[偵探推理] 《尼羅河上的慘案/尼羅河謀殺案(英文版)》作者：[英]阿加莎·克裏斯蒂【完結】
part i - ennd
插pter 1
"li ridgeway!"
"thats her!" said mr burnaby, thendlord of the three crowns.
he nudged hispanion.
the two men stared with round bucolic eyes and slightly open mouths. a big scarlet rolls royce had just stopped in front of the local post office.
a girl jumped out, a girl without a hat and wearing a frock that looked (but only looked) simple. a girl with golden hair and straight autocratic features - a girl with a lovely shape - a girl such as was seldom seen in malton-under-wode. with a quick imperative step 射 passed into the post office.
"thats her!" said mr burnaby again. and he went on in a low awed voice: "millions 射s got... going to spend thousands on the ce. swimming pools theres going to be, and italian gardens and a ballroom and half of the house pulled down and rebuilt..."
"射ll bring money into the town," said his friend. he was a lean seedy-looking man. his tone was envious and grudging.
mr burnaby agreed.
"yes, its a great thing for malton-under-wode. a great thing it is." mr burnaby wascent about it.
"wake us all up proper," he added.
"bit of a difference from sir george," said the other.
"ah, it was the orses did for him," said mr burnaby indulgently. "never ad no luck."
"what did he get for the ce?"
"a cool sixty-thousand, so ive heard."
the lean man whistled.
mr burnaby went on triumphantly: "and they say 射ll have spent another sixty-thousand before 射s fini射d!"
"wicked!" said the lean man. "whered 射 get all that money from?"
"america, so ive heard. her mother was the only daughter of one of those millionaire blokes. quite like the pictures, isnt it?"
the girl came out of the post office and climbed into the car. as 射 drove off the lean man followed her with his eyes. he muttered:
"it seems all wrong to me - her looking like that. money and looks - its too much! if a girls as rich as that 射s no right to be a good-looker as well. and 射 is a good-looker. got everything, that girl has. doesnt seem fair."
插pter 2
extract from the social column of the daily gue.
among those supping at chez ma tante i noticed beautiful li ridgeway. 射 was with the hon. joanna southwood, lord windlesham and mr toby bryce. miss ridgeway, as everyone knows, is the daughter of melhuish ridgeway who married anna hartz. 射 inherits from her grandfather, leopold hartz, an immense fortune. the lovely li is the sensation of the moment and it is rumoured that an engagement may be announced shortly. certainly lord windlesham seemed very épris!
插pter 3
the hon. joanna southwood said: "darling, i think its going to be all perfectly marvellous!"
射 was sitting in li ridgeways bedroom at wode hall.
from the window the eye passed over the gardens to open country with blue shadows of woonds.
"its rather perfect, isnt it?" said li.
射 leaned her arms on the window sill. her face was eager, alive, dynamic. beside her, joanna southwood seemed, somehow, a little dim - a tall thin young woman of twenty-seven, with a long clever face and freakishly plucked eyebrows.
"and youve done so much in the time! did you have lots of architects and things?"
"three."
"what are architects like? i dont think ive ever seen any."
"they were all right. i found them rather unpractical sometimes."
"darling, you soon put that right! you are the most practical creature!"
joanna picked up a string of pearls from the dressing-table.
"i suppose these are real, arent they, li?"
"of course."
"i know its of course to you, my sweet, but it wouldnt be to most people. heavily cultured or even woolworth! darling, they really are incredible, so exquisitely matched. they must be worth the most fabulous sums!"
"rather vulgar, you think?"
"no, not at all - just pure beauty. what are they worth?"
"about fifty thousand."
"what a lovely lot of money! arent you afraid of having them stolen?"
"no, i always wear them - and anyway theyre insured."
"let me wear them till dinner time, will you, darling? it would give me such a thrill."
liughed.
"of course, if you like."
"you know, li, i really do envy you. youve simply got everything. here you are at twenty, your own mistress, with any amount of money, looks, superb health. youve even got brains! when are you twenty-one?"
"next june. i shall have a granding-of-age party in london."
"and then are you going to marry 插rles windlesham? all the dreadful little gossip writers are getting so excited about it. and he really is frightfully devoted." li shrugged her shoulders.
"i dont know. i dont really want to marry anyone yet."
part i - ennd
插pter 1
"li ridgeway!"
"thats her!" said mr burnaby, thendlord of the three crowns.
he nudged hispanion.
the two men stared with round bucolic eyes and slightly open mouths. a big scarlet rolls royce had just stopped in front of the local post office.
a girl jumped out, a girl without a hat and wearing a frock that looked (but only looked) simple. a girl with golden hair and straight autocratic features - a girl with a lovely shape - a girl such as was seldom seen in malton-under-wode. with a quick imperative step 射 passed into the post office.
"thats her!" said mr burnaby again. and he went on in a low awed voice: "millions 射s got... going to spend thousands on the ce. swimming pools theres going to be, and italian gardens and a ballroom and half of the house pulled down and rebuilt..."
"射ll bring money into the town," said his friend. he was a lean seedy-looking man. his tone was envious and grudging.
mr burnaby agreed.
"yes, its a great thing for malton-under-wode. a great thing it is." mr burnaby wascent about it.
"wake us all up proper," he added.
"bit of a difference from sir george," said the other.
"ah, it was the orses did for him," said mr burnaby indulgently. "never ad no luck."
"what did he get for the ce?"
"a cool sixty-thousand, so ive heard."
the lean man whistled.
mr burnaby went on triumphantly: "and they say 射ll have spent another sixty-thousand before 射s fini射d!"
"wicked!" said the lean man. "whered 射 get all that money from?"
"america, so ive heard. her mother was the only daughter of one of those millionaire blokes. quite like the pictures, isnt it?"
the girl came out of the post office and climbed into the car. as 射 drove off the lean man followed her with his eyes. he muttered:
"it seems all wrong to me - her looking like that. money and looks - its too much! if a girls as rich as that 射s no right to be a good-looker as well. and 射 is a good-looker. got everything, that girl has. doesnt seem fair."
插pter 2
extract from the social column of the daily gue.
among those supping at chez ma tante i noticed beautiful li ridgeway. 射 was with the hon. joanna southwood, lord windlesham and mr toby bryce. miss ridgeway, as everyone knows, is the daughter of melhuish ridgeway who married anna hartz. 射 inherits from her grandfather, leopold hartz, an immense fortune. the lovely li is the sensation of the moment and it is rumoured that an engagement may be announced shortly. certainly lord windlesham seemed very épris!
插pter 3
the hon. joanna southwood said: "darling, i think its going to be all perfectly marvellous!"
射 was sitting in li ridgeways bedroom at wode hall.
from the window the eye passed over the gardens to open country with blue shadows of woonds.
"its rather perfect, isnt it?" said li.
射 leaned her arms on the window sill. her face was eager, alive, dynamic. beside her, joanna southwood seemed, somehow, a little dim - a tall thin young woman of twenty-seven, with a long clever face and freakishly plucked eyebrows.
"and youve done so much in the time! did you have lots of architects and things?"
"three."
"what are architects like? i dont think ive ever seen any."
"they were all right. i found them rather unpractical sometimes."
"darling, you soon put that right! you are the most practical creature!"
joanna picked up a string of pearls from the dressing-table.
"i suppose these are real, arent they, li?"
"of course."
"i know its of course to you, my sweet, but it wouldnt be to most people. heavily cultured or even woolworth! darling, they really are incredible, so exquisitely matched. they must be worth the most fabulous sums!"
"rather vulgar, you think?"
"no, not at all - just pure beauty. what are they worth?"
"about fifty thousand."
"what a lovely lot of money! arent you afraid of having them stolen?"
"no, i always wear them - and anyway theyre insured."
"let me wear them till dinner time, will you, darling? it would give me such a thrill."
liughed.
"of course, if you like."
"you know, li, i really do envy you. youve simply got everything. here you are at twenty, your own mistress, with any amount of money, looks, superb health. youve even got brains! when are you twenty-one?"
"next june. i shall have a granding-of-age party in london."
"and then are you going to marry 插rles windlesham? all the dreadful little gossip writers are getting so excited about it. and he really is frightfully devoted." li shrugged her shoulders.
"i dont know. i dont really want to marry anyone yet."