The doctor frowned. “Then the courts should have appointed a guardian for her in the intervening period.”
“Yes, we’re trying to track down that information.” All of that should have happened. So why couldn’t she find the information? “When do you need to do the surgery?”
“Immediately. The longer we delay, the bigger the odds that the damage becomes permanent.” He looked from the chart to the girl. “Time is important. I can’t stress that enough.”
“When do you want to do this surgery?”
“Ideally, we would be prepping her now, but we can delay a few hours.” He crossed his arms. “I can authorize the surgery if it becomes a true emergency, but I would like to avoid that situation if possible.”
“When will we cross that bridge?”
“Soon. Have you documented all your efforts to find her parents?”
“Yes. We’ve done nothing else since she was brought in.” Bridget swallowed as she could tell he didn’t want the whole tale of how many steps they’d followed so far. “The police and I are in close contact. I’ll contact my supervisor to see if she’s prepared to consent.”
“That would be good. I can do it if we can prove that reasonable steps have been taken to find the parents.”
Her head pounded from a combination of hitting it when the man threw her last night, plus the pressure of the timeline to find someone who could consent to care. “Let me relay this information to the detective and my supervisor. I’ll let you know what I find out.”
Doctor Lyons tapped on the chart. “It’s important that we document all the steps you’ve taken. We need to be clear that we tried to find her family before we undertake brain surgery without consent.” He pulled up an image, then pointed at anarea on it. “This is where the pressure is building. We need to release it before it compresses this area to the point of causing permanent harm. We can monitor her for a few hours. But if we do a second scan and the area has spread, I won’t have a choice.”
“Understood. Thank you.” She reached down and squeezed Eliza’s hand. “We’ll find your family, sweetheart.” There was a slight pressure in response. “I think she just squeezed back.”
The doctor frowned. “That’s doubtful, but if she did, that’s a good sign.” He came over and took her place. “Squeeze my hand if you can.” He waited a moment. “I don’t feel anything. Doesn’t mean you didn’t, but it could have been involuntary or all she could manage right now. We’ll keep trying.”
“Then I’d better get back to work.” Bridget looked at Eliza, noting how white she looked against the sheets. There was no way she could let Dani see her. Even if she was allowed to come back to the ICU, this wasn’t the way to get a first impression of the girl who might be her daughter.
Caleb steppedoff the elevator in a rush and hurried over to Todd. “Where’s Dani?”
Todd stopped him with a hand on his shoulder. “She stepped into the bathroom. She’s really latched onto the idea that this girl is your daughter, Caleb. I’m concerned that she’s not seeing reality. She’s going to miss what’s happening because she’s so determined this is your daughter.”
“She could be.” Desperation laced Caleb’s words.
“Maybe.” Todd wouldn’t deny it was possible, but the odds stacked against them. “But there’s also a strong chance that this is a random girl with a similar name.”
“Brandenberg? Really? Todd, you know better than that.”
“Maybe. But I don’t want you to get your hopes up only to be disappointed.” He’d seen too many people destroyed by unrealistic hopes that they couldn’t manage. “Be careful, okay?”
Caleb nodded. “Don’t worry, I’ll stay moderate for her. But I can’t promise that I won’t let you see my hopes and fears.”
“Fair enough.” Todd let a moment of silence settle between them. “You need to understand that something is wrong. She’s been unconscious since I brought her in. She’s not going to suddenly wake up and tell you everything that’s happened.” If she did, that would be the best-case scenario.
“Got it.” Caleb’s shoulders slumped as he watched Todd. “What do you want me to do?”
“Help me figure out where her family is. Then we’ll be able to determine if she’s your daughter. If she is, you can deal with that then. Either way, we’ll need her family to approve her medical procedures.” He needed to tell Caleb the rest of the story. “Bridget thinks her parents died.”
Caleb blinked, then shook his head as if the words would make more sense. “Why would she think that?”
“The name is unusual, and she remembers a couple with that name being involved in a fatal accident.”
“That should be easy to confirm.”
“Yes. But I haven’t confirmed it.”
“Something isn’t making sense.”
“A lot of things aren’t.” Todd couldn’t shake the sense that a lot of things didn't add up. “There’s a whole layer to this story we’re missing.”
