Badger Games (The Detective Sergeant Mullheisen Mysteries)

The latest from masterful mystery writer Jon A. Jackson, Badger Games is an international cat-and-mouse game beginning in Kosovo and stretching to the mountains of Montana. Ex-freelance contractor to the Mob, Joe Service is now in the employ of the Lucani, a cadre of rogue government agents who have recently lost an operative known only as Franko. Franko, last seen in the path of a drug-smuggling ring through a Kosovar mountain village, was from Montana — so Joe and his lover, Mafia princess Helen Sedlacek, head to Butte to see what they can learn. But they're not the only ones. A volatile mercenary nicknamed the Badger is also looking for Franko; and the Lucani have sent backup — to help Joe or contain him, he's not sure — in the form of a bombshell who rivals Lara Croft for sex appeal and dangerous moves. They are quickly caught up in a deadly game of hide-and-seek in the rough-hewn mountain landscape, culminating in a terrifying night in the tunnels of an... The book opens with the disappearance of a man named Franko Bradovich in Kosovo. Franko, a native Montanan posing as a local, was a spy of sorts, an operative who was helping the Lucani (a loose affiliation of DEA, FBI, CIA, etc. agents operating outside the law) bust a drug trafficking scheme from Bulgaria through Kosovo and Serbia to Europe. Franko was living with the family of a farmer named Daliljaj (and was in love with the farmer's daughter Fedima) and an apparently helpful American-raised Slav (Bozi Bazok), who's become part of the Serb army's shock troops, has warned Franko that the army was headed toward them with bloodshed in mind. Later, though, Franko, who's been posing as a drug trafficker, is brought in by local police for questioning and is beaten'making Bazok's helpfulness questionable at best. Either way, Franko can't really afford to stick around. Bazok agrees to help him and, reluctantly, Daliljaj, Fedima, and their relatives, escape the sweep, in exchange for the massive quantities of drugs he believes Franko is hiding. But Bazok betrays him and slaughters Daliljaj and all of Fedima's other family while they wait for Franko to return with transport. When Franko returns, Bazok has disappeared, taking Fedima with him. At this point the Lucani contact Joe Service. They ask him to go to Butte and see what he can see among the Serb population there. He and Helen Sedlacek travel from Detroit to Montana and start asking around for Franko Bradoviches (and permutations of the name). They find a Frank Oberavich and while he's not their man, he does provide them with excellent food, wine, and home-grown pot. And, it turns out, "Franko" from Kosovo is really Frank Oberavich's cousin Paulie and has been living on his property in a tent. Helen, Joe, and the Lucani aren't the only ones who are curious about "Franko's" whereabouts. A woman named Jamala King, a new Lucani, comes out to help them, and they're going to need all the help they can get because the alcoholic, bloodthirsty Bazok is headed toward Butte, convinced Franko was holding out on a major drug stash, and anxious to prevent him testifying to a war crimes tribunal about his slaughter of the Daliljaj family. Paulie, of course, blames himself for the deaths of Fedima and her family. What follows is a deadly cat-and-mouse game on a Montana mountain, as each side attempts to find the other first. It culminates in a terrifying night in abandoned mine tunnels and a bloody ambush in which one of the group protecting Paulie is revealed to be an impostor A criminal couple joins a nefarious underground organization in this novel full of “sharp characterization, vivid scenes, and offbeat humor” (The Oregonian). When anyone in the Detroit underworld hears the names Joe Service and Helen Sedlacek, they know lots of trouble—and bullet-riddled bodies—are sure to follow. That’s why Joe and Helen are perfect recruits for the Lucani—a group of rogue operatives, covert intelligence, and cold-blooded killers who bypass all those pesky laws and government red tape to get the dirtiest jobs done. For their first assignment, Joe and Helen are back in beautiful Butte, Montana, searching for Franko, a Lucani agent who supposedly vanished while on an overseas drug-busting mission. But what starts as a simple manhunt quickly spins out of control, with backstabbing, betrayal, and bloodshed all over. Luckily for Joe and Helen, that’s just another day at the office . . . “Great fun . . . there is plenty of action, low-key black humor, and Jackson’s perfect ear for the nuances of criminal speech.” —Chicago Tribune A criminal couple joins a nefarious underground organization in this novel full of "sharp characterization, vivid scenes, and offbeat humor" ( The Oregonian ). When anyone in the Detroit underworld hears the names Joe Service and Helen Sedlacek, they know lots of trouble -- and bullet-riddled bodies -- are sure to follow. That's why Joe and Helen are perfect recruits for the Lucani -- a group of rogue operatives, covert intelligence, and cold-blooded killers who bypass all those pesky laws and government red tape to get the dirtiest jobs done. For their first assignment, Joe and Helen are back in beautiful Butte, Montana, searching for Franko, a Lucani agent who supposedly vanished while on an overseas drug-busting mission. But what starts as a simple manhunt quickly spins out of control, with backstabbing, betrayal, and bloodshed all over. Luckily for Joe and Helen, that's just another day at the office . . "Great fun . . there is plenty of action, low-key black humor, and Jackson's perfect ear for the nuances of criminal speech." -- Chicago Tribune