‘She is definitely a witch!’ Billie tells the others as soon as they are all safely back in Billie’s bedroom.‘I saw her and I’m telling you, she’s definitely a witch!’

Mika narrows her eyes. ‘There’s no such thing as witches,’ she says.

Then she turns to the others. ‘Billie was just making up stories all along. She told me so.’

Alex frowns. ‘I knew it!’ he says in a know-all voice.

‘But there was a witch! A real one. I promise!’ Billie says. ‘She had long white hair and a long black dress. And she had a black cat. You saw the cat, Mika!’

Mika crosses her arms. ‘There wasn’t anyone in that house, Billie. You’re just trying to scare us.’

‘Yeah,’ Alex says. ‘Jack looked over the back fence. The garden is all overgrown. It’s just an empty house, Billie.’

‘But she came just after you left!’ Billie insists. ‘She was really creepy. And she had red stuff on her hands. I’m not saying it was blood, but…’

‘Stop it, Billie!’ Mika says. ‘I’m not playing with you if you keep trying to scare us.’

‘Me neither,’ Alex says. ‘This isn’t fun anymore. I’m going home.’

‘Me too!’ says Mika.

Billie looks at her three friends in shock. ‘But what about the club?’ she says in a little voice. ‘Our Secret Mystery Club?’

Billie looks at Jack hopefully. His cheeks turn pink and he looks away.

‘I’ll only play if you stop scaring us,’ he mumbles. ‘Nobody likes your scary stories, Billie.’

‘But…’ Billie says, then she stops herself. It’s no use. They will never believe her now.

If only I hadn’t played tricks on them! she thinks. Then they’d believe me.

‘OK,’ she says, hanging her head. ‘I won’t talk about witches anymore. I promise.’

‘Cross your heart?’ Mika says.

Billie nods. ‘And hope to die.’