Implanted (The Ascension Series Book 2) Read Free Page A

vibrations.
    Ret’s gaze whipped along the raging river and a swatch of color caught his eye. Had someone fallen into the rapids? Ret knew the villagers opted not to enter the river this time of year claiming his sport of rapid riding to be a bit extreme. Yet, his gut—and Sophie—told him something wasn’t right.
    He scanned the shoreline with Sophie’s desperate cries as a backdrop. On a nearby river rock, Ret saw a torn cloth clinging to the rock’s edge. His eyes darted from one rock to another while searching the foamy islands.
    He saw her hand first. Laying casually on top of a boulder as if she’d simply stopped for a rest while swimming. Her body, wedged between the boulder and mass of sharp stones, lifted and dipped as the water passed over and under her form.
    Like the rushing of the water before him, adrenaline cut through Ret’s veins. He thrust himself, waist deep, into the freezing water. Before he could even wonder what had brought Wolf into these dangerous rapids, the current yanked at his body. He carved a trail to the high boulder, the roar of the river drowning out Sophie’s wails.
    The torrent labored to hamper his progress, but Ret pushed back. Would the ferocious waters dislodge Wolf, sending her downriver before he could reach her? His mind reeled with calculations—percentage of submerged mass in relation to the speed of the current—as if he could determine the number of remaining moments before she launched. She bobbed on the water’s surface, and Ret swallowed back lumpy fear. He reached out and lunged, catching her around the waist. Relief lasted a short moment, as Ret rolled her over to face the sky.
    Her skin was ashen grey.
    Ret looked back at the shore. Could he maneuver her back in time? He couldn’t risk losing a precious second. Instead, he hefted her limp body fully onto the boulder that had served as her temporary refuge. After crawling to her side, he placed a finger on her carotid artery, and a wave of relief exploded through him. He felt a feathery pulse—but she wasn’t breathing.
    With a supportive hand beneath her skull, he pulled down on her chin, rolled her head back, and opened her mouth. Without hesitation, he performed as he had been taught. He covered her lips with his own, pinched her nose and sent a strong breath into her lungs. He watched her chest. No movement. He repeated the process.
    No rise. No fall. He pinched off her nose, covered her mouth with his own and released another breath before sitting back on his heels.
    “Come on, Rebel. Breathe!”

 
     
     
    Chapter 3
    FRAN
     
    Beneath her lids, a blood-red landscape dotted with miniature white explosions shocked Fran into a strange realm somewhere on the brink of consciousness. A fire rolled through her insides and a rough presence roughly rolled her to her side a moment before liquid erupted from her belly.
    A choking spasm sent her into a state of panic as she fought, unable to catch her breath, but a moment later, she rolled onto her back, and sweet oxygen refueled her lungs. She wheezed a raking breath and coughed as she tried to fill her lungs. More liquid gushed from her mouth, and she almost rolled from her perch, until a strong hand pulled her back and held her steady.
    “You’re okay. Just relax and breathe.”
    She recognized the voice.
    Ret.
    His firm grip pressed into her arm, and Fran registered pain. But before she could speak, her body began to convulse with violent tremors. What’s happening to me? She wanted to scream, but her jaw remained clenched as she warred to keep her teeth from rattling out of her mouth.
    Snippets of scenes flashed through her head. Baby bear cubs … a ferocious growl … Something was missing. How did she get here and why was she so cold?
    Next thing she knew, she was being carried by Ret. Her feet dipped into the swirling water, and she instinctively huddled into his warmth. While being carried like a baby, she somehow recognized that with Ret she was