A/N: So I still haven't given up on this story series. I decided I didn't want to create my own timeline like I did the first time I wrote this. So this is, so far, very similar to the original "The Mask and The Blade - Jasmine" story that I wrote. But there will be a few things changing later on. Ramon Castillo is no longer the villian in this story. I started here because for me to continue on in this series this story needs to be set.
Chapter 1 ~ Captured
December 5, 1821
Yet another stagecoach arrived with new passengers in the city of Las Angeles. They disembarked, at the usual stop, between the Inn and the Cuartel. The two buildings couldn't be more conveniently situated. After you passed the customs inspection you could cross the street and stay a night at the Tavern/Inn. And that is exactly what the passengers on the newest stagecoach did.
The young mother and daughter inside were more than happy to get out of the stuffy, and cramped space. Their journey had taken them many days and the conditions had proved less than ideal.
"Mama, when is your friend gonna get here?" As she asked the question the young girl looked up at her mother's shoulder length black hair.
"I'm not quite sure." She looked down at her daughter. "She should be here soon if she's not already. Let's get a room here at the hotel while we wait for them." The young woman pulled the door open, her skirts moving from the breeze that followed. Scanning the room with her eyes she noticed several tables with four chairs each. The place appeared tidy enough, though, you could see that the owner wasn't married. On seeing the front desk, she approached it. "I would like a room for my daughter and I, please."
Suddenly, he got up from his seat, excited about the prospect of making money. Reaching under the counter, he pulled out a book and opened it. "I need you to sign here." He pointed to the next blank line. Once she finished signing her name and where she was from, he motioned for a nearby waitress to show her to her room.
Angelica's eyes scanned the room and she looked at it with some satisfaction. A single, simple room containing one bed and a cot for her daughter, a dresser, and a nightstand with a lamp. Only a few decorations made it seem a little homier. "Let's go down now and grab our luggage." She said as she motioned for her daughter. Busy looking out the window, the young girl missed the gesture.
As Angelica walked out the front door, she didn't notice a young man leaning up against the wall. He watched her with merriment as she tried to unload her luggage without help. The fact that she did not travel often was obvious. He decided to offer his help when she, along with the trunk she had tried to lift, fell straight to the ground.
"Here, let me help you with that." He held out his hand to help her up. "Those trunks can be difficult to get from the ground." He then pulled down a step for the very purpose of unloading the baggage.
"Oh, thank you!" She said as she fidgeted with her hair. She could feel the redness rising in her cheeks. "I could thank you properly if I knew your name."
"Forgive me, I'm Diego De La Vega."
"My name is Angelica Gonzales and this is my daughter Emily. So you're Don Diego De La Vega! Gracias Senor. Your father is Don Alejandro, is he not?"
"Si. If I may ask, how have you heard of me?" Until then, Angelica assumed he'd be full of himself since he came from a well to do family. This young caballero's interest in the senorita was growing. He searched her face but no memory of her came back.
"A mutual friend. You would know her as Carmen Cortez."
"Ah, Carmen! Si, I remember her. I haven't seen her for quite some time. How is she?" He smiled at the childhood memories.
"She's doing well. She's married now and has a daughter the same age as mine. We're to meet here at the tavern when her coach arrives."
"Married with children? It hardly seems possible. Do you mind if I wait with you? I would like to say hello." As he asked the question, both he and Angelica glanced over to see another stagecoach arrive.
"That may be her now. I'm sure she'll be glad to see you. She always speaks so fondly of you and your father." The threesome made their way to where the coach had stopped. Diego let the others approach first. Emily skipped with excitement at the thought of seeing her friend again. The Sergeant, who was standing nearby, made his way over to Diego and the newcomers. He took his responsibility seriously. It was his job to find out the names of all newcomers and the purpose of their visit. In this way, tose running from the law would be brought to justice. Before the Señora had even risen from her seat, Garcia was standing next to the coach.
"Buenos Dias Don Diego." The fat Sargeant greeted his longtime friend.
"Buenos Dias Sergeant. Have you come to question the ladies?" Diego already knew the answer to that. You could always count on Sergeant Garcia for consistency.
"Si. Your pardon Señoras, but what business do you two have here in Las Angeles?" Diego, standing on the other side of the coach door, couldn't see the woman who spoke, but when she did he knew it was Carmen.
"We are vacationing." She replied. Carmen watched as the Sergeant quickly made a note of what she said.
"What are your names?" Garcia asked.
"I'm Angelica Gonzales."
"I'm Carmen Martinez."
"Martinez? Now, where have I heard that name before?" Diego thought to himself. He had this inexplicable feeling of foreboding come over him. "Carmen!" Diego called. He was still hidden by the door. Garcia, seeing that he would only be in the way, left without a word, a big smile on his face. The satisfaction of knowing he'd done his job well.
Carmen stood and closed the door to see who called to her. "Hello, señor." The perplexed look on her face almost made Diego laugh out loud.
"Oh, come now! You don't recognize your old friend, Carmelita?" He knew she would recognize the name. It was the one she always used when they played games together. Once, she'd even introduced herself that way when Diego introduced her to a cousin of his.
"Diego De La Vega! Look at you! I know we weren't exactly grown when I left but I hardly recognize you! I'm sorry I didn't write, it just…" She exclaimed smiling and clasping her hands together. He took her outstretched hand and placed a kiss there. They could no longer run and hug each other for they had both grown up since their last meeting.
"Don't trouble yourself with making excuses. Come over for dinner sometime before you leave and we'll call it even." Diego reassured.
"I will." She said quite embarrassed by her appearance. Due to the traveling conditions, she didn't quite feel up to seeing old friends.
"We'll arrange things later. My father would want to see you after so long. And I can assure you we both want to hear all the news." Diego continued.
"Gracias, Diego."
"I see you two remember each other." Said Angelica. It was her polite way of letting them know she was still standing there.
"Oh, how rude of me! Diego this is Dona Angelica Gonzales. Angelica, this is Don Diego De La Vega." Carmen made the appropriate introductions.
"We've already met."
"But it's nice to have the formal introduction," Diego said to smooth over the situation. "Well, it looks like you both have things you need to do. I'll just myself. Con permiso." Diego began to turn to leave.
"Wait, before you go, I would like you to meet my daughter, Jasmine," Carmen said to stop him. On hearing her name, Jasmine stepped out of the coach.
"She seems to favor you Carmen." He turned to the child and bent down to be more on her level. "And how old are you Jasmine?"
"Seven." Jasmine had a big grin on her face. She liked this tall friend of her mother's already.
"Well, you're a very pretty young lady." Jasmine curtsied to say thank you. Standing up, Diego turned to Carmen, "I am afraid I have taken up to much of your time already." In reality, he had somewhere he needed to be. He'd promised his father he'd meet him in the grazing pastures to look over the cattle. It was Alejandro's way of trying to push his son into being the sort of man he wanted him to be. And it was Diego's way of keeping some sort of peace between them.
"Won't you at least come in with us and enjoy some refreshments?"
Diego paused for a moment to consider it. "Alright, I will do that." Thinking to himself "Father will understand if I don't make it." Walking inside, they secured another room for Carmen, paid a nearby worker to take care of the luggage, and then sat down to enjoy some refreshments. Diego, since he'd become Zorro, mastered the art of conversing while paying complete attention to his surroundings. So when two men walked in and started watching his every move, he noticed. He'd never seen these two men before. What could they want with him?
"How is your father?" Carmen spoke first.
"He's doing well. I'm sure he'll be delighted to see you after all this time. How long has it been?"
"I moved away from here 11 years ago last February. You know what I've been up to." She waved her hand towards Jasmine. By this she meant that he knew she had gotten married and was now the dutiful housewife. After all, there were only so many things to talk about down that avenue of conversation. "What have you been up to?"
"Well, I went to school in Spain for three years. Last year would have been my fourth but I came home early." He hoped she wouldn't ask him why but of course that was to much to hope for. He disliked it when people found out this way that he no interest in swordplay. They always looked down on him for it. And most verbalized their feelings. At least when someone found out through gossip he could keep some of shred dignity.
"What made you come home early?"
"It wasn't to my liking. How about your daughter? Is she going to attend a ladies school?" Carmen thought it odd that he only gave a brief answer and then abruptly changed the subject. Diego chided himself for not getting it out on the table. He knew he might not have a better opportunity to tell her that he wasn't who he used to be. When she had lived there he fought for what he believed in. Even if you could beat him physically he wasn't afraid to stand up to you if he thought you were being unjust. Of course, that was before his mother died. He wasn't that Diego any more. Oh, he still had the urge to fight, especially under the current comandantes rule, but he fought as Zorro now. Diego did nothing but talk and try to reason with people while Zorro got into the action. Because he couldn't tell her about Zorro she wouldn't approve of his new stance.
"My husband and I are considering it. She is very smart. Our only concern is that it would bore her. Then she would end up doing something she shouldn't out of boredom." Diego half smiled in a knowing way.
"You mean like her mother?"
"Diego!" That was all Carmen could say for she knew he was right. She has come home on numerous occasions with notes for her parents from the school. Diego shot a quick look at Jasmine and saw her trying to hide a smile. "Well, maybe. That was in the past though. Besides I don't remember you being the most attentive student when your father tried to teach you from books." She stroked her daughter's hair as the crimson in her cheeks faded.
"I wasn't." He decided to take his opportunity now. "I am now though."
"What do you mean?" Angelica asked. She took an interest in this man because he had been such a big part of Carmen's childhood.
"I've given up fencing and all other forms of violence." He seemed as calm, as if he were discussing the weather, but inside was a storm. Except for the quick glance to the ground you couldn't tell. It was hard for him to be different. The only thing that kept him going was the knowledge that he couldn't do the right thing any other way.
"You're joking." Carmen couldn't believe it. Not Diego De La Vega! He loved justice to much to stand aside like that.
"I'm not. I've given it up. Only those who knew me before I left for Spain know that side of me and most of them have forgotten." Carmen didn't know how to take this news. Vacationing was not the only reason she was here and she had hoped to get his help for the second reason.
"That's a shame. Here I thought you hadn't changed much but I guess I was wrong." Anger was flaring up in her eyes. Diego, even as a child, had always been dependable. When she arrived she expected the same of him now. She had depended on the fact that he would fight for justice.
"The only thing that has changed is that I no longer fight."
"Before you only fought for justice. Not recklessly like all the other boys your age that I knew at the time. We have to unpack." Carmen stood up to let the man know he wasn't welcome any longer. Diego could tell that she needed time to adjust to his words. He knew that laying down the sword really did change him a lot.
"With your permission." He looked her in the eyes and gave a slight nod of his head and then did the same to Angelica. He then winked at the children. Emily tried not to smile while Jasmine looked at him with millions of questions dancing in her eyes.
Once they were out of sight his attention turned to the men he had noticed before. Through the whole conversation he'd had at the table they had stayed out of ear shot with their eyes on him. Rather than have a confrontation in the tavern he decided to leave. Much to his surprise he thought they hadn't followed him out. That's why he nearly jumped when the two men grabbed his arms. One held a gun to his side.
"Do you know those two women?"
"A little. Why? And is it necessary to have your hands on me?" Diego said a little aggravated. He was mad at himself for letting them sneak up on him.
"Come with us." They forced Diego onto a horse and headed out of town. Coming to a stop right outside of Las Angeles, they bound his hands and put a blindfold over his eyes. Meanwhile, Carmen and Angelica were in Carmen's room discussing his decision.
"I can't believe it! He's a De La Vega. All, even his mother, were fighters for what's right and now he's decided it's not safe! Since when did safety matter when you're doing what's right?" Though she wasn't related to them, their sense of justice had worn off on her. She'd always admired them for it. Her blood boiled at the thought that Diego would put that aside for his own safety. Valuing his life over what's right.
"It's his decision and you being mad about it won't change it right now. Why don't we unpack and then we'll try to find out why he changed. Maybe something happened that made him change. It may not be his sense of justice that's changed." Angelica had learned as a child not to jump to conclusions. She well knew that there was more to any picture than what meets the eye.
"Alright, perhaps we'll be invited over soon and then we can see." Carmen let Angelica's words calm her. For one reason, the children were in the room and, for another, she heard the wisdom in Angelica's words. What she didn't know was that at that very moment Diego found himself in serious trouble. The trio came to a stop in front of a cave. They removed the blindfold, and immediately, Diego realized he'd been there as Zorro. Some thieves had made this their hideout until he discovered it and turned them in.
"Get off the horse." Barked the man who held the weapon. Diego obeyed. His composure surprised the two men. Any man of Diego's status they had ever dealt usually pleaded for their life at this point. "I'll take him inside. You get the horses." He said as he put the gun in its holster. Diego saw his chance and took it. Swinging his leg he knocked the man's feet out from under him. He then tried to make a run for it but the partner pulled out a gun and fired a warning shot. The other man got up and jerked him inside the cave. The man pushed him into the chair so hard it fell over backwards. While on the ground Diego felt a cold metal object and tucked it into his sleeve. It was a knife, left behind by the previous occupants.
"What is the meaning of this?" Diego demanded while trying to catch his breath.
"You'll soon find out." He grabbed a rope and began to tie Diego's feet to the chair. The other man guarded the entrance with his gun ready. Escape was futile. The first man finished tying Diego's feet, sat him up, and brought him a paper and pen. "Write a message to your father. Tell him you are being held prisoner and the only way to see you again is if he sends one million American dollars by tomorrow night. Tell him to ask those girls why I took you." Diego obeyed. Though with his hands bound it prove difficult. The second man took the note.
"Who do I deliver it to?"
"Don Alejandro De La Vega." Diego said. Both men looked surprised. The messenger rode off while the other man played with a knife in front of Diego. It was one way to intimidate and Diego refused to let it intimidate him. Once the second man was in town he paid someone there to finish the job. That man took off in a flash. He knocked on the door of the ranchero.
"What do you want?" Said one of the servants.
"Give this message to Don Alejandro." With that he left. The servant delivered the note to Don Alejandro.
"This is for you patron." Don Alejandro read.
Father,
Please, try not to worry but I'm currently a prisoner. They've requested that you bring one million American dollars to the hotel and leave it with the manager. Tell the manager to give it to a person who is wearing a purple hat and says when he walks up to the counter "red fox blue horn". Do not tell the manager what is in the bag. You have to have this done by tomorrow night. If you do not they have threatened to kill me. I don't know why, but they have said for you to ask Carmen about this. She is in town staying at the tavern.
Your son,
Diego De La Vega
In anger Alejandro crumpled the paper. Then he straightened it back out. As his eyes scanned over the paper he imagined his son alone and scared. The bandito had seen enough. Knowing he'd be the one to pick up the money he let someone else deliver the message so he wouldn't be recognized the. He rode back to the cave.
"He got the note."
"And?" Said the first man whose name was Francisco or "red fox".
"He'll send the money." Said Marco a.k.a. "Blue horn".
"Good!" Said the red fox. While in captivity Diego learned they planned to head for the states upon receiving the money. It never failed to amaze him at how willing people were to talk about themselves. "Looks like it's getting late. I'm going to bed. You stay up for a little while and see that he doesn't escape." Said the red fox, for he was the leader.
"How could he escape? He's tied up so…"
"You heard me!"
"Alright." Diego sighed. He knew he was in for a long night. He had to escape. But how?
Jasmine's Diary
December 5, 1821
A tavern in Las Ángeles
I got this journal today. Mom bought it for me after we finished unpacking our things. Mom said that if I write down my feelings I'd feel better. I don't see why she wants me to. I have nothing to feel bad about.
Anyway, mom and I are in California right now. My friend, Emily, and her mom are here too. I'm glad she's here so I'm not all alone. We're all here to catch the outlaw Zorro! I've never helped in anything this big before. I'm usually told that I'm to young and that I would only get in the way. This time daddy said I was the right person to help. Then I asked about Emily and after that her and her mom got involved.
We're trying to capture Zorro because daddy says that Zorro is bad. He would know because he's been here to Las Ángeles before. He sent mommy and me to set things up. He knows that Zorro is bad because he's been rescued by him before. Daddy said that anything good that we hear about Zorro is just a cover up for Zorro's crimes. He said that Zorro makes people say he is good. I'm going to go to bed now. I'll write more tomorrow.
Oh, wait. I was just thinking about all I did today and I remembered meeting Diego De La Vega. He's one of mommy's friends from when she used to live here. Mom was talking about why she was hesitant to put me into school when he said that she had been the same way that I am. I wanted to ask him all kinds of questions about what she had been like before I was born. If what he said was true that's at least one difference between her then and now. I almost can't believe it but she agreed with him!
Now, I'm going to bed.
~Jasmine Martinez
A/N: Shout out to anyone who catches the Spy Kids reference, and especially anyone who catches the reference to my second story in this series.