Chapter 58 “He’s not giving you now but he’ll give it later. And you will know the deals when he gets you to talk about the terms and let you see Elijah.” Gideon said. Elysia was left utterly baffled. And then her confusion only deepened. For Gideon had suddenly produced a wad of cash and placed it before her. “Consider this a little token for our first meeting.” He said. Elysia gaped, “What on earth are you getting at? I have no idea what you’re up to.” Gideon continued as though he hadn’t heard her, “Let’s keep our little encounter between us for now. I’ll be in touch.” With that, he stood up and left. Elysia hurried after him, only to be stopped by his bodyguard. Frantic, she pleaded, “I don’t know him, and I don’t understand anything he said. I can’t take this money! Please, let me return it to him.” But the bodyguard remained unmoved, blocking the doorway. Only when Gideon’s car had pulled away did the bodyguard step aside, then climbed into another car and followed suit. Elysia was flummoxed. For now, all she could do was return to the café to count the cash. A whole hundred grand! Her heart was about to thump out of her chest. This wasn’t right; why was she given so much money for nothing? “Elysia.” Blossom ram in. Concerned about the stranger who’d come to see Elysia, she’d followed along and had been waiting outside. Upon seeing that the visitor had left, she came in. “What did that old man want with you?” she asked. Elysia shook her head, “I don’t know.” “Huh? He didn’t say anything?” Elysia pushed the money toward Blossom, “Look, this is what he gave me.” Blossom’s eyes widened in shock, “All this cash… Why did he give it to you? You’re not some long–lost granddaughter of his, are you?” Everyone knew Elysia was a foster daughter in the Thorne family. Elysia immediately shook her head, “I told you, since I’ve been back, I met a man who 20.08 looks so much like Eliot and Ivan. For a moment, I thought he might be Eliot’s real dad, but I wasn’t sure. A lot has happened since. The old man today, he came because of him. Hom? Coult he be that guy’s grandfather who was thinking you’ve come back to hold the man accountable and trying to pay you off?” Not really: he didn’t reveal his identity. He said that guy would pay me, so he’d give me double What does that mean?” “I have no clue. He talked about a deal but didn’t specify what kind. And think about it, Evan scratched that guy’s car. I owe him fifty million. He’s more likely to demand money from me, not give me any, right? Even if it’s to treat his son, it would be deducted from my debt, not paid out, right?” Blossom was just as puzzled, “Yeah, what’s the deal?!” Looking at the hundred grand, Elysia speculated, “There must be some secret between these two men.” “So what will you do now? What about the money?” “I can’t take ill–gotten gains, so I surely can’t keep it. I have to return it because I don’t want to be backfired later on. I get the feeling the whole family are all pretty crafty. If they all play their tricks in sleeves, they’ve probably turned the whole place upside–down. Best I stay well clear of them.” She never intended to get close to that man, worried he might be Elliot and Evan’s real father and come to claim his children. And with a family as cunning as that… Elysia hasn’t met all of them. And if she has, she’d know that they’d even turn the whole world upside–down.