Dead Ends by Don Easton

once tried to unite under the banner of The Brotherhood, thinking it would cut down on the turf wars. As the gangs grew, it didn’t work out. There’s been a split within The Brotherhood. As you can tell by all the shootings, the turf wars are back on. The Gang Unit is overrun with work trying to keep a handle on all the hoods doing the drive-by shootings, let alone work on the bosses who are ordering the hits.”
    â€œSome are more than drive-bys,” said Connie. “The body count is growing at an unbelievable rate. A lot of the cases have ended up in my office, but I wasn’t assigned to them because I was busy at the pig farm.” She paused and said, “But you didn’t answer my question. Varrick was involved with Satans Wrath. What does The Brotherhood have to do with it?”
    â€œThe Brotherhood is dealing lots of dope, including meth. They’re too much of a cash-cow for the bikers to ignore. Our latest intel indicates a common denominator between biker meth and the meth being sold by The Brotherhood. Our lab often identifies specific samples of meth as being made by the same chemist or at least the same ingredients and formula. The Brotherhood meth is matching the same meth coming from biker sources. There are also a lot more labs than there used to be. Seems like they’re springing up all over the place.”
    â€œSo Satans Wrath and The Brothrhood have formed a partnership?” asked Connie. “Maybe using the same chemists to make it?”
    â€œCorrect, except I don’t know if partnership is quite the right word,” said Jack. “Satans Wrath is one of the top organized crime families in the world. It is only a matter of time before they’ll control The Brotherhood completely. The bikers had feelers out with at least the half-dozen or so bosses in The Brotherhood whom they consider worthy. With the dope starting to match up, it is obvious that it is more than feelers.”
    â€œFeelers?” asked Connie.
    â€œAmbassadors, if you will,” replied Jack.
    â€œA bit like a corporate takeover,” said Connie.
    â€œExactly,” replied Jack. “The Brotherhood is penny ante in comparison to Satans Wrath. Extremely violent and stupid, but penny ante. Lots of young kids who lack conscience and think they’re invincible. Also naive and stupid enough to think that using a gun will give them status as a real gangster. In reality, they’re only cannon fodder for the real gangsters who are smart enough not to take stupid risks.”
    â€œIn some aspects, that makes The Brotherhood more dangerous than Satans Wrath,” added Laura. “Getting stoned and spraying bullets around isn’t the bikers’ style.”
    â€œIf The Brotherhood is comprised of morons, how come Satans Wrath hasn’t already taken over or kicked them out?” asked Connie.
    â€œSatans Wrath aren’t stupid. They’ve been learning the ropes for the last sixty years. They don’t want to risk openly associating with The Brotherhood during all these shootings. Too much police attention combined with a lack of discipline on the part of The Brotherhood. The bikers will sit back and go with the winning side once the wars are settled.”
    â€œMore like control the winning side,” added Laura.
    â€œDefinitely,” said Jack. “In the meantime, although the war is bad for business, it gives Satans Wrath a chance to appraise who they’ll want working for them in the future. They could easily take out the bosses of The Brotherhood, but as I said, they’re a cash cow. The Brotherhood has a lot of kids working for them. Kids dealing dope in schools, arcades, playgrounds, and everywhere else kids hang out. The Brotherhood is a good conduit for the bikers to control in order to make money. Let them take the risk while the bikers rake in the cash. Varrick was under the control of Satans Wrath and likely still is, but he