The underground base of Safehouse-15 was quiet except for the faint hum of ventilation systems and the distant echo of footsteps on concrete.
The aroma of roasted meat and freshly baked bread, which still lingered faintly in the air, drifted down the corridors from the mess hall. It was mid-afternoon, between 2 and 3 p.m., and the team, energized and satiated from their lunch, began to gather in the central meeting room.
Their happy faces showed that they were full from the stew they made with the meat they had brought back from the mission in the morning and that this was a rare break from their normally stressful lives.
The central meeting room, however, was still a mess. The aftermath of last night's strategy session lingered like an unfinished argument. There were maps all over the long table, along with open laptops and coffee cups that were only half full.
