Chapter 4

The fever that had afflicted Victoria was contagious after all. Before long, a full epidemic was in force.

Doors to all manner of dwellings in and around the pueblo had notices nailed to them reading "QUARANTINED" and the streets grew ever more deserted. The tavern was closed down for the good of the people, as were the other businesses. Los Angeles was a veritable ghost town in appearance.

Doctor Hernandez sent to neighboring pueblos for help and got it. Two nurses and three doctors, from as far away as Monterey, answered his call. It took five weeks before the numbers recovering from the mysterious fever overtook the numbers falling ill from it.

Slowly, gradually, the people began filling the streets again, and the mood of the entire pueblo began to lift. They looked for a diversion from all the talk of sickness, and the brides were the first thing that came to mind. It was time for their long delayed celebration in honor of the new citizens of Los Angeles.

For the first few weeks of their stay in the pueblo, the hundred or so women from Spain had been practically confined to their dormitory. Filtering into the pueblo a half dozen or so at a time, the women had been quite taken by surprise with the somber moods of all the people and closed up businesses. It wasn't a pleasant welcome for them but they bore it well, waiting patiently until the time when they could meet all the eligible men that had been promised to them.

While the quarantine was on, there were very few men that the señoritas could actually meet. There was the padre, of course, and the monks who had offered their services during the epidemic and Doctor Hernandez. But as for single men, they were a scarce commodity. It was strange, for that was the very reason they had come so far.

One of the first men they met was Alcalde De Soto. There was official paperwork for the alcalde to prepare for each and every one of them. At first, he complained of the extra work, but when he found that it necessitated some interaction on his part with all of the lovely young señoritas, he started to thaw. He began to flirt with some of them, and they, in turn, flirted with him. His whole opinion of this wild bet of the two caballeros changed, and he was beginning to wonder just which señorita was going to be lucky enough to win him.

Another man who was allowed inside the dormitory at this time was Diego. He had proven himself early on to be unaffected by the fever, and he was very willing to do anything that was needed. During the daytime hours, he was busy running errands for the people who were confined inside their homes, and that included the new dormitory. During the nights, he rode as Zorro, fetching medicines from neighboring pueblos and keeping an eye on the sick who lived in the far reaches of the area.

As Diego came and went from the dormitory, he watched the change in the alcalde's attitude toward the women with amusement. That is, he did until he realized that, somehow, he himself had managed, through the opulent wording of his famous pamphlet, to garner the attention of the majority of the new female citizenry. He had resorted to some very poetic imagery, and he had put his heart into the description of his beloved land. More than a few of the prospective brides had created in their minds a very romantic vision of the mysterious Diego de la Vega who had authored the writings. When they saw him in the flesh — a handsome, young, and very rich caballero, they were all the more eager to capture his attention.

Victoria listened to all the talk going on in her newly reopened tavern with a contented happiness. She had missed running her tavern, and it was good to see things returning to normal. Smiling broadly, she went out the door to refill the empty glasses of her customers seated outside.

That was what she was doing when Diego rode into the pueblo, and she looked up to smile her greetings to him. Before Diego could dismount, there were at least a dozen young women heading for the spot where he would be tying up Esperanza. Several of them brushed right past Victoria, oblivious to the fact they almost trod on her feet in their efforts to be in just the right space to attract Diego's attention.

Turning toward the commotion, Victoria saw that the señoritas were dressed in the latest fashions from Madrid and looked very out of place standing in the dusty street of the pueblo. The thought crossed Victoria's mind that Diego looked even more out of place in the center of a dozen señoritas fawning over him.

Diego seemed embarrassed as he nodded and replied to all their questions, trying his best to be as noncommittal as possible. The women pressed forward, surrounding him completely, and talking all at once.

Victoria watched it all, stunned beyond belief, and set down the empty pitcher. Several important and rich caballeros were seated at the tables to her left and right, and not a one of them managed even a look from one of the señoritas. Diego was the sole center of their attention.

The chattering was unintelligible. The voices blended into one, and the only discernable word being said was "Diego." After a long few minutes and his face blushing a deepening red, Diego managed to gingerly tear himself away from the bevy of beautiful señoritas. As he gently removed the small white-gloved hands impeding his progress forward, he walked, smiling and nodding, and gave them one word answers to their barrage of questions. Finally making it to where Victoria stood with her hands on her hips, he was surprised to see her glaring peculiarly at him.

"Victoria! It is so good to see you up and about," Diego said. The girls behind him formed a half circle and stopped when he did. When he addressed Victoria, they turned as a group to look intently, and even a little hostilely, at the one young woman who was not smiling at Diego.

"Buenas Dias, Diego," Victoria said evenly.

"You are feeling better, I see." Diego kept smiling, but he could feel the eyes of everyone at the tables on him as they stopped to watch the scene being played out before them.

"Much better, thank you." Her eyes flickered for the briefest of moments to the women to the right and left of him. "And you?"

"Never better." Diego gave a nervous cough. "I was hoping for a nice cool drink," he said, and stepped forward to take her arm and lead her into the tavern.

To the surprise of everyone, the group of young señoritas followed them.