贝壳电子书 > 文学名著电子书 > 时尚女魔头 穿普拉达的恶魔 英文原版 >

第2章

时尚女魔头 穿普拉达的恶魔 英文原版-第2章


按键盘上方向键 ← 或 → 可快速上下翻页,按键盘上的 Enter 键可回到本书目录页,按键盘上方向键 ↑ 可回到本页顶部!
————未阅读完?加入书签已便下次继续阅读!



  at the dealership; but it could obviously be at any one of a million 
  auto shops in any one of the five boroughs。 Or perhaps she’d lent it 
  to a friend and it was currently occupying an expensive spot in a 
  full…service garage somewhere on Park Avenue? Of course; there was 
  always the chance that she was referring to a new car—brand 
  unknown—that she’d just recently purchased that hadn’t yet been 
  brought Home from the (unknown) dealership。 I had a lot of work to 
  do。

  I started by calling Miranda’s nanny; but her Cell Phone went 
  straight to voice mail。 The housekeeper was next on the list and; 
  for once; a big help。 She was able to tell me that the car wasn’t 
  brand…new and it was in fact a “convertible sports car in British 
  racing green;” and that it was usually parked in a garage on 
  Miranda’s block; but she had no idea what the make was or where it 
  might currently be residing。 Next on the list was Miranda’s 
  husband’s assistant; who informed me that; as far as she knew; the 
  couple owned a top…of…the…line black Lincoln Navigator and some sort 
  of small green Porsche。 Yes! I had my first lead。 One quick phone 
  call to the Porsche dealership on Eleventh Avenue revealed that yes; 
  they had just finished touching up the paint and installing a new 
  disc…changer in a green Carrera 4 Cabriolet for a Ms。 Miranda 
  Priestly。 Jackpot!

  I ordered a Town Car to take me to the dealership; where I turned 
  over a note I’d forged with Miranda’s signature that instructed them 
  to release the car to me。 No one seemed to care whatsoever that I 
  was in no way related to this woman; that some stranger had cruised 
  into the place and requested someone else’s Porsche。 They tossed me 
  the keys and only laughed when I’d asked them to back it out of the 
  garage because I wasn’t sure I could handle a stick shift in 
  reverse。 It’d taken me a half hour to get ten blocks; and I still 
  hadn’t figured out where or how to turn around so I’d actually be 
  heading uptown; toward the parking place on Miranda’s block that her 
  housekeeper had described。 The chances of my making it to 76th and 
  Fifth without seriously injuring myself; the car; a biker; a 
  pedestrian; or another vehicle were nonexistent; and this new call 
  did nothing to calm my nerves。

  Once again; I made the round of calls; but this time Miranda’s nanny 
  picked up on the second ring。

  “Cara; hey; it’s me。”

  “Hey; what’s up? Are you on the street? It sounds so loud。”

  “Yeah; you could say that。 I had to pick up Miranda’s Porsche from 
  the dealership。 Only; I can’t really drive stick。 But now she called 
  and wants me to pick up someone named Madelaine and drop her off at 
  the apartment。 Who the hell is Madelaine and where might she be?”

  Cara laughed for what felt like ten minutes before she said; 
  “Madelaine’s their French bulldog puppy and she’s at the vet。 Just 
  got spayed。 I was supposed to pick her up; but Miranda just called 
  and told me to pick the twins up early from school so they can all 
  head out to the Hamptons。”

  “You’re joking。 I have to pick up a fuckingdog with this Porsche? 
  Without crashing? It’snever going to happen 。”

  “She’s at the East Side Animal Hospital; on Fifty…second between 
  First and Second。 Sorry; Andy; I have to get the girls now; but call 
  if there’s anything I can do; OK?”

  Maneuvering the green beast to head uptown sapped my last reserves 
  of concentration; and by the time I reached Second Avenue; the 
  stress sent my body into meltdown。It couldn’t possibly get worse 
  than this; I thought as yet another cab came within a quarter…inch 
  of the back bumper。 A nick anywhere on the car would guarantee I 
  lose my job—that much was obvious—but it just might cost me my life 
  as well。 Since there was obviously not a parking spot; legal or 
  otherwise; in the middle of the day; I called the vet’s office from 
  outside and asked them to bring Madelaine to me。 A kindly woman 
  emerged a few minutes later (just enough time for me to field 
  another call from Miranda; this one asking why I wasn’t back at the 
  office yet) with a whimpering; sniffling puppy。 The woman showed me 
  Madelaine’s stitched…up belly and told me to drive very; very 
  carefully because the dog was “experiencing some disfort。” Right; 
  lady。 I’m driving very; very carefully solely to save my job and 
  possibly my life—if the dog benefits from this; it’s just a bonus。

  With Madelaine curled up on the passenger seat; I lit another 
  cigarette and rubbed my freezing bare feet so my toes could resume 
  gripping the clutch and brake pedal。Clutch; gas; shift; release 
  clutch; I chanted; trying to ignore the dog’s pitiful howls every 
  time I accelerated。 She alternated between crying; whining; and 
  snorting。 By the time we reached Miranda’s building; the pup was 
  nearly hysterical。 I tried to soothe her; but she could sense my 
  insincerity—and besides; I had no free hands with which to offer a 
  reassuring pat or nuzzle。 So this was what four years of diagramming 
  and deconstructing books; plays; short stories; and poems were for: 
  a chance to fort a small; white; batlike bulldog while trying not 
  to demolish someone else’s really; really expensive car。 Sweet life。 
  Just as I had always dreamed。

  I managed to dump the car at the garage and the dog with Miranda’s 
  doorman without further incident; but my hands were still shaking 
  when I climbed into the chauffeured Town Car that had been following 
  me all over town。 The driver looked at me sympathetically and made 
  some supportive ment about the difficulty of stick shifts; but I 
  didn’t feel much like chatting。

  “Just heading back to the Elias…Clark building;” I said with a long 
  sigh as the driver pulled around the block and headed south on Park 
  Avenue。 Since I rode the route every day—sometimes twice—I knew I 
  had exactly eight minutes to breathe and collect myself and possibly 
  even figure out a way to disguise the ash and sweat stains that had 
  bee permanent features on the Gucci suede。 The shoes—well; those 
  were beyond hope; at least until they could be fixed by the fleet of 
  shoemakersRunway kept for such emergencies。 The ride was actually 
  over in six and a half minutes; and I had no choice but to hobble 
  like an off…balance giraffe on my one flat; one four…inch heel 
  arrangement。 A quick stop in the Closet turned up a brand…new pair 
  of knee…high maroon…colored Jimmy Choos that looked great with the 
  leather skirt I grabbed; tossing the suede pants in the “Couture 
  Cleaning” pile (where the basic prices for dry cleaning started at 
  seventy…five dollars per item)。 The only stop left was a quick visit 
  to the Beauty Closet; where one of the editors there took one look 
  at my sweat…streaked makeup and whipped out a trunk full of fixers。

  Not bad;I thought; looking in one of the omnipresent full…length 
  mirrors。 You might not even know that mere minutes before I was 
  hovering precariously close to murdering myself and everyone around 
  me。 I strolled confidently into the assistants’ suite outside 
  Miranda’s office and quietly took my seat; looking forward to a few 
  free minutes before she returned from lunch。

  “And…re…ah;” she called from her starkly furnished; deliberately 
  cold office。 “Where are the car and the puppy?”

  I leaped out of my seat and ran as fast as was possible on plush 
  carpeting while wearing five…inch heels and stood before her desk。 
  “I left the car with the garage attendant and Madelaine with your 
  doorman; Miranda;” I said; proud to have pleted both tasks 
  without killing the car; the dog; or myself。

  “And why would you do something like that?” she snarled; looking up 

返回目录 上一页 下一页 回到顶部 0 0

你可能喜欢的