“Tovey knows. He’s heard everything you’ve told me here?”
“Yes.”
“And he believed it?”
“He’s seen my ship in action. That can be very persuasive.”
“I suppose that is so.” Kinlan rubbed a cramp from the back of his neck, the least of his worries. “So what will I find if I do proceed to Mersa Matruh now?”
“That will depend on how far east Rommel has moved. The last I knew he was operating near Bardia.”
“That’s 200 kilometers west of Matruh.”
“About that,” said Fedorov. “If you get there soon you will likely appear well behind British lines-assuming there is still a line. If I can get through to Wavell I can determine what the situation is. Then again… If you go north for Bardia, you might appear behind German lines, which would be a very unpleasant surprise. May I ask how big your force is?”
“He wants to know just how many lad’s you’ve got here,” said Popski.
Kinlan passed a brief moment thinking he was about to divulge information to an enemy, but then he realized that the Russians of 2021 knew full well the composition of his force when they took their pot shot. Telling this man what cards he had in hand would not affect the game one way or another.
“Tell him I’ve a full brigade, 7th Armored Brigade, to be precise.”
“He says he has a full brigade here.”
“Can he be more specific?” Fedorov gave Popski a nudge.
“I have the 12th Royal Lancers for starters, with one company in Dragons and the rest with the old Scimitars.”
“Just an armored cavalry unit?”
“I said for starters,” Kinlan corrected. “Right behind them are the Royal Scotts Dragoon Guards, and not the 2020 light cavalry configuration. They sent the big boys here to settle this business at Sultan Apache. See those two tanks over there?” Kinlan pointed to the two Challenger II tanks that were part of his headquarters troop. “Well, I have four Sabres-a full battalion of 60 tanks, and a few more tucked away in HQ troops. Then two mechanized infantry battalions are in support, the Highlanders and 3rd Mercian, both Armored Infantry in Warrior IFVs. That’s a real fist full of war fighting for you. Throw in a battalion of Gurkha light role infantry and supporting engineers, supply, and logistics troops to round it all off. It’s a lot to keep on my mind, and none of those boys have heard this wild tale were spinning out here.”
That brought another whole can of worms to the discussion. If this were true, how in the world would he tell his men about it? How could he tell them there would be no sealift units waiting for them at Mersa Matruh. They were scheduled to rendezvous there to meet several RoRo units, the ‘Roll on-Roll off’ ships that could accommodate his heavy vehicles. Hurst, Hartland, Anvil Point and Eddystone were to be in attendance to move the 7th Brigade to Toulon in several trips, for deployment in Europe. But that would never happen now. That was all gone. Even if we were still where we should be, it might still all be gone, he thought. If the Russkies lobbed warheads our way, they would have hit those units at Mersa Matruh as well.
“So that’s what I’ve got out here,” said Kinlan. “If this had happened a few days ago I’d have a squadron of Apache attack helicopters too, but they left early and missed the party.”
Fedorov nodded. “It may not feel that way now, General, but you were the lucky ones. Speaking of helicopters… can we sort this out and get my men back aboard our KA-40? We were to get General O’Connor back to Alexandria, but your presence here has changed everything. That said, my helicopter can give you some very good airborne reconnaissance. Care to take a ride with me? I’ll give you a good sitrep on the whole situation up north.”
“The Captain here invites you to accompany him on that helicontraption of his, and believe me, General, that’s a royal ride if ever there was one.”
Kinlan thought about that. “Well,” he said at last. “I’ve a good deal on my plate just now, the least of which is advising my men on this situation.”
“For the moment, sir, I would recommend considerable discretion concerning that. We can discuss it later, but it would be best to keep things quiet.”
“Well they’ll have to know, Captain. This isn’t exactly news that will be in any way easy to explain or deliver.”
“I understand… Come with me on the helicopter. I can leave my men here if you suspect any foul play, though I assure you, I am your friend and ally, perhaps the best friend you will have here. I can help you, General, and you can help us all-immensely. Come with me. You’ll get good situational awareness, and I can discuss all this further.”
Kinlan waited, thinking, then decided.
