The next dry day was a couple of days later. Diego was anxious to stretch his legs, after exhausting all of his hobbies over the last couple of days.
He entered the tavern with a swing in his step, and caught Victoria's eye as soon as he stepped inside.
"A glass of orange juice and a plate of tamales," Diego asked, with a smile. He made his way to where the Sergeant was sitting.
"Mendoza, how are you?"
"Don Diego, you have no idea...Such a mess."
"Really, Sergeant? Tell me all about it," Diego said, gently. "Victoria, a bottle of wine for the Sergeant, please."
"Thank you Don Diego. After the week I have had, it would be nice to sit with a friend and have a glass of wine."
"My thoughts exactly, Mendoza."
Victoria brought out the food and drinks for the men, with a smile. She met Diego's eyes, and caught her breath. They sparkled with a light that was so familiar, but she couldn't understand why.
"Nice to see you sitting with your old friends again, Don Diego."
"I have been so busy lately, it's hard to keep organised, Victoria. Don't you find that, Sergeant?"
"Si, I've been very busy. Patrols through the mud, they are never fun," the Sergeant said, mournfully.
"Very understandable, Sergeant," Diego said, kindly. "The alcalde has no compassion truly."
"The alcalde is talking to the MacKay man about Zorro, and won't let me listen in."
"Really? This MacKay, he's some sort of expert?"
"He's just a cattle wrangler. No expert of any kind. Thinks he's going to succeed where everyone else has failed. He says he's going to kill Zorro once and for all."
"That's terrible," Victoria exclaimed, despite herself. She had been taking orders from a neighbouring table, but had caught the last part of the conversation.
"Well, the reward is dead or alive, Victoria," Diego reminded her.
"The hide of him, dead or alive!"
"Yes, well. The alcalde thinks the man has what it takes. He says that the previous attempt was foiled as too many people were party to the plan. Now no one is, except the alcalde."
"Sounds like a wonderful piece of work," Diego said, glancing towards Victoria.
She was glancing over the tavern patrons, thoughtfully. Looking for Zorro without the mask, Diego realised. Never once did her eyes go to him. His energy level dipped a little with a vague disappointment. Why did it bother him so much lately? It had always happened, ever since Zorro had been created.
"Victoria," Diego said, standing up. "Here's the money for the food and drinks. I have to get to the newspaper. I need to make it more meaty than last time."
She accepted the money with a nod, and watched her friend leave the tavern.
Funny, she thought, he only just arrived and now he was leaving already. He seemed restless and excitable, but she didn't know how she knew that. He wasn't one to be obvious about anything.
Zzz
Diego changed his clothes hurriedly, into the Zorro outfit tucked in the newspaper office. This early in the day, the soldiers wouldn't be expecting an entrance from him, so he was confident as he climbed to the roof of the alcalde's office.
The sunroof was still in the best position for eavesdropping, he noticed with satisfaction. He would have thought that the alcalde would have had it removed since his last intrusion.
Ignatio wasn't toasting his new compadre with brandy, not like Ramone would have, but his eyes were regarding the man favourably.
"Ingenuous, simply ingenuous. And if phase one doesn't work, then phase two definitely will. Just a little tinkering though," de Soto said, his voice soft but still carrying to Zorro's ears.
"No, no tinkering. It has to work as written," MacKay said firmly. "It won't work otherwise."
"I want to see the man behind the mask," de Soto said, determinedly. "Before he dies."
"You give him an inch, alcalde… He'll escape. It has to be as I plan. He has to be killed, then he can be revealed. That is the only way we will get our man."
Zorro frowned, and wished he had been just a few minutes earlier. De Soto still didn't look convinced about the plan.
"I don't know how you are going to catch him with Diego as bait," he said thoughtfully.
"He has been known to save Don Alejandro's life in the past. Surely the man's son is important as well?"
"Well, I suppose so. At least try not to kill Don Diego. He may be a nuisance but he is a leading figure in the district. The dons may get restless if something untoward happened to the young man."
"I cannot be responsible for accidents, but I won't deliberately hurt him," MacKay said. "If he makes a fuss, I can't guarantee what my men might do."
"Your success guarantees your immunity to arrest, my friend. If you fail and something serious happens to high ranking individuals, your life may be forfeit."
"I will not fail, alcalde," MacKay said.
"You talk a good talk, but others have before you," de Soto said thoughtfully. "It's promising, but I will believe it when it see it."
"I will stay on his tracks until I get him, alcalde."
"No." Zorro stared hard at the alcalde.
"No?"
"If after disturbing the population with your antics, you are not successful, I will arrest you."
"Really?"
"Really. I will have a handful of angry dons to placate, and you are a stranger here. I know where my loyalties lie…"
Zorro grimaced a little at that. The alcalde's loyalties lay with his own interests, and always had. Angry dons would cause an uprising of a sort, with letters of disquiet going all the way back to the Spanish royal court.
"If you have been responsible for any deaths other than Zorro, than you will be hung for murder."
MacKay chuckled a little. "I will be sure to remember that, alcalde."
"I'm glad we know where we stand, MacKay," the alcalde said, after a moment's contemplation.
Zzz
Zorro made his way silently back to the newspaper office, dissatisfied with the morning's intelligence gathering. He had heard enough to know that the dangers had ramped up, with at least Diego's life in danger, and that was probably phase one of the plan. He dreaded to contemplate what phase two consisted of, a shiver running down his spine as he changed back into the everyday clothes of Diego. He'd have to keep his wits about him. MacKay was not one to make less than thorough plans - the tripwire and trapdoor traps being very well thought out. A careless move could have made them effective. If not Zorro, then someone using the road.
He thought of Victoria, and her fears. He couldn't tell her what he had found out, probably not as Diego anyway. Zorro didn't have the heart to see the dread in her eyes repeated. No he would keep it to himself this time. Deep down, he wanted to share everything with her, every thought, every fear, every decision. He knew now he needed to keep them secret with his identity until the time was right.
Victoria was too precious to keep frightening, she needed protection from her fears and he needed to keep things to himself. He had always done that before, what was wrong with him now? Why did he want to worry her? Why did he feel the need to share with her everything that he felt inside? If he told her too much, she would put her life in danger - for him. If anything terrible happened to her, he would never forgive himself.