Bound by Secrets

Chapter 13: Tom's Secret

The four of them ran, their footsteps pounding against the earth as they put as much distance between themselves and the creature as they could. The night was still, but the terror from what they had witnessed back at the catacombs clung to them like a shadow. None of them dared to speak until they were far enough away.

Ben slowed first, his breath coming in ragged gasps. Sam followed suit, her eyes wide and still full of fear. Flower, ever the enigma, lingered at the edge of the group, her gaze scanning the darkness for any sign of danger. Tom was the last to stop, his body tense and alert, as if expecting the creature to appear behind them at any moment.

"We... we need to split up," Tom said, his voice low but urgent. "Get home. Regroup tomorrow."

Ben nodded, though the fear still lingered in his eyes. "Right. Sam and I will head to my place."

Flower, who had been mostly silent during the escape, glanced at them with her usual cryptic smile. "I'll see you when I see you." And with that, she disappeared into the night, her movements so quiet it was as if she'd melted into the shadows.

Tom turned to Ben and Sam, his jaw set. "Be careful. We don't know if that thing is still out there."

"You too," Ben said, his concern for Tom clear in his voice.

Tom gave a brief nod before turning away, heading down the path toward his own home. As the distance between them grew, Ben and Sam made their way toward Ben's house, the silence of the night settling around them.

Tom walked through the quiet streets, his mind racing with everything that had happened. The encounter at the catacombs had been far worse than he'd anticipated, and now he was walking back to a home filled with secrets—ones he kept hidden from everyone, even Ben.

His family's house was located at the edge of town, a large but unassuming place that blended into the quiet suburban neighborhood. To outsiders, the Hargraves were just another family—Tom's parents, Five kids, living their lives like everyone else. But beneath the surface, the Hargraves were anything but ordinary.

Tom pushed open the front door and stepped inside, the familiar smell of wood polish and leather filling the air. The house was quiet, the faint hum of a television coming from the living room the only indication that anyone was still awake.

His father, James Hargrave, sat in his usual spot, a tall, broad-shouldered man with salt-and-pepper hair. He was a man of few words, but his presence alone was enough to fill the room with authority. His mother, Celia, a sharp-eyed woman with a no-nonsense demeanor, was seated across from him, flipping through a set of old books. Her focus was intense, as it often was when she was researching something.

Tom glanced at them both as he entered the room, trying to mask the tension that still gripped him.

"You're late," James said without looking up from the television.

Tom nodded. "Got held up."

Celia looked up from her books, her gaze sharp. "Everything alright?"

Tom hesitated, but only for a moment. "Yeah. Just some... school stuff." He wasn't about to tell them about the monster, not yet. His family had always been cautious about what they hunted and when to get involved. Jumping into something like this without more information could make things worse.

"Your brothers are out on a hunt," Celia said, returning to her book. "Some nest of ghouls up north. They'll be back tomorrow."

Tom nodded, knowing it was typical for his brothers—Eli, Isaac, and Jonah—to be out handling such things. The three of them were older than Tom, and they had taken to the family business like it was second nature. Growing up in a family of monster hunters had its own set of rules, and the Hargrave siblings had all learned to fight, track, and kill by the time they were teenagers.

His older sister, Diana, was the only one who didn't live at home anymore, but she was just as involved in the hunting business as the rest of the family. She had moved out to lead a specialized team in a nearby city, but she checked in regularly. Tom admired her, even though her presence made the pressure of living up to the Hargrave name even heavier.

Tom knew his place in the family. He was expected to follow in their footsteps, to become a hunter like his parents and siblings. And for the most part, he had—he was good at what he did, but his connection to Ben and the others complicated things. He had to keep his two worlds separate. Ben and Sam couldn't know about his family's true calling.

"You sure everything's alright?" Celia asked again, her eyes narrowing. "You seem tense."

Tom forced a smile, though it felt hollow. "Just tired. It was a long night."

James finally looked up from the television, his gaze piercing. "You know the rules, Tom. If something's out there, something dangerous, we need to know about it."

Tom swallowed hard. "I know, Dad. I'll let you know if anything comes up."

James gave a slow nod, but Tom could tell his father wasn't entirely convinced. The Hargraves didn't mess around when it came to hunting. They were thorough, efficient, and most of all, cautious. Tom had been trained to be the same.

After a few more tense moments, Tom excused himself and headed up to his room. The weight of everything pressed down on him as he closed the door behind him. The encounter at the catacombs, the monster, the secrets he kept from Ben—it all swirled in his mind, making sleep seem impossible.

Tom lay down on his bed, staring up at the ceiling. His thoughts kept drifting back to Ben, to the way he had almost said something before the monster had appeared. But how could he tell Ben the truth about how he felt when there was so much he couldn't say?

The Hargrave family's legacy was built on secrets. And Tom wasn't sure he was ready to break that silence just yet.