。然而他不是我父亲。我看着妈妈,看着她那肮脏的头发、丑陋的面容和愤怒的双眼。在那一刻,我真恨她,许多年来我一直恨她。


■ 4 TRUTH AND LIES
  On the twenty-seventh day of April, the guards took my mother and James to Lancaster Castle, and my life at Read Hall began.Suddenly,it was spring.The sky was blue and there were beautiful flowers on the hills. From Read Hall,Pendle Hill looked different : it looked smaller, and it was not so important in my life.Sometimes I walked along Sabden Brook to Sabden, and then to Newchurch, and I felt happy to be near Pendle Hill again.But I never visited Malkin Tower again.
  Spring changed into summer,and in August I went to Lan-caster with Mr Nowell. Lancaster was thirty miles from Read Hall, and I got very tired because I sat on a horse for hours. It was a big, noisy town. I never saw so many people before in my life and I felt afraid.
  The trial of the witches of Pendle began at Lancaster Castle on the eighteenth day of August, and the judge was an impor-tant man from London.Judge Bromley listened to many people on that day, because there were a lot of witches from Lan-cashire in the prison.Old Demdike was not there because she died in May, before the judge arrived.
  I waited with Mr Nowell' s servant, and when a guard called my name, I went through a big door and saw the judge behind a table. Judge Bromley was rich and important, but his eyes were cold.Suddenly, I saw my mother! She was dirty and very thin.When she saw me,her face went red.My hair was clean now, and I wore shoes and an expensive dress. I saw my mother' s eyes: she hated me!
  'Are you a witch?'Judge Bromley asked my mother.
  'No, I 'm not,'my mother answered angrily.
  'Did you kill Jack Robinson,of Barley village?'
  ' No, I did not.'
  'Jennet Device is here,' a voice said quietly. It was Mr Nowell.'She can tell us the truth about her mother.'
  For a minute, my mother did not move. Then she ran across the room and shouted at me. 'You know nothing, you bad child! And I'm your mother!Don' t forget that!'
  The guards ran after my mother and pulled her to the floor.
  ' I'm no witch!'my mother shouted.' It' s all lies! Jennet,you' re a witch—a child of the Devil! You' re my daughter,and I know!'
  I was afraid and I put my hands over my eyes
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