The Baroness Misbehaves
Chapter 46: Silence Is Golden (1)

Chapter 46: Silence Is Golden (1)

"It’s very kind of you to bring us tea at such a late hour, thank you." Madeline smiled with gratitude when Frederick offered her two cups of warm tea at her room’s doorstep.

She was already thinking of going down the stairs to make something warm for herself and Cassian, and then, Fredrick shows up at her doorstep in the form of an angel.

"It’s a good thing Amade lives in the outside quarters, his gray hair would have turned white overnight if he hears the news of what happened to the both of you." He took a step back, but his phrase had left Madeline staring in half shock.

Was that possible?

"The Duke must be in a good mood to have let you off. I thank the heavens for that." Frederick heaved out in relief after knowing his plans on freeing the young Lord had successfully worked.

Even with his position as the butler of the house, he couldn’t muster the courage to walk up to the Duke and plead for Cassian’s release.

He had to speak with Inna privately, while Adeline spoke with Isabella for reasons he still wasn’t aware of.

"Please have a good rest, and I’ll send someone to bring the medicine soup for the young Lord." He bowed and excused himself.

Madeline closed the door after waving him goodnight, feeling at ease that tonight’s drama had finally come to an end. Today has been very hectic and complicated for almost everyone.

Half of what she could guess correctly was Cassian must have acted aggressively due to what happened earlier today.

Receiving a bloody note was no funny joke, and then coming home to face an annoying brother must have been rough on him.

After closing the door, Madeline suddenly recalled what Cassian had done at the garden under the rain, and she felt silly for thinking that he was starting to like her all of a sudden.

He only put on a show for Inna and the other lady to see so they won’t blow their cover, and Madeline couldn’t stop herself from thinking that that had to be the reason.

The warm feeling still lingered at the nape of her neck.

Taking a deep breath and calming her heart that was already starting to palpitate, she turned around to look at Cassian.

The young lad was busy taking off his wet clothes at the other end of the side table. He had pulled his shirt off his body, leaving his naked back glistening to the gaze of Madeline.

The lamp was on, and the room felt comfortably warm. The rain still poured heavily outside, and rain droplets could be heard splattering against the window.

Rather than focusing on how attractively well-built her husband was, Madeline’s eyes concernedly fixed themselves on the strange tattoos that started from his shoulder blade, tracing down his spine and coming to a stop at his waist region.

Her brows furrowed into a frown.

Staring at it more intently since she’s never come across such a deep tattoo before, she took a step closer to observe it more clearly. Her eyes widened in horror when she looked more closely and realized they weren’t just ordinary tattoos on his back.

It was a scar!!

"Cas??"

"Hmn?" The young lad who was more focused on drying himself up for the night, paused when he heard the concerned voice of Madeline.

Turning around to see why she had called his name so abruptly, he got stopped in his movements, and Madeline made him face his back to her gaze.

"This....they aren’t tattoos? Are they?" She questioned with the hope that she was wrong, and Cassian finally understood why she sounded that way when she refused to let him look at her.

"What does it look like?"

"It doesn’t look like a normal tattoo." She trailed her fingertips gently down the rough skin on his flawless back. "They look like they got severely carved into you."

"It’s called a tattoo."

She shook her head. "Gregory has a tattoo on his arm, but it doesn’t look like this." She refused to believe Cassian. "These are scars.... Did....did someone do this to you??"

Turning around to look at Madeline who had guessed his response already, Cassian’s mouth remained sealed. She noticed a bit of fear in his gaze when she asked him about the scar on his back, but just like that it vanished and turned into something dark.

"Don’t be too curious." Was all he said in a very calm, yet awry voice. "It’s just a tattoo. I was a child and I was stupid. I don’t wish to remind myself of those days, and I’m hoping you’ll respect that."

"But..."

"You need to take your medications, I don’t want you falling off a balcony and turning me into a widow at my young age. Here." He interrupted her with a nagging tone as he dropped her medications on her palm she had opened out of instinct.

"Take them first, then have your warm tea, and go to bed." To avoid further discussion on the tattoo on his back, Cassian walked out and slid the bathroom door open, going in and closing it without waiting to hear what Madeline had to say.

His reaction due to the mention of his scar had left Madeline in a daze.

"Why won’t you tell me?" She muttered quietly after he had slid the bathroom door to a close. She isn’t blind, that tattoo was carved straight into his skin, and when she felt it against her fingertips, those severe wounds had already healed, but they were now deep scars that must have a meaning.

What could he possibly have done to be inflicted with such?

Minutes later, Cassian stepped out of the bathroom, fully clothed in his nightwear.

His eyes fell on Madeline who was sleeping on the other side of his bed, and he pursed his lips after reminiscing on how worried she got from the sight of his tattooed scar.

She must be upset with him since he refused to tell her the truth about his scar.

His eyes shifted to the empty glass cup that rested on the side table, adding to his confirmation that she had taken her medicine.

Exhaling through his nostril, Cassian made his way to the window, staring out at the pouring rain and watching the droplets race down like it was a competition on his window.

Closing the curtains, he returned to the empty space on his bed and laid down on it.

He looked at Madeline’s face to confirm if she was truly asleep, and from the look of things, she was.

Cassian scratched the back of his neck when he felt uncomfortable himself, unable to deal with the guilt that he had ignored her words despite knowing she was only concerned.

But how can he tell her when he doesn’t know the reasons himself?? To be honest, it was better not knowing.

Licking his dried lips and shifting his worries aside, he laid his head back on the pillow, turned the lamp lights off, closed his eyes and tried to get some sleep.

At the facade of the Duke’s mansion, someone hiding behind the shadows of the gates instantly put on a red cloak after noticing Cassian close the curtains to his room.

Staring at the window for a couple of seconds while soaking in the rain, the red cloaked being silently fled from the Duke’s mansion.