Sebastian and Alejandro decided where the cave would be and made camp. Making an immediate attempt to scale the mountain would draw interest from the bandits in the other cave. One man doing it as Diego had was risky enough, two men older and slower than him would easily be seen.
Two men camping near the road would be unusual but not dramatically out of place. People travelled the roads, even in the snow, but not many. They would be an object of curiosity, but not seen as an immediate threat. Their grey hair was another plus on their side, as younger men tended to doubt the skill and capability of their elders.
It was getting dark quickly, and they made a camp fire while they could still see. Its warmth and light gave them a little boost, and the rest they were forced to take was needed.
"I hope your son stays well hidden," Sebastian said softly. He was half believing the stories he had heard were true, but not quite.
"If he is Zorro, he will," Alejandro assured him. "You could be wrong about your deductions. In some ways he presents as very much the opposite."
"Mmm," Sebastian said, staring into the fire. He was confident in his assessment for now, but arguing with his elder brother never ended well.
"You have been wrong about things before," Alejandro said softly.
"About what exactly?" Sebastian's voice was calm but there was an edge to it that was cold.
"I was thinking…." Alejandro began. He sighed, shaking his head. "It was so long ago, we should forget those days."
"No, go on. I'd love to hear what you were going to say," Sebastian said.
"It would be unwise to bring it back up after all this time."
"You mean, I thought Elena loved me. She didn't, she loved you. As if you were any good for her… Your quick temper probably squashed her spirit. There is a reason why your son is afraid of you."
"I loved my wife, I treated her like a queen. Whatever she needed, I provided. Whatever she wanted, I gave her. I still love Elena," Alejandro said, trying to keep his anger within its bounds. It was the past afterall, it had no bearing on the present. "Mercedes got the worst deal."
There, it was said. The thoughts had been pushed down for so many years. The old jealousies were almost as sharply painful as they had been in the past.
"What did you say?" Sebastian said, slowly. "What do you mean by that?"
"Mercedes. She thought you loved her. How did her life turn out?"
Sebastian's fist whacked his brother backwards, and Alejandro tasted blood. He lightly touched his lip, and his fingers came away bloody.
"Mother isn't here now, Sebastian. If you want a fight, you have it."
Sebastian let himself sink onto a nearby rock, nursing his hand for a moment. The mission was most important. Where had this argument started? He probably was at fault, but as usual with his brother, Alejandro could cut with his words just as well as he could with a blade. Their mother could have stopped them from spilling blood, and at times she was the only reason they didn't. She was long gone, but Sebastian knew he was more mature than to murder his brother.
"No fight. For the sake of the children, Alejandro."
"I'm sorry. I don't know what came over me. It is like the years never happened."
"I did think I loved Elena. I was heartbroken when she chose you over me. Mercedes was there in our circle, a pale version of her twin, and I shouldn't have led her to fall in love with me."
"You compromised her, forced her into marriage or risk a scandal."
"It was her. I am not shifting blame, but I treated her as a sister. She was the one who kissed me. I should have read the situation better, but I was only 19. We did the right thing. That double marriage was a shambles," Sebastian said softly. "I was still mooning over Elena, and Mercedes could tell. There was never a more heartbroken couple on their wedding day."
"Elena shouldn't have had to share her special day with anyone," Alejandro said.
"They were sisters and the second marriage was a surprise for everyone concerned. I suppose they were just economising in the circumstances. Marriage is always an expensive business for everyone concerned."
"I suppose so," Alejandro said, at least trying to understand the reasoning.
"Mercedes had a clearer picture of our relationship at the wedding," Sebastian said sadly. "She refused to be my true wife for some time. I thought perhaps she would get the marriage annulled."
"The scandal would have been incredible."
"I wooed her as I should have before marriage, and eventually she forgave me. She was in love with me the whole time, but she had been hurt. So you are right, in some aspects…"
"I'm sorry. We should have left the past alone. There is only anger and sorrow there, anyway. Our wives are dead now, afterall."
"Yes, they are."
A silence came over them, broken only by the occasional crackle of sticks in the campfire snapping in the heat.
"Could we chance working against the bandits in the dark?" Alejandro said softly.
"The dangers of slipping and falling from the mountain may be too high. Diego is probably where we should be. It would have a better vantage point."
"If he was Zorro, we would just need to wait for morning for results," Alejandro said. "You don't seem to think Zorro is much good?"
"He is a showman, an actor. I haven't seen him fight, and if he is fighting the same soldiers day after day, I am sure some of the stories are exaggerated."
"Zorro is a very skilled swordsman."
"Seeing is believing as they say, Alejandro."
Alejandro merely smiled, and pondered the possibility of Diego being so skilled. He had accepted the idea a few hours ago, but now reality had set in he wasn't so sure. Sebastian had no idea what Zorro was capable of, and appearances were often misleading.
Zzzz
Diego had settled the girls into their own nest-like beds near the fire, but not so close that they were in danger of being set alight.
A soft glow outside marked the other cave, the light not covering much ground, but enough to notice. The girls had drifted into a deep sleep, leaving Diego free to think and listen.
Were these bandits well disciplined or loosely controlled? There was no raucous laughter or loud voices. Some bandits were well disciplined enough to avoid heavy drinking. That would suggest a well organised watch, and well trained men.
Hopefully they had not seen him as he had climbed the side of the mountain. If they had they had made no sign of that. If they had, a surprise attack would be a waste of time. Diego regretted the lack of a certain black suit and familiar sword and steed.
The black suit would give him an advantage in the dark especially, and generally speaking a masked man would alarm adversaries enough to give him an edge. He could disarm a bandit easily enough to gain a weapon, but the sword felt solid and real in his hand. Toronado was an asset he couldn't do without at times, but things were as they were.
He had wanted this, he told himself. He had wanted to do this without the mask, although he had reached for the 'mask' of Alonso's identity. Sebastian had probably told his father the truth, that he was Zorro. That would be something to deal with later. Diego wondered if he could convince his father that he wasn't Zorro. Most probably not, but his father was a lot easier to fool than he would have thought.
He could hear voices if he listened hard enough. Most bandits didn't talk to themselves, Diego thought, making himself smile slightly. Conversation meant at least two, and at least one more keeping watch at some sort of lookout. Three men wouldn't make much of a gang of bandits, so he could factor in double that number and still be on the small side.
Six to twelve bandits in the gang? A somewhat large proposition, but he was Zorro, wasn't he? He'd faced twice that amount of lancers before, not an everyday occurrence, but he had at times faced that many. With a mask, and with his reputation behind him.
He shook his head to dispill the unfamiliar sense of doubt. It was dark, he had the element of surprise. He could make it seem like there were many men with him. It was easy enough.
William would have weapons, he realised, glancing back to where the man slept.
He crept over to the injured man, noting his now laboured breathing. The fever was building up again, and realistically he would be dead before morning, but Diego felt guilty for not tending to the man.
"Who...who are you?" William asked, awake and lucid for the time being. Diego grabbed his hand reassuringly.
"I'm a friend. A de la Vega. My name is Diego."
William's mouth moved but only a whisper escaped him. "Diego?"
"Alonso's cousin. I'm in need of a sword and pistol. Can I borrow yours?"
William took another laboured breath, regarding Diego thoughtfully. "You'll be keeping them, I fear. I'm done for."
"Nonsense," Diego said, automatically. He reached for the weapons, weighing the sword in his hand and nodding.
"You'll need the sheath, and the gun belt. You're welcome to it. The children…?"
"All safe," Diego said, lying a little. He had no real idea where Charles might be, but he was probably hiding somewhere safe. "You did well, William."
William's eyes lost their focus for a moment, and then refocused slowly. "I did my duty."
"Of course," Diego murmured. "Very well done."
William's eyes closed, and Diego knew he was asleep. He was a stubborn man, Diego could tell, because a lesser man wouldn't have lasted as long.
Diego nodded to himself, as he strapped the belt to his waist. The sword was well made, the gun had ample ammunition - more than enough for the work at hand. The bandits were sitting ducks.