Epilogue

As I opened the door to the library with the extra bottles of wine, the finest wine the de la Vega rancho produced, I noticed the conversation between Don Alejandro, Diego and Pedro had changed direction. Diego had a pensive, almost anxious look on his face, whereas his father looked downright curious and intrigued again. The party had moved to the library after dinner, with everyone enjoying some good wine while the fire in the fireplace crackled until the last guest finally said his goodbyes, leaving the three men alone.

"… and Emiliano didn't like it one bit, even though it wasn't even as if Diego did anything to encourage Lita's advances. It was she who made eyes at your son, and Emiliano just couldn't handle it," Pedro just finished.

Ah, I knew now why Diego had taken up such a dire expression. Yet another story from his time back in Spain that could fire up his father's suspicions. Come to think of it, I doubt there are any stories worth telling from Spain that would not rouse suspicions about Diego's uncharacteristic change upon his return to California. Don Alejandro cast a curious look at his son, who decided to put a good face on the matter.

"You know, Father, it's not like she wasn't beautiful or attractive," Alejandro smirked at Diego's admission, "but regarding her reputation, I just didn't want to end up as yet another trophy on her mantelpiece."

"What type of reputation was that?" Alejandro inquired.

"Oh well," Pedro chimed in. "She was quite attracted to the top ranked students on the fencing circuit, and Diego had just managed in his short time there to knock her current trophy, Emiliano, down a peg or two. So she started making eyes at Diego, and Emiliano was furious."

I went to refill the glasses of Pedro and Don Alejandro. Diego had hardly sipped on his own drink, a sign of his unusual nervousness. When I looked at him, he smiled and took a sip. I nodded at my friend, trying to reassure him. Pedro put his half-empty glass down on the table in front of him, carrying on the story.

"The man wasn't even interested in the fact that Diego wasn't returning Lita's advances, so he came up with his own little revenge scheme."

"Revenge?" Don Alejandro asked, frowning.

"Si, Father. He arranged for Lita and myself to receive a note, supposedly from each other, which said to meet at the pond in the yard behind the university after sundown. I thought it was rather peculiar, so I asked Pedro to come with and hide nearby."

"It was a good thing he asked me. I was there when Diego received the note and even though Lita had her reputation, a suggestion to this sort of meeting seemed rather unlike her. She liked making her advances in public."

"When we arrived, Pedro hid behind a rather thick bush and I didn't have to wait long for Lita to show up. I think it's needless to say we both quickly discovered that neither of us had written a note of that sort. Unfortunately, not wanting to miss out on the opportunity, Lita decided to continue her advances and conveniently, at that moment, Emiliano appeared with a couple of his friends." Diego chuckled quietly at the memory and I went to refill his now empty glass.

"What happened next?" his father pressed on.

"Oh, Emiliano and his friends insisted they had caught the pair conducting improper behavior and he made out to defend the lady's honor. He drew his blade and challenged Diego," Pedro laughed heartily. "The man really thought he could beat Diego, even though he had already lost to him twice in the previous week in the university fencing hall. In no time, Diego had Emiliano's sword flying into the pond."

"At that point I thought it better to leave," Diego smiled and winked at me. Then he looked at his father, before he continued. "The next morning I had just met up with Pedro and Bernardo, when Emiliano came over to me, demanding I keep the last day's events concerning him losing to me quiet, else he would tell everybody he'd found Lita and myself in a compromising situation."

Alejandro gaped at his son's explanations, but couldn't pose the question he was about to ask because Pedro ploughed on. "After he'd stomped off, we found out he'd already just done it. He'd gone off telling everybody he surprised Diego and Lita alone, kissing."

I couldn't contain a smile when I caught sight of Diego blushing ever so slightly. He was clearly not comfortable discussing this topic with his father present. Amongst friends, I remembered this subject was talked about much more easily.

"It didn't take long for a university representative to ask Diego to come to the council. I went with him and we managed to convince them that Diego had been set up. Lita also confirmed that, and anyway, I don't think they wanted to gather the wrath of the royal family for dismissing a friend of theirs from the university on dubious charges." Pedro grinned broadly. "I guess that's when nobody wanted to mess with either of us anymore. I had the connections and Diego had the necessary skills with the blade."

Alejandro de la Vega sighed. "I wonder how many more tales I don't know yet that will leave me wondering, my son, as to why you changed your ways so much upon coming home. I won't press you for answers, Diego, but I do hope one day you will come to me and let me know. Now, I think I will retire. I'm not as young as you boys anymore. An old man needs his sleep when a hard day's work is waiting. Buenas noches." With that, he emptied his glass and put it on the tray on the table before leaving, a smile tugging on his lips.

Diego breathed a sigh of relief. Then he got up to refill his glass as well as Pedro's. Taking a third glass, which he also filled with wine, he walked over and handed it over to me.

"Compadres," he said, lifting his glass. "To friendship."

"To friendship," Pedro echoed and I nodded my consent. As I put down my glass again, my gaze fell upon the library door and I noticed it was cracked open. In the relative darkness beyond the door, I could make out Don Alejandro's features. He was smiling and winked at me before closing the door silently.