). "I beg your pardon, ma'am (прошу прощения, мадам)?"
"The dress shop of Dior, you 'eard me (магазин одежды Диор, вы слышали меня: to hear)?"
duchess ['dACIs], excitement [Ik'saItmqnt], evidence ['evIdqns]
Mrs. Harris sat up with her slender back, thin from hard work, ramrod straight, the pink rose pointing due north, her face as calm and composed as that of a duchess. Only the little eyes were dancing with excitement. "Tell him to take me to the dress shop of Christian Dior," she said.
The Airways man stared at her, refusing the evidence of his ears. "I beg your pardon, ma'am?"
"The dress shop of Dior, you 'eard me?"
The Airways man had heard her all right (работник авиакомпании слышал ее вполне хорошо), but his brain, used to dealing with all kind of emergences and queer cases (но его мозг, привыкший иметь дело со всякими непредвиденными и чудными/странными случаями), could just not make the connection between a London daily woman (просто не мог установить связь между домработницей из Лондона), one of that vast army that sallied forth every morning to scrub up the city's dirt in office and home (одной из той огромной армии, отправляющейся каждое утро вычищать городскую грязь в офисах и домах), and the most exclusive fashion center in the world (и самым престижным центром моды в мире), and he still hesitated (и он по-прежнему колебался/сомневался).
"Come on then, get on with it (ну, тогда давайте живее)," commanded Mrs. Harris sharply (потребовала миссис Харрис резко; to command — господствовать/владеть; приказывать/требовать), "what's so strange about a lady going to buy 'erself a dress in Paris (что странного в женщине/в леди, намеревающейся купить себе платье в Париже)?"
heard [hWd], emergence [I'mWGqns], exclusive [Iks'klHsIv]
The Airways man had heard her all right, but his brain, used to dealing with all kind of emergences and queer cases, could just not make the connection between a London daily woman, one of that vast army that sallied forth every morning to scrub up the city's dirt in office and home, and the most exclusive fashion center in the world, and he still hesitated.
"Come on then, get on with it," commanded Mrs. Harris sharply, "what's so strange about a lady going to buy 'erself a dress in Paris?"
Shaken to the marrow (потрясенный до глубины души: «до костного мозга»: to shake — трясти), the Airways man spoke to the driver in French (работник авиакомпании говорил с водителем по-французски:
