Victoria set the small boy some chores to keep him busy, as she readied her tavern kitchen for the coming customers. He was feeding the chickens, mucking out the small stable, and fetching water from the outside well, as she decided what to do with him. She wrote out a short message for Diego, requesting a visit and some clothes that might fit the small teenager. Giving it to a passing de la Vega servant returning home, she was relieved that she was free when Charles was finished.
Dishing out a plate of eggs and toast for the teenager, she smiled and made him sit at her kitchen table.
"All done?"
"Yes, ma'am. All done." Charles starting eating his breakfast with enthusiasm.
"Good. After that, you need to have a rest upstairs for a while."
"Why?"
"You must have been up before dawn and all that work would have been exhausting," Victoria said, firmly. "Take it as an order, and if you are reasonable, I will pay you money, not just food and the room."
He sighed, and nodded.
Victoria took the empty plate and led the boy upstairs to a spare room. She closed the curtains, and made sure he was lying down, before she left to deal with the growing demands of her business.
Alonso de la Vega awoke in confusion. His head was pounding as if he had downed more than his fair share of alcohol, but he had refused to drink the night before. He glanced around the room, searching for a point of reference, but found none.
"Diego, what is keeping you?" Alejandro was shouting. "You can't sleep all day."
His uncle popped his head inside Diego's room. "Are you unwell, Diego?" His voice had a tinge of both frustration and concern.
"My head…" Alonso said vaguely, fighting nausea to sit up in bed. "I'm sorry?"
Alejandro frowned, and nodded. "Take it slowly, Diego. I am heading off with Sebastian and Alonso. My steward will help you with the hacienda work. We will be back with the children before you know it."
Alonso opened his mouth to question his uncle, but he was gone before he got a word out. The door was closed gently behind the older man, and Alonso sunk back down into the bed.
What on earth was going on? What had just happened? He wasn't following well with normal logic, but it seemed that his uncle had gone mad. Or had he gone mad? He shook his head trying to clear the fog gathering in his mind. It just made him dizzy.
He again tried to study his surroundings, and helped himself to sit up. A piece of paper sat on the night-stand, offering an answer to the confusion. He snatched it up and unfolded it.
"Alonso,
I am sorry for this unkind treatment of you, but you know as well as I do that your condition was unequal for this trek today. To save unnecessary drama, I suggest you take on my role, as I have taken on yours. I trust you will forgive me, when I help bring back the children with your father and mine.
Diego de la Vega."
Alonso frowned, and tore up the piece of paper with annoyance. Whatever Diego had done to him would be avenged, he decided. He tried to get up, but a dizzy spell made him lie down again. Then he noticed a small vial next to where the note had been. Another piece of paper was tied to the neck of the tiny bottle.
"This will help. I apologise for your troubles, but there was no time to reason with you," he read. He picked up the bottle, and examined it. What further harm could it do? His cousin was annoying there was no doubt, but he didn't want to kill him. He had no motive, and generally seemed quite sane and somewhat wiser than the general population.
He uncorked it, and tipped it down his throat in one go. He coughed and choked a little, as the strength was much more powerful than he was prepared for. He grew much more drowsy than he had been, and fell into a deep sleep.