Read the extract from “If Tomorrow Comes” by Sydney Sheldon and do exercises

…The seven-storey headquarters building of Interpol, the International Criminal Police Organization, is at 26 Rue Armengaud, about six miles west of Paris. The extraordinary security is mandatory, for within this building are kept the world’s most elaborate dossiers with files on two and a half million criminals.

The inspector was in his mid-forties, an attractive figure, with an intelligent face, dark hair, and shrewd brown eyes behind black horn-rimmed glasses. Seated in the office with him were detectives from England, Belgium, France and Italy.

‘Gentlemen,’ Inspector Trignant said, ‘I have received urgent requests from each of your countries for information about the rash of crimes that has recently sprung up all over Europe. Half a dozen countries have been hit by an epidemic of ingenious swindles and burglaries, in which there are several similarities. The victims are of unsavoury reputation, there is never violence involved, and the perpetrator is always a female. We have reached the conclusion that we are facing an international gang of women. We have identi-kit pictures based on the descriptions by victims and random witnesses. As you will see, none of the women in the pictures is alike. Some are blonde, some brunette. They have variously been reported as being English, French, Spanish, Italian, American – or Texan.’

Inspector Trignant pressed a switch, and a series of pictures began to appear on the wall screen. ‘Here you see an identi-kit sketch of a brunette with short hair.’ He pressed the button again. ‘Here is a young blonde with a shag cut…Here is another blonde with a perm…a brunette with a pageboy…Here is an older woman with a French twist…a young woman with blonde streaks…an older woman with a coup sauvage.’ He turned off the projector. ‘We have no idea who the gang’s leader is or where their headquarters is located. They never leave any clues behind, and they vanish like smoke rings. Sooner or later we will catch one of them, and when we do, we shall get them all. In the meantime, gentlemen, until one of you can furnish us with some specific information, I am afraid we are at a dead end…’

1. Answer the questions

1. Where is the building of Interpol situated?

2. What is kept in the building?

3. What kind of information did the inspector tell?

4. Who was a perpetrator of all felonies? Was ever violence involved?

5. Which conclusion have the detectives reached?

6. Were the women of the gang alike? What was their nationality?

7. Describe the women’s appearance.

8. Who is the gang’s leader?

2. Explain the following word-combinations:

1) at a dead end; 2) to vanish like smoke rings; 3) identi-kit pictures; 4) gang of women; 5) epidemic of burglaries; 6) female perpetrator.

3. Predict the end of the story.

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