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Meanwhile, the government representatives explained that Britain did not pay ransom,
同时，政府代表解释说，英国不会支付赎金，
and would not countenance any arrangement that put money in the hands of terrorists.
而且不会支持任何将钱送到恐怖分子手里的安排。
While the identity of the kidnappers was murky, the line between al-Shabaab militants, pirates and criminals in Somalia was a fluid one.
虽然绑架者的身份尚不清楚，但索马里的青年党武装分子、海盗和罪犯之间的界限是不确定的。
The best that British officials could offer the family was to essentially walk away –
英国官员能给这个家庭的最好的选择就是离开——
to put what they called “clear water” between the government and any negotiations.
政府将不会参与任何谈判。
Their rather charitable interpretation was that since the kidnappers were demanding money they had to be criminals.
他们更仁慈的表达是，既然绑架者要求付钱，那他们肯定是罪犯。
As an only child, Ollie was the family’s point person in the negotiations.
奥利是家里唯一的孩子，他是谈判的重要人物。
He moved into his parents’ home, and over the next six months negotiations were carried out around the kitchen table.
他搬到了父母的房子里，接下来六个月的谈判都是在厨房的桌前完成的。
They were surprisingly orderly. After each phone call, the kidnappers would arrange a follow-up conversation.
令人惊讶的是，谈判非常有序。每次通话之后，绑架者会安排一次后续谈话。
Generally, they kept their appointments.
通常，他们会按时赴约。
A Control Risks consultant would brief him on what to say, and sit by his side.
控制风险顾问会向奥利简要介绍该说些什么，然后坐在他身边。
A representative from the Metropolitan police monitored the discussions, but did not participate or interfere.
伦敦警察厅的一名代表监督了讨论，但没有参与或干预。
The Tebbutts were a comfortable middle-class family, but did not have millions.
特巴特家是一个舒适的中产阶级家庭，但他们没有几百万。
Ollie found the kidnappers had a pretty good sense of the value of their hostage,
奥利发现绑匪很清楚这个人质的价值，
and over the next few months, under the guidance of the Control Risks negotiator, their demands steadily dropped.
在接下来的几个月里，在控制风险谈判代表的指导下，他们的要求稳步下降。
They finally agreed to accept a ransom of around 600,000 pounds.
他们最终同意接受约60万英镑的赎金。
The only way Ollie was able to come up with that sum was to use the death benefits he received following his father’s murder.
奥利能拿出这笔钱的唯一办法是使用他父亲被谋杀后得到的抚恤金。
