Jorden had thought of Alex when the Calley inquiry made national news. O’Brady spoke of all the killings of innocent civilians which had been hushed up for over a year. She wondered if Alex had seen anything similar—she hoped not.

Jorden continued to stare at the building. “I can’t believe the inquiry is actually happening here. History is in the making.”

“I promise you it is.”

“Can we go in?” Jorden asked.

“Why not.” Matt caught her elbow. “Watch the curb. Hey look, the lights are on, and the entrance is still open.”

Matt steered Jorden through the door and pointed toward the stairway. “Let’s go up to the second floor, where my office is.” The hallways had portraits of generals, battlefields, and military scenes going back to the American Revolution. His office complex was still open. The reception area contained several chairs and a large old wooden desk. Behind the desk was a row of cubicles.

“My cubicle is the fourth one, and Nate’s is two down from mine. Look, you can see the Officers’ Club. Now look straight down. I saw Lieutenant Calley being escorted in from there, followed by the press.”

Jorden bent over to look. “This is quite a view.” She stood up, and thought she saw him glancing at her legs. Shame on him. She tugged at her dress, trying to straighten it.

Matt appeared to notice her unease and led her back to the reception area. “We better go before the cleaning crew kicks us out.”

Jorden looked down at the wooden desk. A nameplate caught her eye–Eloise Butler. Next to it, a white porcelain frame held a picture with the face of a girl probably about ten, with long straight black hair, and dark brown eyes. The face looked familiar.

“What are you staring at?” Matt asked.

“This picture.” Jorden picked it up. “I’ve seen this girl before, but she’s too young to be one of my junior high students.” Puzzled, she placed it back on the desk.

“That’s Eloise’s daughter. This poor woman has such a sad story. Her husband threatened her so many times at the textile mill where she worked they had to let her go. Her supervisor felt responsible for her losing her job, so he helped influence the head of our department to hire her.”

“How awful, but fortunate she got work here,” Jorden replied.

Matt led Jorden out of the building and down another block to his white Dodge Dart. The car looked familiar to Jorden. She stretched her mind, then she smiled. This had to be the same car she spotted driving around her apartment complex the other night.

While pulling out, Matt glanced in Jorden’s direction. “The night’s early. How about dinner?”