Chapter 48 – Not what it looks like
"I think it's time you launch the search, Alcalde. My nephew has been missing for more than six hours now, and Victoria and Felipe have also disappeared."
"It will be a waste of time and effort if we do that tonight. We'll have to wait until the morning. It's too dark now to search efficiently, and too late. Half of the garrison is asleep already, and so should I. And you."
"What the hell do you mean too late?!" the old don cried, going ballistic. "Excuse my language, but you didn't want to launch a search party this evening, while still on daylight, and you wanted to wait at least four hours, and now… are you seriously telling me it is too dark for that?! I can't believe your bullshit!"
"De la Vega, shut your mouth! I'll launch the search party tomorrow morning only if you get out of my sight right now! It's late, and I have more important things to do than listening to your nonsense. Goodnight."
"You have outdone yourself tonight. Your incompetence is outrageous! I'll talk to the Governor, and…"
"Mendoza! Get Don Alejandro out of my office and tell señor Berlanga he can come in! Now!"
ZZZ
Zorro smiled while listening to his father's rant. Crouched by the opening in the ceiling, he could hear everything going on at the alcalde's office, especially if they shouted so much.
"Why are you here again?" the alcalde said to the new visitor. "I have been really cooperative, but this is the third time you seek my help. I'm getting tired of your questions."
"What's going on with Esteban de la Vega and that tavern wench? His back is covered with scars. How did he get whipped? She said you did it, to both of them. Did you?"
"I flogged them both, yes."
"Why? Questioning then for information?"
"No. Her, mainly to annoy Zorro. Him, just for kicks, because he is an obnoxious son of a bitch who always gets on my way."
"He said you know what happened at Madrid. Do you?"
"With your boss, the Duke of Cádiz? I have no idea. He is lying."
"He said you and everybody else in this pueblo knows, including that Sergeant of yours."
Ramón laughed then.
"Believe me, when that fool of Mendoza knows anything about anything, the whole pueblo knows pretty soon, that's for sure. But in this case, the same as me, he doesn't know much about your boss. Esteban is lying to buy more time to save his arse, obviously. If he told anyone, it would be his cousin Diego, but he went to Monterey, so you'll have to go there to question him or wait until he returns."
"Yes, you said that. One more question: why is that building's cellar full of metals rings? I wonder, because it looks like the perfect dungeon for torturing someone. And thank you for that suggestion, by the way."
"That was an attempt to build a huge larder room for the whole pueblo, for cool storage under the permanent shadow of the trees. But it was a total failure, because the place kept flooding and the food kept getting ruined, and it was always mouldy. They used the rings to hang the meat and the chorizos, I think. I don't know; that was a long time ago. I wasn't posted in this hell of a place back then. Probably, I wasn't even born when it was built."
"That's what I thought it was, thank you."
"Anything else?"
"No."
"Goodnight then. It's late, and I want to retire for the night. Finish what you came to do, and clean up the mess after, please. You know what I mean."
By the time Carlos left the alcalde's office, Zorro had left his advantage point at the roof already. He knew perfectly well which derelict building they were talking about, and he wasted no time to get there.
ZZZ
Zorro could hear laughter down at the cellar. He carefully walked downstairs, silent as a mouse, with his sword ready for action. When he got to the bottom, he saw the two men talking while looking at the prisoners at the other side of the cellar. He could not believe his eyes when he saw the couple kissing under the grim circumstances, but he recovered quickly from that shock and attacked the captors, delivering a couple of hard blows from behind with his sword hilt. Then he dragged the unconscious bodies out of the way, away from the stairs, before he approached the prisoners, who looked at him with their mouth wide open.
"Zorro, how good to see you!" Esteban managed to say quite casually, but then he continued in a more apologetic tone when Zorro kept staring at him sternly. "I'm sorry, but this is not what it looks like."
"I know what it looks like and I know what it is, so don't try to sugar-coat it. Don't insult my intelligence, please," Zorro said, cutting the rope over Esteban's head with a swift move of his sword, as if willing to behead him.
Damn it, Victoria. Only 24 hours since you dumped me... And what was Felipe all about saying you love me? Why on earth did I believe that? Zorro thought while cutting her rope more carefully. Did he made that up, fearing that otherwise I would not bother helping him, or you?
She looked at him, flustered and probably bright red with embarrassment, but he couldn't appreciate that skin tone in the dark. She looked so contrite and guilty she couldn't say a word, not even "gracias."
"Don't fret," Zorro said. "There is no need to be so upset. I will only say congratulations, if this is what you really want."
"But you don't underst…" she started, but Zorro put a finger on her lips when he heard footsteps over the ceiling.
"Shhh. Quiet now. Pretend you are still tied up," he whispered. While they put their hands back up, as if held by an invisible rope, Zorro walked quickly to get under the stairs, where he waited until Carlos hopped down the steps. When he was close to the bottom, Zorro grabbed his leg from behind and made him fall on his face. Then, before he could stand up or get his weapons, he knocked him unconscious with a mighty punch to his face, a blow that help him vent some of his frustration and anger.
"Are you both all right?" he said, walking back to the prisoners to untie their hands.
"I am, thank you," Victoria said, standing up. "They hardly touched me, but he got quite a battering."
"I can see that," Zorro said, cutting the rope around Esteban's ankles. "Can you walk?"
"I think so, thank you," he said, grabbing Zorro's gloved hand to get up, but he soon discovered that was easier said than done, as he could hardly stand, let alone walk.
"I'll help you," Zorro said, passing Esteban's arm over his shoulder. He didn't like the hissing sound his cousin let out when he held him up while supporting his waist with the other hand. He probably had some broken ribs, but unfortunately, he would have to bear with all that pain because there was no other way to get him upstairs unless Zorro carried him in his arms, as he would do with a fainted lady, but Esteban would never allow him to do that in front of Victoria.
"You can do it, come on," Victoria said to encourage him. "I know you can."
"Mind the steps. One at a time. That's it," Zorro said while dragging Esteban upstairs, supporting most of his weight, as he could hardly place his feet right on the steps.
"What do we do now?" Victoria said when they got out of that building.
"Wait here one moment while I tie them up. Then, we'll ride to the tavern," he said while helping Esteban to sit down. "Can you ride?"
"I don't have a choice, do I?" Esteban said, grimacing while taking a hand to his bruised side.
"No, unless you want to wait here for help, but we can't get a carriage through the wood, so you'll still have to walk or ride to reach the road," Zorro said. "Or we can use a stretcher."
"I think I'll rather ride, thank you. The sooner I get out of here to see doctor Hernández, the better."
"All right, wait here while I deal with them."
"What are you going to do with them?" Victoria said.
"Bring them to Justice for kidnapping and torturing you both, of course."
"I don't think that's a good idea," Esteban said. "They will carry on chasing me until they kill me. And her, and my cousin. They won't stop. Besides, I think the alcalde is involved in this too."
"What do you want me to do? Kill them all instead?"
"I'll do it, if you are so reluctant. Can I borrow your sword?" Esteban said, trying to stand up.
"Don't be ridiculous. You can hardly stand up, let alone handling a sword. And these men should have a fair trial. Sit down, stay there and let me deal with this my way."
Borrow my sword to kill them? For fuck sake, Esteban! Zorro thought while coming back to the cellar. Can you annoy me even more? Although, he had the nagging feeling his cousin was right, because Ramón was definitely involved.
ZZZ
Victoria and Esteban rode their captors' horses because they didn't have their own. The ride back to the pueblo was very uncomfortable for Esteban, but at least he only had to concentrate on staying up the saddle and not guiding the horse, because Zorro held the rein for him.
At the tavern, Zorro helped Esteban to get upstairs, to one of the guest rooms, walking carefully around the mess on the upper floor.
"What happened here? You'll need help to repair all this," Zorro said.
"Don't worry about it. I'll have it sorted as soon as I can," Victoria said.
While Zorro helped Esteban to the bed, Victoria went to get the doctor. Felipe was already there, waiting for any news. When they returned, Victoria gasped when she saw the large amount of bruises covering Esteban's torso and back. His face looked bad enough, with a black eye, a swollen, bleeding nose and a matching mouth, but she could never imagine it would look so bad under his shirt.
"Oh, my God! What have they done to you? Are you alright?"
"No, not really. It hurts, inside," he said. The doctor examined him then, prodding his ribs while he whimpered in pain. "Yes, doctor, right there. That's the spot. Please, leave it! You are killing me!"
"You have a few broken ribs this time, I'm afraid," Doctor Hernández said, standing up. "They will take a long time to heal, and I don't know how much damage all that pounding had done inside. I'll apply some arnica ointment all over the bruises first, and then I'll support your ribs with a tight dressing, all right? That, lots of rest and time would do. Now, Zorro, can I talk to you for a moment?"
"Yes, sure."
"Victoria, can you please start applying the ointment?"
"Me? I'm not sure if I should... Is that appropriate?"
Really? Are you kidding me? Zorro and Esteban thought at the same time, looking at her.
"Oh, well, don't worry if you feel uncomfortable with that. Can you do it instead, Felipe? I'll be back in a moment."
They got out of that room and went to the next one, and the doctor closed the door behind them.
"What are you doing here? You are supposed to be resting, away from any worries. And away from them!" the doctor whispered.
"I know! But I couldn't leave them on their own, could I? If I got there only twenty minutes later than I did, they would probably be dead."
"What are you going to do now? Are you going back to that cottage?"
"Not right now. I still have to bring the kidnappers to jail. And then, I'll see what I do. I'll probably stay at the cave tonight."
"That will probably be wiser, yes. How are you holding on? How are the cravings?"
"Still there. I'd die for a boost of the coca leaves, to be honest."
"Well… Tough. You are not having any," the doctor said, with a faint attempt at humour. "Take it easy, all right?"
"Thank you, doctor. Take care of Esteban. I think he is hurting more than he wants to let on."
"He looks pretty bad, yes. I'll do my best, don't worry. At least he hasn't got any open, penetrating injuries to treat, only the bruises and the broken ribs. And those just need time to heal. And rest."
"Good luck keeping him quiet. Same as me, I'm afraid. It must be in our blood," Zorro joked. "I have to go back to get these men now. If I leave them there too long, they may try to break the bonds and escape. I'll see you later."
"Be careful."
After Zorro left, the doctor returned to Esteban's room. Felipe had finished applying the ointment all over the bruised skin already, and he was waiting for more instructions.
"Good job, Felipe. Now, Esteban, lift your arms, take a deep breath, and don't move or breathe out while I dress your ribs. It will be tight and uncomfortable, but it has to be done."
When he finished with the dressing, he examined his bruised, swollen face, paying attention to the nose, which wasn't broken, and the blackened eye.
"They used pliers to pull one of my teeth," Esteban said. "It still hurts. A lot. Please, have a look."
"Open your mouth." Doctor Hernández looked at Esteban's mouth as if he was a horse. When he saw the damage to that tooth his jaw clenched automatically in anger, and he shook his head. "Part of the root is still there. I am afraid I will have to dig it out at some point, or it will always cause you pain. But don't worry, not tonight. You had enough for now," he said, patting Esteban's upper arm gently. He got to his bag then and rummaged inside, until he got a small bottle, which brought back memories of a certain nasty burn.
"Use clove oil in you broken tooth," he said, handing Esteban the bottle. "It will soothe the pain nicely. Put some in your finger and dab it all around the area."
"Ah, that feels good. Thanks, Doctor," he said, happy to be able to numb that source of pain, if not the others. He had taken some bark infusion already, and rested his head on the pillows, trying to find a comfortable enough posture on the bed. At least he didn't have any stingy whiplashes on his back. That had been a lucky escape. "Please, tell me when Zorro is back. I don't trust the Alcalde. I think he'll let these men walk free," he said before he fell asleep, exhausted.
ZZZ
"Why did you abduct Don Esteban and señorita Victoria?" Zorro asked the leader. The three men had their hands and feet bonded, and sat against the wall in the cellar.
"That is none of your business," was the harsh reply he got from Carlos.
"Anything that happens in this pueblo and its citizens is my business," Zorro said, punching that man's mouth. He wasn't in favour of torture, but in this case, he was willing to do an exception. Especially after what that man had done to his cousin.
"Bastard! I'm telling you nothing."
"It may not be necessary. After all, I know all about the Duke of Cádiz," Zorro bluffed.
"How do you know? Did that sneaky son of a bitch tell you?"
"I know everything that happens in this pueblo. That's how I knew where to find them. Now, get up, you are going for a ride."
When Zorro leaned to release his feet so he could walk upstairs, Carlos kicked his face, and while the masked bandit fell to the floor, dazed, he made a run for the stairs.
ZZZZZ
AN – Of course he had to walk in and see them kissing! LOL (how could I miss that opportunity for more angst? No way. Ha.)
Now, sorry for the cliff hanger, but this chapter was getting stupidly long, so I had to split it. I'll try to post the next chapter shortly. As always, thanks for your nice reviews.