THE CLASH OF BLADES AGAIN
Señor Zorro stood like a statue in the native's hut, one hand grasping
his horse's muzzle. The native crouched at his side.
Down the highway came the drumming of horses' hoofs. Then the pursuit
swept by, the men calling to one another and cursing the darkness, and
rushed down the valley.
Señor Zorro opened the door and glanced out, listened for a moment, and
then led out his horse. He tendered the native a coin.
"Not from you, _señor_," the native said.
"Take it. You have need of it, and I have not," the highwayman said.
He vaulted into the saddle and turned his horse up the steep slope of
the hill behind the hut. The animal made little noise as it climbed
to the summit. Señor Zorro descended into the depression on the other
side, and came to a narrow trail, and along this he rode at a slow
gallop, stopping his mount now and then to listen for sounds of other
horsemen who might be abroad.
He rode toward Reina de Los Angeles, but he appeared to be in no hurry
about arriving at the _pueblo_. Señor Zorro had another adventure
planned for this night, and it had to be accomplished at a certain
time and under certain conditions.
It was two hours later when he came to the crest of the hill above the
town. He sat quietly in the saddle for some time, regarding the scene.
The moonlight was fitful now, but now and then he could make out the
plaza.
He saw no troopers, heard nothing of them, decided that they had ridden
back in pursuit of him, and that those who had been sent in pursuit of
Don Carlos and the Doña Catalina had not yet returned. In the tavern,
there were lights, and in the _presidio_, and in the house where his
excellency was a guest.
Señor Zorro waited until it was dark, and then urged his horse forward
slowly, but off the main highway. He circled the _pueblo_, and in time
approached the _presidio_ from the rear.
He dismounted now, and led his horse, going forward slowly, often
stopping to listen, for this was a very ticklish business and might end
in disaster if a mistake were made.
He stopped the horse behind the _presidio_, where the wall of the
building would cast a shadow if the moon came from behind the clouds
again, and went forward cautiously, following the wall as he had done
on that other night.
When he came to the office window, he peered inside. Captain Ramón was
there, alone, looking over some reports spread on the table before him,
evidently awaiting the return of his men.
Señor Zorro crept to the corner of the building, and found there was
no guard. He had guessed and hoped that the _comandante_ had sent every
available man to the chase, but he knew that he would have to act
quickly, for some of the troopers might return.
He slipped through the door and crossed the big lounging-room, and so
came to the door of the office. His pistol was in his hand, and could
a man have seen behind the mask, he would have observed that Señor
Zorro's lips were crushed in a thin straight line of determination.
As upon that other night, Captain Ramón whirled around in his chair
when he heard the door open behind him, and once more he saw the eyes
of Señor Zorro glittering through his mask, saw the muzzle of the
pistol menacing him.
"Not a move! Not a sound! It would give me pleasure to fill your body
with hot lead!" Señor Zorro said. "You are alone--your silly troopers
are chasing me where I am not."
"By the saints--" Captain Ramón breathed.
"Not so much as a whisper, _señor_, if you hope to live. Turn your back
to me!"
"You would murder me?"
"I am not that sort, _comandante_! And I said for you to make not a
sound! Put your hands behind your back, for I am going to bind your
wrists!"
Captain Ramón complied. Señor Zorro stepped forward swiftly, and bound
the wrists with his own sash, which he tore from his waist. Then he
whirled Captain Ramón around so that he faced him.
"Where is his excellency?" he asked.
"At Don Juan Estados's house."
"I knew as much, but wanted to see whether you prefer to speak the
truth to-night. It is well if you do so. We are going to call upon the
governor."
"To call--"
"Upon his excellency, I said. And do not speak again! Come with me!"
He grasped Captain Ramón by the arm and hurried him from the office,
across the lounging-room, out of the door. He piloted him around the
building to where the horse was waiting.
"Mount!" he commanded. "I shall sit behind you, with the muzzle of this
pistol at the base of your brain. Make no mistake, _comandante_, unless
you are tired of life. I am a determined man this night."
Captain Ramón had observed it. He mounted as he was directed, and the
highwayman mounted behind him, and held the reins with one hand and the
pistol with the other. Captain Ramón could feel the touch of cold steel
at the back of his head.
Señor Zorro guided his horse with his knees instead of with the reins.
He urged the beast down the slope, and circled the town once more,
keeping away from the beaten trails, and so approached the rear of the
house where his excellency was a guest.
Here was the difficult part of the adventure. He wanted to get
Captain Ramón before the governor, to talk to both of them, and to
do it without having anybody else interfere. He forced the captain
to dismount, and led him to the rear wall of the house. There was a
_patio_ there, and they entered it.
It appeared that Señor Zorro knew the interior of the house well. He
entered it through a servant's room, taking Captain Ramón with him, and
passed through into a hall without awakening the sleeping native. They
went along the hall slowly. From one room came the sound of snoring.
From beneath the door of another light streamed.
Señor Zorro stopped before that door and applied an eye to a crack at
the side of it. If Captain Ramón harbored thoughts of voicing an alarm,
or of offering battle, the touch of the pistol at the back of his head
caused him to forget them.
And he had scant time to think of a way out of this predicament, for
suddenly Señor Zorro threw open the door, hurled Captain Ramón through
it, followed himself, and shut the door quickly behind him. In the room
there were his excellency and his host.
"Silence, and do not move!" Señor Zorro said. "The slightest alarm, and
I put a pistol ball through the governor's head! That is understood?
Very well, _señores_!"
"Señor Zorro!" the governor gasped.
"The same, your excellency. I ask your host to be not frightened, for
I mean him no harm if he sits quietly until I am done. Captain Ramón,
kindly sit across the table from the governor. I am delighted to find
the head of the state awake and awaiting news from those who are
chasing me. His brain will be clear, and he can understand better what
is said."
"What means this outrage?" the governor exclaimed. "Captain Ramón, how
comes this? Seize this man! You are an officer--"
"Do not blame the _comandante_," Señor Zorro said. "He knows it is
death to make a move. There is a little matter that needs explanation,
and since I cannot come to you in broad day as a man should, I am
forced to adopt this method. Make yourselves comfortable, _señores_.
This may take some little time."
His excellency fidgeted in his chair.
"You have this day insulted a family of good blood, your excellency,"
Señor Zorro went on. "You have forgotten the proprieties to such an
extent that you have ordered thrown into your miserable _carcel_ a
_hidalgo_ and his gentle wife and innocent daughter. You have taken
such means to gratify a spite--"
"They are traitors!" his excellency said.
"What have they done of treason?"
"You are an outlaw with a price put upon your head. They have been
guilty of harboring you, giving you aid."
"Where got you this information?"
"Captain Ramón has an abundance of evidence."
"Ha! The _comandante_, eh? We shall see about that! Captain Ramón is
present, and we can get at the truth. May I ask the nature of your
evidence?"
"You were at the Pulido _hacienda_," the governor said.
"I admit it."
"A native saw you, and carried word to the _presidio_. The soldiers
hurried out to effect your capture."
"A moment. Who said a native sounded the alarm?"
"Captain Ramón assured me so."
"Here is the first chance for the captain to speak the truth. As a
matter of fact, _comandante_, was it not Don Carlos Pulido himself who
sent the native? The truth!"
"It was a native brought word."
"And he did not tell your sergeant that Don Carlos had sent him? Did
he not say that Don Carlos had slipped him the information in whispers
while he was carrying his fainting wife to her room? Is it not the
truth that Don Carlos did his best to hold me at his _hacienda_ until
the soldiers arrived, that I might be captured? Did not Don Carlos thus
try to show his loyalty to the governor?"
"By the saints, Ramón, you never told me as much!" his excellency cried.
"They are traitors!" the captain declared stubbornly.
"What other evidence?" Señor Zorro asked.
"Why, when the soldiers arrived, you concealed yourself by some trick,"
the governor said. "And presently Captain Ramón himself reached the
scene, and while he was there you crept from a closet, ran him through
treacherously from behind, and made your escape. It is an evident fact
that Don Carlos had hidden you in the closet."
"By the saints!" Señor Zorro swore. "I had thought, Captain Ramón, that
you were man enough to admit defeat, though I knew you for a scoundrel
in other things. Tell the truth!"
"That is--the truth!"
"Tell the truth!" Señor Zorro commanded, stepping closer to him and
bringing up the pistol. "I came from that closet and spoke to you. I
gave you time to draw blade and get on guard. We fenced for fully ten
minutes, did we not!
"I admit freely that for a moment you puzzled me, and then I solved
your method of giving battle and knew you were at my mercy. And then,
when I could have slain you easily, I but scratched your shoulder. Is
not that the truth? Answer, as you hope to live!"
Captain Ramón licked his dry lips, and could not meet the governor's
eyes.
"Answer!" Señor Zorro thundered.
"It is--the truth!" the captain acknowledged.
"Ha! So I ran you through from behind, eh? It is an insult to my blade
to have it enter your body! You see, your excellency, what manner of
man you have for _comandante_ here! Is there more evidence?"
"There is!" the governor said. "When the Pulidos were guests at the
house of Don Diego Vega, and Don Diego was away, Captain Ramón went to
pay his respects, and found you there alone with the _señorita_."
"And that shows what?"
"That you are in league with the Pulidos! That they harbored you even
in the house of Don Diego, a loyal man. And when the captain discovered
you there, the _señorita_ flung herself upon him and held him--delayed
him, rather--until you made your escape through a window. Is not that
enough?"
Señor Zorro bent forward, and his eyes seemed to burn through the mask
and into those of Captain Ramón.
"So that is the tale he told, eh?" the highwayman said. "As a matter
of fact, Captain Ramón is enamored of the _señorita_. He went to the
house, found her alone, forced his attentions upon her, even told her
that she should not object, since her father was in the bad graces of
the governor! He attempted to caress her, and she called for help. I
responded."
"How did you happen to be there?"
"I do not care to answer that, but I take my oath the _señorita_ did
not know of my presence. She called for aid, and I responded.
"I made this thing you call a _comandante_ kneel before her and
apologize. And then I took him to the door and kicked him out into the
dust! And afterward I visited him at the _presidio_, and told him that
he had given insult to a noble _señorita_--"
"It appears that you hold some love for her yourself," the governor
said.
"I do, your excellency, and am proud to admit it!"
"Ha! You condemn her and her parents by that statement! You deny now
they are in league with you?"
"I do. Her parents do not know of our love!"
"This _señorita_ is scarcely conventional!"
"_Señor!_ Governor or no, another thought like that and I spill your
blood!" Señor Zorro cried. "I have told you what happened that night
at the house of Don Diego Vega. Captain Ramón will testify that what I
have said is the exact truth. Is it not, _comandante_? Answer!"
"It--it is the truth!" the captain gulped, looking at the muzzle of the
highwayman's pistol.
"Then you have told me falsehood, and can no longer be an officer of
mine!" the governor cried. "It appears that this highwayman can do as
he pleases with you! Ha! But I still believe that Don Carlos Pulido
is a traitor, and the members of his family, and it has availed you
nothing, Señor Zorro, to play this little scene.
"My soldiers shall continue to pursue them--and you! And before they
are done, I'll have the Pulidos dragged in the dirt, and I'll have you
stretching a rope with your carcass!"
"Quite a bold speech!" observed Señor Zorro. "You set your soldiers a
pretty task, your excellency. I rescued your three prisoners to-night,
and they have escaped."
"They shall be retaken!"
"Time alone will tell that. And now I have another duty to perform
here! Your excellency, you will take your chair to that far corner,
and sit there, and your host will sit beside you. And there you shall
remain until I have finished."
"What do you mean to do?"
"Obey me!" Señor Zorro cried. "I have scant time for argument, even
with a governor."
He watched while the two chairs were placed and the governor and his
host had seated themselves. And then he stepped nearer Captain Ramón.
"You insulted a pure and innocent girl, _comandante_!" he said. "For
that, you shall fight! Your scratched shoulder is healed now, and you
wear your blade by your side! Such a man as you is not fit to breathe
God's pure air! The country is better for your absence! On your feet,
_señor_, and on guard!"
Captain Ramón was white with rage. He knew that he was ruined. He had
been forced to confess that he had lied. He had heard the governor
remove his rank. And this man before him had been the cause of all of
it!
Perhaps, in his anger, he could kill this Señor Zorro, stretch this
Curse of Capistrano on the floor with his life blood flowing away.
Perhaps, if he did that, his excellency would relent.
He sprang from his chair, and backward to the governor.
"Unfasten my wrists!" he cried. "Let me at this dog!"
"You were as good as dead before--you certainly are dead after using
that word!" Señor Zorro said calmly.
The _comandante's_ wrists were untied. He whipped out his blade, sprang
forward with a cry, and launched himself in a furious attack upon the
highwayman.
Señor Zorro gave ground before this onslaught, and so obtained a
position where the light from the _candelero_ did not bother his eyes.
He was skilled with a blade, and had fenced for life many times, and
he knew the danger in the attack of an angered man who did not fence
according to the code.
And he knew, too, that such anger is spent quickly unless a fortunate
thrust makes the possessor of it victor almost at once. And so he
retreated step by step, guarding well, parrying vicious strokes, alert
for an unexpected move.
The governor and his host were sitting in their corner, but bending
forward and watching the combat.
"Run him through, Ramón, and I reinstate and promote you!" his
excellency cried.
The _comandante_ thus was urged to do it. Señor Zorro found his
opponent fighting much better than he had before in Don Carlos Pulido's
house at the _hacienda_. He found himself forced to fight out of a
dangerous corner, and the pistol he held in his left hand to intimidate
the governor and his host bothered him.
And suddenly he tossed it to the table, and then swung around so that
neither of the two men could dart from a corner and get it without
running the chance of receiving a blade between the ribs. And there he
stood his ground and fought.
Captain Ramón could not force him to give way now. His blade seemed to
be a score. It darted in and out, trying to find a resting place in the
captain's body; for Señor Zorro was eager to have an end of this and be
gone. He knew that the dawn was not far away, and he feared that some
trooper might come to the house with a report for the governor.
"Fight, insulter of girls!" he cried. "Fight, man who tells a falsehood
to injure a noble family! Fight, coward and poltroon! Now death stares
you in the face, and soon you'll be claimed! Ha! I almost had you then!
Fight, cur!"
Captain Ramón cursed and charged, but Señor Zorro received him and
drove him back, and so held his position. The perspiration was standing
out on the captain's forehead in great globules. His breath was coming
heavily from between his parted lips. His eyes were bright and bulging.
"Fight, weakling!" the highwayman taunted him. "This time I am not
attacking from behind! If you have prayers to say, say them--for your
time grows short!"
The ringing blades, the shifting feet on the floor, the heavy breathing
of the combatants and of the two spectators of this life-and-death
struggle were the only sounds in the room. His excellency sat far
forward on his chair, his hands gripping the edges of it so that his
knuckles were white.
"Kill me this highwayman!" he shrieked. "Use your good skill, Ramón! At
him!"
Captain Ramón rushed again, calling into play his last bit of strength,
fencing with what skill he could command. His arms were as lead; his
breath was fast. He thrust, he lunged--and made a mistake of a fraction
of an inch!
Like the tongue of a serpent, Señor Zorro's blade shot in. Thrice it
darted forward, and upon the fair brow of Ramón, just between the eyes,
there flamed suddenly a red, bloody letter Z!
"The Mark of Zorro!" the highwayman cried. "You wear it forever now,
_comandante_!"
Señor Zorro's face became more stern. His blade shot in again and came
out dripping red. The _comandante_ gasped and slipped to the floor.
"You have slain him!" the governor cried. "You have taken his life,
wretch!"
"Ha! I trust so! The thrust was through the heart, excellency! He never
will insult a _señorita_ again!"
Señor Zorro looked down at his fallen foe, regarded the governor
a moment, then wiped his blade on the sash that had bound the
_comandante's_ wrists. He returned the blade to its scabbard, and
picked up his pistol from the table.
"My night's work is done!" he said.
"And you shall hang for it!" his excellency cried.
"Perhaps--when you catch me!" replied the Curse of Capistrano, bowing
ceremoniously.
Then, without glancing again at the twitching body of him who had been
Captain Ramón, he whirled through the door and was in the hall, and
rushed through it to the _patio_ and to his horse.