8

The man pushed the dish towards me as if offering me some of his octopus.I was trying to free my arm and tell him that I didn't want his octopus,when I saw that the dish was now empty.A sharp point had been used to write something on the buttom.It said,‘Your life is in danger.Be in the Corridor of Men in the catacombs of the Capuchin Convent tonight at a quater to five.’

The man crumpled the dish,released my arm and staggered passed me.He stopped right on the entrance to the ally looking as if he might be sick. I suspected that I had not only been given a warning but a better changce to make my escape.I took it,running until I reached a main street.I had no idea where I was.I hailed the first taxi I saw to take me back to my hotel.

I understood neither the attack nor the warning,though I was certain that my first need was wash and change my clothes.I was spattered in blood-fish’s not mine!I was emptying my pockets when the envelope of photographs fell to the floor.I picked it up.I now had a new and disturbing thought!

Sicily is the original home of the world's biggest criminal organisetion,the Mafia.Was the envelope in my pocket information for a Mafia killing?

I had lived in San Francisco for long enough to know how the American Mafia operates.People who get in the way are removed-permanently!The Mafia has its own killers-"torpedos"or"hitmen".If those responsible for the killing are anxious to avoid suspicion falling on them,even in Mafia circles,then they employ an outsider,a professional assassin.Such a killing is known as "a contract".( 文章閱讀網(wǎng)：www.sanwen.net )

A professional assassin may have no direct contact with his employers.he is supplied only with the necessary information:photographs of the victim,a name and ,perhaps,an address.Were these the photographs of the victim-his name,Alberto Lippari?

But if I had given the wrong photographs,where were mine?My film contained shots of me.The envelope would give my name and my address as Villa Scalini.

Should I keep the appointment at the catacombs(11),or should I not(13)?

注釋：

1，octopus:boiled octopus；煮熟的章魚片；octopus：章魚。

2，free my arm;掙脫我的胳膊。

3，when I saw that the dish was now empty：when=suddenly，at that moment。

4，sharp point：尖銳的端頭。

5，Be in the Corridor of Men：請趕到······男人走廊。 該句是祈使句，be動(dòng)詞表存在。catacomb：地下墓地； Capuchin Convent：嘉布遣會(huì)修道院。

6，crumple：把······弄皺；release：放開 stagger:搖搖晃晃地走路,蹣跚而行。

7, right on the entrance to the ally: 剛好在胡同口；

8，looking as if he might be sick：看樣子，似乎他要嘔吐；sick：（英)惡心，嘔吐；（美）生病。

（英）I'm ill=（美） I get sick.

9，I suspected that···：我猜，我得到的不僅是一個(gè)警告，而且也是一個(gè)逃命的好機(jī)會(huì)。suspect：猜想；

not only···but：不僅······而且；make my escape:逃跑；：逃跑。 escape：逃跑。

10，I took it：我抓住這個(gè)機(jī)會(huì)。main street:大街，主要的街道。

11，I had no idea where I was：我不知道我究竟在哪兒。

12，hail：招呼；the first taxi I saw：我看見的第一輛出租車；I saw是定語從句，關(guān)系代詞在從句中作賓語，故省略。

13，original home;起源地；criminal organisetion:犯罪組織；Mafia黑手黨。

14，operate： 運(yùn)作，活動(dòng)。

15，People who get in the way：那些擋道的人；remove：除去；permanently:永久地。

16，torpedo魚雷，水雷。

17，those responsible for 對······負(fù)責(zé)的那些人。

18，to avoid suspicion falling on them：為了避免殺人嫌疑落到他們身上；suspicion嫌疑。

19，professional職業(yè)的，專業(yè)的；assassin暗殺者，刺客，殺手。

20，is known as 以···而聞名； contract合同，協(xié)議，契約。

21，is supplied only with：只提供······。

22，victim被害者。

23，shots：(照片的)影像。

24，keep the appointment,keep one's appointment:守約lose one's appointment:失約。appointment：（公務(wù)/商務(wù)等方面的）約會(huì)；date：（戀愛/交友性質(zhì)的）約會(huì)。

8

那人把盤子伸向我，似乎要讓我嘗嘗章魚片。我掙扎著想抽出手臂，并且想說我才不想吃他的章魚呢，突然看見盤子是空的,盤子底部有著細(xì)細(xì)的字跡：“你有生命危險(xiǎn)！請務(wù)必于今天下午四點(diǎn)四十五趕到嘉布遣會(huì)修道院地下墓穴的男人走廊”。

那人把盤子捏得皺成一團(tuán)，放開了我的胳膊，踉踉蹌蹌地走開了。剛走到巷口就停下來；好像要嘔吐。我猜想，我得到的不僅僅是一個(gè)警告，而且也是一個(gè)逃命的好機(jī)會(huì)。我趁機(jī)一路狂奔，跑到一條繁華的大街上，才停下來喘口氣。也不知道我究竟是在哪兒，就招呼了最先看到的那輛出租車，回到了旅館。

無論是對于我受到的襲擊，還是得到的警告，我都是一頭霧水；我能肯定的就是，首先應(yīng)該回旅館去洗澡換衣服。我身上濺滿了血跡——當(dāng)然是魚血，不是我的。我正清空臟衣服的口袋，突然，裝有照片的信封掉到了地板上。我撿起信封，頭腦中閃現(xiàn)出另一種猜測，這使我頗為不安！

西西里是世界上最大的犯罪組織——黑手黨——的起源地，我手中的這個(gè)信封，莫非是黑手黨為暗殺某人而給殺手提供的資料？

我長期居住在在舊金山，也風(fēng)聞過美國黑手黨的一些內(nèi)幕情況。如果有誰擋了他們的道，就會(huì)被清除掉——永遠(yuǎn)消失！黑手黨有自己的職業(yè)殺手，叫做“魚雷”或者“打手”。在黑手黨圈子里，主謀者為避免殺人嫌疑，甚至也會(huì)雇傭圈外的職業(yè)殺手，雙方簽訂合同而成交。這樣的暗殺以“合同殺人”著稱。

這種圈外的職業(yè)殺手或許與他的雇主并無直接聯(lián)系，雇主只提供必要的信息：被殺者的照片，姓名，也許還有住址。這些難道是那個(gè)即將被殺者的照片？他的名字，阿爾貝托·李普利？

但是，如果這些照片是誤給了我的話，那么，我的照片又在哪兒呢？我的膠卷上是我的影像，信封上應(yīng)該是我的名字，我的住址：斯卡麗妮別墅。

我應(yīng)該準(zhǔn)時(shí)到地下墓穴赴約呢（11），還是不該去（13）？

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