Diego felt the heat from the sun through Zorro's black clothing as his cape flew outward around him as he and Toronado raced towards their destination. He began to slow Toronado down so that perhaps he could sneak into the pueblo. It wouldn't do him any good to fly into the pueblo at full speed with a trail of dust still flying out from Toronado's feet. That would definitely attract too much attention. DeSoto would be waiting for him if he wasn't careful.

He eased his faithful companion into a slow and gentle gait as he prepared to enter into the congested area. Suddenly he heard a lot of commotion behind him. He turned to see Victoria desperately trying to get control of her wagon as the horses pulling it were out of control and running for their lives at full speed. Her wagon flew past him into the pueblo straight for the crowd of people.

He urged Toronado to run as he chased after the manic horses. As Toronado was at a full gallop beside the wagon he leapt up onto one of the panicking horses. He quickly worked to calm the bewildered horse down and spoke to it in a soothing voice. He had always been a bit of a horse whisperer. With the horses now standing still he slipped down off of the horse. Victoria rushed into his arms and slipped her arms around his waist.

"Diego, you saved me," she whispered against his ear.

She had surprised him with the use of his real name even though he was disguised as Zorro, fooling everyone else.

"What caused the horses to become so spooked," he asked her as he stepped over to examine them.

"They heard a rattlesnake," she answered as she shook from disgust.

Upon examination the horses seemed to be unharmed and in a completely relaxed state now that he had stopped them from panicking. The crowd had turned to watch the excitement. He had an audience, which of course was interfering with his plans. Suddenly he heard fast paced walking and looked up to see DeSoto.

"What is the meaning of this?" DeSoto demanded an explanation from them.

An idea to humiliate DeSoto came to him as he grabbed a small portion of rope from her wagon.

"The horses seemed to have been spooked by a rattlesnake," he replied as he tossed the rope at DeSoto.

The alcalde began to tap dance and scream repeatedly as the rope bounced off of his mid thigh.

He smiled as DeSoto's eyes had begun to glaze over. The arrogant man fell backwards, landing in the road as he passed out. DeSoto's concerned men quickly picked him up to remove him from the road and into his bedroom.

"It was good to see you Victoria, but I have some work to do," he informed her just before lifting her hand to his lips for a quick moment of affection.

"I hope to see you again soon Zorro," he heard her call out.

He began to work quickly in DeSoto's office searching through drawers and even random spaces. He suddenly spotted the cash box haphazardly hidden under a stack of papers.

"I can't believe how he practically left it in plain sight," he said out loud to the empty room.

He knew that he had to work quickly before the soldiers discovered Zorro in the alcalde's office. He emptied the contents of the cash box into his boot. He replaced what he took with several worthless rocks. Just before putting the cashbox back where he had found it, he made sure to carve a Z into the inside of the lid. After leaving his calling card on the stolen object, he snuck out of the pueblo to find Toronado. He was determined to ensure that the recovered contents of the strong box reached Don Luis. The man was an honest and fair gentleman who would return the contents to the proper authorities. Toronado raced against the uneven terrain until he reached his destination.

The sun was beginning to set in the sky as he handed the contents of the recovered cash box to Don Luis.

"Gracias Zorro, I will make sure that this gets taken to the rightful owners," the man replied.

He knew that he could trust the man as he was a loyal friend of his father. With a wave of his hand he turned Toronado around and began to ride back to the pueblo. Under the cover of the darkening sky he quietly led Toronado to a secluded spot just beyond the pueblo.

"I will most likely be here for a while my friend, go ahead and find a safe place to graze," he whispered to Toronado.

Toronado seemed to have nodded his head as he sauntered away to find a safe place to wait for his companion to return.

Ever so quietly, Diego, still shielded by his mask, walked through the pueblo towards DeSoto's office. As he neared the office he could already hear the sound of a frustrated and angry conversation. He had other plans that did not involve a confrontation, and ever so carefully got close to the door of the office and began to eavesdrop.

"One day I am going to throttle Zorro and find out who he is," DeSoto could be heard saying.

"Si, alcalde," Mendoza's voice was heard.

The sound of boots pacing back and forth indicated that the alcalde was indeed disturbed.

"I shall rip the mask off of his face and shave off that darn mustache from his smug face with a sword just before hanging him," DeSoto growled as he banged what sounded like his desk.

He had to stifle his laughter as he decided to continue on to his visit with Victoria.

He quietly crept into the tavern and into the kitchen where he began to fix himself an evening meal. He did not plan to return to the hacienda just yet and needed to take care of his hunger. As he quietly ate in the corner of the kitchen he listened to Victoria's voice as it carried through the building. Just hearing her speak was enough to stir sensations in him that he desperately wished that he could take care of. He found himself thinking of cleaning horse excrement from his boots in an effort to redirect his mind from how her voice had affected him.

"Boots and caca, boots and caca, boots and caca," he continued to repeat to himself.

Victoria walked into the kitchen and did not notice him. He ever so quietly stepped behind her and slipped his arms around her, and then softly kissed her neck.

"Oh Zorro, I was not expecting you to be in here," she said as she jumped.

"Is that a bad thing mi amor," he whispered as his lips grazed her ear.

"No, it is not, but we must get you out of here," Victoria answered him.

She grabbed his hand and led him to the stairs as she looked around to make sure that no one was looking. They snuck up the stairs undetected as she led him to her room.

"Stay here and wait for me," she commanded just before he pulled her in for one last kiss.

Victoria left him waiting in her room as she dealt with the last of the customers.

Diego removed Zorro's hat and placed it on her wash stand. He decided to make himself comfortable while he waited for her to return. He walked over to the bed in the room and began to remove his boots. If there were any complications that needed his attention he could quickly slip back into them. He removed his sword and gently placed it on his boots where it would be just within his reach. He continued to remove the rest of the objects from his body until only his mask and clothing remained. He sat down on the bed and imagined how it would feel to sleep in the bed with her. He knew exactly how beautiful she looked when she slept, but he had yet to sleep beside her in a bed. A silent yawn escaped from his lips. He leaned back on the bed and fell asleep as he waited for her return.

When the tavern had grown quiet Victoria returned to her room. The sound of the door opening and closing caused Diego to open his eyes and quickly assess the situation around him. He relaxed when he saw that Victoria was alone.

She locked the door and then faced him as she asked, "Do you mind if I put on something more comfortable than this to sleep in?"

"Go right ahead," he urged her.

He turned away from her, but still heard the sounds from her clothing being removed. It took all of his effort not to turn around and look at her.

"All done," she announced as she joined him on her bed.

He took her in his arms and held her close to him. Victoria began to remove his mask again as there was no more need for it between them. Diego began to discuss his day with her. He told her about the emotional discussion with his father and how his father had finally accepted him for himself. He informed her about finding the cash box and filling it with rocks and relayed what DeSoto had been overheard saying that he wanted to do to him. Victoria immediately placed her hand over his mouth.

"He better not touch your mustache, because I enjoy the way that it tickles me when you kiss me!" she excitedly replied before removing her hand.

She immediately replaced it with a teasing kiss. When she kissed him it was as if a spark had lit a fire and he was the kindling. His heart began beating faster and the heat he felt surging through his body began to make him feel his self control begin to slip. He began to slowly and sensually caress her jaw line with only his fingertips and then caressed his way down to her shoulder where he placed a hot and branding kiss as if he was marking her for himself. Her scent was turning his brain to mush as he found himself deliberately kissing his way back up towards her collar bone where he suddenly leaned in and allowed his tongue to take over as he continued to trace the curve of her neck to where he stopped just below her delicate ear. Victoria had roughly grabbed a fist full of his hair and was breathing heavily.

Diego realized that he was at the edge of finding himself no longer in control. He planted a very light kiss on her lips and then lifted himself off of her.

"I must stop now before we can no longer behave ourselves," he informed Victoria as the disappointment spread across her face.

"I suppose you are right," she reluctantly agreed.

He closed his eyes and waited with frustration for his body to settle while continuing to hold her. As his body finally settled he found himself suddenly

feeling fatigued as he fell asleep against her.