Chapter 4

"Bed rest." Diego grumbled. "I can't stand being confined to bed."

"I would think not," Victoria grinned, taking unusual pleasure in seeing Diego's discomfort.

Diego noted her mood and frowned deeply. She was enjoying this too much. And he knew that she had him right where she wanted him - trapped in his own bedroom, of all places, unable to escape her withering stares and her unending questions.

"Oh, don't pout, Diego," Victoria took his hand and squeezed it. "You'll ruin the dashing image of my masked hero."

Diego leveled a long, heated stare at her and she found herself unable to look away. He brought her fingers to his lips and kissed each one. "Of all the ways I imagined this day, I didn't expect it to happen while I was confined to bed - and unconscious!"

"Unable to escape." A shudder raced down her spine at his gentle, all too familiar touch.

Alejandro would be positively scandalized to find them alone in his bedroom like this. But Diego didn't care, and neither, it appeared, did Victoria - for the moment.

"I've never wanted to escape you, querida." His eyes held an unmistakable longing and she found herself drawn to them. How had she never noticed this look in his eyes before? She quite clearly remembered seeing the same familiar, heated look in Zorro's eyes many times. Her thoughts drifted back to a quote she had read recently. Young men's hearts lie not truly in their hearts, but within their eyes. It was true. Had she only ever searched Diego's eyes, he would never have been able to mask his feelings for her.She couldn't place which book she had read it in and made a note to ask Diego about it later.

She leaned toward him in a silent invitation and he wasted no time in accepting. He slid his fingers into her hair and drew her lips to his.

The kiss was slow, probing, hesitant, but as her lips flowered beneath his, their kiss deepened into one of barely controlled passion. Her fingers slid into his hair while his hands wrapped gently around her cheeks, drawing her closer.

She sighed against his lips. For so long she'd wanted to do that. She'd dreamed often of what it would feel like to caress his soft hair.

When they parted, his eyes searched hers carefully, looking for any sign of regret.

"Does that replace the shattered image of your hero?" He grinned devilishly, licking his lips.

"Yes." She breathed, her eyes glazed. "Oh yes."

"Can you forgive me?" he asked quietly, steeling himself for her answer.

"I already have, Diego." Victoria's eyes misted as she reached up to brush her fingers across his lips. She sighed longingly when he captured her fingers in his hands once again and kissed each tip.

"I don't deserve you."

Victoria's eyes flashed mischievously. "No. You don't." She leaned forward and kissed him again. "But, we'll make do."

Alejandro quickly folded the letter and sealed the envelope. "Miguel. I need you to ride hard and fast. This letter needs to get to Luis Cristoba in Santa Barbara as soon as possible."

"Si, señor." The ranch hand tucked the letter safely away and nodded to his patron.

"You will ride Emilio. He is the fastest stallion we have." Alejandro walked with the man out to the stables. "You are to wait for Luis and serve as his escort."

"Si, patron." Alejandro calmly rested a hand on Miguel's shoulder. "God speed, Miguel. Bring him back quickly."

"De Soto has stationed lancers around the hacienda." Alejandro spat as he walked into his son's room.

Diego looked up from where he'd been quietly talking with Victoria, or were they kissing? Alejandro shook his head and stared at his son. He didn't have time to chastise them about proper protocol in this situation. Today may be the day he'd feared since learning his son was Zorro - the day when the alcalde came and removed his son from his home to execute him.

"Surely you don't find this at all surprising?" Diego asked with a sad smile.

"Unfortunately not." Alejandro sank into a chair opposite Victoria and pulled it toward the bed. "I'm not letting him take you without a fight."

"Father . . ."

"Don't even think about arguing with me, Diego." Alejandro's eyes narrowed. "If you think I am going to let the alcalde take my only son and hang him, or worse, before my very eyes, he is sorely mistaken. I'll sell this hacienda, the land, all the cattle and flee the territory with you before I allow that to happen."

Diego shook his head. "Father. . ."

"Don't try and argue with him, Diego." Victoria squeezed his hand. "His mind is set. You won't change it."

Diego sighed. Of all the ways he'd envisioned his family discovering his secret, this hadn't been one of them. There was a reason he hadn't wanted them to know.

"Nor will you change mine." She added resolutely.

Diego's eyes narrowed suspiciously. "What have you done?"

Victoria raised her chin and set her jaw. "Nothing. Yet."

"What are you planning?" When he received no response, he asked in a different way. "Don't I have the right to know?"

"Like I had the right to know the man who so lovingly whispered promises in my ear from behind a mask and treated me like a casual friend as his real self?" Victoria shot back quickly and Alejandro winced at her tone. "The man who asked me to marry him without trusting that I could keep his secret?"

Diego dropped his eyes, his voice a mere whisper. "I owe you so much, Victoria. If God wills it, I will spend a lifetime repaying that debt."

"I only want you beside me." Victoria's anger vanished as instantly as it arrived and her eyes misted with tears she refused to shed. "I plan to go with you if you leave the territory."

Diego nodded, knowing that it would have been the only decision that she would make. There was no way he would be able to talk her out of such action and he wasn't certain he wanted to. They'd waited for so long to be together. If he had to leave the territory, he would relish the thought of her by his side every day for the rest of his life.

They were spared further discussion on the subject as Dr. Hernandez walked in.

'Good day, Diego."

"Doctor," Diego nodded as Victoria and Alejandro stood.

"We'll discuss this later," Diego called as they walked out to give the doctor a chance to examine his patient in private.

"Alcalde," Alejandro nodded curtly as de Soto walked into the hacienda.

"Good day, Don Alejandro."

"To what do we owe the honor of your visit?" Alejandro said slowly, afraid of the answer. He had armed the vaqueros days ago, in case the alcalde tried to remove his son from the hacienda by force. But he'd asked them to stay out of sight until the proper signal was given. And Cristoba hadn't arrived from Santa Barbara yet.

"I've come to see your son. Would you be so kind as to get him?" De Soto said with a smile as he a servant walked into the room carrying two glasses of juice. He took one and nodded politely to the servant. "I hear he's up and walking around. That's good to hear." De Soto took a sip of the juice and smiled over the rim.

"Yes. He's healed remarkably well after regaining consciousness."

"Good. I would like to speak with him, if you please."

"I'll see if he is awake. Excuse me, please." Alejandro exited the room quicker than he should have in an attempt to warn his son.

"Diego."

"Yes father?" Diego walked slowly, with use of a cane, over to the door.

"De Soto is here and he wants to see you."

Diego's eyes lowered and he sighed slowly. "So, he's come." A few seconds of silenced passed between the two men before Diego rested a hand on his father's shoulder. "Let's get this over with."

"Diego . . ."

"Let me handle it, father. I knew the risks when I put on the mask. I must deal with the consequences of that decision now." Diego didn't wait for his father to respond before he limped down the hallway toward the library.

De Soto was admiring a recently hung painting when Diego and Alejandro appeared.
Victoria, who had just left the kitchen with a glass of cool juice for Diego nearly ran over the alcalde. She gasped in surprise, her eyes darting from de Soto to Diego and Alejandro. She quickly moved to Diego's side and urged him to sit, knowing that he wasn't completely steady on his feet yet.

"Ignacio." Diego nodded slowly to the alcalde and the man leveled Diego with a long stare.

"Diego." This was the first time he'd seen his old schoolmate since he was carried from the tavern, unconscious, over two weeks ago.

Diego motioned for them to move further into the library, where he would be able to sit.

"Sit, please. I'm not quite as steady on my feet as I would like and find it difficult to stand for long periods of time." He gingerly sank into the cushions, leaning the cane against a nearby table. Victoria immediately sat down next to him, slid her hand into his and defiantly stared at the alcalde.

The gesture was not lost on de Soto and he smiled at the señorita. "Understandable."

An uncomfortable silent moment followed before Diego broke it. "To what do we owe this visit?"

De Soto regarded his old schoolmate carefully before procuring a document from within his military jacket. He offered it to Diego who took it with a slow nod.

Alejandro held his breath as his son unrolled the parchment and he and Victoria began to read.

When he was finished reading, Diego glanced up at the alcalde with a surprised look on his face. "You've been replaced?"

"Indeed, I have."

Alejandro's eyes narrowed and he eagerly snapped up the parchment that Diego held out to him.

"All loyalists have been given the opportunity to leave for Spain rather than take the oath of allegiance to the new Mexican government."

"And you've chosen the former." It wasn't a question.

"I will not serve Mexico."

Diego nodded slowly as Alejandro finished reading, rolled the parchment and handed it back to the alcalde.

"No doubt you knew this was coming." De Soto allowed a small smile. "As well informed as you seem to be."

Diego grinned at that. "The rumblings of revolution have been getting louder with each passing year."

Victoria shifted uncomfortably next to Diego and he squeezed her hand in reassurance. He knew the question was on the tip of her tongue and only hoped that she would be able to restrain herself until de Soto decided to reveal the real reason for his visit.

Diego wasn't so fortunate.

Victoria's agitation with the situation won out and she said quickly. "Have you come to arrest Diego?"

De Soto regarded her with a wide, amused smile. "I should."

Alejandro stepped forward. "You won't take my son easily."

Diego closed his eyes and shook his head. Could they not agitate the man even further? Patience. Isn't that what every parent teaches their child? Why couldn't his family adopt some of it now?

"If I wanted your son, Don Alejandro, I would have come for him while he was unconscious." He shot an amused look at Diego, "Easier than dealing with you when you're awake. Far less," he rubbed his jaw in memory of all those right hooks Zorro had delivered over the years, "painful for me."

De Soto procured another document from his jacket and offered it to Diego.

Diego took it without hesitation, opened it and began to read. Victoria's small intake of breath was not lost on Alejandro and he stared at his son and Victoria expectantly.

"A pardon." Victoria whispered.

"As my last act in office," de Soto began. "Zorro's crimes under the Spanish crown have been absolved. What the current administration chooses to do with him is not my concern."

"Why?" Diego asked quietly as he offered the parchment to his father.

"I've asked myself that same question for the last two weeks, Diego." De Soto rubbed his whiskered chin. "Apart from you saving my life when the Emissary was going to so casually end it, I've learned some hard lessons in the last few weeks."

Diego, Victoria and Alejandro listened quietly as he continued, afraid to speak.

"You even saved me one last time in the tavern the day you were shot. These actions and many others are not those of a criminal and I was forced to examine just why I truly wanted Zorro hung." De Soto regarded Diego with an amused smile. "He'd damaged my pride. And I was determined to get it back … by whatever means necessary."

"Anyway," de Soto shook his head. "I shall be gone by weeks end. Your life is your own." He glanced at Diego and Victoria's entwined hands. "Do the pueblo a favor and marry the smitten señorita." He turned toward the door but Diego stood quickly, wincing at the sharp pain that burned through his side.

"Ignacio."

De Soto turned slowly, eyes meeting Diego's for the last time.

"Thank you."

De Soto nodded wordlessly and walked through the door, the lancers standing guard outside the hacienda following him as he left.

"I don't believe it." Alejandro breathed.

"I'll put that document in the cave for safe keeping." Diego said, still staring at the door in disbelief. "In case he has a change of heart and comes back for it."

"Do you really think that will happen?" Victoria asked, her eyes bright with concern and barely contained elation.

"No."

Diego hugged her close, breathing deeply of her rose scented hair. When she smiled up at him, their lips met in the most passionate, breath-stealing kiss Alejandro had ever witnessed. Felipe smiled embarrassingly, a flush creeping along his cheeks as Alejandro elbowed his ribs playfully. "I believe a visit to the padre is in order."

Diego and Victoria parted at the comment, their eyes dancing. "Yes, father. I think so."

Victoria stepped away from him and folded her arms. "I haven't heard a proposal from you yet, Diego de la Vega!"

Alejandro raised a curious eyebrow at this.

Diego opened his mouth to speak but only succeeded in revealing a knowing smile.

"And if you consider Zorro's proposal of marriage in that cave as adequate, you may just have a very long time to wait until . . ."

He fell immediately to his knees, ignoring the pain in his side, and gazed longingly up into her eyes. "Victoria Escalante. Will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?"

Alejandro covered his mouth to hide the emotion that welled in his chest. Instead, he dropped an arm around Felipe's shoulders and squeezed them gently.

Victoria slid her hands into his hair as her eyes misted. "Yes, Diego. I will marry you." She fell into his arms, tears dripping down her cheeks, as their lips met in a slow kiss that turned quickly to one that even turned Alejandro's cheeks red. Long-restrained desire and a passion so intense it burned caused Alejandro to swallow embarrassingly and glance away. If they'd been in Diego's room, he would feel the need, and obligation, to part the couple, but in the middle of the library, Alejandro just smiled and backed slowly out of the room, drawing Felipe with him.

As they walked down the hallway, Alejandro squeezed Felipe's shoulders and muttered happily. "With that much passion. There will be children in this hacienda again by years end!"

The couple in the library simply smiled against one another's lips, each silently thanking God for their good fortune.

END