第103章 卷36（2/2）

虾皮小说【www.xpxs.net】第一时间更新《马龙探案之三点的迷案》最新章节。

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!”