The Baroness Misbehaves
Chapter 177: Run Away (2)

Chapter 177: Run Away (2)

"Run away? Why are we running away?" Madeline frowned in obvious curiosity as she blinked in bafflement, looking lost in the conversation they were presently having, and Cassian knew there was a lot of explaining he had to do, considering the look on her face already conveyed how much she was against that idea.

"Come."

Holding her wrist, Cassian led her to the mattress and made her sit, and then he crouched in front of her, withholding the pain that came with it as his abdomen was yet to fully heal. Although he knew the area was restricted and it was just the two of them here, Cassian couldn’t take the risk of being caught having the conversation, so he kept the tone of his voice low, but audible enough for Madeline to grab his every word.

"It sounds absurd, I know." He licked his lips, "but I’ve given this a lot of thought." He rubbed his palms together in an attempt to warm them up, "Alaric and I had a rethink last night. When you told me Klaus had spread the rumors concerning my current state, I expected it. Alaric had to inform the councils about what was going on, it was part of his duty, so the rumors were the least of our worries."

"Is His Majesty aware of this?" Madeline sounded surprised as she asked, a bit taken aback that his Majesty would agree to Cas’s escape plan.

"There’s more to Alaric that meets the eyes, but yes, he’s aware of it," Cassian cleared her doubts, "and he’s the one who’s going to get us out of here."

"But if you escape, everyone would believe the rumors!"

"It’s been a long time since I stopped caring about what others think of me." He shrugged nonchalantly, "besides, I’m not doing this for the people anymore, I’m doing this for us, and those that I care about." His tone softened as he looked into her eyes, "Elijah is out to harm you, and I won’t let that happen as long as I’m still alive. There’s still so much for us to uncover, and staying here won’t do any good."

Madeline pressed her lips into a thin line, not particularly sure of how she was going to respond. Cassian had always been there for her, and she felt entirely grateful to him for it.

In fact, she owed him her life.

After her parents died, she had lost all hopes of ever having found someone who would show her this much genuine care, and to be honest, she was starting to get scared of Cassian’s affection.

"We.... We’re in this together, remember?" She gave his shoulder a light punch as a way of comforting him. "But why do we have to run? Mother...what will she think? And Inna? We can’t leave them when conditions are...."

"There’s this habit of mine that people despise," Cassian cut her off, "and that is the fact that I can be quite insensitive. I picture myself as a lone man who makes decisions without holding on to emotions. As for Mother, the news must have reached mother by now, but I can’t face her yet until we get rid of our problem. Getting too close could open them to danger, so it’s safer if we limit our distance."

As much as Madeline hated to admit it, he was right. Getting too close to the family could make them Elijah’s next target, and that was something she wouldn’t wish for.

"When do you plan on escaping?"

"Tonight." He wore her helmet for her and finally rose to his feet, "take the bodyguard outfit with you, and wear it tonight. You’ll stay on guard outside the palace gate, and Alaric would be there to fetch you. He’ll bring you to our secret hideout, that’s where we’ll escape from."

"I only accept wearing this outfit because of the comfortable pants." She smiled as she rose to her feet, showing off the comfortable long black pants she was wearing. "You men are so lucky. It’s super easy to stretch in this."

"If you want you can wear mine. I don’t have any issues with it." He suggested, but then she shook her head in refusal, "I can’t accept it, I’ve committed enough offense as it is, and it’s just heaven’s luck that I’m not being punished."

"That’s new, what did you do?" Cassian asked, his curiosity peaked as he took notice of how his wife’s face had turned slightly red from embarrassment.

"Let’s see, I stormed into the courtroom during a meeting, gave the guards a chase, whipped Klaus in front of the council and spoke back to an official." She muttered while fumbling with her nails, her gaze lowered, but she had no idea her expression looked nothing but cute to the young lad.

"You did all that to come see me?" Cassian placed a hand to his chest, as if touched, "I’d give you a kiss but you’d break my heart by pushing me away. The least I can do is feel proud of my wife."

He took a step closer to the surprised Madeline, and then she lowered her head once again as if guilty. "I’m sorry for bringing you trouble, I’ll try to be more careful in the future." She promised with a raise of her hand, and she looked like a little girl taking an oath while dressed in army uniform.

"Silly."

He shook his head and pulled her into his arms, and Madeline heard him sigh, "I feel alive now."

Feeling warmth take over at his statement, Madeline reciprocated his hug, and then she pulled back to meet his eyes.

"I have to start going, I need to get the things ready so I can be here on time." She said, but Cassian stopped her from pulling away, and his hold on her felt more firm, reluctant to let her leave as he shook his head.

"The day isn’t ending soon, you can go back later. For now, I need you here with me." He pulled back from the hug, "do tell, how exactly did you deal with Klaus?"

From his expression, Madeline could see he was interested in hearing the full gist, and as if he knew it would keep her glued with him for the meantime, he joined Madeline on the mattress and she instantly began to tell the tale.