Ruthless Hold (Back Down Devil MC #9)(50)

“Ripper did that?”

Jenn slowly nodded. “Yeah.”

“Why?”

“Because of Eden.”

“You told him.”

“He knew,” Jenn said.

“Shit,” Trev said.

“He lost it on me. He always accused me of having an affair with Griffin. There were so many times we almost got caught. But we never did. Then I got pregnant. I had to play it all off, you know?”

“Does Ripper think he’s Eden’s father?”

“As far as I know, yes,” Jenn said.

“That’s why he smacked you around?”

“Yeah. Because she was supposed to be gone from all of this forever. When she showed up… Ripper is in a bad place, Trev. Okay? I’m here because I need help. He lost his mind.”

“Okay. I’m going to take you inside. We’re going to get you cleaned up. Jenn, we will protect you. But listen to me carefully. You’ve been around this life for a long time. Longer than me.”

“You’re still a pup,” Jenn said.

“Yeah, right. A pup. You need to tell us everything. What Ripper’s doing. Who he’s with. Why he’s doing it. If there’s something internal…”

“You’re going to kill him,” Jenn said.

Trev gently touched Jenn’s shoulders. “I didn’t say that.”

“No, I did. It was a statement, Trev. I want you to kill him. I want you to kill Ripper. For all he’s done. For all he’s taken from me. For what he did to Griffin.”

“What did he do to Griffin?” Trev asked.

Jenn touched her eyes and wiped away tears and blood. She then laughed. “I just thought if Eden was safe, I could live this life out. That’s what I told myself. That’s what I believed. I kept my promise to Griffin. I sent the letter when he died. And then I…”

“You sent the letter to Eden?” Trev asked.

“Yes. That was our agreement. Because if Griffin was dead, he wanted her safe.”

Trev felt his stomach and heart flip at the same time. “Okay. Let’s get you inside and cleaned up. Jenn, this is all about honesty.”

“I want to see Eden.”

“You will. Just not like this. Okay? I promise you. Get cleaned up and then we’ll go see Eden.”

Jenn looked at Trev and she started to cry again. She clutched at Trev’s arm. “Please, Trev. Tell me… tell me you love her and you’ll always protect her.”

Trev slipped an arm around Jenn to keep her standing. “Yes… I love Eden. And I will always protect her.”

__



twenty.



Eden hated the apartment. But she didn’t mind the company. Baby Caine was on the floor, sitting up, playing with blocks. Eden was on the floor across from Caine, rolling the blocks to him. When two blocks smacked together Caine would crack up laughing.

“He laughs at the silliest things,” Jessa said. She was on her knees behind Caine, making sure the baby didn’t fall back.

“That’s what babies do,” Eden said. “It’s so good to hear something happy.”

Eden smiled big and rolled another block. It hit two blocks and Caine threw his head back, cackling. Jessa put a hand to Caine to keep him steady. Caine then instantly stopped laughing and got a mad look on his face. He grabbed two blocks and started to smack them together. Then his face turned red.

“What’s wrong, little guy?” Eden asked.

“He’s, uh, going to the bathroom,” Jessa said. “That’s his poop face.”

Eden snorted. “Oh. Okay. I’ll give you some privacy then, little guy.”

Eden climbed up into a chair. Jessa put Caine into a portable playpen to let him do his business. She then sat down and put a hand to Eden’s. “How are you?”

“You tell me,” Eden said.

They weren’t best friends. They weren’t sisters. But they were getting closer.

“It’s a tough life,” Jessa said. “I saw a whole other side of it with Blaine years ago. This is a decent life though. They all care. They all try. They’re willing to die for each other. That’s pretty special.”

“I know all that,” Eden said. “There’s just stuff going on inside the club. It’s scary.”

“Just look at Caine. He breaks my heart already. Looks too much like Blaine.”

“I think he looks like you,” Eden said.

“Good. If he ends up anything like his father…”

Eden laughed. “What about Trev? Is he…”

“He’s a fighter. I’ve never seen him with a woman before. So anything he says to you, it has to be real. Just know that. I can tell you that things will sometimes seem like they’re getting worse, but they’re not. I trust all of them with my life. With my son’s life.”

Caine let out a whine and pulled himself to his feet.

“Does that mean he’s done?” Eden asked.

“Give it a few seconds and you’ll know.”

Eden wasn’t sure what that meant but then she caught wind of the smell.

She was going to ask Jessa if she could change Caine but the apartment door opened.