Chapter 28 – Odyssey

A.N – Some reviewers expressed their belief last chapter was going to be the Grand Finale, so I am sorry to disappoint you guys. This story is nowhere near finished. I can see that the logical thing to do here is to have Zorro get rid of Ramón, maybe helped by a civil revolt, and then have Victoria rejecting Esteban so she can live happily ever after with Zorro. But, come on! That would be too easy and I like complicating my life. I don't do easy, or logical (but, there is a method in my madness). Besides, I want to keep torturing all the characters physically and psychologically for a few more chapters, so hey, I have to carry on!

Much more conflict to come, more twists and turns, as usual in my other stories. Nowhere near the end, I'm afraid. So, if you like this story (and I assume you do, as you are still reading it), that should be good news for you. Many more chapters on the way, Yay! But this won't be too much over 100K, I hope. Not another monster, never-ending story (*)

The bad news is my cluster writing is over. I counted it: 6 chapters, over 18000 words written, self-betaed and posted in a week. (I'm impressed with my productivity in writing fanfiction while I procrastinate to write anything else. Amazing!) Well, I'll carry on as soon as real life lets me.

Once again, thanks for reading, reviewing, and all those PM's. Much appreciated. XXX

(*) Update June 2021 – yeah, right… Wishful thinking that was. LOL

ZZZ

Diego wanted to give the alcalde a good wallop, or several, punching his face to a pulp when he thought about Victoria, but he couldn't because he had to get out of there as soon as possible when he started to falter, feeling dizzy. He had maintained a façade of strength and anger for as long as he could, but once he was up on the roof again, he had to sit on the tiles to rest, breathing heavily with the effort to climb up there, with his wound throbbing badly again and running out of energy to carry on.

He wanted to wait and check if the alcalde would be true to his word, and specially wanted to see Victoria, but he couldn't risk it. If Ramón called the lancers on him right then he would not be able to fight them off, and he would end up in the gallows with Victoria and Esteban the next day, missing the last bargain chance to save their lives. No way he could stay around to get back inside to kill Ramón if he didn't release his prisoners immediately, so he hoped the alcalde would not call his bluff. He walked then unsteadily over the roof, holding his aching side; dropped back on Toronado's saddle; and got out of the pueblo before anybody could see him, cantering back to his rendezvous point with Felipe, struggling to keep on the saddle straight.

"Are you alright?" Felipe signed when he arrived there looking troubled. "What happened?"

"I told Ramón he should release them or I would kill him tonight. But, to be honest, I couldn't do that even if I really wanted to. I feel lousy again, and the wound is aching so much now I could scream," he said, leaning over, still with a hand on his side. "I'll struggle to get home."

"I'll follow you. Just hold on. You'll be alright."

"Just give me one moment," Zorro said, resting his other arm on the pommel, hunched, breathing heavily. He whimpered then, lowering his head until he nearly touched Toronado's neck with his hat. "Oh, God! This is so much worse than before! So much worse!"

"Come on, you have to go now, because you are only going to get worse the longer you stay here!"

"I know. You are right," Zorro said, gritting his teeth, pressing lightly with his heels so Toronado started a slow walk. "It's going to take a while, but I won't be able to get there any faster. Follow me but watch out for Esteban, because if he is released, he'll come this way. Don't let him see you, alright?"

Felipe nodded and watched him go, anxious, because if Diego fainted and fell off the saddle, he would struggle to push his large, heavy frame back on it. He had to hope that at least Diego could make it to the cave on his own without much trouble.

ZZZ

Back in her room, Victoria got her night gown on, careful not to disturb the dressings covering her wound. She thought about Esteban's wounds then, and had a brief pang of remorse because she had not dressed them over. But that remorse didn't last long, because she was still so angry with him, she wanted to scream. How could he take advantage of her when she was at such a low, emotional moment while worrying about Zorro and about herself? How could he kiss her and then lie about how much he loved her when he was going to marry someone else? He was probably a skirt-chaser cerdo, like the rest of them. Except Zorro, of course. And Diego, who had never got involved with any woman apart from that Zafira, as far as she knew.

Before she went to bed, she read Zorro's note again. Mendoza didn't tell them the reason why the alcalde had released them, but she knew the only one who could make Ramón change his mind would be Zorro. And that meant he had paid a visit to the alcalde because he had miraculously recovered already. Maybe Mendoza, with his tendency for exaggeration, had claimed Zorro was badly injured when he only had a scratch. Hoping that would be the case, she opened the window and left it like that in case Zorro was still around and would show up to see her. Then, clutching the note against her chest, she got in bed, trying to erase from her mind the intimate moments she had spent with Esteban, especially the kiss, and focus on her love for Zorro, the one and only for her.

ZZZ

Zorro concentrated all his willpower to stay on the saddle to get home, one step at a time. He had told the doctor before he didn't mind if he would get worse as long as he could get Victoria and Esteban out of jail, but now he was having second thoughts about that, because the pain was unbearable, and all his strength had disappeared so quickly he could hardly stay up. Maybe he should have taken some of the medicine the doctor had prepared and carried on taking it all night to keep his energy levels up. But, as this was a first, they didn't know what to expect, what the effects would be, and for how long they would last. And now, with such deterioration in his condition, he was really going to struggle to fool his family. The doctor would have to explain he had a major relapse with the food poisoning to keep him in bed, which meant he might need to take more of that emetic herbal remedy to fake sickness again. The mere thought of that additional, gratuitous suffering made him shiver.

His gloomy train of thought was interrupted when he heard hooves approaching on the road, behind him. He was getting close to the hacienda, close to the spot where he would leave the road and ride across the fields to get to the cave, but he hadn't reached that point yet. He halted Toronado at the side of the road then, turned him around, and breathing in deeply, he used the leftovers of his energy to get his torso upright. He wasn't expecting anybody else on that road at that time of night, so he wasn't surprised to see his cousin approaching at a slow, comfortable canter. He was delighted to see him because that meant his plan had work and Victoria was also out of danger.

"Zorro!" Esteban said, halting his horse close to him. "Was it you who got us out of this mess?"

"Yes."

"I owe you my life then, thank you. I hope I can repay you the favour one day."

"You could start paying by not getting in so much trouble, so I don't need to rescue you. However, I also must thank you because if it wasn't for you stopping the alcalde, Victoria would have got many more lashes. How is she?"

"She's fine, don't worry. She is a brave woman. But, what about you? I heard Mendoza shot you, and that you were badly injured."

"It cannot be that bad if I'm here, can it?" As they talked, he could not help it but gradually slouch in the saddle, unable to keep his torso straight for much longer.

"I guess so. But you don't look so good, I have to say. Are you sure you are alright?"

"Yes," Zorro said, leaning to rest on the pommel again.

"Where are you heading? Because you are going so slow you may get there next week."

"I can't tell you where I'm going, and I can't go any faster because Toronado hurt his leg. Now, please, go away," he hissed through his teeth, at the end of his tether.

"Toronado looks fine to me. Please, let me help you."

Zorro groaned then, slouching further, taking his hand to his side again.

"I don't need your help! And even if I did, you can't help me, so please go away before I regret getting you out of jail! Go!" he cried then with his last reserve of strength.

"Alright. Suit yourself. I hope you can get help wherever it is you are going, and you get there safely. Goodbye."

"Adiós."

Esteban urged his horse to start a slow canter again, but soon he slowed him down to a walk, because he wasn't feeling that well himself to keep that pace for much longer, and because he was worried about Zorro. The hacienda was close, so he didn't mind taking a bit longer to reach it. Besides, at that pace he could monitor what Zorro was doing, from the distance, but unfortunately it was a bit difficult to see him in the dark. Toronado was walking slowly behind them, with Zorro bent forward over the pommel, balancing unsteadily on the saddle. Whatever he had said, that man wasn't right; he looked in deep trouble. And he owed him his life, so he had to help him. His horse carried on walking slowly, keeping a regular distance with Toronado, and Esteban kept turning from time to time to check that Zorro was still on the saddle, stretching his sore back every time he did that. At last, one of the times he turned to check on Zorro, he wasn't there. He had disappeared. Esteban turned his horse around and went back a stretch of the road, trying to find him. He couldn't see Zorro anywhere, so he assumed he had left the road to ride cross country to his hiding place, wherever that was. As he could do nothing else for him at that point, and he really wanted to get home to rest, he headed for the hacienda then a little bit faster.

When he arrived there, he found his father still awake in the library. He looked like a mess, with dishevelled hair; red, bloodshot eyes; drinking brandy, and already quite drunk.

"Esteban! You are here!" he cried, hugging him so tight he hurt his back.

"Careful! My back, remember?"

"Oh, sorry. I'm so glad you are free, Son. I thought you'd die tomorrow. I really did. Thank God it's not going to happen! Who got you free?"

"Zorro did."

"Did he? I thought he was badly injured this time."

"And he is. I saw him on the road on the way here. He didn't look good, but he didn't let me help him. He was quite rude, actually, shouting at me, asking me to go away. I hope he is alright."

"I hope so too. Now, Son, I am ashamed to admit this, but I'm a bit tipsy. Help me to my room please, and you go to rest too. How is your back?"

"It aches, but I'm alright. How's Diego?"

"I think he is fine. But the doctor gave him a sedative before and Felipe left a sign on the door. He has been asleep for a while now, getting some needed rest. We didn't want to tell him about you and Victoria, but in the end, he insisted to know, and then he could not stop fretting about it, like the rest of us."

"I see."

He walked his father to his room and on the way there he saw the sign at Diego's door: "Do not disturb." After he left his father safely tucked in bed, he walked to Diego's room and knocked softly on the door. He had no answer, so he walked in carefully and called for him.

"Diego."

The bulge that was resting on that bed, fully covered by the blankets, didn't make a sound, so Esteban walked out of the room again, closing the door carefully. He wanted to tell Diego they had been freed, but he didn't want to wake him up. Someone could tell him the good news in the morning, as soon as he woke up.

Then he headed for his room. In bed, lying on his side, he could not stop thinking about the odd scene that had happened at the jail. Why would Lucía try to frame him like that? Was she already pregnant with someone else's child but she could not marry him? With his vast experience in the matter in Madrid he knew what that meant: the other lover was probably a married man who had no intention to acknowledge or provide for a bastard child, and Lucía was desperate to make herself respectable again. She would only have a short period of time to find a suitable husband, so she would do anything to grab one. If that was the case, he felt sorry for her, but he was fuming because she had chosen him as her victim, and he was especially angry because she had done that Shakespearian, dramatic play in front of Victoria, and now she hated him. Yes, he might have been a despicable womanizer in the past, but not now, and it hurt to be treated like that. The way she had said the word "cerdo" resonated in his head. And, he was sure nobody in his family, with his previous history, would believe him tomorrow morning, because they all thought he was a cerdo, especially his own father. But no matter how sorry he could feel for a desperate, pregnant woman, no way he was going to marry her when he had nothing to do with her problems. Not when he wanted to marry Victoria, if that could ever be possible. That thought led him to Zorro, and he wondered how he was doing. He hoped he had reached his destination, or he was about to, and that someone could help him. And this time, because he had actually offered his assistance and Zorro had rejected his help, if the hero eventually died from his injuries, he would not feel so guilty about trying to woo his girlfriend. Not at all.

ZZZ

When Toronado pressed on the small piece of wood to open the secret door at the cave, Zorro sighed deeply. He had made it to the cave, finally, and now he could rest in bed until the morning, when the doctor would be back to check on him.

Toronado walked through the narrow, dark corridor that led to the cave then, and stopped by the stable. Zorro hesitated, unsure which way to go: lifting his leg over the saddle pommel, or over Toronado's rump? None of the alternatives looked good for him, because he thought he didn't have the strength to do it, and he didn't want to stretch his aching wound while doing it. Reluctant to move, he leaned forward one more time, hissing in pain, resting with his hands on the pommel. As if he knew what his rider's dilemma was, Toronado dropped to his knees while Zorro held onto the pommel, and then lowered his hind quarters as a camel would do. From that position, Zorro let go of the saddle and dropped to one side like a dead weight, not bothering with lifting his leg either way.

"Attaboy, Toronado," Zorro said, sprawled on his back on the floor, catching his breath while he tapped the horse on his side. "What would I do without you?" And Felipe. I hope he arrives soon.

On his back, Diego dragged his body a small distance away from the horse so the black stallion could stand up again without stomping on him accidentally. He took the hat and the mask off and then he gave up on life, lying there semiconscious while waiting for Felipe to help him up.

Felipe didn't take long. He helped Diego to some bark infusion, and then helped him to remove Zorro's clothes. After he took the sash, and then his shirt, Felipe also removed the dressing to check on Diego's wound. His loud gasp made Diego rise a bit on his elbow to have a look.

"What?" Diego said, looking down to his abdomen. "La madre que…! How did that happen?"

He dropped down to the floor then, hitting it with the back of his head, but he didn't care in his desperation. No wonder the wound was so painful now. The doctor had warned him the pure clove oil, although effective to numb the pain for a while, could burn the skin, but he could never imagine it would look like that, not in a million years. He placed a hand over his eyes then, too fed up to carry on living.

"Joder. Joder. Joder… Coño!" he muttered to himself.

Felipe shook his head. He didn't like hearing his mentor using bad words, but he understood perfectly well the frustration he might have felt right then to use them. The skin around the wound look burnt as if someone had applied a live flame to it, and it blended with the blackness of the bruise underneath. It was obvious that wound was going to take a long time to heal now.

Felipe went to collect a bowl with water and some cloths to clean the wound, and a jar of honey to spread it all over the sore area. When he came back Diego was shaking, crying with his eyes still covered by his hand. Felipe took that hand gently and moved it to Diego's side so he could see his signs.

"Please, don't do that. Everything is going to be alright. That will heal, don't worry."

"I know," Diego said, wiping off his tears, letting out a long, tired sigh. "It's not that. It's… It's just… Why everything has to be so complicated? Why not a single thing can ever be easy for me?"

"You saved Victoria and Esteban today. You are a hero. And the hero's path is never easy, is it? You told me that when we read the Odyssey."

"The Odyssey… Yes, this feels like an odyssey already, doesn't it?" Diego said with a sad half-smile. "I'm sorry. I just need a moment to collect myself. Bear with me."

While he did that, Felipe cleaned the wound and applied the honey. He then removed Zorro's boots and trousers, and helped him to sit up to redress the wound. Diego let him do that totally absent-minded, not bothered with the process.

"I'll get your night gown now, so you don't need to change your clothes twice."

"Thank you, Felipe. You always think ahead. I like that."

"I learned from the master," Felipe said with a wink.

Twenty minutes later, Diego was finally resting in bed, totally spent with exhaustion. Felipe had removed the large blanket they had left rolled inside his bed to pretend he had been asleep since the late evening, but he left the "Do not disturb" sign still on the door.

"It's late already. The doctor will be here soon. Should I stay with you until he arrives?"

"No, there is no need for that. I'll be alright. You go to bed and rest. You must be also tired; it's been a long night."

Felipe yawned then, nodding, and left Diego alone in his bedroom.

Before he fell asleep, Diego imagined Victoria's face smiling gratefully at him, as she had done two nights ago when they had that intimate moment in her bedroom. For her, everything was worthy, even an odyssey.

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