本帖最后由 bright_helm 于 2010-11-9 13:06 编辑
例行占楼，sammy帝的手动英文输入。
The Summons of the Deep —— Part Three: The Antediluvian Dreams [复制链接]
BH继续
The cake was good, but it was also gone. Julia sure could bake, when she wasn't too busy with that creepy violin, and Marshall Greene missed her. He took a sip of his coffee, black, and grimaced at its hot, bitter taste. How could a person run out of sugar and not buy more?
He knew from the start that she was an odd girl, and the more he got to know her the odder she seemed. He should have dropped her a long time ago, but he couldn't help himself. He needed someone to make him feel like a large, primitive beast, and Julia did so better than most. Besides, she hardly ever let him speak, and for a fellow who rarely had anything to say, a girl like that was a blessing in disguise.
Of course, Marshall had to wonder if this was all an elaborate joke. She was always playing jokes on him, trying to pull the wool over his eyes, and calling him... what was that word? Gullible. Then again, it wasn't all that unbelievable that she really had lost it. She did seem to be the type to go and do something like that...
Marshall yawned, and sipped at his coffee. It really was bitter, nearly undrinkable. His eyes grew heavy, and he yawned again. Time passed, and Marshall stared out the window, counting stars. On the verge of dozing off, he jerked himself awake, energized by a sound from the back of the apartment. The opening of the bedroom door.
Julia appeared in the doorway, and paused, as if something were wrong. "Who's there?" she whispered.
"Julia...are you awake? It's me...Marshall." He saw that her eyes were closed, but her lips were curled in a smile. "Is this one of your jokes? Are you riding me again?"
"Who are you?" she whispered again, and moved towards the sink.
Marshall stood up and interposed himself in front of her. "Julia, wake up...I think you're sleepwalking. You want to turn on the water, like you said. You need to go back to bed." He grabbed at her shoulders, stopping her progress.
"Move." She twisted out of his grasp, like a serpent. He could smell a foul, marshy scent on her breath.
"Is this another one of your jokes?" He grabbed at her arm again, but she pushed his hand away. "If it is, it's not very funny." Julia took another step towards the faucet, and turned on the water. A dark brown stream began to pour into the sink. "Julia! Wake up...you know I'm getting too old for this crap." He reached for the faucet to turn it off, for the strange water pouring into the room had a heavy, offensive, swamp-like smell that was making it difficult to breathe. She reared up in the corner of his eye. He hardly recognized her. "Hey!" he yelled. "What are you... stop it! Wake up! JUL-"
* * *
Julia Brown woke to the sound of birds, and the bright light of the sun shining through her window. The fragments of a strange dream were flitting away in her mind. Something about Marshall, and sugar, and cake. She couldn't remember. She felt more relaxed and peaceful than she had in weeks. She rolled over in beds luxuriating in the feeling, thinking about going back to sleep.
The sound of running water brought her fully awake. That's odd, she thought. Did Marshall doze off, giving her a chance to turn on the water? That wouldn't surprise her. Just something else to hold over his head. How could you let me turn on the water?! She laughed, imagining herself giving him a hard time. The whole watery mess didn't seem quite so ominous with another person sleeping in the next room.
Julia pulled herself out of bed, made her way to the kitchen, and turned off the sink. In the other room, the only signs of Marshall were his coat and boots, on the floor near the couch. Looking up, she saw that the door to the bathroom was closed. She could hear the muffled sound of the tub. Was he taking a bath? She moved towards the door.
"Marshall? You there? I'm making breakfast, you want anything?" She knew he would; the man was always hungry. "Bacon and eggs?"
No answer, but the water continued to run. She had a sudden sense that Marshall was not in the bathroom, that he had left in the nights that the running water in the tub was just the next verse of whatever was wrong with her mind.
With a deep breath, Julia Brown pushed open the bathroom door. The body of Marshall Greene was lying face down in the dark, muddy waters of the tub.
