Micah grinned. “We’re having a girl?”
Mai let out a soft sob. If that part of her recurring dream was right…
The men mistook her sound for joy. Jim kissed her. “A beautiful little girl to spoil rotten,” he said.
“You had a fifty-fifty shot of dreaming about the right sex, Mai,” the doctor tried to reassure her as she continued the ultrasound.
Mai didn’t like the slight frown that appeared on the doctor’s face a few minutes later. “What is it? What’s wrong?”
The doctor shook her head. “I’m not sure anything’s wrong. When dealing with shifter babies, there’s always a few little irregularities. One patient, her baby kept shifting while in utero. I’d never seen that happen before. I could never have one of my nurses in the room with me when I did the ultrasounds. Half the time, I was looking at a cougar kitten and not a baby. I ended up delivering the mom at her home out of fear of what would pop out.” She smiled. “Fortunately, her son decided to be born with two legs and not four, but he’s been a little hellion for them.”
After completing the ultrasound, the doctor went through the chart. “Do you want me to do an amniocentesis? It’s not required, but it is a helpful diagnostic test to put your mind at ease. Don’t worry, it’s very normal for moms-to-be to worry something is wrong when there isn’t.” The doctor explained the procedure and the risks and benefits.
Mai looked at her men after the doctor finished the explanation. Micah kissed her hand. “It’s up to you. Whatever you want to do.”
Mai nodded. “Okay. Let’s do it. Maybe my dreams will stop. Or at least I can ignore them.”
“I’ll get my nurse. Keep in mind, she’s human, so normal talk. All right?”
They nodded. A few minutes later, the doctor returned with her nurse and the instruments needed to perform the procedure. After spending quite a bit of time using the ultrasound machine to decide where to take the sample from, they wiped and sterilized a place on Mai’s belly. Then, the doctor carefully inserted the needle and drew up a sample of fluid.
Mai clamped down on Jim’s and Micah’s hands and kept her eyes squeezed tightly shut. When it was over, the doctor covered her up with a sheet. “All done. I want you to stay right there for a few minutes. I’ll come back in and check on you before I let you get up to get dressed.”
Mai nodded and waited to open her eyes until she heard the exam room door close and knew they were alone again. She looked at Jim, then Micah. “There’s something wrong,” she whispered. “I feel it.”
“Honey,” Jim said, “the doctor told you it’s normal to feel like that. Please don’t worry. That kind of stress is what’s not good for you. You’re going to be fine, and so is our baby.”
Micah nodded. “He’s right. Let us do all the worrying about you. That’s our job.” He smiled and brushed the hair back from her forehead. “You just enjoy letting us spoil you rotten.”
She forced a smile she didn’t feel.
“Hey,” Jim said. “We’re going to meet with Lina’s architecture company tomorrow. Get things started on designing and building our house.”
“Yeah,” Micah said. “Just think, you can decorate it however you want. Whatever you want.”
She felt bad that her mood was in the crapper when her men were trying so hard to make her feel better and put her mind at ease. “I love you two. You have no idea how much.” Their beaming smiles made her feel a little better.
An hour later, they were in the car and heading home. Mai lay down on the backseat, her hands gently caressing her belly.
A week later, Micah and Jim had taken a day trip to the east coast with Brodey to pick up a trailer of new stock they’d purchased from a rancher in Homestead. Mai felt her heart jump in her throat when her cell phone rang, the ID displaying Dr. Alberto’s private number.
“Mai? It’s Dr. Alberto.”
Her hands trembled. “Yes?”
“Can you please come to my office today? I received your test results back and I’d like to talk to you about them…”
Mai didn’t hear the rest because she let out a sob. Lina, who’d been watching TV on the sofa, threw herself out of her seat and waddled over to Mai. She grabbed the phone from her. “Hello? Who is this?”
Mai’s entire body felt cold as she watched Lina.
“Dr. Alberto, hi. It’s Lina Alexandr…” She watched as Lina’s face suddenly turned into an inscrutable mask. “Okay. Her guys aren’t here, but we’ll bring her up right now. We’ll be there in about an hour. Thanks.” She hung up.
Mai burst into tears.
Lina was comforting her when Elain walked in from the backyard a few minutes later. “What’s wrong?’
“Can you come with us?” Lina asked her.
“Where are we going?”
“The doctor wants to see Mai.”
“Let me grab Mom.” Ten minutes later, the women were in Elain’s car and speeding down the highway toward the interstate. Carla was put in charge of calling all the men and giving them updates as to where they were heading.
When they reached the office, they were immediately escorted back to the doctor’s private office. She didn’t keep them waiting.
“What’s wrong?” Mai asked. “Please, don’t keep me in suspense.”
The doctor handed her a box of tissues. “I received your amnio test results back,” she said, her voice low and her face a mask of concern. “The results indicate your baby has Down’s syndrome.”
The room went quiet. Mai tried to absorb that information. “What…what is that? I’ve heard of it, but what is it? Is she going to be okay?”
The doctor clasped her hands in front of her on her desk and Mai only absorbed half of the information. She was vaguely aware of Carla keeping a firm arm around her shoulders and handing her fresh tissues, while Lina and Elain took over asking the doctor questions.
“What are you trying to tell me?” Mai finally asked. “Are you trying to tell me I should abort my baby?”
Dr. Alberto vigorously shook her head. “No, that’s absolutely not what I’m saying at all. That is a personal decision. If it’s a choice you want more information on, I’ll get that for you, too. I am simply laying out all of your options. Down’s syndrome is a common birth defect, unfortunately. I’ve dealt with it many times in my practice. However, while I have seen occasional birth defects in shifter babies, usually they’re very minor ones and involve parents who are weak shifters without the ability to shift. I’ve never experienced a shifter baby with Down’s syndrome. I’ve never even heard of it happening. I called around and no one else has, either. Those of us who are doctors and who are shifters, or at least who are shifter-friendly, we’re a pretty tight-knit bunch. We keep each other up to date on things in case we need treatment advice.” She sighed. “No one could give me any advice other than proceeding as if she’s a normal human baby.”
Mai caressed her stomach again. The baby kicked.
Mai burst into tears. “I want my baby,” she sobbed. “I don’t want to get rid of her.”
The doctor stood and rounded her desk. She knelt before Mai and grasped her hands in hers. “Then I promise you, I’ll do everything in my power to help you and your baby get through this safely. All right?”
“So will we,” Lina said. “You’re not alone.”
“The guys are going to hate me,” Mai whispered.
“No, they won’t,” Elain insisted. “They love you, and they love that baby. Look at all the ‘Daddy’s Little Princess’ onesies they bought last week.”
That got a tiny smile out of Mai. “You think so?”
Carla hugged her tightly. “I’m sure of it. It’s okay. You’re not alone. We promise you.”