When the padre and his precious cargo were spotted with the lancers coming back to town, they were greeted at the gate by nearly the whole village.

"What happened, padre?" came the shout.

Everyone had to wait until he had drawn the wagon up to the church and the children were helped out.

"What happened, padre?" came the question again.

"Zorro rescued us!" an eleven year old girl exclaimed. Her name was Alicia, and she had been blind since birth.

"Oh, no, child!" Benitez replied with a smile. He shook his head. "You are mistaken. Don Diego exchanged himself for us. He was very brave."

"So they took Señor De la Vega for his money?"

"Si," the padre replied. There was a general exclamation of surprise and disbelief, both because the kidnappers accepted De la Vega in place of the children and because he had the guts to offer himself in the first place.

"What about Zorro?"

"He was there," the little girl shouted gleefully. "I heard him!"

Benitez went to her side and put his arm on her shoulder. "No, my daughter. You only heard Don Diego. Zorro was not there."

"He was there!" she insisted. "I've heard Zorro before! He was there!"

Mendoza shook his head sadly. "We did not see him."

"Don Diego told them that he could lead them to Zorro's hideout," Benitez said. "I must admit I do not understand why he would say such a thing. I fear for his life."

"No one knows where Zorro's hideout is!" Victoria Escalante exclaimed. Angrily, she added, "Least of all Diego de la Vega!"

"Ah, my poor child," the padre murmured. "It has been a trying day, has it not? Do you want to continue with the ceremony?"

Victoria looked around for Ramon, but she did not see him. After a moment she shrugged. "Si. Now that all is well, I do not want to postpone it. I am tired of waiting."

"Very well, my child. We shall have a good ending to this day!"

The major crisis over, it seemed that everyone quickly forgot that Diego was a captive as they hurried to finalize preparations for Victoria's wedding. Not even Victoria remembered that he had a role in the ceremony, and in the rush of activity to get ready, she completely forgot that his very life was at stake. Diego's bravery and sacrifice were lost amid the anticipation of the wedding.

Quietly, unobserved by anyone, Ramon Palos showed up at the church a little while after the children were settled in their rooms. He did not announce himself. For a little while he sat silently near the altar, nervously drumming his fingers on his knees, then the padre saw him.

"My son, come!" padre said with a smile. "It will not be long now, si? You are a very blessed man to have won Señorita Victoria's heart. She is a beautiful woman!"

Ramon grinned. "I am a lucky man!"

Just then there came a shout from the plaza, and curious, the two men hurried out to see what caused the new commotion. They were just in time to see Diego de la Vega ride at a gallop out of town.

"What happened, my son?" the padre called to a lancer as they hurried toward where a crowd was gathering in front of the alcalde's office.

"I don't know!" came the reply as the soldier ran to see.

Benitez and Palos made their way through the crowd to see three horses, their riders unconscious and thrown over their saddles. Mendoza ordered them taken down, bound securely and put into prison.

"Sergeant!" the padre exclaimed. "These are the men who held us hostage... three of them, at least! How do they come to be here?"

"I don't know," Mendoza said with a shrug. "Diego rode up leading their horses, but all he said was these were the kidnappers who killed the alcalde. He didn't say anything else, and he just left. He seemed very eager to leave."

The priest nodded thoughtfully. "I thought I saw blood... Was he hurt?"

"I don't know. I did not have time to ask." He watched as the three men were dragged off their horses. One of the outlaws, his nose bloody, was coming around.

"What the...!" he growled as he realized his hands were tied. He glared in silent indignation at the sergeant.

"I hereby place you and your two companions under arrest for kidnapping, extortion and murder!" Mendoza barked in an authoritative tone. "You will be tried for the alcalde's death tomorrow, and if you are found guilty, you will hang!"

"Me!?"

The sergeant nodded. "And these other two..."

The man glared directly at Ramon. "He was in on it! He is one of us! It was his plan!"

"That's absurd!" Palos snapped angrily, his face flushed red. "I am no criminal!"

"He's one of us!" the man repeated. "Don't let him go free!"

Palos glared back at the man. "Sergeant Mendoza, you must believe me..."

"It's him!" came a shrill little voice. It was Alicia, being led by one of the other children. "I recognize his voice!"

"No!" Ramon protested, and Victoria hurried to his side.

"Sergeant, please..."

"It's him!" the little girl said again.

Mendoza looked pleadingly at Padre Benitez. "What do you say, padre? You saw them…"

"I don't know, sergeant. They all wore masks. But..."

The bandit kicked violently at another of the bandits, abruptly waking him up. "Tell them about Ramon!" he growled. "He is trying to get out of this!"

The man moaned as a lancer pulled him to his feet, and immediately he sought Ramon out of the crowd. "Think you are getting out of this one, Palos?" he snapped hatefully. "What if I told them how you came by your money? What if I told your pretty woman what you used to do for a living?"

"Shut up!" Ramon growled, but Mendoza had heard enough.

"Arrest him!"

Victoria watched in horror as two lancers grabbed Ramon Palos and took him with the others into the prison. "No!"

The sergeant glanced sadly at her. "If I am wrong, señorita, I apologize. He can plead his case tomorrow."

She had no answer. Turning away to seek solitude at the tavern, she found the padre by her side.

"I am so sorry, my child. There must be some mistake."

"There's no mistake," Alicia piped up innocently. She seemed always to be everywhere.

Scowling, Benitez said, "How can you be so sure, child?"

"Easy, padre! His voice gets real high and squeaky when he is nervous. It's him, all right! Who is he? Anyone we know?"

Benitez had to pause. "He is new in town, child. Now run along."

Victoria had tears in her eyes. "If she is right, padre..." she whispered, "could she also be right about Zorro?"