Kingdom Keepers V(56)
He…disappeared, Bob realized, wondering how he was ever going to broach the subject with the captain. He couldn’t be using a word like that. Security didn’t believe in passengers or crew disappearing; security didn’t believe in ghosts; security didn’t believe in the “Disney Spirit” haunting a ship (even if the crew did!). Security dealt in facts. Hard, cold facts.
But Captain Mickey had disappeared, the character shadow turning into a blade of black and shrinking from the bottom up, like a fuse burning.
Bob snagged his radio. “Choi? Take Verene and search Deck Four’s anchor storage area. Top to bottom. No stone unturned. You copy?”
“Copy.”
Uncle Bob glanced at his watch repeatedly. Peter Choi and Michael Verene were among his best men. If anyone could find the missing character it was these two. Bob was not a superstitious man, but he was practical and calculating: this kind of trouble in the first hour of a cruise did not bode well. He’d hoped for an easy cruise: two weeks through the Caribbean and the Panama Canal. A little slice of heaven. His wife was scheduled to join the ship in Aruba.
Break-ins in the Radio Studio? Double Mickeys? This stuff didn’t happen—much less on the same cruise! He hoped it wasn’t cursed.
Maybe he was more superstitious than he allowed himself to believe.
He watched on the monitors as his two guys each took an opposite side of the ship as they approached the bow of Deck 4. Smart thinking. A squeeze play.
Nothing. He knew the moment Peter Choi looked into the camera lens and shrugged. Bob didn’t require a radio call to understand that particular message. Zero.
Bob recalled his men. He was tempted to view the security recordings one final time, but knew he’d only be wasting his time.
The extra Captain Mickey—a Captain Mickey that had no place aboard this ship—had vanished.
* * *
Finn, Philby, and Mrs. Philby ate dinner at a table for four in the Royal Palace, the central dining room off the ship’s lobby, which, according to Philby’s mom, was the “most beautiful restaurant I’ve ever eaten in.” It took elegance to a new level and reminded Finn of something from Beauty and the Beast. Cut-glass chandeliers, linen tablecloths, waiters and waitresses dressed formally. The tables went out in circles from a centerpiece like lily pads in a fountain. Finn had sea bass with green beans and two desserts. Philby had a steak with french fries, and his mother “the juiciest chicken I’ve had in my life.” Finn spent a lot of the time staring at the empty chair across from him, which was where his own mom was supposed to have sat. He thought back to Typhoon Lagoon and tensed as a shiver swept through him. Maleficent had stolen his mom. He didn’t know what it meant, not exactly, but feared his mother was under a spell, the same as Luowski. Had Finn lost his mother for good? He felt sick.
Nauseated—knowing it had nothing to do with being seasick—Finn headed back to his room. Mrs. Philby planned to attend the opening show in the Walt Disney Theatre while all five models for the Disney Hosts Interactive—the Keepers—were expected to attend the opening of the Vibe teen center, where, as earlier, holograms would take their place and then mingle with the other teens. Once the swap had been made—holograms for kids—the five teens would be whisked back to their rooms, where they were instructed to stay for the remainder of the evening. By order of the ship’s director of entertainment, there can never be more than one of any character visible at the same time. This made for strict scheduling for the Keepers; their itineraries called for long stretches of their being confined to their cabins as their DHIs made character appearances or signed autographs. It was a small price to pay for the free two-week cruise, or had seemed so when first proposed. Now that such confinement was upon them, it felt entirely different. More like jail.
* * *
“What was going on with the Maleficent thing at the Sail-Away Celebration?” Charlene asked Finn. Their looks had been coordinated to match their DHI projections, the “costumes” awaiting them in their rooms after dinner. Charlene looked about eighteen in skinny jeans and a red-and-white-striped tank top. Her blond hair fell to her shoulders and was held in place by a black headband comb, which, intended or not, gave her the look of a princess. Her insanely good looks made her the center of attention, especially for the boys in the Vibe, even though Finn knew she didn’t enjoy such fawning. She had an almost desperate desire to be seen as something other than pretty. Finn figured that was an uphill battle.
“We weren’t the only ones surprised by that,” Finn said.
“Do you think we’ll turn back?” Charlene said.