'And your name? " asked Mr Bumble.
“你叫什么？”班布尔先生问。
'Monks,' replied the stranger, " but you don't need to remember it.' Then he quickly left the pub.
“蒙克斯”陌生人回，“但你无需记住我的名字。”便急匆匆出了酒馆。
The next evening was dark and cloudy; a storm threatened and already the first drops of rain were falling. Mr and Mrs Bumble walked up the main street of the town, then turned towards a group of ruined old houses next to the river. Mr Bumble went first, carrying a dim light, and his wife followed closely behind. At the oldest and most ruined building, they stopped and Mr Bumble took out his piece of paper. The first distant crash of thunder shook the air, and the rain began to pour down heavily. Then they heard Monks calling out of an upstairs window.
第二天晚上，天昏昏沉沉的，刮着大风，第一滴雨也已经落下来了。班布尔夫妇走在镇上的大街上，再沿着河边朝破败的旧房子方向走。班布尔先生提着盏微亮的灯走在前头，他妻子紧跟其后。他们在一幢最老旧都几近坍塌的房子前停了下来，班布尔先生拿出那张写着地址的纸。传来远处一声轰轰作响的惊雷，天空下起了大雨。接着就听到蒙克斯在二楼的窗口喊他们。
'Is that the man?, Mrs Bumble asked her husband.
“这是那个人吗？”班布尔夫人问她丈夫。
'Yes.'
“嗯”
'Then be careful to say as little as you can. Don't tell him I'm your wife.'
“那你尽量少开口说话。不许告诉他我是你妻子。”
Monks opened a small door, saying impatiently, 'Come in! Don't keep me waiting!'
蒙克斯开了扇小门，不耐烦地说：“快进来，我不想等！”
Mr Bumble was only brave when dealing with poor, helpless people. He felt very uneasy about entering this dark building with an ill-tempered stranger. However, he was equally afraid of his wife. Nervously, he followed her through the door.
班布尔先生只在穷困潦倒又无抵抗力的人前才趾高气昂。他对要进这间房内有个坏脾气陌生人的黑漆漆的房子心里就揣揣不安。但他同样怕他妻子。他焦虑不安地跟着她进了屋。
Inside, Monks stared at Mrs Bumble for some time. 'So this is the woman, is it?'
屋内，蒙克斯盯着班布尔太太看了会。“这便是那位妇人，对吗？”
'Yes,' replied Mr Bumble cautiously.
“是她”班布尔先生小心翼翼地说。
As they walked upstairs, there was a bright flash of lightning outside, followed by loud thunder. They sat down at the table and Monks started immediately.
他们上楼时，外面先是闪电后是打雷的。他们刚坐到桌前，蒙克斯就开口了。
'So you were present when the old woman died, is that right? And she told you something?' He stared at Mrs Bumble again.
“老护士死时，你在场，是吗？她跟你说了什么？”他再次盯着班布尔太太。
'Yes,' said Mrs Bumble. 'Something about the mother of Oiver Twist. But first, how much will you pay me for the information?'
“是的”班布尔太太说，“说了些奥利弗·特维斯特妈妈的事。但先说清楚，这些事你会付多少钱？”
'If it's what I want to hear ― twenty-five pounds,' said Monks. 'But it's a lot of money for something which has been lying dead for twelve years.' Reluctantly, he pushed the money across the table towards her, then bent forward to listen. The faces of the three nearly touched, as the two men leant over the table to hear what the woman had to say, and the woman leant over towards them so that they could hear her whisper. In the dim lamplight their faces looked pale and ghostly.
“若是我想要的 ― 25英镑”蒙克斯说，“但为了件都埋了12年的事，这可是比大钱。”蒙克斯不情不愿地把钱推到她面前，俯身听她说话。三张脸都快贴到一起了，两男人就趴在桌上听女人说话，女人就紧贴着他们好让他们听清她压低声音说的话。在微弱的灯光下，他们的脸看着跟死人一样白。
'The old woman who was the nurse died with only me in the room,' said Mrs Bumble.
“老护士死时，只有我在房内。”班布尔夫人说。
'No one else was there? asked Monks fiercely.
“没其他人在那了？”蒙克斯厉声问。
'No one.'
“是的。”
'Good,' said Monks. 'Go on.'
“好”蒙克斯说。“你接着说。”
'She spoke about a young woman who had given birth in the same bed some years before. The child was Oliver Twist. And this nurse had robbed the child's mother.'
“她说几年前有位年轻女子在那张床上生产过。孩子就是奥利弗·特维斯特。但这个护士偷了孩子母亲的东西。”
'Robbed in life?' asked Monks.
“生前偷的？”蒙克斯问。
'In death. She stole from the body when it was hardly cold. But the old woman fell back and died before she could tell me more.'
“死后偷的。她从还没冷透的尸体上偷的。但老护士还没来得及多说些，就跌回床上死了。”
'It's a lie!' shouted Monks furiously. 'You know more! I'll kill you both if you don't tell me what else she said.'
“骗人”蒙克斯勃然大怒。“你还知道别的。你要是不说她接下来的话，我就把你们都杀了。”
" She said no more,' repeated Mrs Bumble calmly, showing (unlike Mr Bumble)no fear of the strange man's violence. 'But in her hand I found a piece of dirty paper.
“她真没说了。”班布尔夫人不慌不乱地又说了遍，示意（吓坏的班布尔先生）不要怕陌生人的暴脾气。“但我在她手上发现张字迹模糊的纸。”
'Which contained ...?'
“上面写了什么？”
'Nothing. It was only a receipt from a pawnbroker. I went to the pawnbroker and got back a little gold locket. Inside was a gold wedding ring and on the locket itself, the name "Agnes".' She put the locket on the table in front of Monks.
“没什么，就是一张当铺的收据。我到过当铺，赎回个小金盒子。里面装着个金婚戒，盒子上刻的字是‘艾格尼丝’”。她将盒子放到蒙克斯面前。
He picked it up immediately and looked at it closely, his hands shaking. 'Is this all?'
他立马拿起盒子，静静地盯着，双手止不住地抖。“就这些？”
'It is. And now I want to ask you a question. What do you intend to do with the locket?'
“就这些。现在我想知道，你拿着盒子要做什么？”
'This. So it can never be used against me.' Monks suddenly pushed the table to one side and opened a small door in the floor. Down below rushed the river, its muddy waters swollen by the heavy rain.
“盒子。以后再也不能拿这来威胁我了。”蒙克斯突然把桌子推到一旁，开了地上一扇暗门。下面翻滚着的是暴雨后带着泥泞的浑水。
'If you threw a man's body down there, where would it be tomorrow?' asked Monks.
“要是丢个人进去的话，明天会到哪呢？”蒙克斯问。
'Twelve miles down the river and cut to pieces,' replied Mr Bumble shaky voice.
“河下游12英里远，人都会被撕成碎片了。”班布尔先生颤抖地说。
Monks tied the locket to a heavy weight and dropped it into the water. In a second, it was gone. The three of them looked into each other's faces and seemed to breathe more freely.
蒙克斯将盒子系在一个重物上，扔进水中了。一会儿，就被冲走了。三个人面面相觑，好像呼吸都顺畅些了。
'Now we have nothing more to say,' said Monks, with a threatening look at Mr Bumble.' And nothing to say to anyone else either. Do you understand?'
“现在我们没什么可谈的了。”蒙克斯边说边一脸凶相警告班布尔先生。“也不能和任何人提起这事。懂吗？”
'Certainly,' said Mr Bumble, very politely. He moved away from the strange man, anxious to leave quickly.
“好的”班布尔先生一板一眼说。 他从陌生人身边走开了，很快就不焦虑了。
At the door to the street, Monks turned again to Mr Bumble. 'And if we ever meet again, we don't know each other. Do you understand that as well?'
正要出门时，蒙克斯扭头对班布尔先生说：“要是我们以后碰到的话，我不认识你你也不认识我。懂吗？”
'Perfectly, ' said the relieved Mr Bumble, moving away into the rain and pulling his wife with him.
“明白”班布尔先生松了一口气般说，牵着他妻子就往雨里走。
更多译文：
PS:本书为牛津系列简易读物，由著名作家查理德·罗杰根据英国作家查尔斯·狄更斯的同名小说改写。
英文为书虫系列原文，译文是笔者翻译。本文仅因个人兴趣而译，故本文谢绝转载和各种商业用途，同时承诺若出现任何责任由作者承担，必要时简书可删除文章。
