The Secret of Zorro An Old Enemy Chapter Seven by Ella Christian @1999-2001 Contact author at EllaChristian@aol.com Chapter Seven Remembering "Do you remember, six, seven years ago, when Enrique Monastario was commandante of the pueblo? He had been here a year when I returned to Spain," Diego asked. Windhawk nodded. "Monastario has come back to southern California. We believed he was decommissioned and sent back to Spain, but he seems to have re-settled in Mexico. Now he is here. He bought land under a different name, from Elizabeth's father. He calls himself Mordante now." Windhawk waited, saying nothing. "I believe he is up here in these hills, and I believe he is a danger to my family. And possibly to the whole pueblo. So I have come to find him." Windhawk sat there. "Why is he a danger?" he asked. Diego paused. Then he said, "He accused me of being Zorro and no one believed it. It caused his ruin, destroyed his military career." "Hmmm," Windhawk said, clearly unimpressed. "Bernardo came last night, to say that he was still in Los Angeles yesterday afternoon. Elizabeth encountered him." Windhawk squinted. "He did not harm her, but I have the impression that he is toying with all of us," Diego finished. "He is extremely shrewd." "Like most white men," Windhawk commented. "This one is especially toxic," Diego said. He waited, and then said, "I need your help, to find him." "I have no issue with him being here," Windhawk said. "You will, if he has purchased land in this area," Diego said. "It is not his land," Windhawk stated. "Nor is it yours." He tossed a rock into the creek. "Will you help me or not?" Diego asked. "I have to find him." Windhawk stared into the water for a while and then shook his head. Diego felt his heart sink. "Are we to separate again, over things that neither of us can control or change?" he asked. "I cannot keep them from measuring the land and exchanging money over it. I cannot stop them from building on it. My father has bought as much forest and high country as he can, to keep it free and clear. We cannot buy it all! And Mexico is taking over, we do not even know if what we have in the basin will be secure." "That is not yours, either," Windhawk said. Diego felt a mighty surge of frustration and had an impulse to do what they used to do as boys when they disagreed, which was pounce and wrestle furiously until one of them won. He took a deep breath to regain control and then said, "I need your help." "You know these hills," Windhawk said, getting up. "This man is your worry, not mine." Diego pulled himself to his feet as well. "We have helped one another before, when it was not both our battles," he said. "We were younger then," Windhawk said. "It was a long time ago, Diego. You were the one who left." He looked around. People were stirring in the huts as the sun rose. "Stay here as long as you wish," he said. "You are always welcome here." They eyed one another. Diego finally broke the gaze. "Thank you," he said. "You are always welcome at Rancho de la Vega. And I will help you. With anything." Windhawk squinted again. "I do not need your help," he said. He turned and left. Diego sat back down on the rock, feeling completely defeated. Bernardo came out of the woods behind him. Diego recognized his step and did not turn around. Bernardo shrugged, nodding in Windhawk's direction questioningly. "He said no." Diego sighed. "You need to go back and tell Elizabeth I am all right." Bernardo shook his head, pointing to himself and then to Diego. "No, you cannot stay here with me, she will become upset and I do not know what she will do. For all I know she will try to find me herself and that...." he shook his head. "We cannot let her do that." He paused. "I need time to think. I did not expect him to refuse me outright." He looked around, and realized that Long Lash's horse was still gone. "Perhaps Long Lash will find him for me," he muttered. Bernardo pointed in Windhawk's direction and then made a nudging motion. "Yes, I suppose I could try again," Diego agreed. "But in the end I have no argument. And he owes me nothing. We both know that." Bernardo shook his head quietly. He pointed again towards Windhawk's hut and then at Diego, and clasped his hands tightly. "Si, we were friends once," Diego agreed. "But, as he says, it was a long time ago." Bernardo shook his head again, and clasped his hands again. "I have told you what happened," Diego said, a little testy. He stretched his leg out. "At least this is improving. I do not expect to have difficulty riding today, even on Tornado. Get the clothes out for me. I shall have to do this as Zorro, especially if I must ride alone." Again Bernardo shook his head, pointing at himself and then gesturing riding with Diego. "No," Diego said insistently. "You must return to the rancho. We shall not argue about this." Bernardo shrugged and walked back towards the horses. Diego waited, watching him saddle Padre and put things into the saddlebag. Finally he looked at Diego with enormous aggravation. Diego gestured for him to mount and get going. Reluctantly, Bernardo got on the horse and, with a sigh, rode away. "Tell her I am all right," Diego called after him. "Tell her I will be all right. And do not tell her about the rockslide!" Once Bernardo was out of sight, Diego looked across the creek to the little cluster of huts. Windhawk was nowhere to be seen. Then the cloth door was pushed aside and Soaring Bird emerged, carrying a bundle that could only be the new baby. Diego smiled. At least there was one thing to be happy about. He pulled the rest of his clothes back on and walked back towards the village. "Don Diego," said Soaring Bird, as she saw him stride up. She looked at his leg. "Windhawk said you had an injury but I see no evidence of it." He peered into the little bundle she held. "It is fine," he said. "Thanks to a treatment I learned from your mother! I will give it another half-day to rest, then...." he became lost in seeing the brand new baby. "Oh, look at this little boy," Diego smiled, accepting the warm little bundle as Soaring Bird handed him over. "Hello, Second Arrow," Diego said softly. He loved how soft and perfect new babies were. He touched the small cheek gently with his forefinger. The baby scrunched up his face and whimpered. "Oh, you don't think you like me?" Diego chuckled. "You are your father's son indeed!" "I must feed him. I wanted to get outdoors," Soaring Bird said, taking the baby back. "It is not good to be inside all the time, for him or for me." She went to a log behind the hut and sat down. Diego followed. Soon the Indian woman was nursing her tiny son. "How are Elizabeth and Esperanza?" Soaring Bird asked. "They are very well, thank you," Diego answered. He felt eyes on him and turned around to see that standing some feet away, watching, were Little Feather and Willow. "Hello, you two," he said. "Do you remember me?" Willow backed up a few steps, but Little Feather marched forward and said, "You saved the gypsies." Diego laughed. "Who told you that?" he asked. "I do not believe you were in the pueblo the night of the hanging last summer. Or, near-hanging," he added, glancing at Soaring Bird. "I have a friend. Rufino," Little Feather said. "When we play, he is Zorro and I am...the Indian! He said El Zorro saved the gypsies. With my father's help!" "Ah, you know Rufino..."Diego said. "It sounds as if he is using some imagination, in telling the story of the gypsies." He frowned. "Little Feather, does Rufino know about El Zorro?" Little Feather glanced at his mother and then shook his head. "Go move the horses, they need new grass," she told him. He turned and ran off. Willow followed him. Diego watched for a moment as the baby nursed. "He will not reveal anything to Rufino," Soaring Bird said. "It was bad of him, to let you know that he knows. But he will not betray El Zorro." "How does he know?" Diego asked. Soaring Bird looked at him a little strangely. "We all know," she said. "White men believe they are so clever. We have known since you first came back from Spain." Diego shook his head ruefully. "You have helped many people, Diego. It is not lost on us. That is why Windhawk let me come to help Elizabeth." Diego looked at her. "Si, it is true," she said softly. "I need his help again now," he said. She shook her head. Diego accepted it. He bent over to look at the nursing baby again. "He is a beautiful boy, Soaring Bird," he said. Then he remembered a message he was supposed to convey. "Elizabeth asked me to invite you and Willow and Little Feather to visit the rancho," he said. "I believe she would be very happy to see you. And she would certainly be pleased to see Second Arrow!" Soaring Bird gave him a half-smile. "I will not be traveling any time soon," she said. "But please let her know I am glad to hear from her. She will give you a son one day, Diego." Diego smiled back, and nodded. "I hope so," he said. ****** It was close to noon when Bernardo and Elizabeth unexpectedly encountered one another on the northern valley road. Elizabeth, mounted on Cloud Dancer, was letting the mare walk for a while when she saw the dust of another horse ahead. When she realized it was Padre, she at first believed that Diego was coming towards her and her heart jumped. Then she saw that it was Bernardo on the horse. He pulled up, alarmed to see her alone so far from home. "No, no, everything is all right, but did you find him?" she asked hurriedly. Bernardo nodded, and then gestured that she should turn around so they could both proceed back to Rancho de la Vega. "Is he all right?" Bernardo nodded again, gesturing up into the hills and gesturing Windhawk's sign, a great arrow. "He is there? He got to them?" Bernardo nodded. "Good," Elizabeth sighed. "Then perhaps Monastario did not go north after all..." she looked into the hills. Bernardo gestured again for them to return home. "Did he say when he would come home? How long they will look?" Bernardo shook his head, shrugging. Elizabeth sat there not moving her horse in either direction. "I wanted to see him...." she said softly. Bernardo wagged his head back towards the Cahuenga Pass. He gestured the baby and pointed at her. "Si, I should not leave Esperanza for so long," Elizabeth agreed. She sighed and turned Cloud Dancer back towards the Pass. "I wish he would give this up," she said as they proceeded. Bernardo nodded in full agreement. Elizabeth saw him squint as he looked into the distance, and then frown. She looked to the west. "Oh, no," she said. "We must hurry." He nodded again, for what they were looking at was a dark sky brewing in the west, and the promise of another great rainstorm. "Diego will have the good sense to stay in the village with this rain, won't he?" Elizabeth asked as they began cantering towards home. Bernardo nodded reassuringly, though in his heart he had no idea what his master might do. ****** The rumble of thunder crossed a small canyon in the hills without ever cracking. A tiny cabin sat nestled in a grove of live oaks. A green meadow spread in front of it, with bright, knee-high green grass. Behind it was a jumble of rounded rocks and rugged hills. Yellow and lavender wildflowers poked up from crevices. Puddles of water rippled where the stone had given way to form strange, round indentations in the rock surface. The house was made of stacked stone, with a huge fireplace on the east side. A thin curl of white smoke rose from the chimney. It had two windows on the front and back sides, and one on the west side. The red tile roof bespoke Spanish influence. Two horses were tethered to a rail outside the house. One was a tall white stallion, the other a slightly wild-looking, rangy sorrel gelding. The horses snorted at the thunder, their feet prancing. A man opened the heavy wooden door to the cabin and looked out. Then he looked back in again. "Another storm," he said to his compadre inside. The other man came to the door. He looked at the skies, then walked further out to clear the trees for a better view. He went to the rocks to the east of the meadow. Bounding up with sure feet, he could see far off into the vast valley beyond. He stood looking for some time, the wind picking up his dark, shaggy hair. He smelled the air. Then he came stepped down. "I have to go back," he said. "You should go back now too. You have done what you came to do." "Si," the other man agreed. "Though I have not finished yet." He looked out at the sky. "It will take time, Enrique," the first man said. "I am waiting, too. Zorro keeps me on a short leash." "Zorro...." the other growled. He eyed his friend, his lips curling into a half-smile. "By the way. I did not tell you. I met Elizabeth Matteo...de la Vega. She was out on the road alone in the sunshine." "Oh?" the first man said, his voice suddenly guarded. "Have you met her?" "Si." "Very beautiful. Quite brave, too." He looked out across the meadow. "I am sure she knew who I was," he said slowly. "She is not dull-witted," the other man said, smiling to himself. "But she does fluster." They stepped back under the porch as the first few drops of rain began to fly. "Do we ride in the rain?" he asked. "No," the other answered. "Let the heavens open. We will not be found here, we can start back after this storm passes. I will move the horses into the cave shelter." The first man shrugged and returned into the cabin, to throw a log on the smoldering fire. The other, patting his white stallion's nose, led the two horses beyond the trees to a place where the rocks overhung so deeply that they made a long, shallow cave. He tethered the animals, there, removed their saddles, and went back into the cabin, pulling the door shut. Many feet above the shallow cave, yet another man watched. When no more movement occurred from the cabin, he returned to his horse, pulled himself up onto its bare back, and started his journey home. ****** Diego was pulling the black clothes from the saddle bag in his hut when he heard the thunder. He stepped outside and looked up, to see that rain was approaching. Another delay, he thought. He sighed. Perhaps it was an omen, telling him to stop the search before he truly began it. It was sheer folly to try to find Monastario in these hills during a rainstorm. Nothing would move except the earth itself, in mud and rocks that could fly down the mountain faster and with more force than the rockslide he had narrowly escaped the night before. Flash floods were inevitable. He stood there for a moment, feeling the impulse to go anyway. Then he heard Second Arrow's tiny cry from the hut next door. The sound of a newborn's voice stopped him. Esperanza had sounded like that once, the loud little kitten-like squall that was asking for something that her mother would have to ascertain. He thought about Esperanza's infancy, how very little she was and yet how strong, how carefully he had held her to Elizabeth's breast in those early weeks when his beloved was too weak to sit up and hold the baby on her own. How much risk am I willing to take? he asked himself. Is she carrying my son now? He dropped the black clothes to the ground. ****** An hour later, Long Lash rode into the village in heavy rain. Diego saw him arrive and went out to greet him. "Did you find anything, did you see what happened in the Needle?" he asked. Long Lash pulled his horse into the grove of trees where stretched-out, tanned cattle hides were laid across high branches to keep the animals dry. He took a blanket and began wiping the horse down. "The rockslide in the Needle appeared to be natural," he said. "I found nothing to suggest it was set." "You were gone a long time," Diego said. "They are in a cabin, in the hills to the east," Long Lash said. "'They?'" Diego repeated. "Si, two of them. The man who rides the white horse and the man who rides the sorrel." "A sorrel?" Diego said. "Can you take me to them?" "Not in this," Long Lash said, walking back out into the rain and towards his own hut. Diego followed him. "Can you tell me how to get there?" he asked. Long Lash proceeded to his hut and went in. Diego followed. It was a smaller hut, and so bare that Diego could see that the young brave had moved into it only recently. It was, Diego suspected, his preparation move before taking a wife. The Indian turned around boldly and faced Diego. "It is a cabin built many years ago, you have seen it. High," he indicated, "surrounded by trees on one side and rocks on the other. There is a shallow cave where horses can be tied." "I know the place," Diego said. He saw it in his mind's eye in an instant. It was an abandoned hunting cabin and way station in rocky, remote area off the road through the Santa Susana Pass. In his boyhood the property had been part of the Bocca land grant. Diego and Windhawk spent many hours on those rocks during the period when Diego spent so much time with the Indians after his mother died. It was also the scene of his final falling out with Windhawk, before he left for Spain. Long Lash shrugged. "That is where they are. I do not think they will leave until the rain stops." He looked at Diego and then at the door. "Thank you," Diego said. He then returned to his own hut and sat on the dirt floor. They? he thought. Who is there with him? Who else knows that place? Who would be up there with Monastario? He began to reconstruct the history of the property in his mind. Sancho Bocca gave it to Francisco as a wedding gift, when he married Doņa Leonora. Diego's father had told him that once, in a conversation about how land changes hands. "We have a law of primogeniture," he had said to his nine year-old son one evening. The family was sitting in the sala after a late supper. His mother was playing the piano quietly. "You are my eldest son, so our land will belong to you one day." "I am your only son," Diego replied. "Si, right now you are," Alejandro had said. "But that may not always be the case, Diego. However, as the first son, you will inherit the land." Young Diego's eyes widened, not over the news about the land, but at the notion that he might have a sibling one day. He looked at his mother, who continued playing the piano. There was a half-smile on her lips, but she was concentrating on the keys. "All of it will belong to you on my death," Alejandro went on, "but sometimes land is passed on sooner." "Death?" Diego repeated. "But Papa, you are not going to die!" "We all die one day, Diego," his mother had said from the piano. "It is part of life." She glanced at Alejandro. "Not that we wish it for those that we love." Alejandro continued. "For instance, when Francisco Bocca married Doņa Leonora, Don Sancho gave him a large section of land on the Santa Susana Pass as a wedding gift. He also gave him the property beside the Cahuenga Pass, where Don Francisco and Dona Leonora built their hacienda." "That is where Clementia and Benicio live," Diego observed. "Si, that is where your young friends live," Alejandro agreed. "But the property up in the pass they use as a base for hunting, rather like we use our cabin in the San Gabriel Mountains." "Will our cabin be mine some day?" Diego asked. "Si, Diego," Alejandro had smiled. "That is a place we must always keep in our family. It is special." Diego thought again about his mother, sitting so quietly at the piano, nothing moving except her beautiful hands, the smile on her lips. Elizabeth has beautiful hands, he thought. Esperanza will, too. And she has my mother's smile. He shook his head, thinking again about the land. It had been Don Francisco's when his mother died. Francisco had held it for many years, and then ...Diego caught his breath, realizing. He sold it. To Carlos Matteo. And Carlos, in turn, had sold the Bocca property to Enrique Monastario. Would Monastario have remembered that tiny place, after years in Mexico? Mexico.... "Benicio!" Diego said under his breath. ****** The rain swept across the rancho in torrents. Bernardo and Elizabeth returned home barely in time, but managed to stable their horses and get back to the hacienda before it started. "What on earth were you thinking!?" Alejandro cried, when he learned she had started out in search of Diego. "I was afraid for him, I wanted to find him," she answered. They sat in the sala while the rain poured outside, making small ponds on the patio. "Elizabeth, will you ever learn that you cannot go out on your own!" he exclaimed. "You have had more disasters than anyone I can think of and still you do these reckless things! What if Bernardo had not found you? You could be up in those hills right now alone, trying to find a village you have never been to! Ai!" "I have done good things by going off alone!" she cried. "That is how I met El Zorro! That is how I found Diego when Consuelo knocked him out! It is how I clear my mind, it is how I talk with my mother!" "It is how you met Monastario!" Alejandro exclaimed. "He could have kidnapped you, or...." he stopped. They were quiet for a moment. "I do not know why we fight like this," Elizabeth said quietly. Alejandro sighed. "It is because we both love him so much," she said. "We do both love him, my dear, but that is not why we argue," Alejandro said. Elizabeth laughed in agreement. "You are right. I am sorry, Father. I do not mean disrespect." He patted her hand. "I know. And I am only worried for your safety, Elizabeth. You are part of our family now, and I do not want Diego to suffer more loss." He looked up at his beloved Matilde's portrait over the fireplace. Elizabeth looked at it, too. They sat there quietly for a few moments. "I feel as if she is with us, even though I never met her," she said. He smiled a little sadly. "She is." "What do we do?" Elizabeth asked. "About Diego? We can only wait." Elizabeth thought for a little while, staring up at her mother-in-law's portrait. An idea formed in her mind. "I would like to build a chapel," she stated. "A chapel?" Alejandro said. "Si, here on the property, near my gardens," she continued. "Just a very small place where we can go to pray. Will you allow me to do that?" Alejandro shrugged. "It is not unusual, to have a chapel on a rancho....we simply never did it, though Matilde did have a shrine set up for a while in a room beside the stable. It went into disuse after she died, and after Diego left for Spain I just had it taken down. The cross is in the hayloft, I imagine, if you want to find it. I think there was a little altar as well." "I do," Elizabeth said. "Especially if it was chosen by your wife. It will have special meaning. I will go to Padre Felipe to find out what we should do, and perhaps he will loan me some Indians to help build it." Alejandro nodded. "You will have to wait until the rain stops, to begin." "Si, for the building, but not to put together the contents," Elizabeth said. She looked at him quizzically. "Can you tell me, who was her patron saint? Matilde's?" Alejandro frowned. "I....I believe it was...." he shook his head. "Elizabeth, she died fifteen years ago. She was so active in the church, I do not know if there was a particular saint that she preferred. I left the religion in the household to her, to tell you the truth. I know that she was pleased when they named the little town by the sea Santa Monica, but I do not think that was her patrona. I simply do not remember who it was, may God help me." He shook his head. "Perhaps Diego remembers." Alejandro shrugged a little helplessly. "He might. He traveled with her to all the missions." Elizabeth touched his forearm. "I must go to see Esperanza. We will keep Diego in our prayers tonight, to all the saints and the Blessed Mother." "Si, my dear," he said. He watched her go to the door and back out under the walkway towards the stairs. Then he looked up at Matilde's portrait. "I am sorry I cannot remember," he said softly. "But I remember so many other things...." ****** The rain lasted for a day and a half. Diego felt he was in limbo. He spent a great deal of time alone in his hut, contemplating his situation and waiting for the weather to lift. Thanks to Long Lash, he knew where his enemy was. He also knew that whereas he would have to go into the pass alone, Monastario had an ally. He felt sure it was Benicio Bocca. He took his meals with Windhawk and his family, teasing the children and, when Soaring Bird would allow it, holding little Second Arrow. Being around a newborn warmed his heart to the idea that Elizabeth was pregnant, but he said nothing of this to the Indians. He did sleight-of-hand magic tricks for Willow and Little Feather, and he did his best to handle the continued cold shoulder of his old friend. Finally the rain let up and the sun broke out again, on the third morning since his arrival. Carrying all his things, and wearing the black clothes absent the mask, hat and cape,, he emerged from the hut to see that the Indians had moved their fire back outdoors. This was a good sign, for it meant they expected the good weather to last for a few days. Long Lash was at the fire when he came out. "You will go up to the Pass today," Long Lash said. Diego nodded. "The rain will allow it. I must go soon, or they will be gone." "They had good horses," said the young brave. He glanced at Diego's clothing but said nothing. "The white one is one of the best," Diego said. "Better than your black horse?" Long Lash asked, slightly sarcastic. "As good," Diego admitted. He looked around. It was still quiet, and no one had yet emerged from Windhawk's hut. "Tell them I said thank you," he said to Long Lash. Long Lash nodded. Diego took a breath and headed to where the horses were tethered. Tornado saw him coming and whinnied, sensing that they were about to go on an adventure. "Si," Diego said to him, patting his neck. ****** Elizabeth occupied herself with finding the old materials that had once made Matilde de la Vega's altar. With Bernardo's help, she rummaged through the two barns and haylofts on the property, finding not only the old cross and small wooden altar, but also Diego's first saddle when he was a little boy and a small, locked trunk shoved into a dark corner. It was late on the second afternoon that the best finds presented themselves, in the hayloft of the further barn. "What can be in here?" she asked Bernardo, patting the trunk. They had just found the saddle and had set it aside after a careful inspection, which revealed the initials "DdlV" carved in the underside. The altar and cross lay in the straw nearby. Bernardo shrugged. "Treasures!" she said playfully. She yanked at the trunk. It was heavy. "I cannot lift it, Bernardo. I wonder how they got it up here?' He shrugged again, and pointed towards the hacienda. "Si, I will ask Don Alejandro," she agreed. "Since it is locked we will not battle with it right now, but we will get into it eventually. Perhaps Alejandro has a key to this lock. Oh, just look at this little saddle! I love it! Can you have it cleaned up and polished? We can save it and perhaps Esperanza can use it when she starts to ride in a few years." Bernardo nodded, agreeing to have the saddle cleaned. He was clearly as delighted with this find as his mistress. She sat down in the straw, between the trunk and the saddle. The rain was pounding on the roof. "I hope he is all right," she said. Bernardo nodded reassuringly. "Leave me alone for a little while," she told him. Bernardo hesitated, not entirely liking the idea of leaving her high in a hayloft and fairly far from most of the household. "Go on, you can tell Maria to come call me when it is time to have supper," Elizabeth said. "Perhaps I shall take a siesta on this blanket." Bernardo took the blanket and spent a few minutes laying it out carefully for her, smoothing everything out and making the straw bed even. "Thank you," she smiled at him. Elizabeth waited until he climbed down the ladder and left the barn. Then she lay down on her back, staring up at the ceiling. She reached over and put her hand on the seat of the beautiful little leather saddle as she lay there. She closed her eyes. The feel of the solid leather under her hand conjured up memories of the saddle she had first climbed into, as a little girl. She was at a farm in Virginia. Her family was invited there, as guests. They had made the long journey from Massachusetts in a beautiful carriage. It seemed so far away now, such a blur. But some of it she still remembered vividly. "Do you like the little pony, Elizabeth?" her mother had asked, as she sat her five year-old on the solid little pony's back. Elizabeth remembered how the sun had shone that afternoon. It was summer and warm. She remembered the smell of honeysuckle in the air, and the smell of ham cooking in a smokehouse. She remembered little black children watching from a distance. Elizabeth nodded at her mother, feeling full of wonder that such a huge creature would let her sit on its back. It was a dark brown pony with a straw-colored mane and tale. "If you will promise me that you will hold on to its mane like this," her mother had put Elizabeth's hands on the pony's mane and helped her get a good grip, "I will take you out into the paddock and walk you in a circle. You will have your first ride! Would you like that?" Elizabeth nodded again. "All right, then, hold on, and we will go outside." With that her mother had led the pony out into the sunshine. A tall man was standing there. He watched them as they stepped through a gate and into the paddock. He smiled as they walked around the paddock. "Sit up straight, Elizabeth," he had called to her. "A lady sits straight in her saddle." Elizabeth straightened up, which meant letting go of the horse's mane. Her mother watched as Elizabeth sat up. "That is very good," her mother said. "I will keep the bridle, but you may hold the reins." The tall man came over to them, taking the reins. "You hold them like this," he said, showing Elizabeth how to take each side of the reins in her hands and hold them straight. "That is very good, just like that." He smiled broadly. "You will make a fine rider some day, if you decide you like to ride," he told her. Elizabeth smiled back at the craggy-faced man. She still remembered the red in his hair. "Always look ahead, where your horse is going," he advised her. "Remember that you are the horse's eyes, if you want him to go where you decide." Elizabeth nodded and looked ahead. Her mother took her in large circle around the paddock. Bees were buzzing around, and flies made the pony stamp his leg occasionally. Elizabeth held her seat. When the circle was finished, they stopped again in front of the tall man and he lifted her off the pony. "Say thank you to President Jefferson, Elizabeth," said her mother. Elizabeth looked up into the tall man's face and said, "Thank you. I like your pony." He laughed, his blue eyes twinkling. "The pony really belongs to my daughter. You will get to tell her you like him when we go in to have supper. Perhaps you will go for another ride on him tomorrow." At that point, Elizabeth's memory of the encounter faded, though she had a vague recollection of skipping away to play with what she now knew were the slave children on the plantation. The ride and the black children were the only things she remembered from her childhood visit to Monticello. She had never told Diego about it, for he was so disdainful of anything related to the Americans or their government. She rubbed the top of Diego's childhood saddle with her hand again. When I show this to you, I will have a good saddle story of my own, she thought. She turned onto her side and felt an unwelcome cramp, not the first of the last day or two. She snuggled into the straw as best she could, again wishing her beloved was there to put his arms around her and cuddle her in the hay. "Diego..." she whispered.