Kara didn't know how long she lost consciousness. The last thing she remembered was Hallbjorn's arms catching her before she fell onto the pavement. When she came to, it was to Hallbjorn's worried voice. Kara opened her eyes and looked down at herself in confusion. Then it was as if what happened broke through her muddled mind. Her gaze shot to him, and she took in how injured Hallbjorn truly was.<br/><br/>“I think I am.” She whispered, and pushed everything out of her mind other then the need to take care of Hallbjorn and get them away from El Paso. She took a deep breath, and assessed herself, then told him with more surety. “I'm better. It felt like I had after the first time I used fire, but the weakness is gone now.”<br/><br/>It was true, and furthermore, she needed Hallbjorn to believe that, because he was in no shape to drive. Seeing him so hurt made her eyes begin to water, but she refused to let them fall. If even one escaped her, she was sure she'd fall apart, and Hallbjorn needed her right now.<br/><br/>Kara looked back at Hallbjorn, and was sure she could not hide her worry for him. “Take the next exit and pull over so I can drive.” There was steel in her voice, and she would not take any refusal from him.<br/><br/>The realization that she'd killed a man, a demon, was something she shoved out of her head. Kara would do it again, because nothing would take her away from Hallbjorn. As she looked at him, the urge to touch him was overwhelming, but he looked so badly hurt that she didn't want to make it worse.<br/><br/>As soon as Hallbjorn exited the freeway and pulled into an empty parking lot, Kara jumped out of the truck. She opened the back door and started shoving what she could to the floor, then putting her luggage and other large items in the bed of the truck. Kara's felt stronger then before, but she didn't know if it was her immortality showing or simply the gut wrenching fear she felt for Hallbjorn. She was like a whirling dervish as she cleared a path for him to lay down.<br/><br/>Once she was done, she went to the driver's side of the truck and pulled it open. Her heart clenched as the cab light illuminated Hallbjorn. “Oh Hallbjorn.” Her voice was thick with worry. “Come lay in the back seat. I think we need to keep driving, and I'm sorry for that. I know it will hurt, but we can't chance running into more of those demons.”<br/><br/>Regardless of how much bigger he was then her, Kara did what she could to help him out of the truck, then into the back seat, where she further helped him to lay down and stretch out. His legs might be a little cramped, but she did her best to make him comfortable, even using her pullover sweatshirt as a little headrest for him.<br/><br/>Kara cupped his uninjured cheek tenderly as she looked down at him. Her lower lip began to tremble again, but she sucked it back up into her mouth. “I want to clean you up and bandage you, but I think it would make you hurt worse. Just close your eyes, and try to rest, and I'll take care of you.”<br/><br/>She brought her lips to his, and her kiss was feather light so as to not hurt him. If he weren't so badly wounded, and their need wasn't so great to get out of town, Kara would be curled in his arms at that moment and seeking comfort over what happened.<br/><br/>As it was, her need for comfort was not something they could afford right then. Kara gently shut the door, making sure that Hallbjorn's blood stained hair and head were well clear of it. She got into the driver's seat and plotted the course into his navigator, and then they were off.<br/><br/>Kara drove straight through the night, and most of the day. She dare not pull over, even for coffee. It wasn't long into their journey before Hallbjorn fell asleep. It was hard to stop looking back at him to make sure he was truly sleeping and it wasn't something worse. By the time he woke, they had driven eight hours and were just about to enter the city limits of New Orleans.