Человек-невидимка / The Invisible Man
Шрифт:
It opened, stood open for a moment, and then closed. When they entered the kitchen it was empty. They examined all the house. There was nobody there.
That morning Mr. Hall and Mrs. Hall both got up early and went to the cellar. Their business there was of a secret nature, and had something to do with their beer.
When they entered the cellar, Mrs. Hall found she had forgotten to bring down a bottle of sarsaparilla [13] . Hall went upstairs for it.
13
sarsaparilla –
He was surprised to see that the stranger’s door was ajar. He went to his own room and found the bottle.
But as he came downstairs, he noticed that the front door had been unbolted – that the door was, in fact, simply closed. When he saw this, he stopped, then, knocked on the stranger’s door. There was no answer. He knocked again; then opened the door and entered. The room was empty. And what was still odder, on the chair and the bed were all the clothes and the bandages of their guest. Even his big hat was there on the bed.
Hall turned and hurried down to his wife, down the cellar steps.
“He is not in the room. And the front door’s unbolted.”
Mrs. Hall decided to see the empty room for herself. As they came up the cellar steps, they both heard the front door open and shut.
She opened the door and stood looking round the room. She came up to the bed and put her hand on the pillow and then under the clothes.
“Cold,” she said. “He’s been up for an hour or more.”
As she did so a most extraordinary thing happened. The bed-clothes gathered themselves together, and then jumped off the bed. It was as if a hand had taken and thrown them on the floor. Then the stranger’s hat jumped off the bed, and flew straight at Mrs. Hall’s face. Then the chair, laughing in a voice like the stranger’s, turned itself up and flew at Mrs. Hall. She screamed and turned, and then the chair legs pushed her and Hall out of the room. The door shut and was locked.
“These were spirits,” said Mrs. Hall. “I know these were spirits. I’ve read in papers of them. Tables and chairs flying and dancing … Don’t let him come in again. I should have guessed [14] … With his bandaged head, and never going to church on Sunday. And all the bottles – more than anyone needs. He’s put the spirits into the furniture … My good old furniture!”
Suddenly and most wonderfully the door of the guest room opened, and as they looked up in amazement, they saw the muffled figure of the stranger, staring at them. “Go to the devil!” shouted the stranger. Then he entered his room, and slammed the door in their faces.
14
I should have guessed – мне следовало догадаться
Chapter VI
The Stranger without Disguise
The stranger remained in his room until noon. All that time he did not get any meals. He rang his bell several times, but no one answered him.
The news of the burglary at the Vicarage arrived, and they put two and two together [15] .
What the stranger did is unknown. Now and then one could hear curses, and a violent smashing of bottles.
The little group of scared but curious people gathered near the inn.
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they put two and two together –
они сделали соответствующие выводыAbout noon the stranger suddenly opened his door and stood looking at the three or four people in the bar. “Mrs. Hall,” he called. Somebody went and called for Mrs. Hall.
Mrs. Hall appeared after an interval. She had come holding an unsettled bill. “Is it your bill you want, sir?” she said.
“Why haven’t you prepared my breakfast?”
“Why isn’t my bill paid?” said Mrs. Hall.
“I told you three days ago I expected money to arrive —”
“I told you three days ago I wasn’t going to wait for any money to arrive.”
The stranger swore.
“And keep your swearing to yourself, sir,” said Mrs. Hall.
The stranger looked angrier than ever. “Look here, my good woman —” he began.
“Don’t ’good woman’ me [16] ,” said Mrs. Hall.
“My money hasn’t come. Still I have some in my pocket —”
“Before I take any money from you, or you get any breakfasts,” said Mrs. Hall, “you have to tell me one or two things I don’t understand. I want to know what you did to my chair, and I want to know how it was your room was empty and how you got in it again? And I want to know —”
16
Don’t ‘good woman’ me = Don’t call me ‘good woman’. – Употребление слов ‘good woman’ в функции глагола придает особую резкость ответу миссис Холл.
Suddenly the stranger raised his gloved hands, and said. “Stop!” with extraordinary violence. “You don’t understand,” he said, “who I am or what I am. I’ll show you.” Then he put his hand over his face and gave Mrs. Hall something which she took automatically. Then, when she saw what it was, she screamed loudly, and dropped it. The nose – it was the stranger’s nose! pink and shining – lay on the floor. Then he took off his spectacles, his hat, and pulled at his whiskers and bandages. Off they came.
It was worse than anything. Mrs. Hall, standing open-mouthed and horrified, shrieked at what she saw, and ran to the door of the house.
Every one began to move. They were prepared for scars, disfigurement – but nothing! The bandages and false hair fell to the floor. Every one saw the figure up to the coat-collar, and then – nothing, nothing at all!
People down the street heard shouts and shrieks, and looking up the street saw a crowd running out of the “Coach and Horses”.
They saw Mrs. Hall fall down, and Mr. Teddy Henfrey jump over her.
Everyone all the way down the street began running towards the inn, and in a short time a crowd of perhaps forty people gathered in front of the “Coach and Horses”. Everybody talked at once.
A few minutes later they saw Mr. Hall, very red and serious, then Mr. Bobby Jaffers, the village constable, marching towards the house. Mr. Hall marched up the steps, to the stranger’s door and found it open. Jaffers marched in, Hall next. They saw the headless figure, with bread in one gloved hand and cheese in the other.
“What the devil’s this?” came an angry question from above the collar of the figure.
“I have a warrant here, mister,” said Mr. Jaffers.
“Keep off!” said the stranger. Off came his glove, and was thrown in Jaffers’s face. In another moment Jaffers gripped him by the handless arm. He was kicked on the leg, but he kept his grip. The stranger was now headless and handless – for he had pulled off his gloves.
It was the strangest thing in the world to hear that voice coming as out of nothing. Jaffers took out a pair of handcuffs. Then he looked helpless.