Дракула / Dracula
Шрифт:
I went into my own room and drew the curtains; my window opened into the courtyard, all I could see was the warm grey sky. So I pulled the curtains again.
8 May. – I have only the Count to speak with, and he – I fear I am myself the only living soul here.
I only slept a few hours when I went to bed, and got up. I had hung my shaving glass by the window, and was just beginning to shave. And I made a cut. Suddenly I felt a hand on my shoulder, and heard the Count’s voice saying to me, “Good morning.” But I had not seen him, even though the reflection of the glass covered the whole room behind me. I answered the Count’s salutation and turned to the glass again to see how I had been mistaken. This time there was no error, for the man was close to me, and I could see him over my shoulder. But there was no reflection of him in the mirror! The whole room behind me was displayed; but there was no sign of a man in it, except myself. At the instant I saw that the cut had bled a little, [41] and the blood was trickling over my chin. I laid down the razor, and turned to look for some plaster. When the Count saw my face, his eyes blazed with a demoniac fury, and he suddenly made a grab at my throat. I drew away, and his hand touched the little cross. It made an instant change in him, for the fury passed very quickly.
41
the cut had bled a little –
“Take care!, [42] ” he said, “It is more dangerous than you think in this country.”
Then he seized my shaving glass and went on, “It is guilty, this wretched thing! Away with it!”
He opened the heavy window and flung out the glass, which has shattered into a thousand pieces on the stones of the courtyard far below. Then he left without a word.
When I went into the dining room, the breakfast was prepared; but I could not find the Count anywhere. So I had my breakfast alone. It is strange but it seems to me that the Count does not eat or drink. He must be a very peculiar man!
42
Take care! – Будьте осторожны!
After breakfast I did a little exploring in the castle. First, about the castle. It is situated on the edge of a terrible precipice. As far as the eye can reach is a sea of green tree tops.
I explored further; doors, doors, doors everywhere, and all locked. There is no place to exit from the castle. The castle is a veritable prison, and I am a prisoner!
When I found that I was a prisoner, I rushed up and down the stairs. I was trying to open every door and every window I could find. I understood that I was helpless, and I sat down quietly and began to think over what to do best of all.
I heard some noise and knew that the Count had returned. He did not come at once into the library, so I went to my room. He was making the bed. This was odd, but only confirmed the idea that there were no servants in the house. But if there is no one else in the castle, it was the Count himself who was the driver of the carriage that brought me here. This is a terrible thought; for if so, does it mean that he could control the wolves, as he did, when he just held up his hand in silence? Bless that good, good woman who hung the little cross round my neck! I feel comfort and strength whenever I touch it. I must find out all I can about Count Dracula. Tonight he may talk of himself, if I turn the conversation that way. I must be very careful, however, not to awake his suspicion.
8 May, midnight. – I have had a long talk with the Count. I asked him a few questions on Transylvania history, and he spoke of things and people, and especially of battles, as if he had been present at them all. [43]
We went to bed in the morning.
12 May. – Let me begin with facts – bare, meagre facts, of which there can be no doubt. I must not confuse them with experiences, or my memory of them. Last evening when the Count came from his room he began to ask me questions on legal matters and on the doing of certain kinds of business. [44] First, he asked if a man in England might have two solicitors or more. I told him he could have a dozen solicitors if he wished. But it is not be wise to have more than one solicitor. We solicitors have a system of agency, so the client usually has no further trouble.
43
as if he had been present at them all –
44
on the doing of certain kinds of business – о совершении различных дел
“Have you written since your first letter to our friend Mr. Peter Hawkins, or to any other?” asked he.
I answered no, because I could not send letters to anybody.
“Then write now, my young friend,” he said, “write to our friend and to any other; and say that you will stay with me for a month.”
“Do you wish me to stay so long?” I asked, for my heart grew cold at the thought.
“I desire it much; nay, I will take no refusal. When your master, employer, sent someone here, it was understood that my needs only were to be consulted. [45] Is it not so?”
45
my needs only were to be consulted – принимались бы во внимание только мои интересы
What could I do? It was Mr. Hawkins’s interest, not mine, and I had to think of him, not myself; and besides, I was a prisoner, I had no choice.
“I pray you, my good young friend, that you will discuss only business in your letters. Your friends will be happy to know that you are well. Is it not so?”
As he spoke he handed me three sheets of paper and three envelopes. So I decided to write only formal notes now, but to write fully to Mr. Hawkins in secret, and also to Mina, for to her I could write in shorthand. [46] When I had written my two letters I sat quiet, reading a book. The Count took my two letters and left, the door closed behind him.
46
in shorthand – с помощью стенографии
Soon the Count entered the room. He took up the letters on the table and stamped them carefully, and then said, “I hope you will forgive me, but I have much work to do this evening. You will, I hope, find all things as you wish.”
At the door he turned, and after a moment’s pause said, “Let me advise you, my dear young friend – let me warn you with all seriousness. If you leave these rooms don’t go to sleep in any other part of the castle. It is old, and has many memories, and there are bad dreams for those who sleep unwisely. Be careful! In your own chamber your rest will then be safe. But if you be not careful in this respect, then…”
Same day, later. – I will not fear to sleep in any place where he is not. I have placed the cross over the head of my bed – I imagine that my rest is thus freer from dreams.
When he left me I went to my room. After a little while, [47] I came out and went up the stone stair. There I could look out towards the South. There was some sense of freedom. I felt that I was indeed in prison, and I wanted a breath of fresh air. This nocturnal existence is destroying my nerve. As I leaned from the window my eye noticed something moving a storey below me. There were the windows of the Count’s own room. I drew back, and looked carefully out.
47
after a little while – вскоре
The Count’s head was coming out from the window. I did not see the face, but I knew the man by the neck and the movement of his back and arms. The Count slowly emerged from the window and began to crawl down the castle wall over the dreadful abyss. His cloak was spreading out around him like great wings. At first I could not believe my eyes. I thought it was some trick of the moonlight, some weird effect of shadow. But I kept looking, [48] and it could be no delusion. His fingers and toes grasped the corners of the stones, he was crawling just as a lizard.
48
I kept looking – я продолжал смотреть