*ring*

"Yello," said Cody. "The color of my new car!"    

"Cody."

"Boss!" Cody sat up straighter. "How's things over there?"

Frank sighed. "Not good. Lazarro rigged this thing with electricity."

Cody's jaw dropped. "No way!"

Alex and Monica watched him, wishing they could hear what Frank was saying.

"How many volts?" Cody asked.

Frank sighed. "I have no idea. According to Lazarro, a lot. Some of us got a shock when he turned it on." He took a deep breath. "What do you think, Cody? Is there any way to disarm the electricity?"

Cody shrugged. "I dunno, boss. Do you hear a hum?"

Frank frowned. "Hum?"

"Electricity as strong as he's saying, wired all over the bus, would produce a hum."

Frank put his ear as close to the wall as he dared. "I hear nothing."

"Did your hair stand up?" Cody asked, sounding like he was laughing at the possible sight.

Frank reached a hand to his head. "No."

"Okaaay. Put your hand close to it, and tell me if you feel your skin tingle."

Frank obeyed. "Nothing."

"Humm," said Cody. "Maybe…"

"I agree, and there's only one way to find out," Frank said.

Realizing what he meant, Cody yelled, "What?! No, Frank!"

Frank put the phone in his pocket, and grabbed the bus doors. Immediately, electricity zapped through him, making his whole body tremble, as he yanked the doors open.

"Frank!" Jake yelled, reaching over and grabbing him by the shirt, hearing the bus' passengers scream, in shock at the sight, as he pulled Frank back before he could get 'stuck' to the doors by the electrical current.

Frank's legs collapsed beneath him, unable to hold him up. He fell against Jake, sliding to the floor and landing on his rear.

"Frank!" Jake held onto his boss' shoulder, feeling Frank's body shaking violently.

Frank couldn't speak. He felt like he was in the middle of an earthquake, and his body hurt and tingled madly, while breathing was difficult. The same passengers who had helped him earlier were suddenly there, holding him by the arms.

"He's alive!" Matt told Jake.

Jake sighed heavily. "Frank! You are insane!"

Frank heard Jake's voice, but it sounded as if he were in a tunnel and he was still incapable of answering. I'm still alive! Lazarro lied about the voltage. He closed his eyes, trying to take a deep breath and calm his racing heart, influenced by the electricity, no doubt.

"Oh no…"

At the dreaded sound to the passenger's voice, Jake looked down at Frank, to see his eyes closed.

"Frank! No! Open your eyes!" he reached for Frank's wrist to feel his pulse, and found it extremely erratic.

"Lie him down!" Jake said, when Frank's eyes didn't open.

The men obeyed.

Jake glanced toward the bus doors, to see them wide open. Hope flashed through him, when he realized that they were going to get out of this.

But had Frank given his life to save them?

"We can get off!" someone yelled, sounding hysterical.

"Wait!" yelled Jake, feeling a flash of anger at the person's seeming disregard for Frank's life. "If you jump you'll be killed. Didn't you see the freakin' movie? Now we have to wait till the cops come alongside the bus!"

"The cops can't do that if Frank can't tell them on his cell phone that the doors are open!" one of the men crouching near Frank said.

Jake rolled his eyes. Taking his own phone out of his pocket, he dialed the Chicago PD number. "Hello? This is Jake Shaw; I'm on the bus…" he paused. "Please hold? Are you outta your mind! Tell Morgan that the bus doors are open, and we're waiting for them to get us off this thing!" He hit the hang up button, and slammed the phone on the dashboard, running a hand through his hair. "Please hold!" he muttered. The stress of the situation finally got to poor Jake, and he started laughing. He stopped quickly when he remembered Frank lying unconscious on the floor.

"Check his pulse!" Jake yelled over his shoulder. "Is it still messed up?"

"Yeah."

Jake sighed. "Keep an eye on him."

Suddenly the police Expedition that had been driving a ways behind them pulled up on the side, and Chief Morgan hung out the back-seat window. "How the—where's Frank?!"

"He knocked himself out when he opened the doors with his bare hands!" Jake yelled.

Morgan shook his head, in shock. "We have a truck on the way, to get you all off."

Jake nodded. "Try to make it quick, huh?"

Morgan nodded back, and the Expedition slowed down, getting behind the bus again.

Suddenly Jake's phone rang. "Yeah?"

"Jake!" yelled Alex. "Is Frank all right? He won't answer Cody!"

Jake sighed. "He opened the bus doors and knocked himself out, Alex."

"What an idiot!"

Jake laughed. "Yeah."

"So the doors are open?"

"Yup. A truck is on the way to get everyone off."

Alex sighed in utter relief. "Thank God."

"You can say that again. I'll call you when the truck gets here."

"Okay, be careful."

"Naturally." Jake hung up, and turned around when he heard Frank groan. "Frank! Are you all right?"

Frank opened his eyes, seeing nothing but a blur. He blinked repeatedly, and his vision cleared slowly. He was still shaking, and for a second didn't remember what had happened.

"Don't let him move!" he heard Jake's voice say. "Check his pulse!"

Frank suddenly remembered what had occurred, and tried to sit up. His muscles felt like jelly and were spasming intermittently, and he was grateful for the hands holding onto him when his arms refused to hold him up. He heard one of the men say something to Jake, but didn't catch the words. Suddenly a hand was pressing against his chest, and he saw that it belonged to Jake, who was just close enough to reach him.

"Frank, please, stay put." Jake looked at Frank, and then back to the road. "Listen, a truck is on the way to get everyone off. There's nothing more for you to do, so stay there."

"I-I'm f-fine, Jake," Frank said, frowning at the stutter, his voice sounding shaky. "Did he call back?" he asked, slowly.

"No."

Frank frowned. "How long was I out?"

Jake shook his head. "Fifteen, twenty." Jake gave a short laugh. "This really isn't your day."

Frank didn't answer, trying to reach into his pocket to get his cell phone, not remembering if he'd hung up after talking to Cody. His hands refused to obey him, and he made a sound of exasperation.

Matt saw his difficulty, and took the phone out for him. "The line was still open," he said, hitting the hang up button. Almost immediately, it rang.

"That's him," Frank said. "Hit the button."

Matt did as he was told, and held the phone to Frank's ear.

"Donovan," he said.

"You sure like to gab," said Lazarro. "Been trying to call for a long time."

"I have a job to do," said Frank.

"Yeah, guess you do, huh? Any luck?"

More then you know. "How? We're riding in an electrified bus, remember?" Suddenly Frank gasped when pain shot through every inch of his body.

Jake heard and turned around to see Frank's eyes closed tightly. He didn't say anything, knowing that Lazarro couldn't be allowed to know that Frank had opened the door.

"What's the matter, Frankie? The bus go over a bump in the road at 60mph?" the psycho laughed.

"S-something like that," Frank managed to say, exhaling shakily.

"Gee, you don't sound too good," Lazarro laughed. "The stress getting to you?"

Frank didn't answer.

"Hehe, don't care to admit to it, huh? Allrighty then, I'll call you back in a little while to see if you're pulling your hair out yet!"

*click*

Frank sighed, reaching up a shaky hand to take his phone back. This time his limb obeyed him, however sluggishly, and he took it, fumbling to hang it up. "Thanks."

"No problem," Matt said.

"How you feel, Frank?" Jake asked, worriedly.

"Fine. Help me up," he asked the men.

"No!" Jake told them. "Don't listen to him."

"Jaaake," Frank said in exasperation, when his subordinate grabbed his arm, to feel his pulse again.

"You heart went haywire!" Jake practically shouted. "Your stupid move got the doors open, yeah, but you almost killed yourself!"

Frank just stared at him. Stupid move?

Jake calmed down a little when he saw that Frank's pulse was better. His cell phone rang, and he let go of Frank's wrist, grabbing the phone from the dashboard. "Yeah."

"What's going on, Jake? How's Frank?"

"He's awake, Alex."

"Thank God! Is the truck there yet?"

"No." Hearing a commotion behind him, he turned to see Frank trying to get up, and the two men having no choice but to help him. "Gotta go, Frank's trying to be Superman again." He hung up the phone and threw it back onto the dashboard. Glancing behind himself again, he saw Frank slumped back on the seat.

"You may be my boss," said Jake. "But I gotta say that you are one thickheaded person."

Frank gave him a mock-glare. "That's what people tell me."

Jake couldn't help but smile at that one.