东方快车谋杀案（节选）

内容简介：本书以1932年轰动一时的真实案件“林白之子绑架案”为蓝本。侦探波洛在叙利亚完成了一项委托，要搭乘辛普朗号东方快车回国。奇怪的是，似乎全世界的人都选在那一夜出行，这列铺位一向宽裕的豪华列车竟然一票难求。午夜过后，一场大雪迫使辛普朗号停了下来。第二天一早，大家发现少了一名乘客。一个美国人死在了他的包厢里，他被刺了十二刀，可他包厢的门却是反锁着的。随着调查的深入，案情却似乎更加扑朔迷离，大侦探波洛想出了两种截然不同的解释……

One

AN IMPORTANT PASSENGER ON THE TAURUS EXPRESS

It was five o’clock on a winter’s morning in Syria. Alongside the platform at Aleppo stood the train grandly designated in railway guides as the Taurus Express. It consisted of a kitchen and dining car, a sleeping car and two local coaches.

金牛座快车上的贵宾  

叙利亚严冬清晨五时，一趟列车停靠在阿勒颇车站月台旁边。这趟列车在铁路时刻表上号称为金牛座快车，由炊事车、餐车、一节卧铺车厢和两节普通车厢编组而成。

By the step leading up into the sleeping car stood a young French lieutenant, resplendent in uniform, conversing with a small lean man, muffled up to the ears, of whom nothing was visible but a pink-tipped nose and the two points of an upward curled moustache.

在登上卧铺车厢的阶梯上，站着一名年轻的法国陆军中尉，穿着醒目的军装，他正与一个身材瘦小的男人交谈。这个男人全身捂得严严实实，连耳朵也包住了，除了一颗红鼻头和两撇上翘的胡子之外，什么也看不见。

It was freezingly cold, and this job of seeing off a distinguished stranger was not one to be envied, but Lieutenant Dubosc performed his part manfully. Graceful phrases fell from his lips in polished French. Not that he knew what it was all about. There had been rumours, of course, as there always were in such cases. The General—his General’s—temper had grown worse and worse. And then there had come this Belgian stranger—all the way from England, it seemed. There had been a week—a week of curious tensity. And then certain things had happened. A very distinguished officer had committed suicide, another had resigned—anxious faces had suddenly lost their anxiety, certain military precautions were relaxed. And the General—Lieutenant Dubosc’s own particular General—had suddenly looked ten years younger.

在冰冷刺骨的天气里，奉命为一名重要的陌生客人送行，确实不是什么值得羡慕的差事，然而杜博斯克中尉在履职尽责方面展现出了一副男子汉大丈夫的气概。优美流利的法语从他的双唇之间流出，显示了他高雅的谈吐。其实，他并不了解整个事情的来龙去脉。当然，这种事情难免会谣言四起。将军——他的这位顶头上司的脾气是愈发暴躁了。后来，好像这位比利时的陌生客人从英国远道而来。诡秘紧张的情势持续了整整一个星期，接着事态有了转变。一名优秀的军官自杀身亡，另一位军官突然辞职，焦虑的面孔也一下子轻松下来，一些军事戒备也变得宽松了。这位将军，杜博斯克中尉侍奉的这位特殊的将军，看起来也瞬间年轻了十岁。

Dubosc had overheard part of a conversation between him and the stranger. “You have saved us, mon cher,” said the General emotionally, his great white moustache trembling as he spoke. “You have saved the honour of the French Army—you have averted much bloodshed! How can I thank you for acceding to my request? To have come so far—”

杜博斯克偶然听到过将军与这位陌生客人的一些谈话。“亲爱的朋友，您拯救了我们”，将军动情地说道，他那撮白胡子也跟着上下颤动。“您挽救了法国军队的荣誉——也避免了很多流血牺牲！您接受了我的邀请，我真不知道该如何感谢您？您从那么远的地方赶来——”。

To which the stranger (by name M. Hercule Poirot) had made a fitting reply including the phrase, “But indeed do I not remember that once you saved my life?” And then the General had made another fitting reply to that disclaiming any merit for that past service, and with more mention of France, of Belgium, of glory, of honour and of such kindred things they had embraced each other heartily and the conversation had ended.

这位陌生客人（名字叫赫邱里·波洛）回答得也很得体，他说：“可我也记得，您不是也救过我一命吗？”将军马上作了恰当的应答，表示过去的事他实在愧不敢当；又提到了法国、比利时，光荣与荣誉等类似的话题之后，两人真诚地拥抱，结束了这次谈话。

As to what it had all been about, Lieutenant Dubosc was still in the dark, but to him had been delegated the duty of seeing off M. Poirot by the Taurus Express, and he was carrying it out with all the zeal and ardour befitting a young officer with a promising career ahead of him.

至于他们两人到底谈了什么内容，杜博斯克仍然蒙在鼓里，他只知道自己奉命为这位波洛先生送行，并搭乘金牛座快车。作为怀有远大前程的年轻军官，他在执行任务时确实也满腔热忱。

“Today is Sunday,” said Lieutenant Dubosc. “Tomorrow, Monday evening, you will be in Stamboul.”

It was not the first time he had made this observation. Conversations on the platform, before the departure of a train, are apt to be somewhat repetitive in character.

“今天礼拜天，”杜博斯克中尉说：“明天，也就是礼拜一晚上，您就能到达伊斯坦堡了。”

这些话他已经说了不止一次了。火车开动之前，月台上的交谈多少都会有些重复的。

“That is so,” agreed M. Poirot.

“And you intend to remain there a few days, I think?”

“Mais oui. Stamboul, it is a city I have never visited. It would be a pity to pass through—comme ça.” He snapped his fingers descriptively. “Nothing presses—I shall remain there as a tourist for a few days.”

“是的。”波洛附和道。

“我想，您在那里也要停留几天吧？”

“是的，我还没去过伊斯坦堡这个城市呢。错过了就太可惜了——是吧？”他顺势弹了个响指。“无事一身轻——我要在那儿好好地玩几天。”

“La Sainte Sophie, it is very fine,” said Lieutenant Dubosc, who had never seen it.

A cold wind came whistling down the platform. Both men shivered. Lieutenant Dubosc managed to cast a surreptitious glance at his watch. Five minutes to five—only five minutes more!

“索菲亚大教堂，那是个很不错的地方。”杜博斯克中尉说，但其实他根本没去过。

一股寒风沿着月台呼啸而过，两人都打了个寒噤。杜博斯克中尉偷瞄了一眼手表，四点五十五分——只剩下五分钟了！

Fancying that the other man had noticed his surreptitious glance, he hastened once more into speech.

“There are few people travelling this time of year,” he said, glancing up at the windows of the sleeping car above them.

“That is so,” agreed M. Poirot.

“Let us hope you will not be snowed up in the Taurus!”

生怕这人看到他偷看了手表，他马上又捡起了话题。

“这季节旅行的人真不算多啊。”他说着朝上方卧铺车厢的窗户瞥了一眼。

“确实不多。”波洛先生点头应着。

“但愿此次别被大雪封路！”

“That happens?”

“It has occurred, yes. Not this year, as yet.”

“Let us hope, then,” said M. Poirot. “The weather reports from Europe, they are bad.”

“Very bad. In the Balkans there is much snow.”

“有那种可能吗？”

“反正以前有过，不过今年倒还没发生呢。”

“但愿不会，”波洛先生说：“欧洲的天气预报可实在是不容乐观。”

“非常糟糕。巴尔干那边雪下得很大。”

“In Germany too, I have heard.”

“Eh bien,” said Lieutenant Dubosc hastily as another pause seemed to be about to occur. “Tomorrow evening at seven-forty you will be in Constantinople.”

“Yes,” said M. Poirot, and went on desperately, “La Sainte Sophie, I have heard it is very fine.”

“Magnificent, I believe.”

“听说德国也下大雪了。”

“是啊，”杜博斯克中尉又感到一阵即将到来的无言尴尬，就赶紧接着说道：“明天晚上七点四十分您就到达君士坦丁堡了。”

“是的，”波洛也百般无奈地说：“圣苏菲大教堂，听说可真是很不错的地方。”

“我觉得应该气势磅礴。”

Above their heads the blind of one of the sleeping car compartments was pushed aside and a young woman looked out.

Mary Debenham had had little sleep since she left Baghdad on the preceding Thursday. Neither in the train to Kirkuk, nor in the Rest House at Mosul, nor last night on the train had she slept properly. Now, weary of lying wakeful in the hot stuffiness of her overheated compartment, she got up and peered out.

卧铺车厢里靠他们头顶上方的一扇百叶窗被推开了，一个年轻女人往车外张望。

玛丽·德贝纳姆从星期四前一天离开巴格达以来就没怎么睡好。无论是在去基尔库克的列车上，还是在摩苏尔的宾馆，或是昨夜在车上，她都睡得很不踏实。现在，她在车厢里躺着睡不着，燥热的空气闷得发慌，所以她站起身来向外窥看。

This must be Aleppo. Nothing to see, of course. Just a long, poor-lighted platform with loud furious altercations in Arabic going on somewhere. Two men below her window were talking French. One was a French officer, the other was a little man with enormous moustaches. She smiled faintly. She had never seen anyone quite so heavily muffled up. It must be very cold outside. That was why they heated the train so terribly. She tried to force the window down lower, but it would not go.

这一定是阿勒波。当然也没有什么可看的，只是一条长长的、灯光黯淡的月台，不知从哪里传来了一阵嘈杂、激烈的阿拉伯语吵骂声。她所在的车窗下有两个男人在用法语交谈，一个是一名法国军官，另一个是蓄有一大撮胡须的瘦小男人。她矜持地挤出一丝笑容。她从未见过捂得这么严实的人。想必外边定是天寒地冻，难怪列车车厢内的暖气开得这么足。她想把窗户往下拉开一点，却无济于事。