Page 45 of The Deputy's Secret Double

And where was Price?

She couldn’t simply expose herself, attack Lawson and expect the deputy to be okay with it all.

The elevator finally started to rise.

JJ decided to feign innocence.

“Oh, I’m sorry. Which floor did you want?” She didn’t turn her face toward him but instead motioned to the panel. “I have a phobia of elevators and kind of forget to be present when I’m in them.”

She did a little laugh. Polite, self-deprecating.

Lawson surprised her by doing more of the same.

“The second floor works for me too,” he replied with a laugh.

JJ assumed he hadn’t seen her running. She assumedheassumed that she hadn’t seen him running either. She could play this off until they parted ways.

Then she could follow him.

From there she could make a new plan.

From there she could—

“Elevatophobia.”

JJ inclined her head a little.

The rising had slowed. The doors still weren’t open though.

“Huh?”

“That’s the name for it,” Lawson said. “The phobia of elevators iselevatophobia.”

The hit that came next was brutal, and JJ couldn’t dodge even a fraction of its power.

One second they were facing the front of the elevator, and the next she was pressed against the back of it, a hand around her neck.

JJ’s own hands flew to Lawson’s in an attempt to cut off the contact. But Lawson’s grip was phenomenal. JJ coughed as he squeezed.

“If you didn’t like elevators, you shouldn’t have gotten into this one.” It came out as an almost-purr. To match, his grin became catlike. “You’re here to help the deputy, and now you’re going to help me instead.”

JJ could move her body fine but the force he had on her neck had her completely at his mercy with no plan to counterattack.

She curled her fingernails into his skin, but Lawson looked as if he’d already lost interest in her. He turned his head to look behind him.

“I thought he might be around here.”

He moved enough that JJ was able to see that the elevator doors had finally opened. A small open area gave way to a hallway that looked to run between several rooms. Half of the lights were turned off.

Movement came out of one of those areas, heading straight for them at a slow but even clip.

JJ met Price’s eye.

The sound of a grin was still in Lawson’s words.

“Stop or I’ll break her,” he said.

To show he meant it, he tightened his grip. JJ couldn’t help but let out a strangling cough.