Chapter 2

The next morning Diego felt beaten up. Neither he nor Victoria had slept much while they had been talking about Ramon, sharing their grief. He had held Victoria tight while she had been crying over her brother and his wife until they had fallen into an exhausted sleep. And then there had been the fight because he had hesitated too long with his answer. He didn't know what to do now. After he had returned home, he had lain sleepless in his bed, unable to find a solution for his situation.

In deep thoughts he stared at the piano without playing. "Diego, have you heard about Ramon, Victoria's brother?" Diego looked up to his father who continued without waiting for an answer.

"Victoria got a message yesterday that he and his wife died in an Indian attack in Venezuela. We have to go to the tavern and pay her our respect." Diego only nodded and rose from his seat to follow his father to the stables. Maybe he'd get the chance to talk to her privately and figure out how he could marry her.

Z Z Z

"What's wrong, Diego?" Alejandro asked him on their ride to the pueblo. "You have been very quiet all morning and you look as if you haven't slept at all last night."

"I'm just thinking of Ramon and how hard it is for Victoria to lose her brother. Now there's only Francisco left of her family."

"You have been preoccupied even before breakfast, Diego, so it must be something else."

"I already heard of Ramon's death yesterday in the tavern." Diego admitted.

Alejandro looked at him surprised. He had heard that Victoria had been too shocked yesterday to tell even her helpers. Obviously Diego and Victoria were closer to each other than he had thought if she had told him first. Diego and Victoria's brothers had played together as children with Diego as the undisputed reckless leader of the group, admired not only by the younger boys, but also by his peers. Diego had been so different as a boy. Why had he changed so much in his years in Spain? Where had his fire, his temper gone?

"Why didn't you say a word?"

"I don't know," Diego shrugged.

Z Z Z

Standing behind the bar, Victoria tried to occupy her mind with work and keep her composure though it was hard on her. She had been unable to find sleep after Zorro had left, trying to find an answer to her dilemma. What could she do now? She desperately needed to get married to a man who was willing to go with her on her journey. Zorro was unable or unwilling to fulfill the promise.

She thought about her life if there had been no Zorro. If he hadn't captured her heart the night he had freed her from prison, she'd have given Diego a chance. The day he had returned from Spain there had been a mutual interest in each other and he had even defended her, but after the appearance of Zorro he had withdrawn. But Diego stood up for her on other occasions, even when he didn't have a chance, like the day he went against the fencing master. He had been the one who caught her the times she fainted. So maybe the interest was still there and he had thought himself without chance in comparison to Zorro? She had to admit that she had often compared him poorly to Zorro out loud and she felt bad about it. Wasn't Diego her best friend, the one she could always count on? Dared she risk his friendship?

Her face lit up when she saw Diego with Felipe and his father enter the tavern. The three headed straight for her and Alejandro expressed his sympathy. "Victoria, I'm so sorry about your brother. At first I couldn't believe it when the peon brought me the news. Come sit with us for a moment!" Alejandro guided her to the table across the bar and made her sit down. "The news must have been a hard blow for you. Is there anything we can do for you?"

"You can count on us, Victoria," Diego added. Victoria looked hesitatingly at them, searching for words. "There is actually something you can do, Diego. I.. I ..,," she stopped and bowed her head, not daring to speak out. "What is it, Victoria? We're friends, you know you can talk to me," Diego urged her to continue.

"I don't know if you have heard, but my niece has survived the attack and will be put into an orphanage if I don't take her into my care." Victoria tried to make them understand.

"But your niece is in Venezuela and you're here in California," Alejandro objected. "There's nothing you can do about it, Victoria." Then it dawned on him. "You're not planning to travel to Venezuela, are you, Victoria?"

"But I have to, can't you understand? I need to see my brother's grave and I can't abandon my niece." Victoria wrought her hands in despair.

"But that is much too dangerous, especially for a woman on her own." Alejandro didn't agree with her plans. "You must sensible, Victoria."

"I know I can't travel on my own, Don Alejandro." Victoria bit her lip. Finally gathering all her courage she addressed Diego. "Diego, would you consider marrying me and traveling with me as my husband?"

Alejandro and Diego were both stunned by her proposal. Diego was the first to overcome his surprise, but he reacted differently than any of them had anticipated.

"You're asking ME if I want to marry you?!" Angrily he shouted at her and the heads in the tavern turned in their direction as they overheard his remark.

Not hiding his fury, he stood up, grabbed her by the arm and pulled her in the direction of the kitchen. "We will discuss this in the kitchen. Now! Privately!" Diego glared at those around him, daring them to enter the kitchen. Victoria was too shocked by his unexpected reaction to offer any resistance and let him drag her behind the curtain.

"Explain, Victoria," Diego commanded the moment they were alone. "Explain, why you want to marry me."

Victoria had never seen Diego so furious and if he had ever displayed some anger, it had never been directed at her. He had always been so kind to her.

"I need an explanation why you want to marry me," Diego demanded in a seemingly calm voice that scared her even more.

Victoria began to cry, no longer able to hold herself up. "I'm sorry if I offended you somehow, Diego. I never intended that. I explained it already, I need to travel to Venezuela to pick up my niece and I can't go on my own. I thought if we married you'd go with me."

"I understand the situation with your niece, but you still haven't told me why you ask me! Why marry me when you're in love with Zorro? Is it because of my money? Why would you choose the studious caballero who can't even defend himself? Who am I compared to your legend?" Diego had come to stand dangerously close to her. She could feel his breath on her face when he looked at her intensely.

"You are my friend, Diego, at least I thought you were," Victoria was shaking. "I can't marry Zorro and besides him there is no one else who is so close to me. When you returned from Spain that first night I fell in love with you and if it hadn't been for Zorro, there would have been a chance for us. I thought you might feel something for me too and that we may learn to love each other." Diego's angry face hadn't changed and she could see that her explanation didn't satisfy him.

"Why did my proposal make you so angry at me, Diego?" Victoria asked, intimidated by him.

"Don't you think I have the right to be angry? Last night you were crying in my arms, asking me to marry you and today you're proposing to someone else?!" Diego was still furious and Victoria stared at him in shock.

"You?!" She whispered. Diego pulled the ring out of his pocket and displayed it in front of her. "The whole morning I have been thinking about us, trying to figure out how we could get married without the alcalde getting suspicious. But you, you.. you never even gave me a chance!" Angrily he took a plate from a table and smashed it on the floor.

"I'm sorry, Diego," she cried, "I just didn't know what to do."

"Couldn't you have waited just a little?" Diego dropped another plate.

Victoria's temper started to rise in her and overcame her remorse. "How much longer should I have waited until you found your courage to remove your mask? I have been waiting years for you!" Following his example, she smashed a bowl.

At that moment Mendoza put his head through the curtain. "Don Diego, Senorita Victoria, is something wrong?"

"Out!" they yelled in unison at him. "This is a private discussion, Mendoza!" Victoria shouted at him, throwing a dish in his direction that landed before his feet.

Carefully, Mendoza took a step back, looking at the broken dishes in confusion. "A private discussion, I see." Shaking his head, he hastily retreated from the kitchen.

They looked at each other again. "And what are you going to do now?" Victoria challenged him.

"We will get married today, before you do something more foolish, such as asking the sergeant to marry you!" Diego declared, determined and still angry.

Victoria looked at him stunned. "You want us to get married today?"

"Do you think I'll let the chance to marry you pass by? I have wanted to marry you for years and I won't let you get married to anyone else. Don't you agree with me?"

Victoria looked at him, exhausted by the emotional uproar she had gone through. Not knowing what to say, she simply nodded. She wasn't sure if he had forgiven her already.

Diego took her by the arm and led her through the curtain into the main room. All eyes were fixed on them as they approached the table where his father and Felipe were sitting. Alejandro looked at them curiously, noticing the tears in Victoria's face. "Father, we have decided to get married today. I think two hours should be enough to have a talk with the padre and get dressed for the wedding. Or do you have any objections, Victoria?"

Both looked at him surprised. "You will marry Victoria? In two hours, Diego?" Alejandro looked at him questioningly. "Why the haste? Why not wait until tomorrow? And what about Zorro?"

"Zorro isn't here, is he?" Diego was determined. "So we do it this way and marry before he has time to find out and show up."

"Will you be ready in two hours, Victoria?" Diego addressed her and she nodded, overwhelmed by the events she had triggered.

"Are you alright, Victoria?" Alejandro asked concerned, unable to figure out what had happened between her and his son. "Are you sure you want to marry Diego today?"

"Yes, I'm fine, Don Alejandro," she declared, but she didn't look at all like a happy bride. "I'll be ready in two hours, Diego," she looked at him and all power to fight was gone. She didn't know how to go through this if he was still so angry with her. He hadn't even smiled when he told her he'd marry her. All she wanted to do was to sit down and cry.

Diego looked at her unhappy face and he knew he had to make up with her before they got married.

"Excuse us once more, Father, there is something else we forgot to discuss!"

"Another of your private noisy discussions?" Alejandro raised his eyebrows, but Diego didn't listen and nobody dared to follow them into the kitchen.

"What did you forget, Diego?" Victoria looked at him, trying very hard to hold back her tears.

"I forgot to tell you that I love you." He drew her into his arms. "I'm not happy about the way you handled this, but you probably found the only way for us to be together without anyone getting suspicious. And that is something that makes me very happy."

"Then you're no longer angry with me?" Victoria cried in relief. Diego's tender kiss was answer enough.

"This is going to be the day we have been waiting for such a long time. And I can't have you crying at our wedding. We should be as happy as we can under these circumstances. I'm sorry, Victoria, for yelling at you." Holding her in a tight embrace, he stroked her back comfortingly until she stopped crying.

"At least you left most of the dishes intact," Victoria smiled, looking at him. "We shouldn't make it a habit."

"My father would be very angry about it," Diego grinned. "I love you, Victoria."

"I love you too, Diego. There is no one else I want to marry." She wrapped her arms around his neck for a long kiss. He would have liked to kiss her longer, but his father was waiting in the main room and the helpers needed to return to the kitchen too. After their previous discussion none of them dared to enter without permission.

"Happy again?" He tenderly caressed her cheek, looking at her lovingly.

Victoria nodded in reply. "I can't wait to marry you, Diego!"

"Neither can I!" He kissed her hand and saluted her goodbye, creating a smile on her face with the familiar gesture.

His father and Felipe were waiting for him on the porch of the tavern and looked at him expectantly. "Can you please tell me what is going on between you and Victoria, Diego? This sudden decision to marry her and that noisy discussion you had? Are you serious about marrying her in two hours?"

"Of course, I am, Father." Diego was well aware of the bystanders who were listening to every word. "Victoria needs a husband if she wants to get her niece from Venezuela. And I have agreed to marry her since she can't marry Zorro. You two should ride ahead and get yourself ready while I have my talk with the padre."

Alejandro shook his head about that very sensible explanation. He didn't know what to make of Diego's plans to marry Victoria the same day.

"Diego, I don't think you should rush into a marriage like this. It's something that should be well considered. I don't know what you said to her in the kitchen, but I have never seen a woman look so unhappy after she announced her engagement. That's not the way to treat a woman, especially one you intend to marry. Can't you see that Victoria is completely out of her mind with the loss of her brother? Give her some time to think it over! I can't believe she'll give up Zorro like this. You'll both be unhappy later if Zorro shows up and Victoria regrets her decision! And she'll hold you responsible for it."

"I know what I'm doing, Father. Victoria and I will marry in two hours whether you like it or not!" Diego was stubborn about it.

Alejandro sighed and shook his head disapprovingly. "I don't think you do, Diego. Just think about it again and delay the wedding for a few days." Together with Felipe he went over to their horses.

Diego turned to the alcalde who had listened to their discussion earlier. "Alcalde, I'm not sure if Zorro won't make an appearance at my wedding with Victoria. Are you going to post some guards at the church?"

De Soto smirked. "Are you afraid Zorro will challenge you for your bride? You're hardly a match for Zorro. Very well, Don Diego, I'll see it as my duty to protect innocent citizens from that outlaw. You'll get your guards and if he shows up I'll catch him!"

Diego breathed out relieved. "Thank you, Alcalde!"