Chapter 2

The procession continued throughout the long, hot day, with the stable boy joining the end of the long line. Finally, darkness had fallen, the villagers had gone and all the sacks had been emptied.  Clasping the mayor’s hand and helping him up, Padre Humberto patted his old friend’s back as they headed for their own church in the village.

The village of Esperanza wasn’t prosperous, but it thrived in the desolate heat, and for that, thanks was owed.

“Heavenly Father, you have blessed us all these years.” Padre Humberto began. “We have the money to buy the fertile lands that grant us access to water. Our crops grow plentiful, and our animals are all well-fed. We share your blessings with the towns near us, helping when we can. We all have food in our bellies, roofs over our heads, and work for our hands to do. For all of this, we thank you.”

There was no safer place than Esperanza. The burned-out shell of the old church in the mountains of Maldito, the only building left there, stood guard over it all.


Once both men confessed their sins and made peace with their God, they parted ways.

Life in Esperanza continued as it always did, as the sun rose on a stifling hot Sunday morning.

The sheriff caught the mayor and Maria in their stables, getting ready to make the trek up the mountain.

“Mayor Ramirez, may I have a word, Sir?”

“Of course, Randall. Maria, we will be only a minute.”

The men walked outside the building for some privacy. Maria looked at the ground to hide her smile.

“Mayor Ramirez, yesterday, Maria asked if I could escort her to the mountain today. I would be honored if you would let me do so.”

The mayor looked Randall up and down, sizing up the young man before him.

“Randall, you know of the legends, si? But you have never been to Maldito. I must warn you, it is nothing like you have ever seen, and you will be forever changed by this. I must ask you this; how do you feel about my daughter?”

“Sir, I think your daughter is a fine, upstanding young woman, and I will treat her with the respect she deserves. You have my word.”

“This is not about having a chaperone, Randall. If I did not believe you were worthy of Maria, we would not be having this discussion. If you are serious; if you believe you might want her hand in marriage one day, then this is a test you will need to pass. You will see and hear things you never believed to be possible, and you must stay strong and accept these things, and you must never speak of what you see there. This is for Maria’s sake as well as your own.”

Randall grew uneasy. “Sir, I would die to keep Maria safe. I’m not sure I’m understanding what you’re telling me.”

“I know, son, but soon you will. I have faith in you. I see the way you two look at each other, and I know she is good hands. You take her today, Randall. Just try to be back before noon.”

The sheriff gave the mayor a minute alone with Maria to tell her she had a new escort today. He heard them whisper, and waited for them to fall silent before he came back to the stalls, just in time to see Mayor Ramirez kiss Maria on her cheek. The mayor walked his own horse back, while Maria led hers out to the road where Randall’s horse waited.

Once they were no longer in sight, the mayor headed to church for the first Sunday service.

 After Sunday mass was celebrated twice, Esperanza’s church half filled each time, it was customary for the men folk to gather at the cantina. Esperanza was the only village in the basin where a man could find a drink on the Sabbath, and that was known far and wide. Weary and dirt-caked travelers who weren’t God-fearing men were glad to have a place for a well-earned drink as they passed through, and their gossip was always welcome.

It was the gossip that told the men of Esperanza when trouble was headed their way. It was the gossip that brought the evil, and it was gossip that delivered them from that evil.

The men were ready when the desperados rode into town that Sunday, eyeing the general store and the women folk, before heading into the cantina. The one difference was that Sheriff Randall Mendoza was not back yet from the mountain. He never let his presence be known, because that would ruin everything, but he was always near, just in case things got out of hand. The men were not concerned; they all knew their part, but they couldn’t help but cast a nervous eye out of the dust-caked window, watching for his return.

The strangers burst through the cantina doors, causing all heads to turn their way. One went to the bar, while the others blocked the door.

“Go get’em, Landry!” one of the group yelled out, before being silenced with a glare from the man approaching the bar.

“I hear tell that yer little town here sits on a mighty big secret; now what might you know about that?” The man in the dirty black boots leaned over the old wooden bar counter, grabbing the barkeep by his shirt.

 “We got no secrets here, Mister.” The barkeep said, just a hint of fear in his well-practiced speech.

The click of the gun being cocked for fire echoed in the cantina, bringing all talk to a halt.

“Maybe you don’t hear so good, so I’ll say it one more time. There’s a stash of gold here in this town, and I mean to find out where it is.”

“Now hold up there, amigo.” Sancho stepped forward from a table near the front, holding his hands up in a peaceful gesture to show he was unarmed. “I think I know what you seek. Come, have a seat and a drink and we will talk.  Manuel, bring us a bottle, Si`?”

With a glare, Landry let go of Manuel and walked carefully over to Sancho’s table. He took a seat as Manuel arrived with the bottle. Leaving it, along with two shot glasses, he promptly disappeared back behind the bar. Talk around the cantina resumed as if on cue.

Sancho poured them both a drink before putting his elbows on the table and leaning close to the stranger. “Listen. I do not know how you heard about this, but since you did, I will tell you what I know. I warn you, it is a long story, but I could not live with myself if I did not tell you everything, so please, Senior, enjoy your drink and I will tell all.”

Some listened, some didn’t, but today, Landry listened.  

“When I was a  boy, my father told me the story of the town of Maldito, up on that mountain you see from the windows there. It was rumored that the town’s church sat on a very rich vein of gold. Many men tried to take the town by force, to tear the church down piece by piece, so they could dig for the treasure beneath, but each time, the people from Esperanza and Maldito would fight the men off.

One day, the desperados made a plan. They could climb the steep pass while everyone was in church. Esperanza could give no warning from below, and the mountain folk would be caught unawares. They could bar the doors of the Maldito church and burn it down. When it was done, the church would be gone, no one would be left to stop them, and they would have their gold. 

So one hot, dry Sunday, they did just that.  They set the church on fire, then moved to every house and barn on the mountain and did the same, just to teach them all a lesson for interfering.

Someone made it to the steeple and rang the bells of the burning church, summoning help from the village below. The Maldito people had sworn an oath to Esperanza and Esperanza to them. The two towns were bound from time unknown, and would never fail to answer the call of the other.

 Maldito’s well was destroyed along with the town, so the first people up the mountain shouted back to those behind them to bring water. It was a long trip up the mountain, and hard to carry water on horseback, but the villagers of Esperanza tried their best.

Some say it was a miracle, some say it was luck, and all say it did not matter either way, but a strong rain began to fall from a clear blue sky. The fires were put out, but not before all the people inside the church were burned to death or suffocated. The town was destroyed, but the burned church still stands, as much as is left. No one ever tried to dig there again. They say the land is cursed.”

Sancho swallowed a shot of the harsh whiskey, slamming the empty glass on the table, and looking the stranger in the eye.

“I told you the tale as I know it, so no guilt rides with me should you choose to seek the gold. Now I reveal the secret the Maldito people died to protect; the secret that my father told me. The mountain people knew of the gold all along, and through a secret passage in the church, they had been mining it themselves for years. There is still a Padre there, who takes care of the old ruined church. The legend says that, if someone is brave enough to enter the cursed ruins and brings an offering to honor the dead, he will reveal the passage to the treasure.”

Landry blinked, then laughed a long, hearty laugh. “You expect me to believe this child’s bedtime story?” Again, the gun cocked under the table.

“Believe as you choose. Most people choose not. You asked about the secret, and I told it to you. You can do as you like, but I kept my word to you.” Sancho leaned back and poured another shot for himself and the stranger.

“And what happened to the thieves? Did they go and get themselves a’cursed?” The stranger’s sarcasm let Sancho know his patience ran thin.

“No one knows. They were already gone when the people of Esperanza got there. No one ever heard from them again.”

With another bark of laughter, Landry stood as both men downed the shots before them.

“Just a’cause you made me laugh, I’ma let you live, Mister.” He pushed through his men, who followed him out the door.

Sancho let out a breath, falling back into his chair. Sometimes they shoot, sometimes they don’t, but he took his turn like a man. Manuel brought him out another bottle, and the men in the cantina all raised a glass to him without a word.

 From behind the bar, Manuel called to the boy in the stock room. “Go to the mayor. Tell him Sheriff Mendoza has not come back, and we had riders today.”