Revenge amnesia upgraded to his brother (Norah and Lucien) novel Chapter 144

Chapter 144

Norah’s POV

The house was quiet, the kind of quiet that only comes after kids fina.

asleep.

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“Those two are finally out,” Mateo said softly from the doorway.

I heard his steps on the soft rug as he came up behind me. His presence felt warm and solid at my back. “Still worrying about the company?” he asked.

His arms wrapped around my waist. He felt strong and reliable.

He rested his chin on my shoulder, and his familiar, warm scent surrounded me like a blanket, something that was usually very comforting.

But he felt the tightness in my shoulders right away.

“What is it?” His voice lost its relaxed tone and turned alert.

I handed him my phone without saying a word.

The screen lit up, showing everything Irina had sent: contracts, fake IDs, and the whole ugly mess of the fake order.

He took it and scanned the information. The easy warmth around him vanished, replaced by something cold and dangerous, the real Mateo, the Vega heir, the man no one wanted as an enemy.

“I’ll handle this,” he said flatly. “Give me three days. I’ll find who did this and the family behind them, and I’ll make them disappear.”

I knew he could do it because he had that kind of power where a few words made problems vanish.

But I shook my head and turned in his arms to face him “No, Mateo. This is my fight.”

Three years ago, I had nothing. I was broken and needed his protection, and I leaned on him.

Not anymore.

Nightingale was my empire.

I built it with these two hands, and Thornbird was my soul, rising from the ashes.

If I couldn’t even protect my own business, then what was the point of the last three years? What was the point of my strength?

“Just keep Leo and Luna safe for me,” I said, my voice low but firm. “I need to go back to Paris.”

Mateo’s brow creased as his eyes searched my face. I saw worry there and a hint of fear for me.

“Nono, going back there alone…”

“I’m not alone,” I cut in. “Irina and Katarina are there. The three of us are more than enough.”

He stayed quiet for a long moment, with only the hum of the air system filling the room. Finally, he let out a slow breath and nodded, respecting my choice as he always did.

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Chapter 144

He reached up and gently tucked a loose strand of hair behind my car

“Alright,” he said quietly. “But promise me something, Nono. Don‘ strength is yours whenever you need it. Just say the word”

“I know,” I said, and I meant it as warmth spread through my chest.

uch soft.

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ything by yourself. My

He smiled, a real smile that reached his amber eyes. “Nono, do you remember Leo’s wish? He wants us together forever.”

I looked up at him, my heart beating a

le faster.

“I want that too,” he whispered. “I want to be their real father, and I want to be your husband.”

The look in his eyes was deep and full of love, almost too much.

He leaned down slowly, closing the space between us.

I didn’t move away, and for a moment I thought maybe this was it, a new beginning.

But then his lips were almost on mine.

And then an image flashed in my mind, unwanted and uninvited.

Another face appeared, handsome, hard, and controlling.

The face of a man I once loved with everything I had and hated with an anger that burned inside me.

Lucien.

A sudden, familiar pain cut through my chest, and I couldn’t breathe.

I placed my hands on Mateo’s chest and pushed him away, gently but firmly.

Hurt flashed in Mateo’s eyes, quick and then gone. He covered it with a small, sad smile. He didn’t try to step closer again and only pulled me into a tight hug.

A

il

“Go on then, my queen,” he said quietly into my hair. “Go take back what is yours stay here and keep things together.”

Three days later, I was in Paris at Charles de Gaulle Airport.

I looked like a different person, dressed in a loose men’s hoodie. Large black–framed glasses covered half my face, and a baseball cap pulled low hid my hair. I looked like a thin kid.

Irina waited at arrivals. When she saw me, she let out a low whistle and threw an arm around my shoulders like an old friend. “Damn, Norah. If you were a guy, Paris’s social scene would be in serious trouble.”

We got into a

car, and it drove us straight to her high–end private club.

Katarina was already in the private room, stretched out on a velvet couch. She looked me over slowly, a slow, teasing smile spreading across her red lips. “Well, well. What’s this? A new look? Trying to get your big sister to spoil you, little brother?”

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Chapter 144

“Just avoiding trouble,” I said as I pulled off the cap and glasses. I w strong whiskey.

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ht to the bar and poured a

arina. “That’s putting it lightly. Do

“Trouble?” Irina scoffed as she dropped onto the couch across from you even know? For the last three years, that crazy Lucien turned this city upside down. When he couldn’t find you, he started showing up at Thornbird, then at my place, like it was his job. He probably wore a path into the floor.”

My hand tightened slightly around the glass.

“Didn’t he get married?” I forced my voice to stay flat and cold. “A married man obsessed with an ex is pathetic. Just male pride. I left. It hurt his ego. That’s all

That wedding three years ago, the one that shook French society, played through my mind.

s everywhe

I didn’t watch it, but the news a fairy tale about Mr. Constantine and Ms. Veyron, the perfect match.

The thought sent many small pains through my chest, an old habit.

“Who knows what goes on in the heads of rich bastards, Katarina said with a careless wave. “But focus, Norah. What do you think about this setup?”

I took a long drink of whiskey. It burned on the way down and cleared my head.

“The method is clean, and the target is perfect. They went straight for cash flow. To set something this big up so fast with no loose ends means the backing is serious and powerful.”

“I looked into it,” Katarina said as she slid a thin folder across the marble table. “That ‘procurement officer‘ was a total ghost. All his papers were fake. We tried to track him, but the trail ends in Dubai. You know how that place is. A black hole. Finding someone there who doesn’t want to be found is impossible.”

“Dubai?” Irina frowned. “That fits the Middle Eastern order, but pulling someone out of there…”

I looked at the folder.

My eyes felt cold. This was a professional hit, a clean corporate attack.

“Goddamn it! Who the hell is behind this?!” Irina slammed her hand on the table, making the glasses shake. “They’re trying to kill us. This is murder!”

I reached over and rested a hand on her shoulder. “The suppliers. How did the talks go?”

Irina ran a hand through her perfect hair, annoyed. “How do you think? I used every favor I had and got us one week. One week. If we don’t get the money, those old vultures will sue us and freeze every Nightingale asset.”

Just then, there was a soft knock on the door.

A club attendant stepped inside, bowed slightly, and walked straight to me.

He held out a plain black envelope. “Ms. Hawthorne. A gentleman asked that this be delivered to you personally.”