Chapter 318: The Curse of Sudden Wealth, Ross's Scream, Ross's Confession!
"Fake Ross?"
Lisa watched with curiosity as Chuck hung up the phone, his expression no longer strained. She looked down at Chuck, who seemed distant.
Chuck didn't answer, but dialed another number: "Jane, go find Monica immediately, protect her, and investigate the fake Ross."
"Fake Ross?"
Jane, working at the FBI's New York field office, exclaimed in surprise: "Why do you say that? I saw the public award ceremony; it was definitely Monica's brother, Ross!"
"He bought Monica's apartment,"
Chuck explained. "The deed is in Monica's name."
"What's wrong with that?"
Jane asked curiously. "A brother who wins a $2.04 billion jackpot—how much could it possibly cost him to buy his sister a small apartment?
Besides, that apartment is where their grandmother used to live; she has a deep emotional attachment to it, and their grandmother passed away years ago.
Monica is still renewing the lease under her grandmother's name, which does save a lot of money, but it's illegal if anyone finds out. It's perfectly reasonable for Ross to buy the apartment and give it to Monica.
I heard from Monica before that they had some tension over the red Porsche 911, and Ross said he would give Monica an even better gift after he claimed the prize.
This is definitely a more meaningful and better gift than the Porsche 911!"
That's right!
Even though Jane is no longer Chuck's assistant and is working hard to advance in the FBI, hoping to rise to a higher position to help Chuck in the future,
they still keep in touch in New York, and her relationship with Monica has actually improved.
She knows everything about Monica.
Lisa couldn't help but nod.
This is what she had been thinking too.
She had overheard Chuck and Monica talking about this on the phone, so how could he suddenly conclude that this Ross was fake?
"You're absolutely right,"
Chuck nodded. "Monica continuing to renew the lease under her deceased grandmother's name does save a lot of rent, but it's also a vulnerability. She was even threatened with this by the building super during a previous conflict, and it was only resolved thanks to Joey.
A decent older brother, after winning a $2.04 billion lottery, would spend a few days' interest to buy the apartment and give it to his sister—that's perfectly normal.
But we're talking about Ross!
So there's a serious inconsistency here!"
"What would the real Ross do?"
Jane didn't know Ross that well, so she could only ask.
"The real Ross would also buy the house,"
Chuck said bluntly. "But he'd put his own name on the deed! At most, he'd waive Monica's rent!"
"No way!"
Two women exclaimed in unison.
Then, silence fell.
Lisa looked at Chuck apologetically.
Chuck calmly explained into the phone, "A normal person would be surprised that such a gift could be given this way, but the real Ross would explain that the most important thing about this apartment isn't its price, but its meaning.
So it doesn't matter whose name is on the deed; what matters is that their grandmother's beautiful memories are preserved, and that's what matters most."
"I'll go find Monica immediately."
After hearing this explanation, Jane remained silent for a long time before speaking. "I'll get a hair sample from this Ross and do a DNA comparison with Monica. If it confirms what you're saying, I'll arrest him immediately and track down the real Ross."
She then hung up.
"I'm sorry, boss,"
Lisa apologized. "I didn't mean to interrupt, but this is unbelievable! How can someone have such a stingy brother!"
"It's okay, continue!"
Chuck made hand gestures, occasionally forming a heart shape with his hands and then snapping his fingers.
"Is this really okay?"
Lisa was no longer as cheerful as before.
"It's fine,"
Chuck said bluntly. "Worst case scenario, something happened to Ross, but Monica will pull through."
"..."
Lisa was speechless. However, under Chuck's focus, she felt like a small boat adrift in a storm, barely able to keep herself together, and had no energy to worry about the fate of someone she didn't know.
The next day.
"Hi."
"Hi~"
When the four met again, Lisa's expression and tone were full of teasing at JJ's shy greeting.
She could tell at a glance that JJ and Dr. Reid's relationship was progressing well.
"Let's dock together in DC."
Chuck said to the shy but undeniably happy Dr. Reid.
"You're docking too?"
Dr. Reid immediately knew he had passed Chuck's two-day test and was very happy, but asked somewhat confused.
"Something came up in New York!"
Chuck said. "The boat is too slow."
"Is there anything we can help you with?"
JJ asked with concern.
"We?"
Lisa whispered to JJ, "Who are you talking about? The BAU?"
JJ couldn't help but nudge her, glancing at the grinning Dr. Reid, but a smile involuntarily crept onto her lips.
"No need, it's not serious."
Chuck shook his head, looking at them. "Otherwise, I would have called a helicopter last night and left."
In his mind, Ross was no match for Reid. Even if something happened to Ross, it wouldn't be as important as Reid and JJ's first breakthrough in their relationship.
So Chuck naturally wouldn't call a helicopter and disturb Reid and JJ's special time.
After the luxury yacht docked at the DC marina, Chuck and Lisa said goodbye to Reid and JJ, got into the car arranged by the yacht rental company, and sped toward New York.
New York.
Monica's apartment.
Now this was truly her apartment.
"Oh, our billionaire's here!"
Chandler teased as soon as Ross arrived.
"Hi, Rachel."
Ross's eyes were glued to Rachel the moment he entered.
"Hi, Ross."
Rachel already knew about the apartment and her opinion of Ross had changed, especially with his infatuated gaze. The billionaire status made her particularly interested.
Her previous disdain for Ross's stinginess had softened; with a little more effort, she wasn't incapable of giving him a chance.
"Hi, Ross."
Jane smiled at him.
"Hi."
Ross paused, but quickly smiled back, turning his gaze to Rachel: "I booked movie tickets, do you have time?"
"Movie tickets?"
Rachel's composure was crumbling; she could only glance at Monica and the others. If she hadn't been so vocally critical earlier, she would have agreed immediately.
"A movie? That sounds great,"
Jane smiled. "But there's one thing I need to clear up first."
"What thing?"
Ross looked over.
"Who wants to ask Rachel out?"
Jane approached.
"Me?"
Ross pointed to himself, then looked at Rachel with deep affection: "From the moment I saw you, I was completely captivated by you, Rachel~"
"Oh, Ross."
Rachel immediately recalled the past and smiled wistfully. "I know, I've always known."
She and Monica's family were neighbors, and she and Monica had been best friends since childhood. Ross, as her brother, had always been her best friend's nerdy older brother.
And he had a crush on her!
He thought she didn't know and only saw him as her best friend Monica's nerdy older brother, but she had always known.
However, as a proper socialite and the queen bee of high school, she simply didn't have time to deal with her best friend's nerdy older brother, so she always pretended not to know.
And now, she felt that all those times she ignored him in the past had turned into their unspoken secret, a beautiful memory with little interaction.
There was no way around it!
Billionaire wealth had this kind of appeal!
"Who am I?"
Jane walked up to Ross and looked at him. "Should I call you Ross, or Los?"
These words were like a thunderbolt!
The fake Ross was dumbfounded.
"What Los?"
Rachel was also brought back to reality by this sudden change, snapping out of her automatic reimagining of her past with Ross.
"He's not Ross!"
Monica had already separated the others from the fake Ross.
"Don't joke around!"
The fake Ross forced a smile. "I am Ross! Look at me, who could imitate me?"
"Yeah!"
Rachel grabbed Monica's arm, puzzled. "The way he looks, the way he talks, he's Ross!"
"I admit he looks a lot like him."
Monica smiled wryly. "If it weren't for that one thing, even I wouldn't be able to tell him apart from Ross."
"Please! You're not still hung up on the apartment being in your name, are you?"
Rachel complained. "You doubt he's Ross just because of that? Be rational!"
"Yeah."
The fake Ross's eyes flashed, and he forced a smile. "As your brother, buying you this apartment with so many wonderful memories, how is that wrong?"
"That's a question for you!"
Jane had already handcuffed the fake Ross. "But then again, how could a dentist like you understand psychology!"
"A dentist?!"
Rachel and Chandler exclaimed in unison.
Seeing his hands cuffed and Jane exposing his true identity, the fake Ross turned pale.
"Where's Ross? What did you do to him?"
Monica grabbed him by the collar. "Jane did a DNA test; you're not Ross, you're Los! Tell me!"
"I don't know,"
Los slumped onto the sofa, his eyes filled with terror.
"Who orchestrated this?"
Jane could tell at a glance that Los wasn't the mastermind, but most likely a pawn.
"I don't know,"
Los said anxiously.
"You don't know?"
Monica said angrily. "How could you not know anything?! If no one helped you, even if you have the exact same face as Ross, how could you know about our shared history? You've fooled me so well I could hardly tell you apart from him!"
Jane, realizing something, immediately grabbed Los's ear, then pulled out an earpiece from his left ear, her expression changing drastically.
"Listen up, whoever's listening! All this was for money. You've already gotten your payout, and the funds were immediately invested. They should be in your accounts by now.
Los is useless to you now. Release Ross immediately and let him return safely, or you'll face the full force of the FBI and Detective Chuck!"
Jane said into the earpiece.
After a long wait, there was still no response.
"Your accomplices have abandoned you. You'd better confess quickly,"
Jane said coldly, looking at the pale-faced Los. "Otherwise, if anything happens to Ross, think about the consequences!"
"I really don't know anything."
Los jolted awake and said urgently, "I used to be a happy dentist. I didn't earn billionaire money, but it was enough for me to enjoy everything I wanted.
But recently, my happy life was shattered. Someone kidnapped me and threw me into an old warehouse. Inside, there was someone who looked exactly like me, screaming for help.
I was given an earpiece and told that I had to imitate this person named Ross's behavior within three hours, before dawn.
Then, three hours later, I suddenly passed out. When I woke up, I was in Ross's apartment.
There were bodyguards outside.
I thought about calling the police.
But my phone rang. It showed my parents' real-time location, and a sniper rifle was pointed at them.
The most terrifying thing was that there was also a video feed pointed at me, and the sniper in the video..."
The red laser dot was pointed directly at me, and I could actually see it.
I was terrified.
I had no choice but to pretend to be Ross, as they demanded!
Then I cashed the lottery ticket, and I finally understood what all this was for.
Damn Powerball jackpot!
I didn't dare resist at all, and could only try my best to imitate him.
I already looked a lot like Ross, not just in appearance, but also in mannerisms. Plus, after winning such a huge prize, it's easy to understand why my behavior would be a little off.
So it wasn't difficult to imitate him.
Even when dealing with Ross's friends and sister, with an earpiece that constantly transmitted the real Ross's answers, it was easy to fool them.
Of course, those answers were interspersed with the real Ross's screams.
All of this made me not even think about calling the police or resisting. I just wanted to do what they asked and end this nightmare!"
"So, hitting on Rachel was also to end this nightmare?"
While his friends were shocked by this revelation, Chandler casually teased, breaking the tense atmosphere.
"This..."
Los was immediately embarrassed.
"The person who hired you to impersonate Ross is quite the character!"
Chandler scoffed. "Even now, I'm starting to suspect this is some kind of elaborate prank! You're so much like Ross!"
Everyone nodded in agreement.
"So I misunderstood Ross,"
Monica said, both worried and touched. "He really was going to buy the apartment for me."
In her view, although this was a fake Ross, with the real Ross's prompting behind him, what he was doing reflected Ross's true intentions.
"Ross is probably using this fake to send you a distress signal,"
Jane analyzed. "He knows that buying the apartment for you will definitely raise your suspicions, and then you'll definitely tell Chuck... I must say, this paleontologist has finally used his brain and successfully started his own rescue!"
"That must be it!"
Monica suddenly understood.
"This...you're reading too much into it."
Los's eyes were filled with regret. "Ross was beaten so badly he spilled everything, including all his embarrassing childhood moments.
After we separated, I heard all that every night, so I know him better than you do.
He simply didn't have the courage or the intelligence to plant false information to raise your suspicions.
When he was interrogated about what he would do after winning the lottery, he said he would buy the apartment and let Monica live there, and he wouldn't charge her rent.
I thought it was too cheap for a brother who won a $2.04 billion lottery to not just buy a small apartment for his sister who had recently saved his life.
So I couldn't stand it and took the liberty of putting your name on the deed.
But I didn't know that this would expose me..."
The group of old friends: "..."
(End of Chapter
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