“Those who fail to learn from history…” John began.
“Are bound to repeat it,” Brooks said impatiently. “Yes, we know. What is your suggestion?”
John glanced through the two-way mirror at Ray Gruber. “I say we used the one asset the Chinese will never suspect. First we get Phoenix to feed the enemy false intel that our troops are starving and deserting every day by the thousands and that our center line is on the verge of collapse. With the threat of a large NATO relief army bearing down on them from the North, the Chinese supreme commander might realize it’s now or never and throw everything he has right at the American center. Then we do to the Chinese what the Carthaginians under Hannibal did to the Romans at the battle of Cannae.”
“We pull our men back in the center, feigning a rout,” Higgs said.
“Precisely. We draw the Chinese in until they’re fully committed and then we swing our flanks in and snap the trap shut.” John pushed his hands out and then clapped them together to emphasise his point.
“But what about the NATO forces?” Brooks asked, perking up in his chair.
“When the Chinese realize they’re being surrounded,” John told them, “that’s when NATO pushes up through the center and annihilates what’s trapped in the pocket.”
“Well, I’ll run it by General Dempsey, Colonel Mack, but I can’t promise you he’ll go for it.”
“Then tell him it was your idea.”
Brooks looked up, surprised. “It’s your plan,” the general said. “You deserve the credit or the reproach.”
“I don’t care for either one,” John replied without flinching. “If I had it my way, I’d be back at my cabin, clearing a patch of land so I could start growing some simple crops.”
Colonel Higgs smiled. “You’re the last of a dying breed, John. A true citizen soldier.”
Higgs was talking about the tradition during the Roman Republic of soldiers who would hang up their weapons and armor after the conclusion of a campaign in order to return to the family farm.
From inside the interrogation room, Ray began calling John’s name.
“John, if you can hear me, there’s something important you might wanna know. It’s about Brandon.”
Chapter 52
“Tell me you know where he is,” John said, slamming the interrogation room door behind him.
Ray sat up straight. The man’s face was flat, as though he no longer felt the need to lay on the charm.
“Of course I know,” he replied, his cuffs rattling against the arms of the chair. “His unit’s been moved to Jamestown.”
John’s brow furrowed. “Tennessee?”
Ray nodded. “That’s right. All you need to do is head through the Scott State Forest. But I’m not the only one who knows, John. You and your Rough Riders have become something of an itch in the Communists’ backside. A Chinese special ops team’s been tasked with taking you and your men out.”
“The ambush near Lenoir City,” John said. “That was them.”
“They wanted me to handle it myself, but I told them getting close to you wasn’t so easy.”
“You lied.”
Ray frowned. “You may not think much of me, John, but I also have my limits. Although I’ll admit those limits didn’t involve withholding from the Chinese that Brandon was your son.”
“My son? You told them that? But it isn’t true.”
“Sure it is, John. Diane might not have given birth to the kid, but you’ve treated him like a son since I’ve known you. Gregory felt it too. Why do you think he was so desperate to make you proud of him?”
“I don’t need a lecture from you.”
“No, you don’t. And mainly because you don’t have time. That special ops team is under a man named Zhang Shuhong, one of the most ruthless commanders they’ve got. He and his team are heading for Jamestown as we speak. I handed you to them on a silver platter and they failed, so now it seems the plan is to lure you out into the open by threatening the life of someone you love.”
“Why are you telling me this? So you can spring another trap?”
“No, John. To show you that I can be trusted.”
As soon as John left he was intercepted by General Brooks.
“The new battle plan is a go, Colonel Mack.”
“You pitched it to General Dempsey?”
“I did and he loved it. Although I decided to follow your advice and claim the idea as my own.
John grinned.
“But there’s a catch.”
“Isn’t there always.”
“All available forces in Oneida have been redeployed to a town near the Appalachians called Colonial Heights. It overlooks the junction of Interstates 81 and 26. And it’ll be our job to ensure the trap we’ve set stays closed. That means stopping any Chinese troops attempting to flee. So start getting your forces together. Whatever militia Oneida can spare will need to head out by first light.” General Brooks collected the files on the desk. “I heard your conversation with Gruber, John. I’m sorry, but there isn’t time for a mission to save Brandon right now.”
“But General—”
“That’s an order.”
John gritted his teeth. “Yes, sir.”
By the time John left the jail, the crowd out front had largely dissipated. Already preparations to move out were underway as Humvees sped through the cleared back streets, some towing 155mm artillery pieces.
Back at the radio room, he caught up with Henry.
“I need you to reach out to your contacts in the resistance,” John told him. “Something big is going down. I want ambushes set up along every major highway and interstate heading east. At some point within the next twenty-four hours the Chinese are gonna try to send reinforcements to the front. We can’t allow that to happen.”
Henry’s eyes were wide.
John turned to leave.
“Where are you going?”
John paused without looking back. “To save one of my sons.”
Not long after, John secretly set out with the rest of Alpha squad, heading for Jamestown. In the earliest days of the struggle, the town had been one of the first liberated from the Russian fifth columnists sent to take over. Then the Chinese had showed up, causing many of the folks to flee, heading through the Scott State Forest to join those already in Oneida.
For once, John’s plan was simple. He didn’t have one. The group of eight men—Heller would have made nine—made quick progress on horseback through the narrow forest trails. He supposed for disobeying a direct order, he risked court martial and maybe even execution, but it was a risk worth taking. The men accompanying him didn’t know any better, but that would only help to solidify their innocence.
A sparse collection of small homes on big plots of land signaled the outskirts of Jamestown. These would help to provide some cover for John and his men as they drew closer to the military barracks located further into town. With little to no intel, they would need to hunker down somewhere with a good vantage point and observe the comings and goings.
An abandoned barn nearby offered as good a place as any to keep the horses. The rest of their weapons, along with the M30 mortar and the M249 wielded by Benson, would be carried on their backs the old-fashioned way. As had become the norm, Reese split from the group, heading south to do some reconnaissance, armed this time with the suppressed Remington 700.
The truth of the matter was, they hadn’t come here with the sole aim of freeing Brandon. He was only one of several Americans press-ganged into serving in the Chinese army. Chances were good that each of them had been told if they failed to perform, their family members back at camp would be executed on the spot. As the special forces commander seemed to understand well enough, if you wanted to manipulate the man, your best bet was to threaten his family.