Chapter Five
Señora Helena found Don Alejandro to be a very charming man. He was well versed in the ways of a gentleman and was an excellent host. His hacienda was large and well appointed, but seemed to lack a woman’s touch. The decor seemed very masculine. She knew through discreet inquiries that Don Alejandro was a widower and that touched a common bond within her. The other guests he had invited were from nearby haciendas. The dons and their wives were gracious as well and made her feel welcome. Don Alejandro apologized for the absence of his son, Diego. It seemed that he had already made plans before he found out about the dinner. Señora Helena got the distinct impression that while Don Alejandro loved his son, he was not happy with the way he had turned out. But of course, he would not discuss such a thing in mixed company.
The dinner was well prepared and enjoyed by all. Señora Helena made sure to compliment Don Alejandro on his wine. The other guests were very interested to hear about Mexico City and while they were curious about her, they did not ask any questions that might not be proper to a woman in a bereaved state. Señora Helena smiled to herself. These people would not last one night at one of her dinners. They believed too much in honor and genteel manners. Their naivete was amusing. She knew that if she wanted to, she could come in and cut their cattle business right out from under them. She would remember this when she got back to Mexico City. She was always looking for ways to expand her own business.
But she did have another purpose for coming here this evening. So she broached the subject. “As you know, I have come to Los Angeles to find a new home. After such a warm welcome as I have received tonight, I am inclined to find a place of my own and stay here. But as a woman, living alone with only my servants, you can understand why I want to find a place that is safe. All over the town this morning there was nothing but talk of the bandido, Zorro. It seems that he fought the soldiers of the cuartel and helped a prisoner to escape last night. And on the walls of the tavern, I see posters offering enormous rewards for his capture. These things do not inspire comfort, señores.”
Don Alejandro spoke up. “Señora Del Fuego, Zorro may be a rogue and a bandit, but he has done as much good as bad. I cannot say I agree with everything he has done, but he saved my life once. The story is too long to go into now, but if it had not been for Zorro, I would have died. Whatever else he is, he seems to have his own code of honor. Whenever the poor and the weak are attacked or exploited by the strong, he will stop at nothing to rescue them. I, for one, think our pueblo is better off since he has come. On the other hand, he has disrupted the officers of the government on many occasions for reasons seemingly his own. That is why such a large reward has been placed on his head. But to his credit, I have never heard of him harming a lady in any manner. I do not think you will have anything to fear from Zorro.”
Don Tomás was of another opinion. “I say that Zorro must be captured and brought to justice. He has broken the king’s laws and has disrupted the pueblo too many times. The peons look to him as a savior and it promotes unrest among them. Whenever a peon on my rancho needs to be disciplined, they invoke the name of Zorro like a prayer, and I must say it does give me pause. But I will not let a mere outlaw keep me from running my rancho the way I see fit. The sooner he is behind bars, the better.”
Several of the other guests had seen Zorro personally. One of them was Señorita Elena Torres, daughter of Don Ignacio Torres. She spoke fondly of Zorro. “Señora Del Fuego, Zorro also saved my father’s life. He helped him to escape the clutches of Capitán Monastario and go on his way to Monterey to see the Governor. My father had been falsely accused of treason and his only hope was to appeal to the Governor. Zorro risked his own life to save my father’s. I can never thank him enough.”
“Have all of his exploits been on so grand a scale?” asked Señora Helena. She was doing what she did best. Gathering information about her quarry. Every little bit of information built a picture of who the bandido was. As she gathered her information, pieces of the puzzle would eventually come together and she would know how to trap Zorro.
Don Alejandro replied, “No they have not. Just the other day, Zorro came to defend the honor of a young señorita of the pueblo. He ran a stranger out of town for making unwanted advances to the señorita who was already betrothed. Sergeant Garcia told me about it.”
“Yes, and then there was the time he took down the flag in the cuartel and put his own flag on the pole,” said another guest laughing. “I heard that the soldiers had to cut the flag pole down in order to remove Zorro’s flag. And no one could figure out how he got in there and put up the flag without being seen. There were guards on duty all night.”
“So that is why they say he can walk through walls,” said Señora Helena.
“The point is, Señora, that you will probably have more to fear from the tax collector than from Zorro, should you decide to make Los Angeles your home. Zorro comes only now and again; tax collectors are always with us,” said Don Alejandro. There was general laughter from around the table. Even Don Tomás looked a little amused.
Not wanting to be too obvious, Señora Helena let the conversation turn to other things. As she traveled back to the Inn later that night, she thought about all that she had learned about Zorro so far. One thing seemed to be common in most of the stories she had heard; Zorro was a man of action. If there was something going on that he did not like, he did something about it. He had his own sense of honor and justice that was really a reflection of the people she had dined with this evening, even Don Tomás, though he would never admit it. But whereas those people could not or would not think of defying authority, Zorro did so on a regular basis.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
The following morning, Señora Helena and her servants moved out of the inn and into the house. Everything was clean and in its place. She had the upstairs bedroom prepared for her and she was well satisfied with the view from the window. She asked Rudolfo to bring a chair and place it by the window so she could sit in it and survey the square. The only corner of the square that she could not see clearly was the one between the magistrado’s office and the tavern. That bothered her, but there was nothing that could be done about it.
She spent the morning writing some correspondence to be sent back to Mexico City concerning some ideas she had about the cattle business. The manager she had left in charge of her business would make some inquiries, and when she returned, she would be able to expand into a new market.
She went out in the afternoon to do some shopping. It was not something she was accustomed to; her servants back in Mexico City had usually taken care of all of that. But as a widow, with a limited household, it would not be out of place for her to do some of her own shopping.
As she walked through the plaza she was nearly run over by a group of children playing something called the fox and the coyote. They were singing a song that sounded innocent enough, but she could tell it was really a song about Zorro and his pursuers. One child had a sword and a ragged cloth for a cape and he was play fighting another. So, even the children wanted to be Zorro! She took the opportunity to meet people and engage them in conversation, gently leading them to talk of Zorro. She could find no one who spoke against him. She also could find no one who could give her much of a clue as to who he might be.
The story about Diego de la Vega came up again, but everyone agreed that he could not possibly be Zorro. He could not even handle a sword in the most rudimentary fashion, and several eyewitnesses confirmed that he had been confined in the tavern by Monastario while Zorro rode through the pueblo at the same time. But whoever he was, he seemed to be, at least in the minds of the peons, merchants, and vaqueros, a heroic figure; a black angel sent to save and protect them from harm. Señora Helena did not believe all that she heard. She knew that just like Robin Hood, some things tended to be romanticized and the hard truth was often glossed over because it gave people comfort to think that they had a mysterious protector such as Zorro.
She still believed that money or power in some form was Zorro’s motivation for what he did. The peons were just too simple to be able to see it. But she, on the other hand, was just the person who could pierce Zorro’s character and discover his motivations. It was what she had done for most of the last twenty years of her life. And she was good at it.
She met the Magistrado of Los Angeles briefly. He was on his way to his office and stopped to introduce himself and extend his welcome to Los Angeles. Señora Helena looked after him as he walked away. There was something about him that left her with the impression that he was a devious man. It was nothing he said, just his demeanor. After he left, she was looking at some scarves, when Capitán Ortega approached her.
“Ah, Señora Del Fuego,” he said as he kissed her hand. “It is so good to see you again. I see that you have moved from the inn to your house. I hope that everything is satisfactory.”
“Si, Capitán Ortega. I am content with my accommodations for now. Of course, if I do decide to make Los Angeles my home, I will be looking for a more suitable house to purchase.”
“We shall try to make your stay as pleasant as possible, Señora,” he said smiling. “I wonder if you would do me the honor of dining with me tonight? It has been a long time since I was in Mexico City and I would appreciate the opportunity to talk of it with you.” Then remembering the reason she was leaving Mexico City, he hastened to say, “But only if you wish to, Señora. I would not like to bring up unpleasant memories.”
Señora Helena affected the look of a brave woman covering up her sorrow. “Mexico City is a place I can never forget, for it will always have a place in my heart. And although it was a place of sorrow for me, it was also the place of great happiness for most of my life. I choose to remember the good times. I will be most happy to have dinner with you, Capitán.”
Ortega bowed to her. “Then I will call on you at about eight o’clock and escort you to the inn. Until then,” and he again kissed her hand. He continued on his way to the Magistrado’s office.
Señora Helena could hardly wait until she was able to return to her home and wash her hands. She instinctively disliked the commandanté even though she had no real reason to do so. He had always been courteous to her. But there was just something about him. Come to think of it, she’d had the same feeling about the Magistrado. What was it about those two? She had accepted the invitation from Ortega because she had no real reason not to, and it was just possible that she could learn something of value from him. Perhaps something about Zorro. Even though he had only been here a short time, he may have picked up some information that she could use. Well, she had dined with worse than him in her time and she knew she was up to the challenge.
That evening, as they lingered over their last glass of wine, Ortega let something slip that immediately caught Señora Helena’s attention. She had led the conversation around to Zorro and the commandanté said not to worry about the outlaw, for tomorrow he would have enough information to capture Zorro and have him hanged by noon. When she tried to wheedle more details from him, he became mysterious and changed the subject. She could not press him without exposing her own designs on Zorro, so she had to back off.
As Ortega escorted her back to her house, he pointed to the center of the plaza now bathed in the moonlight and said that she would see something very interesting happening there in the morning. Señora Helena thanked him for a very nice evening and said her goodbyes.
After he was gone, she thought about the possibility that Capitán Ortega could actually capture Zorro. After what she had witnessed in the grist mill the other night, she knew that Ortega had a personal score to settle with Zorro. But she also knew, having just spent a great deal of time with him, that he probably did not have a chance. Oh, he thought of himself as a clever man, but . . . . She shook her head amused at the thought. Well, she would wait and see what the morning would bring.
Chapter Six
Chapter Four
Chapter Three
Chapter Two
Chapter One
Table of Contents
