【英文读物】暮光之城：破晓 Breaking Dawn.docx

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1、【英文读物】暮光之城：破晓 Breaking DawnPrefacePREFACE Id had more than my fair share of near-death experiences; it wasnt something you ever really got usedto.It seemed oddly inevitable, though, facing death again. Like I really was marked for disaster. Idescaped time and time again, but it kept coming back for

2、me.Still, this time was so different from the others.You could run from someone you feared, you could try to fight someone you hated. All my reactionswere geared toward those kinds of killersthe monsters, the enemies.When you loved the one who was killing you, it left you no options. How could you r

3、un, how could youfight, when doing so would hurt that beloved one? If your life was all you had to give your beloved, howcould you not give it?If it was someone you truly loved? Chapter 1 EngagedNo one is staring at you,I promised myself. No one is staring at you. No one is staring at you.But, becau

4、se I couldnt lie convincingly even to myself, I had to check.As I sat waiting for one of the three traffic lights in town to turn green, I peeked to the rightin herminivan, Mrs. Weber had turned her whole torso in my direction. Her eyes bored into mine, and Iflinched back, wondering why she didnt dr

5、op her gaze or look ashamed. It was still considered rude tostare at people, wasnt it? Didnt that apply to me anymore?Then I remembered that these windows were so darkly tinted that she probably had no idea if it waseven me in here, let alone that Id caught her looking. I tried to take some comfort

6、in the fact that shewasnt really staring at me, just the car.Mycar. Sigh.I glanced to the left and groaned. Two pedestrians were frozen on the sidewalk, missing their chance tocross as they stared. Behind them, Mr. Marshall was gawking through the plate-glass window of his littlesouvenir shop. At le

7、ast he didnt have his nose pressed up against the glass. Yet.The light turned green and, in my hurry to escape, I stomped on the gas pedal without thinkingthenormal way I would have punched it to get my ancient Chevy truck moving.Engine snarling like a hunting panther, the car jolted forward so fast

8、 that my body slammed into the blackleather seat and my stomach flattened against my spine.Arg! I gasped as I fumbled for the brake. Keeping my head, I merely tapped the pedal. The carlurched to an absolute standstill anyway.I couldnt bear to look around at the reaction. If there had been any doubt

9、as to who was driving this carbefore, it was gone now. With the toe of my shoe, I gently nudged the gas pedal down one halfmillimeter, and the car shotforward again.I managed to reach my goal, the gas station. If I hadnt been running on vapors, I wouldnt have comeinto town at all. I was going withou

10、t a lot of things these days, like Pop-Tarts and shoelaces, to avoidspending time in public.Moving as if I were in a race, I got the hatch open, the cap off, the card scanned, and the nozzle in thetank within seconds. Of course, there was nothing I could do to make the numbers on the gauge pick upth

11、e pace. They ticked by sluggishly, almost as if they were doing it just to annoy me.It wasnt bright outa typical drizzly day in Forks, Washingtonbut I still felt like a spotlight wastrained on me, drawing attention to the delicate ring on my left hand. At times like this, sensing the eyeson my back,

12、 it felt as if the ring were pulsing like a neon sign: Look at me, look at me.It was stupid to be so self-conscious, and I knew that. Besides my dad and mom, did it really matterwhat people were saying about my engagement? About my new car? About my mysterious acceptanceinto an Ivy League college? A

13、bout the shiny black credit card that felt red-hot in my back pocket rightnow?Yeah, who cares what they think, I muttered under my breath.Urn, miss? a mans voice called.I turned, and then wished I hadnt.Two men stood beside a fancy SUV with brand-new kayaks tied to the top. Neither of them waslookin

14、g at me; they both were staring at the car.Personally, I didnt get it. But then, I was just proud I could distinguish between the symbols for Toyota,Ford, and Chevy. This car was glossy black, sleek, and pretty, but it was still just a car to me.Im sorry to bother you, but could you tell me what kin

15、d of car youre driving? the tall one asked.Urn, a Mercedes, right?Yes, the man said politely while his shorter friend rolled his eyes at my answer. I know. But I waswondering, is that. are you driving a Mercedes Guardian? The man said the name with reverence. Ihad a feeling this guy would get along

16、well with Edward Cullen, my. my fiance (there really was nogetting around that truth with the wedding just days away). They arent supposed to be available inEurope yet, the man went on, let alone here.While his eyes traced the contours of my carit didnt look much different from any other Mercedessed

17、an to me, but what did I know?I briefly contemplated my issues with words like fiance, wedding,husband, etc.I just couldnt put it together in my head.On the one hand, I had been raised to cringe at the very thought of poofy white dresses and bouquets.But more than that, I just couldnt reconcile a st

18、aid, respectable, dull concept like husband with myconcept of Edward. It was like casting an archangel as an accountant; I couldnt visualize him in anycommonplace role.Like always, as soon as I started thinking about Edward I was caught up in a dizzy spin of fantasies. Thestranger had to clear his t

19、hroat to get my attention; he was still waiting for an answer about the cars makeand model.I dont know, I told him honestly.Do you mind if I take a picture with it?It took me a second to process that. Really? You want to take a picture with the car?Surenobody is going to believe me if I dont get pro

20、of.Urn. Okay. Fine.I swiftly put away the nozzle and crept into the front seat to hide while the enthusiast dug a hugeprofessional-looking camera out of his backpack. He and his friend took turns posing by the hood, andthen they went to take pictures at the back end.I miss my truck, I whimpered to m

21、yself.Very, very convenienttoo convenientthat my truck would wheeze its last wheeze just weeks afterEdward and I had agreed to our lopsided compromise, one detail of which was that he be allowed toreplace my truck when it passed on. Edward swore it was only to be expected; my truck had lived along,

22、full life and then expired of natural causes. According to him. And, of course, I had no way to verifyhis story or to try to raise my truck from the dead on my own. My favorite mechanicI stopped that thought cold, refusing to let it come to a conclusion. Instead, I listened to the mens voicesoutside

23、, muted by the car walls. went at it with a flamethrower in the online video. Didnt even pucker the paint.Of course not. You could roll a tank over this baby. Not much of a market for one over here. Designedfor Middle East diplomats, arms dealers, and drug lords mostly.Think shes something? the shor

24、t one asked in a softer voice. I ducked my head, cheeks flaming.Huh, the tall one said. Maybe. Cant imagine what youd need missile-proof glass and four thousandpounds of body armor for around here. Must be headed somewhere more hazardous.Body armor. Four thousand pounds of body armor. And missile-pr

25、oof glass? Nice. What hadhappened to good old-fashioned bulletproof?Well, at least this made some senseif you had a twisted sense of humor.It wasnt like I hadnt expected Edward to take advantage of our deal, to weight it on his side so that hecould give so much more than he would receive. Id agreed

26、that he could replace my truck when itneeded replacing, not expecting that moment to come quite so soon, of course. When Id been forced toadmit that the truck had become no more than a still-life tribute to classic Chevys on my curb, I knew hisidea of a replacement was probably going to embarrass me

27、. Make me the focus of stares and whispers.Id been right about that part. But even in my darkest imaginings I had not foreseen that he would get metwo cars.The before car and the after car, hed explained when Id flipped out.This was just the before car. Hed told me it was a loaner and promised that

28、he was returning it afterthe wedding. It all had made absolutely no sense to me. Until now.Ha ha. Because I was so fragilely human, so accident-prone, so much a victim to my own dangerousbad luck, apparently I needed a tank-resistant car to keep me safe. Hilarious. I was sure he and hisbrothers had

29、enjoyed thejoke quite a bit behind my back.Or maybe, just maybe,a small voice whispered in my head, its not a joke, silly. Maybe hes really thatworried about you. This wouldnt be the first time hes gone a little overboard trying to protectyou.I sighed.I hadnt seen the after car yet. It was hidden un

30、der a sheet in the deepest corner of the Cullens garage.I knew most people would have peeked by now, but I really didnt want to know.Probably no body armor on that carbecause I wouldnt need it after the honeymoon. Virtualindestructibility was just one of the many perks I was looking forward to. The

31、best parts about being aCullen were not expensive cars and impressive credit cards.Hey, the tall man called, cupping his hands to the glass in an effort to peer in. Were done now.Thanks a lot!Youre welcome, I called back, and then tensed as I started the engine and eased the pedalever sogentlydown_N

32、o matter how many times I drove down the familiar road home, I still couldnt make the rain-fadedflyers fade into the background. Each one of them, stapled to telephone poles and taped to street signs,was like a fresh slap in the face. A well-deserved slap in the face. My mind was sucked back into th

33、ethought Id interrupted so immediately before. I couldnt avoid it on this road. Not with pictures of myfavorite mechanic flashing past me at regular intervals.My best friend. My Jacob.Thehave you SEENthis boy? posters were not Jacobs fathers idea. It had been my father, Charlie,whod printed up the f

34、lyers and spread them all over town. And not just Forks, but Port Angeles andSequim and Hoquiam and Aberdeen and every other town in the Olympic Peninsula. Hed made surethat all the police stations in the state of Washington had the same flyer hanging on the wall, too. His ownstation had a whole cor

35、kboard dedicated to finding Jacob. A corkboard that was mostly empty, much tohis disappointment and frustration.My dad was disappointed with more than the lack of response. He was most disappointed with Billy,Jacobs fatherand Charlies closest friend.For Billys not being more involved with the search

36、 for his sixteen-year-old runaway. For Billysrefusing to put up the flyers in La Push, the reservation on the coast that was Jacobs home. For hisseeming resigned to Jacobs disappearance, as if there was nothing he could do. For his saying, Jacobsgrown up now. Hell come home if he wants to.And he was

37、 frustrated with me, for taking Billys side.I wouldnt put up posters, either. Because both Billy and I knew where Jacob was, roughly speaking,and we also knew that no one had seen this boy.The flyers put the usual big, fat lump in my throat, the usual stinging tears in my eyes, and I was gladEdward

38、was out hunting this Saturday. If Edward saw my reaction, it would only make him feel terrible,too.Of course, there were drawbacks to it being Saturday. As I turned slowly and carefully onto my street, Icould see my dads police cruiser in the driveway of our home. Hed skipped fishing again today. St

39、illsulking about thewedding.So I wouldnt be able to use the phone inside. But I had to call_I parked on the curb behind the Chevy sculpture and pulled the cell phone Edward had given me foremergencies out of the glove compartment. I dialed, keeping my finger on the end button as the phonerang. Just

40、in case.Hello? Seth Clearwater answered, and I sighed in relief. I was way too chicken to speak to his oldersister, Leah. The phrase bite my head off was not entirely a figure of speech when it came to Leah.Hey, Seth, its Bella.Oh, hiya, Bella! How are you?Choked up. Desperate for reassurance. Fine.

41、Calling for an update?Youre psychic.Not hardly. Im no Aliceyoure just predictable, he joked. Among the Quileute pack down at LaPush, only Seth was comfortable even mentioning the Cullens by name, let alone joking about things likemy nearly omniscient sister-in-law-to-be.I know I am. I hesitated for

42、a minute. How is he?Seth sighed. Same as ever. He wont talk, though we know he hears us. Hes trying not to think human,you know. Just going with his instincts.Do you know where he is now?Somewhere in northern Canada. I cant tell you which province. He doesnt pay much attention to statelines.Any hint

43、 that he might.Hes not coming home, Bella. Sorry.I swallowed. Sokay, Seth. I knew before I asked. I just cant help wishing.Yeah. We all feel the same way.Thanks for putting up with me, Seth. I know the others must give you a hard time.Theyre not your hugest fans, he agreed cheerfully. Kind of lame,

44、I think. Jacob made his choices, youmade yours. Jake doesnt like their attitude about it. Course, he isnt super thrilled that youre checkingup on him, either.I gasped. I thought he wasnt talking to you?He cant hide everything from us, hard as hes trying.So Jacob knew I was worried. I wasnt sure how

45、I felt about that. Well, at least he knew I hadntskipped off into the sunset and forgotten him completely. He might have imagined me capable of that.I guess Ill see you at the. wedding, I said, forcing the word out through my teeth.Yeah, me and my mom will be there. It was cool of you to ask us.I sm

46、iled at the enthusiasm in his voice. Though inviting the Clearwaters had been Edwards idea, I wasglad hed thought of it. Having Seth there would be nicea link, however tenuous, to my missing bestman. It wouldnt be thesame without you.Tell Edward I said hi, kay?Sure thing.I shook my head. The friends

47、hip that had sprung up between Edward and Seth was something that stillboggled my mind. It was proof, though, that things didnt have to be this way. That vampires andwerewolves could get along just fine, thank you very much, if they were of a mind to.Not everybody liked this idea.Ah, Seth said, his

48、voice cracking up an octave. Er, Leahs home.Oh! Bye!The phone went dead. I left it on the seat and prepared myself mentally to go inside the house, whereCharlie would be waiting.My poor dad had so much to deal with right now. Jacob-the-runaway was just one of the straws on hisoverburdened back. He was almost as worried about me, his barely-a-legal-adult daughter who wasabout to become a Mrs. in just a few days time.I walked slowly through the light rain, remembering the night wed told him_As t