Troubleshooter Read Free Page A

eye socket was the flaming skull, etched onto an otherwise realistic glass eye.
    Bear Jowalski walked in front of the image, his enormous frame cutting a black outline from the stream of light. His somber tone matched the mood in the room. "Gents, Goat Purdue. He went over the high side in '02, left half his face on the asphalt in Malibu."
    Ordinarily Goat's appearance would have elicited a volley of off-color commentary, but there were no chuckles or wisecracks today. The deputies functioned through a post-disaster haze; Tim hadn't felt morale this grim since reporting to duty as a Ranger platoon sergeant in the wake of 9/11. In Frank Palton's usual place beside Jim Denley sat an FBI special agent, Jeff Malane--a slender man with fine hair and sad, intelligent eyes.
    Bear bent over the laptop, and a new photo flashed up on the wall. A surveillance shot, taken from some distance, showed a biker with pencil-thin strips of facial hair--a stenciled beard. He couldn't have been taller than five-four. His barrel chest seemed transplanted from a larger torso.
    "His tag is Chief," Bear continued. "He earned the nickname because he rides an Indian instead of a Harley."
    Guerrera ran a hand through his gelled hair. "Chief's the Sinners' intel officer. He keeps the files on the rival clubs, law enforcement, you name it."
    "An Indian," Tim said. "Sounds like our lead biker on the bust, right Jim? Jim?"
    Denley rustled in his chair. "Yup?"
    "You said the short guy rode an Indian?"
    "An Indian, uh-huh."
    "He the one who sliced up that club mama a few years back?" Thomas's voice called out from the dark.
    "No, that was our good friend Den Laurey," Bear said. "He's the knife man. Legend has it he cut one of the club mamas from her hips to her ankles, like a pair of chaps."
    "But it was Kaner who nailed his old lady to a tree a few years back?"
    "Through the hand, that's right, out near Devil's Bowl." Guerrera's accent turned that's right into thass ride. "When CHiPs found her a day and a half later, home girl didn't want any help. Said her man told her to wait there."
    "Quality girl."
    "Den and Kaner are the most vicious of the nomads," Guerrera said. "Which is no small claim."
    A click brought the next photo up on the wall. A leering mug shot, the wide face peering out from beneath a mop of white-yellow curls. Faint, nearly invisible eyebrows.
    "Tom Johannsson, aka Tom-Tom. An explosives specialist. And a nomad."
    No neck was in evidence; Tom-Tom's head was set directly on his shoulders.
    "I saw some white hair peeking out from beneath the helmet on the Harley man." Jim's voice, flavored with a strong Brooklyn accent, was always slightly hoarse and strained, as if he were yelling.
    "Does he have the skills to have designed the boom ball that flipped the Suburban?" Tim asked.
    "Oh, yeah," Guerrera said. "Word is Tom-Tom came up in the Michigan Blood Patriots. Those boys could teach the ragheads a thing or two about improvised explosives."
    Freed opened the blinds, revealing the modest view from Roybal's third floor, and everyone blinked against the light.
    "We know of any other Sinner nomads?" Haines asked.
    "Nigger Steve, but he was shot off his bike three days ago," Guerrera said.
    "A black guy?" Thomas asked with surprise.
    "No," Guerrera said. "Just tan."
    "And dead," Bear added.
    Guerrera said, "He's the first Sinner nomad to be killed by another club. The Cholos took advantage of Den and Kaner's lockup to take him out."
    Thomas again: "You think that's why the Sinners busted them out?"
    "That's my guess," Bear said. "Protection and--coming soon to theaters everywhere--retaliation."
    "You know how Sinners avenge the killing of one of their own? They take out five." Tim set down his pen, noticing he'd chewed the cap flat. "We're gonna see more blood."
    "Yeah." Miller's face was tense with anger. "Theirs."
    "Thomas and Freed, establish contact with the Cholos," Tim said. "See if you can get in with their boss man in the mother chapter,