Chapter 72 – Diego is back

During the next two days, locked down at the cave with Victoria, Diego really lost count of how many times he failed to keep away from her, over that prodigious, epic, intercourse marathon. In a way, it looked like Mother Nature tried to concentrate in only two days all the love they didn't share over four years, and they both fell hopelessly into that trap of irresistible, physical attraction. But at least, during those intense 48 hours, Diego hardly had time for dispirited, mournful thoughts, which was the whole point of her staying at the cave with him.

His father was right. The honeymoon period was too tiring, and something to do away from everybody else, in a seclude location, preferably far away from anybody the newlywed couple knew, to avoid embarrassment about their lustful craze and lack of willpower. To Diego's analytical mind, the whole thing felt like one of his scientific experiments, like studying the interaction of two people in love, isolated in an enclosed, gloomy and ill-lighted space, with not much to do other than loving each other and sleep, and he was surprised by the outrageous results. No wonder his father had opposed to that kind of test on human behaviour without the shield of a marriage bond, because he knew that kind of thing would happen, beforehand.

However, despite their obsession, occasionally the couple found other ways of entertainment, albeit briefly.

"Look, this is the letter Esteban left for me," Diego said. He was back on his mahogany chair, by the desk, with Victoria sitting on his lap, when he remembered the letter he kept on the top drawer. He got it out and put it on the desk, if front of her. "He wrote it when he came home to collect his weapons, right before he fought the alcalde. Please, read it."

"I didn't know he left a letter."

"Read it."

She took the sheet of paper in her left hand and started reading.

Dear Diego,

If you are reading this, I'll probably be dead or badly injured, and unable to get rid of this embarrassing note before you can read it. Otherwise, it would have never reached your hands.

I am sorry if I didn't succeed today, and I can only hope that if I am dead, I took that son of a bitch to hell with me, so you can have a pleasant and bright future in this pueblo without his presence.

"Oh, no. I can't. This is so sad, reading this," she said after reading a couple of paragraphs, with tears flooding her eyes, spilling them when she got to the third, where he talked about how he could never get the only woman he had ever loved because she belonged to Diego: her.

If my time has come and I had to go, please don't be sad for me. Be happy I got released from this life I don't really want to live. I know I'll never get the only woman I have ever loved, because she has always been yours, and I don't want a life on the run, with the inconvenience of having a seizure at any time. I am through with that life I don't even want to start living.

"Oh, no, I don't know if I can carry on reading this."

"Yes. Come on. I think you should."

"It looks like he killed himself, mainly because of me!" she said, setting the letter down to wipe her tears off.

"That's not true. It was a combination of things. Come on, carry on."

She got the letter again, and the next words made her smile a bit, through the tears.

So, if this is goodbye, don't cry, and be happy, as I want you to be. And don't you dare feeling guilty about anything because this was my choice. I could have followed your advice and stayed at the cave, but the alcalde would have searched the tavern again, finding you there while looking for me, and I could not allow that to happen. I can only hope I somehow won, and you don't need to dress as Zorro ever again.

"See?" Victoria said. "I told you that, I said you should not feel guilty about his death. He says the same."

"Yes, and you shouldn't feel guilty either, see? Ha! Of course he was devastated because he couldn't have you, but his sadness ran much deeper than that."

Take care of Victoria, and your father, and tell them I'm sorry I didn't get to say goodbye. And let my parents know what happened as well, and how their idiotic son did something remotely heroic in the end. Please, especially tell my mother how I regret not helping her and the children as I should have, instead of running away like a coward. If I have to take any regrets with me now, that would be the greatest one. That, and trying to steal your girlfriend. I am so sorry for that.

"What is this about the children? What children?"

"It refers to what happened in Madrid. The secret he didn't want to tell, and why those men nearly killed him, and you, as a collateral. He told me what happened, but I don't think you should know all the details. I can only tell you that, after we are married properly, I would like to go to Madrid to visit his parents, to show them this letter, and I would like to help my aunt Elena in this matter, because he couldn't. As you can read there, he says that his biggest regret in life was not helping her with the children."

"And trying to steal your girlfriend: me."

"Yes, that as well, because he didn't know I loved you until it was too late. Maybe I should have told him the situation from the beginning, and then…"

"No, stop it," she interrupted. "What did I say a million times already? You think too much. Stop torturing yourself with alternative possibilities that didn't happen, please."

"It's easier said than done. I can't help it. So many things could have been different if I had acted differently from the start, like telling him my secret, or at least, that I loved you."

"But it happened like it did, and you can't change it. Now, tell me, what happened to the children?"

"I won't tell you the details, only that they were abused."

"Abused how? Why whom? The Duke?"

"Among others, yes. Esteban saw something, and they tried to kill him several times, to stop him telling others what he saw. That's why he left Spain with his father, and why he came here to Los Angeles, running away from trouble. He didn't think these men would follow him all the way to America, but they did."

"I see. So, that's why they kept asking him who knew while beating him mercilessly, to kill everybody, but he didn't tell them anything. Until he had enough, when he told them almost everybody in the pueblo knew, including the alcalde, but they didn't buy it."

"Yes. I think they believed him when he initially said he told only me, his cousin Diego, and they were planning to get rid of you both and take the road to Monterey to kill me too, right before Zorro found you in that cellar."

"One thing I don't understand is why your aunt Elena stayed behind at Madrid on her own. If this was so dangerous, why they didn't bring her here with them?"

"That's a good question. She volunteers at the orphanage, and she didn't want to leave the children without her protection. She knew what was going on, and she advised his son to disappear for a while, taking his father with him. She told Esteban he shouldn't worry about her, because she was protected by someone else, another powerful figure like that Duke. Ironically, my uncle Emilio thought he was dragging Esteban out of danger against his will, when it was the other way around. Some of the children abused had been taken from the orphanage, the ones my aunt is caring for and protecting from these predators, and she didn't want to leave them."

"But, what can you do about all this, if Esteban couldn't do anything?"

"I don't know yet, but I owe him to try. I know it will be dangerous, but I don't want to have the same regret Esteban had, not helping these children while knowing what happened to them. I don't want to have that same regret at the end of my life. As I said, we can go on the official honeymoon, travelling to Madrid to visit my family, and any members of your family you want to see in Spain, and I'll see what I can do once we are there."

"As Zorro?"

"No. Zorro should have disappeared by then. I don't want anybody making a connection between me and the sudden appearance of Zorro in Madrid. No, not Zorro. Maybe something else."

"All right."

"Anyway, you'll like Spain. And you deserve a better honeymoon than this, locked up in this gloomy cave with me, so when we have the "proper" wedding, we'll have a proper honeymoon as well."

I really hope you have a wonderful life with Victoria. Please, make her happy, and give her the big family she longs for so much. Your father will appreciate that too, greatly. Only one request from you: name one of your sons after me. That will be nice to see from the other side.

So long, smartarse. Take care.

Your idiotic cousin,

Esteban de la Vega

"I'm not disliking this honeymoon so much, you know?" she said, finishing the letter, setting it down on the desk, wiping off the rest of her tears away. "I agree with Esteban. We'll name our first son after him. But I have to get pregnant first," she said, clinging onto his neck to kiss him.

"Seriously? Again?" he asked, surprised when she nodded. "You know I can't get you pregnant yet, until we are officially married, don't you?"

"Yes."

"And, do you realize I am running out of rags to clean up after myself? You are milking me dry, Victoria. Give me a break!" he said with mocked, false dismay, and a wicked smirk.

She laughed then, hugging him.

"I'm sorry, you are right. We should behave from now on. You said you wanted me here for support, not for constant hanky-panky, as your father puts it. But I don't know why I feel like this. I never felt so… I don't how to describe it. Constantly aroused? Yes, like a mare in heat. I can't get enough of you. There must be something in the water."

"Believe me, I feel the same. Like a stallion smelling the mare's heat from the distance, always ready for action."

He raised his head then, curling his upper lip, sniffing the air, and neighed like a stallion showing flehmen, making her roar with laughter. He chortled with her, nibbling the back of her neck as a stallion would do, actually biting her quite hard once. She complained, wriggling to get away from him, but he held her tightly, nibbling and neighing for a while until he let go of her, and they both carried on laughing in stitches until he spoke again.

"However, mi amor, we are humans, not horses, and we know we'll have a long life ahead of us to love each other, so we should calm down a little bit now, don't you think?"

"Yes. Cuddles. We'll do cuddles, vale? Horses can't cuddle, but I love cuddling."

She curled up onto his chest again, playing with the bunch of hairs that had escaped through his open shirt, while he held her in a bear hug. They stayed like that for a while until suddenly he leaned forward, opened the drawer to put the letter back in, and pushed her away from him to stand up, moving the heavy chair back with his legs.

"Sod it. I think I have another spare rag and there is something we haven't tried yet on this desk."

"Really?"

"Oh, yes. Lean on it, please, my mare, and I'll show you what a stallion can do."

The desk surface was now clear, because Diego put all the items away on the lab table during their last battle, so she followed his instructions and lay down on her back.

"No, the other way, lean on your belly, but standing up."

"Like that? And how are we…?"

She didn't have much time to think about anything because in only a few seconds her long skirt was covering her upper body, up to her head, her underwear was at her ankles, and Diego had found his way into her one more time, thrusting again with his hands at her hips before she could say "oh, my!"

Yes. She was enjoying that honeymoon, a lot, even if she had not travelled to Europe yet.

ZZZ

Diego stopped at the entrance of the pueblo to collect himself. He knew the script, he knew the plan he had to follow, and he knew he had to act convincingly when he found out the bad news about his cousin. It would be difficult, but he had to do it, and do it well.

"Come on, boy. Try to look like a normal horse, please, don't show off," he said to the black stallion, pulling from the rope, pressing with his heels to make Esperanza trot the final stretch to the pueblo. He had not groomed Toronado on purpose for the last few days, and Pedro had done a good job spreading mud and dirt on him, so it looked like he had been travelling for a few days, unkept. In the meantime, while he did that, Pablo rode Esperanza hard to make her work out a sweat, to make her look tired after the long journey. As for Diego, he already looked worn off and sleep deprived after all that hard work at the cave, so he didn't need to pretend to look weary.

It was market day, and the plaza was busy, with people buzzing around the stalls. When he arrived, they all looked at him, admiring the black horse. Some people saluted him, most of them with a sad face, but nearly all commented on how similar that horse looked to Toronado. He stopped at the tavern, dismounted, and tied both horses to the rail.

"Good morning, Don Diego. You finally made it back," Sergeant Mendoza said, also with a sad face, avoiding his eyes.

"Good morning, Sergeant. Yes, it took me a while, but I'm back with the doctor's medicines. I'm sorry it took me so long, but it's a long journey to Monterey," Diego said, taking the large parcel from the black horse's saddle.

"You've got a magnificent horse there. He looks like the spitting image of Toronado," Mendoza said. "Where did you get it from?"

"He does, doesn't he? I saw him at the horse market there, at a very good price, and I couldn't resist buying him. Maybe I can teach him some tricks, like the real Toronado," he said, patting the horse's neck.

"What's his name?"

"Azabache."

"That's a nice name," Mendoza said, still unable to smile.

"What's up with the long face? Is there anything wrong, Sergeant?"

"No. Well, yes. No. Ahhh… Look, there's your father!" Mendoza said when Don Alejandro came out of the tavern, happy to shuffle off not telling him anything about the tragedy.

"Diego, my son, you are here!" Don Alejandro said, hugging him tightly, rather too clingy.

"Yes, Father, I'm back. I'm also happy to see you, but it's not as if I'm returning from war, is it?" he said, pretending to be bemused by his father's odd attitude, aware of the people looking at them expectantly, waiting for his reaction when he would hear the bad news. "Look, I got a new stallion. Do you like him? Too good a bargain not to buy it, only 1000 pesos. I think the reason for that is because he is very stubborn, and difficult to ride. Apparently, he bolts all the time, so I'll have to be careful with him."

"He looks like Toronado."

"All black horses look alike, Father. And, unless Zorro was in Monterey selling his horse at the market, it can't be," Diego said, chuckling. "I got this parcel for the doctor. Is he at home this morning?"

"I don't know."

"Let me see if he is there. Otherwise, I'll leave this at the tavern for him, and then we can have a drink, and go home. I'm tired. It is a long way, and I'm not used to so much riding."

He crossed the street then, carrying the parcel, feeling everyone's compassionate looks on him. They obviously felt for him, and he couldn't imagine how devastated he would have been if he found out about Esteban's death like that, for real.

When he knocked at the door, the doctor opened it, letting him in.

"How are you doing?"

"So far, so good. Everybody is talking about the black horse that looks like Toronado."

"Good. Carry on then. And, by the way, thanks for the delivery."

"I should have given you all this stuff before, because it was only my fault I broke your equipment, but sorry, I didn't think about it until now."

"Don't worry, it's better this way. It suits the plan better."

"All right. I'll go to the tavern then to find out about Esteban. Gosh, that's going to be painful."

"Good luck."

Diego walked back across the plaza and entered the tavern with his father, with the excuse of having a drink.

"Victoria, are you all right? What happened to your arm?"

Victoria also hugged him, welcoming him back, looking very sad.

"I had an accident. The chandelier fell, nearly hitting me, but I got out of the way, landing badly on the floor, and I broke my arm. But it's nothing, don't worry. How are you? I am so glad you have returned."

"Thank you. I'm so sorry to hear that. Does it hurt a lot?"

"A little bit, but don't worry about it. You look tired, and thirsty. Would you like a glass of fresh lemonade?"

"Yes, please, that would be nice."

The way everybody was looking at their table, while whispering, would have felt very spooky if he didn't know what was going on beforehand. Diego drank the lemonade sitting at a table with Felipe and his father. When he asked the question, everybody stood still, in silence, so quiet you could have heard a pin drop.

"Where is Esteban?"

"Diego, there is something I must tell you," Don Alejandro said, swallowing hard, in a superb performance of grief, because it was still so real. "But I don't know how to."

"What? What is it? What's going on? And why is everybody looking at us?" he said, lowering his voice, but the people on the nearest tables could still hear him, immediately looking the other way.

"Diego, your cousin is not here… because he is dead."

"What? Dead? What are you taking about?"

"I am sorry, Son. He died five days ago."

"Are you for real?" Diego said, looking very upset, as expected. "It can't be! How? How did that happen?"

"He died in a swordfight with the alcalde. He killed him."

"What? I'm going to kill that bastard!"

"Diego, Ramón is also dead. They killed each other."

"But Esteban could not fight because he would have a fit! I don't believe any of this. Please, tell me the truth," Diego said, faking denial.

"That's the truth, Diego," Victoria said, coming back to their table. "A few things happened while you were gone. The alcalde got crazy, dragging me out of the tavern in a bad way, and Esteban confronted him. Ramón shot him in the arm, and they ended up in a swordfight. At the end, they both hit the other with their sword, badly, and they both died very quickly, out there, at the plaza. The doctor could do nothing for them."

Diego only needed to look at the table where he saw Esteban lying for the last time, that was now covered with a table cloth, due to the stubborn blood stain that Victoria could not lift away, and fresh, very real tears automatically spilled from his eyes. He stood up quickly, choking with the emotion, shaking his head.

"No. I don't believe you. You are lying!"

"Why would we be lying to you, Diego?" his father said, also standing up. "I'm so sorry, but it's true: Esteban is dead. We'll visit his grave if you want when you calm down."

"Now! Take me there now!"

They left the tavern, with a crowd of curious people following them, with some of the women crying as much as Diego was, sharing his grief. At the cemetery, Diego broke down, crying in his father's arms, releasing his deep sorrow for real, not having to pretend because he had not seen Esteban's grave yet. Not a single soul at that pueblo had the fleeting thought that there could be any kind of foul play in that performance.

ZZZ

The De la Vegas headed home, to the hacienda, but not far after they left the pueblo, Diego left the road to meet Pedro and Pablo at the agreed spot, close to that abandoned building where the men from Madrid had tortured Esteban and Victoria. The memories of that place gave him a chill, but he didn't have much time to waste in those daunting thoughts.

They waited for him close to a flat cart where they kept Toronado's tack and Zorro's clothes under a sheet, all covered with hay on top.

"Come on, get Toronado ready, quick," Diego said, dismounting Esperanza to change into Zorro's clothes while Pedro and Pablo worked fast, grooming the black horse with their brushes to restore his usual, pristine condition. When Toronado's coat was back to his shiny, silky appearance, they put his tack on. It took less than five minutes.

"Good luck now," Pedro said, when Zorro was ready to mount his stallion.

"I'll see you at the hacienda. Thank you," Zorro said from the saddle, heading back to the pueblo at a furious gallop.

ZZZ

"Zorro, I made up my mind. I can't carry on in a hopeless relationship with you, because I can't stand this anymore," Victoria said at the kitchen, loudly enough so everybody could hear her from the main room, beyond the curtains.

"You are not going to accept the proposal of that daddy's boy, popinjay De la Vega, are you?

"How dare you? Don Diego no es un niño de papa! There's nothing wrong with him, and yes, that possibility has crossed my mind many times, but that is none of your business!"

"You can do better than that! It's so distasteful of you to leave me for such a wimp! If you had left me for someone like his cousin instead, maybe I could have understood! At least he had guts!"

"Get out of my sight! And don't you ever mention Don Esteban. He is dead because of you, because you didn't deal with the alcalde properly when you had the chance!"

Mendoza could not believe his ears. That was not the kind of conversation a newlywed couple should have. Not at all. He stood up and walked to the kitchen, passing through the curtains.

"Sergeant Mendoza! What the hell are you doing here! This is a private conversation. Get out!" Victoria cried.

"It cannot be that private when you are screaming the place down," Mendoza said. "What are you playing at? I saw the priest marrying you here only a couple of nights ago. And you looked so much in love then. What happened?"

"How do you know that?" Zorro asked, serious, lowering his volume to a whisper.

"I saw you. From the window."

"Mendoza, you are killing me," Zorro said, with his face buried on a face-palm. "You cannot be serious. It cannot be."

"Yes, I am serious. You are married, so you can't fight like this, and Señorita, you can't seriously be talking about accepting Don Diego now. It's too late!"

"I can't believe this!" Victoria said, looking at Zorro. "We'll have to tell him."

"Tell me what?"

"Sergeant, please, remember you shot me and I never came back to you on that one, so you owe me one. Please, keep this to yourself, and don't interfere, whatever happens next. Can you do that? Can you help me on this? Are you really my friend?"

"Yes, I think so. What's going on?"

"Do you swear I can trust you with my secret?"

"Yes, of course, Zorro. I won't tell anyone. What is it?"

"We are pretending, having a public break-up on our relationship, so I can court Victoria as myself. We are already married, to the eyes of the Lord, yes, but we can't just translate that into a real affair, with my real me, until we convince the people that she is interested in me. The real man behind the mask."

It was obvious the little wheels in Mendoza's brain were turning until something clicked, and he looked at Zorro with his jaw dropped.

"Don Diego?"

Zorro took off the hat and the mask to let him see his face, and Mendoza gasped, sitting down in the closest chair, exactly as the priest had done.

"Madre de Dios! No way!"

"Yes, way. I know, it's unbelievable, but that was the plan. Now, please, I need your help. I need you to keep quiet about all this. Never let out the fact that we are married already, never reveal my identity, and let us continue with the plan. Zorro will disappear, and I'll court Victoria until we can get married officially, in a public ceremony. Can you do that, please? With the alcalde gone, Zorro will no longer be necessary in this pueblo, and I really want to hang up the black clothes and have a life with the woman I love."

The sergeant nodded, still with his mouth open, like on a trance, and Zorro put the mask and the hat back on.

"I know it would be asking too much that you keep completely quiet about this, with your penchant for gossiping, so I'll tell you who else knows about this, so you can talk to any of them, in private, if you feel the need." He extended his gloved hand and counted one by one, using his fingers: "Padre Benítez, Doctor Hernández, my father, Felipe, and the carpenters that helped at the tavern, Pedro and Pablo. That's it. Nobody else knows, and these are too many already."

"I won't say anything about this, ever. I swear. You can trust me, Zorro… ah... Don Diego."

"If you ever see me dressed in black like this, don't address me as Don Diego, please. Ever. Very important."

"Yes, of course, don… Sorry, Zorro, I mean."

Good Lord, Zorro thought, rolling his eyes.

"Now, you have to shout at me, defending Victoria, and ask me firmly to go away. Loudly, so people can hear you. Can you do that?" Zorro said.

"I can try, yes."

"Go on then. Show us."

"Zorro, leave señorita Escalante alone, or I'll be forced to take a side in this argument! Leave now or I'll arrest you!" Mendoza shouted so everybody could hear him at the other side of the curtain, while Zorro nodded approvingly.

"Sergeant, if you interfere in this matter, the next time you need my help, I'll look the other way!" Zorro shouted.

"Call the lancers now!" he whispered then, urging the sergeant to act.

"Lancers! Arrest Zorro!" Mendoza shouted.

"Attaboy," Zorro whispered, heading for the back door.

All the lancers present in the tavern came through the curtains then, to give chase to Zorro, who exited the tavern quickly, whistling for Toronado.

"Chase him!" Mendoza cried.

When all the soldiers left the tavern, running behind Zorro, the bewildered sergeant asked Victoria:

"How did I do?"

"Magnificent, Sergeant. Brilliant performance. Thank you. Thank you," she said, kissing his cheek.

Mendoza took a hand to the spot she had kissed, with a self-satisfied smile on his face, muttering to himself.

"Yes. Magnificent. Brilliant."

ZZZZZ