Warning this chapter also contains 2 parts of violence, again I will place ### to make sure you do not have to read it if you do not want to.
No need to worry this time.
This is Zorro we are talking about, and he is on his way!
And he always does show up in the knick of time.
Although, maybe this time he should have been there some minutes earlier. Still no real harm will come to Victoria. What is going to happen being already as bad as it is.

Hope chapter will show up on site soon. If it does chapter 14 will be posted later this day.

Chapter 13

Zorro was riding faster than the wind. Stark was a dangerous man and what if he really was going after Victoria? He did not want to think about it.
Victoria had taken her cart and was probably already on her way back by now. To ride directly in the arms of Stark.
Urging Toronado to as faster pace.

.

Everything had gone smoothly and now Victoria was on her way back. With cotton balls in her ears.

And to her great frustration they did not help a thing!

For she still heard the wheels making the words. Diego, you love. Diego, you love.
She was just going to ignore it, that was best.
And so she started whistling in an effort to be loader then the spinning wheels.

Di- e- go looo-ves youuuuu.
Grrr, It didn't help a thing and was even worse!

The worst thing being she had been in Santa Paula today. Victoria had been in Santa Paula with Diego a couple of months ago. Visiting the emissary. She had been very impressed by Diego that day. He had reminded her so much of the Diego before he had gone to Spain. The Diego she had a secret crush on for years. It had made her wonder or perhaps the old Diego still lived inside him? Somewhere?

In about 3 miles she was to come past the windmill she and Diego had been forced to spend the night in. Victoria blushed, remembering that night. Nothing had happened, for she did not love Diego, and he was Diego. Not ones stepping on the lines of what wasn't proper.
Yet there had been that one moment, when he had wrapped his jacket around her and stared in her eyes. When she closed her eyes, she could still scent his smell and feel the body warmth that had been hanging in the jacket when Diego wrapped it around her.

If Diego really had feelings for her, why hadn't he kissed her at that moment? The way he had been looking at her. Had taken her breath away. She had not been able to think about anything else for da... eh minutes she meant.

The windmill was coming in sight and Victoria wanted to take a big turn around it.
She had been so occupied with her own mind, she saw the rider on horseback too late.

It was Captain Stark!

Warning###

Sitting on his horse he grab the reins of her horse stopping the cart.
"My, my, if it isn't the quarrelsome barmaid. What do you say, shall I take you with me and give you some pleasure tonight?"
Stark was laughing as he was holding the reins tight. Victoria tried to make the cart move again. Stark stopping the mare. Seeing no other option Victoria jumped of the cart and started running.
She didn't stand a chance. He was on horseback, she was on foot. All she could do was run, as fast as she could, try to delay the inevitable.

Stark just laughed, seeing the tavern wrench run. He was going to have a busy, hot afternoon ahead of perhaps even a hotter night. As he turned his horse, giving her a head start of a couple of hundred yards than galloping after her.

Steering his horse alongside her, he jumped of the horse and grab her. Rolling her on her back placing his body on top of her upper legs. Making it almost impossible for her to move.
Victoria started fighting, with ease Stark grab her wrists holding them in one hand.
"Where are you going little slut? You are going to miss all the fun."
Victoria spit in his face. "I will fight every second."
Stark laughing "That is what I am hoping for."
With his other hand getting the spit from his face. "I like it when my whores put on a fight. The harder they fight, the hotter the night, is what I always say."

His hand moved over her upper body. Grabbing a breast squeezing it tight.

"You see that windmill over there. The floor will be dry and comfy, and I am sure there is something in there I can tie you up to. We do not want my little slut to think she can get away while I make love to her, now do we?"

Stark standing up, lifting Victoria over his shoulder. An arm around her lower legs made it impossible for Victoria to kick Stark. Victoria did slam Stark's back with her wrists as hard and as much as she could over and over again. It did not seem to bother the pirate for he just laughed every time her fists hit him.

Entering the old mill her threw her on the floor. Victoria trying to crawl away as far from him as possible.
"Don't think you can get away from me, my dear. Before I am finished with you, you will beg for more."
"Never!" Victoria shouted. This only caused Stark to laugh even harder.
It was going to happen. He was going to rape her. No one was nearby, she could shout her lungs out, no one was going to hear her. She had not seen other travellers in miles. She had to try to get up and make a run for his horse. It was going to be her only chance. That and silent crave that somehow she was going to be rescued.

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### end of first violence part. Second coming up

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Diego was still riding fast as possible. Toronado was getting tired. So he needed to slow down a little. Still there was no sight of Victoria or Stark. She could not be much further up on the road. If she wanted to be back in the pueblo before nightfall, she should be half way her journey back by now.
Suddenly he saw her cart. Victoria was not on it.
She would never leave her cart behind, she had to be nearby.

"Victoria!" he shouted as hard as he could. Looking around to see if he saw anything move. Anything, come on querida! Where are you? You should be able to hear me.
"Victoria!"

The windmill was less than half a mile away from here. Perhaps something was wrong with the cart, and she had gone to the mill for shelter. Why hadn't she taken her horse? And nothing seemed wrong with the cart. Had Stark found her? Was he too late? Fear was starting to raise even more.
Diego steered Toronado to the direction of the mill. Hoping that he wasn't too late for the first time.

.

Warning ###

Victoria was fighting with all the straight she had. She did not stand a chance.
Stark was longer and stronger than she. He had captured her again and was now sitting on her upper legs holding her wrists above her head. Making it almost impossible to move at all.
" Now tell me, what secrets you are trying to hide for me under these clothes?"
He tore her blouse. Softly almost gentle caressing her cheek with his dirty hand smiling at her.

"Do you know how long it has been, since I have honoured a whore the pleasure of having the great captain Henry Stark between her legs?
You are in for some ride, señorita."
Still trying to fight Victoria started begging. "Please, let me go, please."
"Let you go? And have you miss a long night of captain Henry Stark indulging you? I wouldn't dream …"

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End of violence parts in this chapter ###

Out of nowhere Stark was pulled of her. All Victoria saw was Stark falling unconscious to the ground. Someone had come. She did not care who it was. Her prays had been answered. Someone had come. Relieved she closed her eyes, then she heard the gentle voice of...

Diego!

...Diego?

"You keep your hands of her, you bastard! Victoria? It is me.
I take care of Stark first and I will come back."

Diego? What was Diego doing here?
She didn't care. She was saved. Stark was not going to hurt her. Relief overwhelmed her as she started crying.

Zorro took Stark outside and tied him up to an iron ring used to tie horses, in the wall of the mill. In a way he was sure escaping wasn't possible.
Then he hurried back to Victoria. Who was crying her eyes out.
He took her in his arms.
"It is alright now querida, no one will harm you. I'll make sure of that."

"Zorro?" Victoria voice sounded strange like she believed he to be someone else.
"What are you doing here?"
"I came to search you when I heard Stark escaped and you were on the way to Santa Paula."
"Where is Diego?"
"Diego..., isn't here." He regretted saying this. Somehow it felt like Victoria wouldn't have mind, if this time Diego had rescued her instead of Zorro.
"I just thought I heard…"

"It doesn't matter. You are safe now. I was almost too late. Madre de díos, I was too late. I should have been here sooner. That man touched you."

Swallowing away a big lump. He hated seeing her like this. Victoria must have felt scared and desperate. Believing no one would come to help her.
Her blouse was torn, her chemise had survived the attack of the pirate.
Zorro took of his cape and placed it over her shoulders.

This gesture reminded Victoria of another time in this mill.
Another man giving her his jacket...
Another man's smile…
Another man's smell...
Another man's body warmth...

"Oh Zorro, it is just terrible."
"I know querida and I never forgive myself for coming too late. I should have ridden faster. Spotted your cart sooner."
"No, it isn't that. It is Diego."

"Diego? What did he do?"
What had he done? He wondered.

"Nothing, Diego did nothing."
What was going on?

"Well, that sounds very much like him."
"You do not understand. I am so sorry Zorro, I only find out myself today. You were right all this time, you were so right."

"Victoria, what happened today was dreadful and it shouldn't have happened. Just try to give it some time. You are safe now."
Still holding her in his arms, she placed her arms around his neck. Placing her chin on his shoulder.
Victoria needed to tell Zorro the truth. This was perhaps the only chance she had for months to come. For never there seem to be time to talk. And so she forced herself to go on.

"It is ironic you know?"
"What is querida?"
The more Victoria said the less sense it made. Was she suffering a mental break down?
"The first time we kissed, you told me that night I should marry Diego. I laughed at the idea.

He was always my biggest hero you know, always…

That was..., until you showed up."

Yes, she had lost it, she had clearly lost it. What was he to do?

"Victoria, please try to come to yourself a little. Stark will not harm you any more. And whatever it is that Diego did to you, I will make him apologize for it"

"I am not talking about Stark. I am talking about Diego, and he hasn't done anything wrong!''
This time Victoria sounded mad.

"I love him, I always loved him, ever since that day he defended me against Padre Carlos."

Diego remembered that day. It had been just before Christmas. He had been asked to play the violin for the Christmas play and that was why he had gone to the school in the pueblo.
He was always homeschooled by a private teacher. And so he hadn't known what a cruel teacher Padre Carlos was.

Victoria started talking
"It was just after my 12th birthday. I had got two silk red ribbons for in my hair and was wearing them, even when my mother had told me not to."

It was a couple of days before Christmas, and we were rehearsing the Christmas play. I was to play Maria."

He remembered all too well. He had been fourteen almost fifteen at the time and started to grow very fond of his best friend's younger sister. Victoria had been wearing braids that day. The red silk ribbons in her hair had made her look even more beautiful. Red had been his favourite colour ever since.

"Padre Carlos used his wooden stick often in class, we didn't know any better. Diego didn't know that. How could he? He was always homeschooled. The Padre had asked him to play his violin that year and that was why he had come to school that day."
Diego smiled it was that and the hope he would be able to spend some time with the girl he normally only dared glare at in church, when everyone else was praying.

Victoria had lifted her head from his shoulder and was now sitting next to him. Her back turned half to him.
"I was standing in front of the class and was to read my lines. I had trouble reading back then and had been punished for it some times. So I was scared, I was going to mess up again."
Not only that, she had been most frightened Diego was to find out she could not read well. For she always had liked the tall, kind friend of her brother.

"Then it happened, I couldn't pronounce the right words and started stuttering. Padre Carlos got his stick as he always did.
Telling me, a girl who was too dumb to read, did not deserve such pretty ribbons. Before he could beat me, Diego had jumped out of his chair. And pulled the stick out of the padre's hand. Padre Carlos was furious and got his whip that was laying on his desk. And he started using it on Diego."

He knew what happened next. It was his first scar, he got from defending someone. It was still slightly visible at his left side. Just below his ribcage.

"Diego threatened the padre he was going to tell his father. I don't know what happened exactly after, but the next day padre Carlos was sent away. And don Alejandro and my father were the ones helping preform the play that year.

When a new padre came to the pueblo. I was so scared he also was going to beat me. So I collected all my courage and went to Diego. Asking him, or he wanted me to learn how to read properly. For weeks, we practised in the backyard of the tavern. That is when I fell in love with him."
Victoria giggled. "He never has found out, but I pretended to read worse than I could. Just to spend more time with him."

Diego smiled. He had never told Victoria, but he had pretended she still needed improving when she was already reading very accurate. Just to spend more time with her.

"Ever since that day, he has always been my biggest hero. I cried my eyes out for weeks when he went to Spain...
Then he came back... He had changed so much, I barely recognized him. Not in the way he looked, but how he acted...
I still sometimes wonder... what happened to him in Spain.

Then you came along. You are so much like Diego when he was younger. The same kind of humour, bravery, dash fulness…"
"Victoria..."

"I am so sorry Zorro, I can not longer marry you. You see, I have always tried to convince myself I was comparing Diego to you. Only to find out I am wrong. I never compared Diego to you.
I always compared you with... Diego.

And... the only thing being wrong with you is...

You are just… not…

him."

Softly he had been caressing her back. The longer her story had continued the more flabbergasted he became. Only now slowly he started to comprehend what it has been Victoria was saying. She was giving up on Zorro!

Because she was in love with...

Plain, boring Diego!

.

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Is it just me or is it that in most stories it is Diego who turns out to be Zorro? Maybe it has just been in most stories I have read. If that is the case I apologize for thinking this.
I wanted to turn things around this time. Victoria isn't going to find out Diego is Zorro. She is going to find out Zorro is Diego.

As for the acting of the padre in class. I do not know about Spain and America, in the Netherlands where I live it was not uncommon in the 19th and first half of 20th century for children to be beaten in class. Glad things have changed.