Malibu Rising

Widowed TV star Ted Travis is drunk. He spots Victoria Brooks and immediately asks her out. After they kiss, Ted asks, “Have you ever stolen something, Vickie?” (309).

Ashley leaves the party, unsure of the future but knowing that she and her child will be okay.

On the beach, Mick reflects that he has succeeded in giving his children more than he had. He tells Jay, Hud, and Kit that he wants to be in their lives. When Hud suggests that someone find Nina, Mick acknowledges that he wasn’t there enough, referencing June’s death, which makes both Kit and Hud tear up. The siblings wonder why he’s showing up now. Nina appears and says that nothing has changed. The others are shocked by her frankness. Mick recognizes both himself and June in Nina’s face. He misses June; he would’ve come home by now if she were still alive. Nina tears into Mick: “You’re here because you want to be, right? […] Because you woke up this morning and you got a wild hair up your ass to try to be a decent guy” (316). When Mick tries to remind her that he’s her father, she tells him that he is not: “You are a big somebody to the world, Dad. We all know that. We live with it every goddamn day. But let’s be clear about one thing, you are not anybody’s father” (317).

Casey is inside cleaning the house and thinking of her adoptive parents. She knows that she will eventually forget certain details about them, but she will never forget their lesson that family is found. She walks toward the beach.

Mick admits that Nina is right. He won’t make any promises and just hopes to get to know them. Nina concedes, and Mick asks again why Jay and Hud were fighting. Jay and Hud explain their situation, but when Mick agrees with Jay, Jay snaps at him. Hud tells everyone he wants to marry Ashley and confesses that they’ve been sleeping together for a long time. Mick starts to tell Hud he’s too young, but trails off because he doesn’t remember Hud’s actual age. Mick admits that he’s never been a good man, but claims that he did want to be one for June. He hopes that she knew she deserved better, but Nina tells him June didn’t. When Mick nods knowingly, Nina realizes that he is sorry for what he has done.

Then, they all see Casey coming down the stairs.

Tarine contemplates Greg’s marriage proposal. After noting that neither should expect the other to be faithful, she agrees. Someone throws a vase across the room, and Tarine yells that the party is over. Everyone ignores her, but when Bridger shoots a gun, thinking it will fire BBs, Tarine calls the police to break up the evening.

On the beach, Casey trips, and Mick catches her. Kit and Jay wonder who Casey is and why Nina seems to care about her. When Casey sits down, Hud figures out who she must be, and Nina explains that Casey is probably their sister and adds that she’s looking for family. Hud immediately feels connected to Casey, though when Mick confesses that he doesn’t remember sleeping with Casey’s mother, this “broke them all a tiny bit—Nina, Jay, Hud, Kit, and Casey. There was no end to the ways [Mick] could disappoint” (334).

The police arrive at the party, and Tarine tells them to get the situation under control. The sergeant, Eddie Purdy, ignores her and asks to speak with Nina. When Tarine insists that they do something, Sergeant Purdy threatens to arrest her. When he touches her face, she slaps him.

Jay asks Mick if he knows how many children he has, and Mick admits that he’s been involved in three paternity suits and that two women he slept with terminated their pregnancies. He insists that he always told women, “If I had any interest in being a dad, I’d go home to my kids” (339). Mick now realizes that though he wanted to be a father, he didn’t have what it takes to be a parent. He thinks he does now. Nina laughs: “If you were any kind of real parent, you would know that capable had nothing to do with it” (340). Did June have the luxury of feeling capable of it after he left twice? Did Nina get to ask herself whether she felt capable after June drowned? Nina did what she had to do: Her family needed her, so while she’d rather have been surfing in Portugal, she was here. She is proud of the job she did in caring for her siblings—they are great people who are loyal. Nina ends by saying there is no room in her life for Mick. Jay agrees that it’s too late.

Feeling that he needs his children now that he’s alone, Mick explains that he never wanted them to feel abandoned. He offers some insight into his childhood, pointing out similarities between his life and theirs as Nina watches dolphins in the distance. Mick always imagined them happy with June. When the paperwork for Nina to become their guardian arrived, he assumed the decision had already been made for him. Though they deserve better than him, as long as he’s alive, someone will love them. As the sun rises, Nina replies, “I think the problem, Dad, […] is that your love doesn’t mean very much” with some kindness in her voice (344). Mick nods and apologizes.

After a scuffle, Sergeant Purdy handcuffs Tarine and Vanessa, and handcuffs Ricky. The police arrest 13 other guests for possession, vandalism, indecent exposure, and grand larceny. On their way to the police station, they find Brandon, who is uninjured after having crashed Mick’s Jaguar.

The Rivas sit in silence processing. Nina stands up and they go back to the house.

Jay doesn’t want to be anything like Mick. He realizes that Hud is the man he has always looked up to. Jay tells Hud to never lie to him again. Hud apologizes and agrees.

Hud thinks about June’s decision to love him. He plans to love his kid the same way. He knows that even if he messes up as a parent, he will never leave.

Kit is happy to have learned something about her father. She knows that “their family rearranged, made room for Casey to stay, made room for Nina to go” (350). She asks Nina where in Portugal she’d like to go. After hesitating, Nina admits that she’d like to see Madeira.

Mick decides that his redemption is in leaving his kids alone. He will give them his direct number, but will stay away unless they call. He also offers to get a paternity test for Casey.

When they see the cops at the top of the cliff, the siblings see the usefulness of Mick’s fame—Mick signs a few autographs and smoothes over the situation with the power of his celebrity. Mick then hugs each of his children, whispering his thanks to Nina for who she is and all that she has done.

Hud invites Casey to sit with them. In accepting and loving her, they allow June to live through them.

Kit suggests that Nina just leave for Portugal—Nina doesn’t want to live in this house, is done with Brandon, and doesn’t want the attention this party will bring. Plus, if worse comes to worst, Nina can come home. When Nina says that they still need her, Kit counters that they love her and want her around, but they don’t need her to take care of them anymore. When Nina agrees, Kit suggests they sell the restaurant—June wouldn’t have wanted Nina to stay just to run it.

Nina imagines June giving her a box that held everything June had experienced—a box Nina held onto her whole life. However, she realizes, “it was not […] her job to carry the full box. Her job was to sort through the box. To decide what to keep, and to put the rest down. She had to choose what […] she wanted to bring forward. And what, of the past, she wanted to leave behind” (357). Nina decides to let go of Riva’s Seafood. One day, she will also have to go through the box Mick gave her.

As Mick figures out what to do about his missing car, he smokes a cigarette. Deciding to hitch a ride, he throws the butt of the cigarette away, unintentionally setting fire to 28150 Cliffside Drive.

Jay tells Hud about his heart condition. Jay admits that he’s afraid of letting Hud down since they’re a team. Hud tells Jay that Ashley is pregnant and that he’s thinking of photographing Kit surfing for a magazine. Jay is surprised that Kit has become that good a surfer, but then decides that maybe Kit “was the best of all of them. Maybe, Jay thought for a second, she’s the whole point” (361). He suggests they help Kit win the Triple Crown. After Jay drives Hud to Ashley’s, he watches as Hud proposes and as Ashley accepts.

Casey thanks Nina. As Nina hugs Kit, Kit reminds her that she has to go, making Nina understand that part of loving people is letting them love her in return. Kit tells Nina she loves her and leaves with Casey so that Nina can pack. Nina hopes to find some peace and quiet now that her siblings don’t need her. Her family has finally grown up, she tells herself, and “wasn’t this the day you always looked toward? When the kids were grown and your life was yours to take” (363).

The novel ends with fire spreading down the coast. The house is destroyed. Nina “understand[s] that it was one fire, in a long line of fires in Malibu since the dawn of time” (365). Everyone will rebuild. Malibu will rise from the ashes.