Thanks for all the comments and follows. I have basically got no clue about medical stuff, so sorry if anything is incorrect. Hope you like the next chapter!

The car lay at the bottom of the steep slope, water lapping at its wheel arches. Several solitary snowflakes drifted onto the smoking bonnet. The only sound was the spluttering hiss from the knackered engine. Two figures lay slumped over the dash board, broken glass glistening like ice in their hair.

Kensi wasn't sure how long she had been lying there for. Rather than waking in a sudden rush of panic, she gradually came back to reality. It was as though she suddenly was aware of how uncomfortable she was… How had she been able to fall asleep in this position? And it was so cold all of a sudden, how come Deeks had left the windows open? Still she didn't move, trying to put the pieces together. And then it came rushing back. The mission, their blown cover, the car chase and… and the car crash.

"Deeks?" She whispered, letting an involuntary whimper escape her lips as she slowly puller her body of the dashboard. Her ears were ringing, and everything seemed so bright when she tried to open her eyes. She kept her eyes pressed shut, praying to hear her parter reply. "Deeks? Please talk to me." Still she heard nothing, nothing except the incessant ringing.

Bracing herself, she forced her heavy eyes open and looked at her partner. His face was facing away from her, pressed to the wheel. All she could see was his tangled blond hair and the blood that was matting it. She carefully felt for a pulse, gently letting her hand brush against his gorgeous locks as she reached for his neck. A single tear slid down her face as she felt the feeble flicker that promised life. She let her hand fall from his neck, trying to clear her head. She remembered talking to Nell. Where was the headset? If she could just have someone tell her what to do… there was something digging into her back she suddenly realized. Gasping in pain, her chest protesting at every movement, she reached behind her and felt her fingers close around the headset.

With shaking fingers she pressed it to her ear. "Nell? Can you hear me?" Her voice cracked with the effort.

Nell heard her. Kensi could have wept at the instant reply, relief washing over her. Now she just needed to get Deeks out.

"Kensi. Thank god. Are you guys alright? What happened?"

Kensi hesitated. "We came off the road Nell. Deeks… I can't wake him Nell. He's alive but he needs help. There's so much blood Nell, and it's snowing and I don't think… it's too cold. I need to warm him up. What should I do Nell? Help…"

Nell's heart broke at Kensi's desperate plea. She looked at Hetty who was staning beside her and listening to every word. The small woman made no attempt to hide her shock at Kensi's confession of weakness. How she had changed since that shaggy haired man had become her partner. Having someone to care for had turned her into a braver person than ever before.

Hetty spoke next. "Miss Blye, the team are on their way, and I can assure you they will be there as soon as humanly possible. In the mean time, can you tell me Mr Deeks' injuries? It is of the utmost importance that we care for him as best as possible. And how about yourself? Are you hurt Kensi?"

The tenderness with which she spoke Kensi's name almost allowed a small sob to escape Kensi's lips. Almost but not quite: she had to think of Deeks now. She twisted herself, ignoring her own body's screams of protest in order to tend to her parter. "Deeks" She whispered "please wake up." He didn't respond. She pressed her hand to his head, trying to find the source of all the bleeding, and cringing when the enourmous gash revealed itself. "He's got a large laceration to the head, but I can't see anything else from the position that I'm in. hold on, I think I can get out and go around to his side."

Hetty interrupted "One moment Miss Blye, I don't want you to do anything that may harm yourself. Are you ok to do this?"

"I'll be fine Hetty." Kensi whispered her reply, trying to muster confidence and failing as she looked at her shaking hands. She took several deep breaths, ignoring the stabs of pain, and used her sleeve to wipe the trickle of blood that was running down her forehead and into her eyes. Truthfully she knew she wasn't fine. However, she also knew that Deeks was even more not fine. She was the only one who could help him, and she wasn't about to neglect the most important man in her life to look after herself.

She forced the lock on her door, and used her weight to force it open, leaning into it until it gave way and bracing herself for the drop to the snowy ground. She was not prepared for the shock of the icy water that the car was resting in. Instant cold gripped her body, ten times more awful than the frigid air, and she gasped in shock, moaning out loud as the pain from the deep breaths caused black dots to dance in front of her eyes. The water was only a foot deep however, and after giving herself a moment to control her shivering, she reached out for the car door and several agonizing seconds later she was standing in the water.

Back in ops Hetty and Nell had heard her pained breaths. "Kensi?" Nell begged "Are you alright? You have to take care of yourself too, ok?"

"Don't worry Nell, I just wasn't ready for the cold, that's all." Using the bonnet of the car to support her shaking legs, she slowly moved around to Deek's side, which she was relieved to see was still resting on dry ground. She pulled herself round to his door, bracing herself for whatever she might find.

He was still unconscious, but she could now see his face. He was ghostly pale. It was the perfect camouflage for the frozen world around them. Kensi looked at his perfect features through the window, hesitating for a moment before heaving open the driver's door. One of his hands fell out the open door as kensi knelt down to examine him. She gently lifted it, finding relief in its warmth, and placed it on his lap. Then she pressed her hand to his chest, checking him all over.

"Nell, Hetty, are you still there?" The phone line had been quiet for some time now and Kensi felt panic well up in her throat.

"Don't worry, we aren't going anywhere. How is he Kensi?"

"I think it's mainly his head that is hurt. He has a few lacerations on one of his arms but he isn't struggling to breathe or anything, and his pulse is quite slow but it's stll steady. I think the airbag did its job."

Nell could hear the relief in her friend's voice. "That's great Kensi. Really great. Sam and G are hopefully going to be with you within the hour, if you can just hold it together for that long?"

Whilst Nell was speaking Kensi was hauling herself into the glass free back seat, and there was a few moments silence as she leaned her head back on the headrest and took a few calming breaths.

"Kensi? Can you still hear me? Hetty has gone to brief Callen and Sam."

"Don't worry Nell, it's all under control here." She whispered. Her adrenaline rush had finally dissipated, and she just wanted to close her eyes until Sam and Callen found them.

"Kensi, are you hurt? You didn't say anything earlier when Hetty asked." Nell knew her friend's reluctance to admit pain.

"It's just my ribs Nell. There's not much I can do about them though. My ribs and the cold, and I can't change either so there is no point in complaining."

Nell sighed at Kensi's hardy attitude, but there was nothing she could do to change it. "Just don't fall asleep. I'm going to keep talking to you, but you have to talk too."

Kens smiled at her friend's bossy attitude. She would make a great Hetty one day. "Nell, I'm not sure we are going to get out of this one."

Nell froze. It was not what she said, but the causal way that it was announced. "Kensi, don't…"

Kensi interrupted. "Don't Nell. It's just how this business works. You win some, you loose some, and we've had an awful lot of wins." She was totally calm as she spoke. "I know the risks Nell, I always have done. To be honest, I think I've been given far more time than I deserve. I got lucky. I got more that lucky… I got Deeks." She hesitated, looking at her perfect partner slumped peacefully over the wheel. He still had his cheeky smile etched into his cheeks. "I think it's alright to go out like this. One final burst of action. Our blaze of glory."

Nell was silent for a moment, trying to compose herself before she spoke again. "Kensi… Kensi, you are incredible. And I'm sorry, but I don't call a car crash a blaze of glory. You could do so much better than that. Hypothermia is hardly the explosive finish that Kensi Blye deserves."

"I'm not sure I get much of a choice here Nell." Kensi's voice cracked. "But it's alright. I don't regret much…except…"

"…Deeks." Nell finished the sentence for her. "Well there you go. Don't die with regret Kensi. Fight long enough to speak to him again."

"I never said I would stop fighting." This time Kensi smiled as she spoke. "it's just that you don't always win the fight."

Nell was silent.

Kensi, head pounding and chest throbbing, suddenly realized that she could hear something other than Deek's soft breaths and Nells sniffs. In the distance she was sure she could hear an engine. "Nell, should Callen and Sam be here yet?"

"What? Definitely not, they are at least thirty minutes out. Why, is someone there?"

"I can hear an engine. Crap Nell, the cartel must have caught up with us."

"are you armed?"

"Only one gun with six rounds left. I can't lead them to Deeks though, the car tracks lead right to us. I have an idea though. Maybe I can still get my blaze of glory after all." She could feel adrenaline pounding through her again, numbing her aching body. Grabbing the gun from the front seat, she pulled herself out of the car and began to make her way up the steep bank to the road, using the trees that the car had collided with to pull herself up.

"Kensi, be careful. Deeks needs you still." Nell's own heart was pounding at her friend's last statement.

"Don't worry, I actually think I have a chance with this plan. Just make sure Callen and Sam aren't held up anywhere. A minute's delay could be the end of us." Kensi was actually smiling now. The cold didn't seem so bad any more. She climbed to the road, averting her eyes from the deep skid marks that were responsible for their current situation. Then she began to walk down the road, gun loaded, ready to face whatever was about to be thrown their way.

Hope you enjoyed! May be a few days for the next chapter. X