I nodded once, not quite able to smile at his joke. Adrenaline pulsed through my veins as therealization of danger slowly sank in. He could smell that from where he sat. His smile turnedmocking.
我点了点头，没法对他的笑话微笑。作为一种对危险的响应，肾上腺素在我的血管里奔涌着，但也在慢慢地平息下来。他能从他坐着的地方闻到这一切。他的笑容变得嘲讽起来。
"I'm the world's best predator, aren't I? Everything about me invites you in — my voice, myface, even my smell. As if I need any of that!" Unexpectedly, he was on his feet, bounding away,instantly out of sight, only to appear beneath the same tree as before, having circled themeadow in half a second.
“我是这个世界上最棒的掠食者，不是吗?我的一切都在邀请着你——我的声音，我的容貌，甚至是我的气味。就好像我需要这些一样!”出人意料的是，他站起来跳开了，立刻消失在我的眼前，然后出现在之前的同一棵树下。他在半秒钟内就绕了这片空地一圈。
"As if you could outrun me," he laughed bitterly.
“就好像你能从我身旁逃脱。”他痛苦地大笑着。
He reached up with one hand and, with a deafening crack, effortlessly ripped a two-foot-thickbranch from the trunk of the spruce. He balanced it in that hand for a moment, and thenthrew it with blinding speed, shattering it against another huge tree, which shook and trembledat the blow.
他伸出一只手，然后随着一声震耳欲聋的爆裂声，他毫不费力地从那棵云杉的树干上扯下一根直径达两英尺的树枝。他单手把它举了片刻，然后把它扔出去，速度快得看不见。那根树枝在另一棵巨树上砸得粉碎，砸得那棵巨树一阵震动，带起一阵颤动的风。
And he was in front of me again, standing two feet away, still as a stone.
然后他又出现在了我面前，站在两英尺外的地方，安静得像一块石头。
"As if you could fight me off," he said gently.
“就好像你能把我击退。”他温柔地说道。
I sat without moving, more frightened of him than I had ever been. I'd never seen him socompletely freed of that carefully cultivated facade. He'd never been less human… or morebeautiful. Face ashen, eyes wide, I sat like a bird locked in the eyes of a snake.
我一动不动地坐在那里，被他吓到了，比我曾经体会过的还要更害怕。我从没见过他如此彻底地从那张小心翼翼的，有教养的假面具下解放出来。他从未像现在这样，更不像人类……或者更加美丽。我的脸色发灰，眼睛睁大了，我坐在那里，就像一只被蛇的目光锁住了小鸟。