"A new neighbour with many cats!" exclaimed Jeffrey, "Let's go and see if our cat's there!" The detectives walked over and saluted the white-haired old lady, who was just trying to move a table through the door. "Hi!" smiled Jeffrey welcomingly, "Have you just moved in? It seems like we're neighbours, we live right next door!"
「養了很多隻貓的新鄰居耶！」傑佛瑞說。「咱們去瞧瞧看咱們的貓有沒有跑到她那兒去。」神探們走過去和正在搬桌子的白髮老太太打了聲招呼。「嗨！」傑佛瑞臉上掛著歡迎的笑容說。「您剛搬進來嗎？看來我們是鄰居耶～我們就住在隔壁！」
"Hello!" the old lady replied with a French accent, but looking at Shaun with twinkling eyes instead of at Jeffrey, "Yes, I just came from France, one of my relatives live close by."
「你好啊！」老太太用著法國的口音答道，眼睛一直注視著孝恩，而不是傑佛瑞。「是啊～我剛從法國搬來，我有一個親戚就住在這附近。」
"Oh, I forgot to introduce ourselves," said Jeffrey, "I'm Jeffrey and he is Shaun. How should we call you?"
「差點兒忘了自我介紹了！」傑佛瑞說。「我叫傑佛瑞，他是孝恩。我們該如何稱呼您？」
"My name is Madame Tigresse," replied the benevolent old lady, still looking at Shaun, "Recently, after my husband died, I have decided to move closer to my brother's grandson, who is about the same age as you!"
「我姓虎。」老太太還是看著孝恩說。「最近，我先生過世後，我決定搬到我哥哥的孫子家附近～他要叫我姑婆，他年紀跟你們差不多。」
"I am so sorry to hear that your husband has just passed away," responded Jeffrey with a sad face, "We'll help you move the table." Jeffrey said as he clutched one leg of the table and lifted it through the door, Shaun grabbed a stool and helped Madame Tigresse move it into the house.
「那我們以後就叫你虎姑婆吧！」傑佛瑞答道。「我們幫你挪桌子吧！」說畢，他便抓起桌子的一腳，將其搬進屋內。孝恩也抓起了一張板凳幫忙。
As they lifted the table into the house, they discovered that it was extremely old and tattered, with a termite-bitten wooden door which creaked deafeningly every time it was moved, and an extremely low ceiling with many holes in it. The house consisted of two storeys, with the ground floor being no bigger than a room, which, after they had entered, the detectives discovered to be crowded with many cats of different sizes and colours.
他們把桌子搬進房屋後，赫然發現裡面也非常的破舊，有著一個被白蟻咬得殘破不堪、每次被打開都會發出刺耳聲響的門，還有著很矮、滿佈瘡痍的屋頂。整棟房屋只有兩層樓，一樓僅一間房間這麼大；裏面有著各形各色的貓咪。
"Sorry for the darkness," apologised Madame Tigresse, "It's not yet connected to water and electricity yet, but it will soon be. As you might have noticed already, I have many cats. They were all stray cats from when I lived in France, but I just couldn't bear to leave them there after I move to England."
「很抱歉這裡這麼暗！」虎姑婆道歉道。「因為這兒還沒有通水通電，不過很快就會有了。你們可能已經注意到了，我有很多隻貓。牠們都是以前我住在法國時收留的流浪貓，我要搬來英國時不忍留下他們，所以就把他們通通帶來了！」
"It must be hard work getting them all here!" Jeffrey said as a huge, grey cat stared back at him with its large watery eyes.
「哇！一定很費事兒吧？」傑佛瑞看著一隻一直用著水汪汪大眼睛看著自己的大灰貓說。
"I'll do anything for them.....they are like my children!" replied Madame Tigresse with a strange laugh.
「我會為牠們做任何事.....牠們就像我的小孩一樣！」虎姑婆露出詭異的笑聲說。
After they had finished moving all the furniture, which was the bare minimum, consisting of only a table, a stool and a bed; the sun had already disappeared behind the horizon, and the humid cottage was plunged into complete darkness, except for a small, white candle which Madame Tigresse had lighted. The cottage smelled quite damp and felt extremely eerie, probably caused by the flickering shadows of the many cats, producing frightening silhouettes on the dilapidated walls. The old lady invited them to stay for dinner, but Shaun politely declined, claiming to have an appointment with someone at a later time, and hastily left with Jeffrey.
他們將少得可憐的傢俱都搬完了後，太陽也差不多下山了。潮濕的屋子漸漸陷入黑暗，除了被虎姑婆點得一根小小的白蠟燭所發出的光線照亮外。小屋殘破不堪的牆上佈滿了貓咪移動的影子，令人不禁不寒而慄。虎姑婆邀請他們共進晚餐，孝恩聲稱晚點兒有約，便有禮貌得推辭了，和傑佛瑞匆匆離去。
~To be Continued~
～待續～
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