“Once or twice, but I didn’t remember the couple’s first names. The trauma of giving her up left my memories jumbled. I didn’t get copies of the paperwork either. I signed and then walked away. But Brandenburg stuck in my mind because of the famous gate in Berlin.” She gave a sad smile. “I’ve always liked history and politics.”
Something niggled at the back of Bridget’s mind. “How do you spell Brandenberg?”
Dani gave her a funny look. “B-R-A-N-D-E-N-B-U-R-G.”
“That’s why you didn’t find them. They spell their last name B-E-R-G. Not like the gate.”
Dani frowned. “But wouldn’t Google have pulled them up anyway?”
“You would think so, but I guess not, since your searches didn’t find Eliza.” Maybe it had been protection for both, but Bridget wasn’t sure. “We’re still checking, but we think Eliza’s older brother died of a drug overdose a year ago. And if this is the right family, then her parents died within the last two weeks.”
Dani doubled over with a gasp. “My poor girl.”
“We don’t know that she’s your daughter.” Todd’s voice was low, but steady.
“I need Caleb.” Dani stood unsteadily, but Todd was already tapping on his phone.
“I’ll get him here as fast as I can.”
A nurse came out of the ICU. “Miss Ellis, the doctor would like to speak with you now.”
“Thank you.” Bridget stood and looked at Todd. “Please take care of Dani.” Concern filled her for how Dani was reacting to everything.
Todd seemed to understand because he nodded and took up an alert position next to their friend. “Caleb is on his way.” He handed her the sandwich she’d forgotten. “You still need to eat.”
“Thanks.” She wasn’t sure she could handle food, even though she knew he was right. She couldn’t do her best for Eliza or Dani if she didn’t take care of herself.
She followed the nurse through the secure doors into the ICU and back to Eliza’s room. “How did she handle the MRI?”
“It sounds like she was a trooper. She’s still largely unresponsive, but she let the tech know she didn’t like the loud noise during the MRI, which is an encouraging sign.” Thewoman stepped to the side as they reached the door. “I’ll let the doctor update you on what they found in the scan.”
“So they saw something?”
“He’ll be right with you. He’s reviewing the images now.”
“Thank you.” Bridget entered the room and walked to Eliza’s side. “Hi, Eliza. I heard you didn’t like the noise of the MRI. I’m not a fan either. They’re clunky and loud.”
She wasn’t certain, but it looked like the girl wrinkled her nose.
“I saw that. Glad to know you’re in there, letting me know what you think. I wish you could tell me what happened. You’ve got us worried, but we’re working to keep you safe.” Bridget took her hand and rubbed her fingers. “My friends are all helping in their own ways. We’re trying to find your mom and dad now.”
A tear trickled down her cheek.
“Oh, honey.” Bridget wiped it away. “We’ll take care of you. Don’t worry. I promise you won’t be alone.” She only hoped she could keep that promise. If Eliza was Caleb and Dani’s daughter, she had a feeling it would be okay. But proving that wouldn’t be easy. And if Dani was wrong, then the girl would end up in foster care. Bridget would try to avoid that for Eliza, but there were no guarantees.
“Right now, we need to focus on you waking up. Can you do that for me? Then you can help us figure out what happened.”
“One of the reasons she’s struggling to wake up is pressure on her brain from bleeding.”
The voice startled Bridget, and she turned to find Dr. Lyons watching her. “Bleeding? That doesn’t sound good.”
“It isn’t. We need to take her in for surgery to relieve the pressure that’s building on her brain.”
“Surgery?” She didn’t mean to repeat everything, but that sounded horrible. “Do you need parental permission for that?”
“Ideally, yes. Have you located her family?”
“No. We believe her parents died recently in a car accident.”
