07-Chapter Ⅶ 受害者的真实身份

They found Monsieur Bouc in the restaurant carriage.

他们在餐车里找到了布克先生。

“The real name of the victim,” said Poirot, "was Cassetti—he is the man who murdered Daisy Armstrong.”

“受害者的真名字，” 波洛说，"是卡塞蒂——他是谋杀了黛西·阿姆斯特朗的凶手。”

“That was a shocking event, I remember,” said Bouc. "I’ve forgotten the details, though.”

“那是一起令人震惊的事件，我还记得，” 布克说道。"不过我忘记了细节。”

“Colonel Armstrong was English. He married the daughter of Linda Arden, the most famous American actress at the time. They lived in America and had one child. When Daisy was three, she was kidnapped (被绑架）. The Colonel paid a huge amount of money to get her back, but sadly the child’s body was discovered soon afterward—she had been dead at least a fortnight (两周）.”

"阿姆斯特朗上校是英国人。他娶了琳达·阿登的女儿，当时是美国最著名的女演员。他们生活在美国，有一个孩子。当黛西三岁时，她被绑架（被绑架）了。上校支付了巨额赎金来把她找回来，但不幸的是，很快就发现了孩子的尸体——她至少已经死亡两周。”

词汇解释：

• restaurant carriage：餐车，火车中提供餐饮服务的车厢。
• victim [ˈvɪktɪm]：受害者，指遭受伤害、侵害或犯罪的人。
• shocking [ˈʃɑkɪŋ]：令人震惊的，引起强烈愤怒或震惊的。
• details [ˈditelz]：细节，事情的具体情况或部分。
• kidnapped [ˈkɪdnæpt]：被绑架，指被非法劫持或拐走。
• fortnight [ˈfɔrtnaɪt]：两周，指一个时间段为两个星期（14天）。

And there was worse to follow. Mrs. Armstrong was pregnant (怀孕的). Following the shock of Daisy’s death, her child was born dead, and then she herself died. Her husband’s heart was broken, and he shot himself."

然后发生了更可怕的事情。阿姆斯特朗夫人怀孕了（怀孕的）。在黛西的死亡震惊之后，她的孩子死胎出生，然后她自己也去世了。她丈夫的心被伤得粉碎，他开枪自杀了。”

“Terrible, terrible,” said Bouc. “And I think remember that there was also another death?”

“可怕，可怕，”布克说。“我想我还记得还有另一起死亡事件吧？”

"Yes—a French maid who the police were sure had helped the criminals. They refused to believe her when she insisted that she was innocent.

“是的，有一位法国女仆，警方确信她帮助了罪犯。当她坚称自己无辜时，他们拒绝相信她。

Finally, the poor girl threw herself from a window and was killed. It was proved afterwards that she was indeed innocent."

最后，这位可怜的女孩从窗户跳下，丧命。后来证明她确实是无辜的。”

"That’s very shocking,” said Bouc.

“真是太可怕了，”布克说。

词汇解释：

• pregnant [ˈprɛɡnənt]：怀孕的，指女性身体内怀有未出生婴儿。
• shock [ʃɑk]：震惊，强烈的情感反应，通常由不幸的事件引起。
• born dead [bɔrn dɛd]：出生时已经死亡，指婴儿在出生时没有生命体征。
• shot himself [ʃɑt hɪmˈsɛlf]：开枪自杀，指一个人用枪射击自己，导致自己死亡。
• French maid [frɛntʃ meɪd]：法国女仆，指一位从法国来的女佣人。
• helped the criminals [hɛlpt ðə ˈkrɪmɪnlz]：帮助罪犯，协助犯罪分子进行犯罪活动。
• innocent [ˈɪnəsənt]：无辜的，没有犯罪或过错的。
• threw herself [θru hɜrˈsɛlf]：跳下，指某人故意从高处跳下。
• shocking [ˈʃɑkɪŋ]：令人震惊的，引起极大愤怒或震惊的。

“About six months later, this man Cassetti was arrested as the head of the criminals who had kidnapped Daisy. But because he was very rich and had various powerful people helping him, Cassetti was never punished.

“大约六个月后，这个卡塞蒂先生因绑架黛西的罪行被捕。但是由于他非常富有，还有各种有力的人帮助他，卡塞蒂从未受到惩罚。

He managed to disappear, and it’s now clear that he changed his name and left America."

他设法消失了，现在清楚地看来，他改变了名字并离开了美国。”

“Ah! Quel animal! He really is an animal," Bouc spoke with strong feeling. “I’m not sorry that he’s dead!"

“啊！真是个禽兽！”布克用强烈的情感说道。“他死了，我一点也不难过！”

“One member of the family is still alive一a young sister of Mrs. Armstrong’s,” Poirot said. "So now we have to ask ourselves, is this a crime of private revenge (复仇）？” Everything was ready.

“阿姆斯特朗夫人的家庭中还有一名成员——是她的妹妹，”波洛说。“所以现在我们必须问自己，这是一起私人复仇的罪行吗？”一切都准备就绪。

Poirot and Bouc sat on one side of a table.

波洛和布克坐在桌子的一侧。

The doctor sat at the table across from them.

医生坐在他们对面的桌子上。

In front of Poirot was a diagram of the Istanbul-Calais carriage with the names of the passengers in red ink.

波洛面前是一张伊斯坦布尔-加莱的车厢示意图，上面用红墨水写着乘客的名字。

Their passports were also on the table.

他们的护照也放在桌子上。

“First, the conductor,” said Poirot. “Do you trust him?"

“首先，是列车长，”波洛说。“你信任他吗？”

“Certainly. Pierre Michel has been employed by the company for fifteen years. He is respectable and honest.”

“当然。皮埃尔·米歇尔在公司工作了十五年。他很可靠和诚实。”

Poirot nodded. “Let US interview him.”

波洛点了点头。“让我们去面试他。”

词汇解释：

• diagram [ˈdaɪəˌɡræm]：示意图，图表，用来展示信息或数据的图形表示。
• red ink [rɛd ɪŋk]：红墨水，指用红色墨水或钢笔墨水写的文字或图形。
• respectable [rɪˈspɛktəbl]：可敬的，值得尊敬的，指具有良好品质或行为的。

Pierre Michel was very nervous.

皮埃尔·米歇尔非常紧张

“I hope Monsieur will not think that I haven’t done my job properly,” he said in an anxious voice.

“我希望先生不会认为我没有做好我的工作，”他焦虑地说。

"No, no, of course not,” said Poirot.

波洛说：“不，不，当然不会。

He then began his questions. “What time did Monsieur Ratchett go to bed last night?”

然后他开始提问。“拉谢特先生昨晚几点上床睡觉的？”

"Immediately after dinner, Monsieur.”

“晚餐后立刻上床的，先生。”

“Did anybody go into his compartment afterwards?”

“之后有人进入他的车厢吗？”

“His valet, Monsieur, and his secretary.”

“他的贴身男仆，先生，以及他的秘书。”

'And was that the last time you saw him?"

“那是你最后一次见到他了吗？”

“He rang his bell at about 12.40 am. I knocked, but he said he had made a mistake—Ce n'est rien. Je me suis trompé [法]没什么，我搞错了）”

他在大约凌晨12:40按铃。我敲了一下，但他说他搞错了—Ce n'est rien. Je me suis trompé（[法]没什么，我搞错了）。”

“Yes, that was what I heard, too,” said Poirot. “Now, Michel, where were you at 1.15 am?”

“是的，我也听到了这个，”波洛说。“现在，米歇尔，凌晨1:15你在哪里？”

“At my seat at the end of the corridor. However, some time after one o’clock I went into the Athens carriage to speak to my colleague (同事）.”

“我在走廊尽头的座位上。但是，在一点多之后的某个时候，我去了雅典车厢与我的同事谈话。”

“And when did you return?”

“你什么时候回来的？”

"One of my bells rang, Monsieur. It was the American lady.”

“我的其中一个铃响了，先生。是那位美国女士。”

“I remember,” said Poirot. “And after that?"

“我记得，”波洛说。“之后呢？”

“I answered your bell, and another. Then I prepared the bed for Monsieur Ratchett’s secretary. The English Colonel had been with him but he had just returned to his own compartment when I was called in."

“我回答了您的铃声，还有另一个。然后，我为拉谢特先生的秘书准备了床铺。英国上校一直和他在一起，但当我被叫去时，他刚刚回到了自己的车厢。”

“What time was this?”

“那是什么时候？”

“I don’t remember the exact time, Monsieur. Not later than 2 am, certainly.”

“我不记得确切的时间，先生。肯定不晚于凌晨2点。”

“And after that?”

“之后呢？”

"I sat in my seat till morning, Monsieur.”

“我一直坐在我的座位上，直到早上，先生。”

“Did you see any of the passengers in the corridor?"

“你在走廊里看到乘客吗？”

The man thought for a moment. “One of the ladies went to the toilet at the end, I think.”

那人思考了片刻。 “我想有一位女士去了尽头的卫生间。”

“Which lady?"

“哪位女士？”

“I don’t know, Monsieur. She had her back to me. She was wearing a red dressing-gown."

“我不知道，先生。她背对着我。她穿着一件红色的睡袍。”

Poirot nodded. “And after that?”

波洛点了点头。“之后呢？”

“Nothing, Monsieur, until the morning."

“什么都没有，先生，直到早上。”

“Let us move on to another point," Poirot said. “If the killer did join the train last night, he could not have left it after the crime?”

“我们继续谈谈另一个问题，”波洛说。“如果凶手昨晚确实上了火车，他就不能在犯罪后离开火车？”

"No.” Michel shook his head.

“不，”米歇尔摇了摇头。

“And he cannot be hiding on the train?”

“他不能藏在火车上吗？”

“No, it has been searched," said Bouc. “Forget that idea, my friend.”

“不行，已经搜查过了，”布克说。“放弃那个想法，我的朋友。”

“Besides,” said Michel, “no one could get onto the sleeping carriage without me seeing them.”

“而且，”米歇尔说，“没有人能够在我看不见的情况下进入卧铺车厢。”

Poirot did not speak for a moment.

波洛沉默了一会儿。

“One other point. You said another bell rang. I heard it myself. Whose was it?”

“还有一个问题。你说另一个铃声响了。我自己也听到了。那是谁的铃声？”

“It belonged to Madame la Princesse Dragomiroff. She wanted me to call her maid."

“那是龙戈米洛夫公主的铃声。她要我叫她的女仆。”

For a minute or two after Pierre Michel left, Poirot continued to think hard.

在Pierre Michel离开后，他继续思考了一两分钟。

"We need to have another chat with Monsieur MacQueen,” he said at last.

"我们需要再与MacQueen先生聊一聊，"他最后说道。

The young American came quickly. "Well,” he said, “how are things going?”

”这位年轻的美国人迅速走了过来。“嗯，”他说，“情况怎么样？”

“I have learned that Ratchett, as you thought, was a false name. He was actually Cassetti, the man who kidnapped Daisy Armstrong.”

“我已经了解到，正如你所想，拉谢特是个假名字。他实际上是卡塞蒂，绑架了黛西·阿姆斯特朗的那个人。”

A look of great surprise appeared on MacQueen’s face, then it became dark.

麦克奎因的脸上露出了极大的惊讶，然后变得阴沉。

“The disgusting rat! I’d rather have cut off my right hand than work for him!"

“这个恶心的家伙！我宁愿割掉我的右手也不愿意为他工作！”

“You have strong feelings, Monsieur MacQueen."

“你情绪很强烈。麦克奎因先生。"

“Monsieur Poirot, my father was the District Attorney (地方检察官) who was in charge of the case. Mrs. Armstrong was a lovely woman. Cassetti deserved to die!"

“波洛先生，我父亲曾是主管该案件的地方检察官。阿姆斯特朗夫人是个可爱的女人。卡塞蒂罪有应得!"

“Would you have been willing to kill him yourself?”

“您愿意亲手杀了他吗？”

“Yes, I-" He paused, and his cheeks became red. “I’m making myself look guilty! Can I ask, how did you find out who Cassetti was?”

“我让自己看起来很内疚！请问，你是怎么知道卡塞蒂是谁的？”

“From a small piece of a letter in his compartment."

“从他的隔间里的一小片信件中知道的。"

“But—I mean—that was very careless of him.”

“但是，我是说，他太不小心了。”

“That depends," said Poirot, and changed the subject.

"那要看情况了，"波洛说，并转移了话题。

"Now, Monsieur, we know the Colonel was in your compartment yesterday evening.

“现在，先生，我们知道昨晚上上校在您的隔间里。

Did you see anyone pass along the corridor after the train left Vincovci until the time Colonel Arbuthnot went to his own compartment?"

在火车离开温科夫奇后，您有没有看到有人在走廊上经过，直到阿伯瑟诺上校去了他自己的隔间？”

MacQueen thought. "I think the conductor passed. And a woman.”

“我记得列车员经过了。还有一个女人。”

“Which woman?”

“Which woman?”

“I didn’t really notice. I was arguing with Arbuthnot. I just remember seeing some red silk very quickly.”

“我真的没注意到。我当时正在和阿布斯诺争论。我只记得很快就看到了一些红丝”

Poirot nodded. “One more question. Do you smoke a pipe?”

波洛点了点头。“还有一个问题。你抽烟斗吗？”

"No, sir.”

“不抽，先生。”

词汇解释：

• arguing [ˈɑːrɡjuɪŋ]：争论，表示两人或多人就某个问题或话题进行激烈的讨论或争吵。
• red silk [rɛd sɪlk]：红色丝绸，指红色的丝绸材料。
• smoke a pipe [smoʊk ə paɪp]：抽烟斗，指使用一种装有烟草的管状设备吸烟。

“Thank you, Monsieur MacQueen.”

“谢谢您，麦克奎因先生

Turning to Bouc, Poirot said: “I would now like to see Monsieur Ratchett’s valet.”

波洛转向布克说： “我现在想见雷切特先生的贴身男仆”

Edward Masterman, the English valet, arrived quickly. Poirot invited him to sit down.

英国男仆爱德华-马斯特曼很快就到了。波洛请他坐下。

“I suppose you have heard your employer has been murdered?"

“我想你已经听说你的雇主被谋杀了吧？”

“Yes, sir. A very shocking thing.”

“是的先生。一件非常令人震惊的事情。”

“Tell me, please, when you last saw him.”

“请告诉我，你上次见到他是什么时候。”

“Well … I went in as usual last night, sir.”

“嗯… 我昨晚像往常一样进去他的房间了，先生。”

“Was he behaving in an unusual way at all?”

“他的行为有什么异常吗？”

The valet thought for a moment. “Well, sir, he was upset about a letter he’d been reading. He asked if I had put it in his compartment. I told him I hadn’t."

侍者思考了一会儿。“嗯，先生，他对他读过的一封信感到不安。他问我是否把它放在他的隔间里。我告诉他我没有。”

“Did your employer take any medicine to help him sleep?”

“你的雇主有没有服用任何帮助他入睡的药物？”

“Always, when traveling by train, sir. I gave it to him.”

“坐火车的时候总是这样，先生。是我给他的”

“Did you know that he had enemies?”

“你知道他有敌人吗？”

“Yes, sir.” The man spoke without feeling.

“是的先生。”男人毫无感情地说道。

“I heard him discussing some letters with Mr. MacQueen.”

“我听到他在和麦奎恩先生讨论一些信件”

“Have you ever been to America?"

“你去过美国吗？”

“No, sir.”

“没有，先生”

“Do you remember the Armstrong kidnapping case?"

“你还记得阿姆斯特朗绑架案吗？”

Colour came into the man’s cheeks. “Oh yes, indeed, sir. A baby girl. Shocking."

男人的脸色顿时红了。“哦，是的，确实如此，先生。一个女婴。令人震惊。”

“Did you know that Monsieur Ratchett was the leader of those criminals?"

“你知道雷切特先生是那些罪犯的头目吗？”

“No, sir—I had no idea.” The valet’s voice was full of feeling for the first time.

“不，先生，我不知道。” 男仆的声音第一次充满了感情。

"That’s very difficult to believe, sir.”

“这很难让人相信，先生”

“However, it is true. Now, let’s talk about what you did last night. What did you do after leaving your employer?”

“不过，这是真的。现在，我们来谈谈你昨晚做了什么。你离开雇主后做了什么？”

"I told Mr. MacQueen that Mr. Ratchett wanted him, sir. Then I went to my compartment and read.”

“我告诉麦克奎因先生拉谢特先生需要他，先生。然后我去了我的隔间并阅读了。”

“Till when?"

“一直读到什么时候？”

"About 10.30 pm, sir. Then the other person in my compartment—a big Italian man—wanted to go to bed.”

“大约晚上10:30，先生。然后，我隔间里的另一个人，一个大个子的意大利人，想去睡觉。”

"And then you slept?”

“然后您就睡了？”

“I went to bed, sir, but I couldn’t sleep. I had a toothache. It was very painful, sir. So I continued to read—to stop me thinking about it. I went to sleep at about 4 am.”

“我去睡觉了，先生，但我睡不着。我牙痛。非常疼痛，先生。所以我继续阅读，以防止我去考虑它。我大约在凌晨4点左右入睡。”

“And the other man?”

“那另一个人呢？”

"The Italian? Oh, he slept all night long.”

“那个意大利人？哦，他整夜都在睡觉。”

“He did not leave the compartment?"

“他没有离开隔间吗？”

“No, sir.”

“没有，先生。”

“And how long have you been with Monsieur Ratchett?”

“你和雷切特先生在一起多久了？”

“Nine months, sir.”

“九个月，先生。”

"Thank you, Masterman. By the way, do you smoke a pipe?”

“谢谢你，Masterman。顺便问一下，你抽烟斗吗？”

“No, sir.”

“不，先生。”

"Thank you. That’s all.”

“谢谢。就这些了。”

The valet paused. "Please excuse me, sir, but the elderly American lady seems very excited. She’s saying she knows all about the murderer, sir.”

侍者停顿了一下。 “请原谅我，先生，但是那位年长的美国女士似乎非常兴奋。她说她知道一切关于凶手的事情，先生。”

"Well, then,” said Poirot, smiling, “we should interview her next.”

"那好吧，"波洛笑着说，“接下来我们应该采访她。”