thethingyouwant中英对照.doc

Outside of what was left of Atlanta, they discovered the great brick house, hidden in a thick grove of walnut trees. The grass was so high in the yard around it that the blades had fallen over into brown clumps beneath their own weight. They assumed it was abandoned, a prime target for a hiatus from the monotonous routine of marching and standing for reveille three times daily to identify stragglers. Since the young lieutenant was away tending to another small matter, they drifted closer and found themselves in an alternative world of silence and loneliness. The war had not touched the house with slugs or shells. Rather, an invisible icy hand had peeled paint away and wilted flowers, leaving a dead flavor to it, as if it were somehow like one of the thousands of soldier corpses left on the battlefield unburied to slowly rot away. They walked right up to the porticoed entrance and started to open the oak door. Someone inside, however, plucked it open first. What do you want?A withered, languorous old woman stared at them blankly. What do you want? she said again, more irritably. Cabe stepped across the threshold and brushed her aside. The darkened hallway smelled of cinnamon and lanolin, a combination that made him think of Egyptian mummies. He reasoned that the kitchen would probably be near the back of the house, so he started that direction, careful not to trip over any hidden obstacles. Theres nothing back there, the old woman protested, pulling at his sleeve. Cabe ripped his arm away and ignored her. There was a yellow light further along that contained the promise of something hidden. The only food I have is out in the cellar, she said, her voice cracking, something dying in it. Cabe pushed a door open and discovered the kitchen, a bright room filled with hanging pots, a long bare table, and a cavernous stone fireplace which didnt appear to have been used in a great deal of time. He also discovered a remarkable creature standing in the corner beside