Chapter 2
But he� he could not cry. He did not know why. His heart felt so heavy that it seemed to be tearing his chest apart, yet his eyes remained as dry as the grass during the drought. He could not bear it any longer, so he turned around and walked off with his head hanging down, bumping almost instantly into someone�s black robe. He raised his head, to find himself looking into the kind dark eyes of the priest. �Why are you walking away, Diego?� Padre Felipe asked softly.
Padre Felipe knew the de la Vega family since before Diego was born, and he knew and loved Elena de la Vega as much as everyone else at her funeral that day. �It is, indeed, a tragic loss,� the priest thought, looking into the big sad hazel eyes of the boy in front of him. Yet there was something else in Diego�s face, something gloomy and unsettling that forced the priest to ask, �What is the matter, my son?�
Diego looked away, trying to avoid the questioning stare of the priest. Padre Felipe held out his hand, touching Diego�s chin, and forced the boy�s head up gently until their eyes met again. �Well?�
Diego sighed and finally said out loud what he has been telling himself for the last week, �It is my fault, padre. I was too late�. If I had brought the doctor sooner ��
Padre Felipe shook his head and put his hand on the boy�s shoulder, �It was not your fault, my son. There was nothing that the doctor could have done even if he had come earlier. You heard what he said � your mother must have hit her head against a rock on the bottom; she was unconscious, and she drowned.� He smiled comfortingly, �You did everything right, Diego.�
* * *
The padre�s words had somewhat comforted him, but things did not get any easier. Diego�s father alienated himself, spending most of his time either away from the hacienda or locked up in his room. Diego was rarely allowed to go horseback riding, and was only given slow-paced horses � like the old Calma.
Fun and laughter in the de la Vega hacienda seemed to have died together with his mother. For Diego the only joyous moments were when he was allowed to ride � slowly, of course � to the hacienda of Don Emilio de Agua, Paco�s father. There he could relax and forget for a while the somber and tense atmosphere of the de la Vega household. But now Paco, too, was away�.
�Loud noises from the outside interrupted Diego�s reminiscences, causing him to raise his head and look out the window. Apparently, a horse that Ignacio, a young vaquero, planned to break for riding had just thrown him off. Ignacio had landed hard on his bottom, raising small clouds of dust around him.
At the moment that Diego caught sight of him, the former was down in the dust of the road in the exact same position as when the horse had thrown him, arguing somewhat indignantly with Manuel, another vaquero, who was trying his best to calm down the no less indignant animal.
Diego smiled at this scene � indeed, it was hard not to, seeing the contrast between the noble wrath on the face of Ignacio and his pathetically funny state, but he soon became serious, and his hazel eyes glistened softly as an idea began forming in his mind.
***
Manuel came back to the stables, muttering curses under his nose about the stupidity and rashness of the young vaquero. How could one yell and kick at a horse and then expect the animal to be nice in return? Manuel started unsaddling the colt when he heard a soft sound of a footfall, and, as he turned around to face the in-comer, he heard a quiet command �Saddle el Diablo.�
Manuel stared bemusedly at the young de la Vega. He thought for a minute that he misheard him.
�You heard me,� Diego repeated, as if in response to the silent question he saw in vaquero�s eyes, �saddle el Diablo.�
Manuel shook his head, �If the young se�or wishes to go for a ride, I would gladly saddle Calma.�
Diego�s eyes glistened again but this time with a spark of anger. Yet, when he spoke, his voice remained calm and steady, �I do not wish to ride the old mare. I asked you to saddle el Diablo. If you do not do it, I will do it myself.�
�Are you sure about this, young se�or? Your father �� Manuel cut himself short, seeing the young de la Vega tense up, biting his lower lip. There was no doubt in Manuel�s mind that Diego was sure. He also did not doubt his young patron�s determination to get what he wanted. The vaquero shook his head again and sighed walking off to the other end of the stables where el Diablo was kept.
Few minutes later, Diego left the hacienda on el Diablo�s back, riding off into the direction of the mountain river.