Carl kept working with the bottle as she slipped into sleep again, pouring tiny trickles into her mouth, waiting for the reflective swallow, then pouring another. As he did this, he knelt in the bed of the truck with her cradled in his arms, holding her ever so tenderly. She was so warm and limp, so utterly trusting. He felt honored that she trusted him so much as to let him take care of her this way. When the bottle ran dry, he picked her up completely, kissed her on the forehead, then gently stepped from the back of the truck.<br/><br/>Looking around once, he noted the small clearing in the trees on the side of the road, peering into the shadows he'd pulled into a dirt road off the main street a short distance out of town where he would have a bit of privacy to care for her. He was certain he was alone this late at night in such a location as this, and nodded to himself.<br/><br/>Carrying her around to the passenger door, he gently placed her there in the seat, then pulled the blanket from the back of the truck and folded it into a pillow for her. When she was comfortably arranged and sleeping peacefully in the passenger seat, he moved around to the driver's seat and continued driving. He only stopped once for gas, hours later, keeping the radio off so as not to disturb her rest. He drove on and on, through town after town.