My Word is my Bond
This episode was written by Robert L. McCullough and Phillip John Taylor. It was directed by Ray Austin.
(The Hacienda. Diego and his father are playing the piano for a group of friends. They finish the piece and the people applaud.)
Man: Bravo! Bravo!
Mendoza: (to Victoria) I thought you said Don Diego was a good piano player.
Victoria: And so he is.
Mendoza: But he had his father help him.
Victoria: It was a sonata for four hands.
Mendoza: I knew that.
Diego: (Diego, walking with a cane, comes to the seated sergeant.) So, Sergeant, what did you think?
Mendoza: A little dull for me, Don Diego. I prefer music you can sing along with, you know, perhaps even whistle.
Diego: I’ll keep that in mind.
Mendoza: Ah, thank you, Don Diego. How is your leg?
Diego: Improving daily, thank you.
Victoria: You were very brave, Don Diego. That bull would have wrecked the entire plaza if you hadn’t distracted it.
Diego: Well, facing a bull with a broomstick may be more like stupidity than bravery.
(A horse is heard
neighing loudly outside.)
Alejandro: What in the name of heaven — (The people
head for the door.)
(Outside the hacienda. It is dark. A man comes stumbling toward Alejandro.)
Alejandro: Miguel! What
happened?
Miguel: Bandits, patron! They took four of your best horses! I tried to stop
them.
Alejandro: Get him inside, Sergeant. (Everyone goes inside except Diego.)
Diego: (To himself.) Of all things. Just when Zorro is needed most!
(Alejandro is seen riding towards the pueblo.)
(The plaza)
De Soto: Mendoza, sir, finally. We march at once. Lancers!
Alejandro: (Arriving on horseback in the plaza) Alcalde! Did Mendoza tell you about our unwelcome visitors last night?
De Soto: Yes, the sergeant made a full report.
Alejandro: A full report. I’m impressed to see such prompt action.
De Soto: Well, you see, we awoke this morning to find several of our best horses missing as well.
Alejandro: Ah! I should have known.
De Soto: Now, if you’ll excuse us, we have business to which we must attend.
Alejandro: Well, if that business involves chasing those banditos, I volunteer my services.
De Soto: (Chuckles) Oh, excellent. And where’s your son?
Alejandro: He’s at home nursing a broken leg.
De Soto: Well, that’s probably the best place for him. Lancers! Vamanos!
(Outside Los Angeles, Alejandro and De Soto are mounted, but the soldiers are walking.)
Mendoza: Alcalde, this is a waste of time. This is José Maceas’ place. It is impossible.
Alejandro: Sergeant Mendoza’s absolutely right. José and Julieta Maceas are the most honest couple in Los Angeles.
De Soto: Is that so?
Alejandro: Absolutely so.
De Soto: Lancers, search the area. (The Maceas family is outside their home.)
Alejandro: Alcalde! Hola, Jose! Good to see you. I don’t believe it. Look how my godchildren are growing.
Mendoza: Sepulveda! Check the corral.
Alejandro: Ah, Señora Maceas. As always, a pleasure to see you again.
Julieta: Gracias, Don Alejandro.
José: Don Alejandro, I don’t understand. Is something wrong?
Alejandro: Unfortunately yes. There are horse thieves in the area. The alcalde is being his usual difficult self. Ah, Rosita! Alejandrito! (He goes over to the children)
Jose: I don’t think they recognize you, Don Alejandro.
Sepulveda: (Running around from the back of the house.) Alcalde, they’re here! I found them, Alcalde. This way! We found them in the far corral. (Everyone follows him around to the back of the house.)
(At the corral. It is full of the missing horses.)
Alejandro: José! My horses!
De Soto: And mine.
Mendoza: It can’t be. José?
José: But I don’t understand. I don’t know how these horses got here.
De Soto: So that’s the question I’m going to be asking you at your trial, Señor.
José: My trial! But I have no idea… I’ve never seen these horses and I’m certainly no thief! Don Alejandro, tell them. You know me.
Alejandro: Of course I know you. How did they get in your corral?
De Soto: Precisely the question. Lancers, seize the prisoner. Take him away.
Julieta: No! (The lancers grab José.)
José: Julieta! Julieta!
(The plaza. Victoria sees the lancers leading José to the jail.)
Victoria: José Maceas? (She shakes her head and goes inside.)
José: Alcalde! You know I’m no horse thief.
De Soto: Yes? Well, you’ll have plenty of time to explain that to the territorial magistrate.
José: But why won’t you believe me?
De Soto: Let’s just say I have a doubtful nature, hm? And besides, if you’re so blessed innocent, why are you afraid to appear in a fair and open courtroom?
Alejandro: Why are you afraid to let him get out on bail, sir?
José: Alcalde, you know my wife is expecting a child soon. Without me, my whole family is lost.
De Soto: Well, you should have thought of that before you stole my horses. (He signals to the lancers to take him away.)
Alejandro: That’s not fair. Don’t presume that he’s guilty. Give him his day in court. Please!
De Soto: All right, all right, all right. I’m a compassionate man and since the entire pueblo seems to vouch for this man, I’ll set bail.
José: Gracias, Señor, mil gracias,
De Soto: Bail is set at 2000 pesos.
Alejandro: What?!
José: Two thousand pesos! You can’t be serious. Where am I going to get that kind of money?
Alejandro: José, don’t worry. We’ll bail you out. (De Soto gives Alejandro a curious look and leaves.)
José: Don Alejandro, please, tell Julieta everything will be all right.
Alejandro: Your family will stay with us. Take care, my son. (The lancers lead José through the gates of the armoury.)
(The jail. De Soto is counting out the bail money with Don Alejandro and Victoria watching.)
De Soto: One thousand three hundred and fifty-two…one thousand three hundred and fifty-three. This is a great deal of money, Señorita. How did you come by this?
Victoria: Those are my life savings, Alcalde. And that’s how much I trust José Maceas. Don’t worry. It’s all there, every peso, although I will need a receipt.
De Soto: Uh hm. Uh hm. One thousand three hundred and — (He has lost count. He shoves the whole pile of coins to one side and begins again.) One…two…three…four… (Victoria and Alejandro turn around, exasperated.)
(Outside the jail. All three of them are coming out of the door. A small crowd has gathered.)
Alejandro. José Maceas! (Men step forward and congratulate Jose.)
José: Don Alejandro, Señorita Escalante, you don’t know what this means to me. How will I ever repay you?
Victoria: Well, you don’t have to repay me.
Alejandro: All you have to do is show up for your trial.
José: Of course, of course. This whole thing is crazy. But whatever it takes, I’m going to prove my innocence.
Alejandro: Ah, I have an idea. I’m going to send Diego over to your ranch tomorrow morning. He’s got a good legal mind. (To Victoria) He’ll help him with his defense.
José: But I can’t really afford legal help.
Victoria: He will enjoy going up against the alcalde in open court. Besides, at least it will give him something to do while that leg of his mends.
José: Wonderful! Shall I ride out to your hacienda, Don Alejandro?
Alejandro: No, no. I’ll send Diego out first thing in the morning.
José: First thing in the morning. Perfect. I’ll have some fresh coffee waiting.
Victoria: Now you get back to that family of yours.
José: Gracias, Señorita Escalante. Muchas Gracias to you all.
(The Maceas ranch. Diego drives up in the carriage.)
Diego: José! (He climbs down and walks around, but sees no one.) José! Julieta! That’s strange.
(The plaza. Mendoza
is running toward the alcalde who is seated at a table on the veranda of the
tavern. Victoria is serving him.)
Mendoza: Alcalde! Alcalde! The horses! They’re missing again.
De Soto: What?
Victoria: Are you sure, Sergeant?
Mendoza: I just came from the stables. They’re gone!
De Soto: (Seeing Don Alejandro riding towards them.) Oh no! Let me guess, Don Alejandro. Your horses have been stolen again?
Alejandro: Exactly! And there’s more. Diego went out to the Maceas ranch. José, his wife and the family have all vanished.
De Soto: Sergeant, form a search party immediately.
Mendoza: Si, mi alcalde. (He returns to the quartel.)
De Soto: You people are really fools. (He follows the sergeant.)
Victoria: But there must be some explanation.
Alejandro: I think I’d
better go with the alcalde, Victoria. He just might shoot José on sight. (He
leaves.)
Victoria: (To a serving girl.) Don Alejandro’s right. I must find José
before the alcalde does.
(The courtyard of the hacienda. Diego and Felipe are seated at a table.)
Diego: It’s Victoria’s money, Felipe. She’s determined to find José and bring him back herself. (Felipe signs.) No, I don’t suppose Victoria is afraid of José. But there is something — (The sound of a neighing horse is heard. They turn to see Victoria riding in the distance.) Victoria! Victoria! (She keeps riding.) Victoria may not be afraid of José but there is something she’s overlooked. If José is innocent as we all believe, what if she runs into the real thief? (Felipe points to his broken leg.) A stolen horse or two is one thing, but for the woman I love, Zorro rides, broken leg or not. (He gives the cane to Felipe and goes inside.)
(The cave. Zorro is mounting Toronado.)
Zorro: As long as I stay in the saddle. Victoria’s life may be in danger. That’s all that matters. (He exits the cave.)
(Outside the pueblo. The lancers are searching again on foot, with only Alejandro and De Soto mounted.)
Alejandro: Alcalde, they can’t have gone south. The April rains have made the creek impassable.
De Soto: Well, they didn’t go west into the ocean.
Alejandro: I’m telling you, Alcalde, they went east to San Bernadino. (They come to the swollen creek.) What did I tell you?
De Soto: North. They went north.
Alejandro: No one in their right mind would take that many horses across the bridge at Diablo canyon. I say they went inland. San Bernadino.
De Soto: San Bernadino! (He chuckles) Well, I hope you have a pleasant ride, Don Alejandro, if you’re not killed by the desert heat. As for us, we go north. Vamanos, muchachos.
Mendoza: Si, mi alcalde. (They turn north.)
Alejandro: North is a much cooler ride, but they can’t have gone that way.
De Soto: And I say they did.
Alejandro: Alcalde, stubborn as a mule, as always. (Alejandro follows them.)
(Outside the pueblo. Victoria has tracked the horse thieves. She sees José in the distance, leading the stolen horses.)
Victoria: José Maceas, horse thief. Well, I would never have believed it, if I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes.
(Near the creek, we see Zorro following the tracks.)
(At the edge of Diablo canyon. The bridge has been broken.)
Alejandro: Now, San Bernadino? Acalde?
De Soto: (Disgusted)Yes.
Alejandro: Sergeant, we’ve wasted the whole day.
Mendoza: Si, Don Alejandro, but as the alcalde’s fond of saying, a soldier can do no wrong who follows orders. Come, men! Vamanos.
(Zorro rides across the desert. Tornado leaps the narrow ravine at Diablo’s canyon.)
(Victoria cautiously approaches the camp of men to which José is leading the horses. She stays hidden behind the rocks.)
Victoria: (To herself) José, how could you?
(Down at the capsite.)
José: (Name of thief..unintelligible.) I got the horses you wanted. I lived up to my part of the bargain. Now it’s your turn.
Thief: Our agreement was for all of the garrison horses.
José: I got all I could. The
other end of the stables was too heavily guarded. It was unsafe. (The thief
laughs.)
Victoria: (From behind the rocks) You’re coming in if I have to take you
in myself.
Thief: How do you ever expect to become a famous horse thief if you don’t take a few chances, amigo? (Another thief comes up around the rocks behind Victoria as Zorro approaches.)
Zorro: (To Toronado) Easy, boy.
(The thief comes up from behind the rock suddenly and Victoria fires a pistol, shooting the gun from his hand.)
Thief: What was that?
Victoria: After you, Señor. (She waves him back toward the camp with a second pistol.)
José: Señorita Escalante!
Victoria: I have nothing to say to you, José Maceas. I trusted you with my life savings.
José: Let me explain.
Victoria: There’s nothing to explain. Now I know what you’re all about. And I’m taking you all in for horse stealing.
Thief: (Laughs) You’ve got a lot of spirit, little lady. I like you. But tell me, how are you going to get us all back to Los Angeles? We outnumber you.
José: He’s right.
Victoria: Yeah, well. (She alternates pointing the pistol at each one.) If anyone tries to make a move, they’ll get a pistol ball right between the eyes.
Thief: You haven’t got the nerve.
(Toronado neighs as Zorro appears.)
Zorro: Trust me, Señor, she has the nerve. (The thief draws his sword.) I’d be delighted to cross swords with you, however…(He rides forward.and Toronado rears, knocking the sword from the thief’s hand. The man throws himself at Zorro, knocking him from the saddle. Zorro lands, hurting his leg once again. His sword lands nearby and is picked up by one of the men.)
Victoria: (To the other thieves.) Don’t move!
José: Please, Señorita, you don’t understand.
Thief: The fight is over, Señor. (Another thief appears from behind the rocks with a knife at the throat of Julietta.)
Victoria: Julieta!
José: I was trying to protect my wife and children. The stolen horses were making their getaway difficult, so I hid them in my corral. After you had posted bail for me, I went home and I discovered they had taken Julieta and the children. They left a note saying that if I didn’t bring the stolen horses to their secret hideaway, I would never see my family again.
Zorro: Once again we learn to presume a man’s innocence until he’s proven guilty.
Victoria: I’m sorry, José. It’s just that all the evidence pointed towards you.
Thief: This is a waste of time. Throw down your weapons or the Maceas woman dies muy pronto!
Zorro: Señor, you picked the wrong day to try my patience!
(Zorro lashes out with his whip at the man holding Julieta. Then he uses the whip to pluck his own sword from the hand of one of the thieves and deposit it neatly into his own. Zorro fences with two of the men, pretty much standing in place until he finally just knocks them out with his fist. One man comes forward, pointing a pistol in Zorro’s face. Victoria fires her own pistol at the man, hitting his hand. He drops the pistol and Zorro punches him.)
Victoria: A woman’s work is
never done. (Another thief gets to his feet and she uses the butt of the gun
to hit him on the head. Zorro salutes her. A man rises from behind him.)
Behind you! (Zorro neatly knocks the rock the man throws at him aside. When
the man runs away, he awkwardly tries to follow on foot. Victoria is looking at
Julieta and the children and doesn’t notice his pained expression.) Are you
all right, Julieta?
Julieta: Yes, yes.
Victoria: Gracias, Señorita Escalante. I was right. He was innocent.
Zorro: You saved my life. How can I ever repay you?
Victoria: You could start with a kiss.
Zorro: That would be my utmost pleasure. (He starts to dismount, then remembers his leg.) On second thought, I’d better go chase that bandit before he gets too far away.
Victoria: Isn’t that typical. He’d rather be out chasing bandits. (She goes over to the family as Zorro rides away.)
(The plaza. Diego walks across the plaza slowly without his cane. De Soto, Alejandro and the lancers arrive back in the pueblo.)
Diego: Buenas dias, Father, Senores. What happened?
Alejandro: What didn’t happen to us, Diego. We just came back from San Bernadino —
Mendoza: —In the scorching desert heat. It was terrible, Don Diego, terrible.
Alejandro: When we got there, the people there they hadn’t heard or seen a bandito for months.
Mendoza: Flies, sandstorms, rattlesnakes…
De Soto: Oh, stop your whining, Sergeant.
Mendoza: Big fat locusts too.
Alejandro: Diego, I think we can say goodbye to our horses.
De Soto: You can say the same for José Maceas
Diego: Let’s not be so quick to jump to conclusions. (They all turn to see the horses and the horse thieves being led into the plaza by Victoria and followed by José.)
De Soto: Who on earth are those men?
Diego: Victoria, we were worried about you.
Victoria: Oh, there was no need to worry, Don Diego. And by the way, Don Alejandro, your horses are back safely in your corral.
Alejandro: That’s marvelous, Victoria, but…but how?
Victoria: Alcalde, these are the men who were responsible for the robberies. And, uh, José Maceas helped me to apprehend them and bring them back to you.
De Soto: He did what?
Diego: Apparently you arrested the wrong man, Alcalde. It really is a habit you should try to break.
Victoria: And now I would like my bail money back, if you please.
De Soto: Bail.
Mendoza: Señorita Escalante, it’s impossible. You and José captured all these horses.
Victoria: Well…
Diego: I think she may have had a little help, Sergeant, from a friend. (The crowd points to the “Z’s” on the backs of the jackets of the thieves.) So, José, apparently you won’t be needing my legal expertise.
José: No, amigo, Zorro already came to my defense.
Alejandro: Well, I don’t know about the rest of you, but I feel like a long, cool lemonade.
Diego: Splendid idea, have one on me, Father. (He turns to go to the tavern and feels a sudden pain.) Oh!
Victoria: (To Julieta and the children.) Now if that were Zorro, he wouldn’t be such a baby about a broken leg.
Alejandro: If Zorro had broken his leg, the pueblo of Los Angeles would be the one to suffer.
The End