[CENTER][I][h1][color=Green]Alexander Chen and Bubba[/color][/h1][/i][/CENTER]

[Color=lightblue]Time:[/color]Morning
[Color=lightblue]Date:[/color]Date of the first time jump
[Color=lightblue]Location:[/color] Los Angeles, Mayor's office 
[Color=lightblue]Interaction: [@Meleck][/color] 
[hr]

Bubba dropped a gold brick on the mayor's desk. He had dropped five others. 
"That should help us help the city," Bubba said proudly.
"Ten pounds apiece," he continued.  "Three hundred and eight-four Dollars an ounce. That makes it about $336,000 if my calculator is right," he said with a laugh. 
Alexander looked at him puzzled for a minute. 
"IF you can do this why are you even here?" he asked. It was clear that Bubba could be rich with little effort.
"Shit, man. If I ran off who would drive you around. Watch you eat those awful greasy sandwiches and keep you from drinking your poor sorry ass to death," Bubba said in a tone that was playful and serious. 
Chen had pissed off some powerful people. Bubba was kinds of a shield for him. 

Chen's plan to keep the testing centers closed had some major help when the city's sewage system started backing up into buildings. Three of the septic lift pumps failed from debris in the sewer lines from the attack. That was the official report. Chen suspected one of the supervisors who oversaw the waste treatment had done something to help this along. But there was no official word on when the parts would arrive. The Gang war in Oakland limited access. That meant the buildings where the testing centers were going to be had been closed till the pumps were working and the buildings were properly cleaned. Chen looked at Bubba who was smiling with his big white teeth at him. Chen thought for a moment that maybe Bubba had paid someone off to make that happen. But he did not want to know. 

The legal wrangling was done, Chen lost of course. A newly appointed Federal judge that President Foster had managed to nominate appoint and get through the Senate in a week. In Chen's mind, it stunk. Still, he was not actively blocking it and accidents are going to happen when you rebuild a city's infrastructure while using it. 

So there was still an unofficial stand-off.