Chapter 35

"Oh I understand Dearie…you should always honor your father…the good book says that…it also says mother, but I didn't add that part because you had lost yours so young…but maybe your father will remarry again one day and then you will have a mother again…and wouldn't it just be wonderful if it were me…and then when you and that sweet Detective Hoyt get married and have children I'll have been there to see it all happen and…"

Completely frustrated now, Jordan began fishing around in her purse for something to copy the name down on. 'Does this woman ever stop talking? Now she has a whole new family planned out for me!' She finally found an old receipt and a pen. Scribbling down the name, her tone was far from polite when she announced, "I'm leaving now!" and turned to walk away from Clara.

"Alright then Dearie…" Clara said as she trailed after Jordan on her escape through the apartment and then the shop below. "Be sure to remember me to your father…and as soon as I have time to change my hair color I'll be sure to drop in and see him…although I'm not sure it's proper for a lady to go into a bar alone…at least it wasn't in my day…but I guess times have changed…and if I go into the bar on the arm of another man…that might send the wrong signal to your father…although it might also make him just a teensy weensy bit jealous…"

That was all Jordan heard as she finally made it out of the shop. She spared a thought as to how long Clara had kept talking as she drove over to the bar. Smirking to herself, she pictured the woman still talking as she parked her car and went in. All she had to do now was find a way to show the name to AJ. Jordan was sure that he knew more about Carl Travis and Chinh Trang than he had let on. Odd that when giving the man a new name they had let him keep his original initials.

Because Max had no employees other than a cook, he had to watch the bar whenever it was open. So that night, the four of them had dinner at one of the tables near the bar, so that Max could get up and wait on any customer that came in.

About halfway through dinner Jordan began fishing around in her purse. She pulled out a pen and wrote something down on her napkin. Only her father knew this wasn't her normal behavior. He figured she must have a reason, so ever the cop, he asked, "Jordan, what are you doing?"

"Oh, sorry dad. It was nothing," she replied as she pushed the napkin away from her and not by accident, closer to AJ, who was sitting on her right. "I was just trying to make sense of something Clara Rose had told me today."

As she had hoped, AJ looked at the napkin. She had deliberately misspelled the name Clara had given her a couple of times before writing it out correctly. Even in the darkened bar Jordan saw him go pale as he read the last set of words. Now, she was sure she was going to have to get her Aunt's fiancé alone and have a talk with him.

"And did you?" her father asked, breaking into her thoughts.

"What? Oh, no, its just a bunch of gibberish," she told him and reached out to crumple up the napkin and put it in her pocket.

After that, talk turned to plans for the wedding and Meredith held center stage until they were done eating.

Jordan never did get a chance to talk to AJ that night however. Meredith, giddy with all the talk about the wedding, stuck to him like a barnacle to the hull of a ship. She would just have to find another time to talk to him about Chinh Trang.

To be continued….