London, MI6 Headquarters, Action Command Center.
Ms. M slowly put down the phone receiver that now only emitted a busy signal.
The act of placing the receiver back onto the phone was gentle, yet in the dead silent command center, that slight "click" was like a huge stone dropped into a deep pool, causing all the anxious intelligence officers to feel their hearts suddenly sink.
She stood there, her back facing the giant electronic screen.
At the center of the screen, the region from which the last images were transmitted had turned into a field of flickering snow and a red warning box saying "Signal Interrupted."
On the adjacent split screen, the signal representing Song Heping had completely disappeared into an unknown grayness.
The satellite pass was over.
The light in the entire command center seemed to dim even further, leaving only the cold glow of indicator lights and the screen's reflection, highlighting her suddenly aged silhouette.
