Page 93 of Love You
“Okay, let’s do that, then.” It sounded like the answer to her prayers.
He made the face again. “Unfortunately, the closest hospitals that offer transcatheter aortic valve replacement are located in Sacramento or the Bay Area. In Mrs. Wallace’s condition it would be extremely risky to transport her.”
Dr. Gerard paused to make sure she was taking in everything he’d told her. Win stroked her palm with his thumb, the gesture a reminder that she wasn’t alone in this.
“Why can’t you just do something here, at Sierra General?” she asked.
“We can do open-heart surgery here but, frankly, at your grandmother’s age that’s also risky.”
Open-heart surgery, jeez. Darcy took a deep breath. Lost in the gravity of the situation, she didn’t know what to say. It was as if her tongue wouldn’t move and there was a giant lump in her throat.
“Which one in your opinion holds the most risk?” Win came to the rescue. Yes, that’s exactly what she wanted to know.
Dr. Gerard seemed to be contemplating the answer. “I’d say they’re both equally risky. If she were stable, I’d like her chances better with TAVR.”
Darcy finally found her voice. “Can we wait to see if she stabilizes?”
“I wouldn’t advise it. We’re looking at a short window of time here.”
She rubbed her hand down her face. How was she supposed to make a decision like this? She’d always been decisive but she was in over her head. She’d always been the responsible one but just once she wished she had someone who could help bear the weight. This was too important to take it on herself. If she chose the wrong option Nana would die.
“Should you call your dad?” Win touched her arm, seeing her face strain with indecision. “He’s Hilde’s son.” The implication was he should make the decision.
But Darcy wasn’t willing to relinquish it to someone who didn’t care as much as she did. Max loved his mother but Darcy couldn’t live without her, that was the difference.
“I’ll call him,” she said, and turned to the doctor. “But you need to know right now, right?”
“As soon as possible. Does your grandmother have a conservator?”
Darcy wasn’t sure but she didn’t think so. More than likely her grandmother would’ve put Darcy in charge of something like that. She shook her head no.
“My grandmother has always been in relatively good health.” Until now.
“Would you like to try your father?” the doctor asked.
She looked at Win and he nodded.
“Why don’t you go ahead and make a few phone calls. I’ll ask a social worker to come out and talk with you.” Dr. Gerard got up and disappeared behind the intensive care’s double doors.
Darcy dug her phone out of her purse and called her father. When she got voice mail, she left a message for him to call as soon as possible. Then she repeated the same message on his office answering service. She had the same luck with her mother. In the day of cell phones, you’d think one of them would be reachable.
Win got up and filled a small paper cup with water from the cooler and brought it to her. “No answer, huh?”
She shook her head. “They’ll just make things worse anyway.” Her father was a practical man. But Darcy knew sometimes you had to lead with your heart, not your head. And Geneva . . . well, Geneva was all about Geneva. “What do you think I should do?”
He gazed down at her, his eyes a darker blue than her own. “Hilde’s tough.” He paused. “I think she should go to Sacramento and do the procedure with the one-day recovery. Life’s too short to spend it in a hospital bed. That’s my two cents. But the decision has to be yours.”
As somber as she felt, his two cents made her laugh. It was so Win. So elemental. So impulsive. And then it struck her that he wasn’t as impulsive as he seemed. With FlashTag he’d taken the pulse of the group, read the signs, and made decisions based on a quick analysis. He was in fact more thoughtful than the fly-by-the-seat-of-his-pants person he let everyone see.
“I’m going to see if they’ll let me sit with her for a little while,” she said. Maybe if Nana woke up, she’d tell Darcy what to do.
“I’ll be out here if you need me.”
She stopped. “Uh, you don’t have to stay. You could meet up with Madison. She doesn’t leave until tomorrow, the two of you could have dinner.”
His expression turned dark, darker than she’d ever seen it. “You think I’d leave you now? Jesus, for a smart woman, you’re awfully dense. Go sit with your grandmother,” he snapped.
She walked away feeling more confused than ever.
