“Okay, then,” Becca said, taking the first move to lead the crew out. “Let’s go.”

Becca

You can do this, Becca told herself, believing it in her heart as she led the group down the street. No doubt.

“So tell me more,” Danny said, walking at the end of the group so he could get everybody in the shot. “Tell the audience about what you’ve heard and seen at this infamous Gurley Street house.”

“Supposedly there’s a man named Mr. O’Hallahan who lives there,” Kylie replied.

“Nobody’s ever seen him, though,” Becca added. She thought about the first time she ever saw the house as a kid: while trick-or-treating with her family. “That’s why I think he’s a myth.”

“Well, somebody has to have lived there,” Miguel said. “At one point or another.”

“Do you mean to hint that the house might be occupied by Mr. O’Hallahan’s ghost?” Danny asked for effect. “The plot thickens.”

“I saw a shadow in the window once,” Matt said as he hopped his scooter from the sidewalk to the street. “For real. It was in the middle of the day, too, so I know it wasn’t just my eyes playing tricks on me.”

Becca tried to remember if she’d ever heard of anybody who had actually seen or met Mr. O’Hallahan—she couldn’t. “Why would the Game Master have us go to the house if there was someone living inside?”

“Maybe the Game Master forced him to participate in the game, just like with Mr. Verdi during summer school,” Frankie offered. “Or maybe they know that the house is abandoned.”

“Maybe the Game Master is Mr. O’Hallahan,” Danny threw out, to a chorus of groans.

“That would make less than no sense,” Miguel said. “Why would someone we’ve never met decide to build an elaborate game just for us?”

“True,” Danny admitted. “To be honest, I just thought it’d make a great twist.”

Becca had to smile at that. It sounded like something straight out of Scooby-Doo. She imagined Danny filming the group as they dramatically removed the mask off someone who was dressed like a ghost, only to reveal some old man with a serious boredom problem.

“So nobody here has ever gone inside?” Danny asked. “Have you even gotten close enough to peek through the windows?”

“No way!” The rest of the group cried out together.

“So for all you know there could be a sweet little old lady living inside with her cat,” Danny scoffed. “And the house could be perfectly cozy and welcoming.”

“Yeah right,” Matt said with a laugh. “We’ll see how you feel once you actually see it for yourself.”