Cartographers Daughter / Season 1, Episode 8
Cove of Secrets
The skiff rocked hard against a swell, salt spray slashing across Inês’s face as she gripped the rough-hewn edge of the boat with knuckles gone white. The cove’s shadow clung to them, a jagged crescent of cliff and stone that barely hid their silhouette from the open sea beyond. Khari’s hands moved steady on the tiller, his eyes narrowed against the glare of dawn creeping over the water, scanning for any sign of sails or oars. Sebastião, slumped against the bow, clutched his side where a gash from the cliff scramble still seeped through the rag tied tight around it. His breath came in sharp, ragged bursts, and every jolt of the skiff drew a grimace across his weathered face. “You sure they didn’t see us duck in here?” Sebastião muttered, his voice low, barely carrying over the slap of waves against the hull. He didn’t look at Khari, just stared at the thin strip of pebbled shore nestled at the cove’s heart, as if willing a way out to appear. Khari’s jaw tightened, but he didn’t turn. “If they had, we’d hear their shouts by now. Or their cannon.” His accent curled around the Portuguese words, sharp and clipped, like he was measuring each one before letting it go. “This cove’s a smuggler’s nest. Deep enough to hide us,...