There’s total silence to match the total dark. I reach for him but he’s not where he was.

‘Liam?’

Terror crawls up my spine.

‘Boo!’ he says, lunging at me and pulling me towards him.

‘That’s not funny,’ I say, annoyed, as he wraps his arms around my waist. ‘Let’s go,’ I say again.

‘OK, fine,’ Liam says. ‘You go, but I’m going to keep exploring.’

I wrench my hand from his and hurry out of the tunnel as fast as I can, emerging into the daylight like a miner who’s been trapped below ground. Hugging my arms around my body and trying to rub some warmth back into me, I stand there for a minute waiting for Liam, wondering what on earth he’s doing in there.

The trees creak in the wind and I whip around, suddenly feeling as if someone is watching me.

I scan among the trees, my heart racing, wondering if I’m imagining it; my paranoia has been piqued by Liam’s prank. A branch snaps and a bird bursts out of the undergrowth, taking flight, and I laugh at myself for being so jumpy. It’s all that talk of ghosts and murders.

Wanting to be back in the sunshine, I return to the clearing in front of the chapel and notice that one of the doors is slightly ajar. I push it open with my foot and peek inside. The flagstone floor is cracked, and the wooden pews are dusty and broken in a few places; some have mildewed hymn books still stuffed inside them.

I enter, glancing up at the stained-glass window above the altar which is still intact. I head towards it. It’s a triptych: the first panel is Jesus dragging the cross, the second is the crucifixion, and the third and final panel depicts the Resurrection. It’s the only part of the chapel that’s completely untouched and sunlight streams through the glass, painting the flagstone floor with rainbows. I’m gazing up at it, mesmerised by its beauty – which feels like a contradiction inside this dark shadowy place – when I hear the door swing open behind me.

I spin around to find Liam. ‘There you are,’ he says to me. ‘Why did you run off?’

‘I told you I didn’t like the dark,’ I tell him.

‘You didn’t have to be scared, you know,’ he tells me, brushing a loose bit of hair behind my ear. ‘I’d never let anything happen to you.’

I nod. ‘What did you find?’ I ask. ‘Any bodies?’

He shakes his head, looking disappointed. ‘I couldn’t get very far. It looks like the tunnel’s caved in.’

‘At least you found it, though,’ I tell him.

He shrugs, obviously disappointed.

‘I found something too,’ I tell him. ‘Come and see.’