Secrets Revealed - Part 1

The twins had been working on keeping Lady Jaye safe. A part of them wished that she knew, as it might earn them points with the Joe. Of course, they knew better than for anyone to know that Xamot and Tomax were saving a Joe from Zartan. Same reason why Cobra Commander couldn't know that it was Destro that hired them to keep her safe. No matter the reason, Cobra Commander would not accept any reason for helping a Joe.

The first time they helped her was when Zartan had captured Lady Jaye and other Joes. The twins knew that the Joes were following them, but they didn't alert the pilot, until it was too late. Of course, someone had to take the blame. Neither of the twin had seen the pilot since that mission, but they didn't really care to look either.

Some rescues had come in the form of secret messages sent to GI Joe Headquarters, when it looked like Lady Jaye might fall into another trap. Another time, one of the twins pretended to be hit and the other twin reacted to the echo. Of course, the reaction caused the second twin fell into some shelving, which alerted the nearby Joes that someone was there. Most recently, the twins had attacked Lady Jaye themselves, when they saw that Zartan was about to attack her But, they knew it was only a matter of time before someone clued into the fact that the twins were saving Lady Jaye.

Neither twin forgot that it was Destro who had hired them. And both wanted to know why. So, the twins decided to follow Destro when he went to Scotland. The arms dealer tended to go visit his home more often in the last year than he had in all the previous years that they had known him. The twins had begun to wonder if his home was the key to finding out Destro's reason.

…...

Destro had arrived hours earlier and the twins kept an eye on the home. When Destro had arrived, the sun was in the middle of the sky. Now it was completely dark, with only the moon and stars to light the night. There were some outside lights on, almost like Destro was expecting company.

Shortly after the arms dealer had arrived, Xamot quietly slipped into the home. He placed a listening device just inside the door. He had wanted to place a camera too, but didn't know when Destro would return to the entryway. He quietly left the home as silently as he had entered and rejoined Tomax.

"The bug is just inside the door," said the scarred twin.

Tomax nodded his head, as he adjusted the receiver. "Now we wait."

…...

Hourly later, a taxi pulled up in front of the home of Destro and it drew the attention of the Crimson Twins. The driver got out and opened the trunk. He took a suitcase out and closed the trunk, just as a woman got out of the taxi. The wind caught her short brunette hair. Her body was wrapped in a dark gray pea coat, which ended at the top of her legs. The twins could see that the woman was wearing dress pants, gray also, though a lighter color than the coat. It wasn't until she turned toward the rear of the vehicle where her suitcase was waiting that the twins recognized Lady Jaye.

"Lady..." said Xamot. The shock was clearly heard in the one word.

"...Jaye?" said Tomax. The surprised was shared by both men.

Lady Jaye opened her purse and took out something and handed it to the driver. The twins assumed she was paying the driver, before she grabbed her suitcase and walked toward the entrance of Destro's home.

"Are they...lovers?" asked Xamot.

"Her and the Baroness?" asked Tomax, before he settled before the radio. He placed a hand on the knob and before raising a hand to the earpiece and turning it on.

"Maybe he likes to live dangerously?" said Xamot, as he also reached up to his ear and turned on the device, just as he heard the click of the door close on the home. "The Baroness is not a woman to share what she considers hers lightly."

"And never with a Joe," murmured Tomax.

"Alison? I didn't know you were going to arrive tonight." It was Destro. The twins looked at each other. The arms dealer for Cobra calling a Joe by her first name?

"I was able to catch an earlier flight," she responded. They heard a thump.

"Suitcase?" whispered Xamot. His twin nodded. Both men assumed Lady Jaye had put her suitcase on the floor, most likely near the door, where the bug had been placed, which was why the sound was so loud.

"Were you able to get dinner on the flight?" asked Destro. "If not, I can have Cook make a light meal."

Silence. Xamot and Tomax now wished that they had placed a camera in the home. At the time, they had believed that Destro had been expecting company and would have been back in the entryway at any time. Now, they wondered if they would have had the time to put into place a more elaborate system.

"Alison. It wouldn't be any trouble."

"Alright," she replied. A sigh could be heard. "Thank you...James."

…...

The sun was starting to rise in the east. Destro was in the dining room, with a hot cup of black coffee. He knew his niece would be joining him soon, so he wasn't thrown off when he heard the sound of footsteps. He turned and dropped the cup. Instead of Alison, the Crimson Twins were standing in the dining room, just inside of the door to the entryway.

"What are you two doing here?" demanded Destro. He hoped that Alison would be delayed this morning. He didn't want to have to explain why a Joe was in his home or have the Twins find her in his home.

"We lost track..." said Tomax.

"...of Lady Jaye," said Xamot.

The voices seemed stilted. Destro frowned. He couldn't put his finger on it, but he knew something was off with the Twins. Xamot and Tomax were tense, almost like they were waiting to be attacked.

"Do you suspect Zartan?" demanded the arms dealer. Of course, he knew that his niece was safe, since she was upstairs, most likely getting ready for breakfast.

"No," they said together.

"Then why are you here?" demanded Destro. He glanced toward the doorway, but saw it was still empty. He didn't know how much time he would have before she arrived.

"Is she your lover?" demanded Xamot.

"Who?" returned Destro, thrown by the question.

"Lady Jaye," replied Tomax.

"What?" demanded Destro. His lip curled in disgust. The thought of bedding his brother's daughter made his stomach roll. Of course, the twins wouldn't know that. They wouldn't know she's family, so he played the only card he had for his reaction. "A Joe?"

"A mole?" said Tomax. He glanced toward his twin.

"Or traitor?" asked Xamot. He shrugged his shoulders.

"What are you two talking about?" demanded Destro. His stomached tightened at the word "traitor".

Even though he worked with Cobra, not for Cobra, Cobra Commander wouldn't see the distinction. Cobra Commander would name him traitor, if he knew that Destro was closely related to a Joe, let alone that Destro had tried to protect her. And Destro knew that Zartan would be first in line to assassinate him.

"Why is she here?" said Xamot.

"Who?" demanded Destro.

"Lady..."

"...Jaye."

"What?" said Destro, his voice quiet and deadly.

"We know she's here," said Tomax. "We saw her arrive last night."

Destro shifted his weight and pressed a hand against a knot of wood in the window frame. A knot that was, in fact, a button. Suddenly, metal slams down covering all the windows and the doors to the dining room shut and lock into place. Glancing back, Destro found in the same time he had used to lock down the room, the twins had whipped down two guns and were pointing them at him.

"Kill me and you will never leave this room," said Destro.

Destro was not unaware that the Crimson Twins had used the pilot as their fall guy. The masked man had no issues with taking a move out of their book. Just as they had used some hapless pilot to protect themselves, Destro could use them to protect himself. He could tell Cobra Commander that he had discovered their infatuation with the Joe had led them to protecting her and he had been in a situation where he had to kill them, rather than turn them over for interrogation.

"Why is she here?" demanded Xamot.

"Why should I tell you?" replied Destro. "Perhaps she's my prisoner and I plan to turn her over?"

"Then why did you offer her a meal last night?" asked Tomax. "When she arrived."

The twins hadn't been in his home last night. Destro was sure of that, which only meant one thing. Somehow, Xamot and Tomax had gotten a listening device into his home and heard his greeting to Alison when she arrived last night. Quickly, he replayed the conversation he had with her, examining it to see if either of them had given away their relationship.

"You have..." said Tomax.

"...no reason to trust us," continued Xamot. "But we wish her..."

"...no harm," they said together.

Bang. The knock on the sealed door echoed into the room. "James?" Alison's voice barely could be heard in the room. Bang. Bang. "...Uncle?"

"Uncle?" said the twins, staring intently at the arms dealer of Cobra.

Destro clenched his jaw.

"She's..." said Tomax.

"...family?" said Xamot.

TBC...