《The English Patient》第61章

rkness　in　her；　her　lack　of　a　child　and　of　faith。　he　is　always　coaxing　her　from　the　edge　of　her　fields　of　sadness。　a　child　lost。　a　father　lost。　
“i　have　lost　someone　like　a　father　as　well；”　he　has　said。　but　she　knows　this　man　beside　her　is　one　of　the　charmed；　who　has　grown　up　an　outsider　and　so　can　switch　allegiances；　can　replace　loss。　there　are　those　destroyed　by　unfairness　and　those　who　are　not。　if　she　asks　him　he　will　say　he　has　had　a　good　life　—his　brother　in　jail；　his　rades　blown　up；　and　he　risking　himself　daily　in　this　war。　
in　spite　of　the　kindnesses　in　such　people　they　were　a　terrible　unfairness。　he　could　be　all　day　in　a　clay　pit　dismantling　a　bomb　that　might　kill　him　at　any　moment；　could　e　home　from　the　burial　of　a　fellow　sapper；　his　energy　saddened；　but　whatever　the　trials　around　him　there　was　always　solution　and　light。　but　she　saw　none。　for　him　there　were　the　various　maps　of　fate；　and　at　amritsar’s　temple　all　faiths　and　classes　were　wele　and　ate　together。　she　herself　would　be　allowed　to　place　money　or　a　flower　onto　the　sheet　spread　upon　the　floor　and　then　join　in　the　great　permanent　singing。　
she　wished　for　that。　her　inwardness　was　a　sadness　of　nature。　he　himself　would　allow　her　to　enter　any　of　his　thirteen　gates　of　character；　but　she　knew　that　if　he　were　in　danger　he　would　never　turn　to　face　her。　he　would　create　a　space　around　himself　andconcentrate。　this　was　his　craft。　sikhs；　he　said；　were　brilliant　at　technology。　“we　have　a　mystical　closeness。。。　what　is　it？”　“affinity。”　“yes；　affinity；　with　machines。”　he　would　be　lost　among　them　for　hours；　the　beat　of　music　within　the　crystal　set　whacking　away　at　his　forehead　and　into　his　hair。　she　did　not　believe　she　could　turn　fully　to　him　and　be　his　lover。　he　moved　at　a　speed　that　allowed　him　to　replace　loss。　
that　was　his　nature。　she　would　not　judge　it　in　him。　what　right　did　she　have。　kip　stepping　out　each　morning　with　his　satchel　hanging　off　his　left　shoulder　and　walking　the　path　away　from　the　villa　san　girolamo。　each　morning　she　watched　him；　seeing　his　freshness　towards　the　world　perhaps　for　the　last　time。　after　a　few　minutes　he　would　look　up　into　the　shrapnel…torn　cypresses；　whose　middle　branches　had　been　shelled　away。　pliny　must　have　walked　down　a　path　like　this；　or　stendahl；　because　passages　in　the　charterhouse　of　parma　had　occurred　in　this　part　of　the　world　too。　
kip　would　look　up；　the　arch　of　the　high　wounded　trees　over　him；　the　path　in　front　of　him　mediaeval；　and　he　a　young　man　of　the　strangest　profession　his　century　had　invented；　a　sapper；　a　military　engineer　who　detected　and　disarmed　mines。　each　morning　he　emerged　from　the　tent；　bathed　and　dressed　in　the　garden；　and　stepped　away　from　the　villa　and　its　surroundings；　not　even　entering　the　house—maybe　a　wave　if　he　saw　her—　as　if　language；　humanity；　would　confuse　him；　get；　like　blood；　into　the　machine　he　had　to　understand。　she　would　see　him　forty　yards　from　the　house；　in　a　clearing　of　the　path。　
it　was　the　moment　he　left　them　all　behind。　the　moment　the　drawbridge　closed　behind　the　knight　and　he　was　alone　with　just　the　peacefulness　of　his　own　strict　talent。　in　siena　there　was　that　mural　she　had　seen。　a　fresco　of　a　city。　a　few　yards　outside　the　city　walls　the　artist’s　paint　had　crumbled　away；　so　there　was　not　even　the　security　of　art　to　provide　an　orchard　in　the　far　acres　for　the　traveller　leaving　the　castle。　that　was　where；　she　felt；　kip　went　during　the　day。　each　morning　he　would　step　from　the　painted　scene　towards　dark　bluffs　of　chaos。　the　knight。　the　warrior　saint。　she　would　see　the　khaki　uniform　flickering　through　the　cypresses。　the　englishman　had　called　himfato　profugus—fate’s　fugitive。　she　guessed　that　these　days　began　for　him　with　the　pleasure　of　lifting　his　eyes　up　to　the　trees。　
they　had　flown　the　sappers　into　naples　at　the　beginning　of　october　；　selecting　the　best　from　the　engineering　corps　that　were　already　in　southern　italy；　kip　among　the　thirty　men　who　were　brought　into　the　booby…trapped　city。　
the　germans　in　the　italian　campaign　had　choreographed　one　of　the　most　brilliant　and　terrible　retreats　in　history。　the　advance　of　the　allies；　which　should　have　taken　a　month；　took　a　year。　there　was　fire　in　their　path。　sappers　rode　the　mudguards　of　trucks　as　the　armies　moved　forward；　their　eyes　searching　for　fresh　soil　disturbances　that　signalled　land　mines　or　glass　mines　or　shoe　mines。　the　advance　impossibly　slow。　farther　north　in　the　mountains；　partisan　bands　of　garibaldi　munist　groups；　who　wore　identifying　red　handkerchiefs；　were　also　wiring　explosives　over　the　roads　which　detonated　when　german　trucks　passed　over　them。　
the　scale　of　the　laying　of　mines　in　italy　and　in　north　africa　cannot　be　imagined。　at　the　kismaayo…afmadu　road　junction； mines　were　found。　there　were at　the　omo　river　bridge　area。　on　june　；　；　south　african　sappers　laid　；　mark mines　in　mersa　matruh　in　one　day。　four　months　later　the　british　cleared　mersa　matruh　of　；　mines　and　placed　them　elsewhere。　
mines　were　made　out　of　everything。　forty…centimetre　galvanized　pipes　were　filled　with　explosives　and　left　along　military　paths。　mines　in　wooden　boxes　were　left　in　homes。　pipe　mines　were　filled　with　gelignite；　metal　scraps　and　nails。　south　african　sappers　packed　iron　and　gelignite　into　four…gallon　petrol　cans　that　could　then　destroy　armoured　cars。　
it　was　worst　in　the　cities。　bomb　disposal　units；　barely　trained；　were　shipped　out　from　cairo　and　alexandria。　the　eighteenth　division　became　famous。　during　three　weeks　in　october　；　they　dismantled　；　high…explosive　bombs。　
italy　was　worse　than　africa；　the　clockwork　fuzes　nightmar…ishly　eccentric；　the　spring…activated　mechanisms　different　from　the　german　ones　that　units　had　been　trained　in。　as　sappers　entered　cities　they　walked　along　avenues　where　corpses　were　strung　from　trees　or　the　balconies　of　buildings。　the　germans　often　retaliated　by　killing　ten　italians　for　every　german　killed。　some　of　the　hanging　corpses　were　mined　and　had　to　be　blown　up　in　midair。　
the　germans　evacuated　naples　on　october　i；
during　an　allied　raid　the　previous　september；　hundreds　of　citizens　had　walked　away　and　begun　living　in　the　caves　outside　the　city。　the　germans　in　their　retreat　bombe