Seconds passed, then a few more. The bombardment Matthews was eagerly anticipating never came. Nothing happened. Frowning, she snapped her attention to the nearest Apache and demanded, "What's the holdup?"
But before the pilot could even open his mouth, something caught her eye—
The stationary rotor blades of the Apache suddenly moved rearranging themselves before coming to a halt. Then—boom!—a controlled explosion sent the hatch flying, and before the pieces even hit the ground, the pilot and co-pilot were ejected straight up.
And it wasn't just that one Apache. The same thing happened to the others. One after another, their Jettisonable Hatch Systems triggered—launching their pilots and gunners out like discarded cargo.
Matthews' body tensed. What the hell was going on? She was about to rush toward the pilots when she heard Ace warn her with an unnervingly calm voice, "If I were you, I wouldn't move,"
