Chapter 21 #2
His brow furrowed. “I didn’t realize that that was a thing.”
She nodded. “Basically, some of Everly’s cells have forty-six chromosomes like ours do, and some of them have forty-seven. An individual with Trisomy 21, which is the most common form of DS, has an extra chromosome in all of their cells—the chromosome called Trisomy 21.”
“Huh,” he said. “I’m learning something new today.”
She smiled. “If you’re born with Mosaic Down Syndrome, you can have milder symptoms. Everyone is their own unique person, no matter what form of DS they have, but Everly seems to fall into the category of having milder symptoms.”
“Huh,” he said again.
“Her development was a little slower, particularly her speech, and she hit some of her physical milestones later because she has lower muscle tone, but Will and Mac started interventions almost immediately, which have made a huge difference. For the most part, she’s right where she should be physically, emotionally, and intellectually.
As you’ve seen for yourself, she’s super smart and outgoing once she warms up to you. ”
He nodded. “She’ll go to school and stuff?”
She nodded. “She may need a little academic help in the classroom, and she’ll continue with her speech, physical, and occupational therapies until they’re no longer necessary, but the world is her oyster, just like it is for any child.
Mac and Will want her to live as independently as possible and have whatever it is that she wants for herself in life. ”
“That’s great, Lyd.”
She smiled as she nodded again. “I love doing my small part. Reading to her once a week. Helping her build her vocabulary and sneaking in some early phonics skills. She has some of her blends down already, and I’m hoping to start her on some basic sight words later this fall.
She should be well ahead of the curve when she starts kindergarten next year. ”
He wrapped her up tighter. “You’re amazing.”
She shook her head. “No. I’m getting her ready for the world.
People are going to look at her and see her disability first. They’re going to underestimate what she can do.
Plus, my family lives in the spotlight. Everly’s grandpa may very well become the next president of the United States.
She’ll have extra pressure to be a role model because she has Down Syndrome.
We’re doing everything we can to make sure she’s ready for all of it. ”
He stopped her as he heard the fierceness in her voice—as he understood the trappings and pressures of what it meant to be a Monroe. “You are amazing, Lyd.”
“I appreciate that you think so.” She hooked her arm through his and tugged, clearly wanting to keep going. “What did you and Uncle James talk about?”
“And we’re changing the subject.”
She laughed.
He grinned. “He wants to join Will and me for our workouts.”
She nodded. “I know he takes his physical fitness seriously, so that will be nice.”
He nodded this time. “I also talked to your grandma. She wants me to help her put on some muscle.”
Her gaze whipped to his as she frowned. “Is that a good idea? Is that safe?”
He nodded. “Absolutely. Her doctors gave her the green light. We’re going to start slow.”
She nodded. “Okay.”
He still saw the concern in her eyes. “This is a good thing, Lyd. Getting her into the gym and putting weights in her hands is going to keep her strong and independent.”
“If you say it, I believe it.”
He liked the sound of that—of Lydia completely trusting him. “I’m saying it.”
She nodded. “Thank you for helping her.”
“I’m happy to. I actually really enjoy helping people change their bodies for the better.
When I was in college, I ended up getting a couple of FBI summer internships.
I’d really wanted to land one at Headquarters, but they stuck me at Quantico for my first year.
Some of the new agents in training didn’t prepare for the physical standards at all. ”
“I take it that’s a big deal.”
He huffed out a laugh. “Yeah. You’re made aware of the physical requirements long before you even start the interview process.
You know that when you get to Quantico, your physical fitness will make or break you.
If you fail the initial fitness assessments, you lose your off-campus privileges, but you can retest at seven weeks.
If you fail again, you’ve got one more shot at fourteen weeks, but if you still can’t hack it, you’re done. ”
She winced. “Yikes.”
He nodded. “I ended up helping a couple of the agents in training after they finished with their classes each day. I put them through the paces and trained them up to where they needed to be for the seven-week mark. Hearing that they passed the second time around—and with flying colors—was awesome.”
“Aw.” She grinned. “That’s great, Ty.”
He nodded again, loving the memory. “I currently work with one of the guys on the bank robbery squad. He’s a great agent.”
“Aw,” she said again, wrapping her arms around his waist.
He hugged her back, never hating it when she was extra affectionate. “So, I should let you know that I’m going to have to start slipping away a couple of times a week to work with some of my co-workers virtually in the gym. I need to keep up appearances and look like I’m actually seeing clients.”
She nodded. “Okay. Do you know what days you’re meeting with your co-workers next week?”
He shook his head. “Not yet. We’re still trying to coordinate schedules.”
She nodded again. “Okay.”
“Why?”
She shrugged. “I was thinking about heading up to Monroe House on Friday. It’s usually pretty busy right before the Fourth, and we’re always short a few volunteers.”
“I want to help.”
“If it works for your schedule, you’re welcome to come.”
“I’ll make sure it works.”
“Then how about we go on Friday afternoon? We could head up after lunch. The shifts are three hours long. Maybe we could grab an ice cream cone after we finish up.”
“Yeah, that sounds great.”
She smiled at him. “Okay.”
They continued farther down the beach as the waves inched closer to their toes in the rising tide.
“So, what’s up with Asher?” he finally asked.
She frowned as she looked at him. “What do you mean?”
“I don’t know,” he said as he shrugged. “I feel like there’s a story there.”