-
简介
一个人有了隐私又不想让别人知道时，
我们就可以说他
“衣橱里有具骷髅”
。
大部分人都做过一些不光彩的事，卡罗尔·桑德斯也不例外。她有具“衣橱里的
骷髅”
，不管走到哪儿都摆脱不了。这使她越来越沮丧。当然，这件不光彩的事
正在慢慢地毁坏着她的生活。
后来她遇到一位更有隐私的人。<
/p>
他的隐私需要整个一个岛来遮掩。
也许最有
可能由卡罗尔发现他的隐私。
但是如果她想探明他的隐私，
他
会怎么样呢？他会
乐意把他的隐私告诉她吗？或者他会生气，
非
常生气吗？这全取决于他藏在锁着
的房间中的那具
“衣橱里的骷
髅”
究竟是什么——而卡罗尔要打开那扇锁着的门。
本书作
者约翰·
埃斯科特是一位经验丰富的作家，
现在英格兰南部的博
恩默
思生活和工作。
1 Coming to England
My
name is Carol Sanders
．
I
live in England now
，
but when
I was younger
，
I lived in
Hong Kong
．
My father
was a businessman there and my mother
worked as a secretary
．
We
lived in Hong
Kong for seven
years
．
I was happy at
school
，
with lots
of friends
，
and we had a good
time
．
I liked pop
music
—
the Rolling
Stones
，
David Bowie and Jake
Rosso were my favourites
．
Jake Rosso was my favourite
singer
．
He died
in a car accident the year I left
school
，
but I listened to his pop records all
the time
．
I had hundreds of
pictures and
photos of him on my
bedroom wall
．
Then one day in
winter when I was
seventeen
，
things began to go
wrong for
me
．
My
father went to Australia on
business
．
I loved him very
much and didn't like
him going
away
．
‘
Come home
quickly
，
’
I always
said to him
．
He was in
Australia for two weeks
．
Then
，
on the day of
his journey home
，
an
aeroplane from Sydney
crashed into the sea just south of Hong
Kong
．
Everybody on
the plane died
．
I
heard about the plane crash on
television
．
At
first
，
I did not
think about my
father
．
Then I
remembered he was flying back from Sydney on that
day
．
‘
Oh
，<
/p>
no
！
’
I
cried
．
I telephoned
the airport but they did not know the names of all
the passengers
then
．
‘
Perhaps my father didn't
get that plane
，
’
I
thought
．
‘
Oh
，
please
！
Please
！
’
My
mother
was
at
work
and
I
called
her
on
the
telephone
．
She
came
home
quickly
and we went to the airport and waited for
news
．
Later
，
we learned
my father was on the plane
．
‘
It's not
true
！
’
I
shouted
．
But it was
true
，
and I began
to cry
．
I cried for
weeks and weeks
．
I spent many
days alone in my room
．
I was
lonely
and sad and I wanted to die
，
too
．
I
stopped
going
out
with
my
friends
．
I
didn't
want
to
see
other
people
．
I
stopped
listening
to
Jake
Rosso's
records
，
and
took
his
pictures
off
my
bedroom
wall
．
I didn't listen to music or watch
television
．
Nothing mattered any
more
．
Then I stopped
crying
．
I stopped feeling sad
and began to feel angry
．
‘
Why did it happen to
him
？’
I asked my
mother
．
‘
Why do
the best people
die
？
Jake
Rosso
．
My
father
．
’
‘
I
…
I don't know
，
Carol
，
'my mother
said
．
She was unhappy
< br>，
too
．
At
the time of the plane crash
，
I was a student at
college
．
I enjoyed the
college
work and life very
much
，
but after
my father's death I stopped doing my work at the
college
．
I began
to go out with some new
friends
．
They were different
from my other
friends
，
and my
mother didn't like them
．
‘
They're bad peo
ple
，
Carol
，
'she told
me
．
‘
They do
dangerous
things
．
’
‘
They're
exciting
，
’
I
said
．
‘
And I like
them
．
’
I
knew she was angry but I didn't
care
．
But then I
learned my new friends took
drugs
，
and I began
to take drugs
，
too
．
It was wrong and
stupid
，
I know that
now
，
but I was
unhappy and angry
．
The
police came to the college to arrest some of the
students
．
They didn't arrest
me
，
but I had to leave the
college
．
It was a bad
time
．
My
mother
was
very
unhappy
with
me
．
‘
What
am
I
going
to
do
with
you
，
Carol
？
she
said
．
‘
I'm
sorry
，
’
I told
her
．
‘
We'll go back
to England
，
'she
said
．
‘
You can
find a college there
．
Perhaps
you
can be happier in
England
．
’
‘
All
right
，
’
I
said
．
‘
I want to
forget what's happened
．
I
want to forget what I've
done and begin
a new life
，
be a
new person
．
’
A
month later
，
we
came back to England
．
We
lived in London
，
in a
hotel
．
It was
strange
，
at
first
，
with all
the red buses and everybody speaking
English
．
It was the
beginning of the
summer
，
three months before
college began in the
autumn
．
London
was
full of tourists
．
We
looked
at
all
the
famous
buildi
ngs
—
Buckingham
Palace
，
the
Tower
of
London
．
And we
went to restaurants and theatres in the
evenings
．
It was interesting
and exciting and I began to forget the
bad times in Hong Kong
．
‘
I'm pleased we came to
London
，
’
I told my
mother
．
But after a few
weeks
，
she
said
，
‘
You need to
find a college
，
Carol
< br>．
You must
go on
studying
．
And I
need a job
．
’
That evening
，
we looked in the
newspapers
．
‘
What about
this
？’
I
said
．
I showed my mother a
job in the newspaper
．
SECRETARY
for the summer months
on a small private island in
Scotland
．
Live with the family in a big
house
．
interseting work and good pay
for the right
person
．
Phone Greta
Poss
．
Telephone number
071
…
‘
Well
，
that sounds
interesting
，
'said my
mother
．
‘
I'd like
to work as a secretary
on an island in
Scotland
．
It's a beautiful
country
，
Carol
，
and you can go to a college
there in the
autumn
．
’
‘
And it's a place to live
for the summer
，
’
I
said
．
‘
Hotels are
expensive
．
’
My
mother telephoned Greta
Ross
．
Come and see me
tomorrow
，
Greta
Ross told
her
．
‘
Come to
Savoy Hotel at
eleven
o'clock
．
’
I
went to Savoy Hotel with my
mother
．
It was big and ex
pensive
，
bigger than
our hotel
，
and in
the centre of London
．
‘
Mum needs this
job
，
I
thought
．
‘
And a
private island in Scotland is a nice place
to live
．
Perhaps I
can forget what's happened if I go
there
．
’
‘
Room twenty
－
two
，
'said the woman
at the hotel
desk
．
‘
Go on
up
．
Mrs Ross
will see you
now
．
’
Greta
Ross
was
waiting
for
us
．
She
was
about
thirty
years
old
and
very
beautiful
．
She
wore an expensive red dress and her hair was very
long and dark
．
‘
This is my daughter
< br>，
Carol
，
'said
my mother
．
‘
Hal
lo
，
Carol
，
'said Greta
Ross
．
‘
Hal
lo
，
’
I
said
．
‘
Carol is eighteen years
old
，
'said my
mother
．
‘
Can she
come with me
，
if I get
the
job
？
Perhaps
she
can
help
in
the
house
or
in
the
garden
．
She
likes
gardening
．
She's
studying farming at
college
．
’
‘
Perhaps
，
said Greta
Ross
．
‘
There's a
small farm on the
island
．
’
‘
I'd like to work on the
farm
，
’
I
said
．
Greta Ross
looked at my
mother
．
‘
How long
did you live in Hong
Kong
，
Mrs
Sanders
？’
‘
Seven
years
，
’
answered
my mother
．
‘
My
husband died in a plane crash last
year
，
so we've
come back to live in
England
．
’
‘
Where did you live before
Hong Kong
？’
‘
We
lived in India for three
years
．
’
Then Greta Ross took my mother into a
room and asked her more
questions
．
I
waited outside
．
‘
Greta Ross is
nice
，
’
I
thought
．
‘
I hope
my mother gets the
job
．
’
Soon
after
，
the door opened and my
mother came out
．
She was
smiling
．
Greta Ross
said
，
‘
Please wait
here for a minute
，
Mrs
Sanders
．
I want to make a
phone call
．
'she
went back into the room
，
and
closed the door
．
I was sitting
on a chair near the door
，
and
I could just hear Greta Ross's voice
speaking on the
phone
．
‘
I
think I've found
someone
，
'she was
saying
．
‘
She has a
daughter
，
but the girl
can
work
in
the
garden
or
on
the
farm
…
Don't
worry
，
they've
been
away
from
England for ten
years
…
It'll be
all right
，
I tell
you
…
Don't
worry
．
’
After
a
few
minutes
，
Greta
Ross
put
down
the
phone
and
came
ont
of
the
room
．
‘
You've got the
job
，
'she told my
mother
．
My mother was
pleased
．
‘
Thank
you
，
'she
replied
．
I
was
pleased
，
too
，
but
now
I
was
worried
about
that
phone
call
．
I
didn't
understand
it
．
1
来到英格兰
我叫卡罗尔·桑德斯。
我现居英格兰，
< br>但我更年轻时住在香港。
我父亲在那儿经商而我母亲是个秘
书。我们在香港住了七年。
我在学校很快乐，
有许多朋友；
我们玩得很愉快。
我喜欢流行音乐——滚石
乐队、戴维·鲍伊和杰克·罗素是我至爱。
杰克·
罗
索是我最喜欢的歌手。
我离校那年他死于一次车祸，
但我一直在
听
他的流行歌曲唱片。我在我卧室的墙上贴了成百上千的有关他的画片和照片。
接着在我
17
岁那年冬季的一天，事情对我来说开始
变糟了。
我父亲去澳大利亚出差。我非常爱他，不愿意让他离家在外。
“快点回家来，
”我总是对他说。
他在澳
大利亚呆了两周。
接着，
在他要登上回程的那天，
一架从悉尼起飞的
飞机坠入香港正南部的海域。机上人员全部遇难。
我从电视上听到飞机失事的消息。起初，我并没有想到我父亲。后来，我想
起
来那天他正从悉尼乘机返回。
“啊，不！
”我叫了起来。
我给机场打电话，但他们那时还不知道所有乘客的名字。
“或许
我父亲没乘那架飞机。
”我想，
“啊，千万别乘！千万别乘那架
飞机！
”
我母亲当时正在上班，
于是我给她打
了电话。
她很快回家；
我们去机场并等
待消息。
后来，我们得知我父亲正在那架飞机上。
“这不是真的！
”我喊道。
但这是真的，我哭了起来。
我哭了一周又一周。
好多天我独自一人呆在房间里。
我既孤独又伤心，
我
也
想过去死。
我不再和朋友们出去玩了。我不想
见别人。我不再听杰克·罗索的唱片了，
还把他的图片从我卧室的墙上取了下来。
我不听音乐了，
也不看电视了。
一切对
我都不再要紧了。
后来我不哭了。我不再伤心了，而开始感到愤怒了。
“为什
么这事让他碰上了呢？”我问妈妈，
“为什么总是最好的人死呢？杰
克·罗索。我爸爸。
”
“我……我不知道，卡罗尔。
”我妈妈说。她也不愉快。
飞机失事的时候，
我正是个大学学生。
我当时很喜欢大学的学习和生活，
但
我父亲去世后我在大学不学习了。
我开始和一些新结识的朋友
出去玩。
他们和我
的其他朋友不一样，而且我妈妈不喜欢他们。
“他们不是正经人，卡罗尔。
”她告诉我，
“他们在干一些危险的事情。
”
“他们令人感到兴奋。
”我说，
“而且我喜欢他们。
”
< br>
我知道她生气了，
可我不在乎。
后来我得知我新结识的朋友们
在吸毒，
我也
开始吸毒了。我现在知道那样做既错又蠢，可那时
候我心情郁闷。
警察来到大学抓了一些学生。
他们没
抓我，
可我不得不离开那个大学。
那段
日子可真糟糕。
我妈妈对我很不高兴。
“我拿你可怎
么办呢，卡罗尔？”她说。
“对不起，
”我告诉她说。
“我们
回英格兰吧。
”她说，
“在那儿你可以找所大学上。在英格兰也
许你会
高兴些。
”
“好吧
。
”我说，
“我想把过去发生的事忘掉。我想把我所干的事忘掉
，开始
新生活，成为一个新人。
”
一个月
后，我们回到了英格兰。我们住在伦敦，呆在一家饭店里。起初，一
切都很新奇：公共汽
车是红色的，人人都说英语。时值初夏，离秋季开学还有三
个月。伦敦到处都是观光客。
我们参观了所有著名的建筑物——白金汉宫、
伦敦塔。
而且晚上我们去餐馆
和剧院。这令人感兴趣、令人激动，我开始忘掉在香港的
那些令人难受的时光。
“我真为我们来到了伦敦而高兴，
”
我对妈妈说。
但是过了几周之后，她说：
“你得找
所大学上，卡罗尔。你必须继续你的学
业。我也需要个工作。
”
那天傍晚，我们翻看了一下报纸。
“这工作怎么样？”我说。我给妈
妈看了看报上登的一条招工的消息。
招聘秘书启事
苏格兰一私人小岛上
夏季招聘秘书一名。
可与本家共享宽裕住所。
若人选合适，
工作有趣，薪金丰厚。
有意者请与格里塔·罗斯联系。电话：
071
……
“嗯，听起来挺有意思的。
”我妈妈说，
“
我愿意在苏格兰的一个岛上干秘书
工作。它是个很美丽的地方，卡罗尔，而且你秋季可以
在那儿上大学。
”
“夏季也可以在那儿过。
”我说，
“饭店很费钱。
”
我妈妈打电话给格里塔·罗斯。
“明天来见我吧。
”格里塔·罗斯告诉她，
“
11
点请到萨沃伊饭店来。
”
我和妈妈一起去了萨沃伊饭店。<
/p>
这个饭店既大又贵，
比我们住的饭店大，
并
位于伦敦的中心地带。
“妈妈需要这个工作。
”
我想，
“苏格兰的一座私人岛屿还是个生活的好
地方。
我如果去那儿，也许就可以把过去发生的事情忘掉。
”<
/p>
“
22
号房间。
”饭
店服务台的女士说，
“上楼去吧。罗斯夫人现在就可以接
见您。
”
格里塔·罗斯正等着我们。她大约三十岁，很漂亮。她穿着一
件很贵的红色
连衣裙，头发很长很黑。
“这是我女儿卡罗尔，
”我妈妈说。
“你好，卡罗尔。
”格里塔·罗斯说。
“您好，
”我说。
“卡罗
尔
18
岁了。
”
我妈妈说，
“如果我能得到这份工作，
她可以跟着我吗？
也许她能帮助做些家务活或干些园子里的活。
她喜欢园艺。
她正在大学学农业。
”
“也许
行吧。
”格里塔·罗斯说，
“岛上有个小农场。
”
“我喜欢在农场里干活，
”我说。
格里塔
·罗斯看了看我母亲。
“你们在香港住了多久，桑德斯夫人？”
“七年
。
”我妈妈说，
“我丈夫去年因飞机失事去世了，所以我们回英
格兰住
来了。
”
“住在香港之前你们呆在哪儿？”
“我们在印度住了三年。
”
然后格
里塔·
罗斯带我妈妈进了一个房间，
问了她更多的问题。
我在外边等
着。
“格里塔·罗斯挺好的。
”我想，
“我希望妈妈能得到这份工作。
”
过了不一会儿门开了，我妈妈出来了。她微笑着。
格里塔
·罗斯说：
“请在这儿等一会儿，桑德斯夫人。我想去打个电话。
”她
返回房间，并关上了门。
我坐在门旁的一把椅子上，正好能
听到格里塔·罗斯打电话的声音。
“我想我已经找到了一个人。
”她正
在说，
“她有个女儿，但这个女孩可以在
园子或在农场干些活儿
……别担心，她们离开英格兰已有
10
年了……不会出事
的，我告诉你……别担心。
”
过了一会儿，格里塔·罗斯挂上了电话并从屋里出来了。
“你得
到了这份工作，
”她告诉我妈妈说。
我妈妈很高兴。
< br>“谢谢您，
”她说。
我也很高兴，可现在我对那个电话
感到忧虑不安。我不明白它的意思。
2 The Island
We went to
Scotland the next day
，
first
by plane
，
then by
train
．
Greta Ross
travelled with
us
．
I
looked
out
of
the
train
window
and
saw
fields
and
villages
and
moun
tains
．
‘
Mum is
right
，
’
I
thought
．
‘
Scotland
is a very beautiful
place
．
’
‘
You're going to be my
husband's
secretary
，
’
Greta
Ross told my mother He's a
businessman
，
but
he never leaves the
island
．
He does all his work
by telephone and
letter and
computer
．
He invests money in
companies
，
all
over the world
．
’
‘
Do many people live on the
island
？’
I
asked
．
‘
Not
many
，
'said Greta
Ross
．
‘
You'll meet
them soon
．
’
‘
Greta Ross is
young
，
’
I
thought
．
‘
Is her
husband young
，
too
？
How can a
young
man buy an island
？
Is he very
rich
？’
After
the
train
，
we
went
on
Mr
Ross's
boat
，
which
took
us
out
to
the
island
．
The boatman was a young
man
．
He had dark
hair and was brown from the
sun
．
‘
This is
Tony
，
said Greta
Ross
．
‘
He works
for Mr Ross
．
’
‘
Hi
，
'said
Tony
．
Soon we were
near the island
．
I could see
the beaches and the cliffs
．
The boat
slowed
down
．
‘
There are dangerous rocks
around the
island
，
’
explained
Tony
．
‘
A lot of
them
are under the water and you can't
see them
．
I have to be
careful
．
But the rocks keep
other boats
away
，
and that pleases Mr
Ross
．
’
‘
Why
？’
I
asked
．
Tony looked at
Greta Ross but she wasn't
listening
．
‘
Mr
Ross doesn't like visitors
to the
island
，
'tony said in a quiet
voice
．
Then Greta Ross
looked at us and Tony said no
more
．
‘
Why
doesn't Mr Ross like
visitors
？’
I
thought
．
‘
Has he
something to hide
？’
When
we
arrived
on
the
island
，
my
mother
and
I
followed
Greta
up
to
the
house
．
It was very
big and there were trees all around
it
．
A woman was waiting inside
the house
．
‘
This is Mrs
Duncan
，
Tony's
mother
，
'said
Greta
．
‘
She's the
housekeeper and
her husband is the
gardener
．
Mrs Duncan will
take you up to your rooms
．
I'm going
to tell Mr Ross
you've arrived
．
’
The
housekeeper was a little woman with short
hair
．
She went up
the stairs
，
and my mother and
I went after her
．
My
room was next to my
mother's
．
I looked out of the
win dow and saw the
garden
at
the
back
of
the
house
．
A
man
was
working
in
the
garden
，
near
some
trees
．
‘
Is that Mr
Duncan
？’
I
thought
．
I looked between the
trees and saw the
sea
．
‘
It's a beautiful house and a
beautiful
island
．
’
That evening
，
we
had dinner with Mr and Mrs Duncan and
Tony
．
We ate in the
big kitchen
．
‘
What happened to Mr Ross's
last secretary
？’
asked my
mother
．
‘
She's in
hospital
，
'replied Mrs
Duncan
．
‘
She's
going to be away all
summer
．
’
‘
Isn't Mrs Ross lonely
here
？’
I
said
．
‘
No<
/p>
，
'said Mrs
Duncan
．
‘
She likes
painting a lot
．
She has a
room upstairs and
goes there to
paint
．
She's very
good
．
Sometimes she goes to
different places on the
island to paint
pictures
．
’
We
finished eating our
meal
．
Soon
after
，
Greta Ross came into
the kitchen
．
‘
Mr
Ross wants to see you and your daughter
now
，
Mrs
Sanders
，
'she said
Follow me
，
please<
/p>
．
’
We
followed
her through
the
house
and
into
a
big
room
．
This
was
Mr
Ross's
office and he was sitting behind a
desk
．
I was
surprised
．
He was a young
man
，
about
thirty
．
He had a
moustache
，
short
dark hair
，
and he
wore glasses
．
Mr
Ross
was
speaking
into
the
telephon
e
．
‘
Who
does
he
look
like
？’
I
thought
．
‘
Is it
Tony Duncan
？’
‘
Mr
Ross is talking to a business friend in New
York
，
'said Greta
．
‘
Please
，
sit
down
．
’
While we waited
，
I looked around the
office
．
There were three
telephones
，
a
computer
，
and lots of books and
papers
．
There
was
another
door
and
I
could
see
a
smaller
room
，
next
to
the
office
．
There was
a smaller desk and another computer in
there
．
Mr Ross
finished speaking on the
phone
，
then looked care fully
at my mother
and
me
．
For a few seconds he
didn't speak
，
and just
watched us
．
Then he
said
，
‘
I'm
pleased to meet
you
，
Mrs
Sanders
．
I need some help
with my work
．
My secretary is
in hospital
，
and
there's a lot of work to do
．
Sometimes
you
’
11have to work late at
night
，
because of
time differences in New York and
Tokyo
．
Is that all
right
？’
‘
Yes
，
that's all
right
，
’
said my
mother
．
‘
Can
you use a computer
？’
‘
Yes
．
’
‘
Good
．
’
He
looked at me
．
‘
Is
this your daughter
？’
‘
Yes
，
this is
Carol
，
'said my
mother
．
‘
Hal
lo
，
’
I
said
．
‘
Greta says you like
gardening
．
There's a big
garden here
，
so you can help
Mr
Duncan
．
And
there's a farm
．
Dan and
Stella Parks live in the farmhouse and work on
the farm
．
You can
help them
，
too
．
We have some
animals
．
Some
sheep
，
a few cows
and chickens
．
And
there's a horse called
Smoke
．
He's
grey
，
like his
name
．
Can you
ride
？’
‘
Yes
，
’
I
said
．
‘
I can ride
a horse
．
’
‘
You can ride Smoke around
the is land
，
if you
like
．
’
‘
I'd like
that
，
’
I
said
．
‘
Thank
you
．
’
‘
And
we grow vegetable and
fruit
，
’
he
said
．
‘
I work on
the farm sometimes
．
I
enjoy
it
．
’
I smiled at him
but he didn't smile back
．
‘
Carol will enjoy working on
the farm
，
'said my
mother
．
‘
Won't you
，
Carol
？’
‘
Yes
，
’
I said
．
‘
Mr
Ross looks sad
，
’
I
thought
．
‘
But how
did he get all his money
？
And why
does he hide away on
an island
？’
2
岛屿
第二天我们就去了苏格兰，
先乘飞机，
后乘火车。
格里塔·
罗斯与我们同行。
我从火车车厢的窗子向外望去，看到了田野、村庄和群山。<
/p>
“妈妈说得对，
”
我想，
“苏格兰是个非常漂亮的地方。
”
“你就
要当我丈夫的秘书了。
”格里塔·罗斯告诉我妈妈说，
“他是个
商人，
但他从来不离开这个岛。
他通过电话、
< br>信函和电脑来干他所有的工作。
他向遍布
世界各地的公司
投资。
”
“许多人住在岛上吗？”我问。
“不多
。
”格里塔·罗斯说，
“不一会儿你就能见到他们了。
”
“格里塔·罗斯年轻。
”我想，
“她丈夫也年轻吗？一个年轻人怎么能买得起
一座岛屿呢？他很有钱
吗？”
下了火车，
我们上了罗斯先生的船，
那
船带着我们出海向岛驶去。
船夫是个
年轻人。他长着一头黑发，
皮肤晒成了棕色。
“这是托尼。
”格里塔·罗斯说，<
/p>
“他为罗斯先生工作。
”
“你好，
”托尼说。
不久我
们就离这个岛近了。我能看到海滩和峭壁了。船慢了下来。
“岛的四周都是危险的礁石。
”托尼解释道，
“许多礁石在水下，人看不见。
我得很小心。
但这些礁石使别的船不能靠近这个岛，
那使罗
斯先生感到很高兴。
”
“为什么？”我问道。
托尼看了一下格里塔·罗斯，但她
没在听我们说些什么。
“罗斯先生不喜欢
客人到岛上来，
”托尼轻声说。
接着，格里塔·罗斯看了看我们，托尼便没再说什么。
“为什
么罗斯先生不喜欢客人呢？”我思考着。
“难道他有什么事要遮遮掩
掩吗？”
我们到了岛上之后，
我和我妈妈随格
里塔来到了那幢房子。
它很大，
四周都
是树。
一个女人正在房子里等着我们。
“这是邓肯太太，托尼的母亲。<
/p>
”格里塔说，
“她是女管家，她丈夫是园丁。
邓肯太太将带你们上楼去你们住的房间。我去告诉罗斯先生你们已经到了。
”
管家是个留着短发的小妇人。她上了楼，我和我妈妈随后跟着她。
我的房
间就在我妈妈的房间的隔壁。
从窗子向外望去，
我看到了房后的
园子。
有个人正在园子里干活，那儿旁边有些树。
“那就是邓肯
先生吧？”我想。我透
过树林，看到了大海。
“这房子漂亮，这
岛也漂亮。
”
那天傍晚，我们与邓肯夫妇和托尼
一起进餐。我们在大厨房吃饭。
“罗斯先生的上任秘书发生了什么事？”我妈妈问道。
“她住
院了。
”邓肯太太回答说，
“整个夏季她都将不在。
”
“罗斯夫人在这儿不寂寞吗？”我说道。
“不寂
寞。
”邓肯太太说，
“她非常喜欢画画。她楼上有个房间，她常
去那儿
画画。她这个人很好。有时她去岛上不同的地方画画。
”
我们吃完了饭。不久之后格里塔·罗斯来到了厨房。
“罗斯
先生现在想见见你和你的女儿，桑德斯夫人。
”她说，
“请跟我
来。
”
我们跟着她穿过房子来到一个大房间里。
这是罗斯先生的办公室，
他正坐在
办公桌的后面。
我很惊讶。他是个年轻人，大约三十岁。他留着胡子，长着黑色短发，并戴
着
眼镜。
罗斯先生正在打电话。
“他看上去像谁呢？”我思考着。
“像托尼·邓肯？”
“罗斯先生正在与纽约的一位商界
朋友通话。
”格里塔说，
“请吧，坐下。
”
我们等着的时候，
我打量了一下这间办公室。
< br>屋里有三部电话、
一台电脑以
及许多书本和文件。
办公室还有一个门，
所以我可以看到紧挨着办公室的一个小一些的房间。<
/p>
那
里面有一张小一些的办公桌，另有一台电脑。
< br>
罗斯先生打完了电话，
然后仔细地看了看我妈妈和我。
有那么
片刻他默默不
语，只是在打量我们。然后他说：
“见到你们很高
兴，桑德斯夫人。我需要人帮
助处理我的工作。
我的秘书正在住
院，
有许多事情要处理。
由于纽约和东京都有
< br>时差问题，有时候你得在深夜工作。你看行吗？”
“行，那没什么。
”我妈妈说。
“你会用电脑吗？”
“会用。
”
“那很好。
”他看了看我。
“这是你女儿吗？”
“是，这是卡罗尔。
”我妈妈说。
“您好，
”我说。
“格里
塔说你喜欢园艺。这里有个大园子，所以你可以给邓肯先生帮帮忙。
这里还有个农场。丹
·帕克斯和斯特拉·帕克斯住在农舍里并在农场干活。你也
可以给他们帮帮忙。我们养了
些动物。一些羊，几头牛和数只小母鸡。还有一匹
叫‘烟’的马。这匹公马灰色，跟它的
名字一样。你会骑马吗？”
“会骑，
”我说，
< br>“我会骑马。
”
“如果你喜欢，你可以骑‘烟’在
岛上转转。
”
“那太好了。
”我说，
“谢谢您。
”
“我们
还培植蔬菜和水果。
”
他说，
“我有时
在农场里干些活。
我喜欢干农活。
”
我朝他笑了笑，可他没回敬我的笑。
“卡罗尔会喜欢在农场干活的。<
/p>
”我妈妈说，
“是不是，卡罗尔？”
“是的，
”我说。
“罗斯
先生显得有些忧伤。
”
我想，
“但是他
怎么会有那么多钱呢？而且为什
么他要隐匿在一个岛上呢？”
3 The
Photograph
I worked in the garden for the first
two days
．
The weather was hot
and sunny
．
I
liked
working with Mr Duncan
，
and
he was pleased with my work
．
‘
You're a good
gardener
，
’
he
said
．
‘
I've
always
liked
gardening
，<
/p>
’
I
said
．
‘
But
I'm
studying
at
college
to
be
a
farmer
．
< br>’
Sometimes I saw Greta
Ross
．
‘
She
likes to be
alone
，
’
I
thought
．
Once or twice I saw
Greta go out with her
painting
things
．
She went up on the
hills or down to the beach
．
Mr
Duncan took me to the farm and I met Dan and
Stella Parks
．
They were very
friendly
．
‘
You can work on the farm
for the next three
days
，
'said Day
Parks
．
‘
Mr Duncan
says you're a good
gardener
．
Are you a good farm
er
，
too
？’
I smiled at
him
．
‘
I
am
，
’
I
said
．
He smiled
back
．
So I worked on
the farm with Mr and Mrs
Parks
．
They were nice
people
．
I helped
with the cows and the
chickens
，
and went up on the
hills with Mr Parks and his dog
to look
after the sheep
．
One afternoon I
went out riding
．
Smoke was a big
，
lazy
，
friendly
horse
．
I
enjoyed
riding and Smoke knew his way around the island
very well
．
I learned new
places to go to
．
I
rode along the cliff top and then in between some
trees
．
When we came out of
the trees
，
I saw the house from the other
side
．
I tried to find the
window of my
room
．
Which one
was it
？
Suddenly
，
I saw a
face at one of the
windows
．
The face was looking
at me
．
It was
there for just a second or
two
，
then it moved away
quickly
．
‘
Who
was thst
？’
I
thought
．
‘
Was it
Mr Ross
？
And which room was
it
？’
I didn't see my mother very
much that first week
．
She
worked all day and in the
evenings
．
She
wrote
letters
to
South
America
，
Japan
，
Canada
and
Australia
．
Sometimes
，
she
worked after I was in bed
．
‘
Mr Ross works
hard
，
'she told
me
．
‘
He invests
money in many companies and
countries
．
But
it's not his
money
．
’
‘
It's
not
？’
I was surprised by
this
．
‘
No<
/p>
，
it's his wife's
money
．
And she bought the
island
．
It's her
island
，
her
house
，
her
farm
．
Everything belongs to
her
．
’
‘
How
strange
！
But why does Mr Ross
always look sad
？
And why does
he never
leave the
island
？’
I
asked
．
‘
I
don't know
，
'said my
mother
．
‘
He says
he likes it here and likes working on
his farm
．
It's
strange
，
I
know
．
’
Sometimes
，
when I
finished work
，
I walked along
the beaches or the cliffs
．
Or
I went swimming in the
sea
．
I liked
swimming
．
Greta Ross often
came to the beach to
swim
，
but Mr Ross
never came
．
‘
Stay
away
from
the
rocks
，
Carol
，
’<
/p>
Greta
Ross
told
me
．
‘
They
're
very
dangerous
．
’
‘
I
will
，
’
I
said
．
Sometimes I
took my camera to the beach and took photographs
of some of the
boats that went
by
．
I took photographs of the
birds on the cliffs
．
There were other small islands near our
island
，
and boats
with tourists stopped
at
them
．
But no boats stopped at
our island
．
They kept away
from the dangerous
rocks
．
Tony was
right
．
The island did not
have visitors
．
One
day
，
I
was
walking
back
to
the
house
，
and
had
my
camera
with
me
．
I
stopped and looked at the big
house
．
Mr Duncan was working
in the garden in front
of
it
．
At
first
，
he didn't see
me
．
‘
I'm going to
take a photograph of the
house
，
’
I
thought
．
‘
The sun
is in just the
right
place
，
and it
will make a good
picture
．
’
I
looked at the building through my
camera
，
and took the
photograph
．
Mr Ross
was coming out of a
door
．
He was in my picture
，
too
，
and
he looked angry
．
‘
That's all
right
，
’
I
thought
．
‘
It's
still a good
photograph
．
’
But
Mr Duncan was running across the
grass
．
He came quickly up to
me and
said
，
‘
Give me your
camera
．
’
He looked
very worried
．
‘
Wbat's
wrong
？’
I asked in
surprise
．
I gave him the
camera
．
‘
Never take photographs of
Mr Ross
，
’
he
said
．
And then he opened the
back
of my camera and took out the
film
．
‘
Hey
！
What are you
doing
？’
I
said
．
‘
You'll
spoil my film
！
’
But
he didn't stop
．
‘
S
orry
，
’
he
said
，
and he put
the film into his
pocket
．
‘
But
no pictures of Mr
Ross
．
He doesn't
like people to take pictures of
him
．
’
Mr Ross was
watching us
．
He saw the
camera and he saw Mr Duncan take out
the film
，
but he
said nothing
．
Then he turned
and went back into the
house
．
Later
，
I
told
my
mother
about
Mr
Duncan
and
the
camera
．
‘
He
spoiled
my
film
，
’
I
said
．
‘
I
don't understand
，
'she
said
．
‘
Why did he
do that
？’
‘
I
don't know
，
’
I
said
，
‘
but there's
something strange about Mr
Ross
．
’
About
a
week
later
，
I
finished
work
early
one
day
and
came
back
to
the
house
．
My mother
was working in her small
room
，
next to Mr Ross's
office
．
Mrs
Duncan was in the
kitchen
．
Greta Ross was
painting in her room
upstairs
．
I
went
to
my
room
and
began
reading
a
book
．
I
was
sitting
beside
the
window
．
After half
an hour
，
I got tired of
reading
．
I looked out at the
rain
，
and the
grey
sea and rocks between the
trees
．
‘
My
book isn't very
interesting
，
’
I
thought
．
I
got up
and
went
out
of
my
room
．
I
walked
along
the
passage
and turned
a
corner
．
Then I saw
the door at the end of the
passage
．
There was a large
plant in a
plant pot outside the
door
．
‘
Where
dogs
that
door
go
？’
I
thought
．
‘
I
haven't
seen
it <
/p>
before
．
’
I
remembered the face at the window in
my first week on the
island
．
‘
Perhaps
it's the
door to that
room
，
’
I
thought
．
I walked along
to the door and turned the
handle
．
The door didn't
move
．
It was
locked
．
‘
What are you
doing
？
'said a voice behind
me
．
I turned round quickly and
saw Greta Ross
．
She looked
angry
．
‘
That room is
private
，
'she
said
．
‘
I'm
sorry
，
’
I
said
．
‘
I
didn't
—’
‘
Stay away from
there
，
'she told
me
．
I told my mother about the
locked door
．
‘
What's behind
it
？’
I
said
．
‘
Is it a
secret
？’
‘
I
don't know
，
'said my
mother
．
‘
It
doesn't matter
．
Mr Ross can
have locked
rooms if he wants
them
．
’
‘
I think he does have
secrets
，
’
I
said
．
‘
There's
something strange about him
There's
something
strange
about
this
island
．
Somebody
isn't
telling
us
something
．
Somethi
ng important
．
’
My
mother
laughed
．
‘
Stop
playing detective
，
Carol
，
'she said
．
3
照片
头两天
我在园子里干活。
天气晴朗而炎热。
我很喜欢与邓肯先生一块儿
干活，
他对我干的活也很满意。
“你是个好园丁，
”他说。
“我一
向喜欢园艺。
”我说，
“但我现在正上大学，以便当个农夫。<
/p>
”
我有时见到格里塔·罗斯。
“她喜
欢一个人独处，
”我想。有一两次我看见格里塔带着画具出去了。她
到山上或到海滩去。
邓肯先生带我到农场去，我见到了丹·帕克斯和斯特拉·帕克
斯。他们非常
友好。
“接下来的这三天你可以在农场干
活。
”丹·帕克斯说，
“邓肯先生说你是个
好园丁。你也是个好农夫吗？”
我朝他笑了笑。
< br>“是的，
”我说。
他回笑了笑。
这样我就和帕克斯夫妇一起在农场
干活了。
他们是好人。
我帮着照看奶牛和
小母鸡，还和帕克斯先生及他的狗一起上山去照看羊群。
一天下午，
我骑马出去。
“烟”
是一匹懒散而友善的大马。
我喜欢骑马，
“烟”
对岛上的路很熟。我知道了些新
的去处。
我骑马沿着峭壁顶部走，
然后在树林
中间穿行。
当我们从树林中出来时，
我
看到了那幢房子的另一面。我想找出我房间的窗子。是哪一扇呢？
突然我
看见一扇窗子旁有一张脸。
那人正看着我。
那人只在那儿呆了一
瞬间，
接着很快就挪开了。
“那是谁？”我想，
“是罗斯先生吗？又是哪个房间呢？”
第一个星期我没怎么见到妈妈。她
整个白天还有晚上都在工作。她给南非、
日本、加拿大和澳大利亚写信。有时我睡了之后
她还在工作。
“罗斯先生工作很努力。
”她告诉我
，
“他给很多公司和国家投资。可那不是
他的钱。
”
“不是他的钱？”对此我很惊讶。
“不是
他的，是他妻子的钱。并且是她买了这个岛。这是她的岛屿，她的房
子，她的农场。所有
的东西都属于她。
”
“多奇怪呀！
可为什么罗斯先生总显得那么忧郁呢？为什么他从不离开这个
岛呢？”我问道。
“我不知道。
”
妈妈说，
“他说他喜欢这儿，
喜欢在他的农场里干活。
我知道，
这的确有点儿怪。
”
有时干
完活以后，
我就沿着海滩或峭壁散步，
或者去海里游泳。
我喜欢游泳。
格里塔·罗斯常到海边去游泳，但罗斯先生从来不去。<
/p>
“离礁石远些，卡罗尔。
”格里塔·罗斯告诉我，
“它们很危险。
”
“好吧，
”我说。
有时我
将照相机带到海边，照照过往的船只，照照峭壁上的鸟儿。
我们这个岛附近还有些其他的小岛
，
载着旅客的游船停靠在那里。
但没有船
在我们这个岛边停靠。
船只都远离那些危险的礁石。
托尼说的
对：
这个岛上没有
客人来。
有一天
，
我正朝房子走回去，
随身带着照相机。
我停下来，
看着这幢大房子。
邓肯先生正在房子前面的园子里
干活。起初，他没看见我。
“我来给这幢房子拍一个照吧。
”我
想，
“太阳正在合适的位置，拍出来会挺
不错的。
”
我把镜头对准了房子，
拍了一张。<
/p>
罗斯先生正好从门里出来。
他也被拍了进
来，他看上去一副生气的样子。
“那也没什么。
”我想，
“仍然是张好照片。
”
但邓肯先生从草地上跑过来。
他很快跑到我跟前说：
“把相机给我。
”<
/p>
他看起
来很着急。
“怎么了？”我惊奇地问道。我把相机交给了他。
“决不
许给罗斯先生拍照，
”他说。然后他打开相机后盖，把胶卷取出来。
“嘿！你干什么呀？”我说，
“你会毁了我的胶卷的！
”
可他不停手。
“对不起，
”他说，并把胶卷装进了
他自己的衣袋里。
“可不许
给罗斯先生拍照。他不喜欢别人给他
照相。
”
罗斯先生正看着我们。
他看见了照相
机，
也看见了邓肯先生把胶卷取出来的
过程，可是他什么也没说
。然后他转过身就回到房子里去了。
过后，
我
把邓肯先生和照相机的事情告诉了妈妈。
“他毁了我的胶卷，
”
我说。
“我不明白。
”她说，
“他为什么要那样做呢？”
“我不知道。
”我说，
“可罗斯先生这个人真有点儿古怪。
”
大约一周之后，
有一天我很早就干完活儿，
回房子里去
了。
我母亲正在罗斯
先生办公室旁边的她那个小房间里工作。<
/p>
邓肯太太在厨房。
格里塔·
罗斯在楼上<
/p>
她的房间里画画。
我去了自己的房间，开始读书。我
坐在窗子旁。半个小时后，我读腻了。我
向外望去，看外面的雨，看隐蔽在树木之间的灰
蒙蒙的大海和岩石。
“我的书不很有趣，
”我想。
我站起
来走出房间。
我顺着走廊走，
拐了一个弯。
然后我看见走廊尽头有一
扇门。门外的花盆里有一株很大的植物。
< br>
“这门通哪儿呢？”我想。
“我先前没见过它。
”我记起了我
到岛上的第一周
看到的、那扇窗子旁的那张脸。
“可能这就是通
向那个房间的那扇门，
”我想。
我一直走到房门前，转了转门把手。门没动，是锁着的。
“你在干什么？”身后有人问我。
我赶紧转过脸，看到了格里塔·罗斯。她显得生气了。
“那是私人专用房间，
”她说。
“对不
起。
”我说，
“我不——”
“离那儿远点，
”她对我说。
我把那扇锁着的门的事情告诉了我妈妈。
“那扇
门后有什么？”我说，
“是秘密吗？”
“我不
知道。
”我妈妈说，
“那没什么关系。罗斯先生要是想的话，当
然可以
有锁起来的房间。
”
“我想
他一定有秘密。
”我说，
“他这个人有些古怪。这座岛有些奇怪
。有人
有什么事情瞒着咱们。是重要的事情。
”
我妈妈笑了。
“别玩侦探游戏了，卡罗尔，
”她说。
4
The Locked Room
Two days 1ater there was a
storm in the middle of the
night
．
I was hot and I
couldn't sleep
．
I got out of
bed
，
went across to the
window and
looked out at the
night
．
Black clouds hur ried
across the sky
，
and the trees
moved
wildly in the
wind
．
The rain made a loud
noise on the window
．
I
opened my window and put my head out into the wind
and the rain
．
I looked
at the other windows in the
house
．
Most of them were
dark
．
But one window had a
light in
it
．
‘
Somebody
isn't sleeping
，
’
I
thought
．
‘
Which
room is that
？’
There were six
windows between my window and the room with the
light
．
‘
And
there
are
six
doors
between
my
room
and
the
locked
door
！
’
I
thought
．
‘
That light is in the locked
room
．
Somebody's in
there
！
’
I
put on my dressing
－
gown and
went out of my room
．
The
house was dark
，
and
at first I couldn't see very
well
．
I walked along the
passage and turned the
corner
．
There it
was
，
the locked
room
．
And there was a light
under the door
！
I went nearer
and heard noises
．
‘
Somebody's moving about in
the locked
room
’
，
I
thought
．
‘
Who is
it
？’
Then the light went off and
the door opened
．
I was afraid to
move
．
Somebody
came
out
of
the
room
，
and
into
the
dark
passage
．
Lightning
suddenly lit up the
house
，
and I saw who it
was
．
‘
It's Mr
Ross
！
’
I
thought
．
‘
What was
he doing in that room in the middle of the
night
？’
I
didn't
move
and
he
didn't
see
me
．
He
locked
the
door
of
the
room
carefully
．
He
didn't put the key in his
pocket
，
but hid it in the
plant pot next to the
door
．
‘
He's coming along
here
，
’
I
thought
．
‘
I must
get back to my
room
．
’
And
I ran back along the
passage
．
Mr Ross heard
me
．
‘
Who's
that
？’
he
called
．
I didn't
answer
，
but ran into my room
and closed the door
．
He
came along the passage and stopped outside my
door
．
Then he walked past
and went on down the
stairs
．
I took off my
dressing
－
gown and went back
to bed
．
I was
shaking because I
was
afraid
．
‘
Now
I
know
how
to
get
into
the
locked
room
，
’
I
thou
ght
．
‘
But
what's
in
there
？’
There was no storm in the
morning
，
but it was still
raining
．
I got up early and
worked on the
farm
．
There were eggs from
the chickens and I put them in
boxes
．
I
helped to
milk the cows and then took them out to the
field
．
Later
，
I
went
back
into
the
house
for
breakfast
．
‘
Did
you
sleep
all
right
last
night
？’
asked Mrs
Duncan
．
‘
Or did
the storm wake you up
？’
‘
I
…
slept all
right
，
’
I
said
．
I didn't want to tell
her about the light in the locked
room
，
or about Mr
Ross
．
After
breakfast
，
I went back
upstairs
．
Mr Ross was talking
on the telephone in
his
office
．
My mother was working
at her desk
．
I knew that Mrs
Duncan was in the
kitchen and that Mr
Duncan was working in the
garden
．
‘
Where's Mrs
Ross
？’
I
thought
．
Then
I
looked
out of
the
window
and
saw
her
with
Tony Duncan
．
They
were
walking to the
boat
．
‘
He's
taking
her
out
in
the
boat
，
< br>’
I
thought
．
‘
Perhaps
she's
going
to
Edinburg
h
．
’
The boat moved
away from the island and I waited until it was out
at sea
．
Then I
opened the door of my
room
．
There was
nobody in the passage and I ran along to the
locked room
．
The key
was still in the plant pot and I took
it out
．
My hand was
shaking
．
Then I unlocked
the door
．
4
锁着的房间
两天后半夜里来了一场暴风雨。
我很热，睡不着。我下了床，走到
窗边，望着窗外的夜色。乌云在天空中匆
匆飘过，树在狂风中猛烈地摇摆。雨打在窗子上
弄出了很大的响声。
我打开窗子，
把头伸在风雨中。
我看了看这幢房子的其他窗子。
绝大部分窗
子是黑的。但有一扇窗子里有灯光。
“有人没睡。
”我想，
“那是哪个房间呢？”
我这个和亮着灯的那个房间之间隔六个窗子。
“而且
我这个房间和锁着门的那个之间隔六扇门！
”
我思考着。
“那个亮着的
灯就在那个锁着的房间。那里面有人！
< br>”
我穿上晨衣，
从我屋里走了出来。<
/p>
这座房子里很暗，
起初我也看得不怎么清
楚。我顺着走廊走，拐了一个弯。
那儿就是那个锁着的房间。而且门下面露出了灯光！
我走近了些，听到了动静。
“有人在这个锁着的房间里走动。
”我思考着。
“是谁呢？”
接着灯熄了，门开了。
我没敢动。
一个人从屋里走出来，到了黑暗的
走廊里。忽然一道闪电照亮了这幢房子，
我看清了这个人是谁。
“是罗
斯先生！
”我想。
“他半夜在那个房间里干什么呢？”
我没动，他也没看见我。他小心地锁上了门。他没把钥匙放入他的衣袋里，
却
把它藏在门旁的花盆里。
“他正往这儿来了。
”我想，
“我必须回我的房间去。
”
于是我就顺着走廊往回跑。
罗斯先生听见我了。
“谁？”他叫喊着。
我没回答，却跑进自己的房间，关上了门。
他顺着
走廊过来了，
在我的门外停了下来。
然后他就走过去了，
往前下了楼。
我脱下晨衣，回到了床上。我因害怕而直发抖。
“现在
我知道怎么进入那锁着的房间了。
”我想，
“但那里有什么呢？
”
<
/p>
早晨风暴停了，但雨还在下。我很早就起了床，在农场里干活。那儿有小母
鸡下的一些蛋，
我把蛋放在箱子里。
我帮着给奶牛挤奶
，
然后把它们带到了外面
的田野。
后来我
回房子里去吃早饭。
“昨天晚上你睡得好吗？”
邓肯太太问道。
“还是
暴风雨把你吵醒了？”
“我…
…睡得很好，
”我说。我不想把锁着的那个房间里亮着灯的事或罗斯
先生的事告诉她。
早饭后，
我回到楼上。
罗斯先生正在他的办公室里打电话。
我妈妈正坐在她
办公桌旁工作。我知道邓肯太太在厨房里而邓肯先生在园子里干活。
“罗斯夫人在哪儿呢？”我想。
接着我从窗子向外望去，
并看见她和托尼·
邓肯在一起。
他们正向一条船
走
去。
“他要用船送她出岛。
”我想，
“她可能去爱丁堡。
”
船离开
了这座岛；我一直等着，直到它出海了。然后我打开了我房间的门。
走廊里
没有人，
我顺着路跑到那个锁着的房间前。
钥匙还在花盆里，<
/p>
我把它
拿了出来。我的手在颤抖。
然后我打开了门。
5 A Dead Man
I went into the
room
…
and I was
very surprised
．
The
room
was
full
of
strange
things
．
Coloured
shirts
and
suits
．
Three
guitars
．
And there
were posters and photographs on the
walls
．
I looked at the
posters
．
Jake Rosso's
face looked down at me
．
I
looked
at
the
dead
Jake
Rosso's
pictures
，
and
I
remembered
all
the
photographs on the walls
of my room in Hong Kong
．
I
could never forget that
face
—
the face of my
favourite singer
．
Then
，
while I
looked at his face
，
something
strange happened
．
I began to
see
another face in the
posters
．
An older
face
，
and with a
moustache
，
but the same
face
．
I saw the face
of Mr Ross
．
‘
No<
/p>
！
’
I
said
．
‘
It's not
true
！
’
But
it was
，
I knew it
was
．
‘
Mr Ross
is
…
Jake
Rosso
！
’
‘
No
！
'said a voice
behind me
．
I turned round
and saw Mr Ross
．
He was
standing in the doorway
．
He l
ooked
…
afraid
．
‘
I don't believe
you
！
’
I
said
．
‘
You
have to believe
me
！
’
I looked at the
posters
．
‘
Who is
that
，
if it's not
you
？’
‘
It's Jake
Rosso
．
He
was
…
my
brother
．
’
‘
That's not
true
！
I
shouted
．
‘
I don't
believe you
．
Listen
，
Jake Rosso was my
favourite
singer
—
I had hundreds of pho
tos of him
．
I still have all
his records
．
I loved
him
，
do you
understand
？
Thousands of
people loved
him
．
’
‘
He's
dead
，
'mr Ross said
quietly
．
‘
No<
/p>
！
’
I
shouted
．
‘
You're
Jake Rosso
！
You look
different now
，
yes
．
You've got
short
hair
，
you've got a moustache
now
，
and you wear
glasses
．
But
you're
…
Jake
…
Rosso
．
You were my
favourite pop star
，
so I
know
．
’
Mr
Ross said nothing
，
and
watched my face
．
‘
He
doesn't know what to
do
，
’
I
thought
．
‘
He knows
I don't believe him
，
and
he's
afraid
．
’
Then he
said
，
‘
It was you
in the passage last
night
，
wasn't
it
？’
‘
Yes
，
’
I
answered
．
He looked
angry
．
‘
I was
wrong to give your mother a
job
，
’
he
said
．
‘
I thought
it was OK because you came from Hong
Kong
．
And I needed help with
my work
．
I
needed
a good
secretary
．
’
‘
Does your other secretary
know who you are
？’
I
asked
．
‘
Do the
other people
on the island
know
？’
Mr Ross didn't
answer
，
but walked across to
the window
．
He was
thinking
．
‘
What's he going to
do
？’
I
thought
．
Then he turned
round
．
‘
OK
< br>，
you're right
．
I
…
I am Jake
Rosso
．
’
‘
I knew
it
！
’
He
looked
worried
and
unhappy
．
‘
Can
you
keep
a
secret
？
A
very
important
secret
？’
I
thought for a minute
，
then I
said
，
‘
Yes
< br>，
I can keep a
secret
．
’
Then he told me
：
‘
The other people on this
island are my
family
．
’
‘
Your
family
？’
I
said
．
‘
Yes
．
My real name is James
Duncan
，
and Mr and Mrs Duncan
are my father and
mother
．
Tony is my
younger brother
，
and his
wife
，
Lisa
，
is my
secretary
．
It's she
who's in
hospital
．
’
‘
And Stella and Dan
Parks
？’
I
asked
．
‘
My
mother's sister and her
husband
，
’
he
said
．
‘
But
what are you doing here on this
island
？
I don't
understand
．
’
‘
I'11 tell
you
，
’
he
said
．
He sat down on a chair
and took a guitar in his
hands
，
but he didn't play
it
．
‘
You were
right
．
I was a famous pop
star
．
I was very
rich
，
and
I had a
beautiful wife
．
But things
went wrong
．
’
‘
How
？’
‘
I took
drugs
，
’
he
said
．
‘
I drank a
lot of alcohol
．
I got drunk
and crashed cars
．
I
did
stupid
，
terrible
things
．
I knew it was wrong
but I couldn't stop doing
it
．
I
was
…
crazy
，
for a
time
．
’
‘
I can understand
that
，
’
I told
him
．
‘
I've taken d
rugs
，
too
．
< br>
He looked
surprised
．
‘
You
have
？’
‘
Yes
，
’
I
said
．
‘
After my
father died
，
I was very
unhappy and things went wrong
for me
too
．
But go on with your
story
．
’
He
went on
．
‘
One
night
，
I was driving my
car
．
I was drunk
and
—
and I hit
somebody
．
A young
girl
．
She
…
< br>died
．
I killed
her
．
’
‘
Oh<
/p>
，
no
！
’
‘
Yes
，
’
he
said
．
‘
She was
fifteen years old
．
I wanted
to die
，
too
．
The money
didn't matter any
more
．
Nothing mat tered any
more
．
’
‘
What did you do after the
accident
？’
I
asked
．
‘
I
drove on in the car
．
I didn't
stop
，
and I didn't tell the
police
．
I had killed
someone and I was
afraid
．
’
He looked
afraid now
．
He put the guitar
down and went
on with his
story
．
‘
So I made
a plan
．
Jake Rosso had to die
，
too
．
I
t was the best thing
to
do
．
And
so
…
I
“
killed
”
him
．
’
‘
But you're still
alive
．
’
‘
My family know I'm
alive
，
but no
other people
know
．
’
He looked
at me
．
‘
But
now you
know
．
’
‘
How did you do
it
？’
I
asked
．
‘
I
told my family about my p1an and I told
Greta
，
my
wife
．
At first they didn't
like it
．
But after
a long time
，
they said
OK
．
Then I faked the car
crash
．
’
‘
Faked
it
？’
‘
Yes
，
’
he
said
．
‘
I
put
some
of
my
things
in
the
car
．
A
guitar
，
and
some
clothes
．
Then I
pushed my car over a cliff and burned
it
．
The police found the
burned
car and thought I was
dead
．
Everybody thought I was
killed in the car
crash
．
’
‘
But you faked the
crash
，
’
I
said
．
‘
Yes
．
’
‘
What did you do
then
？’
‘
My
family hid me away for
months
．
I tried to change
into a different person
—
with shorter
hair
，
a
moustache
，
quiet
suits
．
All my money went to
Greta and she
changed her name to
Ross
．
I told her to buy this
island
．
Now I invest her
money
，
the
money
that was mine
．
And now I'm
“
James
Ross
．
”
‘
What
about
“
Jake
Rosso
”？’
I
asked
．
‘
Jake Rosso took
drugs
，
’
he
said
．
‘
Jake Rosso
got drunk and crashed cars
．
He
killed a young
girl
，
so he had to
“
die
”
．
I can never forget the
girl
．
I think about her
every
day
．
’
‘
And
that's why you always look so
sad
，
’
I
thought
．
I looked around
the room
．
‘
Why do
you keep a room like this
？
Why do you
keep the
guitars
，
the posters and
photographs
？’
James Ross did
not speak for a minute
．
Then
he said
，
‘
I need
to remember my
old
life
，
and what
Jake Rosso was like
．
I'm
never going to sing again and I'm never
going to take drugs But I need this
room
，
to
remember
．
’
I
looked at the posters and the
photographs
．
And I looked at
his sad face
．
‘
I'm
not going to say
anything
．
I won't tell my
mother
，
I won't tell
anybody
．
’
James Ross looked at
me
．
‘
I think you
understand
，
’
he
said
．
‘
I
do
，
’
I
said
．
‘
I've done
bad things
．
I want to forget
them
，
too
．
< br>I needed to
get
away
，
to hide
，
too
．
That's why we
came to England
，
to begin a
new life Yes
，
I
un
derstatld
．
’
He
took my hand
，
and we walked
out of the room and closed the
door
．
I never went
into the room again
，
and I
didn't tell anybody
．
My
mother and I left the island at the end of the
summer
．
Soon
after
，
I went to
college
．
My
life is bettter now
．
I work
on a farm in England and my mother works in an
office
．
My mother doesn't worry about
me
，
because I'm happier
now
．
I haven't been back to the
island
．
But I know there's a
‘
dead
man
’
living
there
．
5
亡灵
我进了房间……并感到很惊讶。
屋里满是奇怪的东西：
花衬衫和花衣服，
三把吉它。
墙上还有一些海报和
照
片。
我看着海报。
杰克·罗索的脸俯视着我。
我望着已故的杰克·
罗索的图片，
想起了在香港时我房间墙壁上的那些照片。
我永远也不会忘记那张脸——我最喜爱的歌手的那张脸。
接着，
正
当我盯着他那张脸看时，
奇怪的事情发生了。
我开始在海报上看
出
另一张脸。这张脸显得年龄大了一些，留着胡子，但又是一模一样的。
我看到了罗斯先生的脸。
“不！
”
我说，
“这不是真的！
”
但这是真的，我知道这是真的。
“罗斯先生就是……杰克·罗索！
”
“不是！
”我身后有个人说。
我转过
脸，看见了罗斯先生。他正站在门口。他看上去……害怕的样子。
“我不相信你的话！
”我说。
“你应当相信我的话！
”
我望着
海报。
“如果那个人不是你，那是谁？”
“是杰克·罗索。他是……我兄弟。
”
“那不
是真的！
”我大声喊道，
“我不相信你的话。听着，杰克·罗索
是我最
喜爱的歌手——我存有他几百张照片。
我现在还保存着他
所有的唱片。
我喜爱过
他，你懂吗？成千上万的人喜爱过他。<
/p>
”
“他死了，
”罗斯先生平静地说。
“没有
！
”
我喊叫着，
“你就是杰克·
罗索！
你现在看上去不一样了，
是这样。
留着短发，蓄着胡子，戴着眼镜。但是你就是……杰克……罗索。你曾是我最喜
爱的那位流行歌手，所以我知道。
”
罗斯先生没说什么，他看着我的脸。
“他不知道该怎么办了。
”我想，
“他知道我不相信他的话，他害怕了。
”
<
/p>
然后他说：
“昨天晚上是你在走廊里，对吗？”
< br>
“是我，
”我回答说。
他看上
去生气了。
“我给你妈妈工作给错了，
”他说，
“我原认为不会有事，
因为你们从香港来。而且我那时需要人帮我工作。我当时
需要一个好秘书。
”
“你另外的秘书知道你是谁吗？”
我问道，
“岛上其他的人知道吗？”
罗斯先生没有回答，但走到了窗户旁。他正思考着。
“他要干什么？”我想。
然后他转过身来。
“好吧，你说对了。我……我是杰克·罗索。
”
“我早就知道这点！
”
他显得
有些不安和不快。
“你能保密吗？一个非常重要的秘密？”
我想了
一下，然后说：
“能，我能保密。
”
然后他把秘密告诉了我：
“岛上其他的人是我家里人。
”
“你家里人？”我说。
“是的。我的真名叫詹姆斯·邓肯
，而邓肯先生和夫人是我的父母。托尼是
我的弟弟，他的妻子莉萨是我的秘书。现在住院
的就是她。
”
“而斯特拉·帕克斯和丹·帕克斯呢？”我问道。
“是我姨妈和姨夫，
”他说。
“但是
你在这儿的这个岛上干什么呀？我不明白。
”
“我会
告诉你的，
”他说。他在一把椅子上坐下来，拿起一把吉它，可他没
弹。
“你说对了。我过去是个有名的歌星，那时我很有钱，还有个漂亮的妻子。
可后来出事了。
”
“怎么了？”
“我吸毒，
”他说，
“我酗酒。我喝醉了并撞了车。我干了些既愚蠢而又可怕
的事情。我知道这不对，可我不能罢手。有一段时间，我简直是……发疯了。
”
“我可以理解。
”我告诉他，
“我也吸过毒。<
/p>
”
他看上去很惊讶。
“你吸过毒？”
“吸过
。
”我说，
“我父亲去世后，我很不快乐，我也出事了。可接着
讲你的
事吧。
”
他接着
讲了。
“一天晚上，我开着车。我喝醉了，还——还撞了人。是个年
轻姑娘，她……死了。我撞死了她。
”
“啊，不！
”
“真的
。
”他说，
“她
15
< br>岁。我也想去死。钱对我来说已不再有意义了。一
切都不再有意义了。
”
“出事之后你怎么办了？”我问道。
“我接
着开车。我没停下来，也没告诉警察。我撞死了人，我真害怕。
”他
现在看上去还很害怕。他放下吉它继续讲他的故事。
“所以我订了一个计划。杰
克·罗索也得死。这是最好的办法。所以……我‘杀’了他。
”
“可你还活着。
”
“我家
人知道我还活着，但别人不知道。
”他看了看我。
“但现在你知
道了。
”
“你是怎么做的？”我问道。
“我把
我的计划告诉了我家里的人，还告诉了我的妻子格里塔。起初，他们
不喜欢这个主意。可
过了很长一段时间后，他们说‘行’
。后来我伪造了那场车
祸。
”
“伪造车祸？”
“是的
。
”他说，
“我在车里放了些我的东西。一把吉它，还有一些衣
服。然
后我把车从峭壁上推下去并且把车烧了。
警察发现了烧毁
的车，
认为我死了。
大
家都认为我在车
祸中丧生了。
”
“可是车祸是你伪造的呀，
”我说。
“是的。
”
“后来你干了什么？”
“我的家里人把我隐匿了几个月。
我尽力想变成一个完全不同的人——剪短
头发，留起胡子，穿着
不显眼的衣服。我所有的钱都归了格里塔，她把姓改为罗
斯。我叫她买下这个岛。现在我
用她的钱投资，这钱原来是我的。现在我是‘詹
姆斯·罗斯’
。
”
“那‘杰克·罗索’呢？”我问。
“杰克
·罗索吸毒。
”他说，
“杰克·罗索喝醉了酒，撞了车。他撞死
了一个
年轻姑娘，
所以他不得不
‘死’
。
我永远也忘不了那个女孩。
我天天想
着她的事。
”
“而那便是你为何总是显得那么忧
郁的原因，
”我想。
我环视了一下这个房间。
“你为什么把房间保持这个样子？你为什么保留这
些吉它、海报和照片？
”
<
/p>
詹姆斯·
罗斯沉默了片刻。
然后他说：<
/p>
“我需要记住原来的生活，
记住杰克·
罗
索曾是什么样子。我决不会再唱歌，也决不会吸毒。可是我需要这个房间，以回
忆过去。
”
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