Zorro's Double Danger

 

cover art by Sam Cherry

Johsnon McCulley's short story "Zorro's Double Danger" (West Magazine, February 1946) presents the swashbuckling hero with an interesting problem. He's scheduled to fight a duel in his identity as Don Diego Vega. But Don Diego is supposed to be a foppish weakling. Diego can't throw the fight, because that means getting killed or maimed. But he can't win without making people wonder how the young man suddenly became a skilled swordsman.

It began one morning when Don Diego and his mute servant Bernardo go shopping. While Diego is in the store, a jerk named Rojas begins to beat Bernardo for refusing to talk to him. He didn't realize Bernardo was mute, but doesn't care even when Diego calls him out on this. Servants exist to be beaten, after all.

Diego has no choice but to challenge Rojas to a duel. But that creates the problem discussed earlier. 

The answer? Well, Rojas beat up a peon, a class Zorro is sworn to protect. So Zorro can get a message to Rojas to meet him in a certain field the night before his duel with Diego. If Zorro wins that duel, Rojas won't be in a condition to fight Diego.

What Zorro doesn't count on is that Rojas isn't just a jerk, but a double-dog jerk. Maybe even a triple-dog jerk! When the masked hero arrives at the field to fight the duel, he discovers that Rojas has ratted him out and sent a squad of soldiers to capture him...

It's a great story. I'm afraid I haven't found this one online anywhere, so I can't provide a link to it. But the original Zorro stories have been reprinted. For anyone who enjoys a succinct, exciting adventure tale, these stories are worth tracking down.