Curse of the Arctic Star
she exclaimed. “You don’t have a sister who works for Jubilee Cruise Lines, do you?”
    Coral gasped. “You’re right! Why, if Lacey had darker hair and blue eyes, she’d be the spitting image of that pretty young singer on our Caribbean cruise last year!”
    Lacey looked taken aback. “Um, no, you must be mistaken. I don’t have a sister.”
    Vince put a protective arm around her shoulders. “It’s okay,” he told her. Then he smiled at the ABCs. “She’s a little shy. Always gets tongue-tied when someone mentions how beautiful she is, even though it happens all the time.”
    “Well, of course it must!” Babs exclaimed, while Coral tut-tutted pleasantly.
    Lacey gave them a wan smile. “I only wish I was related to someone at Jubilee,” she said softly. “Maybe then we’d be on one of their cruises right now, instead of taking a chance on this brand-new untested cruise line.” She shivered. “I haven’t felt right since Vince and I spotted that body earlier.”
    “Body?” Alice’s eyes widened. “What body?”
    “Didn’t you hear what happened at the pool right before we set sail?” Vince asked.
    Coral leaned forward. “No, but do tell!”
    I traded a worried look with Bess and George as the honeymooners started describing what had happened. The cruise director might have smoothed things over earlier, but it seemed the gossip was still spreading.
    Just then there was a clatter from the next table. I glanced over and saw that Tobias, the bratty kid from our hall, had just dropped an entire tray of rolls on the floor. His father was scolding him while his mother bent down to try to salvage the rolls. Severalwaiters were already making a beeline for the table.
    “That kid causes a commotion everywhere he goes, doesn’t he?” George said.
    I nodded. I’d just noticed that Wendy the travel blogger was at the same table as Tobias. She’d traded in her casual granny dress for a pink tulle vintage prom gown and a headband with a large plastic flower on it. Her laptop sat on the table beside her plate as she chattered nonstop at the man sitting next to her. I wasn’t sure she’d even noticed the roll mishap.
    “Whoa!” Alan exclaimed suddenly, staring off in a different direction. “Do you see who I see?”
    As I glanced that way, a flash of color caught my eye. It was Mr. Hawaiian Shirt. He was sitting at another table with half a dozen other people. The others all appeared to be chatting and having a good time, but he was slumped in his chair, playing with his fork and looking fairly miserable.
    George saw him too. “Hey! That mustache guy we met earlier didn’t even bother to change clothes. So why do I have to dress up?” she complained.
    “Huh?” Alan glanced at the man. “No, look over there. It’s Merk the Jerk!”
    He was pointing toward a different table. “Merk the Jerk,” I echoed. “He’s a stand-up comedian, right?”
    “Yeah,” George said. “His real name’s Lou Merk. He’s had a couple of TV specials and been in a few movies and some online stuff.”
    “I suppose he must be part of the shipboard entertainment.” Babs peered in that direction. She sighed. “I’m just so disappointed that Brock Walker had to cancel!”
    Just then a pretty young waitress hurried toward us. “Good evening,” she said in a lilting Jamaican accent. “I’m Daisy, and I’ll be your server tonight.”
    “Daisy?” George grinned. “What, are all the ship’s employees required to have flower names or something?”
    Daisy looked confused, though she smiled politely. “Can I start you off with some drinks?”
    “Iris, remember?” George glanced around at Alan, Bess, and me. “That maid we saw earlier was named Iris, remember? Get it? Flower names?”
    Bess ignored her. “I’d love an iced tea with lemon,” she told Daisy.
    As the others gave their drink orders, I noticed several men with video cameras hoisted on their shoulders entering the dining room. “What’s going on

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