Chapter 7:

"Let's see, Son."

"Very well, Father."

Diego makes signs to Bernardo to put away all the medical materials, before following his father.

"What's the meaning of this intrusion?" Don Alejandro asks harshly, once in the patio; while the magistrado comes in, escorted by some lancers.

Only Sergeant Garcia took off his hat to salute the Señores De la Vega.

"We're looking for a wounded fugitive." The magistrado explained.

"A fugitive? And you believe to find him here?" Don Alejandro asks.

"Sergeant Garcia, you seem to be suffering. Are you alright?" Diego inquires frowning, while he remarks on his friend rubbing his head.

"Yes, thank you, Don Diego. We had a very hard time with this man."

"He would be so dangerous?" Diego asks very seriously.

"Don Diego, the fact that this man is hiding on your land might establish you as accomplices." The magistrado makes him remark.

"I beg your pardon?" Don Alejandro flies into a rage, held back by his son. "Señor Galindo, be careful not to abuse our patience." Don Alejandro protests strongly against him.

"Come on now, Señor De la Vega, you know that I only say this for the good of your family." The magistrado explains in a spuriously syrupy voice.

While the discussion keeps on outside; the señorita regains consciousness in the living room. Her memories are hazy. A man helped her; it seems to her, but after… nothing! She feels a light pain in her shoulder, and as she discovers her bandage, the memories come back.

She was in her hideout, in the clearing on the De la Vegas property, when the lancers arrived with the magistrado.

"Sergeant, I order you to arrest that person."

"But come on now, your Excellency, that vagabond has done nothing." The sergeant exclaims.

"This man is a stain on the landscape."

"You know, Señor Magistrado, we are on the properties of Señores De la Vega, and I doubt that they might be agreeable with our machinations."

"Sergeant Garcia, don't forget to whom you are addressing! The Señores De la Vega have to be safe on their land; and this person represents a threat."

"A threat, Señor Magistrado? Have you seen his height?" The sergeant laughs.

"Idiot, the height doesn't matter! Stop talking, and go arrest this man." The magistrado orders abruptly.

The vagabond raised her head and put away the axe which she was holding while the sergeant dismounted from his horse. At the sight of the sergeant, the vagabond smiles, but when her look crosses the one of the magistrado, her heart leaps up in her chest and she is petrified.

"Come on, come with me little one. You can't stay here." The sergeant tries with his sweet voice.

But as soon as he put his hand on her shoulder, he ends up on the ground, without having understood anything, knocked-out.

"Seize him!" Orders the magistrado.

A few lancers obey and dismount from their horses to go give a strong hand to the sergeant. The magistrado smiles by seeing the animal surrounded, nonetheless his smile is only for a short time... The vagabond knocks the lancers down and manages to make the others back off with her recklessness.

"Babosos, you're afraid of a man?" The magistrado says infuriating and catching a gun.

The vagabond takes advantage of the situation and begins to run as fast as she can.

The magistrado ended by shooting him, hoping to stop this man, but the shot doesn't seem to hit the bull's-eye, making him grumble even more.

"Idiots, go get this man. He can't be far!"

The señorita is always running, the breaths begin to shorten, and out of the woods, she lacks to be knocked over by a carriage and loses her balance. She distinguishes a silhouette, which seems far-off and familiar. She ended by losing consciousness while the pain takes a grip on her.

More awake, the señorita hears the voices coming from outside. Scared by one of them, she stands up with difficulty. Although hazy, her sight sends her back to a familiar atmosphere. She has a vague idea of where she is... As she doesn't want to cause trouble to her hosts, she tries to get close to the exit; but her recent injury and her tiredness are overcoming her, and lacking to fall down, she catches herself on the opened cupboard, causing the opening of the secret passage...

Surprised, and seeing a possible loophole, she goes in the passage, while Bernardo comes back in the living room after having finished putting away the material.

This one is stunned by finding the disappearance of the señorita, and he is even more by remarking the opened passage. He gets closer briskly to secure it while the conversation comes closer. No sooner does he close the cupboard than all the señores and the lancers get together in the living room.

Bernardo tries to get Diego's attention, but this one exerts himself so much to prevent his father to act with impulsiveness, that he doesn't notice Bernardo's behavior, nor the disappearance of the young person.

...

On her side, the young woman notices familiar objects, but strange to be in such place. She keeps on walking in the semi-darkness following the light draft she feels and she arrives in Tornado's hideout, which neighs by seeing her. The young woman stumbles backward in front of the beast and hit a bench behind her which she falls sitting.

Looking around her, she notes a set of swords, a whip, a pistol... Then her sight turns to a black cloak and a hat in the same color. Bewildered, she finally stands up and goes past the horse which seems to have calmed down in front of her more peaceful attitude.

Tornado neighs with disapproval when the young lady finally finds the exit.

The light outside is so vivid that she raises her hand to her eyes a moment. Then she returns to her run... It's useless to linger so near of this spot... During her running, she recognizes the place. If she isn't mistaken, she's not far from her home.

However, the noise of a stampede reminded her that the lancers are looking for her. She may not go so far, she knows it... She feels it.

"There, here he is!" Cried a lancer by seeing him.

The young woman, exhausted, can't fight and ended by collapsing while one of the two lancers dismounts.

"Be careful, Ricardo, he knocked out at least six lancers, including Sergeant Garcia."

"He doesn't seem to be in a state to do difficulty." Retorts the lancer Ricardo beside the vagabond. "The fugitive seems to be wounded." He adds then.

"What does it matter?"

"His bandage seems to be recent... Maybe he has an accomplice." Says the lancer Ricardo by looking around him.

"If he has one, he won't dare to show himself." Says his colleague from the top of his horse. "Come on, Ricardo, retrieve him and let's inform Señor Galindo."

At one fell swoop, Ricardo picks up the fugitive and puts him on his horse like a common luggage.

"A true featherweight. It's hard to believe that she knocked down the lancers." Ricardo says laughing.

"She? The Californian sun scorched with such intensity?" Interrogates his colleague with mockery.

"I'm not wrong, Juan. This fugitive man is a fugitive woman." Ricardo affirms by mounting his horse.

Both lancers galloped away then, and made signs to their colleagues to stop the search.

...

While the discussion keeps on going with force in the sala, Diego finally notices the absence of his patient. Puzzled, he watches Bernardo, which shrugs his shoulders in return...

Outside, some other horsemen arrived and one lancer rushed in the hacienda.

"Your Excellency, as you had ask us we kept on the searches."

"And?"

"We found the fugitive." The lancer affirms. "He is unconscious and under good guard."

Diego is surprised, and he let go of his father imperceptibly. Nevertheless, the latter feels the change of behavior of his son.

"Señor Galindo, you may leave so." Don Alejandro lets out haughtily.

"If I learn that one or the other gave assistance to him, you will hear from me. Señores." He saluted then before leaving.

The sight of the messenger lingered on Don Diego, whom the reaction puzzled; then he ended going out, following the magistrado. And while the lancers went away with the fugitive and the magistrado, father and son stay surprised.

"Which way could she have taken to go out?"

"Maybe she went by the door behind." Diego suggests somewhat skeptical.