Finally it occurred to me that I would call as though nothing had happened, and send a message in by the maid asking Mrs. Strickland if it was convenient for her to see me. This would give her the opportunity to send me away. But I was overwhelmed with embarrassment when I said to the maid the phrase I had prepared, and while I waited for the answer in a dark passage I had to call up all my strength of mind not to bolt. The maid came back. Her manner suggested to my excited fancy a complete knowledge of the domestic calamity.

"Will you come this way, sir?" she said.

I followed her into the drawing-room. The blinds were partly drawn to darken the room, and Mrs. Strickland was sitting with her back to the light. Her brother-in-law, Colonel MacAndrew, stood in front of the fireplace, warming his back at an unlit fire. To myself my entrance seemed excessively awkward. I imagined that my arrival had taken them by surprise, and Mrs. Strickland had let me come in only because she had forgotten to put me off. I fancied that the Colonel resented the interruption.

最后我想了个办法，我就装作若无其事去拜访她，先叫女仆通报一声，询问司太太是否方便见我一面。这样可以给她个机会把我打发走了事。但在我给女仆说完提前备好的套词时，我感到相当局促不安。黑暗过道中等候回话时，我只得鼓起全身勇气才没有打退堂鼓。女仆从屋里走了出来。可能是我神情激动，胡思乱想的缘故，她的举止分明表示她已经完全知道这家人所遭的祸事了。

“先生，请这边来，好吗？”她说道。

我尾随其后来到客厅。窗帘没有完全拉开，室内光线显得暗淡。司太太正背对着光坐在那里。司太太的姐夫麦上校站在壁炉前，烤着自己的后背，壁炉中已经看不到火苗。对我而言，就这样走进来似乎过于尴尬。我猜想我的到来一定令他们大吃一惊，司太太之所以让我进来，只是因为她已经忘记通知我推迟见面的日子。我想象着上校一定对我的突然闯入非常生气。

"I wasn't quite sure if you expected me," I said, trying to seem unconcerned.

"Of course I did. Anne will bring the tea in a minute."

Even in the darkened room, I could not help seeing that Mrs. Strickland's face was all swollen with tears. Her skin, never very good, was earthy.

"You remember my brother-in-law, don't you? You met at dinner, just before the holidays."

We shook hands. I felt so shy that I could think of nothing to say, but Mrs. Strickland came to my rescue. She asked me what I had been doing with myself during the summer, and with this help I managed to make some conversation till tea was brought in. The Colonel asked for a whisky-and-soda.

"You'd better have one too, Amy," he said.

"No; I prefer tea."

“我不太确定，你是否等着我今天来，”我说道，试图让人看上去好像漫不经心的样子。

“我当然在等你今天来。安妮稍后会把茶端上来。”

尽管房间光线暗淡，我禁不住看到司太太已是泪流满面，两眼肿胀。她的肤色本来一直不是很好，如今变得面如土色了。

“你还记得我姐夫吧？度假之前我们一起共进晚餐时，你和他见过面。”

我和她姐夫握了握手。我感觉臊得慌，想不出该和他说点啥。但司太太过来替我解了围。她问我这个夏天自己都干了些什么营生。有了她的这个提示帮助，我终于设法找出了一些聊天话题，一直聊到女仆把茶端了上来。上校要了一杯威士忌加汽水。

“你最好也来一杯，爱媚，”他说道。

“不了，我喜欢喝茶。”

This was the first suggestion that anything untoward had happened. I took no notice, and did my best to engage Mrs. Strickland in talk. The Colonel, still standing in front of the fireplace, uttered no word. I wondered how soon I could decently take my leave, and I asked myself why on earth Mrs. Strickland had allowed me to come. There were no flowers, and various knick-knacks, put away during the summer, had not been replaced; there was something cheerless and stiff about the room which had always seemed so friendly; it gave you an odd feeling, as though someone were lying dead on the other side of the wall. I finished tea.

"Will you have a cigarette?" asked Mrs. Strickland.

She looked about for the box, but it was not to be seen.

"I'm afraid there are none."

Suddenly she burst into tears, and hurried from the room.

这是第一个暗示，说明不幸之事已经发生。我不予理睬，使出浑身解数同司太太聊天。上校仍在壁炉前站着，一语不发。我琢磨着何时告辞才算是不失礼数，我抚心自问，司太太究竟为何让我进屋。屋内没有摆放花卉，夏季期间已经收起来的各种装饰品还没有重新摆上。过去这里的气氛一直温馨舒适，而如今却显得有些了无生趣，呆滞冷清；它给人一种异样的感觉，仿佛隔墙有个死人正躺在那儿。此刻我刚把茶喝完。

“要来支烟吗？”司太太问道。

她四下里张望着找烟盒，却没看到。

“我恐怕没有烟了。”

突然，她泪水夺眶而出，匆忙跑出客厅。

I was startled. I suppose now that the lack of cigarettes, brought as a rule by her husband, forced him back upon her recollection, and the new feeling that the small comforts she was used to were missing gave her a sudden pang. She realised that the old life was gone and done with. It was impossible to keep up our social pretences any longer.

"I dare say you'd like me to go," I said to the Colonel, getting up.

"I suppose you've heard that blackguard has deserted her," he cried explosively.

I hesitated.

我大吃一惊。我在想现在她突然发现家里香烟短缺，过去这本来通常是由她丈夫准备，这下把她丈夫强行拽回到她的记忆中，她习惯于触手可得的生活用品现在不见了，这种新的感觉猛然使她感到一阵剧痛。她意识到往日的生活已经一去不复返。不可能再继续保持我们那种社交来往的场面了。

“我敢说你并希望我呆在这儿，”我站起身来对上校说道。

“我想你已听说了，那个二流子抛弃了她，”他大声吼道，像是吃了枪药一样。

我迟疑片刻。

"You know how people gossip," I answered. "I was vaguely told that something was wrong."

"He's bolted. He's gone off to Paris with a woman. He's left Amy without a penny."

"I'm awfully sorry," I said, not knowing what else to say.

The Colonel gulped down his whisky. He was a tall, lean man of fifty, with a drooping moustache and grey hair. He had pale blue eyes and a weak mouth. I remembered from my previous meeting with him that he had a foolish face, and was proud of the fact that for the ten years before he left the army he had played polo three days a week.

"I don't suppose Mrs. Strickland wants to be bothered with me just now," I said. "Will you tell her how sorry I am? If there's anything I can do. I shall be delighted to do it."

He took no notice of me.

“你知道流言蜚语是如何传开的，”我答道，“有人支支吾吾对我说，出事了。”

“他窜逃了。和个女人一起去了巴黎。他把爱媚丢下，一个子也没给她留。”

“我感到很难过，”我说道，不知道还能说些什么为好。

上校一口吞下杯中的威士忌。他身材修长，骨瘦如柴，正值天命，八字胡须，向下垂着，头发灰白。他的那双眼睛呈灰蓝色，嘴巴看上去松松垮垮。上次见到他时我就记得他一脸傻样，他自己吹嘘说他退伍之前每周打三次马球，十年从未间断过。

“我想现在我不必再打搅司太太了，”我说道，“你能告诉她，就说我很为她感到难过？如果有我力所能及的事，我很高兴为她效劳。”

对我所说的话，他不加理睬。

"I don't know what's to become of her. And then there are the children. Are they going to live on air? Seventeen years."

"What about seventeen years?"

"They've been married," he snapped. "I never liked him. Of course he was my brother-in-law, and I made the best of it. Did you think him a gentleman? She ought never to have married him."

"Is it absolutely final?"

"There's only one thing for her to do, and that's to divorce him. That's what I was telling her when you came in. 'Fire in with your petition, my dear Amy,' I said. 'You owe it to yourself and you owe it to the children.' He'd better not let me catch sight of him. I'd thrash him within an inch of his life."

I could not help thinking that Colonel MacAndrew might have some difficulty in doing this, since Strickland had struck me as a hefty fellow, but I did not say anything. It is always distressing when outraged morality does not possess the strength of arm to administer direct chastisement on the sinner. I was making up my mind to another attempt at going when Mrs. Strickland came back. She had dried her eyes and powdered her nose.

“我不知道她今后的日子将会是什么样子。还有两个孩子。他们去喝西北风生活吗？十七年啊！”

“什么十七年？”

“他们结婚已经有十七年了，”他怒气冲冲地说道。“我从未喜欢过他。当然，我和他是挑担，我尽量容忍着。你觉着他算是个君子吗？她根本就不该嫁给他。”

“这事绝对无法挽回了吗？”

“她现在只有一件事需要做，就是和他离婚。你刚才进来时，我正在给她说的就是这件事。‘亲爱的爱媚，请提出离婚申请，’我说，‘你这是亏欠了你自己，也亏欠了两个孩子。’最好别让我看见那个家伙，否则我非得把他打得只剩半口气不可。”我禁不住想，麦上校做这件事有些难度，因为司查尔身强体壮，这是他给我的印象，但我并没有接麦上校的话茬。一个道德品性端正的人遭到暴行凌辱，却无力对施暴的罪人施行直接惩罚，这实在是令人痛苦不堪。我正下定决心试图再次向他告辞，这时司太太回到了客厅。她已经把眼泪擦干，并补了补妆。

"I'm sorry I broke down," she said. "I'm glad you didn't go away."

She sat down. I did not at all know what to say. I felt a certain shyness at referring to matters which were no concern of mine. I did not then know the besetting sin of woman, the passion to discuss her private affairs with anyone who is willing to listen. Mrs. Strickland seemed to make an effort over herself.

"Are people talking about it?" she asked.

I was taken aback by her assumption that I knew all about her domestic misfortune.

"I've only just come back. The only person I've seen is Rose Waterford."

Mrs. Strickland clasped her hands.

"Tell me exactly what she said." And when I hesitated, she insisted. "I particularly want to know."

"You know the way people talk. She's not very reliable, is she? She said your husband had left you."

"Is that all?"

I did not choose to repeat Rose Waterford's parting reference to a girl from a tea-shop. I lied.

"She didn't say anything about his going with anyone?"

"No."

"That's all I wanted to know."

I was a little puzzled, but at all events I understood that I might now take my leave. When I shook hands with Mrs. Strickland I told her that if I could be of any use to her I should be very glad. She smiled wanly.

"Thank you so much. I don't know that anybody can do anything for me."

Too shy to express my sympathy, I turned to say good-bye to the Colonel. He did not take my hand.

"I'm just coming. If you're walking up Victoria Street, I'll come along with you."

"All right," I said. "Come on."

“对不起，我刚上失态了，”她说道，“我很高兴你并没离开。”

她坐了下来。我压根不知道该说些什么才好。谈论同自己毫不相干的事，在某种程度上我有些害羞。那时我还不懂女人积重难返的劣习——只要有人原意倾听，她就迫不及待地和人家谈论起自己的私事。司太太似乎在努力克制着自己。

“大家都在议论这件事吗？”她问道。

我非常吃惊，她竟想当然地认为，我对她的家庭祸事了如指掌。

“我只是刚刚回来。在此之前我见过的只有沃玫瑰一个人。”

司太太双手紧扣在一起。

“你告诉我，她原话究竟是怎么说的。”我正迟疑着，她却坚持要我说。“我特别想知道。”

“你知道大家背后怎么议论人。她这人说话不是很靠谱，对不对？她说你丈夫已经离开了你。”

“就这些？”

沃玫瑰刚才离开时提到茶馆年轻姑娘的那句话，我决定不复述给她听。于是我对她扯了个谎。

“她就没说他是跟什么人一块走的？”

“没有。”

“我想知道的就是这些。”

我有些迷惑不解，但无论如何我明白现在我该告辞了。

当我同司太太握手告别时我对她说，如果有任何事需要我帮忙，我一定乐意效劳。她面色苍白，淡淡地笑了一笑。

“非常感谢。我不知道有谁能为我做什么事。”

我太过腼腆，无法表达恻隐之心，便转身去同上校告别。上校并没与我握手。

“我也要走。如果你走维多利亚路，我跟你同路。”

“好吧，”我说道，“咱们一起走。”