If tomorrow comes （10）假如明天来临

Chapter 10

第十章

"I'm Mrs. Brannigan," she rattled on. "Amy is almost five years old, and you know how active they are at that age. I'm afraid she has to be watched all the time." She glanced at Tracy's left hand. There was no wedding ring there, but these days, of course, that meant nothing. Particularly with the lower classes, Sue Ellen thought. She paused and asked delicately, "Do you have children?"

“我是布兰尼根夫人，”她说得很快，“爱米快五岁了，你知道孩子在这个年龄是很好动的，恐怕她一分钟都离不开人。”她瞥了一眼特蕾西的手，那上面没有结婚戒指，当然，如今这已经不能说明任何问题了，休-爱伦想，尤其是对这种下层社会的人。她停顿了一下，然后轻声问道：“你有孩子吗？”

Tracy thought of her unborn baby. "No."

特蕾西想起她那未能出世的孩子：“没有。”

"I see." Sue Ellen was confused by this young woman. She was not at all what she had expected. There was something almost elegant about her. "I'll bring Amy in." She hurried out of the room.

“噢，是这样。”休-爱伦被这个年轻女子弄得心神不定。她完全不是她所想的那种样子。她长得太美了。“我去把爱米带来。”她急匆匆地走出房间。

Tracy looked around. It was a fairly large cottage, neat and attractively furnished. It seemed to Tracy that it had been years since she had been in anyone's home. That was all part of the other world, the world outside.

特蕾西环顾了一下四周。这间房子宽敞整洁，而且陈设典雅。特蕾西觉得她已经多年没有到过别人家里了。这里的一切都属于另外一个世界，狱外的世界。

Sue Ellen came back into the room holding the hand of a young girl. "Amy, this is---" Did one call a prisoner by her first or last name? She compromised. "This is Tracy Whitney."

休-爱伦领着一个小女孩回到厨房。“爱米，这是——”对一个犯人该称名字呢，还是该称姓？她采取了折中的办法，“这是特蕾西-惠特里。”

"Hi," Amy said. She had her mother's thinness and deepset, intelligent hazel eyes. She was not a pretty child, but there was an open friendliness about her that was touching.

“嗨，”爱米说。她的长相随她妈妈，很瘦，一双深陷的淡褐色眼睛。她长得不漂亮，但身上有一种坦率的友善感，很能打动人。

I won't let her touch me.

我不会被她打动的。

"Are you going to be my new nanny?"

“你就是我的新保姆吗？”

"Well, I'm going to help your mother look after you."

“嗯，我是来帮助你妈妈照顾你的。”

"Judy went out on parole, did you know that? Are you going out on parole, too?"

“朱迪被放出去了，你知道吗？你也会被放出去吗？”

No, Tracy thought. She said, "I'm going to be here for a long while, Amy."

不会，特蕾西想。她说：“我要在这儿呆很长时间，爱米。”

"That's good," Sue Ellen said brightly. She colored in embarrassment and bit her lip. "I mean---" She whirled around the kitchen and started explaining Tracy's duties to her. "You'll have your meals with Amy. You can prepare breakfast for her and play with her in the morning. The cook will make lunch here. After lunch, Amy has a nap, and in the afternoon she likes walking around the grounds of the farm. I think it's so good for a child to see growing things, don't you?"

“这太好了，”休-爱伦高兴地说。她自觉失口，窘得满脸通红，赶紧咬住嘴唇，“我的意思是——”她在厨房里转了一圈，开始向特蕾西说明她的工作，“你跟爱米一起吃饭。你可以给她做早饭，上午带她玩。午饭由厨师来做。午饭后，爱米要睡上一会儿。下午，她喜欢到农场各处转转。我认为让孩子看看庄稼是怎么生长的很有好处，你说呢？”

"Yes."

“是的。”