This was the moment Miller, Vance, and Hayes had been waiting for. Under the cover of the chaotic noise and the pilot's distraction, the three men exchanged a final, wordless nod. They unclipped from their jump seats, moved swiftly up behind the young commander, and shoved her forward with all their combined strength.
The sudden force sent Kate pitching out into the open sky. In a desperate reflex, she twisted, slamming her hands onto the metal handrail beside the door. Her boots dangled over a dizzying thousand-foot drop. She locked eyes with Sergeant Miller, her gaze flashing with shock and betrayal.
Without a shred of hesitation, Miller brought the heavy heel of his tactical boot down hard on her fingers. The sickening crunch was lost in the wind. Her grip failed, and Captain Kate plummeted into the abyss below.
"She slipped!" Miller immediately bellowed into his comms, pulling the remaining crew chief's attention to the empty doorway. "She lost her footing! No one saw anything!"
For the three mutineers, the plan was flawless. They would report a tragic operational accident. In the chaos of an open helicopter door, slipping was a fatal, but entirely plausible, hazard. Who would prove otherwise?