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The Further Adventures of Zorro | Project Gutenberg
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<div style='text-align:center'>*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE FURTHER ADVENTURES OF ZORRO ***</div>
<figure class="figcenter" id="cover_sm">
<img src="images/cover_sm.jpg" alt="cover" title="cover">
<figcaption class="caption">
<p class="noic">Transcriber’s Note: New original cover art included with
this eBook is granted to the public domain.</p>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
<div class="chapter">
<h1 class="nobreak"><i>The Further Adventures of Zorro</i></h1>
<p class="noi author"><i>by</i> Johnston McCulley</p>
<p class="noi works">Author of “The Mark of Zorro,” etc.</p>
<p class="p2 noic"><i>Copyright, 1922, by Johnston McCulley.</i></p>
</div>
<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
<div class="chapter">
<h2 class="nobreak" id="CONTENTS">CONTENTS</h2>
</div>
<table>
<colgroup>
<col style="width: 40%;">
<col style="width: 60%;">
</colgroup>
<tr>
<td class="tdl">CHAPTER I.</td>
<td class="tdl"><a href="#CHAPTER_I">LAND RATS AND WATER RATS.</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td class="tdl">CHAPTER II.</td>
<td class="tdl"><a href="#CHAPTER_II">PEDRO THE BOASTER.</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td class="tdl">CHAPTER III.</td>
<td class="tdl"><a href="#CHAPTER_III">SUDDEN TURMOIL.</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td class="tdl">CHAPTER IV.</td>
<td class="tdl"><a href="#CHAPTER_IV">FRAY FELIPE MAKES A VOW.</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td class="tdl">CHAPTER V.</td>
<td class="tdl"><a href="#CHAPTER_V">ZORRO TAKES THE TRAIL.</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td class="tdl">CHAPTER VI.</td>
<td class="tdl"><a href="#CHAPTER_VI">ZORRO STRIKES.</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td class="tdl">CHAPTER VII.</td>
<td class="tdl"><a href="#CHAPTER_VII">SEÑOR ZORRO’S DARING.</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td class="tdl">CHAPTER VIII.</td>
<td class="tdl"><a href="#CHAPTER_VIII">THE GOBLET.</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td class="tdl">CHAPTER IX.</td>
<td class="tdl"><a href="#CHAPTER_IX">LOVE AND MYSTERY.</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td class="tdl">CHAPTER X.</td>
<td class="tdl"><a href="#CHAPTER_X">A DEAD PIRATE.</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td class="tdl">CHAPTER XI.</td>
<td class="tdl"><a href="#CHAPTER_XI">ZORRO WALKS THE PLANK.</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td class="tdl">CHAPTER XII.</td>
<td class="tdl"><a href="#CHAPTER_XII">TO THE RESCUE.</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td class="tdl">CHAPTER XIII.</td>
<td class="tdl"><a href="#CHAPTER_XIII">TRAGEDY AT A DISTANCE.</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td class="tdl">CHAPTER XIV.</td>
<td class="tdl"><a href="#CHAPTER_XIV">OUT OF THE DEPTHS.</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td class="tdl">CHAPTER XV.</td>
<td class="tdl"><a href="#CHAPTER_XV">A SHOW OF GRATITUDE.</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td class="tdl">CHAPTER XVI.</td>
<td class="tdl"><a href="#CHAPTER_XVI">SINGING CABALLEROS.</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td class="tdl">CHAPTER XVII.</td>
<td class="tdl"><a href="#CHAPTER_XVII">A WILD RIDE.</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td class="tdl">CHAPTER XVIII.</td>
<td class="tdl"><a href="#CHAPTER_XVIII">HOPE IS CRUSHED AGAIN.</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td class="tdl">CHAPTER XIX.</td>
<td class="tdl"><a href="#CHAPTER_XIX">DOUBLE-FACED.</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td class="tdl">CHAPTER XX.</td>
<td class="tdl"><a href="#CHAPTER_XX">THE UNEXPECTED.</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td class="tdl">CHAPTER XXI.</td>
<td class="tdl"><a href="#CHAPTER_XXI">FACE TO FACE.</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td class="tdl">CHAPTER XXII.</td>
<td class="tdl"><a href="#CHAPTER_XXII">A PRICE TO BE PAID.</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td class="tdl">CHAPTER XXIII.</td>
<td class="tdl"><a href="#CHAPTER_XXIII">THE SEÑORITA PLOTS ALSO.</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td class="tdl">CHAPTER XXIV.</td>
<td class="tdl"><a href="#CHAPTER_XXIV">INTO THE OPEN.</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td class="tdl">CHAPTER XXV.</td>
<td class="tdl"><a href="#CHAPTER_XXV">AT THE PRESIDIO.</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td class="tdl">CHAPTER XXVI.</td>
<td class="tdl"><a href="#CHAPTER_XXVI">HELPLESSNESS.</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td class="tdl">CHAPTER XXVII.</td>
<td class="tdl"><a href="#CHAPTER_XXVII">FRAY FELIPE USES HIS WIT.</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td class="tdl">CHAPTER XXVIII.</td>
<td class="tdl"><a href="#CHAPTER_XXVIII">UNEXPECTED HELP.</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td class="tdl">CHAPTER XXIX.</td>
<td class="tdl"><a href="#CHAPTER_XXIX">THE PLIGHT OF RUIZ.</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td class="tdl">CHAPTER XXX.</td>
<td class="tdl"><a href="#CHAPTER_XXX">FRAY FELIPE GETS HIS GOBLET.</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td class="tdl">CHAPTER XXXI.</td>
<td class="tdl"><a href="#CHAPTER_XXXI">“MEAL MUSH AND GOAT’S MILK!”</a></td>
</tr>
</table>
<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
<div class="chapter">
<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_1"></a>[1]</span></p>
<figure class="figcenter" id="i_part1">
<img src="images/i_part1.jpg" alt="" title="">
<figcaption class="caption">
<p class="noic">The Further Adventures of Zorro, Part I</p>
</figcaption>
</figure>
</div>
<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
<div class="chapter">
<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_I">CHAPTER I.<br>
<small>LAND RATS AND WATER RATS.</small></h2>
</div>
<p class="cap">Throughout a long summer day
of more than a hundred years ago
the high fog had obscured the flaming
ball of sun, and the coast of Southern
California had been bathed in a haze.</p>
<p>Then came the night, with indication of a
drizzle that did not materialize. For the
bank of fog suddenly was split as though
with a sword, and the brilliant moon poured
down, and the riven mist floated away to
let the land be blessed with brilliance and
the tossing sea dance in the silvery moonbeams.</p>
<p>Approaching the shore came a sinister
vessel, craft of ill omen. She sailed slowly
under a spare spread of canvas, as though
fearing to reach her destination too soon,
and her lights were not burning. The hiss
of the waters from her bows was a lazy
sort of hiss, but the more suggestive because
of that. It was the playful hiss of a
serpent always ready to become enraged.
Her appearance betokened stealth and
crime.</p>
<p>She was low, rakish, swift. No proper
seaman commanded her, since her decks
were foul and her sides badly in need of
protecting paint. But her sailing gear was
in perfect condition, and the man at her
helm could have told that she answered to
her rudder like a love-sick maiden to her
swain.</p>
<p>Amidships stood her commander, one
Barbados, a monstrous giant of a man with
repugnant visage. Gigantic brass rings were
in his mutilated ears. His eyes were pig-like—tiny,
glittering, wholly evil. His great
gnarled hands continually were forming
themselves into brutish fists. He wore no
shirt, no shoes. His chest and back were
covered with thick, black, matted hair.</p>
<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_2"></a>[2]</span></p>
<p>“By the saints!” he swore in a voice
that drowned the slush of the waters against
the vessel’s sides. “Sanchez! Fools and
devils! Is it necessary to shout to the
world our villainy? Look at that flag flapping
against the mast! Three hours after
set of sun, and the flag of the devil still
flies! Discipline! Ha!”</p>
<p>“The flag!” Sanchez bellowed. There
was no definite order given, but the man
nearest the mast was quick to lower the
flag. Sanchez looked back toward Barbados,
and Barbados grunted and turned
away to look toward the distant land.</p>
<p>Sanchez was a smaller edition of Barbados,
the evil lieutenant of an evil chief.
He was short and thick, and many a man
had misjudged the strength of his shoulders
and arms and had discovered his sorry
error too late. The eyes of Sanchez glittered
also, first as he looked at Barbados,
and then turned, as the chief had, to glance
toward the distant land.</p>
<p>A fair land it was, bathed in the mellow
light of the moon. Along the shore uncertain
shadows played, like shapeless fairies
at a game. And here was a darker streak,
where a cañon ran down to the sea—a
cañon with black depths caused by the rank
undergrowth and stubby trees.</p>
<p>“There!” Barbados bellowed. He pointed
toward the mouth of the cañon, where
the water hissed white against a jumble of
rocks. “We go ashore there, against the
cliffs!”</p>
<p>Again there was no regular command,
but the course of the pirate craft was
changed a little, and she sailed slowly toward
the spot Barbados had indicated. The
chief grunted once more, and Sanchez hurried
quickly to his side.</p>
<p>“We land twoscore men!” Barbados
commanded. “Twoscore will be enough.
I lead them, and you are to go with me.
The others will remain aboard and take the
ship off shore again, and return to-morrow
night two hours before the dawn.”</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Sí!</i>” Sanchez said.</p>
<p>“’Tis to be a pretty party, by the saints!
Rich loot, food and wines, honey and olives,
gold and jewels and precious stones!
Bronze native wenches for such as like
them! And time enough for it, eh? Ha!
For some four months we have sailed up
and down the coast, now and then landing
and raiding to get a few pigs and cows.
’Tis time for a bold stroke! And this—”</p>
<p>“It is arranged?” Sanchez questioned.</p>
<p>“Am I in the habit of rushing in where
things are not arranged?” Barbados demanded.
“Señor Pirate, do you take me
to be a weak and silly fool?”</p>
<p>“If I did,” Sanchez replied, “I would
have more wit than to say so to your face!”</p>
<p>“Ha! Is it arranged? When the Governor’s
own man arranges it? There is a
precious pair, the Governor and his man!”
said Barbados, laughing raucously. “Pirates
and rogues we may be, but we can take
lessons in villainy from some of the gentry
who bear the names of <i lang="es">caballeros</i>, but have
foul blood in their veins!”</p>
<p>“The thing has an evil look,” Sanchez
was bold enough to assert. “I like not a
task too easy. By my naked blade, that
which looks easy often is not! If this
should prove to be a trap—”</p>
<p>Barbados gave a cry of rage and whirled
toward him suddenly, and Sanchez retreated
a single step, and his hand dropped to the
naked cutlass in his belt of tanned human
skin.</p>
<p>“Try to draw it, fool!” Barbados cried.
“I’ll have you choked black in the face
and hurled overboard for shark meat before
your hand reaches the blade!”</p>
<p>“I made no move to draw,” Sanchez
wailed.</p>
<p>“There are times when I wonder why I
allow you to remain at my side,” Barbados
told him, folding his gigantic arms across his
hairy chest. “And there are times when I
wonder whether your heart is not turning
to that of a woman and your blood to water
or swill. A trap, you fool! Am I the man
to walk into traps? Kindly allow me to
attend to the finer details of this business.
And a pretty business it is!”</p>
<p>“The village of Reina de Los Angeles is
miles in the interior,” Sanchez wailed. “I do
not like to get out of sight of the sea. With
the pitching planks of a deck beneath my
bare feet—”</p>
<p>“Beware lest you have beneath your
feet the plank that is walked until a man
reaches its end and drops to watery death!”<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_3"></a>[3]</span>
Barbados warned him. “Enough of this!
Pick the men who are to land, and get ready
the boats!”</p>
<p>An hour later the anchor had been
dropped, and the pirate craft had swung
with the tide and was tugging at her chains
like a puppy at a leash. Over the sides
went the boats, Barbados growling soft
curses at the noise his men made.</p>
<p>“We have nothing to fear, fools and
devils!” he said. “But there will be no
surprise if some converted native sees us
and carries to Reina de Los Angeles word
of our arrival. There is many a <i lang="es">hacienda</i>
in these parts where pirates are detested.
Silence, rogues! You’ll have your fill of
noise to-morrow night!”</p>
<p>Without knowing it, Barbados practiced
a deal of psychology. These wild men of
the sea had before them a journey of some
miles inland, and they knew it and hated
it, but the pirate chief continually hinted
to them of the rich loot at the end of the
present trip, and his hints served their purpose
well.</p>
<p>Toward the shore they rowed, tossing
on the breakers, making for the dark spot
where the cañon ran down into the sea.
There a cliff some twelve feet high circled
back into the land, forming a natural shelter
against the land breeze at times and the
sea winds at other times.</p>
<p>Through the surf they splashed, half
naked, carrying naught except their
weapons, and no weapons save their cutlasses.
They gathered on the beach and
watched the boats return to the ship, shrieking
coarse jests at the men compelled to remain
behind.</p>
<p>Barbados took from his belt a tiny scrap
of parchment and looked at it closely. With
him this passed for a map. He called Sanchez
to his side, turned his back to the
sea, and looked along the dark reaches of
the cañon.</p>
<p>“Forward!” Barbados said. “And let
there be little noise about it! If we stumble
across one of the accursed natives, slit
his throat and so silence it.”</p>
<p>“And if we meet a wandering <i lang="es">fray</i> of
the missions, slit him into ribbons,” Sanchez
added, chuckling.</p>
<p>To his wonder, Barbados grasped his arm
so that Sanchez thought the bone must
break.</p>
<p>“Enough of that!” Barbados cried.
“Touch no <i lang="es">fray</i> in violence except I give
the word!”</p>
<p>“You love the robes and gowns?”
Sanchez asked, in wonder.</p>
<p>“I love to protect myself,” Barbados
replied. “It is an ill thing to assault a <i lang="es">fray</i>
if it can be avoided.” He stopped speaking
for a moment, and seemed to shiver
throughout the length and breadth of his
gigantic frame. “I had a friend once who
struck a <i lang="es">fray</i>,” he added in a whisper. “I
do not like to remember what happened to
him. Forward!”</p>
<p>Inland they tramped, mile after mile,
keeping to the cañons, following an <i lang="es">arroyo</i>
now and then, dodging from dark spot to
dark spot, while Barbados growled curses
at the bright moon and Sanchez continually
admonished the men behind to keep silent.</p>
<p>It was a journey they disliked, but they
liked to think of the loot they would find
at the end of it. On they went, toward
the sleeping town of Reina de Los Angeles.
Besides Barbados and Sanchez, few of them
had seen the town. Pirates had been treated
harshly there when they had wandered inland.
But now something had happened,
it appeared, that made a raid on the town
a comparatively safe enterprise.</p>
<p>An hour before dawn they stumbled
across a native, caught him as he started
to flee, and left his lifeless body behind.
Then came the day, and they went into
hiding in a jumble of hills, within easy
striking distance of the town. They had
covered ground well.</p>
<p>Sprawled on the sward they slept. Barbados,
a little way aside, consulted his poor
map once more, and then called Sanchez
to his side.</p>
<p>“Since we may have to split our force, it
were well that you knew more of this business,”
he said.</p>
<p>“I am listening, Barbados.”</p>
<p>“This man who is to meet us to-morrow
night at the edge of the town is a high
official.”</p>
<p>“I have heard you call him the Governor’s
man.”</p>
<p>“Even so. He is to have matters arranged<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_4"></a>[4]</span>
so that the town will be at our
mercy. It never has been raided properly.
It will be necessary, perhaps, to steal horses,
and possibly a <i lang="es">carreta</i> or two in which to
carry the loot. The town will be wide open
for us, my friend.”</p>
<p>“There is a <i lang="es">presidio</i> in Reina de Los
Angeles, and where there is a <i lang="es">presidio</i> there
are soldiers,” Sanchez reminded him.</p>
<p>“And where there are soldiers there are
fools,” Barbados added. He stopped speaking
long enough to chuckle. “I am not
afraid of the soldiers. This man with whom
we are to deal will care for the troops.”</p>
<p>“I fail to understand it,” Sanchez said,
shaking his head. “Why should such things
be? Do we split the loot with this high
official?”</p>
<p>“Dream of innocence, listen!” Barbados
hissed. “Listen, and comprehend, else I
choke you to death! An emissary came to
me in the south from this high official, and
through him arrangements were made.
Things have happened since last we were
in the vicinity of Reina de Los Angeles.
The Governor, I know, left San Francisco
de Asis and journeyed south with his gallant
company. And while he was at Reina de
Los Angeles something happened that
caused him to hate the town. There even
was talk for a time of him being forced
to abdicate his high station.”</p>
<p>“Ha! More mystery!” Sanchez growled.</p>
<p>“It seems that in the southland there
was a pest of a highwayman known as Señor
Zorro, and whom men called the Curse of
Capistrano. A land pirate, spit upon him!
How can a man be a pirate on the land?
However, this Señor Zorro did several things
worthy of note. From what I have heard,
I would we had a dozen of him in the ship’s
company. We could raid the whole of
Mexico, capture the Spanish fleets and attack
Europe.”</p>
<p>“This Señor Zorro must be quite some
man,” Sanchez observed.</p>
<p>“I have heard but little, but enough to
convince me that I would have him for a
friend rather than an enemy. He is a sort
of devil. Now he is here and now he is
gone. Like a ghost he comes and like a
specter he disappears. Ha! You, a pirate,
cross yourself!”</p>
<p>“I am afraid of no live man who lives,
save perhaps yourself,” Sanchez observed.
“But I like not this talk of ghosts.”</p>
<p>“Here is the jest, fool and friend! It
develops after a time that this terrible Señor
Zorro is nothing but a <i lang="es">caballero</i> out to have
a bit of fun and protect the weak. There
is a waste of time for you—protecting the
weak. And other sundry <i lang="es">caballeros</i> joined
hands with him and punished minor officials
who sought to steal and deal crookedly.
That is right and proper. If a thief, be a
thief! If a pirate, be a pirate! But do
not play at being an honest man and try
to be thief and pirate at the same time.”</p>
<p>“Ha!” Sanchez grunted, meaning that he
wished the sermon to end and the tale to
continue.</p>
<p>“This Señor Zorro, whose real name I
have forgotten if ever I knew it, carved his
initial with his sword into the cheeks and
foreheads of many men. They call it the
Mark of Zorro. And when his identity was
disclosed his friends stood by him and told
the Governor that it were best if he return
to San Francisco de Asis and grace Reina
de Los Angeles with his continual absence.”</p>
<p>“And did he?”</p>
<p>“He did,” Barbados replied, “with
hatred in his heart for this same Reina de
Los Angeles. He did not abdicate, of course.
And he craves revenge.”</p>
<p>“Ha! Here is where we enter?”</p>
<p>“It is,” Barbados replied. “We raid
the town and take what we will, and the
Governor hears of it, sends soldiers running
wildly up and down the coast, and winks
at himself in his looking-glass. For the
information and protection we get, we hand
to the Governor’s man at a certain time
and place a certain share of the loot. Which
we well can afford, since we are to get it
so easily.”</p>
<p>“If we forget to hand it—” Sanchez
began.</p>
<p>“Friend and fool! By the saints! Are
you an honest pirate or no? We shall deal
fairly. Think of the future. It is not only
Reina de Los Angeles. There is San Juan
Capistrano, and rich San Diego de Alcála
to come after. By that time we have this
pretty Governor and certain of his officials
in our mesh, and do as we will. Ha! What<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_5"></a>[5]</span>
knaves! I would rather be an honest pirate
than a politician any day!”</p>
<p>The day passed and the dusk came. And
once yet again Barbados indulged in curses.
For it was a beautiful moonlight night, half
as light as the day that had just died,
and a man could be seen afar. But Barbados
led his wretched company on toward
the town, and after a time they came to the
crest of a slope and saw lights twinkling
in the distance.</p>
<p>Stretched on the ground so as not to form
a silhouette against the sky, Barbados
looked over the scene. He could see the
plaza, fires burning before the huts of the
natives, twinkling lights in the windows of
the pretentious houses where lived the men
of wealth and blood and rank. To one side
was the <i lang="es">presidio</i>, and to the other the
church.</p>
<p>Barbados grunted an order to Sanchez
and crept forward alone. He approached
the end of the village, reached a spot where
the shadows were deep, and crouched to
wait.</p>
<p>For half an hour he waited, grumbling
his impatience. Then there came to him
a figure muffled in a long cloak. Barbados
hissed a word that had been agreed upon.
The figure stepped quickly to his side.</p>
<p>“You are ready?”</p>
<p>“Ready, <i lang="es">señor</i>,” Barbados replied.</p>
<p>“Where are your men?”</p>
<p>“In hiding three hundred yards away,
<i lang="es">señor</i>.”</p>
<p>“It were best to strike in about an hour.
The soldiers will be sent toward the south
on a wild goose chase.”</p>
<p>“I understand, <i lang="es">señor</i>.”</p>
<p>“I ride back toward the hills to a <i lang="es">hacienda</i>
to pay a social call. It would not do
for me to be here, of course.”</p>
<p>“Certainly not, <i lang="es">señor</i>.”</p>
<p>“The way will be open to you. Take
your will with the town, but do not use the
torch, except it be on the hut of some
native. As soon as you have your loot,
make for the sea again. The soldiers will
be sent on a useless trail.”</p>
<p>“It is well arranged, <i lang="es">señor</i>. We’ll strike
as soon as the troopers are at a sufficient
distance.”</p>
<p>“There is something else. You must
send a few men of your force to the <i lang="es">hacienda</i>
of Don Carlos Pulido, three miles to
the north.”</p>
<p>“What is this, <i lang="es">señor</i>?” Barbados asked.</p>
<p>“A little matter of abducting a woman
for me.”</p>
<p>“Ha!”</p>
<p>“The Señorita Lolita Pulido, understand.
She is to be seized and conducted to the
coast and taken aboard ship. She is not to
be harmed, but treated with every respect.
In four or five days I shall meet you at the
rendezvous on the southern coast, and
claim her as my share of the loot. Do this
well, and that is all the share of loot I ask
this time.”</p>
<p>“A mere detail,” Barbados said.</p>
<p>“If the <i lang="es">hacienda</i> is disturbed a bit during
the abduction, it will not cause the
heartbreak of the Governor. This Don
Carlos Pulido is no friend of His Excellency.”</p>
<p>“I understand, <i lang="es">señor</i>.”</p>
<p>“The <i lang="es">señorita</i> expects to become the
bride to-morrow of Don Diego Vega—curse
him! That large house at the side of the
plaza is his. When you are raiding the
town, Barbados, pay special attention to
that house. And should he get a knife between
his ribs there will be no sorrow on
my part.”</p>
<p>“I begin to comprehend,” Barbados replied.</p>
<p>“I may depend upon you?”</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Sí, señor</i>! We attend to the house of
this Don Diego Vega and to the don personally.
I shall send a small force to abduct
the girl and take her to the shore.
She will be waiting for you at the rendezvous
to the south.”</p>
<p>“Good! Watch when the soldiers ride
away, and strike an hour later. <i lang="es">Adios!</i>”</p>
<p>The cloak dropped for a moment as the
man from the village straightened himself.
Barbados got a good look at his face as the
moonlight struck it. He gasped.</p>
<p>“Your forehead!” he said.</p>
<p>“It is nothing. That cursed beast of a
Zorro put it there!”</p>
<p>Barbados looked again. On the man’s
forehead was a ragged “Z,” put there in
such a manner that it would remain forever.
There was a moment of silence, and<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_6"></a>[6]</span>
then Barbados found himself alone. The
other had slipped away through the shadows.</p>
<p>Barbados grinned. “Here is a double
deal of some sort, but it need bring me no
fear,” he mused. “Here would be startling
news for all men to know. Wants to steal a
girl now, does he? For his share of proper
loot I’d steal him half a score of girls!”</p>
<p>He grinned again and started back toward
his men. Barbados did not fear the
soldiers, and he knew they would be sent
away. He could be sure of that. For the
conspirator who had come to him out of
the dark was none other than Captain Ramón,
<i lang="es">commandante</i> of the <i lang="es">presidio</i> at Reina
de Los Angeles.</p>
<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
<div class="chapter">
<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_II">CHAPTER II.<br>
<small>PEDRO THE BOASTER.</small></h2>
</div>
<p class="cap">Sergeant Pedro Gonzales, a
giant of a wine-guzzling soldier whose
heart was as large as his capacity for
liquor, was known as “Pedro the Boaster.”
When there were military duties to be done
he was to be found at his post in the <i lang="es">presidio</i>,
but at other times one found him at
the village <i lang="es">posada</i>, sitting before the big
fireplace and remaking the world with
words.</p>
<p>On this moonlight night, Sergeant Pedro
Gonzales crossed the plaza with a corporal
and a couple of soldiers, entered the inn,
and called in a loud voice for the landlord
to fetch wine and be quick about it. The
sergeant had learned long since that the fat
landlord held him in terror, and did he but
act surly and displeased he received excellent
service.</p>
<p>“Landlord, you are as fat as your wine
is thin!” Sergeant Pedro declared, sprawling
at one of the tables. “I have a suspicion
now and then that you keep a special
wineskin for me, and mix water with my
drink.”</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Señor!</i>” the landlord protested.</p>
<p>“We honest soldiers are stationed here
to protect you from liars and thieves and
dishonest travelers up and down El Camino
Real, and you treat us like the dirt beneath
your boots.”</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Señor!</i> I have the greatest respect—”</p>
<p>“One of these fine days,” Gonzales interrupted,
“there will be trouble. Some
gentleman of the highway will approach
you with an idea of robbery, and you’ll
shriek for the soldiery. And then, fat one,
I may remember the watered wine, and be
busy elsewhere!”</p>
<p>“But I protest—” the landlord began.</p>
<p>“More wine!” the sergeant shouted.
“Must I get out my blade and carve your
wineskins—or your own skin? More wine
of the best, and you’ll get your pay when
I get mine, if it is an honest score you
keep. If my friend, Don Diego Vega, was
here—!”</p>
<p>“That same friend of yours makes merry
a little later in the evening,” the landlord
said, as he went to fill the wine cups.
“To-morrow he is to take a bride.”</p>
<p>“Pig, do you suppose I do not know it?”
Gonzales screeched. “Think you that I
have been asleep these past few months?
Was I not in the thick of it when Don
Diego Vega played at being Señor Zorro?”</p>
<p>“You were in the thick of it,” the corporal
admitted, with a touch of sarcasm in
his voice.</p>
<p>“Ha!” cried the sergeant. “There was
a turbulent time for you! Here in this very
room I fought him, blade to blade, thinking
that he was some stinking highwayman.
And just as I was getting the better of it—”</p>
<p>“How is this?” the corporal shrieked.</p>
<p>“Just as I was getting the better of the
blade match,” Gonzales reaffirmed, glaring
at the corporal, “back he went and dashed
through the door! And thereafter he set
the town about its own ears for some time
to come.”</p>
<p>“It occurs to me that I saw that fight,”
the corporal declared. “If you were getting
the best of it at any stage, then were
mine eyes at fault.”</p>
<p>“I know a man,” said the sergeant,
darkly, “who will do extra guard duty for
a score of days.”</p>
<p>“Ha!” the corporal grunted. “You do
not like plain speech!”</p>
<p>“I do not like a soldier to make mock of
his superiors,” the sergeant replied. “It
were unseemly for me to make remarks, for
instance, concerning our <i lang="es">commandante</i>,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_7"></a>[7]</span>
Captain Ramón, but let it be said that he
fought this Señor Zorro, too. And Captain
Ramón wears on his forehead Zorro’s
mark. You will notice that there is no
carved Z on my face!”</p>
<p>“Ha!” the corporal grunted again. “It
were best, sergeant, to voice such remarks
inwardly. The <i lang="es">commandante</i> is not proud
of the mark he wears.”</p>
<p>Gonzales changed the subject. “The
wine!” he thundered. “It goes well on a
moonlight night, the same as on a stormy
one. But moonlight is a poor business save
for lovesick swains. ’Tis no night for a
soldier. Would one expect thieves to descend
through the moonlight?”</p>
<p>“There be pirates,” the corporal said.</p>
<p>“Pirates!” Gonzales’s great fist descended
and met the table with a crash,
sending the wine cups bouncing. “Pirates!
You have noticed no pirates in
Reina de Los Angeles, have you? They
have not been playing around the <i lang="es">presidio</i>,
have they? I am not saying that they
know I am stationed here, however—
Meal mush and goat’s milk! Pirates is my
dish!”</p>
<p>“The town grows wealthy, and they may
come,” the corporal said.</p>
<p>“You fear? You tremble?” Gonzales
cried. “Are you soldier or <i lang="es">fray</i>? Pirates!
By the saints, I would that they came!
My sword arm grows fat from little use.”</p>
<p>“Talk not of pirates!” the landlord
begged. “Suppose they did come?”</p>
<p>“And what if they did?” Gonzales demanded.
“Am I not here, dolt? Are there
not soldiers? Pirates? Ha!”</p>
<p>He sprang to his feet, those same feet
spread wide apart. His hand darted down,
and he whipped out his blade.</p>
<p>“That for a pirate!” he shouted, and
made a mighty thrust at the wall. “This
for a pirate!” And he slashed through the
air, his blade whistling so that the corporal
and soldiers sprang backward, and the four
or five natives who happened to be in the
inn cringed in a corner. “Pirates!” cried
Gonzales. “I would I could meet one this
very night! We grew stale from inaction.
There is too much peace in the world!
Meal mush and goat’s milk!”</p>
<p>The door opened suddenly. Sergeant
Gonzales stopped in the middle of a sentence,
and his blade stopped in the middle
of an arc. And then the sergeant and the
other soldiers snapped to attention, for the
<i lang="es">commandante</i> was before them.</p>
<p>“Sergeant Gonzales!” Captain Ramón
commanded.</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Sí!</i>”</p>
<p>“I could hear you shouting half way
across the plaza. If you wish to meet a
pirate, perhaps you may have your wish.
Rumors have been brought by natives.
Mount your men and proceed along El
Camino Real toward the south. Search the
country well, once you are four or five
miles from the town. It is a bright moonlight
night, and men may be seen at a great
distance.”</p>
<p>“It is an order!” the sergeant admitted.</p>
<p>“Leave but one man at the <i lang="es">presidio</i> as
guard. Return before dawn. Have my
best horse made ready, as I ride out to a
<i lang="es">hacienda</i> for a visit. Go!”</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Sí!</i>” Sergeant Gonzales grunted. He
motioned to the soldiers, and they hurried
through the door. He sheathed his sword,
and when the back of Captain Ramón was
turned for an instant he tossed off the wine
that had been before him, and hurried after
his men. The <i lang="es">commandante</i> drew off his
gloves and sat at one of the tables.</p>
<p>Gonzales led the way across the plaza
and toward the <i lang="es">presidio</i>. He was growling
low down in his throat.</p>
<p>“This is a fine state of affairs!” he said.
“Ride all night and kick up the dust!
Back before dawn with nothing done!”</p>
<p>“But you wanted pirates,” the corporal
protested.</p>
<p>“Think you they will stand in the middle
of El Camino Real and await our pleasure?”
Gonzales growled. “What pirate
would be abroad a night like this? Could
we but meet some—ha! There is a special
reward for pirates!”</p>
<p>Even before they had reached the entrance
of the <i lang="es">presidio</i>, he began shouting
his orders. Torches flared, and men ran to
prepare the horses. Fifteen minutes later,
with Gonzales at their head, they rode
across the plaza and out upon El Camino
Real, their mounts snorting, their sabers
rattling.</p>
<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_8"></a>[8]</span></p>
<p>From the crest of a slope a few hundred
yards away, Barbados and his evil crew
watched them depart upon their mounts.</p>
<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
<div class="chapter">
<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_III">CHAPTER III.<br>
<small>SUDDEN TURMOIL.</small></h2>
</div>
<p class="cap">While the blushes played across her
cheeks, Señorita Lolita Pulido sat
at one end of the big table in the
great living-room of her father’s house and
watched the final preparations for her wedding.</p>
<p>Don Carlos, her gray-haired father,
watched proudly from the foot of the table.
Doña Catalina, her mother, walked majestically
around the room and gave soft commands.
Native servants scurried like rats
in and out of the great room, carrying
bundles of silks and satins, gowns, intimate
garments.</p>
<p>“To-morrow!” Don Carlos sighed, and
in the sigh was that which spoke of cruelties
bravely borne. “To-morrow, <i lang="es">señorita</i>, you
become the bride of Don Diego Vega, and
the first lady of Reina de Los Angeles.
And my troubles, let us hope, are at an
end.”</p>
<p>“Let us hope so,” said Doña Catalina.</p>
<p>“The Governor himself dare not raise
his hand against the father-in-law of Don
Diego Vega. My fortunes will increase
again. And you, daughter of my heart,
will be a great lady, with wealth at your
command.”</p>
<p>“And love also,” the little <i lang="es">señorita</i> said,
bowing her head.</p>
<p>“Love, also!” said Doña Catalina.</p>
<p>“Ha!” Don Carlos cried, with a gale of
laughter. “It is love now, is it? And when
first Don Diego came wooing, the girl
would have none of him, even to better the
family fortunes. He was dull, he yawned,
and she wanted a man of hot blood and romantic.
But when it was learned that he
was Señor Zorro— That made a difference!
Love, also! It is well!”</p>
<p>Señorita Lolita blushed again, and fumbled
at a soft garment upon her lap. There
came a pounding at the door, and one of
the servants opened it. Don Carlos glanced
up to find a man of the village there.</p>
<p>“It is a message, <i lang="es">señor</i>,” he said.</p>
<p>“From whom?” Don Carlos asked.</p>
<p>“From Don Diego Vega, to the little
<i lang="es">señorita</i>.”</p>
<p>Señorita Lolita dimpled, and her black
eyes flashed as she bent over the heap of
garments again. Don Carlos stood up and
stalked majestically toward the door.</p>
<p>“I take the message,” he said, and he
took it, and handed it to Doña Catalina,
that she might read it first. “Don Diego
Vega is not wed to my daughter as yet. It
is not proper that he send her sealed messages.”</p>
<p>His eyes were twinkling as he turned
away. Señorita Lolita pouted and pretended
indifference, and Doña Catalina, her
mother, unfolded the message, and read it
with a smile upon her lips.</p>
<p>“It is harmless,” she announced.</p>
<p>Señorita Lolita looked up, and took the
message from her mother’s hand. Don
Diego Vega, it appeared, wasted no words.
His message was read swiftly:</p>
<div class="blockquot">
<p>This man has orders to make a record carrying
this greeting of love to you and fetching yours
in return.</p>
<p class="noic">Thine,</p>
<p class="right"><span class="smcap">Diego</span>.<br></p>
</div>
<p>“Ha!” Don Carlos shouted. “Economy
is a great thing, but not in words when
there is love to be spoken. You should
have seen the messages I sent to Catalina
in the old days!”</p>
<p>“Carlos!” Doña Catalina warned.</p>
<p>“And paid a native wench royally to slip
them to her,” Don Carlos continued,
shamelessly. “Behind the back of her
<i lang="es">duenna</i>! Page after page, and every word
a labor! I could fight better than I could
write!”</p>
<p>“Perhaps so can Don Diego,” the little
<i lang="es">señorita</i> said.</p>
<p>“Staunch and loyal to him, are you?”
Don Carlos roared. “That is proper. Pen
your reply, my daughter, and let this man
establish his record for the return trip to
Reina de Los Angeles. Do not keep Don
Diego waiting.”</p>
<p>The <i lang="es">señorita</i> blushed yet again, got up,
and swept into a room adjoining.</p>
<p>Don Carlos addressed the messenger:
“How are things in the town?”</p>
<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_9"></a>[9]</span></p>
<p>“Don Diego entertains his <i lang="es">caballero</i>
friends at a last bachelor supper, <i lang="es">señor</i>,”
the man replied.</p>
<p>“Ha! Young men only, I suppose?”</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Sí, señor!</i>”</p>
<p>“Wine flows, I take it, and the table is
piled high with rich food?”</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Sí, señor!</i>”</p>
<p>“Ah, well! I shall have my turn to-morrow
at the marriage feast,” Don Carlos
said. “My regards to Don Diego Vega!”</p>
<p>“They shall be given him, <i lang="es">señor</i>.”</p>
<p>The <i lang="es">señorita</i> returned and handed what
she had written to her mother, who perused
it and sealed it, and handed it to the messenger
in turn. The man bobbed his head
in respectful salute, and hurried out. A
native servant closed the door behind
him—but neglected to drop the heavy bar
in place. Because of the unusual excitement,
none noticed.</p>
<p>Don Carlos resumed his position at the
foot of the table. This was a great night
for him, and to-morrow would be a great
day. He was happy because his fortunes
were on the mend, because the Governor
had been forced to cease his persecutions.
But he was happy also because his daughter
was to have happiness.</p>
<p>Don Carlos and his wife had lavished
upon this, their only child, love enough for
a dozen. And now both glanced at her as
she fumbled at a silken shawl. Her black
eyes were sparkling again, though dreams
were glistening in them. Her cheeks were
delicately flushed. Her dainty hands
played with the silks. One tiny tip of a
boot peeped from beneath her voluminous
skirts. A bride of whom any man could
honestly be proud, Don Carlos thought,
and with proper blood in her veins and
proper thoughts in her head.</p>
<p>“So Don Diego makes merry to-night
with his young friends!” Don Carlos said.
“I would like to peer in upon him now.”</p>
<p>Could he have done so, he would have
seen a merry gathering. In the big living-room
of Don Diego’s town <i lang="es">casa</i> a huge
table had been spread. Don Diego sat at
the head of it, dressed in fastidious garments,
and <i lang="es">caballeros</i> were grouped around
it. Richly dressed they were, with blades
at their sides, blades with jeweled hilts, but
serviceable weapons for all that. Wine
cups and dishes were before them. They
feasted, and they drank. They toasted
Don Diego, and the Señorita Lolita, Don
Diego’s father, and the <i lang="es">señorita’s</i> father,
and one another.</p>
<p>“Another good man gone wrong!” cried
Don Audre Ruiz. He sat at Don Diego’s
right hand, because he was Don Diego’s
closest friend. “Here is our comrade, Don
Diego, about to turn into a family man!”
he continued. “This scion of Old Spain,
this delicate morsel of <i lang="es">caballero</i> blood to be
gobbled up by the monster of matrimony!
It is time to weep!”</p>
<p>“Into your wine cup!” Don Diego
added.</p>
<p>“Ha!” Don Audre Ruiz cried. “But a
few days ago, it seems, we rode after him
as though he had been the devil, rode hard
upon his heels, thinking that we were following
some sort of renegade <i lang="es">caballero</i>
playing at highwayman. Señor Zorro, by
the saints! We shouted praises of him because
for a time he took us out of our monotony.
Then came the unmasking, and
we found that Don Diego and Señor Zorro
were one and the same!”</p>
<p>He ceased speaking long enough to
empty his wine cup and make certain that
a servant refilled it.</p>
<p>“Señor Zorro!” he continued. “Those
were happy moments! And now he is to
turn husband, and no more riding abroad
with sword in hand. We shall die of monotony,
Diego, my friend!”</p>
<p>“Of fat!” Don Diego corrected.</p>
<p>“What has become of the wild blood
that coursed your veins for a few moons?”
Don Audre Ruiz demanded. “Where are
those precious, turbulent drops that were in
Zorro?”</p>
<p>“They linger,” Don Diego declared.
“It needs but the cause to churn them into
active being.”</p>
<p>“Ha! A cause! <i lang="es">Caballeros</i>, let us find
him a cause, that this good friend of ours
will be too busy to get married.”</p>
<p>“One moment!” Don Diego cried. He
stood up and smiled at them, gave a little
twitch to his shoulders, and then turned
his back upon the brilliant company and
hurried from the room. They drank again,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_10"></a>[10]</span>
and waited. And after a time, back he
came, a silk-draped bundle beneath one
arm.</p>
<p>“What mystery is this?” Don Audre
demanded. He sprawled back in his chair
and prepared to laugh. It was said of
Don Audre that he always was prepared
to laugh. He laughed when he made love,
when he fought, as he ate and drank, his
bubbling spirit, always upon his lips.</p>
<p>“Here is no mystery,” Don Diego Vega
declared. He smiled at them again, unwrapped
what he held, and suddenly exhibited
a sword. “The blade of Zorro!”
he cried.</p>
<p>There was an instant of silence, and then
every <i lang="es">caballero</i> sprang to his feet. Their
own swords came flashing from their scabbards,
flashed on high, reflected in a million
rays the glowing lights of the candelabra.</p>
<p>“Zorro!” they shouted. “Zorro!”</p>
<p>“Good old blade!” Don Diego said, a
whimsical smile playing about his lips.</p>
<p>“Good old point!” exclaimed Don Audre
Ruiz. “With it you marked many a scoundrel
with your mark, notably and especially
one Captain Ramón. Why do we endure
his presence here in Reina de Los Angeles?
Why not force the Governor to send him
north?”</p>
<p>“Let us not mar a perfect evening with
thoughts of him,” Don Diego begged.
“<i lang="es">Caballeros</i>, I have brought this blade before
you for a purpose. We have drunk
toasts to everything of which we could
think, and there still remains an abundance
of rare wine that has not been guzzled. A
toast to the sword of Zorro!”</p>
<p>“Ha! A happy thought!” Don Audre
Ruiz cried. “<i lang="es">Caballeros</i>, a toast to the
sword of Zorro!”</p>
<p>They drank it, put down their golden
goblets, and sighed. They glanced at one
another, each thinking of the days when
Señor Zorro had ruled El Camino Real for
a time. And then they dropped into their
chairs once more, and Don Diego Vega
sat down also, the sword on the table before
him.</p>
<p>“It was a great game,” he said, and
sighed himself. “But it is in the past.
Now I shall be a man of peace and quiet.”</p>
<p>“That remains to be seen,” Don Audre
declared. “There may be domestic warfare,
you know. A man takes a terrible
chance when he weds.”</p>
<p>“Nothing but peace and quiet,” Don
Diego responded. “The sword of Zorro
is but a relic. Years from now I may
look upon it and smile. It has served its
purpose.”</p>
<p>He yawned.</p>
<p>“By the saints!” Don Audre Ruiz
breathed. “Did you see him? He yawned!
While yet the word ‘Zorro’ was upon his
lips, he yawned. And this is the man who
defended persecuted priests and natives, defied
the soldiery and made the Governor do
a dance! ’Tis a cause he wants and needs,
something to change him into Zorro again!”</p>
<p>“To-morrow I become a husband,” Don
Diego answered him, yawning yet once more
and fumbling with a handkerchief. “By
the way, <i lang="es">señores</i>, have you ever seen this
one?”</p>
<p>He spread the handkerchief over the wine
goblet before him, and as the <i lang="es">caballeros</i> bent
forward to watch, smiles upon their faces,
he passed one hand rapidly back and forth
across the covered goblet with such rapidity
that it was hidden almost all the time, and
with the other hand he reached beneath
the edge of the handkerchief and jerked
the goblet away, letting it drop to the floor.
The handkerchief collapsed on the table.
Don Diego waved a hand languidly.</p>
<p>“See? It is gone!” he breathed.</p>
<p>“Bah!” Don Audre cried as the others
laughed. “At your boy’s tricks again, are
you? Where is your wild blood now?”</p>
<p>“I am done with roistering and adventure.”</p>
<p>“A man never knows when his words
may be hurled back at him and cause him
to look foolish,” said Don Audre. “It is
foolish to take everything for granted. For
instance—”</p>
<p>He stopped. The sounds of a tumult had
reached their ears. For a moment they
were silent, listening. Shouts, oaths, the
sounds of blows, the clashing of blades.</p>
<p>“What in the name of the saints is
that?” Don Diego asked.</p>
<p>A trembling servant answered him.</p>
<p>“There are men fighting over by the<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_11"></a>[11]</span>
inn, <i lang="es">señor</i>,” he said. “I heard some one
shout of pirates!”</p>
<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
<div class="chapter">
<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_IV">CHAPTER IV.<br>
<small>FRAY FELIPE MAKES A VOW.</small></h2>
</div>
<p class="cap">Barbados continued to mutter curses
as he watched the sky. Not a cloud
marred its face, and the moon was at
the full. But here was an enterprise where
there was small risk, so he could discount
the bright night.</p>
<p>He grunted his pleasure as he saw Sergeant
Gonzales and the troopers ride away
from the <i lang="es">presidio</i>, cross the plaza, and continue
toward the south. He called Sanchez
to him and explained what was to be done
at the <i lang="es">hacienda</i> of Don Carlos Pulido.</p>
<p>“You will take half a dozen men,” Barbados
commanded. “Do as you please at
the place, but capture the <i lang="es">señorita</i> by all
means, and go quickly back over the hills
to the mouth of the cañon. Steal horses,
and ride. Get there before the break of
day! We shall do the same. The ship
will be putting in at dawn or before.”</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Sí!</i>” Sanchez replied. “And do you
care for my share of the loot here. There
may be small profit at the <i lang="es">hacienda</i>!”</p>
<p>Sanchez selected his ruffians and led them
away around a hill and toward the north,
where the <i lang="es">hacienda</i> of Don Carlos Pulido
rested. Barbados whispered instructions to
the remainder of the crew. And then they
waited, for Barbados wished to make sure
that the soldiers did not return.</p>
<p>For more than an hour longer he waited,
and then gave the word. Down from the
crest of the slope they slipped, breathing
heavily, lusting for illegal gain, holding
their cutlasses in readiness for instant use.
They kept in the scant shadows as much
as possible, scattered as they crossed the
wider light spaces, made their way slowly
to the edge of the town.</p>
<p>There, in the shadows cast by an empty
adobe building, they separated, and Barbados
whispered his final instructions. They
were to look for rich loot, and nothing
bulky. He had decided against food and
wine, bolts of cloth, casks of olives and
jars of honey. Such things could be obtained
later at any <i lang="es">hacienda</i>. Just now he
wished to get portable valuables and hurry
back to the coast.</p>
<p>Men were detailed to seize horses and
have them in readiness. Certain large
houses were to be attacked in force after
the smaller ones had been disposed of. The
inn was to receive special attention, since it
was whispered that the fat landlord had
hidden wealth.</p>
<p>Down upon the town they crept, and
suddenly they charged into the plaza from
either side. Into the inn they poured,
cutting and slashing at natives until they
fled screeching with terror, stabbing at the
fat landlord as he called upon the saints.</p>
<p>They took what the landlord had, and
gave their attention to the houses and shops.
And now bedlam broke loose as it was realized
what was taking place. Doors were
smashed, terrified men and women were
driven from room to room. Things of value
were seized. Jewels were ripped from
dainty throats and delicate fingers. Silken
shawls were torn from beautiful shoulders.</p>
<p>Here and there a man gave fight, but not
for long. The pirates outnumbered the
citizens, because they traveled in force and
the citizens were scattered. Shrieks and
screeches and cries stabbed the air. Raucous
oaths and fiendish laughter rang across
the plaza. And above the din roared the
voice of Barbados, the human fiend, as he
ordered his men, commanded them, admonished
them, led them to an easy victory.</p>
<p>It was quick work, because the descent
had been so unexpected. It might have
continued throughout the night, until the
town was stripped bare, until not a native’s
hut was left standing. But Barbados
wanted quick loot and a get-away. He
wanted to reach the coast during the bright
moonlight, get the planks of the ship’s deck
beneath his feet once more. He trusted
Captain Ramón, but he feared that the soldiers
might return.</p>
<p>Across the plaza the pirates charged, with
Barbados at their head. They broke into
the church. They filled the sacred edifice
with oaths and ribald jest and raucous
laughter. They darted here and there,
torches held high above their heads, searching
for articles of worth.</p>
<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_12"></a>[12]</span></p>
<p>From a little room to one side stepped a
<i lang="es">fray</i>. His hair was silver, his face was
calm. Erect and purposeful he stood, looking
across at them. Quick steps forward he
took toward the altar, where there were
relics he loved.</p>
<p>“What do you here, <i lang="es">señores</i>?” he demanded.</p>
<p>His voice seemed soft, yet at the same
time there was the ring of steel in it. They
stopped, their shouting ceased, there was a
moment of silence.</p>
<p>“Who are you?” one shouted.</p>
<p>“I am called Fray Felipe, <i lang="es">señores</i>,” came
the response. “Just now I am in charge
of this house of worship. How is it that
you so far forget yourselves as to bring
your tumult here?”</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Fray?</i>” one shouted. “Fool and <i lang="es">fray</i>?
Why do we bring our tumult here? For
to get loot, gowned one!”</p>
<p>“Loot?” Fray Felipe thundered, taking
another step forward. “You would profane
this house? You would lay sacrilegious
hands on what is to be found here, even as
you have voiced sacrilegious tones within
these walls? Scum of the earth, begone!”</p>
<p>They surged toward him. “One side,
<i lang="es">fray</i>!” shouted a foremost one. “Respect
the black flag and we respect your gown!”</p>
<p>“Spawn of hell! Sons of the devil!”
Fray Felipe thundered. “Back to the door,
and out of this holy place!”</p>
<p>He scarcely hoped to stop them. There
were rich ornaments on the altar, and in the
uncertain light the torches shed he could
see the eyes of those nearest glittering. And
the gem-studded goblet was there!</p>
<p>Thought of the gem-studded goblet gave
new strength to ancient Fray Felipe. It
was a relic highly prized. Fray Felipe
loved it, and cared for it tenderly. There
was a legend connected with it. Once it
had been touched by a saint’s lips, men
had said. To have this scum as much as
touch the sacred goblet was too much—to
have them steal it would be unthinkable.</p>
<p>Once more they surged forward, and Fray
Felipe sprang before the altar and threw
up his hands in a gesture of command.</p>
<p>“Back!” he cried. “Would you damn
beyond recovery your immortal souls?
Would you commit the unpardonable sin?”</p>
<p>“Ha!” shouted a man in the front of
the throng. “Worry not about our souls,
<i lang="es">fray</i>! One side, else you’ll have a chance
to worry about the state of your own!
We have scant time to spend on a <i lang="es">fray</i>!”</p>
<p>“What would you?” Fray Felipe asked.</p>
<p>“Loot, fool of a <i lang="es">fray</i>!”</p>
<p>“Only over my dead body do you take
it! I am not afraid to die to protect holy
things! But you—you will fear to die, if
you do this thing!”</p>
<p>“Slit his throat!” cried one in the throng.
“Are we here to argue? The work is not
done!”</p>
<p>Once more they surged forward. The
light of the torches sent rays of fire shooting
from the ornaments on the altar. Their lust
for loot consumed them.</p>
<p>Fray Felipe braced himself, seized the
nearest, raised him half from the floor, and
hurled him back against his fellows.</p>
<p>“The <i lang="es">fray</i> shows fight!” one cried. “Use
your knives, you in the front! A stab
between the ribs, and let us go!”</p>
<p>Again they rushed, and Fray Felipe prepared
for one more feeble attempt, the one
he deemed would be the last. He made
the sign of the cross and waited calmly—waited
until they were upon him, until
he could feel their hot breathing upon his
face, until the stench of their perspiration
was in his nostrils.</p>
<p>But, even as a man raised a cutlass to
strike, there came an interruption. The bellowing
voice of Barbados rang out above
the din.</p>
<p>“Stop!” he shrieked. There was something
terrifying in the sudden and unexpected
command. The pirates stopped, fell
back. Barbados charged through them and
to Fray Felipe’s side. The pirate’s face
showed white in the light of the torches.</p>
<p>“Back!” he commanded. “This <i lang="es">fray</i> is
not to be harmed! Out, fools and devils!
There is one rich house yet to be robbed.
Let us not tarry here!”</p>
<p>“There is loot—” one began.</p>
<p>He did not complete the sentence. Barbados
whirled, and with a single blow he
stretched him senseless.</p>
<p>“Out!” he commanded. “This <i lang="es">fray</i> is
not to be touched!”</p>
<p>They backed away from him, rushed back<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_13"></a>[13]</span>
to gather near the door. They did not
pretend to understand this, but Barbados
was chief, and perhaps he knew what he was
doing. They saw him turn, knew that he
spoke to the <i lang="es">fray</i>, but could not make out
his words.</p>
<p>“I had no doing in this,” Barbados said.
“I assault no <i lang="es">fray</i> nor priest! I stopped
them in time. Had I not remained outside
a moment to watch affairs I would have
stopped them before.”</p>
<p>“You are not wholly bad,” Fray Felipe
said.</p>
<p>“I am wholly bad, <i lang="es">fray</i>—make no mistake
about it! But I keep my hands off
<i lang="es">frailes</i> and priests!”</p>
<p>He whirled around and rushed to the
door, shrieking at his men. Only the soft
light of the candles glowed in the church.</p>
<p>Fray Felipe took a step forward and
looked after them. He turned back toward
the altar, a look of thankfulness in his face.</p>
<p>And suddenly that look changed! Misery
took its place. Fray Felipe gave a little
cry of mingled surprise and pain, and tottered
forward. The precious gem-studded
goblet was gone!</p>
<p>He sensed at once how it had happened.
When they had charged upon him, before
Barbados came, one of the pirates had
snatched the goblet away.</p>
<p>Fray Felipe whirled toward the door
again, took half a dozen steps, seemed at the
point of rushing after them. But he knew
they were on the other side of the plaza
now, and that an appeal to them would
be useless. However, he could try.</p>
<p>He faced the altar again, and the expression
of his old countenance was wonderful
to see. And then and there Fray
Felipe took a vow.</p>
<p>“I go!” he said. “I return with the
saintly goblet, or do not return at all!”</p>
<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
<div class="chapter">
<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_V">CHAPTER V.<br>
<small>ZORRO TAKES THE TRAIL.</small></h2>
</div>
<p class="cap">Barbados had saved the <i lang="es">casa</i> of Don
Diego Vega for the last. He had kept
an eye upon it, however, while his
men were looting the town, but had seen
nothing to indicate danger from that quarter.
And now he remembered Captain
Ramón’s commands, and it pleased him to
carry them out.</p>
<p>Don Diego’s was the finest house in the
village, and seemed to promise rich loot.
Barbados placed four of his men outside
to guard against the unexpected return of
the soldiers, and led the remainder straight
to the front door.</p>
<p>They hesitated there for a moment, gathered
closely together, then Barbados gave
the word, and they rushed through the door
and hurled themselves inside, to go sprawling
over the rich rugs and carpets and stop
in astonishment and confusion. Barbados
swore a great oath as he strove to maintain
his balance.</p>
<p>Before them was a wonderful room lavishly
furnished. To one side was a wide
stairway that led to the upper regions of
the house, and priceless tapestries were
hanging from a mezzanine. But what engaged
the attention of Barbados and his
crew the most was the big table in the middle
of the room and some score of richly
dressed <i lang="es">caballeros</i> sitting around it.</p>
<p>Here was the unexpected, which Barbados
always feared. He came to a stop,
thrust forward his head, and his little eyes
began glittering. The soldiers were gone
from the town, but here were a score of
young <i lang="es">caballeros</i> who were fully as good
as soldiers in a fight, and who loved fighting.
Barbados had seen such young blades
handle swords and rapiers before.</p>
<p>The entrance of the pirates had followed
closely upon the announcement of their
presence in the town to Don Diego by the
servant. And when they tumbled through
the door, showing their evil faces in the
strong light, the <i lang="es">caballeros</i> struggled to get
to their feet, reaching for their blades, the
smiles swept from their faces and expressions
of grim determination showing there
instead. But the calm voice of Don Diego
quieted them.</p>
<p>“Ha!” Don Diego said. “What have
we here? <i lang="es">Señores</i>, it is the night before my
wedding, and most persons are welcome to
partake of my hospitality. But this happens
to be a select gathering of my close
friends, and I really cannot remember of
having sent you invitations.”</p>
<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_14"></a>[14]</span></p>
<p>“Have done!” Barbados bellowed, his
voice ringing with a courage he scarcely
felt. “Have done, fashionable fop! We
are men who sail under the black flag, terrible
alike on land and sea!”</p>
<p>Don Diego Vega threw back his head and
laughed lightly.</p>
<p>“Did you hear that, Audre, my friend?”
he asked Ruiz. “This fellow says that he
and his comrades are terrible alike on land
and sea.”</p>
<p>Don Audre entered into the spirit of the
occasion, as he always did. “Diego, I did
not know that you were such a wit,” he
said. “Have you hired these fellows to
come here and give us a fright? Ha! It
is a merry jest, one that I’ll remember to
my last day! For a moment I was ready
to draw blade.”</p>
<p>“Jest, is it?” Barbados cried, lurching
forward almost to the foot of the table.
“’Twill be considered no jest when we have
stripped you of your jewels and plaything
swords and this house of what valuables it
contains! Back up against that wall,
<i lang="es">señores</i>, and the man who makes a rash
move will not live to make another!”</p>
<p>“I have made a multitude of rash moves,
and I still live,” Don Audre Ruiz told him.
“Diego, it is indeed an excellent jest! I
give you my thanks!”</p>
<p>“Pirates!” Don Diego said, laughing
again. “In reality, I did not hire them to
come here and furnish us with this entertainment.
But since they have been so
kind, it is no more than right that I pay
them!” He sprang to his feet, bent forward
with his hands upon the table, and
glared down the length of it at Barbados.
“You are the chief bull pirate?” he asked.</p>
<p>“I am the king of the crew!” Barbados
replied. “Back against that wall, you and
your friends!”</p>
<p>Don Diego Vega laughed lightly again.
And then the laughter fled his face, and his
eyes narrowed and seemed to send forth
flakes of steel.</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Sí!</i> You must be paid!” he said. “But
there are many ways of making payment!”</p>
<p>The sword of Señor Zorro was beneath
his hands. And suddenly it was out of its
scabbard, and he had sprung upon the table
and had dashed down the full length of it,
scattering goblets and plates, drink and
food.</p>
<p>Off the other end he sprang, and struck
the floor a few feet in front of Barbados,
who had recoiled and was struggling to get
his cutlass out of his belt. The sword of
Zorro flashed through the air, describing
a gleaming arc.</p>
<p>“Pirate, eh?” Don Diego Vega cried.
“You have come to collect riches, have you,
Señor Pirate?”</p>
<p>“What is to prevent?” Barbados sneered.
“You and your pretty toy of a sword?”</p>
<p>“Ha! You insult a good blade!” Don
Diego cried. “The insult shall not go unpunished!
Look you here!”</p>
<p>Don Diego Vega whirled suddenly to one
side, his sword seemed to flash fire, and its
point bit into a panel of the wall once,
twice, thrice! Barbados looked on in
amazement, his lower jaw sagging. His
little eyes bulged, and he looked again.
Scratched on the panel of the wall was a Z.</p>
<p>“That mark!” the pirate gasped. “You
are Zorro! That mark—the same the <i lang="es">commandante</i>
wears on his forehead—”</p>
<p>Don Diego had whirled to face him again.
“How know you there is such a mark on
the forehead of Captain Ramón?” he demanded.
“So! The <i lang="es">commandante</i> deals
with pirates, does he? That is how it happens
that my friend, Sergeant Gonzales, and
his soldiers are not here! Ha!”</p>
<p>Barbados blustered forward, his cutlass
held ready, striving to regain the mastery of
the situation. “Give us loot, or we attack!”
he thundered.</p>
<p>“Attack, fool?” Don Diego cried. “Do
you imagine that you hold the upper hand
here? Up with your blade!”</p>
<p>The last thing Barbados wished to do was
to fight a <i lang="es">caballero</i> under such circumstances.
He had the fear of the mongrel
for the thoroughbred. But here was a thing
that could not be avoided unless his leadership
of the pirates suffer.</p>
<p>The <i lang="es">caballeros</i> sprang from their chairs,
drawing their swords, shouting in keen anticipation
of a break in the deadly monotony
of their lives. They rushed to the
right and the left, and engaged the pirates
as they rushed forward. Don Diego Vega
found himself at liberty to engage Barbados<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_15"></a>[15]</span>
only, a thing he relished and which he did
with right good will.</p>
<p>Barbados fought like a fiend, mouthing
curses, puffing out his cheeks, but he did
not understand this style of fighting. Don
Diego Vega seemed to be wielding half a
dozen blades that sang about his head and
threatened to bury themselves in his throat.
His cutlass seemed heavy, useless, his
strokes went wild.</p>
<p>Back toward the wall went Barbados,
while Don Diego grinned at him and taunted
him, played with him as a cat does with
a mouse.</p>
<p>“Pirate, eh?” Don Diego said. “Terrible
on either land or sea? ’Tis a jest,
Señor Pirate! A thin jest!”</p>
<p>Barbados sensed that the termination of
this combat was not to be to his liking.
He got a chance to glance once around the
big room. What he saw staggered him.
Two of the <i lang="es">caballeros</i> were stretched on the
floor, blood flowing from their wounds.
But, aside from those two, the <i lang="es">caballeros</i>
were getting much the better of the combat.
The pirates were retreating toward the front
door. Their heavy cutlasses were of no
avail against flaming, darting light swords,
especially when the men who handled those
swords refused to stand and be cut down,
but danced here and there like phantoms.</p>
<p>But Barbados did not have time to contemplate
the scene long. Don Diego Vega
pressed his attack. Back against the wall
went the pirate chief. He crouched, fought
his best. But suddenly he felt a twinge
of pain in his wrist, and his cutlass left his
hand and shot through the air, to fall with
a crash in a corner.</p>
<p>Barbados stared stupidly before him and
then came alive to his immediate peril. For
Don Diego Vega was standing before him,
smiling a smile that was not good to see.</p>
<p>“Payment shall be made!” Don Diego
said.</p>
<p>His blade darted up and forward, and
Barbados gave a little cry of pain and fear
and recoiled. On his forehead, it seemed,
was a streak of fire. Again the sword of
Zorro darted forth, and there was a second
streak of fire, and yet a third time. And
then Don Diego Vega took a step backward
and bowed mockingly.</p>
<p>“You wear my brand,” he said. “It is
an honor.”</p>
<p>Terror had claimed Barbados for the
moment. Now he slipped a short distance
along the wall, while Diego followed him,
and suddenly he shrieked his commands
and darted toward the door. Into the plaza
tumbled the pirates, with the <i lang="es">caballeros</i> at
their heels.</p>
<p>Barbados shrieked more commands, and
the pirates ran with what speed they had.
Those left behind in the plaza gathered the
horses they needed and the loot, and those
coming from the <i lang="es">casa</i> of Don Diego rushed
toward the horses now. For the greater
part, those horses were fine-blooded stock
and belonged to Don Diego’s guests,
mounts used to traveling at a rapid rate of
speed between some <i lang="es">hacienda</i> and the town.</p>
<p>Barbados urged his men to haste. Only
compact loot could be carried. They
sprang to the backs of the horses and
dashed away. The <i lang="es">caballeros</i> pursued on
foot until the plaza had been crossed. And
then they stopped and gathered around
Don Diego.</p>
<p>“There can be no pursuit,” Diego said.
“They have made away with your horses,
my friends, the soldiers are not here, and
the only mounts remaining in town are not
fit for <i lang="es">caballeros</i> to ride.”</p>
<p>“Yet they must be pursued,” said a
voice at his side.</p>
<p>Don Diego whirled to find ancient Fray
Felipe standing there.</p>
<p>“They have stolen the sacred goblet,”
Fray Felipe said in a calm voice. “I have
taken a vow to regain it.”</p>
<p>“The goblet!” Diego gasped.</p>
<p>“Don Diego, my friend, you will help
me in this?” Fray Felipe asked. “I have
known you since you were a babe in arms.
I have loved you—”</p>
<p>“To-morrow I wed,” Don Diego said.
“But I shall do everything in my power.
We’ll get horses as soon as possible and
pursue. I’ll open my purse, and up and
down El Camino Real men will go, seeking
where these pirates touch shore again. We’ll
get the goblet!”</p>
<p>“I have more faith in your sword arm
than in your purse, my friend,” Fray Felipe
said. “But do what you can.”</p>
<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_16"></a>[16]</span></p>
<p>The <i lang="es">caballeros</i> had gathered now. Men
and women were pouring from the houses,
telling of what had befallen them. Barbados
and his men had been merciful, for
pirates. They had taken wealth, but they
had taken few lives.</p>
<p>Don Diego Vega started back across the
plaza toward his house, his friends around
him.</p>
<p>“For a moment I was Señor Zorro
again,” he said. “Those drops of blood
you mentioned grew hot for a time, Audre,
my friend.”</p>
<p>“Glorious!” Audre Ruiz breathed. “I
would we had horses and could follow them—even
a ship to follow them out to sea.
Don Diego, my friend, your bachelor supper
is a great success.”</p>
<p>“Then let us return and conclude it,”
Don Diego said. “We have a couple of
wounded friends in the house. Let us attend
them.”</p>
<p>“Let us bathe their wounds in wine,”
Audre suggested.</p>
<p>They hurried into the house. The frightened
servants came forward again and began
putting things to rights. The two
wounded <i lang="es">caballeros</i> were in chairs already,
and men working to bandage them. Once
more Don Diego sat at the head of the
table, and the <i lang="es">caballeros</i> dropped into their
chairs, and the servants made haste to fill
the goblets. Don Diego put the sword of
Zorro on the table before him and proposed
that they toast it again.</p>
<p>There came a sudden commotion at the
door, and a man stumbled in. Don Diego
was on his feet instantly, for he knew the
man. He was a leading workman at the
<i lang="es">hacienda</i> of Don Carlos Pulido. A horrible
fear gripped Don Diego’s heart.</p>
<p>The man was exhausted. He staggered
forward, and would have fallen had not
Diego grasped him and braced him against
a corner of the table.</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Señor!</i>” he gasped. “Don Diego—young
master!”</p>
<p>“Speak!” Diego commanded.</p>
<p>“Pirates attacked the <i lang="es">hacienda</i> more
than an hour ago, while others were attacking
here—”</p>
<p>“Tell it quickly!”</p>
<p>“Don Carlos is sorely wounded, <i lang="es">señor</i>!
Many of the buildings are burned. The
house was looted!”</p>
<p>“The <i lang="es">señorita</i>?” Don Diego questioned.</p>
<p>“Do not strike me when I speak, young
master!”</p>
<p>“Speak!”</p>
<p>“They carried away the <i lang="es">señorita</i>. They
slew six who would have saved her—”</p>
<p>“Carried her away!” Don Diego cried.</p>
<p>“Toward the sea,” the man gasped. “I
heard one of the pirates shout that she was
to be treated gently—that she was to be the
prize of some great man—”</p>
<p>Don Diego Vega tossed him aside, and
once more the blade of Zorro was in his
hand. His friends were upon their feet
and crowding forward.</p>
<p>“A rescue!” Don Audre Ruiz cried.
“We must save the <i lang="es">señorita</i>!”</p>
<p>“They have stolen the bride of Don
Diego, the fools!” another shouted.</p>
<p>“Worse than that, for them!” Audre
screeched. “They have stolen the bride of
Señor Zorro!”</p>
<p>Don Diego Vega seemed to recover from
the shock.</p>
<p>“You are right, my friends!” he cried.
“This is touch enough to turn my blood
hot again. Don Diego Vega is dead for a
time; Señor Zorro takes the trail! Audre,
get me the best horse you can! You others,
wait!”</p>
<p>He dashed up the stairs as Audre hurried
through the front door. The others
waited, talking wildly of plans for reaching
the shore of the sea. Frightened servants
stood about as though speechless.</p>
<p>In a short space of time Don Diego returned
to them. But he was Don Diego no
longer. Now he wore the costume he had
worn when as Señor Zorro he had ridden
up and down the length of El Camino Real.
And in his face was a light that was not
good to see.</p>
<p>Don Audre hurried in. “I’ve got one
good horse,” he said.</p>
<p>“I go!” Don Diego cried. “I follow
them to the sea. The two forces will meet
there.”</p>
<p>“We are with you in this!” Don Audre
cried. “With you as when you were Zorro
before. With you, my friend, until we have
the little <i lang="es">señorita</i> safe again!”</p>
<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_17"></a>[17]</span></p>
<p>Their naked blades flashed overhead in
token of allegiance.</p>
<p>Don Diego thanked them with a look.</p>
<p>“Then follow me to the sea!” he cried.
“A trading ship is due there in the morning.
Mayhap we’ll have to take it and
trace them across the waves. I go! Zorro
takes the trail!”</p>
<p>He dashed to the door, the others following.
He sprang into the saddle of the
mount Don Audre had procured. He drove
home the spurs cruelly, and rode like a
demon through the bright moonlight and
up the slope, then taking the shortest trail
to the sea.</p>
<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
<div class="chapter">
<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_VI">CHAPTER VI.<br>
<small>ZORRO STRIKES.</small></h2>
</div>
<p class="cap">At the <i lang="es">hacienda</i> of Don Carlos Pulido
the outer door was opened slowly,
stealthily. A villainous face showed.
Then the door was thrown open wide and
half a dozen men stormed into the room.
Doña Catalina gave a shriek of fear and
sprang backward, and as the little <i lang="es">señorita</i>
rushed to her, clasped her in her arms.
Don Carlos looked up quickly from a garment
he had been inspecting and sprang to
his feet.</p>
<p>“Pirates!” he roared.</p>
<p>The aged don seemed to renew his
youth with the cry. He darted back against
the wall, shrieking for his servants and his
men, his hand darting to the blade that
happened to be at his side. But the surprise
was complete, and there was no hope
of a victory over the pirate crew. Servants
rushed in loyally, to be cut down. Doña
Catalina and Lolita crouched in a corner,
the aged don standing protectingly before
them.</p>
<p>Sanchez made for him, seeing the girl.
The pirate laughed, attacked like a fiend,
and Don Carlos went down before he could
give a wound.</p>
<p>Doña Catalina’s shriek rang in his ears.
Then there came another shriek as Señorita
Lolita felt herself being torn from her mother’s
arms. Sanchez whirled her behind
him, and another of the pirates clutched
her in his arms.</p>
<p>“Easy with the wench!” Sanchez cried.
“She is to be saved for some great man!”</p>
<p>The little <i lang="es">señorita</i> struggled and fought,
her gentleness gone in the face of this emergency.
Horror claimed her and almost destroyed
her reason. She had heard whispered
wild tales of what happened to women
captured by pirates.</p>
<p>Out of the house she was carried,
shrieking in her fear. The pirates poured
out, too. Some of the outbuildings were
ablaze now, and the shrieking, swearing
crew was looting the house for what valuables
could be carried easily.</p>
<p>Men of the <i lang="es">hacienda</i> came running, to be
cut down with a laugh. More huts were
set ablaze. Pirates came running from the
house, carrying jewels, silks, satins. Señorita
Lolita realized dimly that her wedding
garments had been ruined by these men.</p>
<p>“Diego!” she moaned. “Diego!”</p>
<p>Horses were procured, her father’s blooded
stock, and she was lashed to the back of
one. The pirates mounted others, and Sanchez
urged them on their way toward the
distant sea. He had orders to get there
before the dawn, and he feared Barbados
too much to disobey his orders.</p>
<p>Señorita Lolita glanced back once, to see
flames pouring from the doors and windows
of the home she had loved. She thought
of the father she had seen cut down, of
her tender mother. And then she slumped
forward in a swoon, and Sanchez steadied
her in the saddle.</p>
<p>Two men of the <i lang="es">hacienda</i> carried Don
Carlos Pulido from his burning home and
placed him down at a distance beneath a
tree. Doña Catalina knelt beside him,
weeping.</p>
<p>“Find a horse!” the aged don commanded
one of the men. “Ride like a fiend to
the town, and tell Don Diego Vega of this.
As you love the <i lang="es">señorita</i>, spare neither
yourself nor your mount! Ride—do not
bother with me!”</p>
<p>And so the man found a horse and
rode away toward the town, going like the
wind, and so the news came to Don Diego
Vega.</p>
<p>The <i lang="es">señorita</i>, coming from her swoon,
found that the pirates were traveling at a
high rate of speed. Mile by mile they cut<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_18"></a>[18]</span>
down the distance to the sea. There was
an excellent trail used by traders, and Sanchez
followed it swiftly.</p>
<p>It was like a nightmare to the little <i lang="es">señorita</i>.
Again she wondered at the fate of her
father and her mother. Again, mentally,
she called upon Don Diego Vega to save
her.</p>
<p>But her proud blood had returned to her
now. She curled her pretty lips in scorn
when Sanchez addressed her, and would
make no reply. Her eyes snapped and
flashed as she contemplated him. Her tiny
chin tilted at an insulting angle. She was
a Pulido, and she remembered it. Whatever
fate held in store for her, she would be
a Pulido to the end.</p>
<p>And finally, after some hours, they
rounded a bend of a hill and saw the sea
ahead of them, and the mouth of the dark
cañon that ran down into it. Sanchez dismounted
them beside the curving cliff. The
loot was piled on the sand, the horses were
turned adrift. Señorita Lolita was forced
to dismount. Her wrists were lashed behind
her, and she was compelled to sit on
the ground with her back to the cliff’s
wall.</p>
<p>Some of the pirates lighted a fire of driftwood.
Sanchez stood looking out to sea,
watching for the ship that soon would be
due.</p>
<p>And then came Barbados and the pirates
from the town.</p>
<p>“Fair loot!” Barbados cried as Sanchez
questioned. “But we were outdone. Some
devilish <i lang="es">caballeros</i> were having a supper,
and we stumbled upon them, twice our
number. But we have fair loot! And you
have the girl!”</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Sí!</i> We have the girl!” Sanchez replied.</p>
<p>Barbados walked over to her. “A pretty
wench!” he declared. “Small wonder a
man wished to have you stolen! Proud,
are you? Ha! We’ll see what pride you
have remaining by the end of the next
moon!”</p>
<p>He whirled to look over the camp.
“Sanchez,” he commanded, “put a sentinel
up on top of the cliff. I do not expect
pursuit, but it is best to be prepared. I
ran across that fiend of a Zorro, and he
marked me. But there are not horses
enough left in town for himself and his
friends, and he would not dare follow alone.
Nevertheless, put a sentinel on the cliff.”</p>
<p>Sanchez obeyed. A man mounted to the
top. On the level stretch of sand before
them they could see his shadow in the
moonlight as he paced slowly back and
forth. Back and forth he went, while
Señorita Lolita sat and watched the shadow
and shivered to think of what was to come.</p>
<p>Barbados and Sanchez prepared the loot
for the ship’s boats when they should come.
There was an abundance of wine, and the
pirates began drinking it. They shouted
and laughed and sang, while the little <i lang="es">señorita</i>
shuddered and watched the shadow of
the sentinel as it went back and forth, back
and forth.</p>
<p>And suddenly she bent forward, for there
were two shadows now. Hope sang in her
breast. One of the shadows was creeping
upon the other.</p>
<p>“Diego!” she breathed. “If it could
only be Diego!”</p>
<p>The moon was dropping, was at the
point where the shadows were lengthened,
grotesque. And suddenly Sanchez gave a
cry and pointed to the stretch of sand.
Barbados turned to look. The pirates
stopped drinking and crowded forward.</p>
<p>There on the sandy stretch a picture
was being enacted. They saw the silhouettes
of two men fighting, thrusting and
slashing at each other. From above came
the ringing of blades that met with violence.</p>
<p>The pirates sprang back, tried to look
up and ascertain what was taking place
there. The shadows disappeared from the
sand for a time as the combatants reeled
back from the edge of the cliff.</p>
<p>“Above, some of you!” Barbados cried.</p>
<p>They started—and stopped. Down the
face of the cliff came tumbling the body of
the pirate sentinel. It struck the sand, and
Barbados and the others crowded forward
to see.</p>
<p>“By the saints!” Barbados swore.</p>
<p>His little eyes bulged. On the cheek
of the dead pirate sentinel was a freshly-carved
Z.</p>
<p>“Barbados! Look!” Sanchez cried.</p>
<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_19"></a>[19]</span></p>
<p>He pointed to the body. Fastened to the
man’s belt with a thorn was a scrap of
parchment.</p>
<p>Barbados went forward gingerly and
plucked it off. On it were words, evidently
traced in blood with the point of a blade.
Barbados read them swiftly:</p>
<div class="blockquot">
<p><i lang="es">Señores!</i> Have you ever seen this one?</p>
</div>
<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
<div class="chapter">
<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_VII">CHAPTER VII.<br>
<small>SEÑOR ZORRO’S DARING.</small></h2>
</div>
<p class="cap">There was a moment of horrified silence,
during which nothing was
heard save the soft lap of the sea
against the shore and the labored breathing
of the terrified pirates. And then Barbados
swore a great oath and looked toward
the summit of the cliff once more.</p>
<p>“’Tis that cursed Señor Zorro, the land
pirate!” he shrieked. “Spit upon him!
After him, dogs! Bring me his heart on
the end of a cutlass blade! Or fetch him
alive, if you can, that we may have the
keen pleasure of killing him slowly.”</p>
<p>Some of the pirates already were struggling
to get up the narrow path that led
to the top of the cliff, slipping and falling
back as the soft soil and gravel rolled beneath
their feet.</p>
<p>Sanchez started with them, eager for
combat. Barbados, however, lingered behind,
seeing to the loot and his fair prisoner.
He was very busy about it, for he
was not eager to join the others and run
chances of matching blades with Señor
Zorro again.</p>
<p>Barbados remembered well how he had
felt during the fight in the house of Don
Diego in Reina de Los Angeles, when he
had realized fully that Don Diego was
merely playing with him and could have
silenced him forever when he willed.</p>
<p>The pirates reached the summit finally,
but could see nothing there save a few
clumps of brush and a few stunted trees
that looked grotesque in the bright light
of the moon. They examined the shadows
carefully, but located no man. Yet from
the near distance came a ringing, a mocking
laugh.</p>
<p>They would have pursued, but Barbados
hailed them from below, ordering them
down to the beach again. The boats were
putting in from the ship.</p>
<p>Down to the strand they tumbled, getting
ready to store away their loot. They did
not bother about the dead pirate, since he
was an ordinary fellow who did not count.
They guzzled more wine, ran down into the
surf to help drag the boats ashore, greeted
their fellows, laughed and shouted and jested
and cursed in raucous tones.</p>
<p>Barbados turned to where the Señorita
Lolita was sitting with her back against the
cliff wall, her tiny wrists lashed behind her.
She raised her face and looked at him
bravely, her black eyes snapping, her lips
curled in scorn.</p>
<p>“This Señor Zorro, I have been given to
understand, has some concern in you,” Barbados
said.</p>
<p>“If he has, Señor Pirate, it is time for
you to feel afraid,” she replied.</p>
<p>“Think you that I fear the fellow?
Ha!”</p>
<p>“He is no fellow! He is a <i lang="es">caballero</i>
with the best of blood flowing in his veins,
if you can understand what that means—you,
who have the blood of swine in
yours!”</p>
<p>“By my naked blade!” Barbados swore.
“Were you not to be saved for a great
man, I’d punish you well for that remark,
proud one! Pride of blood, eh? Ha!
’Tis a thing you will be willing to forget,
and eager, within a moon’s time. When
this man of whom I speak—”</p>
<p>“Is it necessary to speak at all to me?”
the little <i lang="es">señorita</i> wanted to know.</p>
<p>Barbados snorted his anger and disgust.
For a moment he turned away to issue a
volley of commands to the men who were
loading the boats. He berated Sanchez for
being slow. He glanced up the face of the
cliff once more, as though expecting Señor
Zorro to come rushing down, deadly sword
in hand. Presently he called two of his
men to him.</p>
<p>“Take the wench to one of the boats!”
he commanded. “Keep her wrists lashed.
Make certain that she does not hurl herself
into the sea. These high-born wenches have
some queer ideas and are not to be trusted
at a time such as this.”</p>
<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_20"></a>[20]</span></p>
<p>The two men grasped her roughly and
forced her to her feet. The <i lang="es">señorita</i> gave
a little cry, more because of her injured
dignity than from pain or fear. Barbados
whirled toward them again, anger in his
face.</p>
<p>“Easy with the wench!” he commanded.
“She is a proper and valuable share of the
loot. If she is delivered in good condition
then do we share greater in the other
things.”</p>
<p>Down to the edge of the hissing surf
they went, Señorita Lolita Pulido forced
along between them. She still held her
head proudly, but the light of the dying
fire reflected in her face showed a trace
of glistening tears that could not be choked
back. Still, she had some hope. Don Diego
was near at hand! He already had demonstrated
his presence. And he would not
entirely desert her while he lived. He could
be expected to play Señor Zorro now to the
end of the chapter.</p>
<p>They lifted her, carried her between
them, and put her down into one of the
boats. She sat at one side of a middle
seat, a wide thwart. Her bound wrists were
over the side, and by turning slightly she
could see the tossing water less than two
feet below her, for the craft was heavily
loaded.</p>
<p>The pirates tumbled into the boat and
picked up the oars. One thrust her cruelly
against the side. Barbados himself sprang
in last of all and ordered his men to give
way. The other boats prepared for the
start also.</p>
<p>On the summit of the cliff Don Diego
Vega crouched and watched them. But he
was not the easy-going, fashionable, nonchalant
Don Diego now. His eyes were
narrowed and piercing. His lips were set
in a thin, straight line. Don Diego had
vanished, and in his place was Señor Zorro,
the Fox, the man who had ridden up and
down El Camino Real to avenge the wrongs
of <i lang="es">frailes</i> and natives. And Señor Zorro
would know how to deal with this grievous
wrong, which touched him personally.</p>
<p>The pirate craft was anchored close inshore.
It would not take long for the
boats to reach her. The moon was sinking
and soon would be gone. There would be
but a brief period of darkness before the
dawn came stealing across the land to the
sea.</p>
<p>His <i lang="es">caballero</i> friends were far behind
him, he knew. And they would make for
the trading schooner anchored a few miles
away, perhaps, instead of coming here. And
Señorita Lolita Pulido was in the hands of
the pirates, and expected to be rescued.</p>
<p>Señor Zorro realized these things even as
he watched the pirates preparing to launch
their boats. It did not take him long to
make a decision. He crawled backward a
short distance, sprang to his feet, and ran
to the edge of the cliff in a little cove a
few yards away, a spot the pirates could not
see from their boats.</p>
<p>He made certain that his sword was fast
in its scabbard. He tightened his belt. He
went to the edge and glanced down at the
hissing sea a score of feet below, where it
rolled and eddied in a deep pool close to the
rocks.</p>
<p>Back he went again. And suddenly he
darted forward, took off at the very edge,
and curved gracefully through the moonlight
in a perfect dive.</p>
<p>He struck the water and disappeared,
but in a moment he was at the surface and
swimming away from the treacherous shore.
And he found that it was treacherous and
the tide an enemy. It pulled at him to
drag him down. He fought and struggled
against it, and finally won to safety.</p>
<p>The boats were just starting from the
land. Señor Zorro, low in the water, swam
as though in a contest for a prize, straight
toward the nearest of the boats, which was
the one in which the <i lang="es">señorita</i> was sitting a
captive.</p>
<p>Señorita Lolita was struggling now to be
brave. The pirates were singing their ribald
songs and indulging in questionable jests.
They swore as they tugged at the oars,
cursed the heavy load of loot, and blasphemed
because of the work they were
forced to do.</p>
<p>The <i lang="es">señorita</i>, remembering her proud
blood, had tried to maintain her courage,
but now she felt it ebbing swiftly. There
seemed to be no hope. She could not believe
that Don Diego could come to her
rescue in the face of such terrible odds.<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_21"></a>[21]</span>
Once she gulped and felt herself near to
tears. She leaned backward to keep as
far as possible from the pirate sitting beside
her. The stench of his body and breath
was almost more than she could endure.</p>
<p>Now they were halfway to the pirate
ship. Lolita had arrived at a decision.
She would be no prey for pirates if she
could find at hand the means for taking
her own life. She remembered what Barbados
had said about her being the prize
of some great man, and wondered at it a
bit. But suppressed terror occupied her
mind and kept her from wondering much.
Again she leaned backward, and her bound
hands almost touched the water over the
side.</p>
<p>The pirates, nearing exhaustion, were
rowing slowly now, sweeping their long oars
in unison but without their usual force.
And suddenly the Señorita Lolita flinched,
and almost cried aloud, then struggled to
overcome the shock she had felt. Her hands
had been touched.</p>
<p>At first she thought it was some monster
of the sea, and then that a cold wave had
washed them. But the touch came again,
and she knew it for what it was—the touch
of another hand.</p>
<p>Another touch—and her cheeks flamed
scarlet. The <i lang="es">señorita</i> had had her hands
kissed before, and she knew a kiss when she
felt it.</p>
<p>She turned her head slowly, leaning outward,
and glanced down. And her heart
almost stood still.</p>
<p>For Señor Zorro was there, his face
showing just at the surface of the water!
Don Diego, her husband-to-be, was there,
swimming alongside, smiling up at her,
within a few feet of the pirates who bent
their backs and rowed and never thought to
look down.</p>
<p>Fear clutched at the <i lang="es">señorita’s</i> heart for
an instant—fear for him—yet admiration
for his daring, too. Her blood seemed suddenly
hot instead of cold. The touch of his
lips had been enough to do that.</p>
<p>He dared not speak, of course, though
the pirates were shouting and singing. But
his lips moved and formed voiceless words,
and the <i lang="es">señorita</i> understood.</p>
<p>“Courage! I’ll be near!” he mouthed.</p>
<p>She nodded her head slightly in token
that she understood. And Don Diego Vega
smiled yet again and sank slowly out of
sight beneath the waves.</p>
<p>The boats were almost to the vessel now.
The bright moon shipped a last ray across
the tumbling sea and sank to rest. On the
deck of the pirate craft torches flared suddenly
to guide the boats.</p>
<p>They reached the side. Rough hands
lifted the <i lang="es">señorita</i> and forced her to the
deck above. Swearing, sweating men commenced
handing up the loot. Barbados
howled his commands and curses, Sanchez
echoing them. To one side the <i lang="es">señorita</i>
was held by the two men who had guarded
her on the shore, awaiting disposition by
the pirate chief.</p>
<p>“With speed, dogs!” Barbados shrieked.
“We must be away before the dawn!”</p>
<p>The entire crew was working amidships,
getting in the plunder and the boats. They
gave no thought to bow or stern.</p>
<p>And up the anchor chain and into the
bow crept a dripping figure, with a cry for
vengeance in his heart—and the sword of
Zorro at his side!</p>
<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
<div class="chapter">
<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_22"></a>[22]</span></p>
<figure class="figcenter" id="i_part2">
<img src="images/i_part2.jpg" alt="" title="">
<figcaption class="caption">
<p class="noic">The Further Adventures of Zorro, Part II</p>
</figcaption>
</figure>
</div>
<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
<div class="chapter">
<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_VIII">CHAPTER VIII.<br>
<small>THE GOBLET.</small></h2>
</div>
<p class="cap">Señorita Lolita Pulido, after
a time, was conducted by Barbados
to a tiny cabin below decks. It was
no more than eight feet square, and had a
bunk along one side of it. Certainly, it was
no place for a delicately-reared lady of
gentle blood.</p>
<p>It was far from being clean, in the first
instance. Vermin that meant nothing to
pirates caused the <i lang="es">señorita</i> to shudder and
almost scream. Even as she entered, two
huge rats scampered through a hole in the
cabin floor, rushed down into the bowels of
the ship.</p>
<p>“’Tis no palace,” Barbados admitted.
“I’ll leave the torch so you may have light
until the day dawns, which will not be long.
The torch will keep the rats away. The
smoke will drift through that open porthole.
You will be safe here. There are no weapons,
and even such a small and dainty tender
human being as yourself cannot squeeze
through that porthole and drop into the
open sea!”</p>
<p>The <i lang="es">señorita</i> had no reply for him. She<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_23"></a>[23]</span>
tilted her chin again, tried to hum a little
song, and glanced around the tiny place.
Barbados grew surly.</p>
<p>“Too good to speak to me, are you,
proud one?” he sneered. “You may have
another tune to chant before many days,
after you have met the man for whom you
were stolen. Is there anything you want
or need?”</p>
<p>The <i lang="es">señorita’s</i> face flushed, but she faced
him bravely. “I want your absence—and
deeply feel the need of it!” she replied.</p>
<p>“By my naked blade! Were it not that
you are to be handed over to another, I’d
take it upon myself to tame you!” Barbados
declared. “Ha! Deliver me from
proud wenches with their noses in the air!”</p>
<p>He fastened the smoking torch to a wall,
went out and slammed the door behind
him, and Señorita Lolita heard a heavy bar
being dropped into place. For a moment
she stood in the middle of the cabin, her
hands clutching spasmodically at her
breast, and then she went over to the bunk,
inspected it, and finally crawled upon it
and sat cross-legged, staring at the opposite
wall.</p>
<p>The ship was old, the floor worn and full
of holes, and the walls had cracks in them.
From one side came a stench, as though
supplies had been stored in the space adjoining,
and had spoiled. Through the
porthole she could see the black night.</p>
<p>The horror of her situation was heavily
upon her now. She seemed to fully realize
her predicament for the first time. She
remembered again how she had seen her
father cut down, and her home in flames.
She wondered how it fared with her parents,
and she wondered, too, what was to
be in the future.</p>
<p>The only ray of hope was that Don
Diego was near, that Señor Zorro had
promised to give her aid, and that his sword
would protect her. And yet how could
he—one man against scores of scoundrels?
Don Diego, even as Señor Zorro, was only
human, after all. Yet she hoped that, at
the climax, he would reveal himself. He
was a <i lang="es">caballero</i>, and he would know what
to do in an emergency. Better that Señor
Zorro drive his blade through her heart
than for her to live stained!</p>
<p>She heard a tumult on the deck, a great
noise, the sounds of clanking chains, and
knew from the feel of the ship that she was
under sail. Above her head feet pattered
on the deck. The great voice of Barbados
and the echoing one of Sanchez came to
her as from a long distance. The rushing
wind pulled the smoke of the torch through
the open porthole.</p>
<p>The <i lang="es">señorita</i> sighed and leaned her head
against the wall of the cabin. Tears
trickled from her eyes and started coursing
down her cheeks, but she wiped them away
swiftly. None of these pirates should see
her cry! Never would they be able to say
that one of the blood of the Pulidos had
shown fear!</p>
<p>She closed her eyes for an instant, as
though that would shut out the horror of
her thoughts, but found that it did not.
It seemed to her that she heard a faint hiss,
but she supposed that it was the wind or
the water.</p>
<p>She opened her eyes again—and almost
shrieked in alarm. Four inches in front of
her face the point of a sword had slipped
through a tiny crack in the wall, coming
from the space adjoining!</p>
<p>The <i lang="es">señorita</i> recoiled a space, but watched
the blade as though fascinated by it.
Inch by inch it slipped through the wall,
until two-thirds of its length was inside the
cabin. And again she restrained a cry, but
this time a cry of joy. On the blade,
marked with some black substance, was a
big Z!</p>
<p>So Señor Zorro even now was near! He
was on the other side of the partition, only
a couple of feet from her! She bent her
head forward as the blade was slowly
withdrawn, put her lips close to the tiny
crack in the wall.</p>
<p>“Diego!” she whispered.</p>
<p>“Not Diego, but Señor Zorro, <i lang="es">señorita</i>,
at your service,” came back a low tone.</p>
<p>“Thank the saints!” she breathed.
“But, what can you do? You must be
careful!”</p>
<p>“Think you I would allow them to carry
you away, and not follow?” he asked.</p>
<p>“If they find you—”</p>
<p>“Do you put such small value, <i lang="es">señorita</i>,
upon my ability to care for myself?”</p>
<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_24"></a>[24]</span></p>
<p>“Diego! Zorro!” she whispered. “To
you I am not backward in confessing it—I
am so afraid!”</p>
<p>“Then will I sing for you, beloved!”</p>
<p>“Zorro! Dare not to do it! They may
hear!”</p>
<p>“Let them hear a decent song for once
in their wicked lives!” Señor Zorro said.
“Be of strong heart, <i lang="es">señorita</i>! And be not
frightened at what you may hear or see.
It is in my mind to terrorize these vermin
who call themselves men, preparatory to
rescuing you!”</p>
<p>“Brave words, Diego!” she said. “But
you cannot fight against four score. If, at
the end, you could do me one service—”</p>
<p>“And that?” he asked.</p>
<p>“Death is to be preferred to dishonor,
Diego!”</p>
<p>“Why speak of dying? Do you forget
that you are my affianced bride? You are
to live, and I am to live, <i lang="es">señorita</i>, and have
many happy years. Think always on that,
and not on the other! And be of good
cheer, for I am near you always!”</p>
<p>She heard a slight movement on the
other side of the partition. He did not
speak again, nor did she. Her heart was
beating like angry waves against a rocky
shore. Her face was flushed. It gave her
courage just to know that he was near.
Señor Zorro, she felt confident, would find
a way.</p>
<p>There was silence for a moment, and
then she heard the soft hiss again.</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Sí?</i>” she questioned.</p>
<p>“This is some sort of a storeroom,” he
said, “in which Zorro has made a temporary
nest. But I do not intend to remain
in it forever. It is in my mind to look at
you through the porthole before the dawn
comes.”</p>
<p>“Diego! To dare such a thing—”</p>
<p>“What would not a <i lang="es">caballero</i> dare for
love?” he asked. “For love of such a
one—”</p>
<p>“Diego!”</p>
<p>“Call me Zorro, for, by the saints, that
is my rôle now! I find that I have a dual
personality, and the tamer part of me is
not working at present. I am Zorro, the
daring in love and war!”</p>
<p>“Have a care, for my sake,” she begged.</p>
<p>“I have work to do and a game to play,
and they may be combined,” he answered.
“For the moment, <i lang="es">Adios</i>!”</p>
<p>Again she heard the little sound, as
though he were retreating from the partition
and crawling over boxes and bales.
There was deep silence for a time, save for
the noises on the deck. And then she
heard his voice, raised in song, and her
heart almost stopped, for she knew that the
pirates must hear it, too.</p>
<p>She leaned her head against the wall,
that she might hear the better, though she
was sorely afraid. She had heard the song
often before, from Don Diego’s lips, and
when other young <i lang="es">caballeros</i> had come to
her father’s <i lang="es">hacienda</i> serenading. But
never had she heard the real Señor Zorro
sing it before, and never before had it
sounded so thrilling and so sweet.</p>
<div class="poetry">
<div class="stanza">
<div class="verse indent0">“<i lang="es">Atención!</i> A <i lang="es">caballero’s</i> near!</div>
<div class="verse indent1">To guard the one to his heart most dear!</div>
<div class="verse indent1">To love, to fight, to jest, to drink!</div>
<div class="verse indent1">To live the life and never shrink!</div>
<div class="verse indent1">His blade is bright, his honor, too!</div>
<div class="verse indent1"><i lang="es">Atención!</i>”</div>
</div>
</div>
<p>The voice grew louder, more ringing. It
seemed to the <i lang="es">señorita</i> to swell through the
ship and across the tossing sea. Her heart
beat faster, though she still feared for him.
Well she knew the audacity, the reckless
courage of her Señor Zorro!</p>
<p>“Zorro!” she breathed. “Man of men!
<i lang="es">Caballero</i> mine!”</p>
<p>There was silence on the deck above, and
then she heard the harsh, loud voice of
Barbados, but could not understand his
words. Señor Zorro was continuing his
song:</p>
<div class="poetry">
<div class="stanza">
<div class="verse indent0">“<i lang="es">Atención!</i> I’ve a thrust in store</div>
<div class="verse indent1">For rogues, for foes, an abundance more</div>
<div class="verse indent1">To shield my lady from all harm,</div>
<div class="verse indent1">To save her from the world’s alarm;</div>
<div class="verse indent1">A <i lang="es">caballero</i> calls to you—</div>
<div class="verse indent1"><i lang="es">Atención!</i>”</div>
</div>
</div>
<p>The <i lang="es">señorita’s</i> eyes closed, her lips
parted slightly, her breathing became as
the stirring of a leaf in a gentle breeze.
The song had lulled her fears.</p>
<p>“Zorro!” she whispered, as the verse
was ended. But there came no answer
from the other side of the partition.</p>
<p>Up on the deck, however, there was consternation.<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_25"></a>[25]</span>
Barbados, having listened,
whirled angrily toward his crew.</p>
<p>“Who dares sing such a song?” he
shrieked. “Are there not royally good
pirate ditties, that some of you must use
the mush-like tunes and words of the high-born?”</p>
<p>“Every man is on deck,” wailed Sanchez,
who had been superintending the
storing of the loot. “’Tis a ghost song!”
he exclaimed.</p>
<p>“A ghost song!” shrieked some of those
nearest him.</p>
<p>Barbados shuddered. “There will be
ghosts aplenty if this nonsense does not
stop!” he declared, whipping his cutlass
out of his belt. “It was no ghost singing.
A ghost would have a more perfect voice.
If I hear it again—”</p>
<p>He heard it again. It seemed to come
from the sails above, from the waves overside,
from the cabins below.</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Dios!</i>” Barbados swore. “By my
naked blade—”</p>
<p>“It is a ghost song!” Sanchez whimpered
again.</p>
<p>Barbados whirled upon him, but the
lieutenant dodged the blow that would have
hurled him senseless to the deck. The pirate
chief, breathing heavily, looked around
at his men. Terror already had claimed
some of them.</p>
<p>“It is a trick of some scurvy knave I’ll
split in twain!” he declared. “On with
your work!”</p>
<p>The men shivered, but again bent to
their tasks. Barbados walked to the rail
and stood looking down at the dark water,
and then toward the land, where the dawn
was almost due. Through the darkness
and up to him slipped one of the pirate
crew.</p>
<p>“Master!” he whispered.</p>
<p>“To your work, hound of hell!”</p>
<p>“A word with you, master!”</p>
<p>“Concerning what?” Barbados demanded.</p>
<p>The man edged closer. “Master, I have
a present for you—a goodly piece of loot
that is not in the common store.”</p>
<p>“How is this?” Barbados said. “You
steal from your comrades?”</p>
<p>“Softly, master, else they hear!” the man
whispered. “This is something special, and
I got it for you.”</p>
<p>“In Reina de Los Angeles?”</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Sí</i>, master! In Reina de Los Angeles.
It was while we were in the church there.”</p>
<p>“In the church?” Barbados gasped.</p>
<p>“When the old <i lang="es">fray</i> first stood us off,
master, and before you came. We had
rushed forward, and I was in the van. And
when the old <i lang="es">fray</i> was hurled backward the
first time, I got it.”</p>
<p>“And what is it?”</p>
<p>“A golden goblet, master, studded with
precious gems. See—I have it here! I
saved it for you, master, and thought perhaps
that you might give me promotion—”</p>
<p>Barbados looked at the goblet, struck by
the light from the nearest torch. It glowed
and glistened like some live thing. The
pirate chief recoiled.</p>
<p>“Away with it!” he cried. “I do not
want to touch it—do not wish to see it!
It is a thing of ill-omen, the thing that old
<i lang="es">fray</i> was trying to protect!”</p>
<p>“But, master—”</p>
<p>“Ill-luck will follow the man who has
it. It is some sort of holy thing! Away
with it! Keep it for yourself. Gamble it
away, and the sooner you get rid of it the
better. You may be struck down for taking
it. I had a friend once who robbed a
church and struck a priest, and I do not care
to remember what happened to him! Are
you going to take it away?”</p>
<p>The man gasped, astonished, and put the
golden goblet beneath his shirt.</p>
<p>“I may have it all for myself?” he asked.</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Sí!</i> I would not touch the thing! I
call upon the saints to witness that I never
touched it!”</p>
<p>So, through all the ages, have wicked
men, in moments of fear, called upon the
gods they have pretended to scorn.</p>
<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
<div class="chapter">
<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_IX">CHAPTER IX.<br>
<small>LOVE AND MYSTERY.</small></h2>
</div>
<p class="cap">Señor Zorro, having concluded his
song, crept over boxes and bales to the
little door of the storeroom. There he
crouched and listened for a time, but heard
nothing save the noise from the ship’s deck<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_26"></a>[26]</span>
and the wash of the sea and singing of the
wind through the rigging.</p>
<p>Presently he opened the door a crack and
peered out into a pitch-dark, narrow passage.
He slipped through and closed the
door after him. Again he stopped to listen,
and then he crept forward, reached
a ramshackle ladder, and went up it swiftly
and silently to a tiny hatch.</p>
<p>Lifting the hatch he crawled out upon
the deck near the rail, hidden from the
glare of all the torches. He had seen such a
ship as this before, and knew her build well.
There were no mysteries for him.</p>
<p>Along the rail he went like a shadow, and
as silently. He reached a point where he
could look amidships. Barbados was back
among his men, now, urging them to greater
speed, and Sanchez was echoing his commands.
The ship was sailing at a fair rate
of speed before a freshening breeze.</p>
<p>Señor Zorro crouched in the darkness and
contemplated the pirate crew for a moment.
He put out a hand to brace himself against
the rolling of the vessel, and it came in
contact with a tub of small bolts. Señor
Zorro had an inspiration.</p>
<p>Far ahead of him, in the flare of a torch,
he saw the ship’s bell. Señor Zorro grasped
one of the little bolts, stood to his feet,
took careful aim, and hurled the bolt from
the darkness. He missed the bell by the
fraction of a foot, and the bolt flew overboard.</p>
<p>Señor Zorro grunted, got another bolt,
and tried again. It struck the bell squarely,
glanced away, and fell into the sea.
Out above the din rang one clear note.
The ship had an excellent bell.</p>
<p>Instantly there was silence. Barbados
whirled to look forward. His crew stood
open-mouthed.</p>
<p>“The ship’s bell sounded!” Sanchez
wailed.</p>
<p>“And which of you struck it?” Barbados
demanded.</p>
<p>“No man was near it,” Sanchez declared.
“But it sounded. I do not like this business!”</p>
<p>Barbados shivered, but made a show of
courage. “Something struck it,” he said.
“Possibly something dropped from aloft.
Are you babies that you flinch because of
the ringing of a bell? To your work, else
I wade among you, naked blade in hand!
Ha! I have sailed with a throng of children,
it appears!”</p>
<p>They bent to their work again, and at
that moment Señor Zorro hurled another
bolt, and the bell rang out clearly once
more. Again the work stopped as though
Barbados had bawled an order for the men
to cease.</p>
<p>“A ghost bell!” a man shrieked.</p>
<p>“A ghost bell!” Sanchez declared, crossing
himself. “We are doomed! The ship
is doomed!”</p>
<p>“To your work!” Barbados was both
afraid and angry now. He strode forward,
threatening them. He made his way toward
the bell, and stood looking at it. Because
of his presence the bell did not ring
again. Yet Barbados did not feel at all
easy. He beckoned the man who had the
goblet.</p>
<p>“You retain the thing?” he asked.</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Sí, señor!</i>”</p>
<p>“It is an evil thing for you to hold.”</p>
<p>“You want it?”</p>
<p>“Not I, by the saints!” Barbados swore.
“And do you keep away from me while the
thing is in your possession. If misfortune
comes to the ship or the company because of
the goblet, then will you go overside first of
all! And with a weight around your neck!”</p>
<p>The man scurried away along the deck,
and Barbados, his courage returning,
whirled around and issued a volley of commands.
From the darkness Señor Zorro
hurled another small bolt, and for the third
time the bell sent forth its ringing message.</p>
<p>Barbados whirled around again, his face
suddenly white. He was within six paces
of the bell, and he knew that no other man
was nearer it than that. He felt the eyes
of the terror-stricken crew upon him, and
knew that he must show courage now, else
lose his control over his men.</p>
<p>“Some one is playing a trick,” Barbados
said. “And when I find the hound of hell
who is doing it, I feed him to the sharks
in two sections!”</p>
<p>He called two of the men, bade them
get torches, and stationed them near the
bell with orders to watch it closely. They<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_27"></a>[27]</span>
shivered, but they obeyed. Thoughts of a
ghost were terrible enough, but Barbados
was there in the flesh, and his cutlass was
ready in his hand.</p>
<p>But the bell did not ring again. Señor
Zorro had accomplished his purpose, which
was to make the crew nervous, and he was
through playing in that direction. He
slipped on along the rail, now and then
peering over. After a time he picked up a
line, fastened it to the rail and tossed the
other end overboard, tried it with the weight
of his body, made a loop in it, and slipped
one leg through the loop.</p>
<p>Over the rail and down the side he went,
slowly and carefully, the sword of Zorro in
its scabbard at his side. And presently he
came to a porthole, through which light
streamed. He swung around, grasped the
edge of it.</p>
<p>The Señorita Lolita, looking up suddenly,
almost shrieked in sudden alarm. But the
next instant she was off the bunk and
across the tiny cabin, and her face was
within a foot of his.</p>
<p>“Zorro!” she said. “You are doing a
reckless thing—”</p>
<p>“Would I allow a few score mere pirates
to keep us apart?” he asked. “Am I that
sort of <i lang="es">caballero</i>?”</p>
<p>“But you are in grave danger, from the
men above and the sea beneath!”</p>
<p>“Danger is the spice of life, <i lang="es">señorita</i>!
After we are wedded it will be time enough
for me to be tame.”</p>
<p>“But that may never be, Diego.”</p>
<p>“Zorro, <i lang="es">señorita</i>, if it is all the same to
you. I must remember continually now
that I am Zorro.”</p>
<p>“You must get back to the deck and go
into hiding,” she said. “I fear for you.
And should anything happen to you what
would become of me?”</p>
<p>“It is some small risk,” Señor Zorro admitted,
“but I felt that I should make this
call.”</p>
<p>One of her hands was at the porthole’s
edge. Señor Zorro, clinging to the rope,
grasped it in his right hand and carried it
to his lips.</p>
<p>“The most beautiful <i lang="es">señorita</i> in all the
world!” he said.</p>
<p>“Zorro!”</p>
<p>“And for once I have you, <i lang="es">señorita</i>,
when your <i lang="es">duenna</i> is not present to pester
us. We are betrothed. We were to have
been wed to-day. I will have more courage,
<i lang="es">señorita</i>, if I have felt your lips against
mine. The memory of our betrothal kiss
still tingles in my veins, but it is a memory
that should be refreshed.”</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Señor</i>—”</p>
<p>“How is this?”</p>
<p>“Diego! Zorro, I mean!”</p>
<p>“That is much better.”</p>
<p>“And then you will climb above and
take heed for yourself?”</p>
<p>“With a kiss for incentive, I could climb
to the summit of the world and reach for
heaven!” Señor Zorro declared.</p>
<p>She blushed and then inclined her head.
He bent forward, and their lips met in the
porthole.</p>
<p>“Go!” she said then. “Go, Zorro, and
may the saints guard you!”</p>
<p>“My arm is strengthened,” he declared.
“And your wishes are to be obeyed. <i lang="es">Señorita,
adios!</i>”</p>
<p>An instant their eyes met, and then he
was gone, climbing up the line hand over
hand through the darkness. Señorita Lolita
tried to watch him, but could not. And
so she hurried back to the bunk and curled
up on it again, holding one hand to her
flaming cheek, moistening with her tongue
the lips that the lips of Señor Zorro had
pressed.</p>
<p>Zorro reached the deck and disconnected
the line, wishing to leave no trace behind
him. He glanced toward the land, and realized
that soon the dawn would come.
Along the rail he slipped, until he came to
a spot from where he could watch the
pirates.</p>
<p>The majority of the loot had been stored
away. No man was aloft. Barbados was
cursing at a group near the opposite rail.
Señor Zorro looked across at him and
wished that he was near. He saw Sanchez,
too, knew him for the lieutenant, and it
came into his mind that Sanchez had commanded
the squad that had abducted the
<i lang="es">señorita</i>.</p>
<p>And, as he watched, Sanchez started
across the deck, around the mast, bore
down upon Señor Zorro where he stood in<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_28"></a>[28]</span>
the darkness. Soon he would be in the
darkness near the rail. But before he could
reach it he would be forced to pass beneath
one of the flaring torches, and for an instant
the strong light would be in his eyes.
Señor Zorro whipped out his blade and
crept forward to the edge of the blackness,
keeping behind a mass of cordage piled
upon the deck.</p>
<p>His eyes were narrowed now, his lips in
a straight line, an expression of determination
in his face. So he stood and watched
Sanchez approach, holding the sword of
Zorro ready.</p>
<p>The moment came. The blade darted
forward and struck, and its point worked
like lightning. Sanchez gave a scream of
mingled surprise and pain and fear, and
reeled backward, clapping a hand to his
forehead.</p>
<p>Barbados whirled to look. Señor Zorro,
as silently as a shadow, darted along the
rail through the black night, on his way to
the little hatch and the storeroom below.</p>
<p>“Fiends of hell!” Barbados was shrieking.
“Sanchez, what is it? You screech
like a shocked wench!”</p>
<p>Sanchez, still shrieking, staggered back
and turned beneath the flaring torch to
face them. On his forehead was a freshly
cut letter Z.</p>
<p>“The mark of Zorro!” Barbados gasped.
“So—”</p>
<p>“A demon struck me!” Sanchez cried.
“I saw no man! Something came out of
the night and struck me!”</p>
<p>“Fool!” Barbados shrieked. “A blade
made those cuts.”</p>
<p>“But there was no blade, no man! Out
of the dark it came—”</p>
<p>“Think you Señor Zorro is aboard?”</p>
<p>“No man, I say!” Sanchez shrieked.
“It was a ghost. There is a ghost aboard.
We are doomed—the ship is doomed! The
ship’s bell rings—and men are cut—”</p>
<p>“By my naked blade!” Barbados swore.
“A sword in the hand of a human made
that cut! Do I not bear one myself?”</p>
<p>“But how could this Señor Zorro get
aboard?” Sanchez wailed. “It was a
ghost!”</p>
<p>The ship’s bell gave forth one more melodious
clang! Señor Zorro, on his way to
the storeroom and his hiding place, had
stopped long enough to hurl another bolt.</p>
<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
<div class="chapter">
<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_X">CHAPTER X.<br>
<small>A DEAD PIRATE.</small></h2>
</div>
<p class="cap">Sanchez and some of the others
shrieked in terror. Barbados, cursing
loudly, strode to the middle of the
deck, whirled around, brandished his cutlass
as though he would have fought the world.
He would not admit to himself that this
thing was getting on his nerves, but he
glanced anxiously toward the land and
wished for the dawn. He drove the men
to finish their work, grasped Sanchez
roughly by the arm, and led him aside.</p>
<p>“Understand,” he said, “either this
Señor Zorro is aboard in some mysterious
fashion, or else there is a traitor among us
playing this Zorro’s part.”</p>
<p>“A ghost—” Sanchez began.</p>
<p>“Another word of ghosts, and I run
you through!” Barbados warned. “The
men are silly fools, but you are supposed
to have some sense, being second in command.
When the day comes we search the
ship; and if we find this Señor Zorro in
hiding we deal with him in a way he will
not relish. He is one man against many!”</p>
<p>Sanchez shivered and raised a trembling
hand to his flaming forehead. The blood
had streamed down his cheeks from the
wound Señor Zorro had put there; and
Señor Zorro, on his way to his hiding place,
had paused for an instant to watch this
comedy—had paused, and so was lost to
caution.</p>
<p>Back along the rail he hurried and from
the tub he took some of the bolts. Up into
the rigging he went like a monkey, until
he was over the deck. He braced himself,
took careful aim, and once more the bell
rang out.</p>
<p>The pirates whirled toward it, and Barbados
took a step forward, an oath rumbling
from his lips, while Sanchez screeched
and tried to hide behind the mast. Señor
Zorro hurled another bolt, and this one
struck Sanchez on his shoulder. He cried
out again and fled across the deck.</p>
<p>Another bolt hurtled through the night,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_29"></a>[29]</span>
and this time Barbados felt the blow on
the back of his neck. The screeches of
Sanchez drowned the noise of the bolt falling
to the deck. The pirate chief whirled
upon the men nearest.</p>
<p>“Some one is playing tricks!” he
shrieked. “If I find the man doing it—”</p>
<p>The bell rang again. It was too much
for the pirates. They rushed toward the
rail and stood there, white of face and
shivering, clutching at their breasts, looking
out into the black night as though
they expected some demon to come riding
toward them on a breath of breeze.</p>
<p>Señor Zorro went down the rigging swiftly,
for the first streak of dawn was showing
over the land and stealing across the sea.
Along the rail he rushed, reached the little
hatch, and let himself down. A few minutes
later he was safe among his boxes and
bales in the storeroom.</p>
<p>He crept across to the tiny crack through
which he had whispered to the <i lang="es">señorita</i>; but
he could not see her where she was sitting
on the bunk—could see only straight ahead.</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Señorita!</i>” he whispered.</p>
<p>“Zorro!”</p>
<p>“Safe again, <i lang="es">señorita</i>. I have been playing
with these babies of pirates.”</p>
<p>“Be not rash, else I call you Don
Diego,” she said.</p>
<p>“How can I be Señor Zorro, and not
rash?” he wanted to know. “The dawn is
coming. Have you rested?”</p>
<p>“I could not sleep,” she replied. “There
were thoughts of you, and of other things.”</p>
<p>“But now I guard,” he whispered.
“Sleep, and I will watch.”</p>
<p>She started to make reply, but instead
she hissed a warning. Heavy steps had
sounded outside the cabin door. She heard
the bar being removed. And then the
door was opened and one of the pirates
stood in it, grinning, a torch in his hand.</p>
<p>“I have brought food,” he said, “at the
chief’s command.”</p>
<p>Señorita Lolita’s lips curled in scorn as
she looked at him.</p>
<p>“Do you think I would eat it?” she
asked.</p>
<p>“It is the chief’s command. You are to
be kept well fed and pretty as the prize of
some great man.”</p>
<p>“You may take your food away again!”</p>
<p>“And have the chief slit my throat for
not carrying out his orders?” the man
asked. “Do you take me for a fool?”</p>
<p>He stepped into the little cabin and
closed the door behind him. And then she
saw that he carried a bottle of wine and
half a cold fowl. She gasped as she looked
at the wine, for there was a label upon
the bottle, and it bore the stamp of her
father’s <i lang="es">hacienda</i>.</p>
<p>It returned to her with a rush—memory
of her father being struck down, of her
home in flames, of her weeping mother
crouched over her father’s body. She gave
a little cry and reeled back against the wall.</p>
<p>“Leave me!” she commanded. “Out!”</p>
<p>The man leered and stepped toward her.
She darted away from him, horror in her
eyes. He put the bottle and fowl down
upon the bunk.</p>
<p>“I leave the food and drink, pretty
wench,” he said. “You may use it or
throw it through the porthole into the sea—it
is all the same to me.”</p>
<p>“Out!” she cried again.</p>
<p>“You do not like me?” he asked, getting
closer to her. “Many women have.
You are not to be spoiled being the prize of
some great man, but a kiss will not spoil
you. Never have I kissed a wench with
proud blood in her veins. It will be something
to remember and boast about!”</p>
<p>Now she crouched against the wall, her
heart pounding at her ribs, her breath coming
in little gasps. Her eyes were dilated
with terror.</p>
<p>“Out!” she said, though her fear reduced
her screech to a mere whisper.
“Your master shall know of this!”</p>
<p>That sobered him for a moment, but the
picture of her pretty self was before him,
tantalizing him, tormenting him. He
reached out a hand to clutch her. She
could retreat no further. She put up her
tiny hands as though to beat him back.</p>
<p>“What is a kiss?” he asked, laughing.
“I would not harm you—only a kiss!”</p>
<p>“I would rather die!” she gasped.</p>
<p>“For that I shall take two—a dozen!
Proud wench, are you? Ha!”</p>
<p>He grasped her wrist and started pulling
her toward him. She lurched backward,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_30"></a>[30]</span>
fought with what strength she could, felt
that she was about to swoon, and realized
that she must not. He followed her,
reached out the other hand to grasp her
better.</p>
<p>And like the darting of a snake’s tongue
came the sword of Zorro through the crack
in the wall. In and out it darted with the
swiftness of thought. The <i lang="es">señorita</i>, reeling
back against the wall, felt herself released,
saw the pirate sag before her, to his knees,
topple forward, and collapse at her feet.</p>
<p>Terror-stricken, she looked down at him,
her eyes bulging wide. Blood flowed from
his breast and formed a pool on the floor
of the cabin. A hiss from the other side
of the partition brought her to her senses.
She realized, then, that Zorro’s blade had
done this thing to save her an indignity.</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Señorita!</i>”</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Sí?</i>” she questioned.</p>
<p>“Take the fellow’s dagger from his girdle!
Dip it in the blood on the floor!
Have courage and act quickly! ’Twill appear
as though you did it when he offered
you insult!”</p>
<p>She realized what he meant, and was
quick to obey. She needed the blood of the
Pulidos to aid her now. Stooping, she
reached out a hand and grasped the hilt of
the dagger in the dead man’s belt. She
drew it out, shuddered, turned her head
away for a moment, faint at the sight of the
blood.</p>
<p>“Courage!” Zorro’s whisper reached her
ears. “And make haste, <i lang="es">señorita</i>! Some
man may come!”</p>
<p>Now came the thing that tested her courage.
But she felt that the eyes of Señor
Zorro were upon her. Again she bent forward,
and she bathed the blade of the dagger
in the pool of blood upon the floor.
Then she sprang to her feet, holding the
dagger in her hand, her face white.</p>
<p>“Open the door,” Zorro whispered from
beyond the partition, “and shriek!”</p>
<p>She hurried to the door, shuddering as she
pulled her skirts away from the dead man.
She opened it, and peered out. And the
shriek that she gave was no acting, but the
sudden outpouring of what she felt.</p>
<p>There was a moment of silence, and she
shrieked yet again. And down from the
deck tumbled Barbados, rage in his face.
He looked at her and at the dagger in her
hand. He thrust her aside and stepped
into the cabin.</p>
<p>“So!” he said. “What has happened
here?”</p>
<p>“A lady of my blood does not suffer insult!”
she said.</p>
<p>“Ha! The dog forgot his instructions,
did he? ’Tis well that he is done for! You
have saved me a task!” Barbados declared.
He turned and looked full at her. “A
wench of spirit!” he said. “I have half a
mind to keep you for my own!”</p>
<p>Back to the door he went, and shouted to
those above. Two men came rushing down.
Barbados yelled commands at them, and
they carried the dead man away. Another
brought water in a pail, and dashed it over
the floor to wash the blood down the cracks.</p>
<p>Barbados turned and looked at her again.
“You may keep the beast’s dagger for a
souvenir,” he said. “Let me clean it for
you.”</p>
<p>She surrendered it willingly. Barbados
wiped the blade on his trousers, bowed, and
handed it back to her.</p>
<p>“Take it!” he urged. “Use it when you
will, if there are others who try to disobey
my commands. You are to be delivered,
unspoiled, to a certain man. Failing that,
I claim you for myself. And put out the
torch when I have gone. The day is here!”</p>
<p>He went out and closed the door, and
once more the heavy bar was dropped into
place. Señorita Lolita tossed the dagger
from her, hurried to the bunk, and collapsed
upon it. Her senses seemed to be
reeling. She forgot to extinguish the torch.</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Señorita!</i>” Zorro whispered from beyond
the partition.</p>
<p>But she made him no reply. The terrors
of the night had taken their toll. She had
swooned at the dawning of the day.</p>
<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
<div class="chapter">
<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XI">CHAPTER XI.<br>
<small>ZORRO WALKS THE PLANK.</small></h2>
</div>
<p class="cap">There was no dawn in the dark, evil-odored
storeroom, but Señor Zorro,
by peering through the crack and
into the little cabin, could tell of the approach<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_31"></a>[31]</span>
of the day. The interior grew gray,
and then brighter, and finally a ray of sun
penetrated and touched the dingy hole with
glory.</p>
<p>Señor Zorro put his lips close to the tiny
opening and whispered his call:</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Señorita!</i>”</p>
<p>Her swoon had changed to a deep, unnatural
slumber by now, and she came from
the midst of it at his sibilant call, bewildered
for a moment.</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Sí?</i>” she asked.</p>
<p>“You were silent for a time, and I was
afraid.”</p>
<p>“Señor Zorro afraid?” she mocked.</p>
<p>“Afraid and not ashamed of it, where
you are concerned, <i lang="es">señorita</i>,” he replied.
“Curl up and try to get some natural sleep.
It is in my mind that these pirates will be
busy beating out to sea or trying to reach
their land den, and will have no time to
bother you.”</p>
<p>“And what do you intend doing?” she
asked. “Do you intend to sleep also?”</p>
<p>“Don Diego Vega might feel called upon
to sleep now and then,” he answered, “but
Señor Zorro dare not. Worry not your
pretty head about me, <i lang="es">señorita</i>! Rest your
pretty eyes, and by the time you awake fate
perhaps will have been kind and revealed
to us a way out of this present difficulty.”</p>
<p>She heard him scrambling among his
boxes and bales and barrels. She would have
spoken to him again, but did not dare raise
her voice above a whisper, and she felt slumber
claiming her. She was thoroughly exhausted.
Before she went to sleep, however,
she extinguished the torch, and stood for a
moment before the open porthole, looking
through the morning haze at the distant
land.</p>
<p>The ship was riding easily on the long
swells, sailing swiftly toward the south.
The <i lang="es">señorita</i> slept, and in the dark storeroom
Señor Zorro reclined on a pile of sacks
and tried to think things out. In an emergency
he was quick to think and to act, to
take advantage of every opening, but to
sit still and analyze a situation was beyond
him. He was a man of action, and it was
action he craved.</p>
<p>He did not doubt that Don Audre Ruiz
and the others had obtained possession of
the trading schooner and would follow. But
would they follow the correct lane of the
sea? And, if they caught up with the
pirates, what would follow? The <i lang="es">caballeros</i>
would be greatly outnumbered. Not that
such a thing would cause them to hesitate
about an attack, but it would work against
them, of course.</p>
<p>For an hour or more Señor Zorro thought
on the problem, itching to be in action and
knowing that he should remain quiet. The
pirates would be searching the ship, he supposed,
since he had marked Sanchez the
way he had. He would have to remain in
hiding, bury himself in the storeroom in
such manner that they could not find him.</p>
<p>Then, after a time, he heard a noise in
the little cabin, and quickly made his way
to the crack in the wall. He could see that
the door had been opened, and then he saw
that Sanchez was standing just inside it.</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Señorita!</i>” the pirate lieutenant called.
“Sleep not when the chief commands!”</p>
<p>Señorita Lolita came from her slumber
and sat up on the bunk with a little cry.</p>
<p>“Do not be afraid,” Sanchez told her.
“By my naked blade, I will keep my distance!
I have no wish for a knife between
my ribs, driven there by a high-born damsel
who thinks nothing of murder!”</p>
<p>“What is your wish?” she demanded.
She was herself again now, scorning him,
her chin tilted.</p>
<p>“It is no wish of mine,” Sanchez protested.
“I but carry the commands of the
chief. He orders that you come on deck,
and at once.”</p>
<p>“I prefer to remain here, Señor Pirate,”
she replied.</p>
<p>“No doubt. But the commands of Barbados
are made to be obeyed, as I learned
some years ago. He has said that you are
to go on deck, and so you shall, even if I
have to carry you.”</p>
<p>One step he took toward her, but she
sprang from the bunk and crouched against
the wall.</p>
<p>“Dare not to touch me, foul beast!” she
cried. “’Twas you cut my father down!
’Twas you stole me away from my home and
fetched me to the coast!”</p>
<p>“I do not want to touch you, little spitfire!”
Sanchez informed her. “I have but<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_32"></a>[32]</span>
come to escort you to the deck. What
Barbados wants with you I do not know.
Perhaps it is to have you get some fresh
air, so you will look pretty when you are
delivered to the great man. Ha! You are
pretty enough now to suit any man who is
not too exacting.”</p>
<p>He turned back toward the door, offering
her no affront. And there he waited, as
though with deep respect.</p>
<p>“Are you coming?” he demanded.
“Barbados is not the man to be kept
waiting.”</p>
<p>Once more she curled her lip in scorn,
once more her chin was tilted, and she went
forward, drawing aside her skirts, and swept
past him like a queen leaving an audience
chamber. Sanchez grinned and followed
her.</p>
<p>Señor Zorro, through the tiny crack, had
witnessed this scene. He did not believe
that Barbados merely wanted her to take
the air. He felt sudden fear for her, and
once more his eyes narrowed and seemed
to send forth flakes of steel. He scrambled
over the boxes and bales toward the little
door.</p>
<p>Up the rickety ladder he went and to the
hatch, and there he listened for a time,
hearing nothing alarming. And then he
raised the hatch slowly, an inch at a time,
blinking his eyes rapidly at the bright light
of the day.</p>
<p>None of the pirates was in sight. Señor
Zorro slipped out and dropped the hatch
covering, whipped out his blade, and crept
through the little passage toward the spot
from where the deck of the ship could be
viewed.</p>
<p>He was in time to see the <i lang="es">señorita</i> piloted
across the deck to where Barbados was
standing alone. The crew were forward,
some sleeping sprawled on the deck, others
leaning against the rail watching the antics
of the flying fish.</p>
<p>Barbados whirled and stood with arms
akimbo, regarding her narrowly. She faced
him bravely, her hands clasped behind her
back.</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Señorita</i>,” the pirate said, “queer
things happened during the night. I would
question you concerning them.”</p>
<p>“Is it necessary?” she asked.</p>
<p>“By my naked blade, it is!” he roared.
“I am not to be treated like a dog by you
or any of your ilk. This is my ship, and
here I am sole master, and it would be well
for you to remember it.”</p>
<p>“I am quite sure none other would desire
the mastery of her,” the <i lang="es">señorita</i> replied.</p>
<p>“You have a biting tongue,” Barbados
said. “I would hate to be your husband.
Else that tongue were tamed by love, it
would be a hot dish to have continually.”</p>
<p>She turned away from him and gazed
across the sea. He took a step nearer her.</p>
<p>“Is this Señor Zorro aboard?” he demanded
suddenly.</p>
<p>“Would I know it, were he?” she countered.</p>
<p>“Possibly. I am asking a question, and
desire an answer,” Barbados said. “It has
been said that a high-born wench such as
yourself scorns to utter falsehood. Let us
see if that is correct.”</p>
<p>She made no reply, and the face of Barbados
grew purple with wrath. He closed
and unclosed his great hands as though he
would have liked to strangle her.</p>
<p>“Is Señor Zorro aboard?” he demanded
again.</p>
<p>“Have you seen him?” she wanted to
know.</p>
<p>“I have not. But I have seen some
things that I imagine are his doing.”</p>
<p>“And I notice that you and your lieutenant
bear his mark,” she said.</p>
<p>“Ha! Let me but get my hands on him,
and he’ll bear more than a mark!” Barbados
declared. “I am having a search made
of the ship. If he is found you’ll see how
a man can be sent to his death speedily.”</p>
<p>The <i lang="es">señorita</i> gave a little cry and recoiled,
her hands at her breast.</p>
<p>“Ha! You show fear for him!” Barbados
cried. “So he is aboard, is he?”</p>
<p>“Have I said so?” she asked.</p>
<p>“You have not—but now you are going
to tell me the truth. Wench, I’m done with
trifling. You presume too much on the
knowledge that you are to be the prize of
an important man. Do you not know you
are in my power? Could I not do with you
as I pleased, and then heave you overboard,
and tell this important gentleman later that<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_33"></a>[33]</span>
you got the chance and threw yourself into
the sea?”</p>
<p>Evil glistened suddenly in his eyes, and
the little <i lang="es">señorita</i> recoiled again. Sanchez,
who had remained standing near, laughed
like a fiend.</p>
<p>“We could gamble for her,” Sanchez
suggested.</p>
<p>“This is my affair, and you will do
well to remain silent,” Barbados declared,
whirling upon him.</p>
<p>Once more he faced Señorita Lolita, and
the fiendish look upon his face made her
flinch.</p>
<p>“Tell me all you know about this Señor
Zorro!” Barbados commanded. “Did you
slay the man in your cabin, or did this
Señor Zorro do it? Answer me, wench!
Reply here and now, else I teach you a
lesson you will remember to your last
hour.”</p>
<p>He sprang forward suddenly and grasped
her arm cruelly, and she cried out because
of the indignity and the pain.</p>
<p>Señor Zorro, from his place of watching,
flinched as though he had experienced the
indignity and pain himself. He wanted to
hurl himself forward and to the attack,
but he realized that it would not last for
long. He could not hope to engage the
entire ship’s company, though he made a
long and running fight of it, and emerge
from the combat the victor.</p>
<p>But there came an interruption. From
forward was a hail:</p>
<p>“A sail! A sail!”</p>
<p>The pirates sprang to their feet. Those
who had been sprawled upon the deck
asleep awoke.</p>
<p>Barbados forgot the <i lang="es">señorita</i> for a moment
and turned to look.</p>
<p>Behind, and bearing down upon them
swiftly, came another ship. Señor Zorro
knew, as did the pirates, that she had put
out from the land before the dawn and far
to the south of where the pirate ship had
been at anchor.</p>
<p>Hope beat suddenly in Zorro’s breast.
She was a trading schooner, he could tell
even at that distance. If only she carried
Audre Ruiz and his friends! It was a
question what would happen. If she was
some honest vessel, perhaps she would fall
victim to the pirate craft. She might not
be prepared to fight.</p>
<p>Barbados issued a volley of commands.
The pirate craft turned for a run farther
out to sea, so that she could tack back
and catch the oncoming ship between her
and the shore.</p>
<p>Lookouts were posted to watch carefully.
Sanchez ran here and there, echoing the
orders of his chief.</p>
<p>From his hiding place Señor Zorro
watched now the approaching vessel, and
now the deck where Señorita Lolita was
standing against the mast, forgotten for the
moment.</p>
<p>Were he quite sure that ship carried his
friends Señor Zorro could go into action.
For he flattered himself that he would be
able to hold his own until the other ship
came up.</p>
<p>It appeared that the other vessel had no
intention of running up the coast. She
changed her course also, and bore after
the pirate craft.</p>
<p>Señor Zorro watched her carefully. He
could not make out her flag. At the distance
he could see nothing except that she
was of the type of trading schooner, and
that she had swift heels. For she was gaining
rapidly, as though sailed by experts.
And the pirate craft was foul of bottom,
needing careening and scraping.</p>
<p>Barbados had hurried to the rail and
was watching the oncoming ship. Señorita
Lolita saw it also, but did not seem to realize
that it meant hope. Perhaps she
feared that the ship was but coming into
grave danger, running into a conflict that
would mean capture and death for her
crew.</p>
<p>Señor Zorro glanced at the deck, and then
back at the approaching vessel again. He
saw that another sail was being sent aloft.
It was broken out, snapped into place, the
lines tautened. And Señor Zorro with difficulty
restrained a cheer. On the white
expanse of the sail, painted there in haphazard
fashion, but easily made out, was a
monster Z.</p>
<p>So his friends were on that ship! Señor
Zorro felt better now. He glanced once
more toward the deck, and realized that
Barbados had seen what was on the sail<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_34"></a>[34]</span>
also. For the pirate chief left the rail and
stamped back to the <i lang="es">señorita’s</i> side, determination
in his manner and rage in his
countenance.</p>
<p>“Now you’ll speak the truth, wench!”
he shouted. “Is Señor Zorro aboard this
ship? If those are his friends coming up,
then will we attend to him before we attend
to them!”</p>
<p>“I do not care to hold conversation with
you,” she said.</p>
<p>“No? By my naked blade, I am in command
here!” he roared. “An answer I
intend to have.”</p>
<p>He lurched forward and grasped her by
the shoulders, shook her as a terrier shakes
a rat, held her at arm’s length and shook
her again. She fought against crying out,
but could not win the battle against such
cruel odds.</p>
<p>One plaintive little cry drifted across the
deck and straight into the heart of Señor
Zorro.</p>
<p>He transferred his sword from his right
hand to his left. He whipped the dagger
from his belt and hurled it. His aim was
poor, yet he had come close enough. The
dagger was driven, quivering, into the mast
between Barbados and the <i lang="es">señorita</i>.</p>
<p>Barbados, with a cry, sprang backward,
and the <i lang="es">señorita</i> slumped to the deck at the
foot of the mast. And Señor Zorro realized
in that instant that he had stepped
forward too far and had been seen. Sanchez
gave a cry and started toward him.
The pirates whirled from the rail to look.
Barbados saw him.</p>
<p>“’Tis Señor Zorro!” Barbados shrieked.
“After him! Fetch him to me alive! An
extra share of loot to the man who gets
him!”</p>
<p>It was the promise of loot that drove
them on. They shrieked and rushed forward.
Señor Zorro put the blade of his
sword between his teeth and darted up into
the rigging.</p>
<p>And then began a fight the like of which
the pirates never had seen before. Señor
Zorro seemed scarcely human. Up the rigging
he went like a monkey. He sprang
from spar to spar. Down the ratlines he
rushed, down the ropes he slid.</p>
<p>Now and then he clashed with one of
the pirates, and always the sword of Zorro
darted in and out, and a wounded man
was left behind.</p>
<p>“Seize him!” Barbados shrieked. “After
him, dogs! Is one man to hold you off forever?
Do not slay him! An extra share
of loot—”</p>
<p>Señor Zorro struck the deck and darted
across it. Sanchez retreated before his
darting blade. He pierced the breast of a
pirate who stepped before him, hurled another
aside, sprang to the mast, and recovered
his dagger. He stooped for an
instant, and pressed the lips of the <i lang="es">señorita</i>
to his own, and dashed on.</p>
<p>Now he was cornered, and now he fought
his way to freedom. A dagger whirled past
his head and buried itself in the deck beyond.
Into the rigging he went again, up
the ratlines, out along a spar.</p>
<p>They followed him, and he put his sword
into its scabbard and sprang. Far below he
caught another spar, ran to the mast, started
downward again. One glance he gave at
the approaching ship. His friends were
gaining, but they still were far away.</p>
<p>Again they had him cornered, and again
he escaped them by jumping to the deck
below. He dashed around the deck cabin,
met and defeated another man with a single
clash of blades, and was at the rail.</p>
<p>There was grave danger on the deck,
he knew, and so he went aloft once more.
Up and up he went, while Barbados and
Sanchez shrieked to the others to follow
and get him.</p>
<p>“Alive! I want him alive!” Barbados
screeched.</p>
<p>Another spring from spar to spar. Señor
Zorro almost missed because of the rolling
of the ship. But he caught and clung on,
and scrambled to a place of safety. In toward
the mast he hurried.</p>
<p>But there was a treacherous spot on the
spar, where the mist had struck and clung,
a wet spot made to cause a boot to slip.
Señor Zorro felt himself reeling suddenly
to one side. He grasped wildly—grasped
nothing but empty air. His heart seemed
to stop beating for an instant. He felt
himself falling through space. To his ears
came the terrified cry of the little <i lang="es">señorita</i>.
The deck rushed up to meet him. He<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_35"></a>[35]</span>
struck it with a crash and the darkness
came.</p>
<p>Señorita Lolita gave another little cry
and covered her face with her hands. Barbados
and Sanchez rushed forward, the others
at their heels.</p>
<p>Señor Zorro was unconscious for the moment,
though the fall had broken no bones.</p>
<p>“Bind him!” Barbados cried, glancing
back at the oncoming ship. “We attend
to him first, and then to his friends. Water
his head well and bring him back to life.
Get ready a plank!”</p>
<p>The pirates rushed to do his bidding.</p>
<p>Señor Zorro’s wrists were lashed behind
his back. One man hurled water into his
face, and he groaned and opened his eyes,
and tried to sit up on the deck.</p>
<p>“Ha!” Barbados cried. “So it is Señor
Zorro, eh? And now we can repay you for
this little mark you put on my forehead,
<i lang="es">señor</i>! Barbados, also, knows how to make
payment!”</p>
<p>He gave a signal, and the pirates forced
Zorro to his feet. He tried to fight, but
they overpowered him. They braced him
against the mast, while the <i lang="es">señorita</i> crept
aside and watched.</p>
<p>“Hold the wench!” Barbados commanded
two of the men. “We don’t want her
throwing herself overboard. And I wish
her to witness what is to come.”</p>
<p>The two men held her. Señor Zorro,
half throttled, was kept against the mast.
Barbados made another sign, and some of
the men carried forward a heavy bar of
iron and lashed it to Señor Zorro’s wrists.</p>
<p>“To the rail with him!” Barbados commanded.</p>
<p>They forced him to the rail, and the
two men urged the <i lang="es">señorita</i> along beside
him. Over the rail a long, wide plank had
been extended.</p>
<p>Señor Zorro knew what they meant to
do to him. And now Señorita Lolita realized
it, too.</p>
<p>“No, no!” she shrieked. “You must not
do this thing!”</p>
<p>“Ha! Revenge is sweet!” Barbados
cried. “Señor Zorro, you are about to
descend to a watery hell! We’ll let you
take your sword with you, since you may
need it fighting demons. You take the
plunge, and then, when yon ship comes up,
we attend to your friends! As for the <i lang="es">señorita</i>,
know that she will be delivered safely
to one who has bargained for her.”</p>
<p>“Why not give me a chance in a fair
fight?” Zorro asked. “Any two of you—any
three—”</p>
<p>“Your friends are coming up, and we
must prepare for them,” Barbados replied,
laughing. “You have fought your last
fight on earth, <i lang="es">señor</i>. See if you can mark
the brow of the devil with your cursed Z.”</p>
<p>“Diego!” the <i lang="es">señorita</i> moaned.</p>
<p>“As a special favor you may kiss the
wench,” Barbados said. “It will be practice
for her. And take with you to the
bottom of the sea the knowledge that another
will kiss her soon.”</p>
<p>The <i lang="es">señorita</i> rushed forward and threw
her arms around him and kissed him, unashamed.</p>
<p>“Diego! I’ll follow you!” she said.</p>
<p>“’Tis a merry end,” Señor Zorro declared.
“Be brave of heart! Our friends
are at hand, <i lang="es">señorita</i>! If Don Audre Ruiz
is aboard that ship he will know how to
save you—and how to avenge me.”</p>
<p>Again they kissed, and then the two
pirates jerked her roughly backward.</p>
<p>Barbados laughed like a fiend.</p>
<p>“Practice for the other man!” he roared.
“When Captain Ramón—”</p>
<p>“So it is Ramón?” Zorro cried.</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Sí!</i> And a lot of good the knowledge
will do you now.”</p>
<p>“This much good—that I shall not die!”
Zorro answered.</p>
<p>“If you do not, then indeed are you a
man! With a weight on your lashed
wrists— Enough!” he exclaimed. “Put
him on the plank!”</p>
<p>They lifted him and stood him upon it,
facing him toward the sea. They forced
him a short distance from the rail.</p>
<p>“Diego!” the <i lang="es">señorita</i> cried, agony in
her voice.</p>
<p>At her cry the plank was tipped.</p>
<p>And with her cry ringing in his ears
Señor Zorro shot downward like a man of
metal—shot downward into the tossing sea,
and was gone!</p>
<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
<div class="chapter">
<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_36"></a>[36]</span></p>
<figure class="figcenter" id="i_part3">
<img src="images/i_part3.jpg" alt="" title="">
<figcaption class="caption">
<p class="noic">The Further Adventures of Zorro, Part III</p>
</figcaption>
</figure>
</div>
<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
<div class="chapter">
<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XII">CHAPTER XII.<br>
<small>TO THE RESCUE.</small></h2>
</div>
<p class="cap">Upon the frantic departure of Don
Diego Vega from Reina de Los Angeles,
Don Audre Ruiz took command
of the situation and the <i lang="es">caballeros</i>
simultaneously. There was none willing to
dispute his leadership. Don Audre always
had been a leader when there was an enterprise
that called for hard riding and hard
fighting in the bright face of danger.</p>
<p>Captain Ramón was not to be found,
and Sergeant Gonzales had ridden away
with the soldiers. So Don Audre noised it
abroad that he and his friends intended
pursuing the pirates as speedily as possible,
and made a quick search for mounts.</p>
<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_37"></a>[37]</span></p>
<p>They acquired enough, presently, but
the horses were a sorry lot when compared
to the <i lang="es">caballeros’s</i> own, which the pirates
had stolen. And without changing their
attire, retaining the splendid costumes they
had been wearing at Don Diego’s bachelor
feast and with their jeweled swords at their
sides, they rode up the slope and took the
trail that would carry them to the sea.</p>
<p>Don Audre decided against following the
pirates’ tracks. He knew that they would
reach the coast long before the <i lang="es">caballeros</i>,
and would embark. Don Diego would do
what he could, which would be little. And
Don Audre realized that their only hope
was to get to the trading schooner, put out
in it, and make an attempt to overtake
Barbados and his evil crew.</p>
<p>They rode with what speed they could,
shouting at their poor mounts and at one
another, along the slopes, down the dusty
trails and so toward the distant sea. They
crossed the trail of the pirates who had
looted the Pulido <i lang="es">hacienda</i>, but ignored it.
Don Audre Ruiz knew where the trading
schooner would be anchored, some miles to
the south of where the pirate ship undoubtedly
had touched, and that place was
his objective.</p>
<p>Hour after hour they rode, urging their
jaded horses to their utmost, glad that the
moon was bright and that they could make
as good progress as in the day. And, when
they finally were within a couple of miles
of the sea, and also an hour of the dawn,
Don Audre suddenly raised his hand and
reined in his horse, and those behind
stopped with him. A native was standing
in the middle of the trail.</p>
<p>Don Audre approached him slowly, hand
on the hilt of his dagger. There were some
natives who were not to be trusted. But
when he drew near he recognized the fellow
as one who had worked at his father’s <i lang="es">hacienda</i>.</p>
<p>“What do you here?” Don Audre demanded.</p>
<p>“I saw the <i lang="es">señor</i> coming from the distance
with his friends,” the native answered.
“I have news.”</p>
<p>“Speak!”</p>
<p>“I was coming across the hills, <i lang="es">señor</i>,
and saw the pirates.”</p>
<p>“Ha! Talk quickly!” Audre Ruiz commanded.</p>
<p>“I went into hiding, lest they slay me.
They had good horses and much loot, also
a girl—”</p>
<p>“Tell us of that!”</p>
<p>“It was the <i lang="es">señorita</i> Don Diego Vega
expects to wed,” the native said. “They
took her with them to the shore, and presently
more pirates came from Reina de
Los Angeles. They went aboard their
ship, taking the <i lang="es">señorita</i> and the loot with
them.”</p>
<p>“What else?”</p>
<p>“There was a man appeared, <i lang="es">señor</i>, and
killed one of the pirates. I got a glimpse
of him, Don Audre, and it was Señor Zorro,
the one that—”</p>
<p>“Ha! Zorro!” Audre shrieked. “Speak
quickly!”</p>
<p>“He ran from them, and they gave up
the pursuit. But when the boats started
from the land, he dived into the sea and
swam after them. And he did not return!”</p>
<p>“Then is he aboard the pirate craft!”
Don Audre declared.</p>
<p>“The pirate ship sailed to the south,
<i lang="es">señor</i>.”</p>
<p>“Good!” Audre cried. “Know you
anything of the trading schooner?”</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Sí, señor!</i> She is anchored straight
ahead, and the men expect to start for
Reina de Los Angeles in the morning to
trade.”</p>
<p>“They will not, though they do not
know it.” Don Audre said. “Here is gold
for you, fellow. Ha! So the pirate ship
sailed to the south. That means that the
rogues are going to their hidden rendezvous
somewhere down the coast. We’ll get the
trading schooner and pursue! Forward!”</p>
<p>But, as they would have started, Don
Audre Ruiz raised a hand and stopped
them again. From the rear had come the
beating of a horse’s hoofs. Don Audre
motioned to the <i lang="es">caballeros</i>, and they scattered
to either side of the road and prepared
to receive the newcomer.</p>
<p>Nearer grew the beating of hoofs, and a
horseman appeared, riding frantically
through the moonlight down the slope and
toward them. When he saw them, he<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_38"></a>[38]</span>
reined up, and stopped in their midst in a
shower of gravel and sand and dust. The
reckless rider was Sergeant Gonzales.</p>
<p>“Ha, <i lang="es">señores</i>!” he called. “I have
overtaken you finally, it appears.”</p>
<p>“And to what end?” Don Audre Ruiz
asked, urging his horse forward and glaring
at the soldier. “You have news?”</p>
<p>“Not so, <i lang="es">señor</i>! I come in search of it.
I returned to Reina de Los Angeles with
my troopers to learn of the pirates and
what they had done. I learned, also, of
your departure, so left my men and rode
after you. Captain Ramón was not at the
<i lang="es">presidio</i>. As the next soldier of rank—”</p>
<p>“It is in our minds to get the trading
schooner and give pursuit,” Ruiz told him.</p>
<p>“That is a worthy idea!” Sergeant Gonzales
declared. “Too long have these
bloody pirates infested our shores. Meal
mush and goat’s milk! Let us go forward!”</p>
<p>“Are you seeking to take command of
this expedition?” Don Audre Ruiz demanded,
hotly. “This is a private rescue
party of <i lang="es">caballeros</i>, I would have you
know, and not a detachment of the Governor’s
men! We have small love for the Governor!”</p>
<p>“Though I wear his uniform, I say the
same thing,” Sergeant Gonzales declared.
“But I am after pirates! I care not who
commands, so that I get a chance at a pirate
with my trusty blade! Ha! When I
meet a pirate face to face—”</p>
<p>“Spare us your boasting!” Don Audre
said.</p>
<p>“Boasting?” shrieked the sergeant.
“Boasting? Perchance you would like to
cross blades with me in answer to that insult?”</p>
<p>“You are safe in making the challenge,
knowing that I would not stoop to do so,”
Don Audre said.</p>
<p>“And you are safe in refusing, having
the ability to hide behind your gentle
blood!” the sergeant returned.</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Señor</i>—”</p>
<p>Sergeant Gonzales urged his mount closer
to that of Don Audre, but the expression in
the sergeant’s face had changed peculiarly,
and his countenance did not show rage.</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Señor</i>, it is true,” Sergeant Gonzales
observed, “that I am but a poor soldier
without blue blood in my veins. My father
was a butcher and my mother’s father
raised swine. But Don Diego Vega has
been good enough to term himself my
friend. And now that he is in peril, I ride
with his other friends to his rescue, and the
rescue of his lady! I trust the señor will
not misunderstand! I do not seek to equal
my betters. If I am not good enough to
ride with you, <i lang="es">caballero</i>, then I ride by myself!
But I ride!”</p>
<p>Don Audre Ruiz bent forward and
searched the sergeant’s face by the light of
the one torch the company had burning.
Then he extended his hand.</p>
<p>“Sergeant Gonzales, it is for me to ask
your pardon,” Don Audre said, grandly.
“I would not be worthy the blood in my
veins did I do less. Any friend of Don
Diego Vega is welcome on this expedition.
But, have you leave of absence?”</p>
<p>“Ha! I took it!” Sergeant Gonzales
roared, grinning broadly. “Captain Ramón
was not at the <i lang="es">presidio</i>. Being the
next in rank, I ordered myself to set out
on the trail and get a full report of the occurrence.
When I am able to make that
report I return.”</p>
<p>“Ride you with us!” Don Audre said.
“Thus we have the sanction of the soldiery
and official approval of our deeds.”</p>
<p>“I shall approve anything that has to do
with causing the death of pirates!” Sergeant
Gonzales declared.</p>
<p>The moon disappeared entirely, and the
night was dark. They rode forward slowly
now, careful not to get off the trail, but
they did not have much farther to go.
Soon they came to the crest of a hill, and
below them they heard the hissing sea, and
saw the lights of a ship riding at anchor a
short distance from the shore.</p>
<p>Down to the surf they urged their
mounts. And there they met with another
surprise. For a horseman was awaiting
them there in the darkness. Don Audre
Ruiz gasped in astonishment when he recognized
old Fray Felipe.</p>
<p>“We left you in the town, <i lang="es">fray</i>!” he
said. “And how is it that we now find
you here? Is this some sort of a miracle?”</p>
<p>“I departed the town while you were<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_39"></a>[39]</span>
yet searching for horses,” Fray Felipe explained.
“I got a mount for myself and
came ahead, because I cannot ride like the
wind, as do you young <i lang="es">caballeros</i>. It was
in my mind that you would make for the
trading schooner. I heard you say as
much.”</p>
<p>“But why have you come?” Don Audre
wanted to know.</p>
<p>“I have known Don Diego Vega and the
little <i lang="es">señorita</i> since they were babes in
arms, and I was to have married them to-day,”
the old <i lang="es">fray</i> replied.</p>
<p>“But fighting is not your forte!” Don
Audre declared. “You are old, and you
wear a gown. Do you remain behind and
pray for our success, and let us wield the
blades! That were better, <i lang="es">fray</i>.”</p>
<p>“I am willing to make my prayers. But
I have taken a vow,” Fray Felipe replied.
“I must return the golden goblet the pirates
stole from the church.”</p>
<p>“Then you would go with us?” Don
Audre asked.</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Sí!</i> I already have communicated with
the captain of the trading schooner, <i lang="es">señor</i>.
He is coming ashore now in one of his
boats. Thus time will be saved.”</p>
<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
<div class="chapter">
<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XIII">CHAPTER XIII.<br>
<small>TRAGEDY AT A DISTANCE.</small></h2>
</div>
<p class="cap">The <i lang="es">caballeros</i> dismounted stiffly and
gathered near the water line. In
from the distant trading schooner a
boat was coming, driven over the choppy
water by silent oarsmen. Half a dozen
men were in her, and their flaring torches
touched the sea with streaks of flame.
They approached the shore carefully, and
on guard, as though fearing some trap set
by thieves, and by the light of the torches
those on the land could see that the men
in the boat were heavily armed.</p>
<p>Don Audre Ruiz and Fray Felipe went
forward and met the boat at the water’s
edge and greeted the schooner’s captain as
he stepped to land. He was a regular
trader who carried goods overland from the
sea to Reina de Los Angeles every now and
then. He traveled as far as San Diego de
Alcála to the south, and as far as San Francisco
de Asis to the north—a bold fellow
and honest, well and favorably known.</p>
<p>“What is all this tumult?” the captain
demanded. “Fray Felipe, are you not?
Ha! I thought that I recognized you, good
<i lang="es">fray</i>! And Don Audre Ruiz, whose father
has purchased much goods of me. Sundry
<i lang="es">caballeros</i> and men of rank, also! In what
way may I be of service to you, <i lang="es">señores</i>?
Have you ridden out all this long way in
the night to have first choice of my stock
of goods?”</p>
<p>Don Audre Ruiz told him swiftly. “We
want your ship, to pursue a pirate craft!”
he said.</p>
<p>“How is this, <i lang="es">señor</i>?” the captain cried.
“There are pirates in these waters?”</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Sí!</i> And possibly within half a dozen
miles of you,” Don Audre told him.
“Early in the night they raided Reina de
Los Angeles. They also raided the Pulido
<i lang="es">hacienda</i>, and carried away the <i lang="es">señorita</i>,
who was to have wed Don Diego Vega this
day.”</p>
<p>“By the saints!” the schooner’s captain
swore. “They stole the bride-to-be of
Señor Zorro? Is he here with you?”</p>
<p>“He followed them, going ahead of us,
and possibly managed to get aboard their
ship,” Don Audre explained. “The pirate
craft has sailed by this time. They went
toward the south. They will beat out to
sea for a distance. If we can start soon
it may be possible to overhaul them.”</p>
<p>“How many rascals in the pirate crew?”
the captain of the schooner asked.</p>
<p>“Not more than threescore, as nearly
as we can judge,” Don Audre replied.
“And here are a score of <i lang="es">caballeros</i>, and we
are ready to fight!”</p>
<p>The captain of the schooner drew a deep
breath, held it for an instant, and then
expelled it with great force. And during
this process he evidently made up his mind
concerning the matter.</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Señores</i>, I am yours to command!” he
said. “My ship is yours, and her crew.
If I can do anything to help rid the seas
of such vermin, I am more than willing.
My schooner is a swift vessel in light winds
such as we find now. I’ll signal the other
boats and have you aboard as soon as is
possible.”</p>
<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_40"></a>[40]</span></p>
<p>“You will not fail to profit by it,” Don
Audre Ruiz told him.</p>
<p>“I am not doing it with the expectation
of profit,” the captain declared. “I detest
thieves, and I admire honest men! I have
many friends in Reina de Los Angeles, some
of whom probably have suffered at the
hands of these pirates. And, above all, I
did admire the exploits of this Señor Zorro,
as Don Diego was called. It will be a
pleasure, <i lang="es">señores</i>, to aid you in this.”</p>
<p>He called to his men, and they signaled
to the ship with their torches. Out of the
darkness and across the tumbling sea came
more boats from the schooner. The <i lang="es">caballeros</i>
turned their horses adrift, knowing
that they would be picked up and returned,
made certain that they had daggers and
swords handy, and got quickly into the
boats and put out to the ship.</p>
<p>Sergeant Gonzales and Fray Felipe, by
accident, were placed in the same craft,
sitting side by side on one of the wide
thwarts. Sergeant Gonzales observed the
<i lang="es">fray</i> carefully from the corners of his eyes.
The sergeant wished to talk, having kept
silent for some minutes, and the <i lang="es">fray</i> was
the nearest man he knew.</p>
<p>“Never did I think to join hands with
you in an enterprise, <i lang="es">fray</i>!” the sergeant
said, puffing out his cheeks. “If I am not
badly mistaken, you are the gowned one
who stopped me in the plaza on a certain
occasion, and made remarks about soldiers
drinking too much wine at the <i lang="es">posada</i>. Ha!
But pirates’ raids cause rescue parties, and
rescue parties cause strange comrades!”</p>
<p>“I am appreciating the fact,” Fray Felipe
replied quietly and with a smile.</p>
<p>“So they stole your sacred goblet, did
they?” Sergeant Gonzales said smoothly.
“<i lang="es">Fray</i>, when I have rescued the <i lang="es">señorita</i>,
aided Don Diego to escape, and annihilated
the pirates with my blade, then will I regain
your goblet for you! Steal church
goblets and brides, eh? Ha! Meal mush
and goat’s milk!”</p>
<p>“If your sword arm is half as strong as
your tongue, <i lang="es">señor</i>,” Fray Felipe rebuked
him gently, “then the pirates are as good
as dead already!”</p>
<p>Sergeant Gonzales whirled upon him.</p>
<p>“Ha! Stinging words from a gentle
<i lang="es">fray</i>!” he gasped. “Is it possible for me
to get insulted where and when I can wipe
out the insult with a thrust? A <i lang="es">caballero</i>
insults me and then refuses to fight because
of the noble blood in his veins and
the poor swill in mine! A <i lang="es">fray</i> insults me—and
I cannot fight a man who wears a
gown! Meal mush and goat’s milk! But
wait until we meet up with these pirates!
Let a pirate but insult me, and—ha! My
blade shall be bathed in blood!”</p>
<p>Sergeant Gonzales turned away abruptly
to nurse his wrath, and Fray Felipe smiled
and his eyes twinkled. He waited a moment,
then touched the sergeant on the
shoulder.</p>
<p>“Soldiers and <i lang="es">frailes</i> alike are needed in
the world,” Fray Felipe said. “There are
times when a hardy soldier should be gentle—and
even there are times when a <i lang="es">fray</i>
should fight. Let us be friends!”</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Fray</i>,” Sergeant Gonzales declared,
“you are a noble fellow, after all! I forgive
you for what you said about drinking
wine. When the muss commences, <i lang="es">fray</i>, get
you behind me. My sword shall shield
you, <i lang="es">fray</i>!”</p>
<p>“I thank you,” Fray Felipe said. “And
I shall shield you in turn with my prayers.”</p>
<p>“Prayers may have power,” Sergeant
Gonzales told him, “but when it comes to
fighting pirates give me my trusty blade!
<i lang="es">Fray</i>, a pirate has not sense enough to
know when a prayer is directed against
him!”</p>
<p>Soon they came alongside the schooner
and mounted to the deck by the light of
torches. The boats were swung aboard,
and the captain and Don Audre Ruiz held
a long conference. Then there came a
volley of orders, the anchor came up and
the sails filled, and the schooner crept off
the shore and away from the land through
the black night.</p>
<p>Straight out to sea they went, gathering
headway, and in time a faint streak of
light showed across the land and the dawn
came. <i lang="es">Caballeros</i> and crew strained their
eyes and swept the sea in every direction.
And finally the sharp eyes of one of the
men aloft discovered a sail.</p>
<p>The course of the trading schooner was
changed, and the chase began. Nearer<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_41"></a>[41]</span>
their quarry they crept as the sun came
up and bathed the sea and the land, glistening
through the haze. Glasses were leveled
at the distant craft.</p>
<p>“She is the pirate!” the schooner’s captain
declared. “Her flag of iniquity flies
from her mast!”</p>
<p>He bellowed another volley of orders to
his crew, and they crowded on all sail.
They rushed about the schooner, preparing
her for the battle. The eager <i lang="es">caballeros</i>
looked to their blades, the crew to their
cutlasses.</p>
<p>“If Zorro is aboard that craft he should
know that his friends are near at hand for
the rescue,” Don Audre said.</p>
<p>And then it was that they got out a sail
and painted a gigantic Z upon it, and sent
it aloft. It was their banner of battle, a
flag of war that betokened their allegiance
to a man and a cause.</p>
<p>“Courage and swift work does it!” the
schooner’s captain told Don Audre. “We
are greatly outnumbered. But my crew
has had dealings with pirates before, hence
each man will fight with the strength of
five. And you and your friends, Don Audre,
have good reason for fighting like
fiends.”</p>
<p>“We are prepared to do it,” Don Audre
replied. “Think you that we can overhaul
the pirate?”</p>
<p>“It is but a question of time,” the captain
declared. “The pirate sails prettily,
but her bottom is foul. I can tell that
much at this distance. Pirates are too lazy
to keep a ship in perfect shape. And this
little schooner of mine is a swift craft and
in prime condition.”</p>
<p>They gained steadily, and meanwhile they
watched the distant pirate ship continually.
They saw that there was some sort of a
tumult on board. Don Audre Ruiz, standing
at the rail near the bow, with a glass
glued to his eye, watched carefully.</p>
<p>“It is probable that Señor Zorro is fighting
the entire pirate company,” he announced.
“I can see men running about
the rigging. Let us pray that we may be
in time.”</p>
<p>Sergeant Gonzales, standing near him,
uttered an oath that the presence of Fray
Felipe did not keep back.</p>
<p>“Meal mush and goat’s milk!” he exclaimed.
“Let us crowd on more sail and
have at these pirates!” He swept his
blade from its scabbard. “That for a pirate!”
he shrieked, thrusting about him in
a rage. “This for a pirate! Ha!”</p>
<p>“Save your breath and your strength,”
Don Audre advised him. “You may have
need of them both soon.”</p>
<p>“Did you hear that, <i lang="es">fray</i>?” Sergeant
Gonzales demanded, whirling upon old
Felipe. “More insults, and I cannot avenge
them! A <i lang="es">caballero</i> insults me and will not
fight, and I cannot fight a <i lang="es">fray</i>! By the
time we clash with these pirates I shall be
in a fine rage, and work it off on their
worthless bodies. Ha!”</p>
<p>Don Audre Ruiz gave a gasp and called
some of the <i lang="es">caballeros</i> to his side.</p>
<p>“Look!” he directed. “They are making
some poor devil walk the plank! By
the saints, ’tis Zorro!”</p>
<p>“Zorro!” the others cried.</p>
<p>“Look! And the little <i lang="es">señorita</i> is standing
at the rail, forced to watch!”</p>
<p>There was a moment of horrified silence.
The face of Don Audre Ruiz was white as
he contemplated the fate of his friend. The
<i lang="es">caballeros</i> said not a word, but those who
had glasses watched, and the others strained
their eyes in an effort to see.</p>
<p>And then Don Audre Ruiz gave a low
cry of horror and turned quickly away,
as though he could endure the sight no
longer.</p>
<p>What he had seen had been enough.
There were traces of tears in his eyes, and
his voice choked.</p>
<p>“He is gone!” Don Audre said. “Don
Diego, my friend! We can only avenge
him now!”</p>
<p>“Gone!” Sergeant Gonzales cried, sudden
tears in his eyes, too. He brushed
them away roughly and blinked. “Don
Diego gone? Then, by the saints, will my
blade be thrust as it never has been thrust
before! Now, by the saints—”</p>
<p>His vow ended in a choke of emotion,
and he turned quickly away. Don Audre,
his eyes stinging, his lips set in a thin,
straight line, turned to Fray Felipe.</p>
<p>“Say your prayers for him,” he directed.
“And pray, also, that we will know<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_42"></a>[42]</span>
how to avenge him when we come alongside!
<i lang="es">Dios!</i> Give strength to my arm!”</p>
<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
<div class="chapter">
<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XIV">CHAPTER XIV.<br>
<small>OUT OF THE DEPTHS.</small></h2>
</div>
<p class="cap">Smiling in the face of death, Señor
Zorro yet battled to keep from showing
his genuine emotions, because of
the presence of the <i lang="es">señorita</i>. But in that
awful moment when he stood upon the
plank, looking first at the evil faces of Barbados
and Sanchez, and then at the agonized
countenance of Señorita Lolita Pulido,
he knew what torture meant.</p>
<p>It was not that Señor Zorro was afraid
of death in itself—a thing that must come
to every human being in the end. But his
agony came from a knowledge of what he
would leave behind when he took the plunge
into the sea.</p>
<p>The woman he had hoped to make his
bride, his friends, his father, his estate—he
was leaving them all for the Great Unknown.
And he was young, and had not
lived his fill of life. Besides, he was leaving
the <i lang="es">señorita</i> in grave danger. He could
only hope that his friends in the vessel behind
would be able to be of service to her,
and that they would know how to avenge
him.</p>
<p>Barbados gave his last mocking laugh,
and Señor Zorro felt the plank tipping.
He felt himself losing his balance. The
heavy weight on his wrists was almost bending
him backward. He knew how swiftly it
would carry him down into the depths of
the sea. Then would come a brief and useless
struggle, he supposed, a moment of
horror—and the end!</p>
<p>His eyes met those of the <i lang="es">señorita</i> yet
again. And then it seemed that everything
gave way beneath him and he shot downward.</p>
<p>There came a splash of water as he
struck the surface—he felt its sudden chill—and
then the waves closed over his head.
He was a famous swimmer, but no man
can swim with a heavy bar of metal tied
to his wrists, and those wrists lashed behind
his back.</p>
<p>Mechanically Señor Zorro protected
himself as he struck the water, as though
for a deep dive. He drew air into his
lungs until it seemed that they would burst.
He kicked in vain against the down-pulling
power of the heavy weight. Down and
down he went into the depths until the
light from the surface faded and he found
himself in darkness.</p>
<p>Señor Zorro prayed and worked at the
same instant. He jerked his wrists from
side to side behind his back, trying to
force them apart. He expelled a tiny bit
of air now and then as he descended, but
retained it as much as possible.</p>
<p>Often he had played at remaining as
long as possible beneath water, but it is
one thing to do so when a man has the
knowledge that he can spring to the surface
at any time, and quite another when he has
reason to believe that he never will reach
the surface again at all.</p>
<p>Yet he continued to struggle as he shot
downward. Red flashes were before his
eyes now, and a multitude of faces and
scenes seemed to flit before him.</p>
<p>In that awful instant he relived half his
life.</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Dios!</i>” he thought. “If this be
death—”</p>
<p>Another tug he gave at his wrists. The
man who had lashed the heavy weight there
had not done his work well. Perhaps he
was too busy watching Barbados and fearing
him. Perhaps he had held a sneaking
admiration for this Señor Zorro, who had
offered battle to an entire ship’s company.
However, the rope that held the weight
gave a trifle.</p>
<p>Señor Zorro, in his agony, realized that.
He tugged again, and then pressed his
palms close together and drew in his
wrists as much as possible. The heavy
weight, dragging downward, pulled the
loose loop over the wrists and hands. Zorro
felt an immediate relief. He realized what
had happened. And then he began his
battle to reach the surface. The weight
was gone, but his wrists were still lashed
together behind his back.</p>
<p>He kicked and struggled and shot upward.
He expelled more of the precious air
his lungs retained. His chest was burning,
his ears were ringing, he was almost unconscious<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_43"></a>[43]</span>
because of the pressure of the
water he had been forced to endure.</p>
<p>He saw a glimmer of light, but knew
that the surface was yet far away. And
it occurred to him that even the surface
did not mean life. For his wrists were yet
bound behind him, and he was miles from
the shore.</p>
<p>On he went, up and up, struggling and
fighting. He jerked at his wrists until they
were raw and bleeding, but to no avail.
Those who had lashed his wrists had done
better than the one who had fastened the
weight to them.</p>
<p>And finally he gave a last struggle, a
last kick, and felt the blessed air striking
upon his face.</p>
<p>He fought to get into the proper position
for resting as much as he could. He
kept afloat, and he drew in great gasps of
air, and finally reduced his breathing to
normal. And then, as he rose on the crest
of a wave, he looked around as well as he
could.</p>
<p>The pirate ship was some distance away,
sailing slowly before a gentle breeze. Señor
Zorro found himself floating in her wake.
He could see men rushing around her deck
and up into her rigging, but at the distance
could not guess their tasks.</p>
<p>The wave dropped him and lifted him
again, spinning him halfway around. Señor
Zorro gasped at the risk of swallowing a
portion of salt water. Bearing down upon
him was the other craft, the one with the
gigantic Z up on the sail. Zorro saw that he
was directly in her path.</p>
<p>Not much hope burned in his breast, yet
the spirit of combat still lived. He would
not give up so long as there was the slightest
chance. He would fight—fight—until,
exhausted, he sank for the last time toward
the bottom of the sea.</p>
<p>Those on the approaching ship did not
see him, for they were watching the pirate
craft and preparing for the battle that was
to come.</p>
<p>He hailed those on board, but his voice
was drowned by the roar of the water
against the schooner’s bows. He saw that
she would strike him, and kicked frantically
to work himself to one side of the track
she was following. Another glance ahead
at the pirate craft convinced him that the
schooner would not change her course.</p>
<p>Once more he tugged at his bonds, to
no avail. He felt himself drawn in toward
the schooner’s bows, and fought against the
pull of the water helplessly. He was picked
up, hurled forward, whirled around. Had
he saved himself from the depths, he wondered,
to be crushed senseless by the bow
of the craft that carried his friends? Then
she was upon him. He rose with the crest
of a wave and was hurled at the bow.</p>
<p>He saw an anchor chain that was loosely
looped and a dragging line. If he could
but catch one of those and make his way
to the deck, there might be some chance.
Once more the sea whirled him and cast
him forward. He came against the swinging
loop of anchor chain with a crash,
grasped it, was lifted and dropped, but
held on!</p>
<p>For a moment he rested, panting, realizing
how precarious was his position. He
threw one leg around the swinging chain.
How to reach the bowsprit he could not
fathom. Those above would pay no attention
to him, and could not hear him if
he hailed. And to climb that swinging loop
of chain would be a task for an athlete with
his hands unbound.</p>
<p>The bow of the ship dipped, and Señor
Zorro felt himself soused beneath the water
for an instant. He gripped the chain with
his hands and his leg and fought to maintain
his position. His arms were aching,
and the chain had cut through his clothing
already and was chafing at his leg. Once
more the bow dipped, and Zorro slipped a
few feet along the chain, unable to stop
his descent.</p>
<p>He gripped with his leg again. His hands
came to a stop, and he realized that the
rope that bound them had found an obstruction.
Zorro worked slowly and carefully
with his fingers, even as he held on.
One of the links of the chain, he found,
was imperfect, had cracked, and presented
on one side a jagged edge.</p>
<p>Hope sang in his breast once more. But
he knew that he would have to work carefully.
He did not dare release his hold
entirely, for a sudden dip of the bow and
the quick wash of the water would be<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_44"></a>[44]</span>
enough to sweep him from the chain. But
he sawed back and forth as well as he
could, pulling the rope across the rough
edge of the chain link.</p>
<p>He glanced ahead. The ships were not
far apart now, and the schooner swung a
bit to starboard, so as to bear down upon
the pirate craft from a more advantageous
angle. Zorro worked frantically, and after
a time he felt the rope give. His wrists
were raw and paining. His leg was bleeding
already. There were pains in his head,
and his vision was imperfect, but hope sang
within him once more.</p>
<p>He sawed and sawed, and once more he
glanced ahead. It would not be long now
before the ships clashed. He wanted to be
up on the deck, normal breath in his nostrils
and the sword of Zorro in his hand,
to aid his friends, to fight his way to the
deck of the pirate craft and to the <i lang="es">señorita’s</i>
side.</p>
<p>The rope gave again. Señor Zorro was
forced to rest for a moment, leaning back
on the chain. A wave swept him to one
side, and he thought for an instant that
he was gone. But he regained his balance
and continued his sawing.</p>
<p>And presently he knew that he was free.
The rope dangled from one wrist only. He
gave an exclamation of delight and thanks,
gripped the chain, and turned over. He
regarded his bleeding wrists, hesitated a
moment, gathered breath and courage, and
commenced the perilous ascent of the
chain.</p>
<p>It was a painful and difficult task. Señor
Zorro set his teeth into his lower lip and
struggled upward foot by foot. The swinging
chain, slippery, from the sea, threatened
to pitch him back into the water.
Every few feet he was obliged to stop, to
gasp for breath and close his eyes for a
moment because the pain in his wrists and
leg made him weak with nausea.</p>
<p>He came within a short distance of the
vessel, slipped back, and forced his way
upward again. And finally he grasped with
one hand the chain port and held on. His
hope had increased now. Nothing would
make him loose his hold, he told himself.</p>
<p>A moment he rested, then forced his way
upward again. The schooner was very
close to the pirate ship now. On the deck
above him Señor Zorro could hear Don
Audre Ruiz shrieking instructions to the
<i lang="es">caballeros</i> and the captain shouting to his
crew.</p>
<p>He managed to get up to the butt of the
bowsprit, and there, safe from the sea, he
rested for a moment again. The two ships
would crash together in a minute or so, he
saw. He raised his head weakly, and took
a deep breath, and then struggled to his
feet, ready to spring down to the deck.</p>
<p>His hand went down to whip the sword
of Zorro from its scabbard. The schooner
yawed suddenly as her helmsman fought
to get a position of advantage. The big
jib swung back, whipped by the angry
wind.</p>
<p>Señor Zorro was looking down at the
deck, and he did not see his danger. Don
Audre Ruiz turned at the instant, shrieked,
and rubbed his eyes.</p>
<p>“Zorro!” he cried.</p>
<p>He was seen from the deck of the pirate
craft, too.</p>
<p>Barbados and Sanchez caught sight of
him. Sanchez crossed himself quickly, and
the face of Barbados turned white.</p>
<p>And then the jib cracked against Señor
Zorro’s body, knocked him from his precarious
perch, and hurled him once more
into the sea!</p>
<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
<div class="chapter">
<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XV">CHAPTER XV.<br>
<small>A SHOW OF GRATITUDE.</small></h2>
</div>
<p class="cap">The schooner sailed on, and came
against the pirate ship with a crash.
But here was a battle unlike the
usual one when honest men met pirates.
As a usual thing, the pirates could be expected
to board and slay without mercy, to
loot, and then either to destroy the ill-fated
vessel or take it away a prize. And
the honest men could be expected only to
offer what defense they could. But here
was a case where the honest men were
more than willing to carry the fight to the
pirates. For Don Audre Ruiz and his
<i lang="es">caballero</i> friends had seen Señor Zorro walk
the plank, and also they fought to rescue a
lady.</p>
<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_45"></a>[45]</span></p>
<p>But both forces found themselves disconcerted
at the outset. Don Audre Ruiz,
glancing toward the bow of the schooner,
was sure that he saw Señor Zorro standing
there against a background of sky and
water, his figure dripping. He rubbed his
eyes and looked again—and Señor Zorro
was gone!</p>
<p>“’Tis the spirit of Zorro come to aid us!”
Don Audre cried. “I saw him for a moment,
waving his hand at me and reaching
for his blade! The spirit of Zorro fights
with us!”</p>
<p>The <i lang="es">caballeros</i> were not certain what he
meant, but they cheered his words and
rushed toward the rail, their gleaming
blades ready to be dyed a crimson. Fray
Felipe knelt beside the mast in prayer. But
Sergeant Gonzales, standing with his feet
wide apart and his sword in his hand,
stared foolishly toward the bow and gasped
his astonishment and fear.</p>
<p>“I saw him!” the sergeant shrieked. “I
saw Don Diego, my friend! By the
saints—”</p>
<p>The ships crashed together. But the pirates
did not rush as was their custom. For
fear had clutched at their superstitious natures,
even as it had clutched at Barbados
and Sanchez, his evil lieutenant. Sanchez
had shrieked the news, but Barbados did
not heed his intelligence. Barbados himself
had seen Señor Zorro standing against
the sky. And how may a man do that
when he has been sent to the bottom of
the sea with a heavy weight fastened to
him?</p>
<p>“Fiends of hell!” Barbados screeched.
“This Zorro must be a demon!”</p>
<p>“We cannot fight against ghosts!” Sanchez
cried. “We are lost before we commence.”</p>
<p>Barbados seemed to come to himself and
shake off his terror in part. He instantly
was eager to win free from the trading
schooner. He did not fear the <i lang="es">caballeros</i>,
who were greatly outnumbered now, but he
did fear the supernatural. He forgot the
chance for murder and loot, and wanted
only to get away.</p>
<p>Barbados shrieked his commands, and
the half-stupefied pirates ran to execute
them. The pirate craft swung away from
the schooner, so that men could not spring
from one ship to the other. There were
less than half a dozen clashes of blades;
less than half a dozen minor wounds.</p>
<p>Slowly the pirate craft fell away. The
helmsman of the schooner worked frantically
to bring his ship back into the wind.
The <i lang="es">caballeros</i> and the members of the
schooner’s crew waited, eager for the two
ships to come together again, that they
might engage the pirates and fight to victory.</p>
<p>Barbados howled more commands. From
the pirate ship came a rain of fire balls,
and flaming torches were hurled. It was
a favorite pirate trick, and the men knew
what their commander wanted. Clouds of
pungent smoke rolled across the deck of the
schooner.</p>
<p>The <i lang="es">caballeros</i> gasped and fought to get
to the clean, pure air. Their nostrils and
throats were raw, their eyes stinging.</p>
<p>Through the dense smoke they could see
little. The pirate ship gradually was
lengthening the distance between her and
the trading schooner. The pirates’ work
had been done.</p>
<p>For the sails of the schooner were
wrapped in flames, and bits of them fell,
burning, to the deck below. Flames licked
at the tarred rigging and spread out on the
spars.</p>
<p>“She’s making away!” Don Audre Ruiz
cried. “She’s running from us!”</p>
<p>There seemed to be no question about it
now. The pirates were hurrying away
without giving battle. And the raging
<i lang="es">caballeros</i> wanted battle, and they remembered
that the <i lang="es">señorita</i> was yet on the pirate
craft.</p>
<p>The captain was howling to his crew,
and the men were fighting the raging
flames. The <i lang="es">caballeros</i>, forgetting their
silks and satins and plumes, ran to help.
Here was a foe more formidable than pirates
of the open sea.</p>
<p>The schooner drifted with the water and
the wind in the wake of the pirate ship.
The smoke drifted away, and finally the
fire was extinguished. Quick inventory
was taken of the damage.</p>
<p>It did not amount to so very much, since
the rigging had not been burned to a great<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_46"></a>[46]</span>
extent. But the sails were gone, for the
greater part, and pursuit for the moment
at an end.</p>
<p>Again the captain shouted his commands,
and as his men hurried to carry
them out he turned to Don Audre.</p>
<p>“I have other sails, <i lang="es">señor</i>,” he explained.
“They will be in place as rapidly as my
men can get them there. The craft of ill-omen
cannot get far before we are upon her
heels again. She is running out to sea once
more. She would lose sight of us before
she turns toward the accursed spot where
they have their land rendezvous. Their
behavior astounds me; they acted as if
they had seen a ghost!”</p>
<p>“And so did I!” Don Audre declared.
“I’ll swear that, for an instant, I saw Señor
Zorro standing at the butt of the bowsprit—and
then he was gone!”</p>
<p>“By the saints, I saw him myself!” Sergeant
Gonzales shouted. “He was here to
aid us! Man or spirit, I know not—but
he was here! And now he has disappeared!”</p>
<p>Fray Felipe came toward them. “It
cannot be that he is alive and aboard,” he
told them, “else he would discover himself
to us at once. Perhaps it was but a strong
hope that caused you to imagine the sight.”</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Fray</i>, I swore friendship with you, but
I’ll break the compact if you say such a
thing again!” Sergeant Gonzales declared.
“I saw him, I say! Man or spirit, I know
not—but I saw him!”</p>
<p>The <i lang="es">caballeros</i> were busy helping the
crew with the new sails. One by one they
were sheeted home, and presently the
schooner gathered headway once more. On
it sailed, in the wake of the pirate craft,
vengeance only delayed.</p>
<p>Far behind, Señor Zorro watched her
grow smaller and smaller, and the flare of
hope that had been in his heart dwindled
to a mere spark again.</p>
<p>His unexpected plunge into the sea before
he had recovered from the first ordeal had
unnerved him for the moment. He had
come to the surface to find that the schooner
had drifted away. Before he could handle
himself to advantage she was at some
distance, and the pirate craft was drawing
away from the ship of smoke and flame.</p>
<p>There was a strong tide running, and
Señor Zorro was too weak to fight against
it. Near him there drifted a spar that had
been torn away when the ships had crashed
together. He struggled through the swirling
water and managed to reach it, and
drew himself upon it to sprawl there almost
breathless, gasping, exhausted. He was
too weak to signal his friends, and he
doubted whether they would see him did he
do so.</p>
<p>Shouting would be a waste of breath, he
knew; and so, stretched across the spar, he
fought to keep his consciousness, closing his
eyes and forcing himself to breathe normally.
When some strength had returned
to him he sat upright and looked across
the sea. The pirate craft was in the distance.
The schooner, the fires extinguished,
some of her sails in place, was drawing
away from him rapidly. Señor Zorro gave
thanks for that—his friends were not deserting
the <i lang="es">señorita</i>.</p>
<p>He began to take stock of his predicament.
Far away he could see a dirty streak
on the horizon, and he knew it for the land
he would have to reach.</p>
<p>He was in sore condition for the hazardous
journey. His wrists were raw and
bleeding; his leg pained him. He scarcely
could see because of the glare of the sun
on the water. Thirst tortured him; hunger
added to the torture.</p>
<p>Señor Zorro sat up on the spar and
smiled a sorry smile. He made sure that
his blade still remained at his side.</p>
<p>“Sword of Zorro, we are in a sorry
state!” he declared. “This is an emergency
such as never have we faced before.
But we must win through!”</p>
<p>A moment he hesitated, and then, as
though to give courage to himself he raised
his voice again, this time in his song:</p>
<div class="poetry">
<div class="stanza">
<div class="verse indent0">“<i lang="es">Atención!</i> A <i lang="es">caballero’s</i> near—”</div>
</div>
</div>
<p>But his voice broke, and he told himself
that he was a fool to attempt to sing out
there in the wild waste of waters, clinging
to a spar. Far better to concern himself
about getting to the land.</p>
<p>Señor Zorro rested a short time longer,
watching the disappearing ships. And
turning, he looked at the distant land.</p>
<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_47"></a>[47]</span></p>
<p>“Sword of Zorro, we travel toward the
east!” he announced. “If ever I touch
dry land again, there I remain for some
time to come. This seafaring is a sorry
business!”</p>
<p>But he said that merely to amuse himself,
of course. He would fare forth, to
sea again at any time to rescue the Señorita
Lolita, and well he knew it. He only hoped
that Don Audre Ruiz and the others would
be of service to her.</p>
<p>He adjusted himself as well as he could,
and started to swim, clinging to the spar.
That rendered his progress slow, but he did
not dare cast it aside, for he knew that he
never would reach the distant land. For a
time he swam, and then he floated on the
spar and rested, and then urged himself to
swim again. On and on through the hours,
while the sun traveled across the heavens,
he forced the spar through the water.</p>
<p>It seemed to him that he was nearing
the land, but he could not be sure. There
might be a treacherous current in these
waters, against which he was expending his
strength in vain. But he did not stop.</p>
<p>His mind was a maelstrom, his muscles
acted mechanically. Now and then pains
shot up his legs and along his back, and
often he swam for minutes at a time with
his eyes closed. He watched the sun begin
its descent toward the sea, and yet he
swam.</p>
<p>At times songs rang through his brain,
at other times he caught himself mouthing
meaningless phrases. And then he thought
of the Señorita Lolita, and swam on.</p>
<p>Twilight came. The sun disappeared.
There was a period of darkness, and then
the surface of the sea was touched with the
glory of the moon. Señor Zorro could not
see the land now, but he knew in which
direction it lay, and swam on, a few minutes
at a time.</p>
<p>And thus passed the night. But before
the dark space just before the dawn, Señor
Zorro was laughing raucously, out of his
wits. Some god of good fortune kept him
swimming in the proper direction. And
when the sun appeared again, it brought
a new agony to his eyes, new tortures of
thirst. He swallowed salt water and spat
it out, and found that it had made him ill.
For a time he was stretched across the
spar, weak, sick, on the verge of delirium.</p>
<p>He fancied that a myriad of pirate vessels
were about him, bearing down upon
him. He saw the pretty, laughing face of
the Señorita Lolita in the mist that hung
above the sea. He laughed back at her,
and once again his cracked voice rose in a
song:</p>
<div class="poetry">
<div class="stanza">
<div class="verse indent0">“<i lang="es">Atención!</i> A <i lang="es">caballero’s</i> near—”</div>
</div>
</div>
<p>He felt himself grow suddenly weak. It
seemed to him that the land was near at
last, but he could not be sure. He drew
himself upon the spar, sprawling across it.</p>
<p>“Must—rest—” Señor Zorro gasped.</p>
<p>And with the gasp he passed into unconsciousness.</p>
<p>Back to earth he struggled as through a
land of hideous dreams. He tossed and
groaned and tried to open his eyes, but felt
that he could not. There seemed to be a
roaring in his ears that was not of the sea.
And finally it came to him that it was a
human voice, attempting to beat through
his unconsciousness and bring him to an
understanding of things.</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Señor! Señor—</i>” the voice said.</p>
<p>Señor Zorro struggled yet again, groaned
once more, and opened his eyes. But not
into the burning glare of the open sea! He
was in cool shade, he found, and from a
distance came the hissing of the surf. He
blinked his eyes rapidly, felt something at
his lips, and drank deeply of pure, cold
water.</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Señor!</i>” There was the voice again.
“For the love of the saints, <i lang="es">señor</i>, come
back to life!”</p>
<p>Full consciousness returned to him in a
breath. He opened his eyes wider and
struggled to sit up. Then he saw that he
was in some sort of a poor hut, and that a
native was beside him, with an arm beneath
his shoulders.</p>
<p>“Ha!” Señor Zorro gasped.</p>
<p>“Thank the saints, <i lang="es">señor</i>!” the native
cried.</p>
<p>Señor Zorro, with the help of the native,
sat up. He had been stretched on a sort
of couch, he found. He glanced around
the interior of the poor hut, through the
open door at the sparkling sea.</p>
<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_48"></a>[48]</span></p>
<p>“What—” he began.</p>
<p>“I found you yesterday, <i lang="es">señor</i>, far out
to sea, riding on a piece of wreckage,” the
native said. “You had lost your wits.
You fought me when I tried to take you
into my boat, and tried to draw blade
against me. Then you went unconscious,
and I had my way with you.”</p>
<p>“And—and then?” Señor Zorro gasped.</p>
<p>“Why, <i lang="es">señor</i>, I fetched you here!” the
native explained. “And throughout the
night you raved, and so far to-day. The
sun has but two more hours to live.”</p>
<p>“More water!” Zorro commanded.</p>
<p>The native gave it him. He drank deeply,
stood up, walked to the door and looked
out. There was no other habitation as far
as he could see.</p>
<p>“Where is this?” Zorro asked.</p>
<p>“On the coast, <i lang="es">señor</i>, far to the south
of Reina de Los Angeles. I am but a poor
neophyte who eats what fish he can catch.
Once I worked on a <i lang="es">hacienda</i>, <i lang="es">señor</i>, but
the governor took all for taxes.”</p>
<p>“I know,” Señor Zorro told him.</p>
<p>“And so I got me a boat and came down
the coast and built this poor house. And
here I live alone and am happy. There
are times when I carry fish to the stronghold
of the pirates, and trade them for
some other things—”</p>
<p>“Ha!” Zorro cried. “The stronghold
of the pirates? Where is that?”</p>
<p>“Less than ten miles down the coast,
<i lang="es">señor</i>, in a little bay. There are huts, and
women and children, and every now and
then the pirate ship puts in after a raid.
They are safe there, <i lang="es">señor</i>, though they
are within eight miles of the <i lang="es">presidio</i> of
San Diego de Alcála.”</p>
<p>“By the saints!” Zorro swore. “And
how does it come that you did not rob me
of my sword and the few things of value
upon me, and toss me into the sea?”</p>
<p>The native looked at him frankly.
“Pardon, <i lang="es">señor</i>,” he said, “but I never
would do such a thing as that. For I knew
you instantly, <i lang="es">señor</i>. You are Señor Zorro,
who rode up and down El Camino Real and
avenged the wrongs of the natives and
<i lang="es">frailes</i>. You once punished a soldier who
beat my father. If it is necessary, <i lang="es">señor</i>,
I am ready to die that you may live.”</p>
<p>“And now—”</p>
<p>“Now,” the native interrupted, “it
would be best for the <i lang="es">señor</i> to sit and rest,
while I prepare some hot food. Then
whatever he commands shall be done.”</p>
<p>“There was a pirate ship in the offing,
and another,” Zorro insinuated.</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Sí, señor!</i> The pirate ship ran from
the other, going out to sea. But a short
time ago I saw her pass, going toward the
bay where the pirates have their headquarters.
And the other ship passed but a short
time ago, pursuing.”</p>
<p>“By the saints!” Zorro cried. “I would
go to this pirates’ den of which you speak,
and as speedily as possible.”</p>
<p>“The <i lang="es">señor</i> must eat first, so that he
will have strength,” the native said, firmly.
“Then I will guide the <i lang="es">señor</i> to the spot.
It is ten miles, and the <i lang="es">señor</i> is a weak
man.”</p>
<p>“I will eat the food gladly,” Zorro replied.
“Do you prepare it as speedily as
possible. There shall be an ample reward.”</p>
<p>“It is reward enough that I have been
able to save the <i lang="es">señor’s</i> life,” the native answered.
“The friends of Señor Zorro do
not forget what he did for them!”</p>
<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
<div class="chapter">
<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XVI">CHAPTER XVI.<br>
<small>SINGING CABALLEROS.</small></h2>
</div>
<p class="cap">Barbados was like a maniac after the
pirate craft swung away from the
trading schooner. He shrieked at his
men to make sail, and they needed but little
urging. The fear of the supernatural
was upon them, superstition ruled their
minds.</p>
<p>Gradually they crept away from the
schooner, but Barbados continued to watch
her closely. He saw the new sails going
aloft, and realized that there would be a
pursuit. So he turned out to sea and began
running for it.</p>
<p>He did not attempt to explain things to
himself. He knew that his men outnumbered
those on the schooner, and he felt
reasonably sure that, in an engagement,
the pirate crew would emerge victorious.
Yet something seemed to tell him that the<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_49"></a>[49]</span>
proper thing was to avoid the engagement
if possible.</p>
<p>“We will lose that sorry craft in the
wide waters,” he told Sanchez, “and then
we will turn and go to the rendezvous.
There we’ll unload and apportion the loot,
and care for the wench until the man comes
to claim her. If we are followed, we can
outfight the <i lang="es">caballeros</i> on land. The ghost
of a man drowned in the sea is powerless
on land, I have heard.”</p>
<p>“And, if they follow us ashore—” Sanchez
questioned.</p>
<p>“Then we fight them, fool,” Barbados
said. “You are still shaking like a child!
A pirate—you? Ha! By my naked blade,
you are no better than a woman in this
business!”</p>
<p>“Men are men, but it is not in my mind
to fight with ghosts,” Sanchez told him.
“We are bedeviled for some reason!”</p>
<p>“Ha!” Barbados gasped. “That reminds
me!” He turned away and walked
the length of the deck, and finally came
across the man he sought, and drew him
aside. “You have the thing yet?” he
asked.</p>
<p>“The goblet? <i lang="es">Sí, señor!</i> If the captain
wishes it—”</p>
<p>“Do not even show it to me!” Barbados
commanded. “I would have you toss it
into the sea, save that such an act might
bring worse luck yet. So long as you retain
it, perhaps you draw all the ill fortune
to yourself. Spawn of hell, if ever you
come face to face with that old <i lang="es">fray</i>, in
flesh or in spirit, have a look to yourself!
For you have done an evil thing!”</p>
<p>Barbados passed on, and descended to
the cabin where Señorita Lolita had been
returned a prisoner.</p>
<p>She was as a woman stunned. She had
fainted when Señor Zorro had plunged into
the sea, and Sanchez had carried her below.
And when she regained consciousness
she remained on the bunk and groaned and
prayed by turns.</p>
<p>And now, when Barbados opened the
door, she sat up quickly, a look of agony
in her face. One thing she had done—picked
up from the floor of the cabin the
dagger that had belonged to the man Señor
Zorro had slain through the crack. She
had cleaned it, and thrust it in the bosom
of her dress, where it was out of sight, but
where she could reach it instantly.</p>
<p>Barbados looked at her for a moment,
and then spoke.</p>
<p>“In your right mind again, eh wench?”
he said. “We are running away from your
friends, and there can be no hope of rescue.
It would be proper for you to make the
best of it. The man for whom we have
stolen you perchance will be kind.”</p>
<p>“Foul beast and murderer!” the <i lang="es">señorita</i>
said.</p>
<p>“Ha!” Barbados gasped. “I have been
called worse things than that—things that
you do not know exists, wench! Think
you to hurt my tough hide with words?”</p>
<p>“Have you no manhood?” she asked.
“Is it an honor for a score of men to take
a girl captive? You struck down my father
and burned my home! You sent to his
death the man I love—”</p>
<p>“There are other men,” said Barbados,
“and other homes. And I did not strike
down your father—Sanchez did that.
From what he tells me, the blow was not
a fatal one.”</p>
<p>“You are the chief of murderers and
thieves, the one responsible,” she said.</p>
<p>“Words do not hurt my tough hide, I
have said. It were best for you to be
calm.”</p>
<p>“Calm?” The <i lang="es">señorita</i> crept from the
bunk, weak and staggering, her face white,
her lips trembling, a suspicion of tears in
her eyes. “Calm?” she repeated. “And
how can you expect me to be calm? What
is there in the future for me, save dishonor
or death? When the moment comes, it
will not take me long to choose!”</p>
<p>“Ha! When the moment comes, you
may change your mind!”</p>
<p>“He whom you sent to death in the sea
was worth ten score of you!” she cried,
stepping closer to him. “And each of his
friends who follow in that other ship are
worth ten score of you! Do you think that
you can escape them forever?”</p>
<p>“I can have them wiped from the face
of the earth!” Barbados replied.</p>
<p>“Escape them, possibly—but not me!”
she cried. “I have seen you kill the thing
I love! And so—”</p>
<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_50"></a>[50]</span></p>
<p>She clutched at her breast and drew
forth the dagger. She gave a cry of rage,
and struck out wildly. Barbados, caught
unaware, lurched quickly to one side, but
the blade struck his arm and tore away
flesh and skin and brought a gush of blood.</p>
<p>“By my naked blade—” he swore.</p>
<p>He whirled as she struck again and
missed, grasped her, and tore the dagger
from her hand. He tossed her back upon
the bunk, where she braced herself against
the wall, gasping, weeping, expecting that
now he would make an end of her.</p>
<p>But the pirate chief merely slipped the
dagger into his belt, glanced at his wounded
arm, swore again, and then stepped
back to the door.</p>
<p>“A wench with spirit, eh?” he said.
“Ha! I would not be this Captain Ramón
and have the taming of you! Glad
will I be when I turn you over to him! I
have battles enough on my hands without
fighting women! I’ll send a man soon
with food. Such a female warrior must
eat to conserve her strength!”</p>
<p>He laughed at her, mocked her, went
out and closed the door, and she heard the
heavy bar shot into place and the sounds
of his feet retreating. She collapsed on
the bunk and gave way to a tempest of
tears.</p>
<p>“Diego!” she breathed. “Diego, beloved!”</p>
<p>Barbados ascended to the deck, bathed
the wound in his arm, and said nothing
when Sanchez questioned him. Throughout
the day he gave his attention to the
sailing of the ship, but he could not shake
off the schooner which followed.</p>
<p>Then came the night, and once more
Barbados cursed the bright moon. For,
though his craft showed no lights, yet could
she be seen from the schooner. Back and
forth Barbados sailed, but always failing
to shake off the other ship. And when
there came the dark hour before dawn he
changed his course abruptly, and ran before
the breeze.</p>
<p>But when the dawn came there was the
schooner, a greater distance away, but still
in sight. And so Barbados put off to sea
again, for he wished, if it were possible, to
go to the land rendezvous without drawing
his foes there. Else he slew all of them,
news of the pirates’ headquarters would
leak out, and they would have to move.</p>
<p>He ran before the wind, he tacked, he
beat in toward the shore, out to sea, to the
north and the south and the west. Now
he gained, and now the schooner gained
upon him. He cursed and drove his men,
but they could accomplish nothing.</p>
<p>And finally he started running down the
coast, intent upon reaching the rendezvous.
If the men of the schooner dared follow
him to land, they would be annihilated, he
promised. Once or twice he felt like turning
and forming an attack, but thoughts of
the ghost of Señor Zorro deterred him.</p>
<p>“A sea ghost cannot fight on land!”
Barbados told himself. “On land I have
them at my mercy!”</p>
<p>The day started to die, and the pirate
craft rushed down the coast with the
schooner in close pursuit. It was almost
nightfall when Barbados and his men guided
the ship into the little bay. The schooner
was some miles behind.</p>
<p>The anchor dropped, the ship swung
broadside to the shore. From the land
came sounds of a tumult, and down into
the surf rushed men and women and children.
The pirates’ stronghold could be
seen back some distance from the water.</p>
<p>There was a wide expanse of beach, a
deep open space fringed with stubby trees
and brush. Hills landlocked the scene. A
score of huts dotted the edge of the flat.
Fires were burning on the shore, stock ran
wild among the habitations.</p>
<p>Overside went the boats, and the pirates
commenced handing down the loot. Shrieks
and calls came from the women and children
on the shore, from the men who had
been left behind as guards.</p>
<p>Barbados went ashore in the first boat,
and began issuing his commands. The
camp was to be put in a state for defense,
he explained. Guards were to be established
on the three land sides, and other
men would watch the sea. The ship was
warped closer to the shore, so that she
could be defended easily.</p>
<p>Just as the night descended, the trading
schooner sailed across the mouth of the
bay, and presently she returned, farther<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_51"></a>[51]</span>
out to sea. Barbados boarded the ship
again, and took the <i lang="es">señorita</i> from her cabin.
Sanchez lashed her wrists behind her.</p>
<p>“You go ashore, wench!” Barbados said.
“And there you are to be held until such
a time as this Captain Ramón comes to
claim you. Why he should want you is
more than I can explain to myself. You
are a pretty wench, it is true, but too much
of a spitfire!”</p>
<p>He watched her closely when she was in
the boat. And when they landed the pirates’
women and the ragged children
rushed forward to jeer at her as she passed
beside the flaming fire. Barbados took her
to a large adobe building, the best structure
in the camp. He opened the door and
thrust her inside.</p>
<p>A woman cooking over an open fire
whirled to look at him. She looked at the
<i lang="es">señorita</i>, too, and her eyes flamed.</p>
<p>“What is this?” she demanded, her fists
against her hips. “Is it a younger and
prettier woman?”</p>
<p>“It is, indeed, Inez,” Barbados laughed.
“She is a share of the loot!”</p>
<p>“Your share, eh? And you dare to
fetch her here?”</p>
<p>“Why not?” Barbados asked.</p>
<p>“To my face?” the woman screeched.
She was of middle age, a creature hideous
in a way. “So! It has come at last, has
it? I am to be tossed aside for a comely
wench you have stolen from some rich
<i lang="es">hacienda</i>!”</p>
<p>“Jealousy is a foolish thing,” Barbados
observed. “Think you, Inez, to hold my
love for life?”</p>
<p>“None other shall have it!” the woman
screeched. She flashed forward, her hand
raised to strike, her nails ready to tear into
the <i lang="es">señorita’s</i> fair face. But Barbados
seized her and tossed her roughly aside.</p>
<p>“Peace!” he cried. “I want none of the
wench! She is to be kept a prisoner until
claimed. A share of the loot she is, but
not my share. She was stolen for a great
man!”</p>
<p>“This is the truth?” the woman asked.</p>
<p>“Do I generally speak falsehood?” Barbados
thundered. “Enough! Put her in
the storeroom, and feed her well. Treat
her gently. She must be in prime condition
when she is claimed. We were followed
by a schooner upon which are <i lang="es">caballeros</i>
striving to rescue her. She must
not be rescued!”</p>
<p>The woman grinned horribly. She
opened the door of a room adjoining and
motioned for the <i lang="es">señorita</i> to enter. She
stepped aside, and Lolita Pulido, looking
straight ahead, her eyes fixed and glistening,
went into the storeroom without speaking,
her head held proudly.</p>
<p>Barbados hurried outside again. The
black night had descended, but soon the
moon was shining. Guards were sent into
the fringe of woods, and a watchman to the
summit of a hill in the rear. Men were
posted on the ship, men walked around the
huts, alert, ready to repel an attack.</p>
<p>But there came no attack during the
night. The trading schooner had run down
the coast and back, and then anchored two
miles north of the bay.</p>
<p>“I know the place,” the captain told
Don Audre Ruiz. “Once some years ago
I ran in there during a storm. Their camp
must be in the open, and there will be no
advantage in the attack. There can be no
surprise, of course.”</p>
<p>“What is your good advice?” Don Audre
asked.</p>
<p>“That you land here with your <i lang="es">caballeros</i>,
approach the camp and wait for the
dawn. I’ll land as many of my crew as
can be spared from the ship, and let them
circle the camp to attack from the other
side. There must be men enough held here
to get the schooner to sea for a run if the
pirate craft comes out at us.”</p>
<p>“That is agreed!” Don Audre said.</p>
<p>“But it will be a sorry business, Don
Audre! You will be outnumbered three to
one. And you may be sure that there are
men in the camp who were not on the pirate
ship. They may have a few pistols
they have captured from ships, but it will
be hand to hand work with blades. Three
to one, at least, Don Audre!”</p>
<p>Don Audre Ruiz drew himself up.
“Three beasts to one <i lang="es">caballero</i>,” he said.
“It is an equal affair. There can be no
hesitating, <i lang="es">señor</i>. Señorita Lolita Pulido is
held a captive by those beasts. And I am
not forgetting what happened to Don Diego,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_52"></a>[52]</span>
my friend! There is but one thing to
do—attack! At least, we can die!”</p>
<p>There was a short conference, and then
the boats began carrying the men to the
shore. The <i lang="es">caballeros</i> approached to within
a mile of the pirate camp and stopped
to rest, sending scouts on ahead. The men
of the crew circled to the other side.</p>
<p>Some of the <i lang="es">caballeros</i> slept, sprawled
on the sand. But Don Audre Ruiz sat beside
a tiny fire he had kindled, his knees
drawn up and nursing them with his hands.</p>
<p>“At least we can die, Diego!” he said,
softly. “And we can strive mightily before
we do that!”</p>
<p>The black hour came, and then the first
finger of the dawn. Don Audre arose and
stretched himself, and walked for a time up
and down the beach. The <i lang="es">caballeros</i> shook
off their sleep, bathed their faces at the
edge of the sea, exercised their muscles,
whipped out their blades and fanned the
air.</p>
<p>Sergeant Gonzales, who had snored
throughout the night, snorted as he bathed
his face and hands, and then strode down
to Don Audre and confronted him.</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Señor</i>, you are in command of this enterprise,”
the sergeant said. “There are
orders?”</p>
<p>“Only that every man is to do his best,”
Don Audre replied. “The <i lang="es">señorita</i> is to be
rescued if it is possible, and returned to
the schooner.”</p>
<p>“And the pirates are to be hanged?”</p>
<p>“Any that do not fall by our swords and
are captured.”</p>
<p>“Ha! It is a nuisance to hang a man!”
Gonzales declared: “We would have to go
to the ship for a rope. The blade is better!
Fray Felipe!”</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Señor?</i>” the fray questioned. He approached
them.</p>
<p>“You are yet my friend,” Gonzales said.
“If you get into the thick of it, stand you
behind me, that I may protect you. But a
battle is not a place for a <i lang="es">fray</i>. Stay you
behind, and say your prayers!”</p>
<p>“There is the matter of the goblet,”
Fray Felipe replied, softly.</p>
<p>“By the saints, I take it upon myself to
get the goblet for you, <i lang="es">fray</i>!”</p>
<p>“Do so, and I call you son!”</p>
<p>Sergeant Gonzales bared his head for an
instant. He looked at Fray Felipe as
though embarrassed, and then returned his
hat to his head and gulped. “I have been
an evil man in my time,” he said, “but I
trust that the saints will forget it for this
day at least. I would have added strength
to this good right arm of mine! Don Audre,
I am ready!”</p>
<p>Don Audre Ruiz led the way along the
shore. They crept nearer the camp of the
pirates, spread out fan fashion, and approached
boldly. They reached the crest
of a slope, and saw the camp spread before
them in the first rays of the morning sun.</p>
<p>The pirates seemed to be more numerous
than even Don Audre Ruiz had expected.
It looked to be a hopeless task, this attack.
But there was something to urge them on.</p>
<p>They stopped to look at one another. In
silks and satins and plumes they were, with
their jeweled swords at their sides. And
before them the stronghold, with the ragged,
dirty pirates there ready to give battle.</p>
<p>“If Señor Zorro were only here to lead
us!” Don Audre Ruiz said, with a sigh.
“But he is not—and let us remember why
he is not—and strike the harder because
of our remembrance! If you are ready—”</p>
<p>He whipped out his gleaming blade and
waved it above his head, and the <i lang="es">caballeros</i>
drew blades in turn, and answered him
with their cheers.</p>
<p>And so they advanced to the attack—slowly,
carefully, in a perfect line. And
Don Audre Ruiz, because he wanted to
give himself and the others added courage,
and because he felt that it was fitting, sang
lustily a song of old:</p>
<div class="poetry">
<div class="stanza">
<div class="verse indent0">“Singing <i lang="es">caballeros</i>, going forth to die!</div>
<div class="verse indent3">Laughing in the face of grinning Death!</div>
<div class="verse indent1">Facing task that’s hopeless, ready yet to try!</div>
<div class="verse indent3">Singing with the last of earthly breath!”</div>
</div>
</div>
<p>The <i lang="es">caballeros</i> took up the refrain and
sang it through to the end, their voices ringing
across the sea and the land. And, the
song at an end, they were grim and silent
again, intent upon the bloody business before
them. The pirates were preparing,
they could see. In a very few minutes the
clash would come.</p>
<p>And suddenly, from the distance, from<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_53"></a>[53]</span>
the slope between the two attacking forces,
came a solitary voice, also raised in song:</p>
<div class="poetry">
<div class="stanza">
<div class="verse indent0">“<i lang="es">Atención!</i> A <i lang="es">caballero’s</i> near—”</div>
</div>
</div>
<p>They glanced up, astounded. Running
down the slope toward them came a figure
they knew well. Don Audre Ruiz gave a
great cry of joy and thankfulness. The
<i lang="es">caballeros</i> cheered, and wept unashamed.
For well they knew the singer and the song.</p>
<p>“Zorro!” they cried. “Zorro!”</p>
<p>And so they rushed to the attack!</p>
<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
<div class="chapter">
<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_54"></a>[54]</span></p>
<figure class="figcenter" id="i_part4">
<img src="images/i_part4.jpg" alt="" title="">
<figcaption class="caption">
<p class="noic">The Further Adventures of Zorro, Part IV</p>
</figcaption>
</figure>
</div>
<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
<div class="chapter">
<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XVII">CHAPTER XVII.<br>
<small>A WILD RIDE.</small></h2>
</div>
<p class="cap">The pirates evidently had decided to
make the fight at some little distance
from their huts and adobe
houses, so they rushed forward, shrieking
their battle-cries, brandishing their weapons,
shouting and cursing to give themselves
courage. The great voice of Barbados
rolled out above the din in a multitude
of commands. The shrill voice of Sanchez
echoed him.</p>
<p>The <i lang="es">caballeros</i> advanced in a perfect
line, their shining blades held ready, grim
and silent now, their minds intent upon the
bloody business confronting them. Señor
Zorro, they could see, was making his way
down the slope toward them as speedily as
possible, shouting that he was coming, still
singing bits of his song between his shouts.</p>
<p>The pirates had a few firearms, but little
ammunition for them. And they were
more used to fighting hand-to-hand with
naked blades. Yet they discharged their
firearms first as the <i lang="es">caballeros</i> advanced,
and took a bloody toll. The <i lang="es">caballeros</i> had
nothing but their blades, for they had come
from Don Diego Vega’s bachelor supper,
and they had worn no firearms to that affair.</p>
<p>There was a moment of silence pregnant
with dire possibilities, the lull before the
storm—and then the two forces met with
a crash! Blades clanged together, men
gasped and fought and fell.</p>
<p>The line of the <i lang="es">caballeros</i> was broken almost
immediately, and each found himself
the particular foe of three or more pirates.
Yet they fought like maniacs, silently at
times, right merrily at times, feeling that
they were doomed, but determined to do
what damage they could before the battle
went entirely against them.</p>
<p>And then there was a sudden tumult on
the opposite side of the pirates’ camp, and
into it and among the huts charged the
crew of the trading schooner, the captain
at their head.</p>
<p>But the pirates were so great in numbers
that they were disconcerted only for an instant.
From the huts and the adobe buildings
poured men Barbados had been general
enough to hold in reserve. The crew<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_55"></a>[55]</span>
of the trading schooner was overwhelmed.
The men of the sea fought valiantly, but
they died with their captain.</p>
<p>And now Señor Zorro had reached the
bottom of the slope, and, blade in hand,
rushed to join his friends. His sword
flashed as he entered the fight and tried to
turn the tide of battle. His shouts rang out
above the bedlam.</p>
<p>“Ha!” he cried. “At the scum, <i lang="es">caballeros</i>!
They cannot stand against proper
men!”</p>
<p>“Ha!” roared the great voice of Sergeant
Gonzales, as he fought off two of
the pirate crew with his long sword. “To
me, Señor Zorro! We’ll carve a pathway
through the swine!”</p>
<p>But Señor Zorro did not hear him. He
had seen that his old friend, Don Audre
Ruiz, was sorely pressed, and he fought his
way quickly to Don Audre’s side. His
blade seemed to be half a score as it flashed
in and out and downed one of Don Audre’s
opponents. Like a man possessed, Señor
Zorro pressed forward again, straight at the
pirates in the foreground.</p>
<div class="poetry">
<div class="stanza">
<div class="verse indent0">“<i lang="es">Atención!</i> A <i lang="es">caballero’s</i> near—”</div>
</div>
</div>
<p>He sang it as he fought, stopping the
song now and then for an instant to grunt
as he made an unusually hard thrust. The
men before him broke and fled, and Señor
Zorro, with Don Audre at his side, seized
the minor advantage of the moment. The
other <i lang="es">caballeros</i> rallied and followed.</p>
<p>“The ghost!” one of the pirates
shrieked. “It is the ghost from the sea!”</p>
<p>“Ha!” Señor Zorro cried, and cut down
another man. “Ha, scum! So you fear
ghosts? Have at you—”</p>
<p>“Pirates, eh?” Sergeant Gonzales was
crying, puffing and blowing out his great
cheeks as he fought. “Stand, pirates, and
fight like men! Is this a fight or a test of
speed, dolts and fools? Meal mush and
goat’s milk!”</p>
<p>“A ghost!” another man shrieked.</p>
<p>Barbados whirled around in time to see
Sanchez, a look of terror in his face, about
to retreat. He took in the situation at a
glance.</p>
<p>“It is no ghost, fiends of hell!” he
shrieked at his men. “’Tis this Señor
Zorro somebody has saved from the sea!
At him! Fetch him to me alive! Does a
ghost fight with a blade that runs red? Get
the fiend!”</p>
<p>His words carried weight. The pirates
gathered their courage and surged forward
again. The other men came running from
the huts and the adobe buildings, now that
the crew of the trading schooner had been
handled. The <i lang="es">caballeros</i> found their line
broken once more, found that they were
being scattered.</p>
<p>Still side by side, Señor Zorro and Don
Audre Ruiz fought as well as they could.
But here in the open they could not get
their backs against a wall. However, they
did the next best thing—they stood back
to back and engaged a circle of foes.</p>
<p>The fight swirled around them. Señor
Zorro’s face wore an expression of anxiety
now. He knew, fully as well as did Don
Audre Ruiz, that this wonderful show of
courage and blade skill was availing the
<i lang="es">caballeros</i> nothing. Slowly but surely, the
pirates were traveling the road to triumph.</p>
<p>Señor Zorro was of gentle blood, and
could have died as well as the best of them,
a song upon his lips and laughter in his
eyes. But he felt at this juncture that his
life was not his own to throw away recklessly.
Did he die with his friends, the
<i lang="es">señorita</i> would have none to give her aid.</p>
<p>He would have to live, to win free if the
tide of battle was against him, and then
take his chance at being able to return and
rescue his lady. He glanced around quickly
as he fought. More than half the <i lang="es">caballeros</i>
had been wounded or slain. And still
more pirates were rushing forward, it appeared,
with the intention of making an end
of things.</p>
<p>And now there came an added menace.
Among the huts there was a ramshackle
corral, in which the pirates had put a number
of blooded horses stolen from <i lang="es">hacienda</i>
owners. And now some of the fighting men
crashed against the insecure fencing and demolished
it, and the animals, frightened at
the din of battle, rushed through the
broken place and into the open.</p>
<p>The fighting men, the clashing of blades,
the shouts and screams seemed to infuriate
the beasts. The smell of blood was in<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_56"></a>[56]</span>
their nostrils. The horses charged wildly
through the throng, upsetting <i lang="es">caballeros</i>
and pirates alike. One noble stallion
brushed aside the foes of Señor Zorro and
Don Audre Ruiz, but separated them also.
Their enemies rushed toward them again
before they could get together—and they
were no longer back to back.</p>
<p>Their case was desperate now. Each
was surrounded and overwhelmed. Señor
Zorro fought with what skill he could, keeping
a wide circle with his flashing blade.
He heard the voice of Sergeant Gonzales
roaring in the distance. He heard, also, the
thunderous voice of Barbados.</p>
<p>“Alive! Take them alive!” the pirate
chief was screeching. “There will be rich
ransom! Ransom and torture! Take them
alive, fiends!”</p>
<p>Sanchez echoed the command, and the
pirates shrieked in answer that they understood.
And Señor Zorro and his friends
understood also. The pirates would have
rare sport baiting <i lang="es">caballeros</i> who were not
ransomed speedily enough to suit them.
Revenge and profit would be their lot.</p>
<p>The <i lang="es">caballeros</i> wasted no breath in
speech. They had heard, and well they
understood the meaning. They fought like
maniacs, and maimed and slew their men.
But there was no chance of ultimate victory,
for the numbers against them were
too great.</p>
<p>Here and there in the open space a
chorus of fiendish shrieks told that a captive
had been taken, his sword whipped
from his hand. Señor Zorro suddenly
found himself hard pressed, but fought free
and made an effort to reach the side of Don
Audre Ruiz again. But that was no easy
feat, he discovered.</p>
<p>“Get that Señor Zorro!” Barbados was
shouting. “A reward to the men who fetch
him to me alive! Ha! This time we’ll
make a ghost of him indeed!”</p>
<p>Señor Zorro knew a touch of despair for
a moment, but he fought it off quickly. If
he were captured, the Señorita Lolita would
have no protector, and would be at the
mercy of these fiends and Captain Ramón.
Were it not better to escape, to make an
effort to return later, than to fight until
death at the side of his friend?</p>
<p>“Audre!” he cried.</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Sí?</i>”</p>
<p>“Can you win free?”</p>
<p>“The curs surround me!”</p>
<p>“One of us must win free!” Zorro cried.
“There is the <i lang="es">señorita</i> to be considered!”</p>
<p>“Get away, Don Diego, my friend!”
Audre Ruiz shouted. “Save yourself, and
the saints bless you—”</p>
<p>“I will return!” Señor Zorro shouted the
promise. “Let the beasts take you, Audre!
Alive, you may be of some service! Dead—you
are gone forever!”</p>
<p>Señor Zorro did not listen for an answer.
Two determined pirates were before him.
But they hesitated in their attack, because
they were eager to take him alive and so
gain the reward that Barbados had promised.
And their hesitation gave Señor Zorro
the opportunity he desired.</p>
<p>He hurled himself forward, stretched one
man on the ground and put the other in
momentary flight. Others rushed at him
from the side, and for an instant, as he
turned, he had a vision of Don Audre Ruiz
being disarmed. And then he whirled
again, darted swiftly away, fighting to clear
a path.</p>
<p>Down toward him rushed the big stallion,
still frightened because of the din of
battle. Señor Zorro swept another man
from before him and sprang at the horse.
He went upon the animal’s back, lurched
sickeningly for an instant, and righted himself.
His balance regained, he kicked at
the flanks of his mount. It was all that he
could do. The horse was without saddle or
bridle, without even a halter.</p>
<p>The animal hesitated, and Señor Zorro
kicked again with what strength he could.
And the horse, suddenly terrified, sprang
forward like some supernatural beast. The
pirates went down before him and before
Señor Zorro’s blade.</p>
<p>Up the slope the big stallion started, almost
running down Sergeant Gonzales and
the pirates who had already taken him
prisoner. Past Fray Felipe he sprang, and
Señor Zorro saw the aged <i lang="es">fray’s</i> hand
raised in blessing.</p>
<p>Like a wild animal the stallion dashed
at a group of the victorious pirates, who
shrieked and scattered to either side.<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_57"></a>[57]</span>
Señor Zorro rode erect, his sword flashing,
and he was laughing wildly, like a man on
the verge of hysterics.</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Señores!</i> Have you ever seen this
one?” he screeched.</p>
<p>He leaned to one side as the plunging
horse went forward, locked his heels in the
animal’s flanks. He grasped one of the
pirates and lifted him from the ground,
whirled him around and sent him flying
through space.</p>
<p>He would have guided the animal back
and made an effort to disconcert his foes
further, but the horse could not be guided.
And so Señor Zorro rode on up the slope
and away from the pirates’ camp—rode his
fiery, unmanageable mount straight at the
fringe of trees on the top of the hill.</p>
<p>From the distance came Barbados, fiendish,
cursing, because the man he most wanted
to capture had made an escape.</p>
<p>And Señor Zorro answered it, also from
a distance, with a burst of song:</p>
<div class="poetry">
<div class="stanza">
<div class="verse indent0">“<i lang="es">Atención!</i> A <i lang="es">caballero’s</i> near—”</div>
</div>
</div>
<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
<div class="chapter">
<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XVIII">CHAPTER XVIII.<br>
<small>HOPE IS CRUSHED AGAIN.</small></h2>
</div>
<p class="cap">Señorita Lolita Pulido passed
into the store room of the adobe building
with her head erect and a look of
pride in her face, as has been said. But
when the heavy door was closed behind her,
and she heard a bar dropped into place, she
changed swiftly.</p>
<p>For a moment she leaned against the
door, listening to Barbados and Inez, his
woman. Then Barbados went away, and
the woman also, and the <i lang="es">señorita</i> dropped
upon a stool that happened to be in one
corner of the room, and buried her face in
her hands.</p>
<p>There seemed no hope left. Señor Zorro,
Don Diego Vega, her beloved, was at the
bottom of the sea, she supposed. She was
in the hands of these pirates, being kept a
prize for a man she detested and loathed.
There seemed no way of escape.</p>
<p>But the <i lang="es">señorita</i> had determined her
course. She would die rather than be
shamed, she told herself. She would join
Don Diego in the land of to-morrow, be his
celestial bride. The blood of the Pulidos
coursed her veins, and told her to do that.</p>
<p>It was dark in the store room, but presently
the door was opened and the woman
Inez entered with a small torch made of
palm fiber and tallow. She fastened the
torch to the wall, went out again, and returned
with food. A jug of water, some
poorly cooked goat flesh and a pulpy mass,
the like of which the <i lang="es">señorita</i> never had seen
before, constituted the meal.</p>
<p>“Eat, wench!” Inez commanded. “Eat,
and drink your fill of the water! A dainty
morsel you are, but there be some men who
like women of a different sort. Ha!
’Twould do you no good to make merry eyes
at my Barbados!”</p>
<p>The <i lang="es">señorita</i> scarcely understood, for she
had not been taught to make eyes at any
man. She drank deeply of the water, for
she was thirsty, and she wanted to eat, but
did not like the appearance of the food.</p>
<p>“Too dainty for pirate fare, eh?” Inez
sneered, rubbing her fat nose with a forefinger.
“Wait until real hunger gnaws at
your stomach, pretty wench, and then you’ll
eat!”</p>
<p>The <i lang="es">señorita</i> got up from the stool suddenly
and stepped forward. Her hands
were at her sides, her chin was raised, there
was pleading in her face.</p>
<p>“You are a woman,” she said, softly.
“In your heart there must be some sympathy
for other women.”</p>
<p>“Not much,” Inez acknowledged. “Few
women have shown sympathy or kindness
toward me. I was a poor girl working on a
<i lang="es">hacienda</i>, and listened to the lies of a handsome
traveler. And when my fault was discovered
it was the women who turned their
backs. A woman of your class, wench,
kicked me out!”</p>
<p>“That is the way of the world,” Lolita
told her. “Still, you must have in your
breast some inkling of pity. Would see the
thing happen to me that is going to happen
if I cannot avoid it?”</p>
<p>“Ha!” Inez laughed. “What would
you?”</p>
<p>“Help me get away!” the <i lang="es">señorita</i>
begged. “Help me to be free, and in some
manner I’ll get up El Camino Real to Reina
de Los Angeles. I have friends. In time<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_58"></a>[58]</span>
I’ll send you more money than Barbados
will get from Captain Ramón.”</p>
<p>“And Barbados would take the money
from me, slit my throat, and find him another
woman,” Inez replied, laughing coarsely.
“I know nothing of his business deals
with Captain Ramón or any other. Nor do
I care to know them!”</p>
<p>“Have you no pity?”</p>
<p>“I have nothing to do with it,” the woman
declared. “I have orders to give you
water and food and a light, and I have
done so. That is the end.”</p>
<p>Before the <i lang="es">señorita</i> could speak again
the woman had gone out and closed the
door. Señorita Lolita heard the bar dropped
into place once more. She went slowly back
to the stool, and managed to eat a few morsels
of the goat’s flesh, after which she
drank more of the water.</p>
<p>By the light of the torch she inspected
her prison room. There was nothing in it
except some old casks that once had contained
olives and tallow. There was but
the one door, and only a single window,
and the window was small and had bars of
metal across it.</p>
<p>Escape was impossible, the <i lang="es">señorita</i> decided.
She went back to the stool again,
and sat upon it and buried her face in her
hands once more. The future seemed to
hold nothing but death and disgrace, and
she knew how to choose between them, if
the chance was given her.</p>
<p>Tired, exhausted by the events of the
day, she found sleep descending upon her.
She left the stool and curled up in a corner
on the floor, determined to keep awake.
But she could not. Her head nodded, and
after a time she fell asleep.</p>
<p>A din awakened her. The torch had
burned out and the light of day was pouring
through the little window. The little <i lang="es">señorita</i>
was stiff and uncomfortable. She got
up and hurried to the window, and by
standing upon one of the empty casks managed
to peer out of it.</p>
<p>She could see a portion of the camp. The
pirates were arming themselves and rushing
here and there like madmen. She could
hear the great voice of Barbados as he issued
his commands. And then there was a
lull, and she heard singing in the distance.
Another lull and she heard a single voice
raised in song:</p>
<div class="poetry">
<div class="stanza">
<div class="verse indent0">“<i lang="es">Atención!</i> A <i lang="es">caballero’s</i> near—”</div>
</div>
</div>
<p>Her heart almost stopped beating for a
moment. But in the next instant she told
herself that she had been foolish to hope.
It was Señor Zorro’s song, but he was dead
at the bottom of the sea. And other <i lang="es">caballeros</i>
knew it. It was some <i lang="es">caballero</i> singing
in the distance. But that gave her a
small measure of hope, for it meant that
Don Diego’s friends were at hand and
would make an effort to rescue her.</p>
<p>There was another time of comparative
silence, and then the battle began. The
<i lang="es">señorita</i> could see none of it at first, for she
was on the wrong side of the building. But
she could hear the shrieks and cries, the
ringing of blades, the screeches of pain and
curses of anger.</p>
<p>She saw the crew of the schooner attack
from the other side, and shrieked her horror
as the pirates cut them down. And
then the fight was out of her sight again.</p>
<p>Down from the cask she dropped. She
ran across to the door and pounded upon it
with her tiny fists, struck it repeatedly, until
her hands were cut and bleeding. After
a time it was opened, and the woman Inez
stood before her, thrust her away and entered.</p>
<p>“What is it, wench?” she demanded.
“More food and water?”</p>
<p>“No!” she gasped. “I—what is taking
place? There is so much confusion—”</p>
<p>“A battle is taking place, wench!” the
woman declared, bracing her fists against
her hips. “Some <i lang="es">caballeros</i> came in a ship
and saw fit to attack the camp. Many of
them will see nothing more.”</p>
<p>“And—and the battle—”</p>
<p>“How goes it, mean you? Ha, wench!
The <i lang="es">caballeros</i> are being cut down, of
course. We have them three to one! Some
are to be taken prisoners, some held for
ransom, others tortured. It will be a lesson
to the men of gentle blood not to fight
with pirates! Gentlemen are only gentlemen—but
men are men!”</p>
<p>“Gentlemen are always gentlemen, and
sometimes mere men are beasts,” the <i lang="es">señorita</i>
told her.</p>
<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_59"></a>[59]</span></p>
<p>“How is this? Do you want me to
rock your head with a blow, wench? Ha!
There will be rare sport if this Señor Zorro
is taken prisoner.”</p>
<p>“Zorro?” the <i lang="es">señorita</i> gasped.</p>
<p>“The same, wench! You were to wed
with him, I have been told. Ha! He’ll
not be ready for his wedding when Barbados
has finished with him!”</p>
<p>“Señor Zorro is dead!”</p>
<p>“I know that he walked the plank. And
the fools thought that he was a ghost when
he appeared here. But somebody must
have saved him from the sea. He’s out
there now, fighting. They will make a captive
of him!”</p>
<p>The <i lang="es">señorita’s</i> heart beat wildly. Then
it had been Zorro she had heard singing in
the distance!</p>
<p>But in the next instant she told herself
that it could not be. Zorro had walked
the plank with a weight fastened to his
wrists. The pirates were mistaken. It was
some other <i lang="es">caballero</i> who looked like Señor
Zorro, who fought as he fought, and acted
as he acted.</p>
<p>She threw aside the momentary hope,
and crept toward the woman Inez again.
If the fight was going against the <i lang="es">caballeros</i>,
if the pirates were to be victors, she
had scant time.</p>
<p>The <i lang="es">señorita</i> began acting as she never
acted before, and though she was new to
the game, her woman’s intuition, her terror
and her desperate need served her well.</p>
<p>“So the pirates are to win!” she said,
laughing lightly. “And there will be a lot
of ransom money and loot.”</p>
<p>“How is this?” Inez shrieked. “You, a
prisoner, seem joyful that the rescue is not
accomplished.”</p>
<p>“I am a prisoner—<i lang="es">sí</i>!” the <i lang="es">señorita</i> said.
“But perhaps I shall be more soon.”</p>
<p>“What mean you?” the woman gasped.</p>
<p>“Perhaps it might have been in my mind
that it would be better to have a real man
than wed a gentleman of noble blood. Is
it not peculiar that Barbados took me the
night before my wedding?”</p>
<p>“Ha! Can you speak with plain meaning?”
the woman asked.</p>
<p>“Did you believe the story of Captain
Ramón?” the <i lang="es">señorita</i> demanded. “I did,
too, at first! And then I thought differently.
You are getting old, you see, and
fat.”</p>
<p>“Wench!” the woman cried, threatening
her.</p>
<p>“If you strike me, Barbados will punish!”</p>
<p>“Barbados punish me? Ha!”</p>
<p>“Are you so easily fooled?” the <i lang="es">señorita</i>
asked. “It is plain to me what is to happen.
Barbados means to have me for himself.
There is no escape. So I may as well
make the best of it. And since I am to be
the woman of the pirate chief, I must be
loyal to him. If things must be so, is it
strange that I hope he gets much ransom
and loot?”</p>
<p>“By the devils of Hades!” the woman
swore. “If I thought this to be truth—”</p>
<p>“Can you not see that it is?” the <i lang="es">señorita</i>
queried. “Captain Ramón may have
dealings with Barbados, but it does not follow
that Captain Ramón is to have me.
That was just a little falsehood to fool you,
possibly.”</p>
<p>“Ha! So you would take my place?”
the woman cried.</p>
<p>The <i lang="es">señorita</i> recoiled as the other approached,
and held up one of her hands.</p>
<p>“I have no desire to take your place,”
she declared. “But since I cannot help
myself, what else is there to do?”</p>
<p>“I could kill you with my bare hands!”</p>
<p>“And then Barbados would kill you in
turn and go find himself another woman.”</p>
<p>“Ha! I could kill him!”</p>
<p>“You could not!” the <i lang="es">señorita</i> said.</p>
<p>The woman Inez was quiet for a moment,
and then: “You are right—I could not,”
she replied.</p>
<p>“There is a way.”</p>
<p>“And how, wench?”</p>
<p>“Help me to escape,” the <i lang="es">señorita</i> said.
“If I am gone, you are in safe possession of
the affections of Barbados. He will not
raid again soon, will not soon have a chance
to find him another woman. And you can,
in the meantime, win back his love again.”</p>
<p>“Ha! If I aid you to escape he will kill
me!”</p>
<p>“Make it appear that I escaped myself,”
the <i lang="es">señorita</i> replied. “You are strong. You
can tear out that window until it is large<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_60"></a>[60]</span>
enough for me to get through. Let him
think that there was some tool in the storeroom
and that I did the work.”</p>
<p>“Ha! If I thought you were speaking
truth—”</p>
<p>“Very well!” said the <i lang="es">señorita</i>. “Wait
and see whether it is the truth.”</p>
<p>The woman hesitated, searching the
<i lang="es">señorita’s</i> face with her keen glance. Then
she grunted and hurried into the other
room, while Lolita Pulido waited in fear
and trembling, wondering what was to come
now. Had the woman gone to tell Barbados
the story?</p>
<p>But presently Inez returned, and she
carried a peculiar strip of iron with one
sharp end, a bit of wreckage, perhaps, from
some ill-fated ship.</p>
<p>“Watch you at the door, on the inside!”
she commanded. “Do not go into the
other room. They are still fighting and perhaps
there will be time.”</p>
<p>The <i lang="es">señorita</i> hurried across to the door,
hope singing in her heart again. There she
watched and listened to the din of battle.
All would be well if she could escape in the
confusion and get away from the camp.
She could reach El Camino Real and make
her way along it. If she could reach San
Diego de Alcála, she would find friends.</p>
<p>She turned and looked at the woman.
Inez was tearing out the masonry and adobe
around the window. The metal bars already
were inside the room and out of the
way.</p>
<p>“Be quick!” the <i lang="es">señorita</i> said. “I am
small, and do not need a very large space.”</p>
<p>“It is done!” the woman replied.</p>
<p>She hurried back to the middle of the
room, and the <i lang="es">señorita</i> turned to look. The
aperture was large enough, she knew at a
glance. She could crawl through, jump to
the ground, go up the slope, and reach the
fringe of trees that she could see in the distance.
Once more hope came to her.</p>
<p>“I must have some old clothes—ragged
and dirty clothes,” she said. “I will leave
some of these.”</p>
<p>The woman did not reply, but she hurried
from the storeroom with a gleam of
avarice in her eyes. She was more than
willing to trade ragged garments for some
of silk and satin.</p>
<p>Back she came, after a time, and the
<i lang="es">señorita</i> pulled off her gown and put on
the ragged one, shuddering as she did so,
not because of the rags but because of the
dirt. She streaked her face with dirt from
the floor, and washed her hands in it,
disarranged her hair, and threw a ragged
shawl over her head.</p>
<p>“A woman does not wear a torn shawl,
a ragged dress, and fine slippers at the same
time,” Inez observed.</p>
<p>The <i lang="es">señorita</i> kicked off her slippers and
thrust her feet into the filthy sandals the
hag furnished her. She hurried to the
window, the woman before her. But Inez
grasped her by an arm and held her back.</p>
<p>“Not that way!” the woman gasped.
“It is too late! That way is guarded!”</p>
<p>The heart of the <i lang="es">señorita</i> sank again.
She scrambled to the top of the cask she
had used before, and peered out. Within
sight there were half a dozen men guarding
that side of the camp against a possible
surprise. If she got through the window
they would see her, block her path up the
slope and toward the trees, and investigate.</p>
<p>“Is there no way out?” the <i lang="es">señorita</i> cried
in despair.</p>
<p>“There is only the front.”</p>
<p>“Then let me out the front way. The
men are fighting, and perhaps they will not
notice me if I go out that way, and make
haste up the slope.”</p>
<p>“All women and children have been ordered
to remain in the huts while there is
fighting.”</p>
<p>“They will do no more than shriek at
me to get inside again,” the <i lang="es">señorita</i> said.
“I can pretend to be frightened, and run.
I can get away, if you’ll let me out!”</p>
<p>“And I be blamed for it!”</p>
<p>“Not so!” she cried. “Bar this door.
I’ll slip out the front, and they will think
that I came around the building. You can
pretend that you believe me to be in the
store room. When they open the door and
find me gone, find the window torn out,
they’ll think that I did it, and got out that
way. If anybody is punished, it will be the
guards outside.”</p>
<p>“I am afraid!” the woman said.</p>
<p>“And are you not afraid, also, of seeing
another woman in your place here?”</p>
<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_61"></a>[61]</span></p>
<p>The face of Inez grew purple for an instant,
and her eyes blazed. Suddenly she
strode across to the door, opened it, and
looked out upon the fighting. She closed
the door again, and turned back to face
the <i lang="es">señorita</i>.</p>
<p>“The fighting now is at some distance,”
she said. “There is a chance. Wait!”</p>
<p>She whirled around to bar the door of the
storeroom. The little <i lang="es">señorita</i> waited, trying
to be calm, though her heart was pounding
at her ribs. She was to escape at last!
She could get up the slope, hurry through
the trees—</p>
<p>“You must use speed!” the woman was
informing her. “And if you are caught,
you must take all the blame. Barbados
would kill me if he knew.”</p>
<p>“Give me a dagger,” the <i lang="es">señorita</i> begged.
“Then, if I am caught, I’ll do that which
will render me speechless!”</p>
<p>“Ha!”</p>
<p>“I mean it! Death would be welcome
to the other!”</p>
<p>The woman hesitated a moment, and
then reached beneath her ragged shawl and
drew a dagger out. The <i lang="es">señorita</i> clutched
it, and hid it away in her bosom.</p>
<p>For another moment they faced each
other. And then the woman Inez lurched
across the room toward the door, the <i lang="es">señorita</i>
trotting along at her heels.</p>
<p>And hope turned to black despair once
more in the twinkling of an eye! For the
door suddenly was thrown open, and before
them stood—Captain Ramón!</p>
<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
<div class="chapter">
<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XIX">CHAPTER XIX.<br>
<small>DOUBLE-FACED.</small></h2>
</div>
<p class="cap">There was a moment of astonishment
for all three of them. Then the Señorita
Lolita gave a little cry of mingled
fright and despair, and recoiled against the
wall. Señor Zorro dead, the pirates winning
the battle against the <i lang="es">caballeros</i>, and before
her the man she loathed and feared! The
future seemed very dark, indeed.</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Dios!</i>” she breathed.</p>
<p>But the woman Inez, after blinking her
eyes at the unexpected apparition, screeched
her rage and darted to a corner, where she
picked up a heavy bar of iron. She whirled
toward the intruder, the bar raised to strike.
But Captain Ramón laughed and held up
his hand.</p>
<p>“Do not be afraid of me, hag!” he told
the woman. “I wear the uniform of the
Governor’s soldiery, it is true, but I am
the good friend of Barbados! I am Captain
Ramón, of Reina de Los Angeles!”</p>
<p>“Ha!” the woman gasped. She dropped
the bar of iron and stood with arms akimbo.
“So you are Captain Ramón?”</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Sí!</i>”</p>
<p>“That must be true, else you would not
have lived to get to this building,” Inez
said. “And why are you here?”</p>
<p>“To see the little lady standing behind
you,” Ramón said, smiling. “She has been
kept safe, I see.”</p>
<p>“You are to claim her?”</p>
<p>“What else?”</p>
<p>“Ha!” Inez gasped. It flashed through
her mind, now, that Barbados really had
no personal interest in the <i lang="es">señorita</i>, and she
believed, also, that she had almost been
tricked into aiding an important prisoner to
escape. A glance at the <i lang="es">señorita’s</i> face confirmed
her suspicion, for Lolita was not acting
now. Inez realized that she would
have to speak quickly to save herself.</p>
<p>“You come in good time,” she declared
to the captain. “The wench has been kept
in the storeroom. But an instant ago, hearing
no sounds within, I unbarred and opened
the door. And she had enlarged the window,
and dressed in those rags. She intended
escaping, <i lang="es">señor</i>! Had it not been
for me now she would be gone.”</p>
<p>“You have done well,” Ramón declared.
“That is the door to the storeroom?”</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Sí!</i>” Inez answered. She dropped the
bar and threw the door open. Captain
Ramón peered inside, then turned and
smiled again, first at the hag, and then at
the <i lang="es">señorita</i>.</p>
<p>“It is indeed well,” he said. “<i lang="es">Señorita</i>,
you might have been injured on the outside,
for men are fighting. And your present
garments are scarce suited to your station in
life. Your dainty face is streaked with dirt,
too, and your hands soiled.”</p>
<p>“Your presence soils me more!” the
<i lang="es">señorita</i> said.</p>
<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_62"></a>[62]</span></p>
<p>“You prefer pirates, <i lang="es">señorita</i>?”</p>
<p>“There are several grades of depravity,”
she said, “and pirates may not be the lowest.”</p>
<p>“Ha! A biting tongue in a sweet face!”
Captain Ramón declared.</p>
<p>“More biting than the blade you wear
at your side, <i lang="es">señor</i>! Why do you not show
your true colors? Why not go out and
fight with your friends, the pirates and
thieves and murderers, against men of gentle
blood?”</p>
<p>Captain Ramón bowed in mockery. “If
you will be kind enough to glance through
the open door, <i lang="es">señorita</i>, you will perceive
that the fighting is at an end,” he replied.
“What <i lang="es">caballeros</i> are not dead have been
taken prisoners. And the women and children
are mocking them. Go, hag, and
mock with the others! I’ll guard the <i lang="es">señorita</i>
well.”</p>
<p>He leered at the woman as he spoke,
and she grinned and shuffled from the building.
She was eager to get at Barbados
and tell him how the <i lang="es">señorita</i> had attempted
an escape, and how she, the loyal and faithful
Inez, had prevented it.</p>
<p>“Into the storeroom, <i lang="es">señorita</i>!” Captain
Ramón commanded when they were alone.</p>
<p>“I prefer this, <i lang="es">señor</i>.”</p>
<p>“Quickly!” he commanded. “We’ll
close the door. We do not wish to be overheard!”</p>
<p>“What mean you?”</p>
<p>“Can you not understand?” the captain
cried. He thrust her before him into the
storeroom, and closed the door behind him.
He darted across to the window and looked
out, acting mysteriously.</p>
<p>“If you would rid me of your foul presence—”
the <i lang="es">señorita</i> began.</p>
<p>Captain Ramón whirled toward her. On
the long, hot ride from Reina de Los Angeles,
which had taken him the better part
of two days, and during which he had not
spared mounts, he had thought out everything.</p>
<p>He was playing a sort of double game,
this Captain Ramón. He wished to reinstate
himself in the good graces of better
men, he wanted to make the <i lang="es">señorita</i> believe
that he had rendered her a great service
and try to win her regard openly, and
he wished to aid his master, the Governor,
in acquiring credit in the southland, where
he had small credit now.</p>
<p>He had heard, on his way to the pirate
camp, that Señor Zorro had walked the
plank. He could take the helpless <i lang="es">señorita</i>
now for his own, but if he did that he would
have to become a renegade forever, live
like an outcast. And Captain Ramón loved
his uniform, and wealth and power.</p>
<p>So why not play the pirates and honest
men against each other and make a double
winning? He had had ample time to think
it out. And so, as he faced the <i lang="es">señorita’s</i>
scorn, he pretended surprise that she did
not understand.</p>
<p>“Foul presence, <i lang="es">señorita</i>?” he said.
“After I have risked so much to be of
service to you?”</p>
<p>“Of service to me?” she cried. “When
I was abducted by your orders, when my
home was burned and my father cut down?”</p>
<p>“Have the beasts told you that?” Ramón
asked. “That is because Barbados knew
I was infatuated with you. He believed I
would thank him for doing such a thing.”</p>
<p>“You are allied with pirates!” she accused.</p>
<p>“Listen, <i lang="es">señorita</i>, for the love of the
saints!”</p>
<p>“The saints are better off your lips,
<i lang="es">señor</i>!”</p>
<p>“Attend me!” he commanded again. “It
is a game we have been playing.”</p>
<p>“A sorry game!”</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Señorita</i>, by your gentle blood I ask
you to give me your ear! I have but pretended
friendship with these pirates, that
the soldiers may take them later, and hang
them all.”</p>
<p>“What monstrous falsehood is this?” she
asked.</p>
<p>“I beg your attention, <i lang="es">señorita</i>! Some
of them may be coming soon. I have pretended
to be in league with them. They
raided Reina de Los Angeles while I and
my soldiers were gone. I have followed
swiftly to rescue you. They think that I
am a friend. But now, assured of your
safety, I can act speedily. Let them continue
thinking, for the time being, that I
accept you as a prize. I shall ride away
to San Diego de Alcála, which is but a few<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_63"></a>[63]</span>
miles, fetch the troopers from there, rescue
you, release the <i lang="es">caballeros</i> now held as prisoners,
and wipe out this pirate brood!”</p>
<p>“But why—” she began.</p>
<p>“It was the only way, <i lang="es">señorita</i>. The soldiers
are few, and the pirates have been able
to strike the coast where there were no
troopers handy. It is a trap that we have
arranged for them. Perhaps it may not
seem a gentle thing to do—but one cannot
be gentle with pirates.”</p>
<p>“I wish that I could believe you,” she
said.</p>
<p>“Believe me, <i lang="es">señorita</i>! I love you so
much—”</p>
<p>“I am betrothed,” she said simply.</p>
<p>“But I have grave news for you. I have
been told that Don Diego Vega is no more,
that these beasts forced him, as Señor Zorro,
to walk the plank.”</p>
<p>“I was there,” she said, her eyes filling
with tears. “I saw it. Nevertheless, I am
betrothed to him, <i lang="es">señor</i>, now and forever, in
life and in death!”</p>
<p>“That is because your grief is new,”
the captain said. “You are young, <i lang="es">señorita</i>,
you have a life to live. If you would
live it with me—”</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Señor!</i>” she warned.</p>
<p>“I can understand why you dislike me
a bit,” he said. “Perhaps, in the past, I
did some things that a gentleman should
not do. But it was because of my great
love for you, because I was afraid of losing
you.”</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Señor</i>, let us talk of other things, if
we must talk,” the <i lang="es">señorita</i> begged.</p>
<p>“Do you not realize, <i lang="es">señorita</i>, that, if
I wish it, you are in my power?”</p>
<p>“Now you are showing your true colors!”
she said.</p>
<p>“Not so! I am showing you that I am
not taking advantage of the situation,” he
declared. “I intend rescuing you and the
friends these pirates now hold as prisoners.
I am risking my life to do it. And, if I
succeed, cannot you look upon me with
some favor?”</p>
<p>“If I have misjudged you, <i lang="es">señor</i>, I am
indeed sorry,” she replied. “But it is useless
to talk of such things. My heart is
with Don Diego Vega, in life and in death!”</p>
<p>“Perhaps in the future—”</p>
<p>“There can be no hope, <i lang="es">señor</i>!”</p>
<p>Captain Ramón’s face flushed and his
eyes blazed for an instant. But he still
had his game to play, the many-sided game
that he hoped would result in great fortune.</p>
<p>“If you could only believe me!” he said.</p>
<p>“Perhaps—after you have demonstrated
your loyalty.”</p>
<p>“Then I go now to talk to Barbados,
then to San Diego de Alcála for the troopers.
Guard yourself well until my return.
I must pretend that I wish you watched,
kept from escaping. A false move, <i lang="es">señorita</i>,
and all of us are lost!”</p>
<p>“I can only do as you say,” she said.
“I will be guarded in any case.”</p>
<p>“Come into the other room. I’ll call the
hag! And I’ll return to you before I ride
for San Diego de Alcála, if there are more
plans you should know.”</p>
<p>Captain Ramón opened the door, bowed
low as she passed through it, and looked
after her with the corners of his lips curled.
Then he hurried toward the front, calling
for Inez.</p>
<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
<div class="chapter">
<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XX">CHAPTER XX.<br>
<small>THE UNEXPECTED.</small></h2>
</div>
<p class="cap">Captain Ramón bade the woman
guard the <i lang="es">señorita</i> well, and then hurried
from the adobe building. Just in
front of it he stopped to look over the scene.
Dead men were scattered on the ground at a
distance. There were more dead men
around the huts, where the crew of the
trading schooner had made their last stand.</p>
<p>The wounded were shrieking and groaning,
and some of the pirates were giving
them a rough surgery. Others were hurrying
the <i lang="es">caballero</i> prisoners toward another
adobe building, where they were to be kept.
Women and children ran beside them,
shrieking insults, hurling small stones. But
the <i lang="es">caballeros</i> held their heads proudly,
and laughed and jested with one another.</p>
<p>Captain Ramón darted to the end of the
building, so he would not be seen by the
prisoners. It was not in his mind to be
suspected at the outset. The game he was
playing was one of hazard, and he knew<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_64"></a>[64]</span>
that the slightest mistake would be disastrous.</p>
<p>He had planned with Barbados to conduct
the raid, and thereby had gained the
pirate chief’s confidence. And now he had
further plans. He would tell Barbados that
he would draw to the camp the troopers
at San Diego de Alcála. Barbados and his
men could ambush them and wipe them
out. Then the pirates could cross the hills
and raid and loot rich San Diego de Alcála.</p>
<p>But the captain intended no such thing
in reality. Knowing how Barbados would
prepare the ambush, he would lead the
troopers in such a manner that the pirates
would be wiped out to a man. Then the
<i lang="es">caballeros</i> and the <i lang="es">señorita</i> could be rescued,
and Captain Ramón would pose as their
heroic rescuer. He hoped in this manner
to regain the good will of the <i lang="es">caballeros</i> and
a better standing with them, and to earn
the gratitude of the <i lang="es">señorita</i> also.</p>
<p>Word of the exploit would run up and
down El Camino Real. Men whose hands
were now raised against the licentious and
unscrupulous Governor would think better
of him because the pirates had been wiped
out. The Governor, in turn, would be grateful
to Captain Ramón. And he would order
Don Carlos Pulido, who was not dead of
his wound, to give the hand of his daughter,
Lolita, to Captain Ramón. Don Carlos
scarce could refuse without endangering his
fortunes further.</p>
<p>It was a pretty plot, the plot of a master
rogue willing to sell friends and foes alike to
advance his own interests. Captain Ramón
grinned as he thought of it, and twirled his
mustache, and marched around the corner
of the building and across the open space
toward where Barbados was standing and
shouting orders concerning the disposition
of the corpses.</p>
<p>And suddenly the captain found himself
confronted by a man, and looked up quickly
to see the burning eyes of old Fray Felipe
fastened upon his face.</p>
<p>“What does an officer of the Governor
in such a place, unless he be a prisoner of
war?” Fray Felipe demanded.</p>
<p>Captain Ramón bowed before him.
“Perhaps there are things that you do not
understand, <i lang="es">fray</i>,” he replied.</p>
<p>“And perhaps, <i lang="es">commandante</i>, there are
things that I do understand!” Fray Felipe
said. “Perhaps years of service in behalf
of humanity have taught me to read a man’s
face and mind. Rogue, brute, traitor!”</p>
<p>“You are a <i lang="es">fray</i>, and wear a gown that
should be respected, but do not tempt me
too far!” Captain Ramón said angrily.
“Say your prayers, and leave men’s work
to men!”</p>
<p>The captain bowed again, walked around
the <i lang="es">fray</i>, and hurried to the side of Barbados.</p>
<p>“Ha!” the pirate cried. “You must
have made haste to get here in such season.”</p>
<p>“I almost killed two horses,” the captain
said.</p>
<p>“In such eager haste to see the wench,
eh? And have you seen her?”</p>
<p>“She is safe and sound. She made an
attempt to escape, but your woman stopped
her.”</p>
<p>“I wish you joy of the wench. There is
too much of the fire of anger in her makeup
to suit me,” Barbados declared, laughing
raucously. “She ripped my forearm with a
dagger and killed one of my men aboard
ship. The taming of her will take more
than an hour’s time, <i lang="es">commandante</i>!”</p>
<p>“Leave that to me!” Ramón said.
“There are other things to be discussed
now.”</p>
<p>“And what?”</p>
<p>“Step aside!” Ramón commanded.</p>
<p>They walked some distance, to a spot
where they would not be overheard.</p>
<p>“You know, certainly, the meaning of
all this,” Ramón said. “The Governor,
who hates this southland, is eager to have
it troubled as much as possible, even if he
is forced to sacrifice a few of his own men.”</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Sí!</i>” Barbados said, both in question
and in affirmation.</p>
<p>“See that the <i lang="es">señorita</i> is guarded well,
and, in the meantime, before I think of
such things as love, let us attend to more
serious business.”</p>
<p>“Is there a chance of profit?”</p>
<p>“How would you like to raid rich San
Diego de Alcála when there would be small
danger?”</p>
<p>The eyes of Barbados glistened. He knew
a great deal about San Diego de Alcála.<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_65"></a>[65]</span>
The town was rich, and the mission also.
Wealth had been stored there since the
earliest days of the missions.</p>
<p>“Attend me!” Ramón commanded.
“You have here certain <i lang="es">caballeros</i> held as
prisoners, and the <i lang="es">señorita</i> also. I’ll go to
San Diego de Alcála and spread the news at
the presidio. I outrank the <i lang="es">commandante</i>
there, and my words will be commands.”</p>
<p>“I understand, <i lang="es">capitan</i>!”</p>
<p>“There are only a few troopers there
now, the remainder having been sent to
San Juan Capistrano to put down mutinous
natives. I’ll lead these troopers back to
the pirate camp. Do you arrange an ambush
at the head of the little cañon. I’ll
lead the men into it. You and your crew
can cut them down. And then the way to
San Diego de Alcála will be open to you!”</p>
<p>“By my naked blade—” Barbados swore.</p>
<p>“You must understand this thing, of
course—it must look like a mistake. No
man ever must think that the Governor
had a hand in it, or that I did myself.”</p>
<p>“I understand, <i lang="es">capitan</i>!”</p>
<p>“Then it is agreed?”</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Sí!</i>”</p>
<p>“I’ll have speech with the <i lang="es">señorita</i> again,
and then ride like the wind. As soon as I
have departed, arrange your men in the ambush.
I’ll return with the troopers before
nightfall. You can wipe them out, attack
San Diego de Alcála to-night, return, abandon
this camp, and sail away and establish
another on the coast of Baja California.
You’ll have wealth, women; your name will
be spoken with respect!”</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Sí!</i>” Barbados breathed. “It shall be
as you say, <i lang="es">capitan</i>! And what share of the
loot do you require?”</p>
<p>“Nothing whatever, if you keep the
<i lang="es">señorita</i> safe for me.”</p>
<p>“She shall be kept safe, I promise you!”</p>
<p>Captain Ramón whirled around and hurried
back toward the adobe building. Inez
had the <i lang="es">señorita</i> in the front room, guarding
her well. She had just finished a tirade concerning
the attempt of the <i lang="es">señorita</i> to engineer
an escape through cunning words and
implications.</p>
<p>Captain Ramón ordered the woman outside,
and urged the <i lang="es">señorita</i> to go into the
storeroom again.</p>
<p>“It is arranged,” he said. “I ride for
San Diego immediately. Do you continue
to remain a prisoner, <i lang="es">señorita</i>, and save
yourself from harm. Before the fall of
night I’ll be back with the troopers, this
pirate brood will be wiped out, and you and
the <i lang="es">caballeros</i> will be liberated. Then you
can go up El Camino Real to your father.”</p>
<p>“If you accomplish this thing, you shall
have my gratitude,” the <i lang="es">señorita</i> said.</p>
<p>“Nothing more than gratitude?”</p>
<p>“I have spoken concerning that, <i lang="es">señor</i>.
There can be nothing but gratitude.”</p>
<p>Captain Ramón suddenly whirled toward
her. “It is something more than gratitude
that I want!” he said. “Is your heart
made of ice? Mine is flaming!”</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Señor!</i>”</p>
<p>“What whim is it that makes you cling
to the memory of a dead man?” he asked.
“You are young, with a life before you.”</p>
<p>“Please leave me with my sorrow,
<i lang="es">señor</i>!”</p>
<p>“Then I may expect better treatment
when your sorrow is somewhat dulled by
time?”</p>
<p>“I am afraid not, <i lang="es">señor</i>.”</p>
<p>“I risk my life in the service of you
and your friends, and am to have no reward?”</p>
<p>“A man of gentle blood would not think
of being rewarded for such a thing,” she
replied.</p>
<p>The face of Captain Ramón flushed and
he took another step toward her. “I am
sick of hearing so much of gentle blood,”
he said. “Mine is gentle enough, but it
also can be hot at times. Am I a man to
brook such nonsense? You owe me gratitude,
and something more! One embrace,
at least, here and now!”</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Señor!</i>” she cried.</p>
<p>“Would you be so coy if the cursed
Señor Zorro were here to beg a kiss?”</p>
<p>“More insults, <i lang="es">señor</i>?” she asked, her
face flaming.</p>
<p>“Is it an insult for the daughter of an
impoverished <i lang="es">don</i> to be kissed by one of
his excellency’s officers?”</p>
<p>“And would my father be impoverished
were not his excellency a man of little
honor?” she cried. “Poverty does not
change the blood, <i lang="es">señor</i>!”</p>
<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_66"></a>[66]</span></p>
<p>“More about your gentle blood, eh?
And an affront to the Governor in your
words, also? That calls for punishment,
<i lang="es">señorita</i>! One embrace and then I ride!”</p>
<p>“I would rather die than have you touch
me!” she cried. “You show your true
colors again, <i lang="es">commandante</i>!”</p>
<p>“One embrace, and I make you forget
this Señor Zorro!”</p>
<p>“If he were here, <i lang="es">señor</i>, you would not
dare speak so!” she said. “You would
cringe in terror, you who wear the mark
of Zorro on your brow! It was for an insult
to me that he put it there! It is like
a coward to attack a helpless girl! If Señor
Zorro were here—”</p>
<p>“But he is not here!” Ramón cried,
laughing and leering at her. “And so—”</p>
<p>Again he started toward her, and her
hand darted to her bosom to snatch out the
dagger the woman Inez had given her earlier.
But she did not draw out the dagger.</p>
<p>The window behind them suddenly was
darkened, and the light shut off. Into the
storeroom plunged a man who struggled to
get free from the woman’s clothes he wore
over his own. As Captain Ramón recoiled
and the <i lang="es">señorita</i> gave a little cry of fright
the intruder’s head flew up.</p>
<p>A blade flashed, the <i lang="es">señorita</i> found herself
hurled to one side gently, and Captain
Ramón found two eyes blazing into his—the
eyes of Señor Zorro!</p>
<p>“Have you ever seen this one?” Señor
Zorro demanded.</p>
<p>And, with his left hand, he slapped the
<i lang="es">commandante</i> of the <i lang="es">presidio</i> of Reina de
Los Angeles so that his head rocked!</p>
<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
<div class="chapter">
<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XXI">CHAPTER XXI.<br>
<small>FACE TO FACE.</small></h2>
</div>
<p class="cap">Señor Zorro, on the back of the infuriated
and unmanageable stallion,
had made his escape easily from the
pirate camp. There was no question of him
being overtaken, but for a time there was a
grave question of Señor Zorro stopping the
steed he rode.</p>
<p>Over the crest of the slope the animal
beneath him plunged down into a ravine
and galloped along it. Señor Zorro sheathed
his sword and held on to the horse’s mane.
He bent low to avoid tree branches that
promised to sweep him from the animal’s
back.</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Dios!</i>” he muttered. “This is as bad
as the battle!”</p>
<p>Some distance the frightened horse traveled,
and then he made a great circle and
returned toward the pirate camp. But
Señor Zorro had no wish to return there
too soon, lest he be captured in the vicinity.
And so he waited until the horse, negotiating
a slippery incline, slackened pace somewhat,
and slipped easily from the animal’s
back.</p>
<p>The horse plunged on. Señor Zorro
picked himself up, observed his scratches,
and made a futile effort to brush his clothing.
Then he walked to the crest of the
slope and looked down toward the sea.</p>
<p>He was quite a way from the camp,
but he could see it in the distance, see the
dead and wounded on the ground, and a
crowd of the pirates, with their women and
children, in front of the adobe building that
was being used as a prison.</p>
<p>Señor Zorro sat down to rest and watch.
He knew that he was confronted by a dire
emergency and a tremendous task, but he
refused to admit it to himself. The <i lang="es">señorita</i>
was down there, and she was to be rescued.
And Don Audre Ruiz and the <i lang="es">caballeros</i>
were there, to be rescued also.</p>
<p>Señor Zorro, after a breathing spell, got
up and walked slowly along the crest of the
slope among the stunted and wind-twisted
trees, making certain that he could not be
observed from the camp. He came a distance
nearer, and watched for a time again.
And he saw Captain Ramón!</p>
<p>If it had been in the mind of Señor Zorro
to await the night before descending into
the camp again that idea left his mind now.
He hurried forward as speedily as possible,
stopping now and then to listen, for fear
some of the pirates may have been sent to
search for him.</p>
<p>He did not know, could not think, how
he was to enter the camp in the broad light
of day without escaping discovery. And
he could do little single-handed against the
victorious pirate crew. Yet the plight of
the little <i lang="es">señorita</i> called to him for action,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_67"></a>[67]</span>
and he knew that something should be done
at once.</p>
<p>And suddenly he stopped, for he had
smelled smoke. Almost silently he crept
forward through the brush, and came to a
small clearing.</p>
<p>There he saw a hut, from the chimney
of which smoke was issuing. Señor Zorro
circled the hut, but saw no human being.
He went to the crest of the slope again,
and saw a woman struggling down it toward
the pirate’s camp—a woman bent and old.</p>
<p>Señor Zorro guessed, then, that this was
the hut of some aged lawbreaker no longer
active in piracy. Perhaps the ancient one
was down in the camp, now that the fighting
was at an end, and his ancient woman
was following to see the excitement.</p>
<p>Señor Zorro approached the hut carefully,
crept around the corner of it, and
peered in at the door to find the place
empty. He rushed inside and sought frantically
for what he desired. There came a
chuckle of delight as he found it.</p>
<p>What he desired and found was nothing
more than a ragged skirt and a wide, dirty
shawl. Señor Zorro put them on quickly,
bent his shoulders, and hobbled back among
the trees and brush. It was a disguise that
would serve for the time being.</p>
<p>Beneath the skirt was the sword of Zorro,
ready to be whipped from its scabbard.
Señor Zorro felt confident as long as the
blade was at his side. He left the fringe
of trees at some distance from the hut, and
made his way down the slope.</p>
<p>As he came nearer the camp he was
doubly cautious. The horses had lost some
of the fright, and were grazing. The pirates,
for the greater part, were gathered around
the adobe building where the <i lang="es">caballeros</i>
were being held prisoners. The women and
children were there, too, only some of them
were still scattered around the camp, looking
at the dead and wounded.</p>
<p>Señor Zorro perceived that he had arrived
at an opportune time. Nobody would
give any attention to a woman stumbling
along toward the scene of excitement. The
pirates, undoubtedly, imagined that Zorro
had ridden far away, perhaps to San Diego
de Alcála for help.</p>
<p>He approached nearer. There were two
large adobe buildings, and he supposed that
the <i lang="es">señorita</i> was held prisoner in one of
them, but he did not know which.</p>
<p>Then he stopped suddenly, and bent his
shoulders more. For he saw Captain
Ramón talking to Barbados, saw the <i lang="es">commandante</i>
turn and leave the pirate chief
and hurry into the nearest adobe building.
Señor Zorro guessed that the <i lang="es">señorita</i> was
there.</p>
<p>He hobbled forward again, alert to keep
a certain distance from any of the pirates or
women, for he realized that they knew one
another well. He reached the corner of the
building, and began to circle it, listening
intently for the voice he hoped to hear.</p>
<p>He heard it. Pretending to be picking
up something from the ground, Señor Zorro
bent against the wall and listened. He
heard Captain Ramón’s statements, heard
the <i lang="es">señorita</i> reply, listened with a grim expression
on his face while the <i lang="es">commandante</i>
begged for an embrace.</p>
<p>It would be perilous to enter that building
now, Señor Zorro knew. Ramón would
call the pirates, but perhaps he could be
silenced first. However, there could be no
hesitation. The <i lang="es">señorita</i> was there, being
affronted, and was to be spared insult.</p>
<p>Señor Zorro saw the window, and guessed
that he could manage to struggle through
it. He raised his head and glanced inside.
He saw the <i lang="es">señorita</i> recoiling, the <i lang="es">commandante</i>
approaching her.</p>
<p>Señor Zorro hesitated no longer. He
sprang up and scrambled through the window.
He tore at the woman’s clothing that
clung to him, got free of it, and whipped
out the sword of Zorro. He pressed the
<i lang="es">señorita</i> to one side out of harm’s way, and
confronted his enemy.</p>
<p>His open hand cracked against Captain
Ramón’s head. And then he stepped back,
on guard, giving the renegade officer his
chance, though he little deserved it.</p>
<p>“You are alive!” the <i lang="es">señorita</i> gasped.</p>
<p>“Ha! Very much alive!” Señor Zorro
replied. “Stand back against the wall,
<i lang="es">señorita</i>, and turn your pretty face away.
This is not going to be pleasant for a dainty
lady’s eyes to watch!”</p>
<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
<div class="chapter">
<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_68"></a>[68]</span></p>
<figure class="figcenter" id="i_part5">
<img src="images/i_part5.jpg" alt="" title="">
<figcaption class="caption">
<p class="noic">The Further Adventures of Zorro, Part V</p>
</figcaption>
</figure>
</div>
<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
<div class="chapter">
<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XXII">CHAPTER XXII.<br>
<small>A PRICE TO BE PAID.</small></h2>
</div>
<p class="cap">The face of Captain Ramón turned
livid as he struggled to get his sword
from its scabbard. There was a look
of fear in his countenance, too.</p>
<p>“Zorro!” he cried. “Señor Zorro, eh?”</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Sí!</i> Zorro!” came the answer. “There
is not water enough in all the sea to drown
me while there remains something to be
avenged. We have crossed blades before,
<i lang="es">señor</i>, and I have marked you. But this
time shall be the last. A fatal wound this
time, <i lang="es">capitan</i>! It is an honor that I do not
cut you down without giving you the chance
to defend yourself!”</p>
<p>Captain Ramón finally had his sword out,
and now he was on guard. But he could
not forget that once before in his life he
had crossed blades with Señor Zorro, and
Zorro had played with him as a cat plays
with a mouse, and finally had left him for
dead after marking him on the forehead.</p>
<p>And so the captain grew desperately
afraid, feeling that he had small chance
against the better sword play of the other.
He sprang back toward the door to the
front room, but found Señor Zorro before
him blocking the way.</p>
<p>“Are you a coward and would run?”
Zorro taunted. “A pretty soldier, by the
saints!”</p>
<p>“Ha! Señor Zorro is here!” the <i lang="es">commandante</i>
shouted at the top of his lung
power. “Zorro is here! To me, pirates!”</p>
<p>He had no time to say more. Señor
Zorro’s face assumed an expression of grim
determination, and he advanced swiftly.
But Captain Ramón had found another
method of protection for the time being.
He sprang back beside the <i lang="es">señorita</i>, grasped
her roughly and held her before him, shielding
his body with hers. And he continued
his shouting, hoping to attract the attention
of Barbados and his men.</p>
<p>“Poltroon!” Zorro sneered. “Coward
and dog!”</p>
<p>“Fly, Diego!” the <i lang="es">señorita</i> begged.
“The pirates will be here and take you.”</p>
<p>“When I have slain this arrant coward
and rescued you, and not before!” Señor
Zorro declared.</p>
<p>He danced toward Captain Ramón again,
but the <i lang="es">commandante</i> was back in a corner
now, holding the <i lang="es">señorita</i> close before him,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_69"></a>[69]</span>
and Señor Zorro was afraid to attempt a
thrust. The <i lang="es">señorita</i> made a struggle to get
free, but found that she could not.</p>
<p>In the other room the woman Inez had
heard the tumult and the words. She had
dared to open the door a crack and peer
inside, and then she had closed the door
again and barred it quickly, and hurried
into the open.</p>
<p>“Barbados!” she shrieked. “Sanchez!
Fiends of hell! Señor Zorro is here trying
to kill the captain! Come and take him!”</p>
<p>Barbados heard and understood her
shrieks, as did some of the others near.
They rushed across the open space and
crowded into the front room of the building.
From the storeroom came the sound of
Señor Zorro’s voice.</p>
<p>“Hide behind a woman, eh, coward?
Come out and fight, poltroon! Come out,
renegade! Is there no insult strong enough
to bring you forth?”</p>
<p>Barbados motioned with one hand. Inez
unbarred the door and threw it open. Into
the storeroom tumbled the pirates, their
blades held ready.</p>
<p>“Take him alive!” Barbados thundered.
“Catch me this land pirate unhurt!”</p>
<p>Señor Zorro whirled to confront them.
He darted to a corner and threw up his
blade. He sprang forward a few steps,
wounded a man, retreated again.</p>
<p>But he knew that the weight of numbers
was against him in such cramped fighting
quarters, and he could not get to the window
and make an escape. They hurled
themselves upon him, buried him beneath
their combined weight, disarmed him, and
forced him to his feet again. They lashed
his hands behind his back, and Barbados,
now that it was a safe thing to do, stalked
forward and spat at him.</p>
<p>“So, Señor Zorro, we have you in our
hands again!” Barbados said. “This time
it will be fire or steel instead of water, since
you seem to swim so well! And this time,
<i lang="es">señor</i>, we make a real ghost out of you!”</p>
<p>Captain Ramón lurched forward, his face
purple with wrath. “Do with him as you
will,” he said to Barbados. “But let me
have a hand in it!”</p>
<p>“Ha! You had your chance, <i lang="es">capitan</i>, a
moment ago, and did not make much
of it!” Barbados replied, grinning. “I’ll
have him put in the other adobe building
with the <i lang="es">caballeros</i>. Fiends of hell, take
him away!”</p>
<p>The <i lang="es">señorita</i> made an attempt to get forward,
but the pirates thrust her back. They
took Señor Zorro away, and the grinning
Barbados followed them. The captain
turned to face the <i lang="es">señorita</i> once more.</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Señorita</i>, you must try to understand,”
he said. “I could not act or speak in any
other manner. The pirates must still think
that I am one of them, else I cannot get to
San Diego de Alcála and fetch the soldiers.”</p>
<p>“There is small need of further pretense,
<i lang="es">señor</i>,” she replied with much scorn in her
manner. “I know you for what you are!”</p>
<p>“You are inclined to show bravery, now
that you know this Señor Zorro is alive,
eh?” he said. “But will he live long, in the
hands of these pirates, some of whose
friends he has slain? This Barbados loves
ransom money, but Don Diego Vega is one
man who never will be ransomed. For Barbados
loves vengeance, too!”</p>
<p>“I cannot endure your presence longer,”
she said. “Leave me alone with my sorrows!”</p>
<p>“Nor can I endure your scorn much
longer,” Captain Ramón replied. “Has it
occurred to you that you are in my power
completely, if I will it so?”</p>
<p>“Now you show your true colors again,
<i lang="es">señor</i>. And there is always death!”</p>
<p>“And torture!” Captain Ramón added.
“That will befall this Señor Zorro, no
doubt!”</p>
<p>“Torture?” she cried.</p>
<p>“Ha! Real torture, such as only these
beasts of pirates know how to inflict!” he
declared. “No man can stand against such
a thing for long. He will beg and shriek
for the release of death when the pain begins.”</p>
<p>“No—no!” she cried.</p>
<p>“And you will be forced to watch it, no
doubt!” the <i lang="es">commandante</i> continued.
“Barbados, his men say, is a master hand
at torture of all kinds. They’ll chip at him
with their knives, sear his flesh with white-hot
brands—”</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Señor</i>, for the love of the saints—”</p>
<p>“You do not like the picture? Wait until<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_70"></a>[70]</span>
you see the reality, which will be much
worse than words could paint!”</p>
<p>“If I could save him—give my life for
his—”</p>
<p>The captain looked at her sharply. “Perhaps
there may be a way,” he said.</p>
<p>“What mean you?”</p>
<p>“I can have speech with this fiend of a
Barbados and coax him to delay the torture
until he has accounted for the troopers from
San Diego de Alcála. The troopers will account
for him and his men instead, of
course, and then Señor Zorro and the <i lang="es">caballeros</i>
will be released.”</p>
<p>“And you will do this?” she cried. “Ah,
<i lang="es">señor</i>, if only you would!”</p>
<p>“I can do it, <i lang="es">señorita</i>—at a price!”</p>
<p>“And what—is the price?” she asked.</p>
<p>“You are the price yourself, <i lang="es">señorita</i>.”</p>
<p>“Beast!”</p>
<p>“Is that a way to save Señor Zorro by
calling me a beast?” the captain asked.
“All that I ask is an immediate marriage.
Would it be an ill thing to wed with one
of his excellency’s officers?”</p>
<p>“I cannot! My heart is not my own!”</p>
<p>“Can you hesitate?” the captain asked.
“One way, you will be my wife, and Señor
Zorro will be saved from torture and will be
set free. The other way, <i lang="es">señorita</i>, he will be
tortured until he dies—and you will come to
me unwed!”</p>
<p>“Oh!” she gasped. “That a man could
be such a fiend—”</p>
<p>“Love drives men to do strange things,
<i lang="es">señorita</i>.”</p>
<p>“Love!” she cried. “You know not the
meaning of the word! To love is to be gentle,
to cherish and protect!”</p>
<p>“I know the meaning as it appeals to
me,” the captain declared. “And I have
scant time, if you are to agree. Fray Felipe
is in the camp, and he can wed us. Barbados
is afraid to affront a <i lang="es">fray</i> and will
not see Felipe harmed. So he lets him
roam around, though he is watched.”</p>
<p>“I cannot!”</p>
<p>“Very well, <i lang="es">señorita</i>. It is for you to
make the decision. But I am afraid that
the pirates will have their way. And their
way will not be a gentle one!”</p>
<p>“Can you not be a proper man?” she
cried. “Can you not save him without exacting
such a payment? For once in your
life, <i lang="es">señor</i>, can you not show yourself a
<i lang="es">caballero</i>?”</p>
<p>“Save him and let him claim you?”
Ramón asked. “You are asking far too
much!”</p>
<p>“Is there no other way?”</p>
<p>“None!” he replied. “There are certain
things that you must do—be my wife, and
I will save Señor Zorro by fetching the
troopers from San Diego de Alcála. And
afterward you must say that I did but trick
the pirates, and that you wed me in gratitude
for saving you from them.”</p>
<p>“Such a falsehood would not come easily
from my lips, <i lang="es">señor</i>,” she said. “And how
can I trust you? How do I know that you
would fetch the troopers?”</p>
<p>“I am not afraid to make the bargain,”
he told her. “You need not wed me until
after the pirates are defeated and the <i lang="es">caballeros</i>
are released. That is fair enough for
both, is it not? But how, on the other
hand, may I be assured that you will not
forget your part of the bargain, once I have
done my share?”</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Señor!</i>” she cried, her face flaming.
“Would a daughter of the Pulidos break
her given word?”</p>
<p>“Then you give it?” he asked.</p>
<p>“Not yet!” she replied firmly. “There
are to be certain stipulations, <i lang="es">señor</i>.”</p>
<p>“And they—” he questioned.</p>
<p>“I must see Señor Zorro alone and speak
to him, and explain just what I intend to
do. I would tell him the truth—that you
will save him and the others if I wed you.
I would not have him think that my heart
is one that can change so easily.”</p>
<p>“Ha! After that you would have to save
him against his will. He would not accept
the sacrifice.”</p>
<p>“Then will I save him despite himself,”
she declared. “And you need not fear for
the future in such case, <i lang="es">señor</i>. Once we
were wed, Señor Zorro would not raise his
hand against you if I asked him not to do
so.”</p>
<p>“Perhaps it may be arranged,” Captain
Ramón said.</p>
<p>He was plotting more, even as he spoke.
He did not see how he could lose in this
game. If he fetched the troopers, and the<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_71"></a>[71]</span>
pirates were wiped out and the <i lang="es">caballeros</i>
saved, the <i lang="es">señorita</i> would keep her word if
she had given it. Men might despise him
for taking advantage of a situation, yet
would he be safe. And perhaps, for a small
sum, he could have this Señor Zorro killed
yet.</p>
<p>And if the pirates through some fortune
of war managed to be victorious over the
troopers, then Captain Ramón could do the
other thing—simply seize the <i lang="es">señorita</i>, give
Señor Zorro up to torture, and remain a
renegade, perhaps even become a pirate
chief himself in the future.</p>
<p>“I will speak to no other man, <i lang="es">señor</i>—only
Zorro,” she said, as he seemed to hesitate.
“I will not betray your double-dealing
to the pirate crew, for that would defeat
all our ends and mean death for Señor
Zorro and the <i lang="es">caballeros</i>, and much worse
for me. But I must speak to Señor Zorro
a moment before I give you my decision in
the matter.”</p>
<p>“I will try to arrange it with Barbados,”
Captain Ramón replied. “Come into the
other room and let the woman guard you
until I return. You must play the game
well if you would be successful. And there
is scant time. I should start my ride to
San Diego de Alcála as quickly as possible.”</p>
<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
<div class="chapter">
<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XXIII">CHAPTER XXIII.<br>
<small>THE SEÑORITA PLOTS ALSO.</small></h2>
</div>
<p class="cap">Captain Ramón, hurrying outside,
found Barbados in the open space before
the other adobe building. The
pirate chief, it was easy to see, had been
drinking heavily of rich, stolen wine.
Among the pirates slain were some of Barbados’s
particular friends, and he was trying
to drown his sorrow at their untimely
taking off.</p>
<p>He turned as the <i lang="es">commandante</i> approached
and greeted him with a shout.</p>
<p>“Ha!” he cried, lurching drunkenly.
“So you have not started for San Diego de
Alcála yet, <i lang="es">capitan</i>? You have just come
from the little <i lang="es">señorita—sí</i>? Yet your face
does not bear the marks of her nails, which
is strange. I would not want the taming of
her. By my naked blade, I would not!”</p>
<p>“Attend me!” the captain commanded,
grasping the pirate chief by the arm. “Is
it your intention to torture this Señor Zorro
your men have taken?”</p>
<p>Barbados cursed loudly, breathed heavily,
and squinted his eyes until they were
only two tiny slits. “I shall make him
squirm and squeal!” he declared loudly.
“And then I shall turn him into a proper
ghost!”</p>
<p>“Death is nothing to a man like that,”
Captain Ramón told him. “But torture is
a different matter.”</p>
<p>“Then I’ll see to it that he is prettily
tortured!” Barbados declared.</p>
<p>“There are two sorts of torture, Barbados—the
physical and the mental,” said the
captain.</p>
<p>“Mental? I do not understand such
things!”</p>
<p>“Torture to the mind,” the captain explained.
“That is the worst kind by far.
If you would have some sport with this
Señor Zorro, whom we both hate, listen to
me. The <i lang="es">señorita</i>, who was to have been his
bride, is afraid that you will torture and
slay him. I have told her that I will save
him by fetching the troopers from San
Diego de Alcála—if she will wed with me.”</p>
<p>“Ha! Is this treason?” Barbados cried.</p>
<p>“Are you a fool?” questioned the captain.
“And am I one? There must be no
talk of treason between us. Attend! She
will go to this Señor Zorro and explain to
him what she intends doing. Just think of
that, Barbados! There is torture for you!
He, who loves her so much, will think that
she is to become the bride of another man.
Ha! He will squirm and squeal indeed!
A prisoner, and unable to prevent it! Ha!”</p>
<p>“Ha!” Barbados cried, understanding
finally, and grinning to show his appreciation.</p>
<p>“And we will taunt him with it,” the
<i lang="es">commandante</i> continued. “We’ll watch
him squirm!”</p>
<p>“But it appears to me, <i lang="es">capitan</i>, that in
this affair you are acting the part of an
ass,” Barbados dared to say. “Why work
so hard to get the wench to agree to wed
you when you can take her at your pleasure?”</p>
<p>“Because it will hurt this Señor Zorro<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_72"></a>[72]</span>
a great deal more to know that she gives
her consent,” the captain replied. “We’ll
taunt him about it, and then I’ll ride for
the soldiers. And your men will sweep them
off the earth and then ride to San Diego
de Alcála and loot the place. As for this
Señor Zorro—having tortured him mentally,
you will proceed to torture him physically
when you celebrate your victory.”</p>
<p>“It appeals to me!” Barbados declared
suddenly. “He slew some of my closest
friends. Yet I would not wait too long!
Some of these fine enemies must be tortured
soon, while I am in the proper mood
for it!”</p>
<p>“And there can be more mental torture,”
the captain said. “Do not touch him
until the very last. Make him watch as
some of his friends are being tortured. Let
him hear their shrieks of pain. Let him
see Don Audre Ruiz, his boon companion,
suffer. That will hurt him as much as being
tortured himself.”</p>
<p>“Ha! By my naked blade, <i lang="es">capitan</i>,
you should have been born a pirate!” Barbados
shrieked.</p>
<p>“Then it is agreed?”</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Sí!</i> It is agreed!”</p>
<p>“I will get the <i lang="es">señorita</i> and let her tell
Señor Zorro what she intends to do.”</p>
<p>“There are two rooms in that adobe
building,” Barbados explained. “This
Señor Zorro is alone in the front one, for I
thought it best not to put him with the
others. The door between has a heavy
lock, and I have the key. You can let the
<i lang="es">señorita</i> go in there, and we’ll listen at the
window and enjoy his pain when she tells
him. Ha! I say it again, <i lang="es">capitan</i>—you
should be a pirate! You are wasted in the
army!”</p>
<p>Captain Ramón hastened back to the
<i lang="es">señorita</i>, whispered that he had been able
to arrange things as she wished, grinned
at old Inez, and then conducted the daughter
of the Pulidos across the open space
and toward the adobe building where Señor
Zorro and the <i lang="es">caballeros</i> were being held
prisoners.</p>
<p>Barbados was waiting. He leered at the
girl, then called one of his men to his side,
and commanded that he unfasten and open
the door. Señor Zorro, his wrists still
lashed behind his back, was pacing around
the room. From the room adjoining came
the voices of the <i lang="es">caballeros</i>.</p>
<p>“Señor Zorro, here is a pretty wench
who has some words for your ears,” Barbados
called. “She is not so pretty as she
was, having dirtied herself in an attempt
to escape, but possibly she will serve. I
give you a few minutes in which to hold
speech. Do not abuse the privilege.”</p>
<p>“Whatever you may do in the future,
I thank you for this, Señor Pirate!” Zorro
said.</p>
<p>Barbados laughed and withdrew, and
closed the door behind him. The <i lang="es">señorita</i>
stepped forward slowly, her hands held at
her breast, a look of anguish in her sweet
face. Señor Zorro was smiling down at
her.</p>
<p>“The saints are good, <i lang="es">señorita</i>!” he
whispered. “That I may see you again—”</p>
<p>“Diego, my beloved, it is a sad errand!”
she interrupted. “Yet I had to come.”</p>
<p>His face was grave for an instant, and
then he smiled at her once more.</p>
<p>“So they have sent you to tell me that
I must die?” he asked. “I could not receive
a warrant of death from sweeter
hands. My one regret is that I have failed
in your rescue. I do not fear the coming
of death. It will be only another adventure.
It is for you that I fear.”</p>
<p>“Fear not for me!” she said. “Nor
fear the coming of death, either. It is not
a warrant of death that I bring you, Diego.
I have come to tell you that you are to go
free.”</p>
<p>“Free?” Señor Zorro gasped. “Have
pirates turned kind? Has old Fray Felipe
demonstrated to them the error of their
ways? Is the devil going to mass these
days? <i lang="es">Señorita</i>, you are trying to make
the sentence lighter by saying it in a kind
manner. Speak out! Don Diego Vega is
not afraid to learn the truth, and most certainly
Señor Zorro is not.”</p>
<p>“I know that you are not afraid, Diego.
I dread to tell you this thing, though it
means your life.”</p>
<p>He stepped closer to her suddenly, and
looked down into her eyes. “What are
you trying to tell me?” he asked kindly.
“Do not be afraid to speak.”</p>
<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_73"></a>[73]</span></p>
<p>“That you are to go free, Diego,” she
replied, failing to meet his glance.</p>
<p>“And how may that be?” he asked.</p>
<p>“Captain Ramón is to arrange it.”</p>
<p>“Put not your trust in Ramón!”</p>
<p>“Ah, Diego, but there is naught else to
do!” she said. “He tells me that he is
tricking the pirates. He will ride to San
Diego de Alcála and return with the troopers
from the <i lang="es">presidio</i> there. The pirates
will be slain or captured, and you and the
<i lang="es">caballeros</i> will be saved.”</p>
<p>“Ramón will do this?” Señor Zorro
cried. “Is there some hidden spark of
gentlehood in the beast?”</p>
<p>“He will do it, Diego—for a price.”</p>
<p>“Ha! I might have known it! Well,
I can pay the cur! What is the price?”</p>
<p>“Not money, Diego, beloved! The
price is that I wed him.”</p>
<p>Señor Zorro sucked in his breath sharply
and bent quickly over her.</p>
<p>“You wed with him?” he said. “Wed
with a snake like Captain Ramón?”</p>
<p>“Only to save you, Diego! Ah, do not
think that I am untrue! He but asks my
word—the word of a Pulido! And the
wedding is not to take place until he returns
with the troopers, the pirates are
slain, and you are free.”</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Señorita—</i>”</p>
<p>“There will be torture and death for
you, else,” she was quick to add. “And I
will remain true, Diego. I shall but promise
to wed him, understand. And after the
ceremony, before he can claim me as his
bride, I—I shall die!”</p>
<p>“And do you think that I would accept
such a sacrifice?” Señor Zorro asked.
“Could I live and see you the bride of another
man? And could I live knowing that
you had taken your own life for me? No,
<i lang="es">señorita</i>!”</p>
<p>“If I do not, they will torture and slay
you!”</p>
<p>“Then let them torture and slay!” he
said. “You cannot do this thing! You—a
daughter of the Pulido blood! Think of
the blood in your veins!”</p>
<p>“I could not be his wife, except in name,
but I can die!” she said. “Only a thrust
of the dagger after the ceremony! The
blood of the Pulidos tells me to do that!”</p>
<p>“I command you—entreat you—”</p>
<p>“Can I see you die?” she asked. “And,
if I refuse, there will be nothing except
death for me as well as for you. For Ramón
will try, then, to make me his by
force.”</p>
<p>“Better to die in defense of your honor,
<i lang="es">señorita</i>, than have your fair name linked
with his even for a moment!” Señor Zorro
declared. “I demand that you refuse to
do this thing! Ah, <i lang="es">señorita</i>, all hope is not
gone! They have taken my sword, and
they have bound my hands, but I am not
helpless entirely. The spirit of Zorro still
burns in my breast! Given but a little
time, and I’ll win through!”</p>
<p>“Diego!”</p>
<p>“If we could work for time—” he said.</p>
<p>“Perhaps I can hold him off for an
hour,” she whispered. “But no longer
than that, I am sure. And—there may be
a way. I have thought of something!”</p>
<p>“What is it?”</p>
<p>“Whisper,” she commanded. “I am
sure that they are listening outside the window.
Pretend that all is agreed between
us. Let me embrace you!”</p>
<p>Barbados and Captain Ramón not only
were listening, but also they were peering
through the window. And they saw her go
up close to him, press against him, saw her
arms go around him, as though in a last
embrace. But her back was toward the
window, and they could not see all.</p>
<p>For, as she pressed against him, the little
<i lang="es">señorita</i> took from her bosom the dagger
that the woman Inez had given her when
she had attempted to make an escape, and
which had been forgotten afterward. And
she reached around him even as she buried
her head against his breast, and sawed with
the sharp dagger at the cords that bound
his wrists.</p>
<p>“Careful!” she warned. “Hold the
ends of the ropes, so they will not know
that you are free!”</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Sí!</i>” he breathed. “Never in all the
world was there ever a <i lang="es">señorita</i> like you!
Hope sings within me again!”</p>
<p>“Do not let it show in your face!” she
warned.</p>
<p>Her hands crept to the front again, and
she slipped the dagger into the sash around<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_74"></a>[74]</span>
his waist. She knew that he felt it, and
knew that it was there. And then she
stepped back, and raised her voice so
that those at the window could hear.</p>
<p>“It is the only way, Diego!” she said.
“I must leave you—I cannot endure this
scene longer! Take my lips, Diego—for
the last time!”</p>
<p>She raised her head, and her eyes closed.
He bent forward, their lips touched. And
then she gave a little cry as though of pain,
and rushed back toward the door. And
Señor Zorro remained standing against the
wall, anguish in his countenance.</p>
<p>Barbados opened the door and let the
<i lang="es">señorita</i> out of the room, then closed and
fastened the door again. Captain Ramón
hurried up to her.</p>
<p>“You have decided, <i lang="es">señorita</i>?” he asked.</p>
<p>“Almost am I ready to give you my
sacred word, but not quite,” she replied.
“It is a terrible thing for me, <i lang="es">señor</i>. Give
me but one little hour. Let me go to old
Fray Felipe and have him pray with me.”</p>
<p>“I am growing tired of waiting!” Captain
Ramón said. “I should be on my
way already. Why not decide now?”</p>
<p>“You will have ample time to return
with the troopers long before nightfall,”
she whispered quickly, as Barbados turned
away to howl an order to some of his men.
“Give me only an hour—perhaps less!”</p>
<p>“Very well—an hour!” said the captain.
“But no longer! I’ll find the <i lang="es">fray</i> for you,
and put you both in one of the huts under
guard until you can make up your mind.”</p>
<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
<div class="chapter">
<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XXIV">CHAPTER XXIV.<br>
<small>INTO THE OPEN.</small></h2>
</div>
<p class="cap">Señor Zorro fought the battle of his
life, after the little <i lang="es">señorita</i> had gone
and the door had been closed and
barred, to keep from showing his elation
in his face.</p>
<p>His hands now would be free at any
time he wished to drop the ends of the
cords that bound his wrists. He had a
weapon hidden in the sash about his waist.
Given those minor advantages, Señor Zorro
felt that he could disconcert his enemies
again, else fail to be Zorro.</p>
<p>But the expression in his face did not
change as he walked slowly around the
room and finally came to a stop before the
window and glanced across the clearing and
the beach toward the glistening water of
the bay. He looked like a man devoid of
all hope, expecting the worst.</p>
<p>Not so very far away was a small hut,
before the one door of which two of the
pirates sat on guard. Señor Zorro was
well aware of the fact that the weapons of
the captured <i lang="es">caballeros</i>, and those of their
comrades who had been slain, were in there,
and that his own beloved sword was there
also, waiting to be claimed by him.</p>
<p>And, as he watched, Sanchez rode wildly
into the clearing on a magnificent horse,
undoubtedly stolen from some great <i lang="es">hacienda</i>.
Barbados’s lieutenant dismounted
and allowed the animal to wander near the
hut while he hurried in search of the pirate
chief with some report.</p>
<p>These things Señor Zorro saw quickly,
and then he hurried back to the door that
opened into the other room. It was barred,
and locked with a strong lock, and Zorro
had no tools with which to open it. He
could not unfasten it and release his friends,
but he could hold speech with them.</p>
<p>He made certain that nobody was near
the window to overhear, and then kicked
against the door to attract the attention of
the <i lang="es">caballeros</i>.</p>
<p>“Audre!” he called, in a guarded voice.</p>
<p>There was silence for a moment, and
then he heard a whisper from the other side
of the door.</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Sí?</i>”</p>
<p>“I have another chance, Audre. The
<i lang="es">señorita</i> has cut my bonds and given me a
dagger. It is a poor weapon, but better
than none. It would avail us nothing for
me to let you out if I could, for the pirates
greatly outnumber us. But I can try to
escape and ride to San Diego de Alcála for
troopers.”</p>
<p>“Good, Diego, my friend!”</p>
<p>“I know not what may happen before
I am able to return. Ramón is in the camp
and up to some sort of deviltry. But,
should you escape, look to the <i lang="es">señorita</i>!”</p>
<p>“Be assured of that!” Don Audre replied.</p>
<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_75"></a>[75]</span></p>
<p>“If I can do so, when I escape I’ll take
her with me. If not, I’ll return with the
troopers as swiftly as possible. The saints
be with you!”</p>
<p>“And with you!” Don Audre Ruiz returned.</p>
<p>Señor Zorro walked slowly away from
the door and approached the window again.
The horse Sanchez had been riding was
now but a short distance from the adobe
building. The two guards were squatted
before the hut wherein the captured weapons
had been stored, drinking and talking.
Other pirates were in the distance, walking
around, stretched in the shade of the huts,
gambling, shouting, quarreling.</p>
<p>Señor Zorro knew well that it would
profit nothing to get those weapons in the
hut, for the <i lang="es">caballeros</i> could not be liberated
quickly, and so the element of surprise
in an attack would be lost. Moreover,
were they liberated and their swords
in their hands, they would only be cut
down by the pirate crew after they had
taken some toll.</p>
<p>Señor Zorro wanted his own sword, but
did not know whether there would be time
for him to get possession of it. He would
not dare stop to attack the two guards, for
the other pirates would rush up and endanger
his chance for escape. It would be
far better, he decided quickly, to seize the
horse and ride with what speed he could
toward the distant village of San Diego de
Alcála, get help there at the <i lang="es">presidio</i>, and
return to the work of rescue with an armed
force behind him.</p>
<p>Back to the door he hurried.</p>
<p>“Audre!” he called, softly.</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Sí?</i>”</p>
<p>“Raise a din in there, create a bedlam
of a sort, and ’twill help me vastly. Pretend
to be fighting among yourselves.”</p>
<p>He did not have very long to wait. He
could hear Don Audre Ruiz whispering instructions
to the other <i lang="es">caballeros</i>, and almost
instantly they began shrieking at one
another, pounding on the heavy door, making
a bedlam of noise. Señor Zorro hurried
across to the outside window and called to
the guards before the hut.</p>
<p>“Come here!” he shouted. “The prisoners
are fighting and slaying one another!”</p>
<p>But they refused to leave their posts, as
Señor Zorro had hoped they would do.
Instead, they shrieked the news at Barbados,
who was not far away, and he ran
toward the adobe building followed by Sanchez
and half a dozen of the men. They
unbarred the door and burst in upon Señor
Zorro, who stood back against the wall gazing
at the door of the adjoining room, as
though trying to decide what was taking
place inside. From the other side of that
door came shrieks and cries and the sounds
of blows.</p>
<p>“Fiends of hell!” Barbados swore.
“They will slay one another, and then
there will be neither torture nor ransom!
Unfasten that door and stand ready to
drive them back if they try to make an
escape. And two of you guard that outside
door also!”</p>
<p>One glance he flung at Señor Zorro, to
find him standing against the wall as if his
attention were concentrated on the other
room. But as Barbados turned toward the
door again Señor Zorro shifted along the
wall for a distance of a few feet, and
glanced toward the door through which he
would have to go to freedom.</p>
<p>He waited until the other door was about
to be thrown open, until the pirates in the
room had their attention centered there,
and then Señor Zorro dropped the severed
cords from his wrists, wriggled his fingers
for an instant to restore the circulation of
blood, and suddenly brought his hands
around in front of him and tore the dagger
from his sash, where the little <i lang="es">señorita</i> had
put it.</p>
<p>Forward he hurled himself, just as the
other door was opened. He took the two
men before him by surprise. One he hurled
aside; the other he was forced to wound
slightly to get him out of the way. Past
them he dashed, even as they shrieked the
intelligence that he was escaping. Out into
the open he darted and straight toward the
horse that Sanchez had ridden into the
clearing. He would have no difficulty in
getting to the horse, he saw. But his escape
was all that he could negotiate. A
glance told him that the <i lang="es">señorita</i> was not
in sight, and he had no time to search the
entire camp for her.</p>
<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_76"></a>[76]</span></p>
<p>The pirates were rushing toward him
from every side, attracted by the tumult.
Barbados, behind him, was shrieking commands
and foul oaths. The dagger held
between his teeth, Señor Zorro dodged the
two men before the hut and vaulted into
the saddle, kicked at the animal’s flanks,
and was away.</p>
<p>Behind him a pistol barked, but the ball
flew wild, and he could hear the insane
roar of rage that Barbados gave because he
had missed the target. It was a flying
target now. Señor Zorro bent low over the
horse’s neck and kicked frantically at the
animal’s flanks again. Straight across the
clearing he guided the animal, toward the
trail that ran to the crest of the slope.</p>
<p>Another pistol roared behind him, but he
did not even hear the shrill whistling of the
flying ball. He wished that he might make
a search for the <i lang="es">señorita</i>, but he was afraid
that capture might result if he tried it.
And were he captured again Barbados
would make short work of him. It were
better to get away free and return later to
rescue.</p>
<p>He was approaching the edge of the camp
now. He knew that there were some mounts
with saddles and bridles on, and that there
might be a pursuit. Once over the crest, he
would have a chance. The pirates would
not dare follow him too close to San Diego
de Alcála, and that was only eight miles
away.</p>
<p>And then he saw, just ahead of him,
Captain Ramón. The <i lang="es">commandante</i> was
drinking from a bottle and talking to some
women of the camp. He whirled around
when he heard the mad pounding of the
horse’s hoofs, and Señor Zorro saw his face
go white as he struggled to get his sword
from its scabbard. The <i lang="es">commandante</i> had
recognized him.</p>
<p>The women shrieked and fled. Captain
Ramón, his sword out, stood his ground.
Straight toward him Señor Zorro raced his
horse, bending forward, his dagger held in
his right hand again. Now he wished he
had his beloved sword!</p>
<p>But Ramón sprang out of the way just
in time and swung his blade in a vicious
blow. It missed Señor Zorro and struck
the horse on the rump, inflicting a minor
cut. It had the effect, however, of frightening
the animal more. Up the slope he
raced, and Señor Zorro sat straight in the
saddle and shrieked at the top of his voice:</p>
<div class="poetry">
<div class="stanza">
<div class="verse indent0">“<i lang="es">Atención!</i> A <i lang="es">caballero’s</i> near—”</div>
</div>
</div>
<p>It was not merely in a spirit of
bravado. It was to let the little <i lang="es">señorita</i>
know, if she did not already, that
he was free and riding wildly for help.</p>
<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
<div class="chapter">
<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XXV">CHAPTER XXV.<br>
<small>AT THE PRESIDIO.</small></h2>
</div>
<p class="cap">In that instant, as he watched the singing
Zorro racing up the slope toward the
crest, Captain Ramón realized that his
future was hanging by a very thin thread.
Were he to protect his own interests he
must move swiftly.</p>
<p>He sensed that Señor Zorro would make
a mad ride for San Diego de Alcála and
pour a story into the ear of the <i lang="es">commandante</i>
of the <i lang="es">presidio</i> there. And it was
highly imperative that Captain Ramón tell
a far better story—and tell it first.</p>
<p>Ramón managed to return his sword to
its scabbard, and then he raced with what
speed he could toward Barbados and the
others, who were following lurchingly in
Señor Zorro’s wake. He grasped Barbados
by an arm and hurried him aside.</p>
<p>“What happened?” the <i lang="es">commandante</i>
demanded.</p>
<p>“The fellow tricked us in some fashion!”
Barbados declared with an oath. “His
hands were untied, and he had a dagger.
If that pretty wench we let speak with
him—”</p>
<p>“Attend me!” Ramón cried. “The
wench is under guard in one of the huts,
and is not to be touched. Get me a horse.
Be quick about it! The fool is riding to
San Diego for troopers!”</p>
<p>“Ha! Let them come!”</p>
<p>“I must get to the <i lang="es">presidio</i> before he
arrives,” Captain Ramón explained. “The
lieutenant there will take orders from me.
Then I’ll lead the troopers into your ambush,
as we had planned. And this
Zorro—”</p>
<p>“Ha! This Zorro!” Barbados cried.<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_77"></a>[77]</span>
“When I have my hands upon him again
there’ll be no delay.”</p>
<p>“I’ll have him imprisoned in the <i lang="es">presidio</i>,”
the captain promised. “Then,
after you defeat the soldiers, and when you
go to loot the town, he will be at your
mercy.”</p>
<p>“You think of everything!” Barbados
declared. “I say it yet once again—you
should be a pirate!”</p>
<p>One of the men, understanding more than
his fellows, had fetched the captain’s own
horse, with saddle and bridle on. The captain
sprang into the saddle.</p>
<p>“Arrange the ambush at the head of the
cañon, as we planned,” he told Barbados.
“Do it without delay. I’ll lead the troopers
straight into the trap.”</p>
<p>Then he touched spurs to the animal he
bestrode and dashed up the slope in the
wake of Señor Zorro.</p>
<p>Captain Ramón was an excellent horseman,
and he rode an excellent mount.
Moreover, he had been through every mile
of that country with his troopers some time
before. He knew the shortest route to the
<i lang="es">presidio</i> at San Diego de Alcála, and he felt
quite sure that Señor Zorro did not.</p>
<p>Reaching the crest of the slope, Captain
Ramón stopped his horse beneath the trees
and watched and listened for a time. From
the distance there came to his ears the
drumming of a horse’s hoofs. As he had
expected, Señor Zorro had ridden along the
bottom of the cañon, and Captain Ramón
knew that such a course would take him
at least two miles out of his way. Once
in that cañon, a horseman was forced to
follow it until he came to the other end.</p>
<p>Captain Ramón turned his horse’s head
in another direction and drove home the
spurs. He rode around a hill and emerged
upon a flat space, across which he raced
toward a row of foothills in the distance.
Señor Zorro had the start, but he was
taking the long way. Aside from an accident,
Captain Ramón could reach San
Diego de Alcála and have his story told
before Señor Zorro arrived.</p>
<p>The thing had to be done, he told himself.
He would use his authority and have
Zorro thrown into the guardroom at the
<i lang="es">presidio</i>. He would go back to the pirate
camp at the head of the troopers, see that
the pirates were wiped out to a man, release
the <i lang="es">caballeros</i> and the <i lang="es">señorita</i>.</p>
<p>And then there would be other things
to do. He would convince the authorities
that Señor Zorro had been allied with the
pirates and that the <i lang="es">caballeros</i> had not
known of it, and have Zorro hanged. He
would ask his friend, the Governor, to order
the <i lang="es">señorita</i> to wed with him because he
had saved her and wiped out the pirate
brood, and the <i lang="es">señorita</i> would be forced to
obey his excellency’s command. And he
would see to it that all men believed he had
been true and loyal continually.</p>
<p>If the <i lang="es">señorita</i> spoke out the truth Captain
Ramón could smile and say she uttered
a falsehood because she did not wish
to wed with him. He was guarded against
every emergency, he felt.</p>
<p>There was a mere possibility, of course,
that the pirates might be victorious, and in
such case Captain Ramón would pretend
that he had been with the rogues always,
turn pirate himself, and have the <i lang="es">señorita</i>.
But he preferred the other way.</p>
<p>He thought of these things as he rode.
Around another hill and down a slope he
rushed, and when he came to a wide trail
that ran toward the distant El Camino Real
he knew that he had distanced Señor Zorro.
Yet he rode furiously, for he wanted all
the time he could have at the <i lang="es">presidio</i> before
Zorro arrived.</p>
<p>And finally he reached the highway, and
tore along it like a mad horseman riding on
the wind. The mount beneath him was
showing signs of wearying, but the captain
urged him on. Now he was flying past natives’
huts scattered along the broad highway.
Children and chickens and swine
hurried from his path. Women came to
the doors of the huts to look after him
through clouds of dust.</p>
<p>Then he could see, in the distance, the
<i lang="es">presidio</i> on its little hill, and the group of
buildings around it. Captain Ramón urged
his horse cruelly. As he approached men
turned to watch him. Before the <i lang="es">presidio</i>
itself troopers sprang to their feet, as men
will when there is a feeling of excitement in
the air.</p>
<p>Captain Ramón stopped his horse in a<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_78"></a>[78]</span>
cloud of dust before the <i lang="es">presidio</i> entrance
and was out of the saddle before the nearest
trooper could seize the bridle. The
men saluted, but Captain Ramón spent no
time in answering their salutes. Drawing
off his gloves, he strode through the entrance
and straight toward the office of the
<i lang="es">commandante</i>.</p>
<p>He had lied nobly to Barbados. Instead
of their being a smaller force of soldiers
than usual at San Diego de Alcála, there
was an extra detachment, come to relieve
others who were to go toward the north.
But only a lieutenant was there by way of
officer, the real <i lang="es">commandante</i> being on a
journey to San Francisco de Asis to explain
certain things to the Governor.</p>
<p>Captain Ramón opened the office door
and strode inside, gasping his breath, slapping
the dust from his uniform. The lieutenant
sprang to his feet.</p>
<p>“Ramón!” he cried. “So far from
home—”</p>
<p>Captain Ramón stopped him with a gesture.</p>
<p>“Have your trumpeter sound the assembly,
and gather your men while we
talk!” he commanded. “This is serious—and
urgent!”</p>
<p>The lieutenant was a good soldier, and
did not question. He sprang to the door
and called an order, and almost immediately
the commanding notes of a trumpet rang
through the place. Then the lieutenant
closed the door and hurried back to the long
table in the middle of the room, before
which Ramón was sitting.</p>
<p>“Pirates within eight miles of you!”
Ramón declared. “They have a large
camp. Three nights ago they raided
Reina de Los Angeles.”</p>
<p>“The news has reached us.”</p>
<p>“Ha! I followed by land and approached
their rendezvous at an early hour
this morning. They abducted Señorita Lolita
Pulido. Some <i lang="es">caballeros</i> pursued them
by sea, fought, and were overcome. Many
are being held prisoners, for ransom and
torture. The <i lang="es">señorita</i> is a prisoner also.”</p>
<p>“Where?” the lieutenant asked.</p>
<p>“On the coast, a bit north. I lurked
about the camp and made some discoveries.
Señor Zorro is mixed up with them.”</p>
<p>“Zorro?” the lieutenant gasped.</p>
<p>“The same. His wild blood has broken
out again. The <i lang="es">señorita</i> is of the opinion
that he followed to rescue her, when in
reality he had her stolen. He was to have
married her, but is eager for lawlessness, it
appears. This will be the end of the
fiend!”</p>
<p>“Ha!” the lieutenant gasped. “If—”</p>
<p>“Attend!” Ramón interrupted. “I overheard
a plot. Zorro is to ride here wildly
and tell of the <i lang="es">señorita</i> and the <i lang="es">caballeros</i>
being held by the pirates. It is his intention
to lead back the troopers—and lead
them into an ambush.”</p>
<p>“By the saints—”</p>
<p>“So the pirates will wipe out your men.
And then San Diego de Alcála, unprotected,
will be before him!”</p>
<p>“The fiend!” the lieutenant gasped.</p>
<p>“Call half a dozen of your trusted men
and have them ready. When he enters and
begins his story have him seized. Throw
him into the guardroom and put him into
the maniac’s shirt. Then I’ll help you lead
the troopers. I know how the ambush is
planned. We’ll attack in the rear, save the
<i lang="es">caballeros</i>, and rescue the <i lang="es">señorita</i>—and
gain considerable credit. Promotion will
come to you!”</p>
<p>“It is agreed!” the lieutenant said, his
face beaming.</p>
<p>“Be quick about it. I’ll disappear while
Zorro tells his tale. Seize him, throw him
into the guardroom, put him into the maniac’s
shirt, leave two men to guard him.
When we return we’ll see that he is punished
for his perfidy. <i lang="es">Caballero</i> or not,
he’ll be hanged for this.”</p>
<p>The lieutenant sprang from his chair to
issue the necessary orders. But the door
was hurled open—and Señor Zorro rushed
into the officer’s room!</p>
<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
<div class="chapter">
<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XXVI">CHAPTER XXVI.<br>
<small>HELPLESSNESS.</small></h2>
</div>
<p class="cap">On the occasion of this meeting it was
Señor Zorro who was properly astonished
instead of his foe. Captain
Ramón had been the last person he
had seen at the pirates’ camp; he had ridden<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_79"></a>[79]</span>
at great speed, and yet here was the
<i lang="es">commandante</i> ahead of him at the <i lang="es">presidio</i>
in San Diego de Alcála.</p>
<p>But it did not take Señor Zorro long to
guess that the captain had taken advantage
of some short cut across the country and so
had arrived at the <i lang="es">presidio</i> first. And, since
he was here, Señor Zorro found himself in
something of a predicament.</p>
<p>For weapons he had only the short dagger
and his courage. The element of surprise
upon which he generally depended so
much was acting against him instead of
for him in this present encounter; but he
did not despair.</p>
<p>He took two quick steps forward, and
the dagger suddenly was in his right hand.
He glanced quickly at the lieutenant, who
had picked up his sword from the long table
and was drawing it from the scabbard,
and then whirled toward Captain Ramón,
who already had his sword ready for use.</p>
<p>“So!” Señor Zorro cried. “You got
here ahead of me, did you? Renegade and
traitor!”</p>
<p>“’Tis you who are the renegade and traitor!”
Captain Ramón declared. “Friend
of pirates!”</p>
<p>“Ha! So that is the tale you have
told?” Señor Zorro gasped. “Lieutenant,
I am Don Diego Vega, of Reina de Los
Angeles. Perhaps you have heard the
name?”</p>
<p>“The lieutenant also has heard of Señor
Zorro, and knows that he and Don Diego
Vega are one and the same man,” Captain
Ramón said before the other officer
could reply. Captain Ramón felt some
small degree of courage now, since Señor
Zorro had no weapon except his short
dagger.</p>
<p>“Ha! Who has not heard of Zorro?”
came the reply. “And it is not to be expected
that one of his excellency’s officers
would go far out of his regular way to do
Señor Zorro a service. Yet an officer will
serve his duty, and there are certain things
to be considered, lieutenant. In a pirate
camp a few miles from this place is a <i lang="es">señorita</i>
of proper blood and several <i lang="es">caballeros</i>
who must be rescued before they are tortured.
I have ridden here for help, having
made an escape.”</p>
<p>“Made your escape?” Captain Ramón
cried. “You came purposely with the story
to lead the soldiers into a trap, you mean.
Your story will avail you nothing, Señor
Zorro. The lieutenant already is planning
to ride to the rescue of his men. But you
will remain here, a prisoner in the guardroom,
in a maniac’s shirt—”</p>
<p>“Ha!” Señor Zorro shrieked. “Lieutenant,
make no mistake about it. This
Captain Ramón may outrank you, but he is
a traitor, and I would have all honest men
know it. He is in league with the pirates
himself.”</p>
<p>“You scarcely can expect me to believe
that,” the lieutenant replied, smiling.</p>
<p>“It is the truth, by the saints! He is
planning to lead your men into an ambush,
no doubt!”</p>
<p>“I think that we have had enough of
this nonsense, Don Diego!” the lieutenant
said, his official manner upon him.</p>
<p>“You believe Captain Ramón in preference
to me?”</p>
<p>“I do! You are to consider yourself a
prisoner, Don Diego. You’ll be held here
safe until the rescue has been accomplished,
and then there will be an investigation of
this entire affair.”</p>
<p>“It will not be necessary for you to keep
me a prisoner,” Señor Zorro replied, his
eyes narrowing. “Lead your own soldiers,
as you will, and be quick about it, and
do not listen to the advice of Captain
Ramón. The <i lang="es">señorita</i> who is held a captive
is my betrothed. Her name is Lolita
Pulido. At least allow me to remain free
to aid in her rescue.”</p>
<p>“I cannot forget that you are Señor
Zorro as well as Don Diego Vega, and that
the Pulido family does not have the friendship
of the Governor,” the lieutenant answered.
“Captain Ramón has preferred
a charge against you also. You remain in
the <i lang="es">presidio</i> a prisoner.”</p>
<p>The lieutenant picked up a silver whistle
from the table, and started to put it to his
lips to blow a blast that would call his orderly.
But Señor Zorro, it appeared, had
no intention of being kept a prisoner. He
glanced swiftly toward Captain Ramón
again, and then darted forward.</p>
<p>The lieutenant’s whistle was knocked<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_80"></a>[80]</span>
from his left hand, but Señor Zorro did not
succeed in getting possession of the officer’s
sword as he hurled him aside. He dashed
on to the wall, struck it and whirled away,
and came back with considerable momentum.
Captain Ramón had started toward
the door.</p>
<p>But as he put out a hand to pull the
door open Señor Zorro grasped a small stool
that stood at one end of the long table and
hurled it with precise aim. It struck the
captain’s arm and caused him to recoil with
a cry of pain.</p>
<p>The lieutenant was young, and enjoyed
the recklessness of his youth. He bellowed
his challenge and charged. Señor Zorro
caught his sword against the dagger and
warded off the blow. But, to do so, he
was compelled to give some ground, and so
Captain Ramón got to the door and
opened it.</p>
<p>“Troopers!” he cried. “Help! This
way! Your <i lang="es">commandante</i> is attacked!”</p>
<p>Señor Zorro fenced the lieutenant for a
moment, but he knew well that he could not
do so for long with any great degree of
success. And suddenly he dropped to his
knees, and the lieutenant, lunging with his
blade, tripped over him and sprawled on
the floor. Zorro was upon his feet again
before Captain Ramón could reach his side.
Again he whirled, and Captain Ramón recoiled
against the wall, his sword advanced,
his left arm stretched out across a wood
panel.</p>
<p>Señor Zorro did not care to encounter
the long blade with his dagger; besides, he
heard the soldiers coming. His arm flashed,
and the dagger flew through the air.
Through the sleeve of Captain Ramón’s
uniform coat went the sharp blade, to be
driven almost to the hilt in the wood beyond.
The captain was held safely for the
moment.</p>
<p>There was one large window in the officer’s
room, and it was swinging open.
Zorro dashed for it, reached it, sprang up
as the wondering troopers rushed in through
the door. Through the window Señor Zorro
plunged, sprawled on the ground for an instant,
and then was upon his feet again
and running with renewed vigor toward the
front of the building.</p>
<p>But disaster waited for him there. The
horse he had ridden had been jaded, and
a soldier had taken the mount to the rear
to rub it down. Zorro found his horse
gone, and that of Captain Ramón also.
The troopers in front of the <i lang="es">presidio</i> were in
their saddles. And they surrounded the
unmounted horses of those who had rushed
inside in answer to the captain’s call.</p>
<p>Señor Zorro turned immediately to flee.
But the shrieks from inside the <i lang="es">presidio</i>
told the troopers what was happening.
They forced their mounts forward, ran
Señor Zorro down, cut off his flight, and
surrounded him. For a moment there was
a pretty battle; but the troopers did not
strike to slay, not understanding, quite, the
status of this man who seemed to have run
amuck. However, they prevented an escape.</p>
<p>The lieutenant shrieked from the window,
demanding an immediate capture.
Señor Zorro made one last attempt to escape.
He darted beneath the belly of a
horse, got outside the circle of troopers,
and dashed away. He reached the corner
of the low building and went up it as a
fly goes up a wall, using the rough masonry
of the corner as stepping-stones.</p>
<p>Across the roof he darted, while the soldiers
urged their horses forward again in
an effort to surround the building. Down
the other side of the roof he ran, skipping
across the Spanish tiles until he reached the
eaves.</p>
<p>Below him was his horse, and the hostler
was wiping one of the animal’s forelegs.
Señor Zorro did not hesitate. He
crouched and sprang, and landed in the
saddle. The hostler rolled to one side in
fright as the animal lurched forward.</p>
<p>Señor Zorro whirled the beast toward the
highway. But he saw at a glance that there
was small chance of escape. The mount
he bestrode was almost exhausted, and the
troopers had fresh mounts. And they were
upon him with a rush.</p>
<p>Weaponless, he could do nothing. They
charged around him, pulled him down from
the saddle, made him prisoner, and then
marched him back to the entrance of the
<i lang="es">presidio</i>, where the lieutenant and Captain
Ramón were waiting.</p>
<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_81"></a>[81]</span></p>
<p>“The maniac’s shirt for him!” the lieutenant
commanded. “Put him into it and
then into the guardroom. Two men will
remain behind to see that he does not escape.
But I scarcely think that even Señor
Zorro can escape the maniac’s shirt!”</p>
<p>“Put me in it, and I hold it against
you!” Zorro warned.</p>
<p>“I have given my orders,” the lieutenant
replied loftily.</p>
<p>“One last word for your ear!” Zorro
said. “You are making a sad mistake. I
tell you here and now, before some of your
men, that this Captain Ramón is a renegade
and a traitor. Heed not his advice!
And ride swiftly, else you’ll not accomplish
the rescue. I charge you to take the <i lang="es">señorita</i>
to a place of safety.”</p>
<p>“Certainly, <i lang="es">señor</i>!”</p>
<p>“You’ll not let me ride with you?”</p>
<p>“I have given my orders.”</p>
<p>“Lieutenant, I swear by my honor as a
<i lang="es">caballero</i> that all I have told you is the
truth. Does that carry weight with you?”</p>
<p>It seemed to carry weight, for the officer
hesitated. A <i lang="es">caballero</i> does not pledge
his honor lightly. But how could it be
possible that an officer like Captain Ramón
could be anything but loyal and true. And
Captain Ramón himself decided the lieutenant.</p>
<p>“For a <i lang="es">caballero</i> to swear by his honor
is a great thing,” the captain said. “Yet
now and then we find a man of <i lang="es">caballero</i>
blood who forgets the honor that should be
his. And we remember that you are Señor
Zorro, also!”</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Señor—</i>” Zorro began angrily.</p>
<p>But the lieutenant cut him short. “I
have decided,” he said. “You will be held
a prisoner in the maniac’s shirt until we
return. Take him away!”</p>
<p>The soldiers grasped him roughly, hurried
him inside and to the guardroom.
There, Señor Zorro tried to fight again, but
could accomplish nothing against so many
foes. They lashed his ankles and knees
and tied his wrists together in front of him.
And then one fetched the maniac’s shirt.
The latter was exactly what it was named,
an instrument used on violent maniacs to
prevent them harming themselves or anybody
else. It was a long bag of leather,
constructed so that a man could be slipped
into it bound, and the top of the bag then
gathered around his neck with a leather
thong.</p>
<p>Protesting to the last, Señor Zorro was
put inside the leather bag and the neck
thong tightened. And then they propped
him up on a bench in a corner, and left the
room. The door closed; he heard the bar
go up against it.</p>
<p>The soldiers hurried away. There was a
moment of silence. And then Señor Zorro
heard the clattering of horses’ hoofs as they
rode toward the highway. And he was left
behind, bound and helpless, in the guardroom
of the <i lang="es">presidio</i>, in the maniac’s shirt,
and with two troopers just outside the door.</p>
<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
<div class="chapter">
<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_82"></a>[82]</span></p>
<figure class="figcenter" id="i_part6">
<img src="images/i_part6.jpg" alt="" title="">
<figcaption class="caption">
<p class="noic">The Further Adventures of Zorro, Part VI</p>
</figcaption>
</figure>
</div>
<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
<div class="chapter">
<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XXVII">CHAPTER XXVII.<br>
<small>FRAY FELIPE USES HIS WIT.</small></h2>
</div>
<p class="cap">Barbados, who had been drinking
heavily of the rich, stolen wine since
the culmination of the fight with the
<i lang="es">caballeros</i> and the crew of the trading
schooner, had reached the stage where he
was surly, mean, dangerous. The sensational
escape of Señor Zorro had been as oil
poured upon flames with the pirate chief.
He roared and cursed like a fiend after
Captain Ramón had ridden away in pursuit,
cuffed some of his men out of the way,
and then stood with his fists planted against
his hips, his feet wide apart, a black look
in his face, his tiny eyes glittering ominously
as he glanced toward the adobe building<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_83"></a>[83]</span>
wherein the <i lang="es">caballero</i> prisoners were quartered.</p>
<p>Sanchez and the others who knew Barbados
best had been busy keeping out of
his way and so escaping trouble, but now
Barbados bellowed loudly for his lieutenant,
and Sanchez was forced to disclose himself.
He approached his chief warily, ready
to turn and run if Barbados was in a belligerent
mood; but he saw at a glance that
what wrath Barbados was enjoying was
not directed toward his second in command.</p>
<p>“Sanchez! Fiend of the fiends!” he
shouted. “By my naked blade, it is in
my mind that we are growing weary because
of the lack of sport.”</p>
<p>“Then we must have sport,” Sanchez
said. “If you’ve anything to suggest—”</p>
<p>“We have prisoners,” Barbados remarked,
licking his thick lips, “and it is
possible that a little torture would not be
amiss. Say, roasting at the stake for one
of those high-born <i lang="es">caballeros</i> whose blood is
gentle.”</p>
<p>“Ha!” Sanchez grunted. “It is an excellent
idea—if we draw out the man’s
agony.”</p>
<p>“The drawing out of his agony can be
accomplished without a great deal of trouble,”
Barbados declared. “We’ll make him
squirm and squeal.”</p>
<p>“But there is an ambush to be prepared
for the soldiers,” Sanchez suggested.</p>
<p>“There will be ample time for that at
a later hour,” replied the pirate chief. “It
will take some time for those troopers to
gallop out here from San Diego de Alcála.
We can fight better if we have more wine
to drink and some sort of sport to watch
before giving battle.”</p>
<p>“And which of the <i lang="es">caballeros</i> shall be
roasted?” Sanchez wanted to know. “All
of them are valuable men from the standpoint
of ransom.”</p>
<p>“Ha! One can be spared,” said Barbados.
“Not a man in that adobe but has
very rich relatives. What sum we lose from
the one we roast we can fasten on the others.
We’ll force them to gamble and decide
the victim themselves. That is a happy
thought. Come with me and fetch half a
dozen trusted men along.”</p>
<p>Barbados, having arrived at a decision,
started straight for the adobe building as
Sanchez shouted to some of the men nearest.
The pirate chief unfastened the outer
door and entered with the others at his
heels. Then he unlocked the inner door
and threw it open.</p>
<p>The <i lang="es">caballeros</i> were sprawled around the
room, talking to one another in low tones,
and they turned and looked at Barbados
as he stood before them, much as men
might have looked at an intruder. Scorn
was in every face, and the pirate chief was
quick to notice it.</p>
<p>“So you raised a din and attracted our
attention, and thus aided this Señor Zorro
to escape!” Barbados accused. “It is in
my mind that there must be some punishment
for that.”</p>
<p>The <i lang="es">caballeros</i> turned from him again
and began talking to one another once
more as though Barbados had not addressed
them. He growled a curse low down in
his throat and took another step toward
them, glaring ferociously.</p>
<p>“I have here a pack of cards properly
shuffled,” Barbados said, his glare changing
to a fiendish grin. “I’ll put them on this
bench, and you prisoners will form into a
line, walk past the bench, and each draw
a card. The man who draws the first deuce
will be the victim.”</p>
<p>“Victim of what?” one asked.</p>
<p>“Of torture!” Barbados roared. “The
stake! Roasting! My men demand sport,
and I am the one to give it to them. It is
an even thing for you—the gods of chance
will decide.”</p>
<p>“And suppose, <i lang="es">señor</i>,” said Don Audre
Ruiz, stepping forward with a great deal of
sarcasm and scorn in his manner, “that we
do not care to play your game?”</p>
<p>“Ha! The solution of the difficulty is
easy if you do not,” Barbados assured him.
“In such case, since you seem to be the
leader here, we’ll torture you and thereafter
two others picked out at random.”</p>
<p>“Death is close behind you, pirate, if
you do this thing!” Don Audre warned.</p>
<p>“But you will not be here to see it if
you are roasted first,” the pirate chief reminded
him. “Line up, prisoners! Do
<i lang="es">caballeros</i> shake with fear at such a time?”</p>
<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_84"></a>[84]</span></p>
<p>Don Audre Ruiz took another step forward
and sneered in the face of Barbados.
“<i lang="es">Caballeros</i> are not aware of the existence
of such a thing as fear!” he declared. “If
there is no other way, put down your pack
of cards. But if you have courage and the
spirit of fair play, let me fight it out with
any two of your crew of fiends—a dagger
against long blades.”</p>
<p>“Do I resemble a fool?” Barbados requested
to know. “Have I but half a
mind? Run a needless chance when we
have you powerless already? Ha! A
<i lang="es">caballero</i> might do such a fool thing, but I
am not a <i lang="es">caballero</i>.”</p>
<p>“A blind man could see that,” Don
Audre retorted.</p>
<p>“Ha! More of your insults and I’ll
roast the lot of you! Line up! Here are
the cards.”</p>
<p>Barbados put the greasy pack down on
the end of the bench and stood back, folding
his great arms across his chest. Don
Audre Ruiz glanced around at his comrades,
and they began forming the line.
Sergeant Gonzales, feeling a bit out of
place, dropped back to the end. And then
the line moved forward, and the first man
turned a card and saw that it was a ten,
and passed on.</p>
<p>One by one they advanced to the bench,
picked up a card, showed it to Barbados,
and moved forward again, playing with
death, but with inscrutable faces.</p>
<p>“Ha!” the pirate chief cried. “Fortunate
<i lang="es">caballeros</i>, eh? But one of you must
draw a deuce soon. And then my men will
have rare sport. We’ll see whether a
<i lang="es">caballero</i> of gentle blood will squeal and
squirm when the hot flames lick at him.
We’ll let the women torment him first, and
the children! Well— Ha!”</p>
<p>Barbados suddenly bent forward, an evil
smile upon his face. Don Audre had
reached the bench and had turned over his
card—the deuce of spades!</p>
<p>Don Audre drew in his breath sharply,
but his face gave never a sign of emotion.
The others crowded forward.</p>
<p>“Ha!” Barbados shrieked. “It is well
done and appropriate! You are their
leader, <i lang="es">señor</i>, and possibly will set them an
example how to die. For you we will make
the fire hotter and the torment longer.
We’ll see how long you can live.”</p>
<p>“He’ll flinch quick enough!” Sanchez
cried, grinning.</p>
<p>Don Audre Ruiz tossed the card away
and dusted his hands as though the bit of
pasteboard had soiled them. Then he
raised his head proudly and looked Barbados
straight in the eyes.</p>
<p>“How soon?” Don Audre Ruiz asked.</p>
<p>“How soon, <i lang="es">caballero</i>? Now, at once,
and immediately! My men crave sport!”
Barbados cried. “And while they listen
to your shrieks and pleas for mercy they
can drink some rich wine we took from
Reina de Los Angeles.”</p>
<p>“Are you human man enough to let me
have speech with Fray Felipe before I die?”
Don Audre asked.</p>
<p>“Want to pray with him, do you?”
Barbados sneered. “I’ll have him at the
stake for you. You can pray through the
smoke.”</p>
<p>There was a sudden jostling in the
crowd, and Sergeant Gonzales shouldered
his way to the front.</p>
<p>“Foul pirate!” said he. “Murderer and
fiend, let me make a deal!”</p>
<p>“What is this?” Barbados asked.</p>
<p>“I am a bigger man than the <i lang="es">caballero</i>
here, and fatter men roast better. Also,
I wear the uniform of the Governor, and
you hate such uniforms. I’m twice the
coward that Don Ruiz is. I’d squirm and
squeal twice as much. Ha! Would it not
be better sport to roast me at the stake?”</p>
<p>“You want to die for him?” Barbados
asked.</p>
<p>“I offer myself in his place, since your
fiends must be amused. I did not get a
chance to draw a card, or surely I’d have
drawn a deuce.”</p>
<p>Don Audre put his hand on the sergeant’s
arm.</p>
<p>“This is useless, my friend,” he said.</p>
<p>“Not so!” Sergeant Gonzales declared.
“You are a fine man of parts, Don Audre
Ruiz, and really amount to something in
the world. And I am but a big pig. There
are many better men who can fill my place.”</p>
<p>“Whatever your birth and station, you
are now, in my estimation, a <i lang="es">caballero</i> and
a brave man,” Don Audre said.</p>
<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_85"></a>[85]</span></p>
<p>Barbados roared his laughter.</p>
<p>“A hero!” he sneered. “I cannot let
you take the <i lang="es">caballero’s</i> place, fool soldier,
but, since you wish to be roasted, your
wish is granted. We’ll roast you later,
when we have need of more sport. These
other <i lang="es">caballeros</i> will be ransomed, but there
is nobody in the world who would ransom
you for as much as a bottle of thin wine.”</p>
<p>“That is true, fiend of hell!” Sergeant
Gonzales said.</p>
<p>“But it is not true!” Don Audre Ruiz
cried, his face lighting. He whirled to
confront the other <i lang="es">caballeros</i>. “Friends,
promise me this last request—have your
people make up a purse and ransom this
soldier,” he said. “He has been the friend
of Don Diego Vega for years. We used
to smile at that peculiar friendship, but
now I can understand. The sergeant, also,
is a man of parts, and Don Diego realized
it while we were blind. A last handshake,
and then—”</p>
<p>They surged toward him, and Barbados
and his men stepped back to the door and
waited. There was an evil grin on the face
of the pirate chief again. The gods of
chance were working in his favor, he felt,
when they had delivered this <i lang="es">caballero</i> into
his hands for his evil purposes.</p>
<p>“Come, <i lang="es">señor</i>!” he ordered. “It is not
gentlemanly to keep my men waiting long
for their fun.”</p>
<p>Don Audre Ruiz shook the hands of his
friends for the last time and turned away.
They led him out and closed and barred
the door again. They conducted him through
the front room and into the open, first
binding his hands behind his back.</p>
<p>“If you are a human being, let me see
Fray Felipe,” Don Audre said.</p>
<p>“I’ll have him beside the stake,” Barbados
promised. “He can mumble over you
all he likes.”</p>
<p>Some of the pirates were shouting the
news of what was to occur. Men came
running from every direction, shouting and
laughing and waving bottles, determined
to see how a <i lang="es">caballero</i> could die. Women
and children hurried from their huts.</p>
<p>The stake was ready, for it often had
been used before, both for prisoners and
pirates. It was a favorite method Barbados
had of punishing traitors and those
he deemed guilty of breaking some of the
many laws he laid down. It stood near the
sea, a long metal bar upright in the soil,
the débris of many fires scattered around it
and half buried in the shifting sand.</p>
<p>Already some of the men were hurrying
toward the stake with fuel. The women
and children were shrieking insults at the
condemned man. But Don Audre Ruiz
held his head proudly, and his lips were
curled in scorn. Only the unusual pallor
in his face told that there was a tumult of
emotions within his breast.</p>
<p>They lashed him to the stake and made
his body fast there with ropes and leather
thongs. One chain they wrapped around
him to hold him fast after the ropes had
been burned away. Women spat at him,
children hurled at him small stones and
scoops of sand. The pirates danced around
him like savages, waving wine bottles and
brandishing their cutlasses.</p>
<p>“So you think that you will not squirm
and squeal, eh?” Barbados taunted. “In
a very few minutes we’ll learn the truth
concerning that.”</p>
<p>“You promised me the <i lang="es">fray</i>,” Don Audre
Ruiz replied. “But I did not think that
a pirate could keep his given word.”</p>
<p>“Ha! I’ll show you that I can play at
having gentle blood!” Barbados laughed.
“Matter of honor, eh? The <i lang="es">fray</i>! Fetch
me the old <i lang="es">fray</i>, some of you!”</p>
<p>The dancing and drinking was continued,
and more fuel was heaped around the
stake and its victim. A few feet distant
stood a man with a flaming torch. Barbados,
his arms folded across his chest, stood
waiting to give the word. And after a time
old Fray Felipe thrust his way among them
and reached the side of the pirate chief.</p>
<p>“What is this that you would do?” he
demanded.</p>
<p>“We intend to broil this <i lang="es">caballero</i> until
he is done properly,” Barbados replied.
“Being a pious soul, he has need of a
priest before he dies. So we have sent for
you.”</p>
<p>Fray Felipe knew that there was small
chance for an argument here. Ordinarily
Barbados was exceedingly superstitious
where a man of the church was concerned,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_86"></a>[86]</span>
but now wine had given him a false courage.
If Fray Felipe saved Don Audre Ruiz
now it would not be through an appeal to
the heart of Barbados.</p>
<p>And so Fray Felipe did a peculiar thing—a
thing that startled them all, and Don
Audre most of all. He threw back his gray
head and laughed.</p>
<p>Barbados blinked his eyes rapidly, and
Sanchez swore softly beneath his breath.
Had the <i lang="es">fray</i> gone insane suddenly? Were
his wits wandering? It was a horrible thing
to see an old <i lang="es">fray</i> laugh like that.</p>
<p>“So it is as I suspected,” Fray Felipe
declared. “I had thought for a moment,
Barbados, that you were a pirate leader in
truth, a general with brains. But you play
the boy.”</p>
<p>“How is this?” Barbados cried.</p>
<p>“Traitors play with you, and you walk
into traps. You and your fiends spend time
at such cruel sports as this while your enemies
are preparing to annihilate you—”</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Fray</i>, what is your meaning?”</p>
<p>“Are you blind?” Fray Felipe asked.
“Are you an utter and simple fool? You
have put your confidence and trust in this
Captain Ramón. And at this moment he
is riding back from San Diego de Alcála at
the head of the troopers, perhaps.”</p>
<p>“Ha! I know it, <i lang="es">fray</i>. He is leading
the soldiers into an ambush!”</p>
<p>“So you are such an easy dupe!” Fray
Felipe said. “I know his plans, and so does
the little <i lang="es">señorita</i>. You will form your ambush
at the head of the cañon. And he
will lead the troopers around it, attack you
in the rear, cut you off from your camp,
and annihilate you. By doing that he’ll
save his face and gain favor with decent
men and women and with the Governor.
He’ll claim that he saved the <i lang="es">señorita</i>, and
ask her in marriage, get her for a bride
without cutting himself off forever from
honest men. A man who can be traitor to
one cause, Señor Pirate, can be traitor to
another.”</p>
<p>“Lies!” Barbados thundered.</p>
<p>“They are not lies!” Fray Felipe declared.
“And you are playing here when
you should be preparing for the battle.
Easy victims you’ll be for the troopers!”</p>
<p>Barbados seemed to hesitate. There was
a quality in the <i lang="es">fray’s</i> words and bearing
that indicated truth. Then there came a
woman’s screech, and Inez thrust herself
forward.</p>
<p>“The old <i lang="es">fray</i> speaks the truth!” she
declared. “I overheard the <i lang="es">commandante</i>
talking to the <i lang="es">señorita</i>. He told her that
he was tricking you.”</p>
<p>“By my naked blade!” Barbados swore.</p>
<p>“He is doubly a traitor!” the woman
screeched. “I would not trust him.
Make ready to fight the soldiers. Do not
be caught in a trap. The man at the stake
can wait. It will not hurt him to be bound
there and meditate for a time.”</p>
<p>Barbados suddenly seemed convinced.
He began shouting his commands, and Sanchez
echoed them as usual.</p>
<p>Men also ran to get horses and weapons.</p>
<p>“Catch me in a trap, eh?” Barbados
cried. “I can arrange a trap myself, and
not in the cañon!”</p>
<p>He rushed away, shrieking more orders.
Don Audre Ruiz, fastened to the stake, was
forgotten for the moment. Fray Felipe approached
him.</p>
<p>“It was the only way, <i lang="es">caballero</i>,” the
gentle <i lang="es">fray</i> said. “It would have been far
better to have let the traitor wipe out these
rogues entirely, but I had to save your life.
And the soldiers will triumph when they
come. Right is on their side and fights with
them. Also Señor Zorro is at liberty!”</p>
<p>“Loose me, fray!”</p>
<p>“I cannot, <i lang="es">señor</i>. There is one chain
that is too strong for me. But they have
forgotten you now. I’ll search for some
tool with which I can remove the chain.
The ropes and the leather thongs will be
easy.”</p>
<p>Fray Felipe bowed his head and shuffled
away. Don Audre Ruiz remained lashed to
the stake.</p>
<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
<div class="chapter">
<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XXVIII">CHAPTER XXVIII.<br>
<small>UNEXPECTED HELP.</small></h2>
</div>
<p class="cap">Left behind helpless in the guard room
of the <i lang="es">presidio</i>, Señor Zorro fought to
control his emotions, telling himself
that he could think out no proper line of
action while his brain was in sad tumult.</p>
<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_87"></a>[87]</span></p>
<p>His case seemed hopeless. He was unable
to make an escape, and Captain Ramón
was leading the troopers against the
pirates. Señor Zorro began wondering
whether his good fortune had deserted him
entirely. The <i lang="es">señorita</i> was in grave peril,
and also his friends the <i lang="es">caballeros</i>, and he
could do nothing.</p>
<p>But there was a certain outside influence
at work regarding which Señor Zorro knew
nothing, an influence caused by his just acts
when, as Zorro, he had ridden up and down
El Camino Real righting the wrongs inflicted
on <i lang="es">frailes</i> and natives.</p>
<p>The native fisherman had guided him to
the vicinity of the pirates’ camp before
dawn, and then had disappeared. Señor
Zorro did not wonder at that, since it was
commendable in the native to save his own
skin.</p>
<p>The fisherman, however, had continued
across the hills to San Diego de Alcála to
pay a visit to relatives and friends. There
he waited impatiently, anticipating news of
a fight at the pirates’ camp. And, because
he admired uniforms, though they inspired
fear in him as well as admiration, he drifted
near the <i lang="es">presidio</i>.</p>
<p>He was in time to behold the arrival of
Captain Ramón, and later of Señor Zorro.
After a time, he saw Señor Zorro’s attempt
at escape, and watched the troopers gallop
away. And then, by loitering near the
<i lang="es">presidio</i>, he ascertained something of the
truth—that Señor Zorro was being held a
prisoner in the maniac’s shirt and would be
dealt with at some future time.</p>
<p>The native wandered around the huts of
the village, doing more genuine thinking
than ever before in his life. He remembered
how Señor Zorro, a long time before,
had saved his father. He was a neophyte
native, and he remembered, also, how Señor
Zorro had fought for the <i lang="es">frailes</i> when they
were being persecuted.</p>
<p>The native fisherman did not have to
think long on the subject before arriving at
a conclusion. Having done so, he went to
the hut of a cousin and begged a bottle of
palm wine, potent stuff that could make a
man mad.</p>
<p>He took a good drink of the palm wine
and slipped away, carrying the bottle. He
had a short, sharp knife that he used for
the cleaning of fish, and he took this out
and inspected it, and then hid it beneath
his ragged shirt and in an armpit, fastening
it there cleverly with a bit of rag.</p>
<p>Having made these preparations, the native
fisherman drank more of the wine and
gathered false courage. He spilled some of
the liquor on his sorry clothes, so that its
well-known odor mingled with that of fish.
And then he approached the <i lang="es">presidio</i> again.</p>
<p>One of the two troopers remaining was
sitting before the main door, and the other,
supposedly, was in the corridor outside the
guard room, where his duty called him.
The native fisherman went close to the man
before the door and regarded him evilly.
He held up the bottle and guzzled more of
the palm wine. The trooper looked up and
saw him.</p>
<p>“Dog of a savage!” he cried. “Know
you not that it is against the laws and the
wishes of his excellency for natives to
drink the stuff?”</p>
<p>The native blinked his eyes at him.
“May the devil take the laws,” said he,
boldly, “and his excellency also!”</p>
<p>“What words are these?” the soldier
cried, getting to his feet.</p>
<p>“Every man who wears a uniform is a
rascal and a thief!”</p>
<p>“This to me? A dog of a native speaks
so to one of the soldiers of the Governor?”</p>
<p>“If the Governor was here,” said the
native, “I’d throw this drink in his face!
And if you trouble me more, I’ll throw it
in yours!”</p>
<p>“Ha! In that case—”</p>
<p>“For you dare not put me in the guard
room!” the native declared. “I have too
many friends.”</p>
<p>The trooper exploded and rushed forward.
“Low-born dog!” he shrieked. He
caught the native and cuffed him, and instead
of taking the blows calmly, the native
fought back. It was too much!</p>
<p>“Into the guard room you go!” the soldier
shouted. “And when the <i lang="es">commandante</i>
returns he probably will order you
whipped. And I’ll wield the lash! Give me
that bottle!”</p>
<p>The trooper took the bottle and sat it
down carefully, having noticed that it was<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_88"></a>[88]</span>
half full, then hustled the native inside and
along the corridor to the door of the guard
room. The other soldier looked up questioningly.</p>
<p>“This dog has been drinking palm wine
and making remarks about his excellency!”
the first soldier said. “Throw him
into the guard house. He is fit company
for Señor Zorro!”</p>
<p>The door was opened, the native was
hurled inside, and the door was closed and
barred again. The two soldiers peered
through the small aperture in it. They
saw the native pick himself up and look
around as though dazed.</p>
<p>“Ha!” one of the troopers cried. “He
will wonder what it is all about before
morning. That palm wine is dangerous
stuff.”</p>
<p>“And I took half a bottle of it from
the dog before we put him in,” the other
whispered.</p>
<p>“Let us watch a moment before we
sample it.”</p>
<p>The native glanced toward the corner
where Señor Zorro, in the maniac’s shirt,
was propped up on a bench. He lurched
toward him, bent forward, and peered into
his face.</p>
<p>“A white man!” he gasped. “In the
guard room the same as me!”</p>
<p>He threw out his chest and strutted
around the room, as though a great honor
had come to him. The soldiers at the door
laughed. The native turned and blinked
his eyes at them, mouthed some meaningless
phrases, and appeared to be dazed
again. Twice he shrieked like a soul in torment.
He beat his fists against the wall of
the guard room.</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Sí!</i> That wine is strong stuff!” one of
the soldiers said.</p>
<p>Still they remained watching. But the
native, it seemed, was exhausted. He
slipped down to the floor, crawled over
against the wall, and let his head topple to
one side. Twice he nodded, and then he
began to snore. The troopers closed the
little door of the aperture. The fun was
over.</p>
<p>Though he had recognized the native,
Señor Zorro had spoken no word. He was
not certain whether the man was under the
influence of palm wine or shamming. He
listened and heard the two soldiers walk
down the corridor, then turned his head and
glanced at the native again. The native
had opened one of his eyes and was watching
the door.</p>
<p>“They are drinking your wine,” Zorro
hissed.</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Sí, señor!</i> One moment!”</p>
<p>The native slipped slowly and carefully
along the wall until he was within a few
feet of Señor Zorro.</p>
<p>“I thought it out, <i lang="es">señor</i>,” he said. “I
know those maniac’s shirts, for once they
bound me and put me in one. And I have
a sharp knife—”</p>
<p>“Careful!” Señor Zorro warned. “If
you succeed in this I will make you rich for
life!”</p>
<p>“I am not doing it for riches, but because
you have been kind to my people and
to the <i lang="es">frailes</i>,” the native said. “I must do
my work swiftly.”</p>
<p>He had the knife out now, and began
working at the tough leather of the shirt.
The thong that drew the shirt about the
neck was fastened with a metal clasp, a
sort of lock, and so the tough leather had
to be cut. The native sawed through it,
and loosened the thong.</p>
<p>He stopped to slip noiselessly across to
the door and crouch and listen there. He
hurried back and began peeling the leather
sack off Señor Zorro. He worked frantically,
guessing what would be in store for him
if he happened to be caught.</p>
<p>“If I escape, then must you do so,”
Señor Zorro said. “And keep away from
San Diego de Alcála for many moons to
come.”</p>
<p>“I understand, <i lang="es">señor</i>. And, if I do not
escape, remember, please, that I did what
a poor man could.”</p>
<p>“I’ll help you, and I can.”</p>
<p>“A good horse belonging to one of these
soldiers is just in front of the <i lang="es">presidio,
señor</i>.”</p>
<p>“Good!”</p>
<p>“And some daggers are in leather boots
near the front door, on the wall.”</p>
<p>“Again, good!” Señor Zorro said.</p>
<p>The native slashed the last of the bonds,
and Zorro stood and moved his limbs to restore<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_89"></a>[89]</span>
circulation. Then he motioned the
native toward the door.</p>
<p>“Stand on that side,” Zorro directed.
“And shriek as though you were being
killed.”</p>
<p>The native shrieked. Señor Zorro himself
felt shivers run up and down his spine
at those blood-curdling shrieks. The two
soldiers listened, and then hurried back toward
the guard room. They opened the
little aperture in the door. They saw
neither of their prisoners, but they did see
the empty maniac’s shirt in one corner of
the room.</p>
<p>And then they did what Señor Zorro had
judged they would do—unlock and open
the door and rush inside. Zorro hurled
himself upon the first and floored him,
rolled aside just in time to escape the rush
of the second, delivered a blow that laid
this second on the floor unconscious, got
the dagger from the soldier’s belt, and
whirled to take the rush of the first, now
upon his feet again.</p>
<p>“Fly!” he ordered the native. But the
fisherman stood just outside the door, waiting
to see the outcome.</p>
<p>Señor Zorro had no quarrel with the soldiery,
and he did not want to wound a
trooper. But it was demanded of him that
he make an escape as quickly as possible,
and make certain that he could not be followed
for some minutes.</p>
<p>And so he rushed his man with the dagger,
and the other gave ground and put
himself on guard. But suddenly Señor Zorro
whirled and rushed backward instead of attacking,
darted through the door, slammed
it shut, and shot home the bar. Inside
were the two soldiers.</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Señores, adios!</i>” Zorro said at the
aperture. “I regret that you cannot accompany
me and see the fighting.”</p>
<p>“For this—” one of the imprisoned
troopers began.</p>
<p>“Have you ever seen this one?” Señor
Zorro asked. And he slammed shut the
door of the aperture, laughed loudly, saw
that the native fisherman was free, and
ran like the wind down the corridor and
through the front door and into the sunshine.</p>
<p>A moment later he was in the saddle and
galloping like a madman in the wake of
Captain Ramón and the troopers.</p>
<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
<div class="chapter">
<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XXIX">CHAPTER XXIX.<br>
<small>THE PLIGHT OF RUIZ.</small></h2>
</div>
<p class="cap">Captain Ramón, riding with the
lieutenant at the head of the soldiery,
considered his plans.</p>
<p>The captain had told Barbados how to
arrange an ambush at the head of the
cañon, and he expected to lead the troopers
around the ambush and to the rear, cutting
the pirates off from their camp, and either
exterminating them at once in the cañon or
driving them up into the open, where the
troopers could ride them down one by one.</p>
<p>Captain Ramón knew, of course and naturally,
that the pirates would be watching
the advance. But, just at the mouth of the
cañon, Captain Ramón could lead the soldiers
swiftly to one side and reach the rear
before the pirates could understand the
maneuver and hasten back to protect themselves.</p>
<p>He had not the slightest doubt regarding
the outcome. The troopers were about
equal in numbers to the pirates, and while
the latter would fight desperately, knowing
that capture meant the hangman’s rope for
them, the troopers were seasoned men who
had been through several native uprisings
and knew how to handle themselves in
battle.</p>
<p>The soldiers had a few pistols, but they
were not to be depended on so much as
blades and a hand-to-hand conflict. The
pirates had a few firearms also, but they
lacked ammunition. It would be swords
against cutlasses for the greater part, Captain
Ramón knew, and the advantage
would be with the troopers’ swords.</p>
<p>As to his own part, Ramón realized well
that Barbados would recognize his treachery
at once. And so there would be no protection
for him from the pirates after Barbados
had passed the word to get him, and
Ramón would have to fight with the soldiers
as a loyal officer. But he did not doubt
the outcome of the combat, and so felt
secure.</p>
<p>They rode swiftly and in perfect military<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_90"></a>[90]</span>
formation along the dusty highway, and
presently turned off and galloped across
rolling country toward the sea. Now they
proceeded with caution, flankers out, but
they did not slacken speed. It was mid-afternoon,
and they wanted to do their work
before nightfall.</p>
<p>They approached the mouth of the
cañon, and Captain Ramón shaded his eyes
and peered ahead, but could see nothing
human. The pirates were under cover, he
supposed, waiting for the troopers to ride
down into the narrow cañon and so into
a trap from which they could not escape.
Ramón spoke his plans to the lieutenant
again, and the junior officer nodded that he
understood the arrangements perfectly.</p>
<p>They came to the cañon’s end, but
swerved suddenly toward the right and galloped
along the rim and up a gentle slope,
the last before reaching the sea. Captain
Ramón expected to hear roars of rage from
the cañon, but he did not. He almost
chuckled. Barbados evidently supposed
that the <i lang="es">commandante</i> was playing some
trick, he took it for granted.</p>
<p>They reached the crest of the slope and
pulled up among the trees and looked down
upon the pirate camp. A few women and
children were running about, but they could
see no men.</p>
<p>“Down the slope, then turn and gallop
back toward the cañon,” Captain Ramón
instructed. “Thus we take them in the
rear and have the rogues at our mercy!”</p>
<p>“How do you know that they are in the
cañon?” the lieutenant asked with quick
suspicion.</p>
<p>“Did I not hear this Señor Zorro make
his plans?” Captain Ramón demanded with
some show of anger. “Am I not your superior
officer? They are now in the cañon,
expecting us to gallop into the trap they
have planned.”</p>
<p>“Then they saw us approach,” the lieutenant
declared.</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Sí!</i> And they are wondering what is
happening, no doubt. It is possible that
they have seen me at the head of the troopers
and have noticed that Señor Zorro is not
present. But they have not had time to
get back to their camp. Their trap has
been turned against them. Forward!”</p>
<p>Down the slope swept the troopers, and
women and children screeched and ran into
the huts and buildings. In a big circle the
soldiers from San Diego de Alcála swerved
and started back toward the cañon’s mouth
to hem in their foes.</p>
<p>And, in that instant, the <i lang="es">commandante</i>
found that things were not as he had expected,
and that he had been fooled. Reports
of firearms came to his ears, bullets
whistled among the troopers, and some of
them fell from their saddles. And from the
huts and buildings of the pirate camp
poured the motley crew of Barbados,
screeching their battle-cries, eager to wipe
out the soldiery that would have tricked
and slain them.</p>
<p>Captain Ramón cursed and began shouting
commands. The troopers fired their
pistols, drew their blades, and prepared for
bloody and more intimate work. From
behind the largest adobe building dashed
a number of mounted pirates, Barbados and
Sanchez riding at their head.</p>
<p>“At them!” the <i lang="es">commandante</i> shrieked
wildly. “Forward! No mercy!”</p>
<p>The lieutenant, who was by far the better
field officer, was endeavoring to make
himself heard above the din. The pirates
and the soldiers clashed, fought like maniacs,
the troopers at the outset having much
the better of it. But Barbados and his
mounted pirates joined the battle and
fought like fiends, because they saw visions
of the hangman’s noose if they failed to
achieve a victory complete.</p>
<p>Captain Ramón had one close look at
the face of Barbados, and heard the pirate
chief shriek “Traitor!” at him. Thereafter
he managed to keep well in the rear of the
fighting, under pretense of handling the
men. His blade was the only one not red.</p>
<p>Ramón had no intention of liberating the
<i lang="es">caballeros</i> until the fight was over, for he
wanted to claim full credit for rescuing
them. He wanted another talk with the
Señorita Lolita, too, before her friends approached
her. She had not given him the
promise that he had expected, and the
necessity for it was over, since Zorro was
free of the pirate camp. But Ramón hoped
to get the promise yet, and have an immediate
marriage, saying that he was the one<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_91"></a>[91]</span>
man who could give testimony that would
save Señor Zorro if he was tried for conspiracy
against the Governor.</p>
<p>The battle waged around him. Barbados
and his pirate crew were endeavoring to
keep between the troopers and the adobe
building wherein the <i lang="es">caballeros</i> were held
prisoners. The <i lang="es">caballeros</i> were crowding at
the little windows, watching the fight. Don
Audre Ruiz was still bound to the stake,
for Fray Felipe had been unable to reach
him before the fighting began, and now the
aged <i lang="es">fray</i> was busy with the wounded
men.</p>
<p>The <i lang="es">señorita</i> was under the close guard
of a single pirate appointed to the task by
Barbados. She was in one of the buildings,
and Captain Ramón did not know where to
find her. Convinced of the <i lang="es">commandante’s</i>
treachery, Barbados had no thought of letting
him get possession of the <i lang="es">señorita</i>. She
could be held for ransom, the pirate chief
decided.</p>
<p>Back and forth across the open space, up
and down the sandy beach the fight progressed.
Here groups of men were battling
like fiends, here one pursued a lone enemy.
The women and children were keeping to
the huts.</p>
<p>“Fire the place!” Captain Ramón was
ordering. “Burn them out!”</p>
<p>Some of the troopers were quick to do his
bidding. A pistol flash was enough. The
poor huts began burning fiercely, the dry
palm fronds with which they were manufactured
flaming instantly.</p>
<p>Ramón began to worry some. The battle
seemed an even thing. Both sides had lost
many men, and the two forces now were
about even. It came to his mind that, unless
the soldiers triumphed very soon, he
would have to release the <i lang="es">caballeros</i> and let
them join in the fray.</p>
<p>Back toward the slope the pirates drove
the remaining troopers. And there the battle
waged at some distance from the burning
huts of the pirate camp. The women tried
to quench the flames, but could not. The
wind from the sea carried flaming pieces of
palm frond and fired more huts.</p>
<p>Don Audre Ruiz had tugged at his bonds
until almost exhausted, but had been unable
to get free. Once the battle surged near
him, and then away again. Clouds of smoke
from the burning huts rolled over him,
surged around him. Great chunks of flaming
material floated past him on the still
breeze.</p>
<p>Don Audre wondered whether the pirates
were to be victorious, whether, in the end,
they would roast him at the stake, as they
had started to do. He choked in the dense
smoke; his eyes smarted and then pained;
he tried to see how the fight was going,
but could only get a glimpse now and then.</p>
<p>And then he saw something that caused
a thrill of horror to pass through him. One
of the burning brands had fallen at the
edge of the pile of fuel about the stake.
It smoldered, burst into flames again. The
fuel caught, and the flames spread.</p>
<p>Don Audre Ruiz, helpless against the
stake, watched the flames creep nearer, the
fire spread and become more raging. Once
more he struggled hopelessly against the
chain and ropes that held him fast. What
irony was this that he should burn without
human hands firing the fuel?</p>
<p>Already he could feel the heat of the
flames. Slowly they were eating their way
toward him through the heaps of fuel the
pirates had dropped. Soon they would
touch him, smoke and fire would engulf him,
and later men would find naught but his
charred remains.</p>
<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
<div class="chapter">
<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XXX">CHAPTER XXX.<br>
<small>FRAY FELIPE GETS HIS GOBLET.</small></h2>
</div>
<p class="cap">Señor Zorro thanked his saints that
the horse he had seized in front of the
<i lang="es">presidio</i> at San Diego de Alcála was a
noble animal of endurance and speed.</p>
<p>He kicked at the mount’s flanks and rode
like the wind in the wake of the troopers.
He knew that he was gaining on them, but
they had such an advantage of time that he
realized he could not reach the pirate camp
before Ramón and his soldiers.</p>
<p>As his horse negotiated the last slope
before reaching the sea, Señor Zorro could
hear, coming from a distance, the din of
battle. He stopped his mount in the fringe
of trees and looked down upon the scene.</p>
<p>The soldiers and pirates were fighting<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_92"></a>[92]</span>
hotly at some distance from the buildings.
The huts were ablaze. Women and children
were trying to escape into the brush. These
things Señor Zorro saw at a glance, and also
that the fight was an even one, with the
advantage to neither force.</p>
<p>He ascertained that the <i lang="es">caballeros</i> were
still prisoners. Only a moment he hesitated,
and then he kicked at the horse’s
flanks again and raced the animal down
the slope. The fight was to one side of
him, and so he encountered neither soldier
nor pirate. He had a glimpse of Ramón in
the distance, and believed that Ramón saw
him in turn. He rode wildly among the
blazing huts, and so came to the adobe
building where the prisoners were housed.</p>
<p>Señor Zorro sprang from his horse and
dashed into the building. With a metal
bar, he broke the lock of the inner door
and shrieked to the <i lang="es">caballeros</i> that they
were free.</p>
<p>“Follow me to your weapons!” he shouted.
“Fight with the troopers against the
pirates! Catch me this renegade and traitor
of a Ramón! Remember, Ramón is
mine!”</p>
<p>They answered him with glad shouts and
rushed at his heels out of the building and
toward the hut where the captured weapons
had been placed, and before which there
were no guards now. The roof of the hut
already was blazing.</p>
<p>Señor Zorro kicked open the door, dashed
inside, and began tossing out swords. The
<i lang="es">caballeros</i> rushed forward, shouting as they
claimed their weapons. Zorro dashed outside
again, his own beloved blade in his
hand. Already the <i lang="es">caballeros</i> were running
toward the fight.</p>
<p>“Zorro, by the saints!” It was the bellowing
voice of Sergeant Gonzales that
hailed him. “What is this talk of my captain
being a traitor?”</p>
<p>“He is!” Zorro cried. “He was in league
with the pirates, and then turned against
them. He is a double traitor! Forward,
sergeant! Use your blade well! Ruiz!
Where is Ruiz?”</p>
<p>“The devils took him out to roast him
at the stake,” the sergeant replied. “That
was long before the fighting began.”</p>
<p>“To roast him—” Señor Zorro gasped.</p>
<p>“Let me at a pirate!” the sergeant bellowed,
dashing away. “There are scores to
settle!”</p>
<p>Señor Zorro, his heart sinking within him,
peered around through the smoke. And
then hope flamed within him again, for in
the distance he saw Don Audre Ruiz, the
flames leaping around him. Señor Zorro
ran swiftly through the billows of smoke
toward the stake.</p>
<p>Don Audre’s clothing already was being
scorched. He had turned his head away
from the smoke and the heat, fighting to
the last to keep from drawing deadly flame
down into his lungs, and his eyes were
closed.</p>
<p>He did not see the swift approach of
Señor Zorro, did not guess that rescue was
at hand until he heard Zorro’s voice.</p>
<p>“Audre!” he cried. “Audre! Speak to
me! If the fiends have slain you—”</p>
<p>Don Audre Ruiz opened his eyes and
smiled, and Señor Zorro smiled in reply.
Then he kicked away the burning fuel and
leaped toward his friend.</p>
<p>“You are just in time,” Don Audre said.
“I had given up hope, Diego, my friend.”</p>
<p>“A moment, and I’ll have you free!”</p>
<p>He tore away the ropes and leather
thongs, and worked frantically at the heavy
chain, which was hot to his touch. He was
alert and on guard as he worked, but the
fight did not approach him. The <i lang="es">caballeros</i>
had joined it, he saw, and the pirates
were being cut down, and some taken prisoner.</p>
<p>And finally the heavy chain fell away,
and Señor Zorro helped Don Audre a short
distance from the stake and thrust a sword
into his hand.</p>
<p>“Remember, Ramón belongs to me!”
Zorro said. “Let us take him alive!”</p>
<p>Afoot, they dashed across the open space
toward the edge of the fight. But they
looked in vain for the <i lang="es">commandante</i>. He
was not in his saddle, nor was he dead or
wounded and on the ground.</p>
<p>“Find him!” Zorro cried. “He will be
trying to get the <i lang="es">señorita</i> away!”</p>
<p>They ran toward the adobe buildings to
commence their frantic search. They
watched the slope, and the beach in either
direction, half expecting to see the <i lang="es">commandante</i><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_93"></a>[93]</span>
carrying Señorita Lolita away on
his horse.</p>
<p>“Find him! We must find him!” Zorro
screeched. “With me, Audre, my friend!
She may be in one of the burning huts—”</p>
<p>And so they rushed through the smoke,
calling, searching, fear in their hearts.</p>
<p>Sergeant Gonzales was looking for his
captain also. The sergeant told himself that
he was in a quandary. His commander and
his friend, it appeared, were fighting each
other, and the sergeant could not be loyal
to both.</p>
<p>He bellowed a challenge and engaged a
pirate in combat, took his man, and rushed
on. He dodged a charging trooper who
almost ran him down, darted around one of
the blazing huts, and came upon a scene.</p>
<p>Fray Felipe, attending the wounded, had
risen from the ground beside one to find
a pirate rushing toward him in flight. The
man stumbled and fell headlong, and from
the sash he wore about his middle there
fell something that flashed and glittered in
the sun. Fray Felipe gave a cry and
rushed forward. He had seen his beloved
sacred goblet!</p>
<p>There was no escape for the pirate.
When he regained his feet he found the old
<i lang="es">fray</i> standing before him.</p>
<p>“Beast and fiend!” Fray Felipe said.
“Give it me!”</p>
<p>“Ha! Would I not be a fool to do so?”
the pirate challenged. “One side, <i lang="es">fray</i>!
One side—or you die!”</p>
<p>The other raised his cutlass to strike.
But Fray Felipe could not be driven back
by such means while the sacred goblet was
in the possession of the other.</p>
<p>“Give it me!” he commanded.</p>
<p>“One side—”</p>
<p>Fray Felipe took a quick step forward
and jerked the goblet from the other’s hand.
The pirate cursed and darted forward again.
Fray Felipe caught the descending arm.</p>
<p>Back and forth they struggled, and the
<i lang="es">fray</i> dropped the goblet to the ground again.
He was a strong man for his age, but the
pirate was young and strong also. He
forced Fray Felipe back against the wall of
the burning hut, throttled him, raised the
cutlass again.</p>
<p>“I warned you, <i lang="es">fray</i>!” the pirate hissed.</p>
<p>And then he hissed again, a hiss of pain
and fright. Through his body a blade had
been plunged. He dropped the cutlass,
threw wide his arms, shrieked once more,
and fell with face toward the ground. And
Sergeant Gonzales merely glanced down at
him, then picked up the goblet, wiped it
against his tunic, and bowed before Fray
Felipe.</p>
<p>“Allow me,” the sergeant said. “It is a
fortunate thing that I was near, <i lang="es">fray</i>!”</p>
<p>“I thank thee, son!”</p>
<p>“Son?” Gonzales cried. “You call an
old sinner like me by such a name?”</p>
<p>“Perhaps you hold more worth than you
yourself think,” the old <i lang="es">fray</i> replied.</p>
<p>Sergeant Gonzales could not endure such
talk. He grew redder in the face, blew out
his cheeks, gulped and cleared his throat.</p>
<p>“I am a rough soldier!” Sergeant Gonzales
declared. “And I belong in the battle,
which is almost at an end.”</p>
<p>“Go, son, and my blessings go with
thee!”</p>
<p>Gonzales bowed his head an instant.
Then, as though ashamed of himself, he
bellowed at nothing at all and charged
away through the smoke.</p>
<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
<div class="chapter">
<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XXXI">CHAPTER XXXI.<br>
<small>“MEAL MUSH AND GOAT’S MILK!”</small></h2>
</div>
<p class="cap">The appearance of Señor Zorro at the
scene of battle when he was supposed
to be behind bars in the <i lang="es">presidio</i> at
San Diego de Alcála terrified Captain
Ramón. He had a sudden feeling that the
fates were against him—that his treachery
was to be punished. And he found that his
plans were ruined again.</p>
<p>He had no faith in a personal encounter
with Señor Zorro. Something seemed to tell
him that such would result fatally for himself.
And he had small faith in proving
Zorro a traitor after the fight, and a great
fear that Zorro and some of the captured
pirates would, on the other hand, prove him
to be one.</p>
<p>Captain Ramón felt desperate. He had
an idea that the <i lang="es">señorita</i> was under pirate
guard in one of the buildings. He would
make away with the guard and get her,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_94"></a>[94]</span>
he decided—ride with her away from the
camp and scene of battle.</p>
<p>He could say, afterward, that he had believed
the pirates were to be victorious, and
that he wanted to rescue the <i lang="es">señorita</i> while
yet there was time. Possibly he could make
them believe that he had departed before
he saw the <i lang="es">caballeros</i> released and the tide
of battle turned.</p>
<p>He had no definite plans after that.
Perhaps, he thought, he could keep the
<i lang="es">señorita</i> a prisoner of his own in some out
of the way place, and force her to consent
to wed him. Any wandering <i lang="es">fray</i> could
perform the ceremony. Or, all else failing,
he could turn criminal, play highwayman,
force the <i lang="es">señorita</i> to do his bidding. In an
emergency, a knife thrust in the heart, a
secret grave, and Captain Ramón could
wander back among men, saying he had
seen nothing of her, possibly claiming that
a blow on the head during the battle had
robbed him of his wits, and that he did not
know where he had been or what had
happened.</p>
<p>Captain Ramón had a fertile brain when
it came to plotting. He watched for his
chance, and escaped through the clouds of
smoke, urging his horse to its utmost. He
galloped around behind the buildings, so
that the smoke screened his movements.
Behind an adobe building he dismounted,
and then crept along the wall toward the
front. He crouched beside a window, lifted
himself slowly, and peered inside.</p>
<p>There sat the <i lang="es">señorita</i>, her hands to her
face, and lounging near the door was one of
the pirates on guard.</p>
<p>The <i lang="es">commandante</i> drew his blade and
crept nearer the door. He waited for a
lull in the din of battle and then shouted
loudly.</p>
<p>“At you!” he cried. “Die, soldier!”</p>
<p>The subterfuge had immediate results.
The pirate opened the door, stepped out a
couple of feet, and peered into the smoke.
Captain Ramón guessed that the fellow
thought the battle was drawing near.</p>
<p>A quick thrust, and the pirate was down,
coughing out the blood of his life. Captain
Ramón dashed into the building,
sheathing his red blade.</p>
<p>The <i lang="es">señorita</i> sprang to her feet.</p>
<p>“Quick, <i lang="es">señorita</i>! There is scant time!”
he cried. “The pirates are having the best
of it—”</p>
<p>“I am safer with them than with you!”
she said with scorn.</p>
<p>He reached out and grasped her cruelly
by the wrist.</p>
<p>“There is to be no more nonsense!” he
exclaimed. “I am master here! You do
as I say, <i lang="es">señorita</i>! Come with me!”</p>
<p>“Beast!” she cried.</p>
<p>“Hard words will not stop me now. Am
I to be balked by a bit of womankind?”</p>
<p>He jerked her forward, put an arm
around her, half lifted her from the floor,
and carried her out of the building and
through the billowing smoke. Around the
corner he hurried, to his horse. Still holding
her by the wrist, he vaulted into the
saddle, then pulled her up before him.</p>
<p>“Help!” she cried. “Diego! Zorro!”</p>
<p>“Ha! Call to the fiend, but this time
he does not come!” Captain Ramón exclaimed.</p>
<p>But Señor Zorro had heard her shriek.
And the smoke lifted, and he and Don
Audre Ruiz saw the <i lang="es">commandante</i> on the
horse, the <i lang="es">señorita</i> held before him. Captain
Ramón saw them, too, and kicked frantically
at the animal’s ribs. The frightened
horse plunged away through the
smoke.</p>
<p>Señor Zorro was more maniac than sane
man as he dashed forward to follow. The
fight swerved toward him. He sprang up
and grasped a soldier, pulled him out of
the saddle, sprang into the saddle himself,
and gave chase.</p>
<p>Out of the clouds of smoke he rode,
to see the <i lang="es">commandante</i> and his prisoner a
short distance to the left. In the smoke
Captain Ramón had lost his bearings for a
moment.</p>
<p>Señor Zorro shrieked a challenge, whirled
his horse, and took after his foe. Ramón
found that he could not get up the slope
without meeting Zorro and having a clash
with him—the thing he most wanted to
avoid. Desperate, he whirled his horse and
charged back into the smoke again, thinking
to outwit his pursuer.</p>
<p>Suddenly he found himself in the thick
of the fighting. Again he whirled his<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_95"></a>[95]</span>
horse. The frightened steed refused to answer
rein or pressure of knees, refused to
spring forward at the cruel touch of spurs.
The smoke swirled away on a breath of
breeze. And Captain Ramón found himself
inside a ring of <i lang="es">caballeros</i>, two of whom
were holding his horse, another reaching to
help the <i lang="es">señorita</i> down, others reaching up
to seize him.</p>
<p>Señor Zorro came to a stop within a few
feet of him, and dismounted swiftly, a grim
look in his face.</p>
<p>“Down, renegade!” Zorro commanded.</p>
<p>Captain Ramón, in the face of such an
emergency, could appear calm, though he
was not. He sneered, lifted his brows as
though in wonder, and slowly got from the
saddle. Once he looked straight at Zorro,
and then around the circle.</p>
<p>The fighting was at an end. What
pirates had not been slain were captives.
Barbados, himself a captive, stood to one
side under guard. The lieutenant and his
troopers were coming forward.</p>
<p>Ramón called to the officer. “Here is
your Señor Zorro!” he shouted. “In some
strange manner he has escaped the <i lang="es">presidio</i>.
Seize him and see that he does not
escape again!”</p>
<p>The lieutenant gave a quick command,
and some of the troopers dismounted and
started forward. But they found before
them a line of determined <i lang="es">caballeros</i> with
ready swords.</p>
<p>Don Audre Ruiz bowed before the lieutenant
and spoke. “<i lang="es">Señor</i>,” he said, “I
dislike exceedingly to interfere with a man
in the proper performance of his duty. But
I must ask you and your men to stand back
for a time. There is a little matter between
Señor Zorro and Captain Ramón
that must be settled.”</p>
<p>“I am in command here, under Captain
Ramón,” the lieutenant said. “This Señor
Zorro is an escaped prisoner.”</p>
<p>“Nevertheless, you must remain quiet
until the affair is at an end,” Don Audre
said. “The <i lang="es">caballeros</i> are equal in number
to your troopers now. If you care to fight
it out—”</p>
<p>“Do you realize that you are taking up
arms against the Governor?” the lieutenant
demanded.</p>
<p>“As to that, we are not alarmed,” Don
Audre replied. “This Ramón is a renegade
and a traitor!”</p>
<p>“Ha! That he is!” cried Barbados.
“He joined hands with us, planned for us
to raid Reina de Los Angeles and steal the
girl. Then he turns against us, plans to
trap us! Traitor and dog, he is!”</p>
<p>“And I say so, too,” Don Audre declared.
“Here are a number of gentlemen
whose honors and names are unquestioned,
<i lang="es">señor</i>. If there is a mistake made here this
afternoon we will be responsible for it and
take the consequences.”</p>
<p>The lieutenant looked puzzled. Certainly
he did not want to arouse the hostility
of those of gentle blood by setting his troopers
on the <i lang="es">caballeros</i>; and he doubted the
outcome of the fight if he did that.</p>
<p>“Arrest the fellow!” Ramón thundered.
“Are you to be held back by these meddlers?”</p>
<p>An open palm cracked against his cheek
as he finished speaking. Señor Zorro stood
before him, blade held ready. Don Audre
Ruiz took the <i lang="es">señorita</i> by her arm and led
her away.</p>
<p>“Ramón, double traitor and plotter
against peace!” Señor Zorro addressed him.
“Abductor of women! Foul in word and
action and thought! On guard, <i lang="es">señor</i>!”</p>
<p>Captain Ramón felt like a trapped animal.
He saw his sergeant in the ring.</p>
<p>“Gonzales!” he shrieked. “Seize that
man! I command it!”</p>
<p>“I do not take commands from traitors!”
the sergeant replied.</p>
<p>“I’ll have you punished—”</p>
<p>“’Tis you will receive the punishment,
when you gather courage enough to lift
your blade,” Gonzales replied.</p>
<p>Don Audre Ruiz had turned the <i lang="es">señorita</i>
over to Fray Felipe. The old <i lang="es">fray</i> knew
better than to make an attempt to prevent
the duel. He belonged to the times, and he
understood such things.</p>
<p>“On guard, <i lang="es">señor</i>!” Zorro warned again.
“I do not like to pollute my blade with
your blood, yet must it be done! On guard,
renegade! Must I cut down a man who will
not defend himself?”</p>
<p>Señor Zorro advanced a step. Captain
Ramón, his face white, started to raise his<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_96"></a>[96]</span>
sword. He did not believe, could not force
himself to believe, that he would be a victor.
Yet he could do his best!</p>
<p>The blades touched. And in the next
instant Señor Zorro had sprung backward,
and a chorus of cries had come from those
in the ring.</p>
<p>For Barbados, not watched as carefully
as he should have been watched, had taken
vengeance himself. He thrust one of his
guards aside, snatched a dagger from the
belt of another. His arm went up, came
forward, the dagger whistled through the
air. And it lodged in Captain Ramón’s
back, the point in his heart.</p>
<p>“That for a traitor!” Barbados cried.
“Since I must be hanged, let me settle accounts
first! Señor Zorro, you are a man!
I, who have fought you, say it! Your
blade is too true, <i lang="es">señor</i>, to be buried in a
foul carcass such as that!”</p>
<hr class="tb">
<p>The moonlight came again, touching the
sea with glory and showing the trading
schooner running up the coast before the
breeze. Those of the crew who had been
left aboard handled her well, and the <i lang="es">caballeros</i>
gave aid.</p>
<p>Away from the scene of carnage the little
ship rushed, the water hissing at her bows.
Fray Felipe was polishing his beloved goblet.
Don Audre Ruiz and his <i lang="es">caballeros</i>
were dressing their hurts in the cabin. Big
Sergeant Gonzales was wandering on the
deck.</p>
<p>The sergeant stopped near the rail,
leaned against it, looked over the sparkling
sea toward the dark line that indicated the
land.</p>
<p>Voices came to him, the voices of Zorro
and the little <i lang="es">señorita</i>.</p>
<p>“The sword of Zorro! Let us hope that
it has a long rest,” the <i lang="es">señorita</i> said.</p>
<p>“A long rest!” Señor Zorro echoed.
“As soon as we are at Reina de Los Angeles
we’ll be wed by Fray Felipe.”</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Sí!</i>” she said softly.</p>
<p>“Then years of happiness and peace.”</p>
<p>“<i lang="es">Sí!</i>”</p>
<p>“Yet, I am not sorry for what has happened,”
said Señor Zorro. “It has brought
us closer together. Peril knits hearts, <i lang="es">señorita</i>.”</p>
<p>“Once—when I thought that you were
dead—”</p>
<p>Sergeant Gonzales observed a suspicious
silence at this juncture. He raised his head
and peered through the gloom around the
mast. He could see nothing at all save the
inky darkness there, but he heard a sound
that needed no translation. It was the
sound of a kiss.</p>
<p>“Meal mush and goat’s milk!” said the
sergeant.</p>
<p class="p2 noic">(The end.)</p>
<hr class="chap">
<div class="tnote">
<p class="noi tntitle">Transcriber’s Notes:</p>
<p class="smfont">This six-part serialized novel is from six consecutive 1922 issues
(May 6 to June 10, 1922) of the Argosy-AllStory Weekly magazine.</p>
<p class="smfont">A chapter Contents has been provided for the convenience of the
reader, and is granted to the public domain.</p>
<p class="smfont">Punctuation and spelling inaccuracies were silently corrected.</p>
<p class="smfont">Archaic and variable spelling has been preserved.</p>
<p class="smfont">Variations in hyphenation and compound words have been preserved.</p>
</div>
<div style='text-align:center'>*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE FURTHER ADVENTURES OF ZORRO ***</div>
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