“This is war, Captain. Sometimes there are no good choices.”
Stan almost replied to that. Then he thought more carefully. Wilson was right and it showed him the Colonel had changed. Wilson wasn’t Mr. Martinet anymore. Battle had transformed his outlook to something more rational.
“Yes sir, you’re right,” Stan told him. “It’s just…”
“I don’t like the order, either. I’m not sure we’ll see those men again in this world.”
Stan swallowed hard. He’d been training with the Behemoth crews for some time. What an awful thing. The others had kept their tanks running and because of that, the Army had likely signed those men’s death warrants by sending them against the Chinese in Riverside.
“We’re leaving,” Jose said, climbing into the cab. The cushions compressed beneath his weight, making crinkling noises.
Soon, Stan heard the carrier’s engine rumble. With a lurch, they began the slow, fifteen mph crawl for Corona. Beside them on the highway, Americans marched and others rode bicycles. The Chinese were coming, and SoCal Command was rushing this remnant of Army Group SoCal to Los Angeles.
Good luck, Stan thought toward the handful of Behemoths off to engage the Chinese Tank Army.
“Who’s going to lead them, sir?”
“I am,” Wilson said.
Stan sat blinking in the cab. “You, sir, you’re leading the charge?”
“My tank is still in top running condition. It has always been the best-maintained Behemoth in the regiment.”
“But sir…”
“By the way, Higgins, I spoke to General Larson. On my recommendation, he has promoted you to major. Major Higgins, you have command of the regiment until I return. I want you to keep those tanks alive and I want you to stop the Chinese from taking our cities away.”
“Sir…I…”
“You know more about tank combat than the rest of us, Major. You take care of the regiment.”
“Yes sir. I will. I…wish you Godspeed, sir. You’d better come back to us.”
There was a raspy laugh. “You’re a good man, Major. I respect you.”
“I respect you as well, sir.”
“Thank you, Major. I know in the past I may have been a—”
“Please, Colonel. You can tell me when you get back.”
“Uh…yes, I suppose those sorts of things are best said face-to-face, aren’t they?”
“That’s right, sir.”
“Good-bye, Major.”
“Good-bye, Colonel Wilson. Give them hell.”
Jian Hong stood outside the main, open-air polar bear cage of his extended zoo. It consisted of a giant pit, with rocks and a pool. A large concrete ditch fronted that and up here was the iron rail where Jian rested his hands.
The large mother bear swam in the water of the pool with her two cubs. They looked like giant swimming dogs.
“The breeders say she is my best mother,” Jian told the Police Minster.
Xiao Yang, the Police Minister, was lean and wore a black uniform. He wore thick glasses and possessed strangely staring eyes. With his hands behind his back, he craned his neck, as if it was impossible for him to see the bears otherwise.
Jian tightened his grip on the black-painted rail. He sighed before glancing around. Tall Lion Guardsmen stood by the baboon enclosure. Since the last assassination attempt, he had doubled the number of his security personnel. It always comforted him seeing them.
“Why are you here, old friend?” Jian asked quietly. “I know you do not care for animals.”
“You have excellent polar bears, Leader.”
“Please,” Jian said. “You do not need to pretend.” He smiled as he said it. Xiao didn’t need to pretend, but if the Minister of Police feared Jian, that showed he wielded true power. The fact of Xiao’s fawning made him feel good. It still surprised Jian how far and how fast he had climbed. It was because he had dared to strike at precisely the right moment.
“Despite my lack of understanding concerning your pets,” Xiao said, “the bears still seem healthy to me. It is my policy to attempt to see a situation as it is, not as others would have me believe it to be.”
“You are being cryptic, old friend. There is no need for that between the two of us.”
The Police Minister’s tongue appeared as it wetted his lips. They were always wet looking, his lips. It was rather repugnant now that Jian thought of it. The man was repugnant, but he had his uses and he ran the police with an iron hand. Fortunately, the man was transparent, at least to someone with Jian’s perceptiveness. It meant Jian could trust Xiao, at least to a point.
After Foreign Minister Deng, Xiao was the most dangerous man in China, making him the third most deadly. Clearly, as Leader, Jian knew himself to be more dangerous than any of the others. Hadn’t he risen to the very top? “Risen” was perhaps the wrong word. He had climbed over the dead and grasping to reach the pinnacle of power on Earth.
Jian would do anything he needed in order to keep power. That included shooting old friends if the time ever came.
For a while, Jian watched the polar bears. At last, he turned to the patiently waiting Xiao. The man had no time or instinct for appreciating such beautiful animals as these. It showed that he lacked spirituality. Xiao’s patience, however, was another sign of Jian’s power. It also showed him that the Police Minister truly was dangerous. Patience was a priceless gift if wielded skillfully.
“Would you like one of the cubs?” Jian asked.
Xiao bowed at the waist. “You honor me, Leader. I would be delighted.”
Jian laughed. “You do not want a polar bear cub.”
“Even so, Leader, I would gladly accept one.”
“And if it died from inattention and a lack of love?”
“I would execute the zookeeper who would have failed me,” Xiao said.
“Hmm,” Jian said. “Tell me, why are you here today? Does it concern California?”
“Yes Leader.”
“Are you going to tell me that the others on the Ruling Committee are worried about the mounting casualties?”
“Yes Leader.”
“Ah, I see. Then you may now consider me told.”
“Leader…if you would allow me to speak further on the matter…I would greatly appreciate it.”
Jian watched the mother bear climb out of the pool and shake herself like a dog. “Very well,” he said, “what is your warning?”
“I have inspected the numbers, Leader.”
“Do you mean the casualty lists?”
“Yes Leader.”
“They are exorbitant. Is that what you want to say?”
“I believe Deng and his clique expected heavy losses,” Xiao said. “I think they also expected a larger area of conquest in exchange for the blood of Chinese soldiery.”
“I have spoken to Marshal Nung. He has assured me that the heavy losses will bring us exceptional victory. We must have patience in order to realize complete victory.”
“I understand that you support Marshal Nung, Leader, but…”
Jian released the rail and tore his gaze from his beloved polar bears. He studied Xiao. The Police Minister looked at him as a giant goldfish might. The thick glasses were like peering through an aquarium.
“But what, Police Minister?” Jian asked in a silky voice.
Xiao hesitated before saying, “Leader, it appears as if the assaults have bogged down.”
“This is your assessment?”
“No Leader. Marshal Kao told me—”
Jian raised his right hand, halting Xiao’s words. “Let me explain something to do you. Marshal Kao despises Marshal Nung.”