“Temporary insanity,” Malone said, waving to the bartender as though he were the jury, “or self-defense. Don’t worry, I’ll fix it up.”
“她可能在他来芝加哥之前就认识他。毕竟，我们只是听别人说除了莫娜·麦克莱恩之外，他对每个人来说都是完全陌生的。洛特斯可能是想对罗斯·麦克劳林隐瞒她的出身，这样她就能促成婚礼的钟声响起，而这个人知道她的一切，还威胁要泄露秘密。所以她刺了他。”
“She might have known him before he came to Chicago. After all, we only have people’s word for it that he was a perfect stranger to everyone except Mona McClane. Lotus might have been trying to keep her origin from Ross McLaurin so she could bring about wedding bells, and this guy knew all about her and threatened to spill the soup. So she stabbed him.”
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“她干得很利落。”马龙说。他喊道，“再来三杯小啤酒当配菜。”
“She did a nice neat job of it,” Malone said. He called, “Three small beers for chasers.”
海伦叹了口气。“马龙，你打算怎么处理她？”
“Helene, what are you going to do about her?”
“如果在此期间没什么事发生，明天就把她从监狱里弄出来。”
“Spring her from the can tomorrow, if nothing happens meanwhile.”
“然后呢？”
“And then?”
“然后我想我得在冯·弗拉纳根又因为什么事生气然后再次逮捕她之前找出真正的凶手。”他轮流看着杜松子酒和啤酒，决定用哪个来当配菜。“我先把她弄出来。然后我就往袖子上吐口唾沫，卷起袖子开始干活。”他停顿了一下。“是卷起袖子往手上吐唾沫。”
“Then I suppose I’ll have to find out who really did the stabbing before von Flanagan gets sore at something and arrests her again.” He looked alternately at the gin and the beer, deciding which to use as a chaser. “I’ll spring her first. Then I’ll just spit on my sleeves and roll up my hands and go to work.” He paused. “Roll on my hands and spit up my sleeves.”
“没关系。”海伦说，“我还是觉得第一次说的更好。那你不认为是她干的吗？”
“Never mind,” Helene said, “I liked it better the first time. Then you don’t think she did do it?”
“当然不。”马龙说，“我从来没这么想过。”他喝下杜松子酒，没去管啤酒。
“Hell no,” Malone said, “I’ve never thought so.” He downed the gin and ignored the beer.
“你一直忽略了卢埃拉·怀特。”杰克抱怨道。“我打赌她十岁之前就杀了半打人了。她没有得到足够的关注。她可能溜进那个人的房间，刺了他，然后又神不知鬼不觉地溜了出来。”
“You keep overlooking Louella White,” Jake plained. “I bet she’d murdered half a dozen people before she was ten years old. She isn’t getting half enough attention. She could have slipped into that guy’s room, stabbed him, and slipped out again without any one noticing her.”
“而且，”海伦说，“我对她很怀疑。她声称做伊迪莎·文宁的同伴好多年了。但我愿意打个小赌，她从来没去过东方。”
“Besides,” Helene said, “I’m very doubtful about her. She claims to have been Editha Venning’s panion for a number of years. But I’d be willing to place a small bet she’s never been in the Orient.”
“为什么？”杰克问道。
“Why?” Jake demanded.
“我来告诉你为什么。”海伦说。“今天早饭前我有机会偷偷看了一下她的房间，我就这么做了。没有一个仿玉佛像或者精致雕刻的烟灰缸。甚至连一件五彩手工刺绣的和服都没有。你不能说那个女人在东方哪怕待了一个星期却不带回点纪念品。”她点了一根烟。“我甚至愿意打赌没有叫卢埃拉·怀特这个人。”
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“I’ll tell you why,” Helene said. “I had a chance to snoop around her room this morning before breakfast, and I took it. There isn’t one single imitation jade Buddha or fancy-carved ash tray. Not even a hand-embroidered kimono in five natural colors. You can’t tell me that woman would spend even a week in the Orient without bringing home mementoes.” She lit a cigarette. “I’m even willing to bet there is no such person as Louella White.”
“我自己看到过她。”杰克反对道。“我偶尔会做噩梦，但我不会产生幻觉。”
“I saw her myself,” Jake objected. “I have occasional nightmares, but I don’t have delusions.”
“我是说她的名字可能不叫卢埃拉·怀特。可能是别的什么。”
“I mean her name may not be Louella White. It may be something else.”
“可能是杰拉尔丁·图伊兹。”杰克嘟囔道。
“Probably Geraldine Tuesday,” Jake muttered.
她没理他。“还有一件事，她对伊迪莎·文宁来说就像一台冰箱一样不友好。她所做的只是一直盯着她。但为什么呢？伊迪莎·文宁看起来心智健全。她喝酒，但她不是个酒鬼。”
She ignored him. “Another thing, she’s about as panionable to Editha Venning as a Frigidaire. All she does is watch her all the time. But why? Editha Venning seems of sound mind. She drinks, but she’s not a dipso.”
“也许她是个傻瓜。”杰克说。
“Maybe she’s a dopey,” Jake said.
“我不这么认为。”马龙说，“她没有任何那种行为。不，海伦是对的。这个同伴的事有点古怪，但我真不知道是哪种古怪。”
“I don’t think so,” Malone said, “she hasn’t any of the behavior. No, Helene’s right. This panion business is some kind of gag, but I’m damned if I know what kind.”
海伦皱起眉头。“在战争期间匆忙回国的过程中，很多人的身份可能都搞混了。洛特斯·安杰洛变成了洛特斯·艾伦。卢埃拉·怀特可能是任何人。这两个人以杰拉尔德·图伊兹的身份出现，现在还有这个坟墓……”
Helene frowned. “In the rush back to this country during the war, a lot of identities may have gotten scrambled. Lotus Angelo turns up as Lotus Allen. Louella White might be anybody. These two guys turn up as Gerald Tuesday, and now this grave—”
“这甚至可能只是巧合。”杰克说。“其中一个是来自澳大利亚的奥斯卡·Q·麦奥斯卡维茨，另一个是来自斯特金湾的理查德·罗（常出现在法律术语中的一个虚构的人名）。出于只有他们自己最清楚的原因，他们都决定改名，从书里选名字。他们俩恰好读了同一本书，所以就有了两个杰拉尔德·图伊兹。然后他们俩都被谋杀了，而且由于巧合的长臂——早在 1921 年……”
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“It might even be coincidence,” Jake said. “One of them is Oscar Q. McOscarvitz from Australia, and the other one is Richard Roe from Sturgeon’s Bay. For reasons best known to themselves, they both decide to change their names, and pick names out of books. Both of them happen to read the same book, and so we have two Gerald Tuesdays. Then both of them get murdered, and by the long arm of coincidence—way back in 1921—”
海伦尖刻地说：“巧合的手臂很长，但没那么多弯。其中一个人塞给马龙一把标着 114 的钥匙，而他马上就喝醉了把钥匙丢了，另一个人在死前试图给马龙打电话，手里还拿着一张写着 114 的纸。他们俩都是被刀以完全相同的方式杀死的……”
Helene said acidly, “Coincidence has a long arm, but not quite that many elbows. One of them slipped Malone a key marked 114, which he immediately got drunk and lost, and the other one tried to telephone Malone before he died, and had a paper with 114 written on it in his hand Both of them were killed in exactly the same manner with a knife—”
“或者可能是卢埃拉·怀特的一根织针。”杰克插嘴道。
“Or maybe one of Louella White’s knitting needles,” Jake put in.
她没理他。“马龙，那把刀怎么了？凶器在哪里？”
She ignored him. “Malone, what’s happened to the knife? Where’s the weapon?”
“凶手拿着它。”马龙说完，喝光了他的杜松子酒。“他留着它呢。”
“The murderer kept it,” Malone said, finishing his gin. “He’s saving it.”
“留着干什么？”
“What for?”
“为了再杀更多的杰拉尔德·图伊兹。穿上你的外套，我们去我的办公室。不管有没有谋杀案，我都得给大楼管理员写一封漂亮的信，承诺有一天会付房租。”
“To murder more Gerald Tuesdays. Put your coat on, were going to my office. Murder or no murder, I’ve got to write a nice letter to the building manager promising to pay the rent some day.”