夺魂蜡像 The Waxwork (2)
He looked without much interest at the unmoving figures all around him. But before long, he felt those eyes again, the hard eyes of Bourdette, looking at him from behind. He wanted more and more to turn round and look at the figure.
"This is all wrong," he thought. "If I turn around now, it only shows that I'm afraid."
And then he heard another person speaking inside his head. "It's just because you are afraid, that you can't turn around and look."
These different thoughts seemed to be fighting inside him.
Finally, Hewson turned his chair a little and looked behind him. Of the many figures standing there, the figure of the little doctor seemed the most important. Perhaps this was because a stronger light came down on the place where he stood. Hewson looked at the face so cleverly made in wax. His eyes met the figure's eyes. He quickly turned away.
"He's only a waxwork, the same as the others," Hewson said quietly.
Hewson stopped looking. He took out a little book and wrote a line or two.
"Everything quiet. Feel I'm on the floor of the sea. Bourdette trying to send me to sleep with his eyes. Figures seem to move when you're not watching."
He closed the book and quickly looked to his right. He saw only the wax face of Lefroy, looking back at him with a sorry smile.
It was just his fears. Or was it? Didn't Crippen move again as he looked away?
他没趣地打量着自己周围的一动不动的蜡像。可是过了不久,他又觉得有人在盯着他——布尔多特博士那双冷酷的眼睛在背后盯着他。他越来越想转身看看这座蜡像。
他想:“如果我现在转身,那只会显示出我的恐惧。这可大错特错啊。”
然后他听到另一个人在他脑子里说:“都是因为你怕得要死,所以不敢转身瞧瞧。”
这两种截然不同的想法在他的内心不断搏斗。
最后,休森稍稍转动椅子,往后望着蜡像。那边众多的蜡像之中,矮小的布尔多特博士似乎是最显眼的。可能是因为那座蜡像头顶上的灯光比较强烈吧。休森看着那张制作细致逼真的蜡脸,当他的目光不经意地落在蜡像的眼睛时,便立即转移视线。
休森静静地说:“他只是一座蜡像罢了,和其他蜡像没什么不同。”
休森不再端详蜡像,而是拿出一个小本子,写下了一两行字。
“万物俱静。觉得自己像是在海底。布尔多特博士正试图用双眼对我催眠。蜡像似乎趁着不在你视线范围内时动来动去。”
他合上本子,迅速地向右面望去,只看到勒弗罗伊的蜡脸,勒弗罗伊也正挂着一脸遗憾的微笑看着他。
是恐惧使他产生这样的幻觉,不是吗?克里平博士真的没有趁他移开视线的时候动了一下吗?
(编辑:twinx)