Ethan shook his trick-or-treat bag and the wonderful sound of crunching and crackling candy wrappers told him the bag was nearly full. Tyler and Nick, who were dressed as Spiderman and Superman, ran past him and Jax to get first dibs at the next house. Ethan laughed as Emmy and her band of Cleopatras reached the door first.
“Trick or treat,” they all sang in unison.
A man dressed as a pirate captain opened the door. He held out a curved plastic sword in one hand and a treasure chest full of Snickers in the other.
“Care to walk the plank for some booty?”
“I will,” Emmy said. “I’ll do anything for chocolate.”
Hannah, Madison, and Abigail all giggled. Emmy beamed as the pirate captain led her to the edge of his wraparound porch where he had a plank hovering over a kiddy pool filled with shredded newspaper. “In ye go, lass. Arg!”
With a laugh, Emmy jumped into the kiddy pool, and Hannah and the other girls followed. The pirate captain laughed and rewarded the girls with two candy bars each. Ethan couldn’t remember the last time he’d seen Emmy have so much fun. Then he did remember. It was the night before his parents left. They’d been playing dominos as a family—a real family. Suddenly, Ethan missed his parents.
“Kids,” called Mama J from the sidewalk. Ethan turned to see Mama J in her poodle skirt and pigtails looking at her watch. “The school party starts soon. I’ll let you finish out the block and then it’s time to go.”
“Okay, Mom,” Jax called. Tyler and Nick ran to the next house, Nick’s red cape trailing behind him. Ethan followed along with Jax and the girls. They got their candy and were on to the next house in a flash.
“Hold up, guys,” Emmy said as they charged up the wooden steps.
“What’s up?” Ethan asked.
“We only have two more houses,” Nick said, ringing the doorbell.
“Trick or treat,” they chorused. They got their candy and Emmy put up her hands. Everyone stopped on the steps. Emmy looked over her shoulder toward Mama J, who leaned against her minivan talking on her cell phone.
“I want to talk about something,” Emmy started.
Ethan finally clued in. “That’s right. We want to do something fun at the party.”
“Fun?” Hannah asked.
“Yeah. Fun.” Emmy smiled and Ethan thought if she ever got evil powers, Emmy would be something to reckon with. “I want us to pull a Halloween prank at the party.”
“Will we get in trouble?”
“Hannah, it’s Halloween. Trick or treat, remember? No one ever remembers the trick part.” Emmy looked back toward Mama J again. “Come on, I’ll explain as we go to the next house.”
Ethan was thrilled when everyone agreed to help out with the prank. Hannah was the only one who seemed a little reluctant, but with a push from Emmy she agreed. They collected the last of their candy from the house on the street and headed for Mama J’s minivan.
“We’ll see you at the party,” Ethan called. Nick and Tyler waved and ran down the street. They were probably going to hit up a few more houses. The Cleopatras all waved goodbye, and Ethan, Emmy, and Jax piled into the minivan.
“I talked to Papa Washington,” Mama J said. “Things are a mess at headquarters. They still don’t have any word on the missing agents or your parents, but he was able to contact several branches of the W.H.O. to send reinforcements. He also got Lacy dropped her off at her grandmother’s, so he’s on his way back with a couple more agents to help out at the school. With any luck, they’ll make it to the party before it’s over.”
“That’s great, Mom,” Jax said. He turned to Ethan and Emmy and shrugged. Ethan knew what he was thinking. If Papa Washington and the other W.H.O. agents got there before they could break the witches then all of their planning would be for nothing. They’d never be able to prove themselves to their parents.
“No worries,” Emmy whispered. “I’ve got a plan for that. If they show up I’ll distract them or something.”
Ethan felt reassured by Emmy’s statement. Like Jax, he turned to his bag of candy. He couldn’t wait to spill it out and count how much he got. He knew some houses had given full-size candy bars and he’d have to stash those away, especially if he had to sleep over at the Washingtons any longer. Jax was already pounding down a chocolate bar.
Ethan shook his head. “And here you were worried you’d lose out on candy.”
Mama J pulled into the school parking lot and Ethan felt his stomach tighten. Soon he would be vanquishing witches. He would become a real witch hunter, and his parents wouldn’t have to keep any more secrets from him or Emmy.
They got out and Ethan watched as adults and kids dressed as Halloween ghouls went into the school. He spotted Mrs. Burton dressed as the Statue of Liberty. She gave them a little wave with her foam torch before scolding two kids trying to smuggle in a trick-or-treat bag full of toilet paper. Ethan made a mental note to watch out for Mrs. Burton.
When they entered the gym, Ethan was floored by its transformation. The decorations made it look like they had stepped into a haunted castle. Several booths manned by teachers dressed as monsters lined one side of the gym. A large chandelier made of candy hung above the center of the floor. Ghosts on wires ran from one end of the gym to the other, howling as they passed. A band was up on the stage, all dressed like rock star Frankensteins. They played a familiar tune he’d heard on several Halloweens.
Emmy found the Cleopatras, and they ran off toward the band. Several other costume-clad kids followed them as the girls began dancing to the music. Mrs. Burton was dancing some sort of swing with Principal Fenwick, who was dressed as a mad scientist. Ethan let out a half laugh as Principal Fenwick tried to dip Mrs. Burton and her wig fell off. She quickly picked it up and placed it back on her head, although her crown was backward.
The music changed and more monsters began to dance to the rhythm. The lights dimmed, all except a spotlight shooting down from the candy chandelier. Below it were the four lunch ladies, dancing like they belonged on the set of a Broadway musical. They were dressed like witches, with pointy black hats, sparkling dark dresses, and red and white striped stockings. They still wore their ruby red high heels, and Ethan could hear them clicking against the wood floor like a bunch of clacking staplers.
“I take it those are your lunch ladies?” Mama J asked.
“You got it,” Ethan said.
“Where’s the other one?”
“What do you mean? They’re all there.” Ethan counted them. Sure enough he saw Griselda, Belladonna, Hazel, and Luna.
Mama J turn to Ethan, her eyes narrowed.
“What?” he asked.
“Ethan, a witch coven is made up of odd numbers. There are only four witches. Where is the fifth?”
“The fifth?” asked Jax.
“How could I be so stupid?” Ethan remembered reading about the covens in the W.H.O. handbook. They were definitely missing a witch. Who could it be? He’d only ever seen the four lunch ladies. What if they were in the middle of breaking the witches and the fifth one showed up and turned them all to dishwashers? “We’ve got a problem.”
“No kidding we’ve got a problem,” Mama J said.
“What do you mean?” Jax asked.
Mama J nodded to the dancing lunch ladies. “I recognize two of those witches. Griselda and Belladonna Halifax—two sisters you don’t want to mess with. I thought they were in prison. . . . You two stay here. I have to call Jefferson right away. Then I’ll try to find that fifth witch.”
Mama J charged out of the gym, and Ethan was left staring at the four dancing witches. Although they looked beautiful as they spun around, the light glittering off them, Ethan knew they were dangerous. He had seen it in Mama J’s face. An undercover witch was something Ethan, Emmy, and Jax hadn’t planned on. They had to find the fifth member of the coven.
Ethan looked frantically around the gym. There wasn’t anyone who could be a witch. He spotted the haggard Mrs. Warnock dressed as a dictionary. She was the likeliest suspect for a witch, but only because of her wrinkles and her enormous chin wart. The first grade teacher, Miss Bushman, was pretty enough to be a witch, but she’d been around since Ethan started at Roosevelt Elementary.
He saw Emmy dance past and quickly grabbed her arm. “We have to talk.”
“What’s wrong? Everything is working out great. As long as we can keep the witches dancing, we have them where we need them.”
“Slight problem,” Jax said. Ethan watched the concern flash in her eyes.
“Witch covens are made up of odd numbers,” Ethan said. Emmy’s deer in the headlights glare said enough. “Emmy, four is not an odd number. We’re missing a witch.”
“You mean there’s a fifth lunch lady?” Emmy asked.
“Shh!” Ethan pulled her over to the wall.
Two parents brushed past them, one dressed as King Tut, the other wearing a T-shirt that read “This is my Halloween Costume.”
“Someone else at school is the witch. Think, Emmy, who else showed up around the same time as the lunch ladies?”
Emmy’s eyes froze. Ethan followed her line of sight and saw the glamorous Miss LeBeau step into the room. She was dressed in her Chinese costume, but it was no longer pink. She wore black like the other lunch ladies. Ethan guessed she was the fifth member of the witch coven. He turned back to Emmy, who was shaking her head. “It’s not her.”
“What do you mean?” Ethan shouted. Jax shushed him but Ethan went on. “Why? Because she taught you to dance? Because she gave you your costume? Which, by the way, blends in pretty well with what the lunch ladies are wearing. Emmy, wake up. This isn’t some stage show, this is real!”
“It’s not her!” Emmy looked like she was about to cry. “Miss LeBeau is not a witch!”
Emmy pushed past Ethan and Jax, and ran out of the gym. Ethan watched as Miss LeBeau’s eyes followed Emmy out, then refocused on him and Jax. He felt his insides turn cold as he caught a glimmer in her eye. Was it a flash like I saw in Hazel’s eyes? Miss LeBeau started to walk over, and Ethan grabbed hold of Jax’s arm.
“Ethan, isn’t it?” Miss LeBeau said in her slightly accented voice. Ethan nodded. “Is Emmy all right? She looked a little upset.”
“She’ll be back,” Jax said. “She broke a nail.”
“A nail?” Miss LeBeau repeated.
Ethan found himself nodding but no words came out.
“Well, that’s too bad. I hope she’s okay.”
“I-I’m sure you do,” Ethan stammered out.
Miss LeBeau raised an eyebrow and stared at Ethan as if wondering what he was implying. “Ethan, I care a great deal for your sister. I don’t want any harm to come to her. Let me know when she gets back, would you? I need to speak with her right away.”
“Sure,” Ethan lied. Miss LeBeau gave him a half smile and went to talk with Mrs. Burton, who was fanning herself next to the punch bowl.
Ethan turned to Jax and whispered, “I think we discovered the fifth member of the coven.”