It was almost closing time and he still sat there, tending his drink. There had been several glasses of wine consumed by him today, but each one had been sipped. Unlike most of the people who chose to stay all day in her tavern, Don Alejandro was not drunk. However, Victoria worried about his state of mind. She had never seen the caballero look so defeated or exhausted.
Looking around the otherwise empty room, she made a quick decision. She marched over to the front door and closed it with a loud snap. Then, she bolted it. She did not often close earlier, so tonight would be an exception. It had been slow all day anyway.
"Don Alejandro," she began, sitting down across from the man. "Tell me what is bothering you. Is it Diego?"
"Yes! No!" He shook his head. "Both, I guess." He was silent for several minutes, still lost somewhere in his own mind. Finally, his eyes focused on her. "Victoria, I am the worst father in this entire pueblo."
She immediately opened her mouth to protest, but stopped herself. Her mother taught her at an early age to listen, even when she disagreed, and while she often failed, Victoria did try to live her life by that lesson. "What makes you say that?" she finally asked, pleased that she was able to make her voice sound so cool and calm.
He took a small sip of his wine before answering. "Victoria, my son has lived with me all of his life, except for those few years in Madrid. I left the army right after he was born. I watched him takes his first step. I held him while he cried for his mother after we lost her. I saw him blossom as he learned from his tutors." He shook his head sadly. "Now, I know I never even knew him."
She watched her hands play across the table. She could not keep them still. "He is Zorro," she blurted.
The man sitting across from her did not even flinch. "I did not know that until today."
She stifled a nervous giggle. "You think I did?"
Don Alejandro looked at her in surprise. "He never told you either?"
Victoria's eyes were
glimmering with tears. "Of course
not. He wouldn't! How many times have we heard Diego and Zorro
talking about how his secret identity protects us all? He almost told me once, right before he
pro--" She stopped talking suddenly, horrified by what she about
revealed. It was to be their secret.
He almost dropped his glass. "Diego proposed?"
She could not help it. Even after all this time, she would find herself grinning like a fool when she thought of that wonderful day. She nodded. "Yes, he did. He would not reveal to me the man behind the mask, but I told him I would love him anyway. He had the same heart."
Don Alejandro was crying with her. "I was thinking earlier--Once, I had a dream that I rode into this pueblo as Zorro." He did not notice as Victoria shifted uneasily. "When I told Diego about it, I asked him if he thought there was a little bit of Zorro in me. You know what he said? He told me that everyone needs heroes, and he thought that there was probably a little bit of me in Zorro." His eyes were crystal sharp when they met hers. "Victoria, I helped raise a legend."
She shook her head. "No, Don Alejandro, you raised a man, a very good man. The legend does not matter; the heart and faith of the man do."
Reaching across the table, he put his hand on hers. "Victoria, you've grown up into a wonderful lady. I'm going to be very proud to call you my daughter."
She covered her hand with his. "Thank you, Don Alejandro. I will be very honored to call you father."
He smiled, squeezing her hand. Finally, he leaned back away from her. "Why don't you go get us another bottle of wine, my dear? And bring yourself back a glass! I feel like giving some toasts."
Victoria, feeling giddy from her new knowledge, nodded. With years of experience, she promptly had the glass and wine at the table. Smiling, she poured herself a glass. She had a feeling it was going to be a long, wonderful night.
It was a memorable evening for them both. The conversation centered on the man that both of them loved, and the light blush of the dawn was beginning to show when they finally decided to get some sleep.
ZZZZZZ
Diego looked up from his notes, amusement written across his face. "I thought I was the one that was supposed to get up late in this hacienda."
Sitting down in his favorite chair, Don Alejandro grinned. "I spent most of the night talking to Victoria about Zorro."
Diego's eyebrow rose in surprise. "You were out all night?"
"I am a grown man, Diego," his father teased. "I needed to talk to Victoria about a few things, and it was easier to do after she closed."
Tossing down his quill, he looked intently at his father. "You had me worried," he admitted.
"I know, and I'm sorry. I realized there was something that I needed to handle." He wished he could share it with his son, but Doctor Hernandez warned them not to reveal too much. It would help if Diego knew a recovered memory was real instead of his own imagination filling in gaps.
He crossed his hands in front of him. "I apologize if I upset you yesterday."
Don Alejandro smiled. "It was not you, Diego. It was me."
Diego picked up his quill and began twirling it in the air. He kept his eyes on the feather as he spoke. "It's frustrating not knowing what or who I am. I feel like I'm walking through quicksand."
Nodding, Don Alejandro stood. He walked in front of his son's desk and leaned across it. Diego dropped his quill in surprise. "I want you to know, Diego, that I love you, and I am very proud to call you my son. I always have, but it has not always been easy for me to say it. I'm sorry for that fact, but--Please, quit worrying about what you are doing wrong. You are not doing anything wrong. You are just doing things . . . differently."
An insistent knock on the door prevented Diego from saying anything. Don Alejandro smiled sorrowfully as he went to answer it. Anymore, it seemed like someone was at his door every day, needing help. He, for one, was growing tired of it. He loved helping people, but the need he saw throughout the pueblo was becoming unbearable to him. Something was going to have to give, and it was going to have to be soon. For the first time ever, Don Alejandro was beginning to fear that there would be the uprising Ramón used to fear at the beginning of his reign.
"Victoria, what is it?"
She rushed through the door. "Mendoza told me that the alcalde has arrested another man. He plans to whip him at noon."
"Noon?" Diego's voice echoed through the hall. "The man could not have had a trial."
Don Alejandro was amused when he saw Victoria blush. Her new knowledge of Diego's other life was affecting her response to him. Hopefully, it would not be noticeable to anyone but him. She nodded, as Don Alejandro replied, "Trials are something we don't see much of here in Los Angeles anymore."
"Let's go!"
Victoria looked at Diego for a moment, and then she glanced over at Don Alejandro. "Diego, can I speak to your father alone for a moment?"
His disappointment was obvious, but he left them without protest. "We have to tell him," she stated the moment he disappeared around the corner.
"We can't! Doctor Hernandez--"
Victoria leaned closer to him, her eyes scanning the hallway in front of them for any sign that Diego might be close enough to overhear. "We have to, Don Alejandro. He cannot go to the protest today. The alcalde is not the smartest man in the pueblo, but he is not the dumbest man, either! We do not know how much longer this amnesia will last. DeSoto might begin noticing that Diego's sudden interest in the pueblo started at the same time Zorro disappeared. He has to be told."
Don Alejandro shook his head. "He's going to wonder where his sword, and his horse, and his mask are, Victoria. Then, he's going to wonder why we don't know. What do I tell him then? How do I explain to him something that I don't understand myself?"
"He has to know to keep himself out of danger."
"I know." Don Alejandro draped one arm around her shoulders and squeezed. "I do wish I knew where Zorro's lair was though," he said, trying to lighten the mood as they began walking in the direction Diego went.
She tried to laugh. "I do, too. It's such a nice little cave."
Don Alejandro stopped walking. "You've been there?"
She nodded, smiling that same fond smile of last night. "Oh, yes! It's where he proposed to me. Toronado's there, and some of his trick--experiments."
Frowning, Don Alejandro scanned his home. "It cannot be far from here, Victoria. Diego wouldn't go far; it would take too much time."
"True," she agreed. "He went to get us something to eat, and he came back very quickly."
Don Alejandro turned to look at the library, a place his son had mysteriously appeared and disappeared from over the years. "The old escape route," he muttered.
"What?" she said with her eyebrows drawn up in confusion.
He ignored her question and rushed over to the fireplace mantel. After all these years, his memory was a little foggy on where the mechanism was, but he was relatively sure it was--
A soft click let him know that he had found it. The door swung open at the back of the fireplace. He turned to look at Victoria. He grasped her hand and pulled her after him. When they got to the end of the passageway, Victoria gasped. Don Alejandro sank down to sit on the steps. Even though they had guessed the truth, it was still remarkable to see the proof lying about the cave.
"Well, now you can tell him where the mask, sword and horse are," she whispered in awe.
Don Alejandro started to nod and then stopped. A part of him said that the idea was loco, but another part reminded him of a terrified man in the plaza that needed help. "Let's go speak to Diego," he said abruptly. He turned and left the cave, praying that he was making the right decision.
ZZZZZZ
He would admit it. When they first told him, he had thought that they were having some fun at his expense. Him, this legendary Zorro? Impossible! He was not the kind of man to break the law even once, let alone on an almost daily basis. He even almost dismissed the evidence of the cave, but as he rode the most magnificent horse he had ever seen towards the pueblo, he was glad that he had finally believed.
For the first time since he had opened his eyes a few days ago, something felt right. As he tied the mask behind his head, quickly and efficiently, all of the problems and worries he had as Diego seemed to fade away from his mind. Instead, he concentrated on the man who needed his help.
"Zorro!" he heard the friendly little sergeant yell. It was familiar. He knew it in a way that he could not explain.
He felt himself smiling. It was as if someone else was taking over his actions. He admitted that he was glad that his muscles seemed to know what to do. Personally, he felt overcome by intense fear; his mind was busy telling him that he did not have a clue as to how to handle the lancers.
"Alcalde," he called. "When are you going to learn?" Yes, now he knew it for a fact; he was loco. Why else would he be sitting on his saddle sidewise, taunting the most powerful man in the pueblo?
"Get him!" Again, Diego noticed that it felt right. Just as right as Sir Edmund's sword felt in his hand. This should be fun, a small part of his mind crowed. Then, all of Diego's attention went to the fight at hand.
ZZZZZ
"I can't believe I tossed the alcalde into a water trough," he muttered to Toronado. Now that the fight was over, Diego's entire body was shaking. Even though he had enjoyed putting DeSoto in his place, he had not enjoyed seeing Don Alejandro step in front of an aiming lancer's gun. His father could have died protecting him!
How on earth could he do this for seven years? How had he done it for seven year? Was there even an end in sight?
However, he was proud of himself. He had done what he wanted to do, if not in the manner he had thought. He stood for justice, just as his father stood. Don Alejandro was proud of him. Diego frowned. Something did not feel right about that thought, but he decided to ignore it.
Victoria was in love with him. The entire pueblo knew it. She was just waiting for the mask to be taken off to marry him. His head throbbed. He put a gloved hand to his temple and began rubbing, struggling to remember his life with Victoria. Why had he not married her, yet, and given Don Alejandro those much-desired grandchildren? Especially since the man was risking his life to protect his son!
Knowing he should be on his way home, Diego stopped Toronado. He had lost the lancers after he jumped over a ravine. From his, Toronado's, and the lancer's reactions, it too must be a familiar move for him. For once, he was thankful for the reckless little boy he had been.
Dizzy, he fell to his knees. Struggling to breath, he wondered if his father now knew about those days. He had little doubt that Don Alejandro would yell the hacienda down if he knew about what his son had done with some of their prized horses over the years.
Breathing deeply in an almost useless effort to catch his breath, Diego wondered how many times his father had risked his life trying to save his? He should have never told him. It would have been better to have played the fool rather than see his father risk his life even once for his son.
Feeling the world swirl around him, Diego closed his eyes. He tried to focus, but everything was too out of control. Suddenly, to his relief, the vertigo stopped. Blackness overtook him.