Over six thousand troopers of the 101st Airborne Division Screaming Eagles jumped or crashed into the swamps, canals, hedgerows and villages of the Cotentin Peninsula of France sometime after midnight on six June 1944. Come dawn, eighteen planes, each carrying a stick of paratroopers, were missing. What could, what would the missing men have done if these sticks had made it safely to the ground? Not every man is brave in combat. Not every man is a hero. Everyone makes mistakes. However, in the fire of battle, a handful of heroes is forged as bravery overwhelms the fear that naturally keeps soldiers from harm. Would these men be the heroes? This is a novel about a fictional grouip of missing Screaming Eagles, their buddies and the friends and enemies they met on the ground on June 4th, 1944. Every character, every incident, is fictional, hopefully representative of the diverse men who flew into darkness and danger that fateful night, but never came back. This is a novel to honor their memory.