“即使我们知道了，” 马龙说，“这个城市里也肯定有十万个门牌号是 114 的门。”
“Even if we did,” Malone said, “there must be a hundred thousand doors in the city numbered 114.”
海伦叹了口气。“这一切似乎都对不上，但肯定有联系。肯定有某种关联，但我们不知道是什么。” 突然，她的眼睛一亮。“有一个关联我们是知道的。这件事中的每一个相关人员都是从别的地方来的。”
Helene sighed. “None of it seems to fit together, but it must. There must be some link, but we don’t know what it is.” Suddenly her eyes flickered. “There is one link that we do know. Every person concerned in this business came here from somewhere else.”
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“请大声点。” 马龙说。
“Louder please,” Malone said.
“洛特斯?艾伦和罗斯?麦克劳林来自欧洲。文宁夫妇来自东方。他们是因为战争才回到这里的。两个图伊兹也是从别的地方来这里的。他们的鞋子是伦敦的鞋匠做的。衣服是伦敦的裁缝做的。但也许他们不是从伦敦来这里的。他们可能来自任何地方。”
“Lotus Allen and Ross McLaurin came from Europe. The Vennings came from the Orient. They were driven back here by the war. The two Tuesdays had e here from somewhere else. They had shoes bought from a London bootmaker. Clothes made by a London tailor. But maybe they didn’t e here from London. They might have e here from anywhere.”
马龙把雪茄烟头扔出窗外。“没错。虽然这件事中的人似乎都来自世界上非常不同的地方，但事实是他们都是从别的国家来到这里的。关联可能就在那里，尽管我们看不到。除了莫娜?麦克莱恩，她不是来自某个地方，她是去各个地方。” 他停顿了一下，伸手去拿另一支雪茄。“第一个人在格兰德酒店登记时自称杰拉尔德?图伊兹……” 他突然停了下来，扔下雪茄，对司机喊道：“在拐角处停下。我要打个电话！”
Malone tossed his cigar butt out the window. “It’s true. While the people involved in this all seem to have e from very different parts of the world, the fact remains that they all came here from some other country. The link may be there, though we can’t see it. All but Mona McClane, and she doesn’t e from places, she goes to places.” He paused, reached for another cigar. “The first man called himself Gerald Tuesday when he registered at the LeGrand Hotel—” He broke off suddenly, dropped the cigar, and called to the driver. “Stop at the corner. I’ve got to make a phone call!”
“马龙……” 杰克刚开口。律师没听到他的话。
“Malone—” Jake began. The lawyer didn’t hear him.
“在出租车里等我。我马上就回来。” 他下车的时候从地上捡起雪茄，冲过人行道，消失了。
“Wait for me in the cab. I’ll be right back.” He grabbed the cigar off the floor as he got out, darted across the sidewalk, and disappeared.
杰克摇了摇头。“我甚至都不想去猜。”
Jake shook his head. “I don’t want even to guess.”
三分钟后，这个小律师回来了。他皱着眉头，表情很严肃。
Three minutes later the little lawyer returned. He was scowling heavily.
“不是那个。是 726。”
“It wasn’t it. It was 726.”
“什么是 726？”
“What was?”
“第一个杰拉尔德?图伊兹在格兰德酒店住的房间号。不是 114。”
小主，
“The number of the room the first Gerald Tuesday got at the LeGrand Hotel. It wasn’t 114.”
“哦。” 海伦说，“只是一个‘哦’。”
“Oh,” Helene said. “Just plain oh.”
在出租车在马龙的酒店前停下之前，没有人再说话。
It was the last anybody said until the taxi pulled up before Malone’s hotel.
“要是我们能让这个男孩开口就好了。” 海伦低声说。
“If we can only get this boy to talk,” Helene murmured.
“要是我们能再把他灌醉，他就会说了。” 马龙咕哝着。他在前台停了一下，得知没有留言，然后把他们领进了电梯。
“If we could only get him plastered again, he would,” Malone grunted. He paused at the desk, learned there were no messages, and ushered them into the elevator.
“我打赌嫁给迈克尔?文宁一定很不容易。” 海伦在电梯上升的时候说道。
“I bet it’s tough being married to Michael Venning,” Helene observed on the way up.
“我打赌取这样的妻子更不容易。” 杰克说，“在我看来，她就像哭泣的威利和《东林恩》最后一幕的结合体。”
“I bet it’s tougher being married to his wife,” Jake said. “She looks like a bination of Willie the Weeper and the last act of East Lynne, to me.”
马龙说：“我不知道。我觉得她比表面上看起来更有耐力。这些高大、像马一样的女人总是比你想象的要坚强。我知道。”
Malone said, “I don’t know. I suspect she has more stamina than shows on the surface. These tall, horsy-looking women are always tougher than you think they’re going to be. I know.”
在他为罗斯?麦克劳林预订的房间门口，他正要伸手去拿钥匙。海伦抓住了他的胳膊。
At the door of the room he had taken for Ross McLaurin, he started to reach for the key. Helene clutched at his arm.
“马龙！你要怎么告诉他…… 关于洛特斯的事？”
“Malone! How are you going to tell him about—Lotus?”
“用我的声带、舌头、嘴唇和牙齿。” 他生气地说，“怎么了？你怕他会尖叫吗？”
“With my vocal cords, tongue, lips, and teeth,” he said crossly. “What’s the matter? Are you afraid he’ll scream?”
“不，但是……” 她皱起眉头，“这会很糟糕，马龙。他那么无助。她因谋杀罪被捕入狱了，而他却无能为力。”
“No, but—” She frowned. “It’s going to be awful, Malone. He’s so helpless. She’s arrested for murder and in jail, and there won't be anything he can do about it.”
“也许这个打击会让他的记忆恢复。” 马龙严肃地说，“天知道，必须得有什么办法才行。”
“Maybe the shock will jolt his memory back to work,” Malone said grimly. “God knows, something has got to.”
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杰克叹了口气。“如果不行，也许这次我们能哄他喝点酒。”
Jake sighed. “If it doesn’t, maybe we can coax him to take a drink by this time.”
马龙哼了一声，打开了门。刚进门一半，他突然停住了。杰克抓住海伦的胳膊，把她拉进房间，关上并锁上了门。
Malone grunted, and opened the door. Halfway through it he stopped dead. Jake grabbed Helene’s arm, pulled her into the room, and shut and locked the door.
罗斯?麦克劳林正坐在床上。他孩子气的脸微微泛红，眼睛里闪烁着愉快、无忧无虑的光芒。床上散落着一堆空杯子，他手里拿着一瓶喝了一半的老乌鸦威士忌。
Ross McLaurin was sitting up in bed. His boyish face was pinkish, and there was a cheerful, carefree light in his eyes. A collection of empty glasses was strewn on the bedcover, and he was holding a partly empty bottle of Old Crow in his hand.
“进来喝一杯。” 他高兴地邀请他们，“你们是我的朋友。你们是我唯一的朋友。要帮我洗清麦克劳林家族被谋杀指控的好名声。” 他摇了摇头，“不知道我为什么杀了那些人，但肯定有充分的理由。来吧，来喝一杯。” 他向他们挥舞着那瓶老乌鸦威士忌。
“C’mon in and have a drink,” he invited them happily. “You’re m’friends. You’re m’only friends. Goin’ help me clear fine ol’ name of McLaurin of murder charge.” He shook his head. “Don’ know why I murdered those men, but mus’ have had good reason. Com’n’ ’n’ have drink.” He waved the bottle of Old Crow at them.
“我的天啊！” 马龙惊叹道，“他自己就全搞定了！”
“Holy Jumping Judas!” Malone said in an awe-struck voice. “He’s gone and done it all by himself!”