Chapter 8

Zorro buried his nose in her silky hair and inhaled the sweet rose scent as deep as he could.
Hopefully, the last comment Victoria had made meant her sight was recovering. As Diego, he had wondered why she wasn't wearing his bracelet. As Zorro, he could and did ask her. Her answer did make sense. Victoria told him she was afraid the delicate silver could break during her work in the tavern.
Victoria moved in her sleep and crawled a bit closer to him.

Holding her this close was not easy. His body reacted to hers. He closed his eyes and tried to lower his heart rate.
That turned out to be a grave mistake because now he could imagine her enchanting smile.
He moved his lower body a little further away and loosened his arms around her a little. Victoria sighed and turned away from him, muttering something unintelligible.

Zorro got up, and after taking a moment to get his emotions and body under control, he went to check on Toronado again.
It was only imagination, but the horse looked accusingly at him. Of course, it wasn't Toronado. It was his conscience playing tricks on him.
He knew he was wronging Victoria. Zorro should have given her the opportunity to fall in love with a man who could marry her. Even when it turned out this man wasn't him.
As Victoria began to admire Zorro more and more and show no interest in anyone, the temptation had been too great. He had wanted to claim her for himself. And he felt that showing his love for her dressed as Zorro was his only option to get a chance at her love.
Love could fry a man's brain like a crisp empanada.

If he could do it again, he'd make different decisions. More rational.
But if he could have thought more rationally, he would have loved her less and could have let her go. Zorro stroked Toronado again and walked back to a still-sleeping Victoria.
He looked for a comfortable spot, slightly further away from her. She made a soft snoring sound. He would have no problem hearing this sound every night for the rest of his life.

That following day was a Saturday. And there was a lot of commotion in the pueblo early in the morning.
Not only was the tavern owner still missing. Something Paco was very concerned over. Don Alejandro was also in the pueblo and anxiously inquired if anyone he met had seen his son. The young don had gone out the previous day to paint near the ocean. And had not returned.
Paco understood very well he couldn't do anything to find the señorita. So he worked hard and helped the workers in the tavern the best as he could.
The tavern was the place in the pueblo where more and more people gathered. And where speculation began about what might be going on.

De Soto was in a bad mood. Yet again, Zorro had been seen around the pueblo that night. And again, his lancers had failed in catching the meddler. His mood sank to new lows when de Soto found out through the gossips a huge donation, was made in the poor box that night.
No one doubted that this was thanks to Zorro.

And there were more rumours. If Zorro had been in the pueblo that night. Then did this mean he had found the tavern owner? And if he had, then why hadn't she returned. Zorro knew, thanks to sergeant Mendoza, something had happened to her.
And what about don Diego. The man had not returned for the night, just like the señorita. Was it a unfortunate coincidence that the exact location of both good friends was unknown to everyone?
Did Zorro know something or found out something no one else knew?

The doctor remembered not too long ago the two missing friends had been away together for the night, at least one more time.

Paco tried to defend his newest hero and employer, but it backfired. People got reminded by his remarks that both had travelled again to Santa Paula just weeks prior.

Don Efrem, a good friend of Don Alejandro's, sat in the tavern. He was reminiscing old memories about the time Alfonso Escalante was still running the tavern. And the three men, all drunk, had made bets that Diego and Victoria would eventually end up when they grew up.

Victoria and Diego were unaware that both of them were the subject of conversation in Los Angeles. Zorro was the first to wake up and enjoyed a few minutes of staring at the woman in his arms.
In her sleep, she had searched for him and curled up against him again. When Victoria opened her eyes and began to awaken, he touched her cheek briefly.
Victoria blinked and was relieved to see a sunrise.

"So, how is your sight? Any improvement?" Zorro asked her right away. She had mentioned late last night that she could see the glow of the modest fire. He wanted to make sure her eyesight had fully recovered throughout the night.

Victoria blinked again. "You were right. I think I can see everything again."

Zorro had held his breath and released it with relief. "That's good to hear." He pressed a kiss to her forehead.

Victoria scrambled to her feet and happily pirouetted. "I've never been happier with something as simple as being able to see something when you open your eyes."

Zorro also got up and went to check on Toronado again. The bandages had done its work.

Over a breakfast of cactus pears, Zorro told Victoria the good news. "I don't dare to ride him at the moment. But I do think it is safe to saddle him. So we can take all our belongings with us, and I don't have to return to pick up his gear."

"That is good to hear. How far do you think it is to Los Angeles?"

Zorro swallowed a bite of cactus pear. "A little over twenty-five miles, maybe more. It all depends on the obstacles we encounter. It's a long walk, but we'll manage."

The journey progressed slowly and was tedious. Zorro led and tried to find a route with as few obstacles as possible at a pace that was also manageable for Victoria, taking a break occasionally.
Victoria walked and did not complain. Although, the shoes she wore were not suitable for the rough, uneven terrain filled with deep potholes and jagged rocks. Toronado trailed Victoria.

After several hours of walking, Victoria suddenly stopped. Zorro walked a few paces before realizing that Victoria had stopped. "Zorro, give me your dagger. I'll see our next meal." She pointed to a narrow crevice in the rock where a snake was barely visible, curled up.
"I hope you like to eat rattlesnakes. They told me it tastes just like chicken."
Victoria knew that many poor people saw snakes as a treat. Fortunately, she had never had the pleasure of having to eat it. "I wouldn't know because I've never had to eat it, but it's worth a try."

Skilfully, Zorro cut off the snake's head and let the animal bleed. "I've eaten snake when I was younger, and indeed it doesn't taste bad." He confessed to her.

Victoria looked at him questioningly, hoping to get some unexpected information about Zorro's past.

"Sometimes, I joined my father in herding cattle. We often stayed away for weeks, and eating snake was a welcome change on the menu."

Victoria did her best not to sound too curious. "Was your father a vaquero?"

"Among other things." And that was all Zorro said on the matter.

Along the way, they came across some edible plants that they also collected. And when they were lucky enough to run into a bush of ripe berries, their meal seemed complete.
Zorro watched as Victoria picked the berries and collected them in her handkerchief. "Look at us, if we continue to find food, we'll be eating like royalty. " He remarked while laughing.

Victoria laughed and reminded their first joint dinner. "How much I enjoy spending time with you. I prefer to eat my meal at a table."

After another hour of walking, Zorro found himself having to slow down to give Victoria a chance to catch up. She was used to being on her feet all day. But not for a long hike over rough terrain.
"Are you alright? If you want, we can stop for a rest." Actually, they couldn't if they wanted to arrive in the pueblo before it was getting too dark.

Victoria smiled bravely and responded. "I am fine. How far do you think we have walked?"

It pained Zorro to tell her the truth. "I estimate fewer than fifteen miles."

The desperate sigh Victoria gave and the expression of disappointment on her face indicated, in her mind, it was many miles more they had walked.

Zorro looked at her inquiringly. "Are you sure you are holding up?"

"Yeah, I'm fine." She waved her hand. "Just keep on walking. I will follow."

Over the next half hour, her pace only slowed down more. He tried to help her, but she refused and wanted to walk on her own.

In the end, he stopped when he saw water. "There is a well here. And since we're not going to make it back to Los Angeles today anyway, I suggest we stop and spend the night here. The other option is to walk a few more miles and risk not finding a place we can spend the night near water before dark."

"I'm sorry, Zorro. To slow you down like this." Victoria apologized. Well aware, had Zorro been alone, he'd be back in Los Angeles a long time ago.

Zorro had not listened to what she was saying and was pondering. "Of course, I could also go ahead and ask someone to pick you up."

Zorro walked to Toronado and started to check his leg. Despite the regular changes of bandages, the hind leg was slightly more swollen than this morning due to the effort. "By the way, it has also been long enough for Toronado." Zorro looked over his shoulder in the direction of Victoria.

Spend another night in Zorro's arms somewhere in the wilderness and be able to talk to him and have his undivided attention? The choice was easy for Victoria. "Please, don't leave me."

It didn't take anything more to persuade him, Zorro murmured again. "What happens if it becomes known that we spent two days and nights together?"

Victoria shrugged. "There will be speculation. And that won't be worse after two nights than after one night. Besides, if you say nothing, I won't say anything."

Against his better judgement, he wanted to spend more time in her company as much as Victoria. Their moments together were always too short. "People will ask questions." He tried to remind her, not in a convincing way.

"Phh, and what they don't know, people will make up. I'm an adult woman and have no accountability to anyone." Victoria sniffed for a moment. Zorro could imagine how she would rebuke someone too curious, using her almost legendary character. Anyone who dared to insinuate anything would probably risk a month-long ban on showing himself in the tavern.
And since that tavern was the centre of the pueblo, no one wanted to risk the owner's hospitality.

Victoria started collecting branches to make a fire. Occasionally her face twisted in a painful grimace.

Zorro was a little further away, working with his dagger to rid the snake of its skin and intestines when Victoria stepped on a sharp stone and let out a cry of pain.

"Victoria, what is it?" He began to suspect. "Do your feet hurt?"

Victoria smiled bravely. "Unlike your boots, my shoes are not made for long walks in the wilderness."

Zorro put the knife to the side, got up and walked towards her. "Show me."

"Ah, it's not that bad. You'll see, tomorrow I'll be hopping around happily again."

Not having any intentions to listen to her weak excuses any longer, he persisted. "Victoria, sit down and take off your shoes. Now. I want to have a look at your feet."

She sighed deeply, "I'm just exaggerating a bit. May I?" She turned and tried to walk away in search of more firewood.

Zorro wrapped his arms around her narrow waist, pressed her back to his chest and walked towards a slightly larger stone, while Victoria thrashed her legs and used her hands to slap on the arms that held her tight.
"Hey, let go of me! Have you lost your mind?"

He sat her down on a rock, dropped to one knee and looked at her.
"You're not a poser, and I should have realized earlier that those shoes aren't suitable for this kind of walk."
Zorro held on tightly to her left ankle as Victoria tried to free her leg. When he took the shoe off the foot, his breath caught. It looked painful.
Victoria's foot had several blisters, two of which had opened and was bleeding. " Why didn't you tell me? This is not just painful. It is downright dangerous. What if those blisters start to cause infection?"

Victoria reacted gruffly. "Because..., I didn't want to slow us down any more than I already did."

"You should have told me. And your other foot? Is it just as bad?"

Before Victoria had a chance to respond, Zorro took her other ankle firmly between his hands and pulled the shoe off. This foot was not bleeding, but also had several blisters. "You're not taking a step tonight."
Zorro looked around, picked her up and carried her to the small stream of clear running water. "This will ease the pain a bit."
Then he walked over to his saddlebag and started searching for something.
"I believe I have got some marigold oil with me." Zorro had found what he was looking for. "It will help prevent your feet from getting infected. When we get back to Los Angeles, I make sure you get some more."

The cold water felt soothing on her painful, swollen feet. Victoria was feeling slightly better now her feet were in the water. She knew Zorro was right. Was he ever wrong? "How do you know all this?"

"What do you mean?"

"In your cave, you had that medicinal tea. You made a herbal poultice for Toronado. And now this oil again. How do you know all that?"

Zorro walked up to her again. The little bottle of orange liquid twirling between his fingers. "I must have some medical knowledge. It's not like Zorro can see a doctor whenever he requires medical care."

"I've never thought about it." She confessed. "Were you injured often? " Victoria asked him as she glared shyly at him.

"Victoria, I have tried to tell you before. Under my mask I'm just an ordinary man. Sometimes I catch a cold. And I can get hurt. It has been a close call a few times. Without some knowledge of wound care, I wouldn't be sitting here right now."
He blushed slightly. "I don't dare to ask. But I need to take care of your feet to prevent infection. It looks like you have to sacrifice your other underskirt."

And so, an hour later, Victoria sat with two feet bandaged by the fire, feasting on the snake and the other foods they had gathered during their walk.

Victoria was hungry and slightly surprised by how well dinner was Zorro had prepared. "It does not taste bad. If I had to serve this in my tavern, I only add some herbs like rosemary and thyme. I've eaten worse."

"That is hard to imagine. Your cooking gets praised throughout California."

She grinned. "Thank you for the compliment. But I didn't say I cooked when I had worse. Have you ever tasted the Christmas turkey at the de la Vega's?"

Zorro smiled and wisely kept his mouth shut.

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