what we have to do. Sometimes, the smaller risk is taking the bigger risk when you still have the numbers to change the outcome. If we wait too long, we won’t have those numbers.”
“So you would take the German offer?” Sims asked. “Even knowing it could be a trick?”
McGraw grew thoughtful. “Send observers to Cuba and to the GD military. If the Chancellor refuses to let us observe his army moving out of Cuba, refuse his offer. Then we’ll know he’s a liar. But I think Ms. Chen has it right. Kleist is clever and he doesn’t like the idea of the Chinese grabbing all our choice land. I can see that. The thing is, Mr. President, I doubt Kleist thinks we can send the Chinese running. Nobody does, not even our own generals.”
“If the truth be told, General,” President Sims said, “I don’t think we can send the Chinese running.”
“Maybe running is the wrong word,” McGraw said. “We’ll trap their best troops and starve them of food and munitions. They’ll try to fight their way free. There’s no doubt of that. But we’ll be waiting in powerful defensive positions, stretched across their escape routes. That’s one of the beauties of the plan, sir. Strategically, we move aggressively, tactically, we’ll fight defensively. Remember, Mr. President, defense is the stronger form of warfare.”
“Are you still against it, Alan?” the President asked.
The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs stared at the map like a zombie. “I don’t know, sir. In theory, it sounds brilliant. In actuality and in play, too many things could go wrong.”
“Harold?” Sims asked.
“We’re hoping for a miracle, sir,” Director Harold said. “Is McGraw a General Lee? I have no idea. He’s a fighting general. That’s for sure. I would risk it. We have to do something different and this plan sounds like the best thing going.”
“Anna?” Sims said.
It surprised her he asked. She thought for a moment.
“I’ve heard you speak about force multipliers before,” she said. “Maybe this force multiplies the Chancellor’s offer. He thinks we’ll use the freed troops to hold off the Chinese until the German Dominion is in a position to make a better land grab later. Instead, we hand the Chinese and Brazilians a stunning loss, strengthening our position. Undoubtedly, this is a massive risk. General McGraw said it will be a race against time. Mr. President, I would prefer a chance to win than to simply wait and slowly die.”
President Sims stood up and marched to the window overlooking the Rose Garden. He put his hands behind his back and began shaking his head. “I feel cold inside,” Sims said. “This decision—it gnaws at me. At first, the possibilities tremendously interest me. Then the dangers Alan speaks about makes me tremble. I’m not sure what to do.”
The President turned to regard the others. His eyes kept moving as he gazed at each of them in turn. “Gentlemen, Ms. Chen, I appreciate your advice. I’m going to sleep on this. I want all of you to sleep on this, too. Then…tomorrow…we will decide what we’re going to do.”
-5-
Reports
BEIJING, PRC
Guardian Inspector Shun Li stood at attention before Xiao Yang of the Ruling Committee.
The Police Minister was lean and wore a black uniform. He had extra-thick lenses in his glasses and had strangely protruding eyes. Those orbs measured her as he sat behind his desk. He didn’t smile or blink, but watched, perhaps weighing her worth and trustworthiness, with her life in the balance.
Shun Li tried to appear confident and ooze sincerity. It was difficult to do. She had her elbows locked, arms straight and in parallel alignment with her legs. She also had her chin up and stared at a distant, unseen point.
The Police Minister’s inner chamber was vast. It contained expensive furniture and had huge pictures of Xiao with the Chairman or a smiling Xiao as he held a polar bear cub, no doubt given him by the Leader of Greater China. In another enlarged photo, Xiao watched a parade of East Lightning personnel marching through Tiananmen Square.
The Police Minister could break her with a word, sentencing her to death. He was the Chairman’s closest ally and hated by many. The people and most in the military blamed him for the wrongful death of Foreign Minister Deng and Marshal Kao of the Ruling Committee. Since the passing of those two Ruling Committee members, Xiao Yang’s power and influence had increased tremendously. He had become the single most potent force behind the throne. The gigantic police