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E-Books (english-e-reader), A Nose for a Story (3)

A Nose for a Story (3)

Gopal also knew that he was getting older and might not be able to control the things that were written about Nyree. If he insisted on having a considerable degree of control over the finished book, he could make sure that what was written was the truth and not the rubbish that some would like to publish about her. Besides, Whitelaw seemed to be honest.

'And what kind of information about my sister are you looking for, Professor Whitelaw?' Gopal asked.

'I'm particularly interested in any unpublished work you might have - any notes, unfinished novels, letters... diaries, perhaps?'

Diaries! Gopal wondered if this was another of Raj's jokes. But Raj had made no mention of this man.

Then there was a knock at the door. Gopal opened it.

There was an attractive woman in a yellow trouser suit standing there. She was smiling and carried a handbag. He could smell her perfume. This must be the woman from the National Diary. Gopal smiled and let her in.

Desiree thought the old man was smiling for a different reason. 'He's attracted to me,' she thought to herself. 'I knew he would be!'

Gopal introduced Whitelaw and Desiree's heart sank when she saw him. She was not glad to hear of his plans for a book - he would be as interested in scandal as she was. Maybe she could take his mind off the diary. She put on her sweetest voice, but Whitelaw did not react as she had hoped. He didn't look once as she leaned over while reaching for some tea. She might just as well have been his mother. No luck there. At least the old man seemed to be giving her his attention.

She explained, still in her sweetest voice, why she was there. She said that she wanted to describe the human side of Nyree Singh in her magazine, the side that would show the world what a wonderful person they had lost. Was there anything that he could show her readers? Letters? A diary, perhaps?

Gopal smiled.

'Come, let us all walk together in the garden. Then we can talk,' he said.

Gopal picked up an old metal box from a table, the kind with a lid and a lock, and carried it with him. He led them past the flowers by his sister's photograph and out to the garden path. There was an unpleasant smell.

At first the smell was not too bad. Then, as they went on, it got stronger.

'My sister was a secretive woman,' said Gopal. 'She knew many important people, many famous people. But she never said anything about her private conversations with them to me or to anyone. She respected her friends - even her enemies - and would never repeat to anyone what they said to her.'

As they walked the smell became almost too much. Desiree's face was turning pale and Professor Whitelaw, too, was looking very uncomfortable. Gopal went on.

'This box contains the only real secrets my sister ever kept from me. I once promised her I would never open it and I never have, even though I have the key.' He stopped and looked at his two guests, who were both trying their best not to be sick.

'This cesspit, which you see in the ground in front of us, is to be emptied tomorrow. It contains the sewage from the past month...'

They could see it in front of them. It was almost full, and the smell rose from it like an evil ghost.

Then Gopal did an extraordinary thing: he threw the box into the cesspit. It went through the air and landed in the middle. Desiree and Whitelaw looked on helplessly while the box sank slowly to the bottom, leaving only a few bubbles in the brown liquid.

'If you really wish to know the secrets in that box, they are yours. I will be at the Excelsior this afternoon. In fact, my good friend Mr Raj Patel will be arriving to take me there at any moment. The "person who brings me the box may collect the key from me in the lounge of the hotel at four o'clock this afternoon - just in time for tea. Goodbye for now, my friends. It was a delight meeting you both. Perhaps we shall meet again...'

And Gopal walked down the garden path and left them there. Their eyes went from him to the cesspit and then to each other. Both of them wanted the box and what was in it, and there it lay, separated from them by deep, bubbling brown sewage.

Raj Patel and Gopal sat drinking tea in the Excelsior lounge at three forty-five that afternoon. Music from a string quartet was playing. As they laughed together a third person came to join them.

It was Professor Whitelaw.

'I'm sorry, Mr Singh, but I just couldn't do it. Not for anything. I'm afraid I have rather a weak stomach. Still, I don't suppose anything in that box would have made much difference to a book about Miss Singh as a writer...'

Gopal smiled. 'Quite right. Think nothing of it, Professor Whitelaw. I hope you did not mind my little test of your... er... intentions! I can see you are a man with high standards. Now do sit down and join us for tea. Let me introduce you to my good friend, Mr Raj Patel; he is a very fine maker of Indian films.'

For the next ten minutes they all chatted about Whitelaw's ideas for his book, and Raj Patel's plans for Indian Summer starring Ravi Narayan.

It was almost four o'clock when Desiree Malpen arrived with an old metal box-in her hands. She was wearing a loose blue dress and smelled of strong perfume. But there was another smell mixed in with it, a bitter unpleasant smell which defeated all the efforts of the perfume to hide it. Her hair was still wet as though she had just come out of the shower. She smiled but it was an angry smile. She placed the box in the middle of the table, almost knocking over the vase of roses.

'Well, Mr Singh, here it is. I got it out. None of those taxi drivers would do it so I did it myself - ruined my clothes and had to pay for the damned taxi to be cleaned. God knows what they thought when I finally got back here! But here it is. Now are you going to open it?'

'Of course, my dear. At once,' said Gopal. He took a key from his pocket and didn't seem to mind that the box was not entirely clean. He turned the lock with a quick motion of his wrist and held the box out to her.

'Take it; it's yours.'

Desiree took the box and, looking very pleased with herself, opened it. She took out some old pieces of newspaper, which had gone brown and hard with age. She looked at them and stared at Gopal angrily.

'What on earth are these?'

Gopal Singh looked at the old papers.

'Cricket reports! We both loved cricket, but I hate reading results of matches I haven't seen - and Nyree loved collecting them. She was a sweet old thing, don't think?'

- THE END -

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A Nose for a Story (3) Una nariz para una historia (3) Un nez pour une histoire (3) Bir Hikaye İçin Burun (3) Нюх на історію (3)

Gopal also knew that he was getting older and might not be able to control the things that were written about Nyree. If he insisted on having a considerable degree of control over the finished book, he could make sure that what was written was the truth and not the rubbish that some would like to publish about her. ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||veröffentlichen|| Wenn er darauf bestünde, ein beträchtliches Maß an Kontrolle über das fertige Buch zu haben, könnte er sicherstellen, dass das, was geschrieben wurde, der Wahrheit entsprach und nicht dem Unsinn, den einige gerne über sie veröffentlichen würden. Besides, Whitelaw seemed to be honest. Außerdem schien Whitelaw ehrlich zu sein.

'And what kind of information about my sister are you looking for, Professor Whitelaw?' Und was für Informationen über meine Schwester suchen Sie, Professor Whitelaw? Gopal asked.

'I'm particularly interested in any unpublished work you might have - any notes, unfinished novels, letters... diaries, perhaps?' ||||||||||||unvollendete|||| Ich bin besonders an unveröffentlichten Arbeiten interessiert, die Sie vielleicht haben - Notizen, unvollendete Romane, Briefe... Tagebücher vielleicht?

Diaries! Gopal wondered if this was another of Raj's jokes. |||||||Raj| Gopal fragte sich, ob dies wieder einer von Rajs Scherzen war. But Raj had made no mention of this man. Aber Raj hatte diesen Mann mit keinem Wort erwähnt.

Then there was a knock at the door. Gopal opened it.

There was an attractive woman in a yellow trouser suit standing there. Une femme séduisante, vêtue d'un tailleur pantalon jaune, se tenait là. She was smiling and carried a handbag. He could smell her perfume. This must be the woman from the National Diary. Gopal smiled and let her in.

Desiree thought the old man was smiling for a different reason. Desiree dachte, dass der alte Mann aus einem anderen Grund lächelte. 'He's attracted to me,' she thought to herself. 'I knew he would be!' Ich wusste, dass er es sein würde! Je savais qu'il le serait !

Gopal introduced Whitelaw and Desiree's heart sank when she saw him. ||||||felt disheartened|||| Gopal stellte Whitelaw vor und Desirees Herz sank, als sie ihn sah. She was not glad to hear of his plans for a book - he would be as interested in scandal as she was. Sie war nicht erfreut, als sie von seinen Plänen für ein Buch hörte - er würde genauso an einem Skandal interessiert sein wie sie. Elle n'est pas ravie d'apprendre qu'il a l'intention de publier un livre - le scandale l'intéresserait autant qu'elle. Maybe she could take his mind off the diary. Vielleicht konnte sie ihn von dem Tagebuch ablenken. Elle pourrait peut-être lui faire oublier le journal. Może mogłaby oderwać jego myśli od pamiętnika. She put on her sweetest voice, but Whitelaw did not react as she had hoped. ||||süßesten|||||||||| Sie setzte ihre lieblichste Stimme ein, aber Whitelaw reagierte nicht so, wie sie gehofft hatte. Elle prend sa voix la plus douce, mais Whitelaw ne réagit pas comme elle l'espérait. He didn't look once as she leaned over while reaching for some tea. Er sah nicht ein einziges Mal hin, als sie sich zu ihm beugte und nach dem Tee griff. Il n'a pas regardé une seule fois lorsqu'elle s'est penchée pour prendre du thé. She might just as well have been his mother. Sie hätte genauso gut seine Mutter sein können. Elle aurait tout aussi bien pu être sa mère. No luck there. Das war kein Glück. At least the old man seemed to be giving her his attention. Wenigstens schien der alte Mann ihr seine Aufmerksamkeit zu schenken.

She explained, still in her sweetest voice, why she was there. Sie erklärte, immer noch mit ihrer sanften Stimme, warum sie dort war. She said that she wanted to describe the human side of Nyree Singh in her magazine, the side that would show the world what a wonderful person they had lost. Sie sagte, sie wolle in ihrem Magazin die menschliche Seite von Nyree Singh beschreiben, die Seite, die der Welt zeigen würde, was für einen wunderbaren Menschen sie verloren hat. Was there anything that he could show her readers? Gab es etwas, das er ihren Lesern zeigen konnte? Y a-t-il quelque chose qu'il puisse montrer à ses lecteurs ? Letters? A diary, perhaps?

Gopal smiled.

'Come, let us all walk together in the garden. Then we can talk,' he said.

Gopal picked up an old metal box from a table, the kind with a lid and a lock, and carried it with him. ||||||||||||||Deckel|||||||| ||||||||||||||cover or top|||||||| Gopal nahm eine alte Metallkiste mit Deckel und Schloss von einem Tisch und trug sie bei sich. He led them past the flowers by his sister's photograph and out to the garden path. Er führte sie an den Blumen neben dem Foto seiner Schwester vorbei und hinaus auf den Gartenweg. There was an unpleasant smell. Es herrschte ein unangenehmer Geruch.

At first the smell was not too bad. Zunächst war der Geruch nicht allzu schlimm. Then, as they went on, it got stronger. Dann, als sie weitermachten, wurde es stärker.

'My sister was a secretive woman,' said Gopal. Meine Schwester war eine verschlossene Frau", sagte Gopal. 'She knew many important people, many famous people. Sie kannte viele wichtige Leute, viele berühmte Leute. But she never said anything about her private conversations with them to me or to anyone. Aber sie hat weder mir noch sonst jemandem etwas von ihren privaten Gesprächen mit ihnen erzählt. She respected her friends - even her enemies - and would never repeat to anyone what they said to her.' ||||||Feinde||||||||||| Sie respektierte ihre Freunde - sogar ihre Feinde - und würde niemals zu jemandem wiederholen, was er zu ihr gesagt hat.

As they walked the smell became almost too much. Als sie weitergingen, wurde der Geruch fast zu viel. Desiree's face was turning pale and Professor Whitelaw, too, was looking very uncomfortable. Desirees Gesicht wurde blass und auch Professor Whitelaw sah sehr unbehaglich aus. Gopal went on. Gopal a poursuivi.

'This box contains the only real secrets my sister ever kept from me. Dieses Kästchen enthält die einzigen wirklichen Geheimnisse, die mir meine Schwester je vorenthalten hat. I once promised her I would never open it and I never have, even though I have the key.' Ich habe ihr einmal versprochen, sie nie zu öffnen, und das habe ich auch nie getan, obwohl ich den Schlüssel habe". He stopped and looked at his two guests, who were both trying their best not to be sick. Er blieb stehen und schaute seine beiden Gäste an, die sich bemühten, nicht krank zu werden.

'This cesspit, which you see in the ground in front of us, is to be emptied tomorrow. |sewage pit||||||||||||||drained| Diese Senkgrube, die Sie vor uns im Boden sehen, soll morgen geleert werden. It contains the sewage from the past month...' |||wastewater|||| Sie enthält die Abwässer des letzten Monats...'

They could see it in front of them. It was almost full, and the smell rose from it like an evil ghost. Er war fast voll, und der Geruch stieg auf wie ein böser Geist.

Then Gopal did an extraordinary thing: he threw the box into the cesspit. Dann tat Gopal etwas Außergewöhnliches: Er warf die Schachtel in die Senkgrube. It went through the air and landed in the middle. Er flog durch die Luft und landete in der Mitte. Desiree and Whitelaw looked on helplessly while the box sank slowly to the bottom, leaving only a few bubbles in the brown liquid. |||||hilflos||||||||||||||||| Desiree und Whitelaw sahen hilflos zu, wie die Kiste langsam zu Boden sank und nur ein paar Blasen in der braunen Flüssigkeit zurückließ.

'If you really wish to know the secrets in that box, they are yours. Wenn Sie die Geheimnisse in dieser Kiste wirklich wissen wollen, gehören sie Ihnen. I will be at the Excelsior this afternoon. Ich werde heute Nachmittag im Excelsior sein. In fact, my good friend Mr Raj Patel will be arriving to take me there at any moment. Mein guter Freund Raj Patel wird mich jeden Moment dorthin bringen. The "person who brings me the box may collect the key from me in the lounge of the hotel at four o'clock this afternoon - just in time for tea. Die Person, die mir die Kiste bringt, kann den Schlüssel heute Nachmittag um vier Uhr in der Lounge des Hotels abholen - gerade rechtzeitig zum Tee. La "personne qui m'apportera la boîte pourra venir chercher la clé dans le salon de l'hôtel à 16 heures, juste à temps pour le thé". Goodbye for now, my friends. It was a delight meeting you both. |||Vergnügen||| Es war eine Freude, Sie beide kennenzulernen. Perhaps we shall meet again...' Vielleicht werden wir uns wiedersehen...'

And Gopal walked down the garden path and left them there. Und Gopal ging den Gartenweg hinunter und ließ sie dort zurück. Their eyes went from him to the cesspit and then to each other. Both of them wanted the box and what was in it, and there it lay, separated from them by deep, bubbling brown sewage. ||||||||||||||||||||blubbernd|| Beide wollten die Kiste und das, was darin war, und da lag sie, getrennt von ihnen durch tiefes, blubberndes braunes Abwasser.

Raj Patel and Gopal sat drinking tea in the Excelsior lounge at three forty-five that afternoon. Raj Patel und Gopal saßen an diesem Nachmittag um drei Uhr fünfundvierzig in der Lounge des Excelsior und tranken Tee. Music from a string quartet was playing. ||||Streichquartett|| Es erklang die Musik eines Streichquartetts. As they laughed together a third person came to join them. Während sie gemeinsam lachten, gesellte sich eine dritte Person zu ihnen.

It was Professor Whitelaw. Es war Professor Whitelaw.

'I'm sorry, Mr Singh, but I just couldn't do it. Es tut mir leid, Mr. Singh, aber ich konnte es einfach nicht tun. Not for anything. I'm afraid I have rather a weak stomach. Ich fürchte, ich habe einen ziemlich schwachen Magen. Still, I don't suppose anything in that box would have made much difference to a book about Miss Singh as a writer...' Dennoch glaube ich nicht, dass irgendetwas in dieser Kiste einen großen Unterschied zu einem Buch über Miss Singh als Schriftstellerin gemacht hätte...' Pourtant, je ne pense pas que le contenu de cette boîte aurait fait une grande différence dans un livre consacré à l'écrivain Miss Singh...".

Gopal smiled. 'Quite right. Ganz recht. C'est tout à fait exact. Think nothing of it, Professor Whitelaw. Denken Sie sich nichts dabei, Professor Whitelaw. I hope you did not mind my little test of your... er... intentions! ||||||||||||Absichten Ich hoffe, Sie haben nichts gegen meinen kleinen Test Ihrer... äh... Absichten! I can see you are a man with high standards. Ich kann sehen, dass Sie ein Mann mit hohen Ansprüchen sind. Now do sit down and join us for tea. Setzen Sie sich doch und trinken Sie mit uns Tee. Let me introduce you to my good friend, Mr Raj Patel; he is a very fine maker of Indian films.' Ich möchte Ihnen meinen guten Freund, Herrn Raj Patel, vorstellen; er ist ein sehr guter indischer Filmemacher.

For the next ten minutes they all chatted about Whitelaw's ideas for his book, and Raj Patel's plans for Indian Summer starring Ravi Narayan. |||||||||Whitelaws||||||||||||mit Ravi Narayan|| In den nächsten zehn Minuten unterhielten sie sich über Whitelaws Ideen für sein Buch und Raj Patels Pläne für Indian Summer mit Ravi Narayan in der Hauptrolle.

It was almost four o'clock when Desiree Malpen arrived with an old metal box-in her hands. Es war fast vier Uhr, als Desiree Malpen mit einer alten Metallkiste in der Hand ankam. She was wearing a loose blue dress and smelled of strong perfume. Sie trug ein weites blaues Kleid und roch nach starkem Parfüm. But there was another smell mixed in with it, a bitter unpleasant smell which defeated all the efforts of the perfume to hide it. Aber es mischte sich ein anderer Geruch darunter, ein bitterer, unangenehmer Geruch, der alle Bemühungen des Parfüms, ihn zu überdecken, zunichte machte. Her hair was still wet as though she had just come out of the shower. Ihr Haar war noch nass, als wäre sie gerade aus der Dusche gekommen. She smiled but it was an angry smile. Sie lächelte, aber es war ein zorniges Lächeln. She placed the box in the middle of the table, almost knocking over the vase of roses. ||||||||||||||Vase|| Sie stellte die Schachtel in die Mitte des Tisches und stieß dabei fast die Vase mit den Rosen um.

'Well, Mr Singh, here it is. Alright||||| I got it out. Ich habe es raus. None of those taxi drivers would do it so I did it myself - ruined my clothes and had to pay for the damned taxi to be cleaned. ||||||||||||||||||||||verfluchten|||| Keiner der Taxifahrer wollte es tun, also habe ich es selbst gemacht - und dabei meine Kleidung ruiniert und musste die Reinigung des verdammten Taxis bezahlen. God knows what they thought when I finally got back here! Gott weiß, was sie dachten, als ich endlich wieder hier war! But here it is. Now are you going to open it?'

'Of course, my dear. At once,' said Gopal. He took a key from his pocket and didn't seem to mind that the box was not entirely clean. Er nahm einen Schlüssel aus seiner Tasche und schien sich nicht daran zu stören, dass der Kasten nicht ganz sauber war. Il a sorti une clé de sa poche et n'a pas semblé s'inquiéter du fait que la boîte n'était pas tout à fait propre. He turned the lock with a quick motion of his wrist and held the box out to her. |||||||Bewegung|||||||||| Mit einer schnellen Bewegung seines Handgelenks drehte er das Schloss und hielt ihr die Schachtel hin.

'Take it; it's yours.' Nimm es, es gehört dir.

Desiree took the box and, looking very pleased with herself, opened it. Desiree nahm die Schachtel und öffnete sie, sehr zufrieden mit sich selbst. She took out some old pieces of newspaper, which had gone brown and hard with age. Sie nahm ein paar alte Zeitungsfetzen heraus, die durch das Alter braun und hart geworden waren. She looked at them and stared at Gopal angrily. Sie sah sie an und starrte Gopal wütend an.

'What on earth are these?' Was in aller Welt ist das?

Gopal Singh looked at the old papers. Gopal Singh sah sich die alten Papiere an.

'Cricket reports! Kricket| 'Cricket-Berichte! We both loved cricket, but I hate reading results of matches I haven't seen - and Nyree loved collecting them. |||||||||||||||||das Sammeln| Wir liebten beide Kricket, aber ich hasse es, Ergebnisse von Spielen zu lesen, die ich nicht gesehen habe - und Nyree liebte es, sie zu sammeln. She was a sweet old thing, don't think?' Sie war ein süßes altes Ding, findest du nicht?

- THE END -