Thank you, everyone, for your wonderful reviews! They are greatly appreciated!  :)

*ring*

Cody picked up his cell phone. "Yeah?"

"Tell Alex to let Jake know we're almost there," said Frank.

Cody made a face, realizing that Frank couldn't communicate with Jake while Alex was still on the line with him. "Alex! Tell Jake that Frank's almost there."

"Frank's coming, Jake."

Jake sighed at that. He wasn't very optimistic that he'd make it out of here alive, and he didn't want Frank to be killed too. He looked around the bus, at the very scared people. A few of the women were crying or sniffling. His gaze lingered on the face of a young woman cradling an infant, who looked no more then a month old. The woman had a dazed look, as if she couldn't comprehend that this was really happening to her.

With another sigh, Jake looked over to the bus driver, who was old and unhealthy looking. Jake wondered if he had health problems, or if the fear of the situation was causing his paleness.

"Jake!" said Alex.

"Yeah?"

"Frank says they're catching up, he can see the bus."

Jake stood from his seat and went towards the back. He could see a police Expedition gaining on them, and realized that Frank was about to do a very dangerous thing; move from the truck to the bus, at 60mph.

"Okay Alex, let me go, I'll call you back when I can."

Alex was reluctant to hang up. "Okay, Jake. Talk to you soon."

"Yup," Jake said, sighing as he hung up. Making his way to the driver, he put a hand on the old man's shoulder. "Sir."

The man glanced up at him before putting his eyes back on the road. "Yeah?"

"Police are trying to catch up to us, one of them is gonna board the bus. Can you slow this thing down a little?"

At the word 'slow' the man looked at Jake as if he were insane. "What?"

Jake sighed, looking over his shoulder to see the Expedition still behind them. "We can't go down to 50," he said. "But we can slow to 55."

The driver looked afraid, as thoughts ran through his mind. What if I have to slow down for some reason while I'm at 55? The bus will explode!

Jake saw his fear. "Look," Jake said, pointing. "The road is straight; no turns. Slow down a little so the guy can board the bus."

The driver still looked afraid.

Jake took his badge out of his pocket. "I'm a Federal Agent; and so is the man coming aboard. We're gonna figure out a way to get everyone out of here. Please, slow down a little!"

The badge did wonders for the man's decision making, and he nodded, easing his foot from the gas pedal.

Jake watched as the Expedition pulled alongside them, and saw the backdoor suddenly open. He grabbed the lever to open the bus doors, and stood in the doorway.

Frank stood on the truck's running board, to the right of the door. He reached his hand into the open window, grabbed the seatbelt strap for leverage, and then pushed the door closed. Still holding onto the seatbelt, he inched closer to the driver's window, transferring his hold to that, as the wind created by their speed made him feel like he was outside in the middle of a tropical storm.

Looking behind himself, he saw Jake standing on the top step in the bus door, gripping the rail while holding out his other hand towards him.

The officer driving the truck pulled closer to the bus, and Jake was able to grab Frank's arm.

Suddenly, Morgan noticed a pothole in their lane, and they were fast approaching it. "Watch out!" he yelled.

A passenger in the front seat of the bus jumped up and grabbed Jake, just as the Expedition went over the pothole—if the driver swerved to avoid it, Frank would be killed.

The Expedition, being a high-profile vehicle and going over the pothole at 60, bounced hard, making Frank lose his grip and fall, but Jake was able to grab Frank's arm with both hands and pull, sending the both of them sprawling.

"Jake…!" Frank gasped, his legs still hanging out the bus door.

Jake scurried up, and he and the other man pulled Frank up the steps, where Frank was finally able to get a foothold, and help climb the rest of the way.

Once they were inside, the driver closed the door, so neither of them could fall out.

Breathing heavily, Frank sat back against the wall of the bus. For a second there, he'd thought he was a goner.

"You okay?" he heard Jake ask.

Opening his eyes, Frank nodded at his teammate, ignoring the bruises he knew he'd gotten from falling onto the bus steps. "Yeah. You?"

Jake nodded, wiping sweat from his brow. "Sure, piece of cake." He looked up at the man who'd probably saved both of their lives. "Thanks…uh…"

"Matt," the guy said, with a thin smile. "No problem."

Frank nodded his thanks, as he and Jake got to their feet. Jake sat in the front seat, while Frank faced the terrified passengers.

Every person stared back with fearful eyes. Frank was relieved to see that no children were on the bus…until he spotted the baby.

He took a deep breath. "My name is Frank Donovan, I'm an agent with the Justice Department," he told them. "I know this will sound like a ridiculous thing to say, under the circumstances, but please try to stay calm, we're going to do our best to get you all out of here—"

Suddenly the bus veered madly to the left, flinging an unsuspecting Frank against the side of the bus.

The passengers gasped or screamed, holding onto the seats and each other as the bus crossed into the opposite lane.

Jake looked at the driver, and immediately saw the problem. Jumping out of his seat and quickly making his way over—being sure not to step on Frank along the way—he pulled the obviously unconscious driver out of his seat and took over the driving. Slamming his foot on the gas pedal, he saw that the speed had fallen to 52 mph. He let out a shaky breath as he righted the bus, and threw a worried glance behind him. "Frank! You all right?"

Frank was still lying where he'd landed, knowing it would be stupid to get up until the bus was back under control. He touched the side of his head that had hit…something or other, and winced when he felt blood on his fingers.

"Frank!" Jake said again.

Suddenly hands were on his arms, and he was being pulled to his feet by Matt and another passenger.

"I'm fine, Jake," he said, as the men sat him in the front seat.

Jake kept glancing between his boss and the road. "You're bleeding," he said.

"It's nothing, just a scratch." Frank took the handkerchief that Matt handed him, and held it against his temple. "Thanks."

Matt nodded and sat in the front seat in the other aisle, looking worriedly towards the driver, who was slumped on the floor.

Muttering under his breath at having neglected to see what had happened, Frank started to get up.

"Forget it, Frank," said Jake, with a mournful sigh. "He's dead, must've had a heart attack."

Frank closed his eyes, with a defeated sigh. One passenger dead. Which one will be next?