Neil Gaiman "American Gods", Chapter 1 (p5)

Chapter 1 (p5)

One brown eye closed in a slow wink. “Hell, don't say I didn't warn you,” said Sam Fetisher, and he spooned a trembling lump of orange Jell-O into his mouth.

Shadow spent the night half-awake, drifting in and out of sleep, listening to his new cellmate grunt and snore in the bunk below him. Several cells away a man whined and howled and sobbed like an animal, and from time to time someone would scream at him to shut the fuck up. Shadow tried not to hear. He let the empty minutes wash over him, lonely and slow.

Two days to go. Forty-eight hours, starting with oatmeal and prison coffee and a guard named Wilson who tapped Shadow harder than he had to on the shoulder and said, “Shadow? This way.”

Shadow checked his conscience. It was quiet, which did not, he had observed, in a prison, mean that he was not in deep shit. The two men walked more or less side by side, feet echoing on metal and concrete.

Shadow tasted fear in the back of his throat, bitter as old coffee. The bad thing was happening…

There was a voice in the back of his head whispering that they were going to slap another year onto his sentence, drop him into solitary, cut off his hands, cut off his head. He told himself he was being stupid, but his heart was pounding fit to burst out of his chest.

“I don't get you, Shadow,” said Wilson, as they walked.

“What's not to get, sir?”

“You. You're too fucking quiet. Too polite. You wait like the old guys, but you're what? Twenty-five? Twenty-eight?”

“Thirty-two, sir.”

“And what are you? A spic? A gypsy?”

“Not that I know of, sir. Maybe.”

“Maybe you got nigger blood in you. You got nigger blood in you, Shadow?”

“Could be, sir.” Shadow stood tall and looked straight ahead, and concentrated on not allowing himself to be riled by this man.

“Yeah? Well, all I know is, you fucking spook me.” Wilson had sandy blond hair and a sandy blond face and a sandy blond smile. “You leaving us soon?”

“Hope so, sir.”

“You'll be back. I can see it in your eyes. You're a fuckup, Shadow. Now, if I had my way, none of you assholes would ever get out. We'd drop you in the hole and forget you.”

Oubliettes, thought Shadow, and he said nothing. It was a survival thing: he didn't answer back, didn't say anything about job security for prison guards, debate the nature of repentance, rehabilitation, or rates of recidivism. He didn't say anything funny or clever, and, to be on the safe side, when he was talking to a prison official, whenever possible, he didn't say anything at all. Speak when you're spoken to. Do your own time. Get out. Get home. Have a long hot bath. Tell Laura you love her. Rebuild a life.

They walked through a couple of checkpoints. Wilson showed his ID each time. Up a set of stairs, and they were standing outside the prison warden's office. Shadow had never been there before, but he knew what it was. It had the prison warden's name—G. Patterson—on the door in black letters, and beside the door, a miniature traffic light.

The top light burned red.

Wilson pressed a button below the traffic light.

They stood there in silence for a couple of minutes. Shadow tried to tell himself that everything was all right, that on Friday morning he'd be on the plane up to Eagle Point, but he did not believe it himself.

The red light went out and the green light went on, and Wilson opened the door. They went inside.

Shadow had seen the warden a handful of times in the last three years. Once he had been showing a politician around; Shadow had not recognized the man. Once, during a lock-down, the warden had spoken to them in groups of a hundred, telling them that the prison was over-crowded, and that, since it would remain overcrowded, they had better get used to it. This was Shadow's first time up close to the man.

Up close, Patterson looked worse. His face was oblong, with gray hair cut into a military bristle cut. He smelled of Old Spice. Behind him was a shelf of books, each with the word prison in the title; his desk was perfectly clean, empty but for a telephone and a tear-off-the-pages Far Side calendar. He had a hearing aid in his right ear.

“Please, sit down.”

Shadow sat down at the desk, noting the civility.

Wilson stood behind him.

The warden opened a desk drawer and took out a file, placed it on his desk.

“Says here you were sentenced to six years for aggravated assault and battery. You've served three years. You were due to be released on Friday.”

Chapter 1 (p5) Capítulo 1 (p5) Capítulo 1 (p5) Глава 1 (стр. 5) Bölüm 1 (s5) Розділ 1 (стор. 5) 第 1 章（第 5 页）

One brown eye closed in a slow wink. |||||||眨眼 Один карий глаз медленно закрылся. “Hell, don’t say I didn’t warn you,” said Sam Fetisher, and he spooned a trembling lump of orange Jell-O into his mouth. |||||警告||||费提舍|||舀||颤抖的|一块|||果冻|||| ||||||||||||spooned||trembling|||||||| |||||предупредил|||||||ложкой|||кусок|||Джело||||

Shadow spent the night half-awake, drifting in and out of sleep, listening to his new cellmate grunt and snore in the bunk below him. |度过||||半清醒|漂浮||||||||||囚室伙伴|咕哝||打鼾|||下铺|| ||||||||||||||||сосед по камере|хрюкать||храпеть|||койке|| Тень провел ночь в полудреме, засыпая и просыпаясь, слушая, как его новый сокамерник ворчит и храпит на койке под ним. Several cells away a man whined and howled and sobbed like an animal, and from time to time someone would scream at him to shut the fuck up. |几间||||哀嚎||嚎叫||抽泣|||||||||||尖叫||||||| В нескольких клетках от него человек скулил, выл и рыдал, как животное, и время от времени кто-нибудь кричал на него, чтобы он заткнулся. Shadow tried not to hear. Тень старался не слышать. He let the empty minutes wash over him, lonely and slow. |||||流淌||||| |||||пройти мимо||||| Он позволил пустым минутам захлестнуть себя, одиноким и медленным.

Two days to go. Forty-eight hours, starting with oatmeal and prison coffee and a guard named Wilson who tapped Shadow harder than he had to on the shoulder and said, “Shadow? |||||燕麦粥||||||||||拍了拍||更用力|||||||||| |||||овсянка|||||||||||||||||||||| Сорок восемь часов, начиная с овсянки и тюремного кофе и охранника по имени Уилсон, который сильнее, чем должен был, похлопал Тень по плечу и сказал: «Тень? 四十八小时，从燕麦片和监狱咖啡开始，一个名叫威尔逊的狱警用力拍了拍影子的肩膀，说：“影子？ This way.”

Shadow checked his conscience. |检查了||良心 |||совесть Тень проверил свою совесть. It was quiet, which did not, he had observed, in a prison, mean that he was not in deep shit. ||||||||观察到||||||||||| ||||||||заметил||||||||||| Было тихо, что, как он заметил в тюрьме, не означало, что он не по уши в дерьме. 周围很安静，但据他观察，在监狱里，这并不意味着他没有陷入困境。 The two men walked more or less side by side, feet echoing on metal and concrete. |||||||||||回响||||混凝土 |||||||||||відлунюючи|||| |||||||||||||||бетон Двое мужчин шли более или менее бок о бок, их ноги гулко стучали по металлу и бетону. 两个人几乎并肩而行，脚步声在金属和水泥上发出回响。

Shadow tasted fear in the back of his throat, bitter as old coffee. ||||||||горле|||| |||||||||гіркий||| |||||||||苦涩||| Тень почувствовал привкус страха в глубине горла, горький, как старый кофе. 影子在喉咙深处感受到了恐惧，像陈旧的咖啡一样苦涩。 The bad thing was happening… ||||发生 Плохое дело происходило…

There was a voice in the back of his head whispering that they were going to slap another year onto his sentence, drop him into solitary, cut off his hands, cut off his head. ||||||||||||||||добавить|||||||||одиночку|||||||| |||||||||||||||||||||||||одиночній камері|||||||| |||||||||||||||||||||||||单独监禁|割掉||||割掉||| В его затылке раздался голос, шепчущий, что ему добавят еще год к сроку, бросят в карцер, отрежут руки, отрубят голову. 他的脑海深处有一个声音低语说，他们要在他的刑期上再加一年，把他关进单独监禁室，砍掉他的双手，砍掉他的头。 He told himself he was being stupid, but his heart was pounding fit to burst out of his chest. |||||||||||心脏狂跳|快要||||||胸口 |||||||||||билося сильно|ready||вибухнути|||| ||||||||||||||взорваться|||| Он сказал себе, что ведет себя глупо, но его сердце колотилось так, что готово было выпрыгнуть из груди.

“I don’t get you, Shadow,” said Wilson, as they walked. ||понимаю||||||| — Я не понимаю тебя, Тень, — сказал Уилсон на ходу. “我不明白你的意思，影子，”威尔逊一边走一边说道。

“What’s not to get, sir?” — Чего не взять, сэр? “有什么不可以得到的呢，先生？”

“You. You’re too fucking quiet. ||太他妈| ||очень| Ты слишком чертовски тихий. 你真是太安静了。 Too polite. 太有礼貌了。 You wait like the old guys, but you’re what? Вы ждете, как старики, но вы что? 你像老家伙一样等待，但是你是什么？ Twenty-five? 二十五？ Twenty-eight?”

“Thirty-two, sir.” “三十二岁，先生。”

“Not that I know of, sir. “据我所知没有，先生。 Maybe.”

“Maybe you got nigger blood in you. |||黑人||| |||черная кровь||| You got nigger blood in you, Shadow?”

“Could be, sir.” Shadow stood tall and looked straight ahead, and concentrated on not allowing himself to be riled by this man. ||||||||||||||让||||激怒||| ||||||||||||||позволяя||||раздражённым||| — Может быть, сэр. Тень выпрямился и посмотрел прямо перед собой, сосредоточившись на том, чтобы не позволить этому человеку разозлить себя. “有可能，先生。” Shadow 挺直腰板，目视前方，集中精力不让自己被这个男人激怒。

“Yeah? Well, all I know is, you fucking spook me.” Wilson had sandy blond hair and a sandy blond face and a sandy blond smile. |||||||пугаешь|||||||||||||||| |||||||überraschen|||||||||||||||| |||||||scare|||||||||||||||| ||||||||||||||||沙色的|||||沙色|| “You leaving us soon?” “你很快就要离开我们了吗？”

“Hope so, sir.” “但愿如此，先生。”

“You’ll be back. “你会回来的。 I can see it in your eyes. 我从你的眼中看到了这一点。 You’re a fuckup, Shadow. ||废物| ||неудачник| 你真是个混蛋，Shadow。 Now, if I had my way, none of you assholes would ever get out. |||||||||混蛋|||| |||||||||ублюдки|||| 现在，如果我能如愿以偿，你们这群混蛋就没人能出去了。 We’d drop you in the hole and forget you.” 我们会|||||||忘记| Мы бы бросили тебя в яму и забыли. 我们会把你扔进洞里然后忘了你。”

Oubliettes, thought Shadow, and he said nothing. 地牢|||||| Oublietten|||||| dungeons of forgetfulness|||||| подземелья|мысль||||| 地牢，影子想着，但是他什么也没说。 It was a survival thing: he didn’t answer back, didn’t say anything about job security for prison guards, debate the nature of repentance, rehabilitation, or rates of recidivism. ||||||||||||||безопасности работы||||||||покаяние|реабилитация||уровни рецидивизма||рецидивизм ||||||||||||||||||||||Buße|||||Rückfall ||||||||||||||||||||||repentance|reform and reintegr|||| ||||||||||||||||||辩论||本质||悔改|改造||||再犯率这是为了生存：他没有顶嘴，没有谈论狱警的工作保障，也没有讨论悔改、改造的本质或重犯率。 He didn’t say anything funny or clever, and, to be on the safe side, when he was talking to a prison official, whenever possible, he didn’t say anything at all. ||||||||||||||||||||||尽可能||||||| Speak when you’re spoken to. |||对话| Говорите, когда к вам обращаются. 别人跟你说话时，你就说话。 Do your own time. Get out. 出去。 Get home. Have a long hot bath. Tell Laura you love her. Rebuild a life. 重建|| восстановить жизнь||

They walked through a couple of checkpoints. ||||||检查站 ||||||контрольные пункты Wilson showed his ID each time. Up a set of stairs, and they were standing outside the prison warden’s office. ||||一段楼梯||||||||监狱长| ||||||||стояли||||начальника тюрьмы| Shadow had never been there before, but he knew what it was. It had the prison warden’s name—G. ||||warden's|| Patterson—on the door in black letters, and beside the door, a miniature traffic light. 帕特森||||||||||||微型|交通信号灯| Паттерсон(1)|||||||||||||| 帕特森——门上用黑色字母写着，门旁边有一个微型交通灯。

The top light burned red. ||||红色

Wilson pressed a button below the traffic light. |按下||按钮|||| |нажал|||||| Уилсон нажал кнопку под светофором.

They stood there in silence for a couple of minutes. ||||沉默||||| Они стояли молча пару минут. Shadow tried to tell himself that everything was all right, that on Friday morning he’d be on the plane up to Eagle Point, but he did not believe it himself. Тень пытался убедить себя, что все в порядке, что в пятницу утром он будет в самолете до Игл-Пойнт, но сам не верил в это. 影子试图告诉自己一切都会好起来的，星期五早上他就会乘飞机去鹰角，但他自己并不相信。

The red light went out and the green light went on, and Wilson opened the door. Красный свет погас, загорелся зеленый, и Уилсон открыл дверь. 红灯灭了，绿灯亮了，威尔逊打开了门。 They went inside. Они вошли внутрь.

Shadow had seen the warden a handful of times in the last three years. ||||监狱长||||||||| ||||начальник тюрьмы||||||||| Тень несколько раз видел надзирателя за последние три года. Once he had been showing a politician around; Shadow had not recognized the man. ||||||政治家|||||认出|| Однажды он показывал политику одному; Тень не узнал этого человека. 有一次他带一位政客四处参观，但 Shadow 并没有认出这个人。 Once, during a lock-down, the warden had spoken to them in groups of a hundred, telling them that the prison was over-crowded, and that, since it would remain overcrowded, they had better get used to it. |||封锁||||||||||||||||||||过于拥挤|||||||过于拥挤||||||| |||||||||||||||||||||||переполненной|||||||переполненной||||||| Однажды во время карантина надзиратель заговорил с ними группами по сотне человек, сказав им, что тюрьма переполнена, и что, поскольку она останется переполненной, им лучше к этому привыкнуть. 有一次，在禁闭期间，监狱长以一百人为一组对他们进行讲话，告诉他们监狱已经过度拥挤，而且由于监狱会一直处于拥挤状态，他们最好习惯这种状况。 This was Shadow’s first time up close to the man. Это был первый раз, когда Тень приблизился к этому человеку.

Up close, Patterson looked worse. ||||хуже Вблизи Паттерсон выглядел хуже. 近距离观察，帕特森的面色更糟糕。 His face was oblong, with gray hair cut into a military bristle cut. |||长方形|||||||军队风格|| |||продолговатый||||||||щетина| He smelled of Old Spice. ||||香水 ||||душистая вода 他身上有 Old Spice 的味道。 Behind him was a shelf of books, each with the word prison in the title; his desk was perfectly clean, empty but for a telephone and a tear-off-the-pages Far Side calendar. ||||||||||||||书名||||非常|||||||||撕下的|||||| 他身后是一架书，每本书的书名里都有“监狱”两个字；他的书桌非常干净，除了一部电话和一本撕下来的《远方》日历外空无一物。 He had a hearing aid in his right ear. ||||助听器||||

“Please, sit down.”

Shadow sat down at the desk, noting the civility. ||||||замечая||вежливость ||||||||礼貌影子在桌边坐下，注意到了这里的礼貌。

Wilson stood behind him.

The warden opened a desk drawer and took out a file, placed it on his desk. |||||||||||放置||||

“Says here you were sentenced to six years for aggravated assault and battery. |||||||||тяжкие|нападение||телесные повреждения ||||||||||||physical attack ||||||||||攻击||殴打 “这里说你因严重人身攻击和殴打被判处六年徒刑。 You’ve served three years. You were due to be released on Friday.”