司氏姐妹 （The Switch Sisters）第二章： 大日子

第二章 大日子

太陽似乎升起的特別早。瑪拉披上她的梳妝袍，拉開窗簾。她對著衝進房間的陽光眨了眨眼睛，提起了窗戶。外面鬱鬱蔥蔥，綠色的樹葉吹進房間，纏繞在她的頭髮上。

門突然打開了。站在門框里的是穿著黑色大衣的法媽，她的眼睛閃耀著能量，說明她已經起早忙碌了幾小時。

「好，」她母親說，「我希望你快樂。」

瑪拉從她的頭髮里摘下葉子，把它們放在床頭櫃上。

「我是的，」她說，「真的，沒有比今天更完美的一天了。」

法媽用雙手關上兩扇門，正了正她的大衣，面對她的大女兒。

「我想你認為不必要，」她說，走到瑪拉坐著開始梳理她頭髮的桌子邊，「把這一事件的細節告知你的母親。」

法媽從瑪拉手裡拿過梳子，給她梳頭，她使勁地想把一個頭髮死結拉直。瑪拉疼的打了個噤，但仍然保持著她的頭不動。

「我一直在鎮上各處跑，做各種准備，敲定菜單」，司維曲夫人說。 「街道上充滿了熱鬧的談話。激動的人們隨處可見，交頭接耳，斜視著我，匆匆跑開，去和鄰居八卦。你猜他們在說什么？「

瑪拉閉上她的眼睛。 「我想他們在說關於婚禮的事吧？」

「是的，」法媽說。 「你說他們能說什麼呢？」法媽沒有給她的女兒機會作回應。 「他們說，他們很高興地看到將會發生的事情，他們猜測這猜測那，他們說這將是在小鎮歷史上最大的事件。」法媽放下梳子。瑪拉的頭髮在鏡子里閃閃發光，像一個拋光的石頭。

「現在你認為該在什么時候通知我，」司維曲夫人接著說，當她為瑪拉編好辮子，在她的頭頂打了一個完美的發結，她提高了她的聲音 「你什麼時候計劃告訴你母親整個鎮的人將出席婚禮」？她把一個發夾隨便塞進她剛編好的發髻里，奇迹般的，髮夾正好停留在巧當的地方，她作了一個深呼吸。一陣風吹來，把窗戶砰然關上，切斷了房間里的春意。房間內的空氣靜止了，變得很沉寂。

「我以為你會知道，所有的女孩，會知道乖巧的重要性。」法媽的手放在瑪拉的肩膀上說，瑪拉看著她在鏡子里的映像。 「你從來沒有一次在公眾面前跌倒過，你融入人群這么好，有時我在想，你是否是我牽手帶進這個小鎮的那個女兒。可現在你不僅嫁了市長的兒子，你已經邀請整個安玫瑰鎮的人參加慶祝儀式。你讓我怎麼想？你的頭腦去哪里了？」

瑪拉只在看到她母親說完后才開口。 「我只邀請了您和我的姐妹們。其餘的客人必然是格雷厄姆邀請的。」

提到格雷厄姆，法媽大步走向床邊坐下，把她的不滿包含在沉重的沉默中。瑪拉知道，她的母親從一開始就不贊成這個婚配。她明白：她自己也很驚訝會捲入這種境況，對自己的感情不知所措，害怕失去控制。

在亨特一家突然駕臨餐館用餐后的前一個夏天，瑪拉已在法媽食店——她的母親的著名餐館－－當女招待。法媽拉直她的圍裙， 一把抓住瑪拉的肩膀， 把她拉出廚房，對她著急而低聲地說。 「市長一家在這里，」她說。 「17桌。不要犯任何錯誤。「

瑪拉沒有犯任何錯誤。帶著十足的魅力和迷人的風度，她幫他們點好最好的菜肴，並馬上上單，托著放著熱氣騰騰飯菜的托盤，瑪拉是如此優雅和輕盈地飄過繁忙的餐廳，而在任何其他人手中都會顯得束手束腳，飄搖不穩。這頓飯吃得非常完滿：法媽食店，儘管司維曲家庭的名聲帶有陰影，卻總是熱鬧非凡，生意興隆。在法媽的菜肴里有一種說不出的美味，讓她的顧客無法抗拒的一次又一次的回來。

格雷厄姆亨特回來的更多，因為法媽的菜， 也因為瑪拉。在新英格蘭度過他的童年歲月後，他先在預科學校，然後在一個著名的大學和法律學院完成他的學業，他返回到安玫瑰。亨特市長，他的父親，為了慶祝他的歸來，作了一個異常的舉動，決定帶他去他至今還沒造訪，但在鎮上人們談論最多的餐廳。就這樣，格雷厄姆見到了瑪拉，雖然有多年的有關那個家庭在夜間會變為什麼的傳言，他只看到她的美麗和寧靜，塵世的優雅。接著是暗暗的求愛，很快，儘管她的保留心態，瑪拉發現自己全心全意地覺得與他有緣，不能對他的求婚說不。

她終於說服了自己，這將是一個絕好的機會來証明司維曲家庭的聲譽，這也是她現在對她母親說的。 「也許這將是一件好事，」她握住司維曲夫人的手說。 「如果整個小鎮看到我嫁給格雷厄姆，全鎮的人將看到，我們也不是那么與眾不同。這可能是我們來改變現狀的一個機會。想象一下，母親！那些關起門來的傳言，說我們如何與他們不同，我們可以如何炮製奇怪的法術，我們如何危險，等等，想象一下，會全部消失在空氣中。」瑪拉站起來，看著她的母親的眼睛懇求道。

「這是我們的一個機會來證明我們不是他們所認為的那樣，」她說。

法媽拿開瑪拉握著她的手，朝門大步走去。門突然打開，在他們再次關上之前，她稍稍地停了一下，她的眼睛充滿寒冷和不屈。

「問題是，」她說，「我們是他們所認為的那樣。」

Chapter 2: The Big Day

The sun seemed to rise especially early. Mara slipped into her dressing robe and opened the curtains. She blinked at the light that flooded into the room and lifted the window. Lush, green leaves blew inside, tangling in her hair.

The door flew open. Standing in its frame was Fa Switch in her black coat, her eyes shining with an energy that said she』d been awake and running about for hours.

「Well,」 her mother said, 「I hope you』re happy.」

Mara picked the leaves from her hair and laid them on her bedside table.

「I am,」 she said, 「It really couldn』t be a more perfect day.」

Fa closed the double doors with both hands and swept her coat around to face her oldest daughter.

「I suppose you didn』t think it necessary,」 she said, walking towards the table where Mara had sat and started to comb her hair, 「to inform your mother of the details of this event.」

Fa took the comb out of Mara』s hand and pulled it through her hair, yanking on hard knots. Mara winced but kept her head still.

「I』ve been all around town, making preparations, finalizing the menu,」 Ms. Switch said. 「The streets are buzzing with talk. Excited people everywhere, whispering, throwing sideways glances at me and running off to gossip to their neighbor. Can you guess what they are saying?」

Mara closed her eyes. 「I suppose they』re talking about the wedding?」

「Yes,」 Fa said. 「And what do you suppose they』re saying?」 Fa didn』t give her daughter a chance to respond. 「They』re saying they』re so excited to see what will happen, they』re guessing this and guessing that, they』re saying it』s going to be the largest event in the history of the town.」 Fa put down the comb. Mara』s hair gleamed in the mirror like a polished stone surface.

「Now when were you supposing to inform me,」 Ms. Switch continued, her voice rising as she braided Mara』s hair into a perfect knot on the top of her head, 「When were you planning on telling your mother that the entire townwould be attending the wedding?」 She slipped one bobby pin into the intricate bun she』d woven—miraculously, it stayed in place—and let out a deep breath. The window slammed shut and cut off the light spring breeze that had been gently playing inside. The air in the room stilled and became silent.

「I thought you, of all the girls, would know the importance of discretion.」 Fa』s hand』s held onto Mara』s shoulders as she spoke, and Mara looked forward at her reflection. 「You』re the one who has never once slipped in public, who blends so well into the crowd that sometimes I wonder if you』re the same daughter I carried into this town. Now not only are you marrying the son of the mayor, you have invited the entire town of Ambrose to the ceremony. What am I to make of this? Where has your head gone?」

Mara spoke only after she saw her mother had finished. 「I only invited you and my sisters. The rest of the guests must be Graham』s.」

At the mention of Graham, Fa Switch strode to the bed and sat at its edge, containing her discontent in a heavy silence. Mara knew that her mother had disapproved of the match from the start. She understood: she, too, had been surprised to find herself in such a situation, wary of her feelings and scared of losing control.

Mara had been waitressing at Fa』s Foods the summer prior—her mother』s famous restaurant—when the Hunter family had dropped in to dine. Fa Switch had straightened her apron, grabbed her shoulders and strode her out of the kitchen, whispering furiously. 「The mayor』s family is here,」 she said. 「Table 17. Do not make any mistakes.」

Mara had made no mistakes. Charming and personable, she recommended the best dishes and brought the orders out simultaneously, steaming hot on a tray that would have toppled precariously in any other hands but glided gracefully across the busy dining room in Mara』s. From there the work was completed by the food: despite the Switches』 shadowed reputation Fa』s Food was always bustling. There was something indescribably delicious in Fa』s dishes that made her customers unable to resist coming back for more.

Graham Hunter came back for more, more of Fa』s food and more of Mara. He was returning to Ambrose after spending his childhood years in New England, first in prep school, then a prestigious college and law school. For his homecoming celebration his father, Mayor Hunter, had decided in an uncharacteristic move to take him to dine at the most talked-about restaurant in town, which he had yet to visit. And so, Graham met Mara, and untainted by years of whispered rumors of what the family became at night, he saw only her beauty and tranquil, earthly grace. A covert courtship ensued, and soon despite her reservations Mara found herself wholeheartedly attached to him, unable to say no to his proposal of marriage.

She had convinced herself that it would be a wonderful opportunity to refute the Swithes』 reputation, and that was what she said to her mother now. 「Maybe it』ll be a good thing,」 she said, taking Ms. Switch』s hand and holding it between her own. 「If the whole town sees me marry Graham, the whole town will see that we are not so different after all. This could be our chance to change everything. Imagine it, mother! All those words behind closed doors, about how we』re just not like them, how we can concoct strange spells, how we』re dangerous, imagine all of that disappearing into air.」 Mara stood up and looked into her mother』s eyes, pleading.

「This is our chance to prove we』re not what they think we are,」 she said.

Fa Switch took her hands out of Mara』s grasp and strode towards the doors. They swung open, and she stopped briefly in the frame before they closed in front of her, her eyes cold and unyielding.

「The problem is,」 she said, 「we are.」

• [07/10]司氏姐妹 （The Switch Sisters) 翻譯連載：序曲
• [07/10]司氏姐妹 （The Switch Sisters）第一章：不許惡作劇
• [07/11] 司氏姐妹 （The Switch Sisters）第二章： 大日子
• [07/12]司氏姐妹 第三章：瑪拉的故事
• [07/12]The Switch Sisters：Prologue
• [07/12]The Switch Sisters: Chapter 1, No Funny Business
• [07/12]The Switch Sisters: Chapter 2, The Big Day
• [07/12]The Switch Sisters: Chapter 3, Mara』s Tale
• [07/13]司氏姐妹 第四章：燈滅了
• [07/13]The Switch Sisters Chapter 4: Lights Out

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