The plane was commissioned to carry a cockpit crew of two, but today there was no copilot. Not this trip, Reynolds thought grimly.

He had filed a false flight plan for Kennedy airport. No one would think of looking for him in Denver.

He would spend the night at his sister's home, and in the morning he would be on his way east, to meet the others. All the arrangements for eliminating Prima were complete, andA voice on the radio interrupted his thoughts. "Citation One One One Lima Foxtrot, this is the approach control tower at Denver International Airport. Come in, please." Gary Reynolds pressed the radio button. "This is Citation One One One Lima Foxtrot. I am requesting clearance to land." "One Lima Foxtrot, say your position." "One Lima Foxtrot. I am fifteen miles northeast of the Denver airport. Altitude fifteen thousand feet." He saw Pike's Peak looming up on the right side. The sky was bright blue, the weather clear. A good omen.

There was a brief silence. The voice from the tower came through again. "One Lima Foxtrot, you are cleared to land at runway two-six. Repeat, runway two-six." "One Lima Foxtrot, roger." Without warning, Gary Reynolds felt the plane give a sudden, high bounce.

Surprised, he looked out the cockpit window. A strong wind had come up, and within seconds, the Cessna was caught in a violent turbulence that began to toss the plane around. He pulled back the wheel to try to gain altitude.

It was useless. He was trapped in a raging vortex. The plane was completely out of control. He slammed down the radio button.

"This is One Lima Foxtrot. I have an emergency." "One Lima Foxtrot, what is the nature of your emergency?" Gary Reynolds was shouting into the microphone. "I'm caught in a wind shear!

Extreme turbulence!

I'm in the middle of a goddamn hurricane!" "One Lima Foxtrot, you are only four and a half minutes from the Denver airport and there is no sign of air turbulence on our screens." "I don't give a damn what's on your screens! I'm telling you-" The pitch of his voice suddenly rose. "Mayday! May-" In the control tower, they watched in shock as the blip on the radar screen disappeared.