Delorus : Girl... you need to escape ffs. That ex it's beyond salvation. Not even charming or helpful. Just plain awful.

My girl needs help and a gun to keep that man away because she alone can't do shit (I know she has issues but still).

Abel✯lied : "She should've just told him!" How? She already told him that his friend is a traitor, he didn't believe her. She asked him if he's hiding something and he lied. She asked him to believe her and he didn't.

This is perfect and it makes complete sense and I would think lesser of the Duke if he blindly followed her. Doesn't change the fact that she couldn't have told him earlier. She couldn't trust him not to confront his friend himself or to try and get in her way. Once she knew Astrid was safe, she told him immediately. Beneath the veneer of greed and business, it's obvious she did this simply because the Duke loves Astrid. He didn't tell her about Astrid, he even got upset with her for interfering, but Maddie went and did out anyway, because she actually takes his safety seriously.

Like. Ohh myyy god. You cannot read this straight. You can't look at a character like Maddie and trust her facade blindly. She isn't this manic pixie assassin doing whatever she wants for fun, she's extremely competent, thoughtful and clever. Just because she tells the duke (directly or indirectly) that she's a pleasure-driven, careless wildcard doesn't mean you have to believe her.