Chapter 14

A Young Fox

Alejandro woke up the next day, just as the new day dawned. This was the sixth day of the cure, and Diego would almost be back to normal. He smiled a little. The week had been intense but it had been fun all the same. To revisit all those moments in his son's life had been wonderful. The enthusiasm in his boy was encouraging, but now he would soon be back to the careful, strategic Fox. A quiet, subdued master of intrigue.

He dressed and went to his son's room. The door was open, and he peeked in. His son was awake and standing near the window, deep in thought.

"Diego," Alejandro said softly. Diego turned and stared at him for a moment. Victoria dozed in a chair by the window.

"She is in my room again, father. A weird day?"

"Yes. How old are you?"

"26." Diego stood still and thoughtful. He glanced at Victoria, and then at Alejandro again. He took a deep breath. He folded his arms, and turned around again.

"Diego?"

There was a sense of separation, of coldness in the man. Alejandro went forward and touched his son's shoulder. It was stiff with tension.

"I love you, son," Alejandro murmured. "I am so proud of you."

Then the older man turned and left the room. His son obviously needed space to think, and to reflect on something.

Zzzz

Diego heard his father's words, and then the door closed gently. He sighed, and some of the tension relaxed. He leant his head back to glance at the ceiling, trying to relax his back a little more. He felt strained and exhausted. Everywhere he turned he saw problems, problems with no way out.

He had lied for a year now, a whole year. His father didn't know what he had been doing. How could he know? He couldn't understand why Victoria had been such a constant in his weird days – he had long dismissed them as dreams. They had no true reality to them. In the last one, Victoria had kissed him after he had treated her less than honourably. What was that if that wasn't a dream?

She slept awkwardly in the chair near the bed. Her face was pale and worn out. He turned his head to look at her, and wandered across to sit on the bed to watch her breathe. She was so beautiful. His weird day dreams always had her a lot older than him, but she wasn't so much older than him now. She had told him once she was 26, so now they were same age.

He remembered her reaction at the river. It was a dream of course, but she reacted so abruptly it had surprised him. Her kiss had been amazing, everything he had ever dreamt of, but she had rushed away like a startled rabbit.

There was an ache in his shoulder from where he had fallen on it. He'd had to leap out of a moving carriage. He'd rolled to reduce the impact, but his shoulder was sore now.

He supposed he was lucky. He had not been shot or blown up at least. He wondered what his father would think if he suddenly disappeared. What would his father say if he was unmasked in the plaza after a failed escapade?

Luis Ramone was a formidable adversary. His sword skills were not the best in the territory, but they definitely were not the worst. On Zorro's off days it was a struggle to defend himself, and to best the Alcalde. His better days made him a little arrogant.

Victoria stirred, and his attention went to her. She would be stiff and sore from sleeping in such a way.

"Victoria," he whispered. He wanted to sweep her into his arms, and kiss her, but he had resisted as Zorro, so he had to resist her as Diego.

Victoria murmured a little in her sleep. "Diego, Diego, I love you," she murmured, and curled into a ball in the chair, supported by the old fashioned arms. She clutched one of his dressing gowns in her hands, and had snuggled under it during the night. "Diego…"

He stared at her for a while, but she was asleep. She sighed, and her sleep deepened. He caught her in his arms, and carried her to his bed, and tucked her snuggly in amongst the thick blankets.

What did she mean? She loved Zorro, not him. He didn't really understand.

If the weird days had not been dreams at all, but reality…what did that mean? He sat on the chair she had just left, and thought.

What had she said? They had been happening at 2, 4, 10, 16, 20 and today 26. He could remember a few of them himself, which would have been strange if they had been dreams. She had been somewhere for all of the dreams, probably even the 2 year old one. What had she said? He had turned into a baby?

A baby would need a helper of some sort. How did she know he had been turned into a baby? She must have seen it happen. She had helped him from the start of all this. Who had fallen into the strange 'fountain of youth' – Zorro or Diego? She obviously didn't care, but she was not this attached usually. Probably Zorro had fallen into the fabled water, and been turned into a baby.

He glanced up at himself in the mirror. How had an unmasked, unknown baby end up where he really lived? She had sought out Diego's help? Toronado had returned to the cave, and she had wandered inside the hacienda?

His father knew, Victoria knew. They both knew what he was, who he was. That he was Zorro. They were more affectionate and protective than they had ever been before, but if the dream was true it had only been a few days. The enormity of the idea had not yet hit home.

Diego shook himself, and rose out of the chair. If his father knew everything, he may as well talk to him about it. Getting him to control his pride and excitement was going to be a challenge. Victoria would be the one to watch. She swung into anger all too easily, and if she held a grudge sometimes it was for years.

His gaze shifted back to her, as she sighed in her sleep. "Diego," she murmured again. "Kiss me."

He smiled a little, and was tempted, but he was no longer a 20 year old, foolishly capturing hearts and bestowing kisses to beautiful women willy-nilly. He lifted a hand, and gently kissed the back of it.

Her eyes flickered open, and she stared at the ceiling for a moment. Then she saw him, and her eyes lit up and she reached for him.

He sat still, and watched her. Her smile changed a little.

Zzz

Diego was Zorro, Victoria knew already, but this was the first obvious time she had seen the difference in Diego. The cautiousness of a man with a secret. She smiled because he seemed so sure of himself and so unsure at the same time.

"Diego?"

"You asked me to kiss you, Victoria. You must have very interesting dreams."

"Umm, yes. Very interesting dreams," she agreed. "Did you awaken me with a kiss?"

Diego chuckled a little. "Not so romantic. A kiss on the hand was all you got. I don't want to upset Zorro. I don't think he'd appreciate me stealing his lady."

"Oh, he might appreciate it. Depending on who he is," Victoria said with a sly look in her eyes. "Diego, do you ever do anything?"

"What do you mean?"

"Besides reading, poetry, art and things like that? What do you do? You seem very busy," Victoria said softly.

"The piano, I'm also very good at the piano," he said quickly. She chuckled.

"You know, at times you can be very forceful with your words. The newspaper for instance. How many times have you been jailed for speaking out in the editorial?"

"Newpaper? What do you mean? What newspaper?"

"Oh," Victoria said with a frown. "That hasn't happened yet?"

"We get a newspaper? Wow, that is impressive."

"You are missing the point, Diego. You are a man of words; you speak out against injustice, not with a sword, but with a pen."

"Well, the pen is mightier than the sword," he murmured.

"Yes, so you keep saying…" She grinned at him. "It leads me to believe, that under some circumstances you may do more to help the people than just write on their behalf."

"Such as?"

"There was a letter I was given, Diego. A letter that told me everything I needed to know."

He felt the colour drain out of his face, even though he had guessed it a few moments ago. "You know?"

"About Zorro? Yes."

For a moment he felt drained of all feeling, a numbness of shock flooded his awareness. She put her arms around him, and stood on tiptoe to reach his lips.

The warmth of her kiss seemed to dispel the cold fear that had gripped his heart. She loved him. She truly loved him. He wrapped his arms around her, and kissed her properly, feeling his body relax, and then respond with the fire of their kiss.