On Monday morning, the snow globe was on the wrong shelf.
星期一早上，水晶雪球摆错了架子。
Luca saw it at once. He opened the door of his candle workshop at seven. The room smelled of warm wax. Everything stood in its place, except the snow globe.
卢卡一眼就看出来了。他七点钟打开蜡烛作坊的门。屋里弥漫着温热的蜡味。一切都在原位，只有那个雪球不对。
"Asha," he called. "Did you move my globe?"
“阿莎，”他喊道，“你动过我的雪球吗？”
Asha came in from the back room with a box of wicks. "No. Why?"
阿莎抱着一盒灯芯从里屋走了进来。“没有。怎么了？”
"It lives on the high shelf by the window. Look. It is on the table by the wax pot."
“它一直放在窗边的高架子上。你看。它跑到熔蜡锅旁边的桌子上了。”
Asha put the box down and looked. Inside the glass, a tiny blue house stood under a tree. White snow slowly fell around it. Luca bought the globe at a market when he opened the workshop. It was the only thing in the room not for sale.
阿莎放下盒子，看了看。玻璃里面，一座小小的蓝色房子立在一棵树下。白雪在它周围缓缓飘落。卢卡开作坊时在一个集市上买下了这个雪球。这是屋里唯一一件不卖的东西。
"Maybe you moved it yourself," she said. "You were tired on Friday."
“也许是你自己挪的，”她说，“星期五你累了。”
"I never touch it. It is a rule."
“我从来不碰它。这是规矩。”
Asha smiled. "Then we have a ghost."
阿莎笑了。“那我们这儿有鬼了。”
"Do not joke," said Luca. He put the globe back on its shelf. He turned the little house to face the room. Then he went to work.
“别开玩笑，”卢卡说。他把雪球放回架子上，把小房子转过来朝着屋里。然后他去干活了。
On Tuesday morning, the globe was gone again.
星期二早上，雪球又不见了。
This time, it stood on the low shelf near the pouring room. Luca stared at it with his mouth open. The little house still faced the room. It seemed to watch him work.
这一次，它摆在浇注间附近的低架子上。卢卡张着嘴盯着它。小房子仍然朝着屋里。它似乎在看着他干活。
"This is not funny," he said.
“这一点都不好笑，”他说。
"I did not laugh," said Asha. But her eyes were bright. She loved puzzles more than anyone he knew. She took a pencil from behind her ear. "Let us find out what happens here. We need clues."
“我没笑啊，”阿莎说。但她的眼睛亮亮的。她比他认识的任何人都更爱解谜。她从耳朵后面取下一支铅笔。“我们来查查这里发生了什么。我们需要线索。”
They drew a plan of the workshop on brown paper. Asha marked the high shelf with a cross. Then she marked the table. Then she marked the low shelf.
他们在牛皮纸上画了作坊的平面图。阿莎在高架子上画了个叉。然后在桌子上画了个叉。然后在低架子上画了个叉。
"Look at the path," she said. "The globe does not go in a straight line. But every night it moves a little closer to the middle."
“看看这条路线，”她说，“雪球不是走直线。可它每晚都离中间更近一点。”
"What is in the middle?"
“中间有什么？”
"The big melting stove."
“大熔炉。”
Luca rubbed his chin. "A ghost that likes warm places?"
卢卡摸了摸下巴。“一个喜欢暖和地方的鬼？”
"Maybe." Asha drew a line around the stove. "That is our first clue. The globe walks toward the heat."
“也许吧。”阿莎在炉子周围画了一圈线。“这是我们的第一条线索。雪球朝着热源走。”
Luca checked the door and every window. They were all locked. He climbed the ladder and looked at the roof. It was shut, with dust on the handle. He even looked in the cellar, behind the sacks of wax. Nobody was there.
卢卡检查了门和每一扇窗。全都锁着。他爬上梯子，查看屋顶。它关得严严的，把手上落着灰。他甚至去地窖里看了，在蜡袋子后面。没有人。
"Maybe a thief," he said. "A thief with a strange hobby."
“也许是小偷，”他说，“一个有怪癖的小偷。”
"A thief takes things," said Asha. "He does not carry them three steps and leave them."
“小偷是拿东西的，”阿莎说，“他不会把它搬三步远然后留下。”
On Tuesday evening, they made a trap. Luca put the globe on the high shelf. Asha spread a thin layer of white chalk dust over its glass. The dust showed every touch.
星期二傍晚，他们设了个陷阱。卢卡把雪球放在高架子上。阿莎在它的玻璃上撒了一层薄薄的白粉笔灰。灰能显出每一次触碰。
Then they locked the door and went home.
然后他们锁上门，回家了。
On Wednesday morning, they ran in together. The globe stood on the corner of the stove table. The glass was still covered in chalk dust, with no finger marks.
星期三早上，他们一起跑了进来。雪球就摆在炉台的一角。玻璃上仍然盖满了粉笔灰，没有指印。
"That is impossible," said Luca. His voice was small.
“这不可能，”卢卡说。他的声音很小。
Asha did not answer. She looked at the globe. Under its round glass base, a short grey thread stuck out. She pulled it gently into the light.
阿莎没有回答。她看着雪球。在圆圆的玻璃底座下面，露出一截短短的灰线。她轻轻把它拉到光亮处。
"Look," she said. "Wool."
“看，”她说，“是羊毛。”
"We do not own grey wool."
“我们没有灰色的羊毛。”
"No. And ghosts do not wear sweaters." She held it up. "This is our second clue. Somebody carried it in a grey scarf. That is why the glass has no marks."
“没有。而且鬼不穿毛衣。”她把它举了起来。“这是我们的第二条线索。有人用一条灰围巾包着它搬的。所以玻璃上才没有痕迹。”
"But the door was locked!"
“可门是锁着的！”
"Two people have a key. You, and me." Asha stopped. "Wait. Does anyone else come in here at night?"
“有两个人有钥匙。你和我。”阿莎停住了。“等等。晚上还有别人进来过吗？”
Luca opened his mouth and closed it again. Then he looked slowly at the nail beside the door.
卢卡张开嘴，又闭上了。然后他慢慢地看向门边的那颗钉子。
A thick grey book hung there on a string. It was the cleaning book. The owner of the building wrote the rules inside the cover. A cleaner came every weekday night at ten. He washed the floor and emptied the bins. Luca never talked to him. They only met on the stairs, once, with a nod.
一本厚厚的灰色簿子用绳子挂在那里。那是清洁登记簿。楼的主人把规矩写在封面里页。每个工作日晚上十点，有一位清洁工来。他拖地，倒垃圾。卢卡从没和他说过话。他们只在楼梯上碰过一次，点了点头。
"I never read this," he said.
“我从来没读过这个，”他说。
"Then read it now."
“那现在就读。”
He opened the book and ran his finger down the page. Date after date, the cleaner wrote one short line. Floor washed. Bins empty. Door locked. Then he came to Friday.
他翻开簿子，手指沿着页面往下划。一个日期接一个日期，清洁工都写下一句简短的话。地已拖。垃圾已倒。门已锁。然后他读到了星期五。
"Floor washed. Bins empty. Door locked," Luca read. "Little blue house looked cold. Moved it nearer the stove. Hope this is OK."
“地已拖。垃圾已倒。门已锁，”卢卡念道，“小蓝房子看起来很冷。把它挪近了炉子。希望没问题。”
Asha leaned over his shoulder. She read the next line. Then she read the one after.
阿莎凑到他肩膀后面。她读了下一行。又读了再下一行。
"Monday," she said. "The little house was cold again. I think it needs more heat. Moved it a bit further."
“星期一，”她说，“小房子又冷了。我觉得它需要更多热量。又往前挪了一点。”
"And Tuesday." Luca laughed so hard that he sat down on a sack. "He put it by the stove again. He wrote, I tied a bit of scarf around it. It should be warm."
“还有星期二。”卢卡笑得那么厉害，一屁股坐到了一只袋子上。“他又把它放在炉子旁边。他写道：我用一块围巾把它裹上了。这样应该暖和了。”
"The scarf," said Asha. "That is why there was wool. And the book is our third clue."
“围巾，”阿莎说，“所以才有羊毛。这本簿子就是我们的第三条线索。”
"A ghost," said Luca, wiping his eyes. "I called a polite man with a mop a ghost."
“鬼，”卢卡擦着眼睛说，“我居然把一位拿着拖把的有礼貌的男士叫作鬼。”
"He is a very kind ghost."
“他是一个非常善良的鬼。”
They stopped laughing. Luca looked at the globe on the corner of the stove table. The little blue house sat close to the warm iron. The snow fell slowly around it.
他们不笑了。卢卡看着炉台一角的雪球。蓝色的小房子紧挨着温热的铁炉。雪在它周围缓缓落下。
"The house does not mind the heat," Asha said. "The cleaner thinks it is cold because it is made of snow."
“小房子不怕热，”阿莎说，“清洁工觉得它冷，是因为它是雪做的。”
"It is the kindest idea anyone ever had about my globe." Luca stood up and went to his desk. He found a clean card and a pen. He wrote a short note, then read it out loud.
“这是有人对我的雪球产生过的最善良的想法。”卢卡站起来，走到书桌前。他找到一张干净的卡片和一支笔。他写了一段短短的话，然后大声读了出来。
"Dear friend. Thank you. The little house is not cold. But we like that you worry. Please leave it by the stove."
“亲爱的朋友。谢谢你。小房子并不冷。但我们很喜欢你的关心。请把它留在炉子旁边吧。”
Asha smiled. "Sign it with your name."
阿莎笑了。“用你的名字签名。”
"I think I will sign it from the little house."
“我想我要替小房子签名。”
He put the card in the book. Then he lifted the globe and gave it a last shake. White snow rose and turned in the glass. Asha lit one candle on the table beside it.
他把卡片夹进簿子里。然后他拿起雪球，最后摇了一下。白雪在玻璃里升起、旋转。阿莎在旁边的桌上点燃了一支蜡烛。
The flame bent and stood up again. Light fell across the glass. In the quiet room, the tiny house sat warm in the glow. The snow came down slowly around its door.
火苗弯了一下，又站直了。光落在玻璃上。在安静的房间里，小小的房子在光晕中暖暖地坐着。雪花缓缓地落在它的门边。
