《耶利歌》扭曲灵魂！

IV

这样的一男一女并肩行走实在是件非常古怪的事情。虽然克里奇已经洗去了身上的血污，他仍旧还是杀害议员的那个刽子手。而现在，他却和受害者的女儿一起在夜幕下同行。
It was the strangest walk a man and a woman ever took together．ThoughKreiger had washed the Senator’s blood from his faces，hands and arms hestill stank of murder．And here he was，Walking beside the daughter ofthe man he’d just murdered，wrapped in dark linen．

他们就这样一起目睹了普利摩顿最阴暗的一面：疾病，暴力以及从未得到过救济的困苦生活。露辛迪克不时地指着国王冬宫的高墙和城堡，那里任何一个房间里的财宝都足以清除所有这些贫民窟，喂饱那些挨饿的孩子。
Together，they saw the worst of Primordium: the disease，the violence，andthe grinding，unrelieved poverty．And every now and then Lucidique wouldpoint to the walls and the towers of the Emperor’s Winter Palace，anyone room of which contained sufficient wealth to clear the slums of thecity，and feed every starving child．

多年来第一次，克里奇感受到了埋藏在心灵深处的真情实感，回忆起了他自己成长的环境——每次重病的母亲卖身给国王警卫队的侍卫时，他总是一个人孤零零地坐在普利摩顿街道的那些下水道里。走着走着，他的心中燃起怒火，这愤怒的情绪慢慢滋长起来。
And for the first time in many，many years Kreiger felt some measure ofreal emotion，remembering circumstances of his own up-bringing，left tosit in the open sewers of Primordium’s streets while his mother soldher drug-riddled body to one of the guards of the Emperor’sguards．There was anger in him as he walked．And it steadily grew．

“你想让我做什么呢？”他问道，他被内心的感受和无望的感觉击倒了。“我是永远无法与国王抗衡的。”
“What do you want me to do？” he said，frustrated by what he felt，and his own helplessness．“I could never get to the Emperor.”

“别那么肯定。”
“Don’t be so sure.”

“你什么意思？”
“What do you mean？”

“不错，对于你这样一个被雇来解决不安分议员的小杀手来说，王朝的确坚不可摧。但要是你远比现在强大呢？那么你就完全可以推翻它。”
“You’re right，the Dynasty is untouchable as long as you’re just a man;a scabby little assassin hired to kill overweight Senators．But supposeyou could be more than that？ Then you could bring the Dynasty down.”

“要怎么做才行？”
“How？”

露辛迪克斜睨了克里奇一眼道：“在这儿我没法告诉你。何况，我还得为我的父亲办后事。要是你真想知道更多的话，明天晚上到西城门外来找我。一个人来。”
Lucidique gave Kreiger a sideways glance．“It’s nothing I can show youhere．Besides，I have a father to bury．If you want to know more，then meetme tomorrow night outside the Western Gates．Come alone.”

“要是这是个陷阱……”克里奇说，“……想以此替你父亲报仇的话……在你的人抓住我之前，我会把你的眼睛挖出来。”
“If this is some kind of trap…” Kreiger said，“…some way to revenge yourfather… then before they take me I’ll cut out your eyes.”

露辛迪克笑了，“你的情话真动听，”她说。
Lucidique smiled．“You make such pretty love-talk，” she said．

“我是认真的。”
“I mean it.”

“我知道。我还不至于蠢到密谋害你。恰恰相反，我相信我们是命中注定要相识的。我注定会在你杀我父亲的时候走进来，而你则注定收手不杀我。这是我们之间的某种默契。你能感觉到的，不是吗？”
“I know．And I wouldn’t be so stupid as to conspire against you．Quitethe reverse．I believe we were meant to know one another．I was meant towalk in on your killing my father，and you were ment to hold your handoff and not kill me．There’s some connection between us．You feelit，don’t you？”

克里奇看着他们之间隔着肮脏街道。这个夜晚他经历了前所未有的感觉。而现在，他又必须承认自己与这个刚刚被他谋杀的人的女儿之间的亲密感觉。
Kreiger looked at the dirty street between them．The night had beenfilled with feelings he had not anticipated experiencing．And now herewas another; admitting to the strange intimacy he felt for the daughterof the man he’d murdered．

“是的，”他说。“我感觉到了。”在很长的一阵沉默之后，他问道：“明天晚上什么时候？”
“Yes，” he said．“I feel it.” Then，after a long silence: “What time tomorrow night？”

“凌晨一点以后。” 露辛迪克告诉他。
“Sometime after one.” Lucidique told him．

“我会去的。”
“I’ll be there.”