Chapter 28: "The Necklace"

"You... Don't you already know that my husband was just killed? How can you come to collect debts at a time like this?" Nicole angrily questioned.

The burly man snorted coldly in response, "I know Mr. Dodge was killed, but that has nothing to do with you repaying the money. When you and your husband borrowed the money, you both signed the papers. Moreover, you've been dragging this debt for quite some time. If you don't repay it soon, I'll have no choice but to take legal action and reclaim this property."

"No, you can't... You can't take this property. Otherwise, I'll have nowhere to live. How about you take the Ford car parked at the entrance instead?" Nicole pleaded.

The burly man scoffed, "Are you kidding? Even if that car is brand new, it's only worth $1400. How can it compare to $2000? Furthermore, you used this property as collateral when you borrowed the money. So, it's not me being unfair to you. If you don't believe it, we can settle this in court."

As Nicole wept and begged, Monet interjected, "Madam, you owe them $2000, right?"

Nicole nodded, saying, "That's correct, but I truly don't have any money now. I only have a few hundred dollars left to arrange Phil's affairs."

Before Nicole could finish speaking, Monet, while writing a check, said, "Here's what I'll do. I'll lend you $2000, but you don't need to rush. You can repay me within a year!" He handed the check to the burly man.

However, to their surprise, the burly man didn't accept the check. Instead, he glared at Monet and questioned, "Who are you? What does Dodge's family matter to you? Why do you step in to repay the money?"

"You're after money, aren't you? Does it matter who provides the money?" Monet retorted. He knew that these burly men were probably interested in the property, so he brought up Inspector Klein: "If you doubt the validity of this check, I can have Inspector Klein accompany you to the bank to ensure the money is withdrawn!"

"Do you know Inspector Klein?" The burly man furrowed his brows.

Monet nodded, saying, "Of course, and I just accepted his invitation to become the police department's commissioned artist!"

The burly man stared at Monet for a moment, then said, "Fine, today, I'll accept the money on account of Inspector Klein's reputation."

Then, he turned to Nicole and added, "Mrs. Dodge, don't forget the final installment is due next month. I hope you'll have the same luck then as you did today!" With that, he left with his companions.

After they left, Monet asked Nicole, "Madam, how much did he say the final installment was?"

Nicole sighed and replied, "Three thousand dollars!" Then she turned to Mr. Monet and said, "Mr. Monet, I can't thank you enough for your help today. But don't worry, I'll find a way to repay this money to you. By the way, let me write you an IOU right now." She instructed her maid to fetch paper and a pen.

Monet didn't stop Nicole from writing the IOU because their relationship hadn't reached the point of giving away two thousand dollars freely. However, he was curious and asked, "How did you end up owing them so much money? These people don't seem like good individuals."

Nicole's face wore a bitter expression as she explained, "We had no choice. You know, being a lawyer is a lucrative profession, but if you have a bad reputation, no one will entrust you with cases. So, privately, we had to borrow money to buy this house and the car. Even most of my jewelry is fake. Have you read Maupassant's 'The Necklace'? My jewelry, except for the cheapest earrings, is all fake. Phil thought that if he worked a bit harder these days, he could repay the money quickly, but it turned out..."

Monet understood Nicole's explanation. The legal profession indeed worked that way. Without connections to the upper circles, it's hard to get wealthy clients' cases, which means you can't earn much. To fit into this circle, you need certain basics, so pretending to be something you're not is not uncommon. It's no wonder Mr. Dodge took any case he could, probably to repay his debts sooner, but it seems he ended up tangled in a mess because of it.

After chatting for a while, Monet saw that it was getting late, and it wouldn't be appropriate to stay any longer, so he stood up to bid farewell. However, what he didn't expect was that as soon as he left, Nicole changed from her previous fragile demeanor and ordered her driver, "Take me to Miss Doris's place!"

Miss Doris was Nicole's good friend from her time at the Dalí Theatre. Currently, she was no longer with the theatre but was being financially supported by a wealthy patron.

Upon seeing Nicole, Doris quickly greeted her, "Why are you coming over so late?"

"I have an important matter to discuss with you!" Nicole said with a serious expression.

"Is it about money? I just withdrew money from the bank, but I only have a little over three thousand. You know, I've been spending quite a lot recently!" Doris said as she pulled out a stack of bills from her drawer.

Nicole hurriedly declined, "It's not about money. It's about that Monet."

"Please tell me you're not really falling for him?" Doris couldn't help but exclaim.

"I think he's quite nice. He's become a somewhat famous writer now, and he's even been commissioned as a police department's artist. And given my current status, do you really think I have any chance of marrying into a wealthy family?"

"If that's the case..."

Before Doris could finish her sentence, Nicole interrupted, "I've told you this many times. I don't have your abilities!"

"Alright, alright, I won't mention it again!" Doris raised her hands in a "surrender" gesture, then changed the subject, "By the way, are you sure this Monet is interested in you?"

Proudly, Nicole replied, "How could I be mistaken about this? Especially the first time he saw me, his gaze practically bore into me. Though he probably stopped doing that after learning about my background, I'm sure his feelings haven't changed. Otherwise, why would he be so eager to help me catch a murderer and even lend me two thousand dollars to repay the debt?"

"If that's the case, then it's indeed certain!" Doris murmured to herself.

After discussing their plans, Nicole returned home to prepare. The next day, she sent her maid to invite Monet for dinner at her house as a gesture of gratitude.