“Sure, I’ll take him,” Paul said. “But we’re not going south. We’re headed north to the Main Line of Defense.”
“Good luck, Marine. I hope I see you again.”
“You, too, sir,” Paul said.
They shook hands one more time. Then the captain motioned to Knowles. The older man climbed out of the jeep. He wore sunglasses, and he kept them aimed at Paul.
“You’re leaving here!” Anderson shouted. “I’ve managed to find you a ride out.”
“You want me to go with him?” Knowles asked, pointing at Kavanagh.
“It’s the only ride out for you,” Anderson said.
Knowles stared at Paul. Finally, he shook his head. “No. I’m not going anywhere with him. He’s…” Knowles didn’t finish the sentence.
Anderson licked his lips. “Don’t you understand? Denver isn’t going to—”
As Anderson talked, Knowles looked as if he wanted to give Paul the finger. He turned abruptly and headed back for the jeep, likely the reason Anderson had stopped talking.
“Guess he doesn’t like me much,” Paul said. “Can’t say that I blame him.”
“The fool,” Anderson said. “This is his chance to live.”
The words were like a knife in Paul. Was Anderson right about that? Was Denver doomed?
“I could knock him out again and drag him aboard,” Paul said.
Anderson gave him a sharp look. It seemed he would speak. Instead, he straightened. “Good-luck, Marine. Give the enemy hell.”
“Yes, sir,” Paul said. “You, too.”
“Semper Fi,” Anderson said. Then he headed for the jeep.
Paul looked around a final time. Speaking of Hell…this place was about to go through it. He turned and ran back to the helo.
A few minutes later, the helicopter lifted, heading west toward the Rockies, taking Paul and Romo to their next assignment.
-8-
Dong-Fong 15
THIRD FRONT HQ, COLORADO
Marshal Liang and his Chief of Staff General Ping stood around a computer map of the Third Front. They were alone in Liang’s study, although they could hear the sounds of the Third Front Command personnel through the closed door. Two cups of steaming tea sat on the edges of the map.
The primary frontages were in Colorado, divided between Army Group A and Army Group B. The bulk of Army Group A was storming Greater Denver, while a smaller portion had swung west and attacked Greeley. Greeley was part of the Front Range Urban Corridor, which was on the eastern face of the Southern Rocky Mountains. The city of Greeley anchored the American defenses along the South Platte River, and the fierce resistance by the enemy showed that the enemy had put the rainy weather halt to good use.
Army Group B assaulted along the South Platte River to the west of Army Group A. The area of attack extended slightly into western Nebraska. So far, Liang had kept General Zhen’s Sixth Tank Army in reserve. He waited for a weak spot to appear in the American defenses. Once he found it, he would unleash the Tank Army against the opening. The Tank Army would exploit the weakness to drive into the American rear areas, wreaking havoc by destroying supply dumps, communications and headquarters units.
Liang had expected a stiffening of the American defenses. The mud-induced halt had hurt the Chinese momentum, but he expected to regain it soon. What troubled him more than the enemy’s stiffening resistance was his ally to the east: the South American First Front, commanded by Field Marshal Sanchez. By all appearances, things did not go well with the South Americans, the Venezuelans in particular.
“The First Front is tardy in its assault,” Liang said.
General Ping nodded in agreement.
Liang picked up his tea, gently blowing across it. He touched his lower lips to the cup, but found that it was still too hot. With a click of noise, he set the cup into its saucer.
He’d spoken at length with Chinese observers placed among the SAF forces. All agreed that the Latin Americans had found the invasion too bloody and the defenders too ferocious for their tastes. Some of the elite Brazilian divisions did well, particularly their high-speed armor. But the bulk of the South Americans lacked the needed fire in their hearts and in their bellies to engage the enemy with zeal. They used prodigious amounts of artillery before every attack. They also expended an excessive number of drones, both airborne and ground. Even before the mud-induced halt, the South Americans had showed a decided lack of fervor in the attack. Now, they were late assaulting the Americans and causing a slowing all along the line because they were not pinning down the enemy’s forces.