“You’re gonna wanna stay,” I say, my voice low and gravelly.
Turningto me, my uncle stares hard. “What the fuck is going on, Zep?”
“Zep—”
“Mama, it’s out. The truth is out. She didn’t have a one-night stand with Butch like she told us. She was walking alone at night, and Butch raped her. I’m the product of rape.”
Mama lets out a sob, and she braces herself on Johnny’s recliner. Her hands cover her face as she cries. “I never wanted you to find out.”
“It’s true?” Jennings growls. “Why the fuck didn’t you tell me? I would’ve—”
“Because they would have killed Zeppelin!” she screams. “If you killed him, his club would’ve killed my son in retaliation. I couldn’t do that.”
“What if I had turned out just like him? Wouldn’t it have been worth the risk, Mama?” I ask.
My voice is oddly calm, which is funny considering there’s a storm brewing inside me. I want fucking blood.
“I knew you wouldn’t,” she says, hurrying over to take my hand as she kneels in front of me. “Baby, you are nothing like Butch. Never have been, and you never will be. I knew it from the moment I felt your first kick.”
“You should’ve taken the risk. That asshole doesn’t deserve to be walking around, let alone breathing.”
“Zep—”
“I found out because his wife was talking to Queenie at the brothel. They’re worried he’ll do the same thing to Misty. He shouldn’t be here to cause anyone to worry.”
Jennings moves to pull Mama into his arms. “I couldn’t risk you. You’re the only good thing to come out of that situation, Zep. I love you. Icouldn’t…”
“It’s okay, Jo,” Jennings says, his voice soothing. “It’s going to be okay.”
“Did Johnny know?” I ask.
Seeing her nod her head makes me angry. The man I saw as my father knew what Butch did to Mama—the woman he claimed to love more than anything in the world—and let that motherfucker exist.
“The Venom and the Daredevils were friendly back then. It wasn’t until Johnny and I got together that things went south. Johnny declared war when I told him the truth.”
At least he did something. Not enough, but it’s something.
“Zep, baby, say something.”
“I gotta go,” I say and stand.
“Zep—”
“Let him get some space,” Jennings says.
Turning, I lock eyes with my uncle. “You sticking around?”
“I’ll stay with her. Don’t do anything stupid.”
I laugh. “My existence is a joke. Doing something stupid would just be the icing on the cake.”
“Zep, I mean it.”
I’m sure he does. But so do I. What even is my life right now? I shouldn’t fucking be here, and that’s a lot of weight on my shoulders at the moment.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Zeppelin
