Alaric was bombarded with questions as the crowd grew louder and louder, closing in and somehow wedging themselves between the whaler and I.
A brief wave of panic came over me when Alaric pushed his way through and grabbed my hand. “I’ve got you.” His voice was gentle and did not go unnoticed by the crowd.
“Are you sure she didn’t put a spell on you?” asked a woman as Alaric pulled me away.
At this, he turned to her, holding out his palms like he had nothing to hide. “The only spell she put on me was caused by her natural charm.”
Natural charm?I blushed while the crowd laughed and found this all very amusing.
And the thing was… Alaric didn’t say it like he was defending me, but he said it like it was a fact. Like anyone who disagreed was blind.
My breath stuttered and my cheeks burned. But this time it wasn’t from shame.
Not one person argued and the silence shifted. It wasn’t quite acceptance, but it was no longer poison. Then he paid the merchant, nodded to the crowd, and led me out of the market, his hand still holding mine.
Alaric took me to the inn where he wanted to check in with his first mate.
“I want to know if they’ve found the twins,” he said. But when we got to the inn, his men looked discouraged and tired. Worn out. From what Alaric told me earlier, they’d been repairing the ship night and day so they could leave Corallure as soon as possible.
I moved to the side of the pub and watched as Alaric spoke to his men.
“Men,” he began, voice steady and clear, “this ship is more than wood and sail. It’s our lifeline. Our future. Every plank we lay, every nail we drive, we’re not just rebuilding a vessel. We’re rebuilding our future.”
His eyes landed on me, and, though I couldn’t confirm it with my bad eyesight and the dim lights of the inn, I was sure he winked. I blushed as the men snickered. “We keep steady, keep working. Because the sea doesn’t wait, and neither do we.”
I played with the sleeves of my dress and looked around at the men. They were rough in appearance–the years at sea stretching and tanning their skin, their builds large and brawny from the intense labor they did.
But there was something else about them as they listened to Alaric.
They admired him.
They respected him.
For all the ways Alaric was known as a cruel and ruthless whaling leader, it didn’t seem that way with his men. Maybe they feared him sometimes, but, in this moment, they looked at him as their leader. Someone they trusted.
And it was then I realized something:I trust him too.This was even more shocking to me.
I, Malia, trusted a whaler?
And I love him too.My heart ached as the realization settled in.
“We’ve weathered storms worse than this. We’ve fought battles that should’ve broken us. But here we are still standing, still fighting. So let’s show the sea and anyone who doubts us that this crew isn’t done yet.”
The men erupted in cheers, renewed strength in their hearts.
Afterwards, while Alaric spoke with his navigator, Thatcher, another dark-haired man approached me. It was the same young man I’d delivered a message to and who came to my home with Thatcher.
“I’m Destin,” he said, holding out his hand. “Alaric’s cousin. I know we’ve met before, but not formally.”
I shook his hand.
“Thanks for saving his life,” Destin said. “We wouldn’t have gotten far without him, you know?”
I nodded, surprised at the swell of pride I felt inside. I didn’t expect it…
I saved his life.And, for once inmylife, it seemed that my good deed was being recognized. Acknowledged. Appreciated.
“There’s something between you, isn’t there?”
