"Doctor Hernandez!" The Count calledafter the man when the mass ended that Sunday, after apologizing to Don Alejandro and to Victoria, who had been sitting next to him.

"He won't marry you, my dear! A Count may entertain the thought of having an innkeeper for a mistress, but he will never unite his destiny to yours!" Doña Maria, the pueblo's self-appointed matchmaker told Victoria as she watched her glancing after the young man and Don Alejandro, who had headed for some of his friends.

"And I do not expect him to!" The innkeeper told her, offended.

Truth be told, by then, she was feeling rather hurt by the young man's decision to simply forget what had happened between them that night they had spent together at the mill. The Count had never brought up the subject since then, despite doing all in his power to make sure they'd spend both Christmas and New Years' Eve together.

"You are still young, my dear. You should find yourself a good husband and have little ones. You won't be beautiful forever, you know?"

Victoria glanced back at her. If looks could kill, the older women would have died in an instant. "I will marry if and when I feel ready to!" She replied.

"Don't tell me you're still waiting for Don Diego! My dear, he's dead and buried! He's not coming back to you. No man can come back from the dead!"

"I very well know that, Señora!"

"Then? You are not infatuated with Zorro, are you? *Champions of liberty have never been good providers! The pay is dreadful.* He might like you, but have you any idea what sort of man he is when he isn't wearing that mask?"

Victoria looked daggers at her, but didn't say a word.

"Just let me introduce to you some good men, who will help you consider your alternatives. Victoria, my dear, it's time to leave the past behind and think about your future."

"I… I'll consider it, and let you know!" Victoria retorted, then excused herself and exited the church, heading for her tavern, passing by Don Alejandro.

"I doubt the Count would sell for less than his investment, but why not ask, at least?" One of the haciendados was suggesting to the elderly don.

"I am not sure I want him to sell. If he sells, he might decide to leave. And, truth be told, I enjoy his company. Besides, what am I to do all by myself in such a big house? No, my friends! I'm better off with Don Sebastian there." Don Alejandro replied, glancing at the young man, who was in a discussion with the doctor, Fariz by his side.

"Are you sure that's what this is?" The nobleman asked after the doctor took a good look at the powder he had shown him.

"Yes… I recognize the subtle smell. It has almost no taste, but the smell is quite unique. It was once used to relieve the pain of young pregnant women when the labor was almost certain to cause their death. It would help them fall into a deep sleep so that the doctor could perform a caesarian. If the child came, and the mother survived, all the better. If not, they'd depart this world with less pain than they would have felt had they continued enduring the agony.

"In time, some doctors started using it during all surgeries, and even prescribed it as a pain reliever. Then, some 30 years ago, a doctor in Catalunya realized that it led to infertility and, eventually, to death. All women who were administered even a small dose of this would, without exception, die some 14 or 15 years later, all due to a similar form of gut cancer."

"Gut cancer?" The young man uttered. "Don Alejandro's wife died of gut cancer…"

"Yes… Indeed… But I doubt it's in any way related. When the deadly effect of this substance was discovered, most doctors stopped using it. A few years later it was completely forbidden by royal decree. Frankly, I am rather surprised you managed to get your hands on some… You should destroy it, though, before someone takes it by mistake."

The Count nodded, then glanced at Risendo, who was escorting his mother to their carriage. A black lace covered the woman's face, as it usually was the case when she when she left the hacienda, and the young man found himself remembering some of his father's words.

ZZZ

"If she was, indeed, the midwife who helped bring me into this world, what if she is also responsible for my mother's death? What if she gave her this powder?" Diego mused a few days later, saying out loud the ideas that had been spinning in his head lately.

"But why? Didn't your grandfather once say you came rather fast?"

"Five hours," Diego acknowledged. "He also said I was smaller than he thought I would be."

"Then why would she have poisoned your mother, if the birth wasn't difficult?"

"I don't know… The doctor said the substance was initially used to induce a deep sleep in pregnant women, so that doctors might perform a caesarian – the procedure being usually deadly for the mother-to-be, not to mention, extremely painful."

"Perhaps she wanted to steal you." Emmanuel reasoned.

"Steal me?"

"Well, yes! If the potion could put a woman to sleep while giving birth, perhaps the idea was for this Inez to take the child, replace it with a still-born infant, maybe, and tell the mother it was born dead while she took the baby."

"Yet she didn't take me… She just vanished…" Diego pointed out.

"Yes… Just like that maid who had later been found dead. Would it be possible that the young woman found out what Señora Risendo had in mind and stopped her at the price of her own life?"

"Perhaps… But if that is so, then this woman is much more dangerous than I had previously thought her to be."

ZZZ

Victoria spent the following days considering the elderly doña's words, eventually deciding not to give her an answer, for she wasn't feeling ready for either courtship or marriage.

The following Friday, though, despite Victoria not giving her consent, Doña Maria began bringing men to the tavern, all intent on courting the beautiful Señorita. They were all dons, several of them young, a few old, most of them widowed. The innkeeper did her best to be patient with them, trying not to cause them any offense. Yet she hardly needed more than a look to know whoever the matchmaker had just brought was certainly not the man she'd agree to marry. And, while she did give some of them a chance, none succeeded in proving her wrong.

By the end of that exhausting week, she was forced to admit to herself that, in truth, there were only two men in Los Angeles she'd even consider marrying: the one whose face she had never seen but whose bravery and skill made her heart skip a beat whenever she was in his presence; and one whose face she knew well, but whose rank positioned him too far out of reach for her.

Victoria was just wondering about those two very different men who, for some reason, had a very similar effect on her, when, just as she was about to lock up the tavern one night, she noticed a young woman slowly walking towards the plaza. The newcomer stopped by the fountain and, sitting on its edge, started drinking, using her hands as a cup.

Nobody else was around at that time of the night, and Victoria was quite certain she had never seen that young woman before in her life. So, curious, she headed towards her.

"Are you alright?" The innkeeper asked, noticing the stranger had removed her shoes and was bathing her blister-filled feet in the fountain.

The woman startled at hearing her and turned to see who it was. "I am fine." She replied. "Just thirsty… and tired. It's not forbidden to drink and put one's feet in the fountain, is it?"

"Of course not," Victoria replied kindly. "Are you all alone?"

The other woman silently nodded, fixing her eyes to the ground.

"Have you traveled far?" The innkeeper continued to ask.

"Yes… Do you think I might trouble you for a place to stay? I can sleep in the stable with the horses. And I won't cause any trouble. I just need some rest, then I'll be on my way."

Victoria stared a little at her, then glanced back at the tavern. "Oh, why sleep in the stables? I have no overnight guests, so you can choose your room."

The woman seemed not to understand her for a few moments. "Oh…Thank you but I… I don't have the money to pay for a room, Señorita." She eventually replied. "If you don't mind, I will sleep in the stables."

"Nonsense!" Victoria uttered, her kind nature not allowing her to let the poor woman sleep with the horses. "As I said, I have no overnight guests, so it would be a waste of space to have you sleep in the stables. You'll take a room and, in return, you'll wash the sheets tomorrow morning and hang them to dry before you leave. That way, we'll be even."

If the newcomer thought it odd, she didn't say anything, just put her shoes back on, and followed Victoria to the tavern, on the way introducing herself as Juliana. Leaving her in the taproom to rest a little on a bench, the innkeeper headed for the kitchen and returned just moments later with a bowl of soup.

"I thought you might also be in need of a meal," she said as she put the plate on the table, inviting her guest to try it.

"I can't afford it, Señorita. Besides, I have some bread left. I will eat that…" she replied, reaching in the bag she was carrying.

"It's free. I made too much for dinner and it would go bad by tomorrow anyway. In truth, you're sparing me the trouble of throwing it away," the innkeeper answered with a smile.

Almost unable to believe her luck, Juliana started eating, slowly at first, then faster and faster.

Victoria frowned a little, then hurried to the kitchen and returned with a plate of tamales. "You seem hungry…" she remarked as she put the plate on the table, then sat down.

"I haven't eaten in days… No more than some bread and fruits when I could find them." Her guest replied as she again slowed down. "Why are you so nice to me?"

Victoria thought about it for a moment, then again smiled kindly at her. "You strike me as someone who needs some kindness," she answered.

At that, tears started falling from Juliana's eyes, as she nodded, taking her hands to her face and burying it in them.

"No, it's alright! It's alright!" Victoria said as she neared her guest and allowed her to embrace her, patiently letting the other young woman cry on her shoulder for some ten whole minutes.

"Thank you! I think I really needed that!" her guest said as she finally stopped crying.

Victoria nodded. "My mother used to say everybody needs a good cry from time to time." She answered. "It helps heal the soul."

Juliana agreed and again started to cry.

"Unburdening one's soul can also help," Victoria said after a few more minutes spent embracing the other young woman. "If you need to talk to someone, I'm a good listener…" She offered. Juliana hesitated and the innkeeper regretted her offer since it easily became clear to her that she had overstepped. "Or… You could just go on eating." She continued, rather embarrassed. "You needn't tell me anything."

Saying that she stood up and collected the now-empty plate she had used to bring Juliana the soup, taking it to the kitchen.

"I just met you, and you have already been kinder to me than people I've known for half of my life," the newcomer said as she was about to enter the kitchen. "But you should know… You have the right to know… that… that I am not a righteous woman. My presence here might even harm your reputation."

Victoria left the plate on the bar, and returned to Juliana's table, sitting down. "How so?" She asked.

"I… I am pregnant…" her guest replied. "Pregnant and unmarried. I have no right to be among decent people, such as yourself…"

Victoria tried to avoid looking too dumbfounded as she tried to find her words. "It's that why you're here all alone? Your parents threw you out? What about the baby's father?"

"I never knew my parents. They died when I was still too young to remember them. I was raised in an orphanage till I was ten. After that, my former patrons took me in to work for them, as a tavern helper." Juliana told her. "As for the baby's father… He is a don. A good-looking, charming don, who seemed unable to take his eyes off of me. I should have known better… When he told me he had fallen in love at first sight, I shouldn't have believed him. But I did… I liked him, too, you see. He was charming, and nice to me… He told me everything I had always longed to hear… After I gave myself to him, though, he just left… He didn't' even say goodbye…

"My patrons threw me out when I told them that I was heavy with a child. So I came here.

"I came hoping he would care about me, and about our baby… But, when I went to his house, he didn't even come to see me. Instead, his mother agreed to receive me, but only to tell me that her son wanted nothing to do with me. She said that I could not prove it was his child I am carrying… and accused me of trying to extort money from him…

"When I swore before God that I had never known another man, and that he was the father, she just had her servant escort me out, and warned me to never get near their hacienda again…

"Now… I have nowhere to go…" Juliana recounted.

The innkeeper's heart ached for her guest. She knew exactly how people treated unmarried mothers, and she always felt it was unjust to put all the blame on them while the men who had gotten them pregnant, and ruined their lives, got off with hardly any remorse.

"What a horrible man! You're better off without him!" She said, trying to encourage her.

"But he was my only hope… I am lost now… And so is my unborn child…"

"That's not true!" Victoria retorted, shaking her head. "What can you do?" She asked.

"What… Well… I can cook, wash, clean, take care of animals… But why do you ask? You need help here?"

"No. I can barely afford the helpers I already have... But I do have an idea." Victoria replied with a smile.

ZZZ

The following morning, Don Alejandro was in the hacienda's library, wondering where the Count was, when Victoria and Juliana were let in.

"Welcome, my dear! Señorita!" the elderly caballero greeted them with a smile. "To what do I owe the pleasure of your visit? Or are you here to visit Don Sebastian?" He asked Victoria.

"No!" The young woman answered, a little too fast. "No… We have come to see you, Don Alejandro," she said, then glanced around to make sure they were alone. "You see, Juliana here… She needs to find work… But she is pregnant… And she is all alone, Don Alejandro, so I thought… I thought you might think of something for her to do here..."

The don nodded, glanced at the young women, then became pensive.

Juliana, in turn, was turning redder by the minute and only wished to escape.

Don Alejandro glanced at her, then at Victoria. "I… I would most certainly find something for her to do here, were it not for the small detail that –"

"I am pregnant…" Juliana said instead of allowing him to finish his thought. "It's alright, Señor. Forgive us for troubling you…" turning around, embarrassed, she headed for the door, in her hurry not even noticing that it had meanwhile opened, and a tall man was just about to come in.

"Wait! I just meant, I no longer own this house, so –" Don Alejandro replied as Juliana impacted with the newcomer.

Startled, she raised her eyes and became frozen at looking at the man before her.

"Are you alright, Señorita?" The Count asked her, then smiled at Victoria and at Don Alejandro.

It was about half-an-hour later when the mayordomo was called to the library.

"Rafael, your cousin Juliana is here." The Count said with a wink, his words causing everyone there to stare at him. "Her poor husband died in a tragic accident as they were crossing New Spain. Unfortunately, she is all alone in the world… and with a baby on the way. You are the only close relative she has here."

"I see," Rafael uttered, curiously. "Welcome, Cousin!" He then said, addressing the baffled Juliana. "And my condolences for your loss."

She just stared between him and the Count, unsure how to react.

"I assume she will remain here…" Rafael then asked.

"Yes. I am certain we can find something for her to do at the hacienda." The Count replied. "But first things first. Please make sure she has proper accommodations and ask the maids to prepare a bath for her. The journey here was surely long and tiresome." The nobleman continued.

After offering him a knowing smile, his man hurried to comply.

It was only at noticing the bafflement on the other peoples' faces that the Count realized he needed to explain himself. "I find that a widowed mother might have an easier life here than an unmarried one." He said.

"And Señor Rafael will just go along with that story?" Don Alejandro inquired.

"He will."

"But… Won't people think he's lying?" Victoria inquired.

"Nobody in Los Angeles knows anything about Rafael's family, except me." The nobleman explained. "As long as he will tell everyone that Señorita, or better yet, Señora Juliana, is his widowed cousin, a fact I will certainly corroborate. Nobody will ever have cause to suspect that is not the truth."

"Yes, but…" it was Juliana's turn to question the young man's words, "Why would someone like you even care for someone like me," she ended up inquiring.

"Why wouldn't I?" The Count asked. "You are someone in need of help, and I am in a position to help you."

"You're really letting me stay here?"

"Yes." He said with a smile.

"But… Why? You don't even know me…"

"Perhaps not, but –"

"Your room is ready, Cousin. If you'll follow me, I will escort you to it." Rafael interrupted to say. "And, seeing how your luggage surely got lost on the long way here, I took the liberty of asking one of our servants to make you a couple of new dresses. She's an excellent seamstress."

Again, Juliana looked baffled between the people there, wondering why those men were so kind to her. But, given that she was out of options at that point, saying a quiet prayer that they wouldn't turn out to be monsters, she stood up and followed her so-called cousin.

"What sort of man abandons a pregnant woman like that?" Don Alejandro uttered through gritted teeth as soon as she left the room, with just him, Victoria and the Count remaining.

"Like he's the first one!" The young woman replied disparagingly.

The elderly caballero stood up. "You're right, Victoria… However, the truth of the matter is that the girl was also in the wrong for falling for the man. It is a sad truth of this world that most dons would never even consider marrying someone below their station. Not that it has ever prevented them from bedding women they were never intent on marrying…"

Victoria listened to the old man's words as her gaze wandered towards the Count. He didn't say a thing. No matter how much she wanted him to contradict Don Alejandro, to tell him that some men are different, that he was different, he never did.

He just sat there, his eyes glued to the floor.

Don Alejandro had hardly finished when Don Sebastian stood up and, excusing himself, headed towards the corridor in which Rafael and Juliana had disappeared.

Victoria glanced after him, then stood up. Taking her goodbye from Don Alejandro, she left without waiting for Juliana and the Count to return.

About 20 minutes later, when her wagon stopped before the tavern, she found a familiar face waiting for her there.

ZZZ

"Señorita Juliana," the Count called, causing the young woman and Rafael to turn around just as they were reaching the room assigned to her.

"Yes, Your Excellency?" She uttered.

"There is something I wanted to ask you…" He said, and she nodded expectantly. "You told us that you were a tavern helper in San Diego when you met the baby's father."

"Si, Señor…"

"A little over three months ago…"

She again nodded.

"Could you tell me his name?"

"Does it matter? He wants nothing to do with me…"

"Perhaps… But I'd like to know which one of my acquaintances is the kind of man who would do to a woman what he did to you; if for no other reason, at least to prevent him from repeating such actions and other women falling prey to him."

She seemed worried for a few moments.

"It will remain between the three of us." The Count felt obliged to assure her.

Feeling that she owed him an answer, she nodded. "His name is Gilberto. Don Gilberto Risendo," Juliana said.

The two men exchanged a knowing glance at that. "I see." The Count said. "Well, as I mentioned, the information regarding the paternity of your child will remain just between the three of us, a matter upon which I insist. Don Gilberto and Don Alejandro are not on the best of terms…" He explained.

The young woman nodded expectantly.

"We will also have to keep you out of the way if, or when, Risendo comes here. Would these terms be agreeable to you?" The Count asked.

"¡Si! ¡Si, Señor!" She hurried to reply, relieved to find that the nobleman had not changed his mind about letting her stay at finding whose child she was carrying. "¡Gracias, Señor!"

ZZZ

"We cannot use her in our plans, Diego," Emmanuel said a while later, as he found his friend in the cave, pensively sitting behind his desk.

"What? Oh… No, of course not… She's just another innocent Risendo harmed. But she complicates matters…" The taller man said.

"In what way?"

Diego stood up and paced the room. "If we are successful in our plan, her child might never get the chance to meet its father…"

"That child would never be born should Risendo have his way…" Emmanuel replied. "Considering how he's treated that poor young woman, he has no right being a father!"

Diego nodded but, truth be told, he was beginning to wonder how far he'd be willing to go for revenge, especially if it resulted in collateral, innocent victims.

ZZZ

The following morning, after spending half the night riding in an attempt to put his thoughts in order, Diego only woke up around 10:30. Taking his coffee with him, he headed for the cave, where he spent a whole hour reconsidering his plans.

His musings were interrupted by Don Alejandro, whose voice resounded from the other side of the wall separating his refuge from the hacienda's library. Standing up and putting on the jacket he had discarded a while earlier, he signed to Felipe to follow him and, after checking that the library was empty, they both hurried there.

"Oh, here you are, Don Sebastian," the elderly don said at descending the stairs and noticing them, just moments after the sliding panel closed behind the boy. "I was trying to find Fariz to ask him where you were but the boy is always by your side, it seems." He uttered as he smiled at the youngster.

"It's why I'm paying him…" the Count remarked. "But may I ask why you were looking for me?"

"Oh… Yes. This just arrived for us," the elderly don said, handing him an envelope. "Victoria is getting married! It's the invitation to the wedding," he then explained.