Curse of the Arctic Star Read Online Free PDF Page B

standing near the piano. “You found it!” I exclaimed.
    Max hurried over from the kitchenette in the corner, dusting a drinking glass and grinning at me. “Of course I did! I’m here to take care of you.” He gestured to the yellow numbered tag hanging from the handle. “It got mislabeled somehow and ended up in an interior cabin at the opposite end of the ship. I’m so sorry for the inconvenience.”
    “It’s okay,” I said automatically. But I was frowning at that tag, feeling puzzled and a little uneasy. I’d watched the porter clip on the proper purple tag myself. How had it ended up being switched with this yellow one?
    But I shook off the thought as quickly as it came. These things happened. It would be easy enough for one of those plastic tags to pop off while the busy porters were moving bags around.
    Just then Bess hurried into the main room. She looked lovely in a dove-gray dress and heels.
    “You’re back!” she said. “Hurry up and get changed. And don’t forget to wear something nice—Max says people usually dress up for the first night’s dinner.”
    “Okay. Did you break the news to George?”
    Bess grimaced. “I’ve been working on her for the past half hour. I think I finally convinced her that shorts and flip-flops are not proper dinner attire. But I’d better go make sure she didn’t ‘accidentally’ spill something on the dress I loaned her.”
    I laughed. “I’ll be ready in a few minutes,” I promised.
    My bedroom was beautifully designed, with a built-in bed, a large dresser, and a chair. I tossed my suitcase on the bed and clicked the latches. As my fingers brushed that yellow tag I hesitated briefly, once again wondering how the mix-up had happened. Then I shook my head and opened the suitcase.
    My neatly folded clothes were still inside, held in place by a couple of nylon straps. Tucked into one of the straps was a ragged scrap of paper folded in two.
    What’s that? I thought. I hadn’t put anything like that in there. I was positive.
    I picked it up and unfolded it. When I saw the message written in handwritten block letters, I gasped.
    I HOPE U GET LOST JUST LIKE UR BAG—& THAT U STAY LOST!

CHAPTER FOUR

Dinner Is Served
    “I FEEL LIKE A GIANT GRAPE,” GEORGE complained, tugging at the hem of her plum-colored wraparound dress. Well, technically speaking, it was Bess’s dress. But George was wearing it. And she wasn’t happy about it.
    “I can’t believe you didn’t pack a single dressy outfit,” Bess retorted. “Didn’t you ever see a rerun of The Love Boat ? Remember Titanic ? People dress up on cruises. It’s, like, a thing .”
    “Now, now, ladies,” Alan put in soothingly. “You look fabulous—all three of you.”
    I forced a brief smile as Bess thanked him and George rolled her eyes. But I wasn’t paying much attention to the conversation as we walked through the narrow halls leading from our suite to the dining room. I was still focused on that threatening note. Who could have left it in my suitcase? And why?
    “It doesn’t make sense,” I murmured.
    “What was that, Nancy?” Alan asked.
    “Um, nothing,” I said. “I mean, I said I hope the food’s good. I’m hungry.”
    The others started chatting about the food, and my mind drifted again. Why would someone leave me a note like that? Before today, I’d never met a soul on board this cruise ship other than Bess, George, Alan, and Becca. Why would anyone have any reason to threaten me?
    As careful as I’d been, I supposed it was possible that someone had found out why I was really there. Maybe that blogger Wendy overheard George and me talking about the case. Becca’s coworker, Tatjana, could have lurked outside Becca’s office long enoughto eavesdrop. Someone could have hacked into Becca’s e-mail account and read her messages to me last week. Far-fetched, but you never knew . . .
    I shivered. Had my cover been blown? Was I trapped on a ship with someone who was out to get