马龙探案卷三 之 错误的凶案 三十六
湖滨大道和湖之间的那一小片沙地和雪地突然挤满了人。
thE LIttLE pAtch of sand and snow between the drive and the lake was suddenly full of people.
在警车尖叫着停下来后不到一分钟，另一辆从同一个方向开来的车在路边停了下来。乔治?布兰德从车里出来，接着是伦纳德?马奇蒙特，然后是莫娜?麦克莱恩。他们走过来加入了马龙和冯?弗拉纳根周围的人群。
Not more than a minute after the police car had screamed to a stop, another car ing from the same direction paused at the curb. George brand emerged from it, Leonard marchmont, and then mona mcclane. they came over to join the group around ma-lone and Von Flanagan.
那个又高又瘦的英国人比其他人走得稍快一些。他走到雪地上那蜷缩着的小身体旁，站在那里看着它。
the tall, lanky Englishman was a little ahead of the others. he walked up to the huddled little body in the snow and stood looking at it.
“她死了，是吗？” 他那有教养的英国口音在那种环境下显得奇怪地不协调。
“She’s dead, isn’t she?” his well-bred English voice seemed curiously incongruous in that setting.
克鲁切茨基从他跪在雪地上的地方抬起头来。“是的。”
Kluchetsky looked up from where he was kneeling in the snow. “Yeah.”
“哦。” 这就是马奇蒙特要说的全部。从那以后，他站得离其他人稍远一点，半隐在阴影中，脸上毫无表情。
“oh.” that was all marchmont had to say. he stood a little away from the rest after that, half in the shadows, his face impassive.
冯?弗拉纳根向他身边的人快速下达了一些命令；艾伦?奥格特里的尸体被盖上了，以免再次下起的雪落到上面。然后他转向马龙。
Von Flanagan gave a few quick orders to the men with him; the body of Ellen ogletree was covered to protect it from the snow that was beginning to fall again. then he turned to malone.
“她和这件事有什么关系？”
“what did she have to do with it?”
“她谋杀了约书亚?冈布里尔，” 马龙疲倦地说，“还有弗雷特?桑德斯。当她意识到我知道了这件事，她就试图逃跑。就是这样。”
“She murdered Joshua Gumbril,” malone said wearily, “and Fleurette Sanders. when she realized I knew it, she tried to get away. that’s all.”
莫娜?麦克莱恩开始说话，看了看残骸，看了看被盖住的尸体，又看了看正在检查他的枪并把枪收起来准备再次使用的克鲁切茨基，然后什么也没说。马龙伸出手，把她的胳膊挽在自己的胳膊里。
mona mcclane started to speak, glanced at the wreckage, at the covered body, at Kluchetsky examining his gun and putting it away to use again, and said nothing. malone reached out and tucked her arm through his.
“她开的是你的车，是吗？” 他问道。
“that’s your car she was driving, isn’t it?” he asked.
她点了点头。
She nodded.
“你的钥匙在车里吗？” 警察问道。
“Your keys were in it?” the police officer asked.
她又点了点头。“我的车在房子前面的时候我总是把钥匙留在车里。”
She nodded again. “I always leave the keys in the car when it’s in front of the house.”
“她会知道钥匙在车里吗？”
“would she have known that?”
“我想她会知道。”
“I imagine so.”
冯?弗拉纳根擦完从艾伦?奥格特里手中掉落的枪上的雪。他把枪递给莫娜?麦克莱恩。
Von Flanagan finished dusting snow from the gun that had fallen from Ellen ogletree’s hand. he held it out to mona mcclane.
“这是你的吗？”
“that yours?”
她仔细地看了看。“不是。我以前从没见过。”
She examined it closely. “No. I never saw it before.”
杰克看了一眼然后转过脸去。他以前见过那把枪。他自己曾把那把枪放在书房的桌子抽屉里，艾伦?奥格特里在疯狂逃跑时从那里把枪抢走了。
Jake looked and turned his face away. he had seen that gun before. he himself had put it in the library table drawer from which Ellen ogletree had snatched it in her mad attempt to escape.
“你有枪吗？” 冯?弗拉纳根问道。
“do you have a gun?” Von Flanagan asked.
“有。实际上有两把。一把放在书房的桌子里，一把在我的梳妆台上。它们是一对。”
“Yes. two, in fact. one is kept in the library table, and one in my dressing table. they’re a pair.”
冯?弗拉纳根描述了马龙给他的那把枪。“和那把像吗？”
Von Flanagan described the gun malone had given him. “Are they anything like that?”
莫娜?麦克莱恩点了点头。“听起来和我的那把一模一样。”
mona mcclane nodded. “that sounds exactly like mine.”
马龙把警察挥到一边，说：“你有一个大的白金狐皮暖手筒吗？” 他又补充了一些描述性的细节。
waving the police officer aside, malone said, “do you have a large platinum fox muff?” he added a few descriptive details.
“有，我有。我在巴黎让人给我做的。”
“Yes, I have. I had it made for me in paris.”
“现在它在哪里？”
“where is it now?”
她淡淡地笑了笑。“在我衣橱里的一个蓝色硬纸盒里，标签上写着‘狐皮暖手筒’。”
She smiled wanly. “In a blue cardboard box in my closet, labeled ‘fox muff.’ ”
“在这一点上你错了。” 马龙告诉她。“它在海伦的车后座上，在一个亮红色的盒子里，标签上写着‘圣诞快乐’。”
“that’s where you’re wrong,” malone told her. “It’s in the back of helene’s car, in a bright red box labeled ‘merry christmas.’ ”
莫娜?麦克莱恩和冯?弗拉纳根几乎同时说道：“你在说什么？”
mona mcclane and Von Flanagan said, “what are you talking about?” almost simultaneously.
马龙告诉他们关于暖手筒、里面的枪以及他是如何收到这两样东西的。
malone told them about the muff, the gun that had been inside it, and the way he had received them both.
现在雪下得更大了。在人行道上，两个警察正在拦住越来越多好奇的旁观者。
the snow was falling more heavily now. on the sidewalk two policemen were keeping back the growing crowd of curious onlookers.
“我不明白。” 莫娜?麦克莱恩说。
“I don’t understand,” mona mcclane said.
“在冈布里尔被枪杀之前，这个女孩最后一次拜访你是什么时候？” 冯?弗拉纳根问道。
“what’s the last time this girl visited you, before Gumbril was shot?” Von Flanagan asked.
“前一天晚上。她在我家过的夜。”
“the night before. She spent the night at my house.”
“她能在你不知道的情况下从你家拿走那个暖手筒和枪吗？”
“could she have gotten that muff and the gun out of your house without your knowing it?”
“我想她能。”
“I suppose she could.”
“嗯，我想这就解释清楚了。” 冯?弗拉纳根说。他转向马龙。“你怎么对这件事知道得这么多？” 他紧接着又问，“不管怎么说，她为什么要这么做？”
“well, I guess that explains that,” Von Flanagan said. he turned to malone. “how do you know so ding-danged much about it?” he added without a pause, “how e she did it, anyway?”
马龙忽略了第一个问题，说：“他在勒索她。几年前艾伦?奥格特里被绑架了，她父亲付了五万美元赎金。那笔钱到了艾伦自己手里，冈布里尔拿了一部分。她想要那笔钱是因为她有一个花钱大手大脚的男朋友，而她老爸总是一次只给她一点钱。”
malone ignored the first question and said, “he was blackmailing her. A few years ago Ellen ogletree was kidnapped, her father paid fifty thousand ransom money. that money went to Ellen herself less Gumbril’s cut. She wanted it because she had an expensive boy friend and her old man always gave money to her a nickel at a time.”
杰克在黑暗和雪中寻找伦纳德?马奇蒙特。他不见了。
Jake looked through the gloom and snow for Leonard marchmont. he had disappeared.
冯?弗拉纳根说：“什么……？” 停了一下，又说：“接着说。”
Von Flanagan said, “what-?” stopped, and said, “Go on.”
“弗雷特?桑德斯是冈布里尔的妹妹。” 马龙说。“一开始是她把这个女孩介绍给冈布里尔的。绑架事件之后，冈布里尔开始有系统地勒索这个女孩，直到她把钱都花光了。然后为了让冈布里尔闭嘴，她和一个有钱的年轻人订了婚 —— 他叫什么名字？”
“Fleurette Sanders was Gumbril’s sister,” malone said. “She put the girl in touch with Gumbril in the first place. After the kidnapping, Gumbril began systematically blackmailing the girl until she was all out of money. then to keep Gumbril quiet, she got herself engaged to a wealthy young man-what was his name?”
“杰伊?富尔顿。” 乔治?布兰德说。
“Jay Fulton,” George brand said.
“那让冈布里尔消停了一阵子。她向他承诺，一旦她和富尔顿结婚，就会继续给他钱。然后她决定谋杀冈布里尔，并解除了和富尔顿的婚约。就在同一天晚上，她住在莫娜?麦克莱恩家，自己拿了枪和暖手筒。第二天，她和冈布里尔约好了见面，这就使得冈布里尔必须走上州街去赴约。她跟踪他到了麦迪逊街的拐角处，然后开枪打死了他。接着她去了他的酒店房间，搜查了一番，销毁了冈布里尔为了勒索她而保留的任何证据。”
“that took care of Gumbril for a while. She promised him that as soon as she was married to Fulton, she’d go on paying him. then she decided to murder Gumbril, and broke her engagement to Fulton. that same night she stayed at mona mcclane’s house, helped herself to the gun and the muff, next day she made an appointment with Gumbril that would necessitate his going up State Street to keep it, trailed him to the corner of madison, and shot him. then she went to his hotel room, searched it, removed and destroyed whatever evidence Gumbril had kept for the purpose of blackmailing her.”
“但是那个桑德斯女人，” 冯?弗拉纳根说着，拂去脸上的雪。
“but the Sanders woman,” Von Flanagan said, brushing the snow from his face.”
“她是冈布里尔的妹妹，记得吧，” 马龙告诉他。“她知道关于绑架和随后的勒索的所有事情。她一听说冈布里尔死了，也去了他的房间进行了一番搜查。当她看到艾伦?奥格特里策划自己被绑架的证据不见了，她就知道是谁谋杀了她的哥哥。显然她决定告诉我她所知道的事情。今天奥格特里夫人、桑德斯夫人、艾伦?奥格特里和莫娜?麦克莱恩一起吃了午饭。桑德斯夫人离开餐桌去打个电话。艾伦找了个借口去偷听。当她听到弗雷特?桑德斯在我的办公室约了见面，她就猜到了原因。弗雷特已经威胁过她了。”
“She was Gumbril’s sister, remember,” malone told him. “She knew all about the kidnapping and the subsequent blackmail. As soon as she heard Gumbril was dead she went to his room too and made a search of her own. when she saw the evidence that Ellen ogletree had planned her own kidnapping was missing, she knew who murdered her brother. Evidently she decided to tell me what she knew. today mrs. ogletree, mrs. Sanders, Ellen ogletree, and mona mcclane lunched together. mrs. Sanders left the table to make a telephone call. Ellen excused herself and listened in. when she heard Fleurette Sanders make an appointment at my office, she guessed why. Fleurette had already threatened her.
“她把暖手筒和枪存在了一家百货商店的寄存处。很可能她开枪打死冈布里尔后，就直接走进了那个街角的商店，在她碰到的第一个柜台拿了一个礼品盒，把暖手筒放进去，把整个东西包装好，然后寄存了起来。今天她又把它取了出来，跟踪桑德斯夫人 —— 想着她从菲尔德商店去我办公室的路上会经过同一个街角 —— 然后只是重复了她的行为。但是这次她找了一个信差男孩，把装着枪的暖手筒送到了我的办公室。”
“She had checked the muff and the gun in a department-store checkroom. probably when she shot Gumbril she went right into the store there on the corner, got a gift box at the first counter she came to, put the muff into it, had the whole works wrapped, and checked it. today she got it out again, trailed mrs. Sanders-figuring she’d pass the same corner on the way to my office from Field’s-and just repeated her performance. but this time she got a messenger boy and sent the muff with the gun inside it to my office.”
冯?弗拉纳根摇了摇头，喃喃地说：“人们会做出的事情！” 他提高了声音问道：“她为什么把它送给你？”
Von Flanagan shook his head and murmured, “the things people will do!” In a louder tone he asked, “why did she send it to you?”
“她想让我为她辩护，” 马龙很快地说。“她知道游戏结束了。你会在我办公室里我的速记员的笔记本上找到关于这一切的记录，就像她告诉我的那样。”
“She wanted me to defend her,” malone said quickly. “She knew the game was up. You’ll find notes on all this in my stenographer’s notebook in my office, just as she told it to me.”
海伦开始说话。杰克迅速地在她的脚踝上踢了一下。
helene started to speak. Jake kicked her quickly on the ankle.
“你告诉我你不知道这把枪是从哪里来的，” 冯?弗拉纳根生气又指责地说。“而且，你告诉我你没有任何客户……”
“You told me you didn’t know where the gun came from,” Von Flanagan said angrily and accusingly. “what’s more, you told me you didn’t have any client-”
“我和你谈话的时候确实不知道，” 马龙圆滑地说。“今天下午，一个信差男孩把枪放在暖手筒里送到了我的办公室。我有一种疯狂的直觉，它可能就是用于杀人的那把枪，所以，” 他摆出一副正义凛然的样子，“我首先想到的就是把它交给你。” 他又带着一副受了委屈的样子补充道：“你不会认为我会对你隐瞒吧？”
“I didn’t, when I talked to you,” malone said smoothly. “the gun came to my office, tucked inside the muff, this afternoon, delivered by a messenger boy. I had a crazy hunch it might be the one used in the killings, and so,” he assumed an air of righteousness, “the first thing I thought of was to deliver it to you.” he added with an air of injury, “You don’t think I’d hold out on you, do you?”
“哦，不。” 冯?弗拉纳根赶紧向他保证。他站了一会儿，凝视着空中，好像在努力回忆一件非常重要的事情。突然，他脸上露出恍然大悟的神情。“但是桑德斯夫人尸体上的衣服怎么了？”
“oh no,” Von Flanagan assured him hastily. he stood for a moment staring into space, as though he were trying hard to remember something of great importance. Suddenly a light broke over his face. “but what happened to the clothes on mrs. Sanders’ body?”
“哦，那个呀！” 马龙环顾四周，用手势向冯?弗拉纳根示意有些事情只能在没有女人在场的情况下讨论，然后把警察从人群中拉走。有那么一两分钟，他和警察进行了一场夸张地用手势交流的讨论，在这个过程中，警察点了两次头，难以置信地摇了一次头，扬了四次眉毛。当他们回到人群中时，杰克听到冯?弗拉纳根说：“是的。我明白了。是的，我会想办法为报纸处理好这件事。但是说真的，马龙，我从没想到他会这样。”
“oh, that!” malone cast a look around him, indicated by gestures to Von Flanagan that some things could only be discussed apart from the presence of women, and drew the police officer away from the group. For a minute or two he carried on a dramatically gestured discussion with the officer, during which the latter nodded twice, shook his head in blank incredulity once, and lifted his eyebrows four times. As they returned to the group Jake heard Von Flanagan say, “Yes. I understand. Yes, I’ll fix it up somehow for the papers. but honestly, malone, I never would have believed it of him.”
那是杰克最后一次听到关于弗雷特?桑德斯的衣服的事情。马龙永远不会透露他告诉冯?弗拉纳根的事情。
that was the last Jake ever heard about Fleurette Sanders’ clothes. malone never would confess what he had confided to Von Flanagan.
这个小个子律师快速地瞥了一眼警察毯子下的小土堆，然后又把目光移开了。
the little lawyer took a quick glance at the tiny mound under the police blanket and looked away again.
“如果她知道她有一个多么好的律师，” 他沮丧地说，“她就绝不会试图逃跑了。” 突然，他愤怒地提高了声音。“你那个该死的克鲁切茨基。我应该起诉他。事实上，我想我会这么做。”
“If she’d known what a good lawyer she had,” he said gloomily, “she’d never have tried to make a break for it.” Suddenly his voice rose in anger. “Your damned Kluchetsky. I ought to sue him. In fact, I think I will.”
冯?弗拉纳根从沉思中回过神来，问道：“为什么？”
Von Flanagan roused himself from thought long enough to ask, “why?”
“那个混蛋，” 马龙咆哮道。“他让我失去了一个客户！”
“the son-of-a-bitch,” malone growled. “he did me out of a client!”