from the rest of the country. Their only eastern port directly linked to the rest of Canada then would be Churchill in Hudson Bay, which is icebound during much of the year. No, even if they readily agreed, they wouldn’t be happy with the situation or pleased with us.
“One of the bitterest aspects of this war is that we lack allies,” Sims said. “The Canadians are it—well, and the Mexico Home Army. The Canadian military proved invaluable in Alaska and we’re looking forward to their entry again in the very near future. Forcing them to give the Germans Quebec is a lousy way to pay back our only friends in the world. One, I don’t want to lose our Canadian allies and two, I don’t want the world to see that we shaft our friends, which accepting this offer will make us do.”
“Maybe we’re looking at this from the wrong perspective,” Director Harold said. “Quebec wants to separate. We know the separatist movement ties down Canadian formations. If the Canadians gave up Quebec, it would free them from occupation duty and maybe free them from the headache of living together with the French-Canadians. It might be that the Canadian Government could use this as a way to escape a hopeless situation. Their countrymen wouldn’t look at them as traitors or weaklings, but as having no choice in the matter.”
“Possibly,” Alan said. “One problem automatically comes to mind. The Canadians would likely feel a need to militarize the border with Quebec.” With the loud crack of his neck stretching, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs turned to Sims. “Kleist wants to send GD troops into Quebec, right?”
“Unfortunately true,” Sims said.
“That’s bad,” General Alan said, while shaking his head. “To have the GD poised in Cuba and Quebec—”
“The Chancellor said he would move the forces in Cuba to Quebec,” Sims said.
“Meaning he’d have them on the continent,” General Alan said. “I don’t like it at all. It smacks to me of a trick, a way to get his military onto the continent without having to pay the cruel costs of an amphibious invasion.”
“You could be right,” Sims said. “Yet even in that case, it would give us time to reorder our armies on the Great Plains. Suppose, however, it causes the Germans to drop out of the Chinese alliance. That would be a tremendous boost to us. It would be worth the loss of the Canadians, as painful as that would be to us.”
“That’s a big if, Mr. President,” General Alan said.
Sims breathed deeply. “Gentlemen, we badly need reinforcements in the Great Plains. We need them there before the rains stop and the winter cold freezes the ground hard enough for full mobility. If Kleist is genuine in his offer and the Canadians agree to it, we could strip the Eastern coast defenses. Those troops would head north onto the line in the Great Plains. That would add hundreds of thousands of highly trained soldiers to our beleaguered armies. It could save the situation for us.”
“Or we could be selling the future to hold the present,” General Alan said. “As you suggest, sir, it could solve some of our problems in the Great Plains. The question is—could we move the East Coast soldiers into position fast enough? It would take time to move that many men. It would also take the Germans time to move from Cuba to Quebec.”
General Alan took off his glasses, rubbing the bridge of his nose. He put the glasses back on. “Mr. President, what if this is an elaborate ploy? Maybe the Chinese and Germans have concocted the scheme. We’re fighting hard, inflicting massive casualties onto our enemies. If we entrain the East Coast troops west to the plains and the Germans land on the East Coast afterward, it would be a disaster. Our entire defense might collapse. By accepting Kleist’s offer, we could be risking our freedom as Americans and lose in one fell swoop.”
“The risks are great,” Director Harold said, “but so are the possible rewards. This offer could split the enemy alliance. If the Germans sell out the Chinese, why would Chairman Hong trust Kleist again? Isn’t the reward worth the gamble?”
“No,” General Alan said. “The risks are too great and too varied. We could lose the Canadians by trying to force them to give up Quebec. They’re poised to move now, dashing down to the front lines with us. What happens if they refuse to move to our aid and the Germans gain