Page 113 - DivineSparkRisingFinal

Nicholas Boothman
Chapter 15: Porto Covo
Porto Covo looked like a postcard—white
houses, red tiles, turquoise sea—but the cliffs felt
brittle, as if the whole coast were waiting to break.
Henry stood at the edge with Carolina and Jinji,
the Atlantic spray flecking their faces. Below, half-
drowned in shadow, yawned the sea cave Duarte
Silva had used to hide Fragment Ten.
“Duarte called it symbolic,” Jinji said. “You only
find it if you’re willing to leave something behind.”
Henry muttered, “A sacrifice.”
They roped down into the cave, boots slipping
on wet stone. The air was cool, close, salt-heavy.
Jinji’s lamp snapped on, revealing walls etched
with spirals that matched the rhythm of breath:
inhale, hold, exhale.
Carolina traced one with her finger. “This isn’t
poetry. It’s physiology.”
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