Chapter 157 Saltwater and Starlight
Malia’s POV
The air inside the house had grown heavy with the scent of roast and the bittersweet weight of a long-awaited reunion. But as the clock on the mantle ticked toward late evening, a familiar restlessness stirred in my veins. It wasn't the violent, clawing hunger of the awakening, but a soft, rhythmic pull—the moon was rising, and the wildness in my blood was answering the call.
Aiden felt it, too. I saw it in the way his eyes darkened to a deep, molten amber as he stood by the screen door, waiting for me.
Leaving was harder than arriving. Rosa held me at the door for a long time, her hands gripping my shoulders as if she were trying to memorize the feel of me. But the most surprising moment came from behind her.
Elena and Mia, who had spent most of my life making sure I knew I was the "odd one out," stepped forward. They didn't have their usual sneers or sharp comments. They looked at me—really looked at me—and for the first time, I saw a flicker of genuine regret in their eyes.
"Malia," Elena started, her voice uncharacteristically soft. "We... we didn't know. About any of it. We were mean, and we were jealous, and we’re sorry. For everything."
Mia nodded fervently beside her. "We didn't realize you were carrying all that. Please... don't be a stranger."
I felt a lump form in my throat. Years of tension seemed to dissipate in the cramped hallway. I stepped forward and pulled them both into a brief, tight hug. "It’s okay. We were all just kids trying to figure it out. Take care of Rosa, okay?"
"We will," they promised in unison.
Aiden led me out to the bike. The moonlight was already spilling over the gravel driveway, turning the pebbles into crushed diamonds. I climbed onto the back, sliding my arms around his waist and pressing my front to his back. The engine roared to life, a powerful vibration that hummed through my bones, and we pulled away from the only home I had ever known.
We didn't head back toward the suffocating stone walls of Mooncrest. Not yet.
Aiden bypassed the highway entrance, turning the bike toward the coast. The air began to change, the scent of pine and dirt giving way to the sharp, bracing tang of salt and cold water. I leaned into him, closing my eyes and letting the wind whip the last of my tears away.
After a long ride through the darkness, the roar of the ocean drowned out the hum of the engine. Aiden slowed the bike as we reached a secluded stretch of shoreline, the sand white and ghostly under the brilliance of the full moon. He killed the engine, and the world became a symphony of crashing waves and the distant whistle of the wind.
He took my hand, his fingers interlacing with mine as we stepped off the bike. We walked toward the water’s edge, the damp sand giving way beneath our boots. Above us, the moon hung like a silver shield—full, round, and pulsing with a light that felt personal.
Suddenly, a sound echoed from the cliffs far to the north. A long, mournful howl ripped through the night. It wasn't a wolf from Mooncrest; it was a wild one, a greeting to the lady of the moon.
I stopped, my heart racing. The sound didn't scare me. It made me feel alive.
Aiden turned to me, his face illuminated by the silver glow. He reached out, his hand cupping my cheek, his thumb tracing the line of my jaw with a tenderness that made my breath hitch.
"You're glowing, Malia," he whispered.
I looked down at my hands. The silver veins beneath my skin were shimmering, reacting to the lunar peak. "I can't help it. It feels like... like the moon is talking to me."
"Then let it talk," he said.
He moved with the grace of a predator, pulling me closer until there was no space left between us. His hands slid down to my waist, and slowly, he lowered me onto the soft, cool sand. The world narrowed down to the sound of the tide and the heat of his body.
He leaned over me, his dark hair falling forward, shadowing his eyes. When he kissed me, it wasn't the desperate kiss of a protector or the cautious kiss of a new mate. It was passionate, demanding, and filled with the raw, unspoken promises of a lifetime. My hands found the hem of his shirt, tugging it up, needing to feel the heat of his skin against mine.
The jacket I was wearing—his jacket—fell open as we moved together, the cool night air striking my skin only to be chased away by his warmth. Every touch felt electric, a perfect alignment of the Moonfall strength and the Mooncrest light. In this moment, under the gaze of the celestial body that governed our very existence, we weren't heirs or legends. We were just Malia and Aiden.
Eventually, the fire slowed to a steady, glowing ember.
We lay there on the sand, the sound of the ocean a rhythmic heartbeat beneath us. Aiden had pulled his leather jacket over me to shield me from the spray, but he remained bare-chested, his skin pale and powerful in the moonlight. I rested my head on his chest, listening to the steady, heavy thrum of his heart. It was the most beautiful sound I had ever heard.
I looked up at the sky, at the infinite stars scattered across the velvet blackness. The moon was so bright it felt like I could reach out and touch it.
"Aiden?" I whispered.
"Mmm?" He shifted, his arm tightening around my shoulders, drawing me closer into his side.
"I wish I knew her," I said, my voice small against the roar of the waves. "My mother. I have her blood, her power, her estate... but I don't know what her laugh sounded like. I don't know if she liked the ocean or if she was afraid of the dark."
Aiden turned his head, kissing the top of my temple. "She loved you, Malia. That’s the part of her that matters most. She spent her whole life making sure you could stand here tonight, free and safe."
"I know," I breathed, a single tear escaping and disappearing into the sand. "I just... I have so many questions. I hope I’m making her proud."
"Look at yourself," Aiden said, gesturing to the shimmering light reflecting off the water and back onto my skin. "You’ve claimed your power. You’ve saved your people. You’ve changed the fate of a hundred-year-old war."
He propped himself up on one elbow, looking down at me with an expression of such pure, unadulterated love that it hurt to look at.
"She isn't just a memory, Malia. She’s in the way you stand your ground. She’s in the way you protect the people who can't protect themselves. You don't need to know her history to know her heart. You’re living it every day."
I reached up, my fingers brushing his bare chest, tracing the faint scars of the battles we had fought together. "I’m glad I have you to remind me."
"Always," he promised.
We lay there for a long time, watching the tide creep closer and the moon begin its slow descent toward the horizon. The weight of the future was still there—the graduation, the management of the empire, the politics of the High Council—but for tonight, it didn't matter.
The trembling had stopped. The storm had passed.
I was Malia Mooncrest, and for the first time in my life, I knew exactly who I was.