Strange World

 

Part 4

 

 

 

Sunlight alights the room. The warmth of the sunbeams awaken Don Diego. His head aches, but his flank hurts like mad. Then he realizes he had been shot. When he turns his head to see where he is laying he discovers Victoria sleeping in the chair next to him. This makes him feel so happy, but then he wonders what really had happened. Slowly he remembers Leone helping him by removing the second bullet and bringing him to his room.

"Victoria," he whispers. "Victoria?"

"Oh, Don Diego, you’re awake?!" she’s feeling like a lath, but happy.

"You’ve been so stupid," she accuses him, "you really should keep your hands off those silly experiments. Next time you won’t be so lucky I guess."

"What?" Who had told her this? Why is she here? Questions make his head ache more.

"Don’t you remember. Leone told me yesterday that one of your experiments didn’t go as planned. If you weren’t outside, the house could have blown away." She looks at her confused friend.

"Oh now I remember," He admits.

She asks him how he is feeling. Just a headache he lies. He asks her why she’s here. She reminds him as well of his invitation to having dinner with the family. His father wanted her to stay.

The pain gets worse, so worse he cannot hide it anymore. Victoria teases him by comparing him with the strong Zorro. He wouldn’t complain about his aching head.

"I know," Don Diego plays his role. How he would like to tell Victoria everything. But now it isn’t the right moment either.

Felipe enters the room to his relief. He sees his son being happy that he is awake, but he also sees confusion on his face. He didn’t expect to see Victoria in his room.

"Good morning, son," Diego starts.

Felipe comes closer and hugs his father. He just smiles at his father. Breaking the silence Victoria asks Diego if he would like to have a breakfast.

He nods. This gives him time to have a quick word with his friend and son. First Diego has to explain nothing happened between him and Victoria. He doesn’t know why she was with him. He confesses not minding it at all. Felipe tells what happened, but doesn’t tell his father he had killed his attacker. Felipe asks his father how he is feeling. Unfortunately Diego has to confess to his son that he’s not feeling so well. Now that Victoria is gone, he asks Felipe to have a look at his flanks. Felipe tells him nothing is wrong. It only looks bruised, not like it is or will be infected.

Don Diego sighs. Felipe puts some medicine on the wound and bandages it. A second later Victoria returns with a good smelling breakfast.

"You’re too kind," he only says.

"¡De nada!" She turns to Felipe; "Our breakfast is also served."

"I just wanted to get you two," another voice interferes. "¡Buenos diás! son. How are you today?"

"I’m having a little headache, father." He doesn’t want to get his father upset. The show must go on. "I must have blown hard on that wall. You didn’t find a hole in it, father?" he grins.

"You, still have your wit, I hear." His father is pleased to hear his joke. "Just have some sleep and you’ll be well soon enough. "

"Shall we join Leone at breakfast?" he asks Felipe and Victoria.

Don Diego understands she has her reason for not coming before breakfast. He silently thanks her for helping him. He probably shouldn’t have been so tough on her.

Happy faces are around the table. Victoria will take her leave after breakfast, and will tell Diego goodbye.

Felipe has to help Don Alejandro. Leone would be left behind. She assures it isn’t a problem. She will keep an eye on Don Diego. If she gets bored, she’ll come to the taberna to help Victoria. Again Victoria has some mixed feelings, but tells her to do so.

Victoria is the first who will wish Don Diego good day. But when she enters his room, she sees her friend trying to walk, but he falls. By the pain in his tummy, he can hardly stand. Victoria rushes over and tries to capture him. By her help, he can finds his balance. She helps him get back to the bed. Although Don Diego isn’t putting his whole weight on her, she thinks he is heavier than she thought.

"I guess you’ll have to stay another day in bed, Don Diego," she advises. "With this headache you shouldn’t move." Now she realizes (in her opinion) that he hasn’t act like a baby over the pain in his head. She offers her apologies, which are accepted. She will visit him in the evening she promises, and leaves. Another pain comes over the caballero. His heart aches too. If only she knows he is Zorro or if she was just his, then she probably would stay all day. How he wanted to hold her. If Victoria looked back at him as she closed the door, she would have seen the pain of loss in his eyes. How weak he gets in her surroundings. If he drops his other mask, he will betray himself of being Zorro.

His father's visit stops the thoughts running through his mind. "Felipe will help me get the cattle to another field. We will be back this afternoon."

"He will like it," Diego replies. "¡Adiós!"

"¡Adiós!" And they also leave the rich house.

What will he be up to? Thinking? That wasn’t a good idea. He doesn’t even want to sleep. He wants to capture the man who shot him. He becomes angry at his present situation. A lot work is done by Zorro. Would Felipe have seen something?

"Come in," he answers to the knock on the door.

"¡Buenos diás! Don Diego. I heard you are on earth again." Leone smiles standing at the threshold.

"Come in," he invites her, "it seems like were stuck with each other today."

A little embarrassed, she says that she will be getting to the taberna where she might be of some assistance to Victoria. A little shy, she comes near the bed, and inquires of his wounds.

"Painful," is the answer.

She feels bad for causing it. Don Diego tells her not to do so. Now he has all the time to find out how she came in the cave, and how she found out all about Zorro. He even wants to know her business. But at first he thanks her for the great things she did for him last evening. She blushes slightly, and then tells him, that she wanted to know if the stories about Zorro and his love are right. She even wondered how a woman could be so seduced by her love and that she doesn’t notice the whole person. "I’m quite romantic, you know," she ends her motive for being here.

"You two would be the best of friends," Don Diego concludes.

Leone doesn’t understand.

"Well, you both have a, how should I say, an outspoken mind. You both stand up for women’s rights."

She chuckles, but has a sad twinkle in her eyes.

Don Diego notices. He feels the same.

"Have you heard by any chance something of the man who shot Zorro?" he says, wishing she will have an answer, but she doesn’t. Before he can ask his question about what her whereabouts are, she jumps off her chair. "I forgot," she says while placing her hand on her head. "I should get my things out of Victoria’s tavern. I would have only stayed for one night. How …" she shut up thinking real hard.

Don Diego looks amazed at his young guest. It is funny to watch her move, but it is very uncorrelated.

"What’s the matter? What are you thinking?" Diego wants to contribute in her thinking.

She seems to think so quickly, she wouldn’t handle it.

"I said to Victoria on Friday afternoon that I would be staying for one night. Maybe she rented it to another traveler. But as you said, I would be staying here in this hacienda, because of my father. It might be nice having my stuff here. Of course I can leave it, and pay Victoria for it. But wouldn’t people notice that no one uses that room. Or someone will see me going inside and leaving and the next morning returning again?"

"You make a point," Don Diego says organizing his mind. "Then you should go back as Salvador."

He’d rather go fetch her stuff, just to see his love, and have a stolen moment with Victoria again. Fortunately she will visit him this evening.

Leone changes her clothes so she looks like Salvador again. Not five minutes later, she gets her horse out of the De la Vega stables and rides to the pueblo.

She walks straight to her room, gets her saddle bag, and goes back down the stairs looking for Victoria. She finds her behind the bar. "I’ll be off," she murmurs as her role of being Salvador, and leaves. Victoria wishes him a good journey, although she knows better.

Back at the hacienda, she changes her clothes. Now she can wear her own dresses, which is more comfortable than wearing the Doña’s clothes. She knew those weren’t meant for her, but for another elegant young lady. She wonders what she means to Victoria or to the De la Vaga’s. Meanwhile, Don Diego is having his well-wished rest, because he needed it desperately. He has been thinking so hard, which made him tired. He wants to tell his father that he isn’t a coward at all. He also figures out how to tell Victoria he has been deceiving her for five years now, ever since he has been back from Spain.

The evening is an enchanting one. Don Diego is feeling a little better. The wounds aren’t hurting anymore, but he feels a little stiff. On Leone’s request, he is playing some tunes on the piano. As he is not concentrating because of Victoria’s presence, he makes some mistakes. Even Victoria noticed it, so she asks him to read one of his poems. She has to admit he is acting very charming, as he expresses them.

This time he chooses sonnets from William Shakespeare called "The Passionate Pilgrim,"

 

DID not the heavenly rhetoric of thine eye,

’Gainst whom the world could not hold argument,

Persuade my heart to this false perjury?

Vows for thee broke deserve not punishment.

A woman I forswore; but I will prove,

Thou being a goddess, I forswore not thee:

My vow was earthly, thou a heavenly love;

Thy grace being gain’d cures all disgrace in me.

My vow was breath, and breath a vapour is;

Then thou, fair sun, that on this earth dost shine,

Exhale this vapour vow; in thee it is:

If broken, then it is no fault of mine.

If by me broke, what fool is not so wise

To break an oath, to win a paradise?

 

Somehow Victoria feels connected to these words, but she cannot figure out how. She will find out some day, but still she loves Diego reciting it.

Leone seems to be excited as well. She talks to Felipe. Maybe she won’t be a rival after all. But, she doesn’t love Diego as a lover, does she?

 

 

 

Part 3

 

Fan fiction

Part 5