If tomorrow comes （4）假如明天来临

Chapter 4

第四章

It was not until the following afternoon that the desk sergeant would permit Tracy to use the telephone. Harriet answered. "Mr. Stanhope's office."

直到第二天下午，值班警官才允许特蕾西打电话。是哈里特接的：“斯坦厄普先生办公室。”

"Harriet, this is Tracy Whitney. I'd like to speak to Mr. Stanhope."

“哈里特，我是特蕾西-惠特里。我想和斯坦厄普先生通话。”

"Just a moment, Miss Whitney." She heard the hesitation in the secretary's voice. "I'll--- I'll see if Mr. Stanhope is in."

“请稍等，惠特里小姐。”她听得出这位秘书的声调很踌躇。“我——我去看看斯坦厄普先生是否在。”

After a long, harrowing wait, Tracy finally heard Charles's voice. She could have wept with relief. "Charles---"

经过一段长时间的，令人心碎的等待之后，特蕾西终于听到了查尔斯的声音。她感到一阵轻松，差点哭出声来：“查尔斯——”

"Tracy? Is that you, Tracy?"

“特蕾西吗？是你吗，特蕾西？”

"Yes, darling. Oh, Charles, I've been trying to reach---"

“是的，亲爱的。噢，查尔斯，我一直在设法找——”

"I've been going crazy, Tracy! The newspapers here are full of wild stories about you. I can't believe what they're saying."

“我都急疯了，特蕾西！这儿的报纸上都是关于你的胡言乱语。我没法相信他们的话。”

"None of it is true, darling. None of it. I---"

“没有一点是真的，亲爱的，一丝一毫也没有。我——”

"Why didn't you call me?"

“你为什么不打电话给我？”

"I tried. I couldn't reach you. I---"

“我打过，但找不到你。我——”

"Where are you now?"

“你现在在哪儿？”

"I'm--- I'm in a jail in New Orleans. Charles, they're going to send me to prison for something I didn't do." To her horror, she was weeping.

“我在——我在新奥尔良的监狱里。查尔斯，他们要把我送进监狱，可我完全是无辜的。”她害怕得哭了起来。

"Hold on. Listen to me. The papers say that you shot a man. That's not true, is it?"

“别哭。听我说。报上说你开枪杀人，这不是真的，对吧？”

"I did shoot him, but---"

“我是开了枪，但——”

"Then it is true."

“那么说是真的了？”

"It's not the way it sounds, darling. It's not like that at all. I can explain everything to you. I---"

“可不是象报上说的那样，亲爱的。完全不是那样。我可以把一切告诉你。我——”

"Tracy, did you plead guilty to attempted murder and stealing a painting?"

“特蕾西，你承认蓄意杀人和盗窃一幅画儿的罪行里吗？”

"Yes, Charles, but only because---"

“是的，查尔斯，但那只是因为——”

"My God, if you needed money that badly, you should have discussed it with me.... And trying to kill someone.... I can't believe this. Neither can my parents. You're the headline in this morning's Philadelphia Daily News. This is the first time a breath of scandal has ever touched the Stanhope family."

“我的上帝，如果你那么需要钱，总该和我商量一下……而你却企图杀人……我简直无法相信。我父母也无法相信。你已经成里今天上午费城《没日新闻》的头条新闻。这可是斯坦厄普家第一次遭到别人的闲言碎语。”