Chapter 10

Diego and Victoria enjoyed a quiet afternoon together. Sitting, and reading in the garden of the de la Vega hacienda.
In the past week, the lancers frantically searched Zorro and his hideout.
Diego had no intention of riding unnecessarily, and rather spent time with his wife.
And he had just explained to her why there were currently a dozen glass jars, filled with meat and vegetables, in his cave.
Diego asked Victoria if she was willing and try to prepare a meal using one of them one of these days.

Diego saw Felipe entering the garden from the hacienda, carrying a large tray filled with refreshments. "Thank you, Felipe."

Felipe poured a fresh drink for everyone and took the vacant seat in the shadow.

"So basically, it's a different way of preserving food?" Commented Victoria, carrying on the conversation she and Diego were having.

"Yes, the method was invented by a Frenchman a few years ago. Apparently, by keeping food in airtight jars after cooking, it can keep for years."

Victoria is more than willing to do her husband a favour, suggested, "When Maria has a day off soon, I can try to cook something using a jar. Find out if the food inside is still edible. I can make some kind of stew."

"I would appreciate it if you were willing to make the effort.
Imagine, if it is true, you can eat vegetables harvested in the summer in the winter, and they taste just as they were coming fresh from the land."

"You do have very high expectations,"

Diego said. "Everything has been invented or discovered somehow. The bread you bake, the cheese you eat, the wheels on your cart. All these things were invented by someone, improved upon if necessary, and have proven their usefulness."

Felipe, having heard these remarks before, laughed. He pointed to the sky, made a circle, and then pretended to ride a horse. Afterwards, he pointed at Diego and made a twisting motion next to his temples.

"What does Felipe mean?" Living in the hacienda had improved Victoria her skills to read the signs Felipe made. Most were still a mystery to her.

Diego cleared his throat and shuffled a bit in the chair.
"I once claimed that I believe mankind could one day travel to the moon. My guess is Felipe is trying to remind me of that moment."

Felipe nodded to let Diego know he was right.

"The moon?" Victoria asked, surprised.

Diego started to defend himself. "It's not that crazy to think. Not our generation, for sure.
But maybe our grandchildren or theirs. Just imagine, someone once saw a tree trunk floating in a river. He conceived the idea of travelling across rivers in a kind of boat.
And for centuries, mankind now thinks it's the most normal thing in the world to travel across the earth on a ship, but someone was the first.
Leonardo da Vinci, perhaps you heard of him. He is regarded as a great artist. The man also was seen as a genius. He made sketches of vehicles that could travel through the air. Some may have called him crazy, but the kite I made has proven that it is possible to drift in the sky. I made the kite using a drawing he made. It worked, didn't it?"

Victoria had to admit Diego was right so far.

"So yes, I do think, someday, someone will find a way to stay in the air., making it possible to soar across the sky like a bird. When that happens, the possibilities are endless."

Victoria laughed as Felipe again made the gesture of questioning Diego's sanity.

"First, let us try to make a tasty meal out of those foods you put in glass jars. So when we ever go to the moon, at least we'll have food for down the road." She teased him.
"By the way, it does remind me of that hot air thing you and doctor Wayne build."

"You mean the hot air balloon, invented by the Montgolfier brothers."

"I was so scared back then that Zorro could be tracked down and captured. I suppose you knew beforehand Ramon could never catch Zorro using that thing."

"Zorro was never in danger on that day. The wind came out of the southeast, blowing the balloon northwest.
And, as you know, the hacienda is South of the pueblo. The moment the balloon started to float, they got further and further away from the cave."

"And Ramon never realized Zorro was the one helping to build the balloon." Victoria cried in amusement. "That is bad."

"Why? Doctor Wayne asked for my help, and I willingly accepted. Ramon was pleased with the idea and my help. Although, less with the outcome." Diego smiled as he remembered the magnificent sight of the balloon floating over the pueblo and heading for the ocean. He gave Felipe a wink.

"And you could see how something men made, made it possible to fly, knowing Ramon could never capture Zorro this way." Victoria had trouble holding her laughter.

"Si, my calculations were correct. I have to admit, I didn't expect to need the number of materials we used. The balloon was quite a bit larger than I thought it would become. Luckily this experiment is a lot smaller, and when successful, it can be a lifesaver.
Fresh vegetables and water are precious on long journeys.
When you can keep water and vegetables fresh, diseases like scurvy can become a thing of the past."

In the distance, a small group of lancers passed. Victoria looked over the low wall to see lancers riding. Diego sitting next to her followed her gaze. She shook her head.
"Poor Mendoza, this is already the sixth day he has to search for Zorro. I do feel a bit sorry for him." She sighed.

"Maybe you should give him an extra serving of tamales the next time he comes to the tavern," Diego suggested.

"I will certainly do that. I actually believe he is starting to lose some weight."

"And yet, Zorro has left some clear tracks leading to a cave a few miles east of here."

Victoria glared at Diego. "Possibly, he is also trying less hard than he should. Mendoza does like Zorro quite a bit, you know."

Diego put the book in his lap and took Victoria's hand. "So, what do you propose? Should I go and help him?" Diego laughed, seeing the response of both Felipe and Victoria.
"What do you think of this idea? Tonight, Zorro shall pay a visit to de Soto. Explain that the chances of his hiding place ever being found are extremely slim." Diego looked somewhat mischievous and continued. "That map that de Soto use is useless anyway."

"How do you know?" Victoria asked in surprise.
Somehow, she was also willing to admit that it probably shouldn't surprise her the least. Not after she uncovered more and more about how Zorro was working every day. The way he gathered his information, prepared himself before riding. And was successful in deceiving de Soto and the lancers over and over again, nothing should surprise her any longer.

"Because of the map of the area de Soto uses, I gave it to Ramon years ago. And," Diego coughed. "There are some minor adjustments made that makes it unusable and makes Zorro's cave untraceable. "

"And de Soto never discovered?" Victoria was amazed. The man did like to brag about how smart and clever he was.
Surely, he must have noticed something is strange. "He must have discovered something that was not right at least once."

Diego shrugged. "Not that I am aware of. Again, it is difficult for a man like de Soto to admit him wrong. He'd rather get lost multiple times than admit he didn't read the map properly or made a mistake. I also think he fears what will happen if he does find Zorro. There is a reason he doesn't lead any of these patrols himself."

Victoria giggled for a moment.

Diego stared in her eyes. "The disadvantage of Zorro riding tonight, my dear, will be that I will not return to you until after midnight."

"I will wait for you." Victoria uttered.

Diego winked and looked at her in a way that made her body react instantly. "I was hoping for that."

.

The next day, Mendoza stumbled into the tavern with relief. After six long days of hours on exhausting patrols, searching for a ghostly man who had the ability to disappear into thin air, it seemed that de Soto was finally coming to his senses and seeing that it was a hopeless case.
The day before yesterday, he and Corporal Ramirez had found tracks east of the pueblo the sergeant believed to belong to the masked bandit. Pointing the tracks out to Ramirez, both men had agreed not to continue their hunt. As far as they could think of, there could be two causes for why Zorro had left any tracks to find at all.
The first option was, it could be a trap created by Zorro. And would either end in, what they felt, a painful or humiliating way.
The other option was de Soto had a point, and Zorro began to make mistakes, too upset at the loss of his beloved.
Both Mendoza and corporal Ramirez had agreed on one thing.
Sometimes something you do not know can not hurt you. And sometimes, you just happen to look the other way at the right time. So, the two men had then ridden to the South East instead of the North East, not following the tracks laid out so clearly in front of them.

This morning, Mendoza had been afraid it would be another very long day.
De Soto had insisted on leading the patrol of eight lancers himself today. Two hours before sunrise, the group had left the pueblo.
And to his fear, Mendoza soon realized de Soto had set out in an easterly direction straight away.
After an exhausting hour-long ride, in which they crossed the tracks believed to be Zorro's several times. As the expression on de Soto's face grew angrier and more irritated. He suddenly stopped in the middle of nowhere.
Furious in anger, de Soto studied his map, crumpled it up into a wad and flung it to the ground. The alcalde had cursed something that was not to be repeated and had retreated.
Despite the wanderings, they turned out to be less distant from Los Angeles than initially thought. And so, just after siesta, the group of soldiers was back in the pueblo.
No doubt, the alcalde was now brooding on a new plan to take down the masked man.

Mendoza hoped this new plan would take at least a few days.
He had two dusty uniforms that desperately needed to be washed, and he had put on his last clean shirt this morning.
For the moment, he wouldn't worry about that.
The prospect of having half an afternoon off and spending some pesos on a delicious meal beckoned.
He walked into the tavern and was greeted kindly by Alicia.
Curious, he asked whether doña Victoria might be in today.
And he struggled to hide the disappointment on his face when the young woman informed him that Victoria wasn't in the kitchen.
She and her husband were preparing a trip to Santa Barbara, or so Alicia had heard.
It had something to do about making documents in order at the notary office since they were a married couple.

All the women who worked in the tavern were excellent cooks, but none of them surpassed the cooking skills of the new doña.
And unfortunately, her absence and travel preparations also meant don Diego was not present at the tavern by chance.
And that meant the sergeant could by no chance or coincidence start a friendly chat with the don.
After which, the don casually invited him to join him and insisted on paying the bill.

Well, one man couldn't have everything.
Spending an afternoon in the tavern was always more enjoyable than spending in the saddle, searching for hard-to-reach caves in remote places.
Sometimes Mendoza envied don Diego. The woman he married could be a little emotional at times, but her tamales or chilli made up for a lot.
With a deep sigh, the sergeant sat down at the table. He ordered a double portion of tamales and a carafe of wine.
Soon two soldiers came to sit with him at the table, and Mendoza was allowed to pursue his other hobby besides food. The one of telling everyone willing to listen, slightly exaggerated stories.

The following day, private Sanchez saw four men enter the plaza gates. All four were unconscious and tied to their horses. All had a Z carved in their clothes. The leader carried a small note on his back informing what the men had done.
Mendoza was pleased with this fortunate catch.
He would never admit it in front of de Soto. But he felt grateful Zorro was still willing to serve the pueblo. And as instructed in the note, the sergeant took the men to jail.
Zorro had been right. Searching through the wanted posters, Mendoza soon found out the men each had fifty pesos on their heads.
There was a reward of 200 pesos waiting in Santa Paula for whoever caught the thieves.

Mendoza interrogated the men. They complained about Zorro. The hero had ambushed them in their sleep just before dawn.
Without even giving the men a chance of defending themselves, Zorro had overtaken them by surprise.
He had ignored their plea, not even allowing them an attempt to flee.
The worst thing the men seemed to think was that someone wanted just like them and on the other side of the law, presented them on a silver platter to the local authorities.
Mendoza prepared the report and sent two lancers to Santa Paula to transfer the prisoners there.

It all happened before ten o'clock, and Mendoza thought he had done enough for the day.
Against his better judgment, he again hoped for a delicious meal, this time followed by a long siesta.
The monthly taxes had to be collected again. A job he hated to do, he always preferred to postpone as long as possible.
The alcalde was sleeping in today. And Mendoza wasn't looking forward on getting ordered to search for Zorro again.
So the sergeant decided to do a routine round in the area.

Without Mendoza asking, many of the farmers he visited paid their taxes. Mendoza did hear rumours on how Zorro had stopped by that morning by most of the farms. The bandit handed out little bags of pesos.
The sergeant suspected this money was what the thieves had carried. Zorro had distributed it among the peasants and farms, knowing that the taxes had to get paid anyway. De Soto would have kept the money had the thieves still carried it with them. The sergeant had a good laugh about it. Zorro was cunning and cared for the people.

On the way back to the pueblo, Mendoza passed the de la Vega hacienda. The old don waved at him. So he approached the hacienda, greeting the don and Felipe. The two men worked to clear the garden.

"Buenos Días, Sergeant, come in and have a drink." The don answered him.
"It's a warm day, and I was waiting for an excuse to have a rest and some refreshment."

"Well, gracias, don Alejandro"

Irritated, Alejandro took up some weed and threw them on a handcart. "It's that rotten weed. It jumps out of the ground faster than you can take it out. Are you having a busy day?" Alejandro offered the sergeant a seat.

"Yes, it's that time of the month again to collect taxes. I thought it's better to start early this time. It is a better job than having to search for Zorro all day."

Alejandro gave the sergeant an encouraging glare. "No luck yet?"

Maria arrived with a tray filled with glasses of cool lemonade and small cakes.

Mendoza eagerly stuffed the sweetness. "I don't think we will ever succeed, either. But who am I? Don Alejandro, may I ask something? Aren't you afraid Zorro will come by sometime and try to hurt don Diego?"

A deep frown of worry became visible on the don's forehead. "I have certainly been concerned. Victoria has made it clear to Zorro to prefer her reputation and a decent marriage over him. You saw her, eeh, telling him. I like to believe Zorro got her message.
He might not agree on the matter. But, I do think he respects the choice she made." The don silenced for a few seconds. "So no, I do not fear for Diego his well fair, Victoria or myself if that is what you meant to ask."

Mendoza had just started his fourth cake and nodded in agreement. "I think had Zorro wanted to take revenge. We would have known by now. This morning, right before sunrise, Zorro delivered four thieves just like he has done so many times before."

The don happily clapped in his hands. "This must mean Zorro is not abandoning us. That's good to hear, sergeant."

"Si, maybe." Mendoza reached out his hand to take the last cake from the bowl.

"Diego and Victoria left early this morning for Santa Barbara. They have to sort things out at the notary. Also, Diego wanted to order a new suit from his tailor. Zorro had ruined his favourite. Diego was wearing it on the day of the attack. Zorro made a Z in the vest, as you saw it happening. It was a small price to pay, but Diego was quite upset about the whole incident. He insisted on getting a new one made as soon as possible. You know how he is."

"Yeah, I never thought Zorro and don Diego would ever argue."

"Me too, sergeant, me too. I'm grateful that it ended well."

Mendoza thinking back on that day, uttered. "Thanks to doña Victoria."

Alejandro raised his glass of juice and said. "Thanks to Victoria. My daughter-in-law has more spine than my son." Alejandro pretended to come up with something he had meant to say before. "Say, is de Soto still so eager to find Zorro or his hideout?"

"I think the interest is starting to wane. Before yesterday the alcalde was determined to, but Zorro tricked us somehow, and well…, I went out today before he had got up. The alcalde shall be pleased to hear many farmers paid their taxes early this month."

"That will please him indeed." Alejandro agreed with a friendly nod. "And might I suggest about ten miles northeast of Los Angeles is a pretty rough area? I think there are quite a few caves and such no one has discovered yet. Perhaps, you should have a better look in that direction and see what you can find."

North-East again, Mendoza thought sad, having no intention of passing this information on to his commander, as he took a sip of his drink.

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