Chapter 4
Zorro quickly scrambled to his feet and urged Toronado to flee with a hard slap to his backside. Once the stallion was out of the way, and most of the lancers were struggling to reload, Zorro swept the vials that had fallen onto the ground into his hands. He rushed toward the lancers closest to him and taking advantage of their slow loading landed several well-placed punches to their jaws, knocking them out cold.
Lancers lucky enough to have re-loaded, faced an unknown foe as Zorro threw a vial at their feet, shattering it the instant it touched the ground. Without so much as another movement, the lancers nearest the clear, white substance collapsed to the ground.
The incessant screeching was loud in their ears and people and lancers alike looked around to find the source.
Zorro finally reached Victoria and deftly cut the ties binding her arms behind her back. He pushed her into Alejandro's arms and turned to swiftly shatter another vial at the feet of two oncoming lancers.
The crowd backed away as lancers approached, swords drawn. He quickly parried and disarmed them but as the alcalde approached, Zorro's attention was divided – and that incessant screeching was breaking even his own iron-clad concentration – and he backed away from the advancing alcalde, blade at the ready. However, he forgot about the two lancers he'd dropped behind him and tripped, finding himself having a very unwelcome bath in the plaza's fountain.
De Soto laughed and advanced quickly as Zorro scrambled to pull himself out of the unbelievable situation he'd now found himself in. Thankfully, he'd not dropped his blade, but now he was soaking wet and facing the alcalde while lancers finished re-loading their muskets and even more advanced with their blades drawn. "Your luck has run out, Zorro!"
"I'm beginning to believe that, myself," Zorro muttered as he parried de Soto's first thrust sending beads of water in every direction at the sudden movement.
Victoria and Alejandro gaped at the masked man as he barely parried each of de Soto's attacks. His waterlogged clothing making it more difficult for him to fight, he stepped back and did not press an advance.
Zorro finally whistled for Toronado, who rounded the corner with the saddle hanging dangerously near the ground.
The appearance of the stallion in such a condition startled a few lancers and they backed away, and once Zorro noticed the alcalde's eyes glance toward the stallion, he moved with lightning speed and disarmed the man, sending him to the ground with a hard right hook to the jaw.
Zorro leapt over fallen lancers and swung quickly at the breast harness, the only thing holding the saddle even precariously on Toronado's back. The saddle slid to the ground with a loud thud and Zorro mounted the stallion bareback, clutching desperately at the dark mane as the wet silk clinging to his thighs met the sweat-soaked stallion's back.
Zorro bit back a curse as he nearly slid off the other side of Toronado's back, the strength in his arms and legs the only thing saving him from another embarrassing fall. He wheeled Toronado over toward where Alejandro was standing with Victoria and muttered something unintelligible before galloping the large stallion out of the plaza.
"After him!" De Soto cried, angrily thrusting his sword back into its sheath, "and bring me that saddle!"
Alejandro pulled Victoria back toward the tavern and disappeared with her inside, grateful that the alcalde had forgotten his previous plans to hang the young lady.
People filed into the tavern and soon it was bustling with discussion of Zorro's appearance and less than perfect rescue attempt.
"Something went very wrong tonight," Victoria said as she sat down with a mug of hot milk. Pilar and Maria were helping her this evening, so she sat in the kitchen, discussing the recent Zorro sighting.
"Well," Alejandro grinned, "everyone is entitled to a bad day. I think today was Zorro's."
"I've never seen him so – unlucky!" Victoria blushed as a small chuckled escaped her lips. "I shouldn't laugh but –" she stopped. Perhaps telling Alejandro that the masked man had been in her room last night wasn't the best idea. But his luck had been bad then too!
"Well, just stay out of the alcalde's sight for a while. Maybe you should come stay at the hacienda for a few days." Alejandro placed his hand on hers for a brief moment.
"Oh, I couldn't," Victoria shook her head. "Who would run the tavern? And besides, he will be occupied with trying to catch Zorro all night."
Alejandro smiled at the determined woman, still fearful for her safety. "Well, the offer stands whenever you'd like to accept it."
Zorro groaned loudly as Toronado walked into his stall and immediately began to munch calmly on some hay Felipe had left earlier that evening.
He slid slowly, gingerly, from the stallions back, casting an annoyed look at the happily munching horse. "I'm glad you can be so calm about this." He winced as he walked out of the stall, the insides of his thighs burning from the effort to keep himself on Toronado's back.
He quickly divested himself of the wet silk and draped it over the rack to dry. Reaching for his own everyday clothes, Diego winced as he glanced down at the sores blistering the insides of his thighs. "This is not good."
He walked back to his laboratory table, clad only in his white shirt and drawers. He mixed a quick salve to rub on the sores, wrinkling his nose at the minty smell, and stepped over to Toronado when he heard the stallion whicker softly.
Annoyed with seeing the stallion so calmly and happily eating his hay, Diego turned indignantly away from the horse. He winced and looked down again, wondering how he was going to explain to his father why he was walking funny. Just then, Toronado sniffed in Diego's direction and stepped behind him, nudging his shoulder with the back of his nose. Already off balance from the pain in his thighs, Diego fell over with a surprised cry.
As Diego gave the stallion a dirty look, Toronado's ears perked up and he leaned closer to get a good sniff of the salve Diego had just mixed. The stallion turned with a snort back to his hay and began chomping happily.
When Felipe entered an hour later, he winced at the smell coming from the interior of the cave. The mute blinked in astonishment to see Diego leaning back in the chair behind his desk, clad only in his drawers and a shirt, holding the foul smelling ointment.
Diego glanced wearily up at his friend and then down at his undressed state. He was too weak and too sore to care and he simply said, "remind me never to ride Toronado bareback with wet clothes again."
Felipe's eyes widened and he backed away, laughing silently. He covered his amusement by going to check Toronado, who was still happily munching his hay.
"Diego!" Alejandro called as he rounded the corner and stepped into the library. "Are you coming into town today?"
Diego looked up from his book and shook his head. "No, Father, I'm still doing a bit of research. Maybe later."
Alejandro turned on his heel and walked out without a single word, but Diego knew the man was annoyed. Diego sighed, wondering when he would be able to give up this double life and earn the respect of his family and loved ones in his own name.
Felipe walked in with a glass of juice and Diego nodded gratefully. "Thank you, amigo. Walking is not especially comfortable today."
Felipe hid a grin in his own juice glass but thankfully Diego didn't notice as he shifted uncomfortably in his chair.
"Ugh, even the seams of these pants are rubbing these sores the wrong way," Diego grumbled and Felipe made a gesture that made Diego roll his eyes.
"Yes, well, I'll just tell my father that I decided to try a new type of mint-scented soap."
Felipe laughed and wisely backed away as Diego swung gently at his leg, annoyed with his current predicament.
"Lets hope Victoria stays out of trouble for the next few days, " Diego sighed ruefully, "Somehow, I don't think a bow-legged Zorro would be very attractive."
Felipe nodded in agreement and Diego glared at him. "You don't have to be so quick to agree, you know."
Felipe hid another smile in his glass as he took another sip of his juice.
"Spend the day in town and come back quickly if I'm needed." Diego stood and gingerly walked to fireplace. "Until then, I'm going to spend the rest of the day in the cave, working on a plan to get my saddle back!"
Victoria was just setting Alejandro's lunch in front of him as the alcalde burst into the tavern, followed by Mendoza and two armed lancers.
"What –"
"Did I release you last night?" De Soto stared at the taverness. "No! I did not. You are under arrest and this time, you will stay inside my jail until I have that masked fiend behind bars or dangling from my gallows!"
"Alcalde." Victoria sighed as he grabbed her arm, "don't you get tired of this?"
Alejandro shook his head and followed the alcalde, protesting yet another unlawful arrest. Finally, he turned to fellow caballeros sitting nearby, "Are you going to just sit there and do nothing? It's about time we start standing up for ourselves! Zorro isn't going to be around forever!"
He didn't notice Felipe slinking quietly back to his pinto and galloping out of sight.
"One day of peace," Diego muttered as he shrugged into the familiar black clothes, "that's all I wanted. Just one day to heal. But no," Diego's fingers slipped on the buttons more than a few times and he glared angrily at the black silk shirt, "no, the alcalde has to go and arrest her again!" he turned to Felipe, "Maybe I should just bring her here and let her live out her life!"
Felipe's eyes widened and shook his head, trying to make his master understand that the cave was no place for a lady.
"That's the price for loving Zorro, it appears!" Zorro snapped, wincing as he glanced at the saddled Toronado. "I've got to find a way to turn her affections or let her go to find another to love. I can't keep putting her in danger like this."
Felipe nodded slowly as he finished cinching the black saddle under Toronado's belly. Felipe had 'borrowed' it from one of the stables, hoping that it would not be missed or recognized.
"A fairly plain saddle, for such a fine horse," Zorro sighed sadly and mounted the stallion. He winced as his thighs came into contact with the saddle. "Don't worry, boy. I'll get yours back. "
As the cave opened, Diego heard the familiar screech of his winged spirit and yet again, the preoccupied man ignored it.
The plaza was bustling with venders and traders from all over the territory when Zorro arrived. Full of people, it would make Zorro's task of slipping into the quartel easier.
He crept silently along the quartel roof, noting the location of each well-positioned lancer. His attention focused ahead, Zorro didn't notice his boot slip on a loose tile until it was too late. The hard piece of adobe fell off the roof and splintered into pieces, right next to a dozing lancer.
Zorro closed his eyes and sighed but not before giving the tiled roof a dirty look. He leapt down and knocked out the lancer before he could sound an alarm but that did him no good as one of the children in the plaza noticed him and cheered his name.
Zorro shook his head at the little girl, imploring her to keep her mouth shut, but it was no use, and soon the entire plaza was aware of his arrival. Shaking his head at his remarkable bad luck, he raced around the quartel toward the cells, but found himself mask to musket with five lancers. Dropping to his knees as the muskets fired was the only thing that saved his neck. With a quick snap of his whip, he wrested the weapons out of each lancer's hand sending them scrambling into the dirt.
Two lancers rushed him and he rushed around a large cart full of bags of flour and grain. He reached for one and swung it at the nearest lancer but was shocked when the bag ripped open sending tiny little granules toward the soldier instead. Zorro grunted in annoyance as another lancer approached from the opposite side. This time, the masked man grabbed a bag of flour, but that, too, ripped open, covering both the masked man and the lancer in white powder.
Zorro blinked rapidly to get the offending material out of his eyes, but he missed the stake of a nearby tent and tripped over it. He sailed unceremoniously onto his backside just as two more lancers raced toward him, swords drawn.
Shots ricocheted into the wagon surrounding him. One musket ball sailed through a melon, splattering the masked man with its sticky contents. Zorro continued to fight valiantly, slowly making his way toward the jail, but the lancers just kept coming, and his luck was not getting any better.
Victoria clutched at the bars, craning her head this way and that trying to see what was happening outside. Mendoza rushed in amidst a flurry of loud avian squeals, covering his head and waving his hands wildly in the air.
He bumped one of the lancers and his musket discharged, sending the ball overhead into the ceiling. Pieces of adobe rained down on their heads as the other lancer, standing much closer to the cell door, made a doomed attempt to get out of the way.
Instead, his musket went off, sending the ball straight into the cell door lock. A shower of sparks exploded as Victoria screamed and jumped away from the door, covering her eyes.
The lancers bounded out another door, nearly trampling Mendoza, as the loud squeal pierced their eardrums.
When the smoke cleared, Victoria pushed herself to her feet and stared at the door, which was swinging on its hinges, no longer locked. She looked around the room in awe and stepped out of the cell.
When Victoria reached the plaza, she caught a glimpse of her would-be rescuer, covered in a white powdery substance and fending off, with apparent difficulty, the alcalde's lancers. She hurried between overturned carts and crushed melons over to the tavern where Alejandro stood watching the scene unfold with wide, disbelieving eyes.
"Victoria!" Alejandro turned only when her fingers closed around his arm, "How did you escape? Zorro –"
"I'm not quite sure," she breathed, diverting her attention from the masked man to Alejandro. "All of a sudden lancers rushed in, scared of something, and their muskets went off. One musket ball hit the door and shattered the lock." Victoria giggled. "Then I just –" she shrugged her shoulders, "walked out."
Suddenly, the masked man disappeared from view and the lancers still conscious gave chase. Victoria shrugged, sighed and went back into her tavern, oblivious to the fact that she had escaped of her own volition from the alcalde's jail.
She disappeared behind the curtain, allowing Pilar and Maria to serve the excited customers, while she washed her hands and face. "Oh, I need a bath," Victoria mumbled, scowling at the grime that covered her skin. The alcalde did not keep his jail very clean.
"You are not the only one who needs a bath," came the deep voice from a dark corner of the room.
Victoria's eyes widened and she stepped closer to the sound, clutching a heavy pot in one hand, a knife in the other. "Zorro!" she whispered urgently when realized who it was. Her eyes narrowed as he took a step into the light and she stifled a giggle behind her hand. She dropped the pot and knife onto a table and stepped into the shadows with him, giving his filthy form a quick once over. "What happened to you?"
"I should be asking the same. I came to rescue you and here I find you calmly running your tavern as if you had no care in the world." His voice had an amused edge to it and she couldn't stifle another giggle as it bubbled from her lips.
Victoria pushed him into the corner as Pilar walked into the kitchen to fetch a bottle of wine. The young woman smiled secretively as she turned around and reached for a towel to dry her hands. "Why have you come?" she turned inquisitive eyes on her masked love once Pilar had left.
"I honestly came to wash off before riding home," Zorro grinned sheepishly. "I didn't know you were here."
Victoria's eyes widened and her hand flew to her mouth in mock horror. "What, the great, legendary Zorro, didn't know his lovely barmaid had escaped her foul prison?"
"You sound like Diego de la Vega," he chuckled wistfully and Victoria's eyes danced with a secret knowledge.
"Well, he gave me a fairy tale to read and, well –"
"No need to explain," Zorro said, raising his hand. If he didn't do it now, he would never do it. "But since you are here, I would like to talk with you." Commotion came from the taproom and he glanced uncertainly at the curtain.
"Of course!" Victoria exclaimed excitedly. Any time she could spend with the man she loved was a cherished moment. "But – there are lancers everywhere. You can't stay here. It's only a matter of time before they come here looking for you."
Zorro frowned and clutched her hands, "Do you know the old ruins up past the de la Vega hacienda?"
"Of course."
"Meet me there?"
"Now?"
"As soon as you can get away." Zorro took her hands and squeezed them gently before lifting one to his lips.
"I'll be right behind you," she assured and then stepped back with a wry grin, "following the trail of white powder."
Zorro scowled, looked down at himself and shook his head. "If my Fa –" he stopped himself, wincing slightly at his slip. He bent and pressed a quick kiss to her cheek before vaulting through the window and out of the tavern before she had a chance to wonder at what he was going to say.
It took a mere thirty minutes to prepare and ride out to the ruins. Victoria waited patiently, leaning against an overturned rock that looked like it had once been part of a hacienda foundation. The sun was hot and she wiped at the sweat that beaded her forehead.
"Forgive my tardiness," came the soft, velvet voice from behind her.
She hadn't heard him approach, but then, she rarely knew when he was watching her. Victoria whirled and was instantly caught up in his embrace, an overwhelming feeling of safety and security rolling over her shoulders as his arms wrapped tightly around her.
His mouth came down to briefly brush hers and he could feel her tremble at the brief intimate contact.
She pressed herself tightly against him and eagerly returned his kiss but the sudden movement put him off balance, and he stumbled backward, taking her with him as they landed ungracefully in the dust. Zorro shook his head and groaned. "I've been quite clumsy these last few days. My apologies."
Victoria giggled, remembering all of the pitifully horrifying things that had happened to her masked love in the last forty-eight hours. She grinned at the position she now found herself in – sitting on his lap in the middle of these old ruins. There was no one around for miles and she could tell by the look in his eyes, he knew it too.
She leaned against his chest but he moved quickly to stand and remove her from his lap. She made no effort to hide the hurt look in her eyes and it had the desired effect. He gathered her into his arms and embraced her tenderly.
"You know there is nothing I would rather do than hold you in my lap and kiss you from sunrise to sunset," he breathed against her hair. "But it just cannot be. Not yet."
"When?" Victoria asked, her voice betraying the longing she didn't bother to hide burning in her eyes.
"Sooner than you think."
She blinked and stared at him. He pulled her down to sit with him and began to explain.
"The alcalde will never leave you alone so long as you profess your love and support for me." He settled her back against his chest and wrapped his arms around her. He pressed a kiss to her hair and closed his eyes. It was one of the hardest things he had ever had to do. But to love her, he had to set her free.
"So, I am freeing you of your promise to wait for me." His voice was soft, barely audible.
Victoria pulled herself out of his arms and stared at him, her jaw slack, her eyes glistening.
He pulled off his gloves and reached forward to brush away a tear. "It is the only way."
TBC