How had this musclehead, Jake Dunn, guessed that Akane wanted Terence most of all? As far as Terence had been able to discern, no one was talking about the massacre of Akane’s family.

Terence looked down at his hands, turning them over. He must have touched some part of Uncle’s body, because dried blood made dark lines in the folds of his fingers.

And it was on his clothes. He’d wiped his hands on his shirt at some point.

He had no memory of any of that.

What Akane had done to Uncle had been too terrible even to process, but bits of memory blasted his brain randomly with images he could never unsee: Uncle’s chopped off, curled-up hands, one on either side of a plate set on the dining room table. His torso, spilling entrails on the kitchen floor. His legs, propped as if sitting, on a chair.

Akane’s version of humor.

The next stop for Terence, after this, was his lawyer’s office.

Terence looked up at the Security Solutions agent at last.

Jake Dunn was staring back at him from smoke-colored eyes, his chair tilted back, his fingers laced over his belly. He looked hard, dangerous, like a damn good poker player.

Maybe the guy wasn’t as dumb as he’d assumed.

“You can tell me the real reason you’re here any time now,” Dunn said. “Or not. Makes no never mind to me. You signed a contract, and we’re on the clock. It’s running on your dime now, as your cousin said.”

“All right. I’ll tell you what I can. I’m in the middle of a war with Akane for control of Chang Enterprises.” Terence sat back and imitated Dunn’s pose. “It’s important that I win. For everyone’s good.”

“Ah. You’re taking over the family for the good of all.” Dunn’s tone dripped sarcasm. “I’m looking at the next Big Island mafia boss right now. Don’t know what you need Security Solutions for.”

“It’s a civil war, and I need manpower.” Terence kept his temper in check with difficulty. “I was groomed to take my grandmother Healani Chang’s place as head of the family when she passed. But I didn’t want it. I wanted to go legit, so I built my own business online. My cousin Byron stepped up, and while he lacked vision, he was a solid leader. Things were stable. Then the situation with Akane exploded. You and Ang were at the heart of that.” Terence needed to move. He stood up and paced. “Akane has supporters in the family, people who mistake his brutality for strength. And he was building alliances behind Byron’s back. Then Byron was murdered. I wouldn’t be surprised if Akane was behind it.” Terence turned to meet Dunn’s gaze. “I realized I was the only one smart enough, strong enough, with enough resources, to keep Akane from taking over. So, I made my move.” He pushed a hand through his rumpled hair. “Now he’s back, and it’s a hostile situation. It will either be him or me running the family business, and trust me—it should not be him.”

“I agree with you there. And thanks for being straight up. What do you need from us? Manpower we’ve got. Investigative strength we’ve got. Even great home security systems, we’ve got.”

“I know all about your AI nanny cam security system. That might be nice later. Right now, I need your best-trained security operatives. I hired some mercs from the Mainland who are keeping my house and Emma safe, but I need more. We might also need to go on the offensive with some of my relatives after Akane is caught. But catching Akane is my number one priority. I don’t want one more person I care about to be hurt.”

“Like Julie Weathersby?” Dunn tilted his head. “I thought she was just a Stockholm nutcase when she was going on and on about you, and how you two fell in love.”

Heat flushed Terence’s face. “She…talked about me to you?” He hadn’t seen Julie since the day she left to return to her parents, and he’d missed her every moment since.

“Oh yeah. When Sophie and I interviewed her about what happened with Akane, she couldn’t say enough about how great you were. We thought she was a little loco, just hero worshipping her rescuer.” Dunn shrugged. “But now I’m guessing it was mutual.”

“Doesn’t matter. That chapter’s over, but I must do all I can to protect her. I’d appreciate anything you can put together.” Terence clenched his fists. “I need help to win this war.”

“Well, I for one like the idea of using you as bait,” Dunn said. “I think we could build a solid plan around that. Not even joking. Sophie texted me that she’ll be in the office tomorrow. We’ll work something up. In the meantime, I’ll contact our corporate head on Oahu, and see how many security personnel they can send over. I didn’t see you come in with anyone—got a security detail on you?”

“No. I don’t want to seem weak to my relatives. The men I hired are keeping an eye on my house and business.”

“At this point, you’re going to seem dead if you don’t have a bodyguard at all times,” Dunn said briskly. He tapped his computer screen and spoke into a voice intercom there. “Felicia, how many security specialists do we have on tap, here on the Big Island?”

“That would be none, Jake. You and Sophie are the personnel here,” the girl said, her voice piped through the computer speakers. “Not including your own two security staff.”

Dunn grimaced at Terence. “You’re not the only startup around here, Chang. But we will get you covered. Why don’t we meet tomorrow morning and hash out the details? We can come out to your place if you prefer.”

“No, here is fine.” Terence extended a hand. “Thanks for the help.”

“We want your psycho cousin as much as you do.” Dunn’s eyes were the color of a steel blade.