The empire of Darkness

The empire of Darkness

Leo003

5.0
Comment(s)
17
View
22
Chapters

The Empire of Darkness In the shadows of the city, Gabriel Moretti reigns over one of Europe's most feared criminal empires. Cold, ruthless, and dangerously intelligent, he controls everything-until he meets Alba Ricci, a woman with a fiery gaze and a past shrouded in secrets. Once a brilliant surgeon, Alba now operates as an underground doctor for criminals, hiding from the life she abandoned. But fate has other plans. When Gabriel is ambushed and left for dead, she is forced to save him. From that moment, their fates are entangled. Gabriel is drawn to her in ways he can't explain. She challenges him, resists him, and refuses to submit. He doesn't believe in weakness-but Alba becomes his greatest obsession. Meanwhile, Alba is running from a past even darker than Gabriel's. Her father, Don Ricci, one of the most powerful mafia leaders in Italy, is hunting her down, determined to reclaim the daughter who betrayed him. As war erupts between rival factions, betrayal lurks within Gabriel's own ranks. Enemies strike from all sides, and trust becomes a dangerous gamble. But amid the bloodshed and deception, a passion ignites between Gabriel and Alba-one that could destroy them both. They are fire and ice, power and defiance. In a world where love is a liability and death is a constant shadow, they must decide: will they destroy each other, or will they rewrite the rules of the underworld together? In the mafia, love is always a dangerous game... and every passion has a price.

The empire of Darkness Chapter 1 The meeting

Gabriel Moretti

Burnt leather, the smell of blood, black smoke rising into the night.

It hurts. A dull pain twists my shoulder, hot and sticky. I don't have to look down to know: the bullet has gone in. Too clean to be a simple settling of scores, too precise to be a warning. Someone wanted to kill me.

I place a hand against the wound and straighten up against the gutted carcass of my car. The metal is still warm, deformed by the impact of the explosion. It all happened too fast. One minute we were driving through the night, Matteo at the wheel, three of my men as backup. The next, a spray of fire, detonation, the screech of tires tearing the asphalt. An ambush. Millimetre. They were waiting.

My breath is short. My trembling fingers slide over the leather of my jacket, sticky with blood. I feel the warm liquid slowly trickling down my arm, seeping under the fabric. I grit my teeth. Not now. Not here.

Matteo crawls towards me, his gun pressed to his chest. His face is tense, a trail of blood across his temple.

- We've got to move, capo.

His voice is low, but I sense the urgency beneath the feigned calm. My men are scattered around us, some inert, others groaning in the darkness. I don't need to count. I already know that many won't get up again.

I nod, try to sit up, but a jolt of pain explodes in my shoulder. I grunt, clench my jaw. Every movement is torture, every breath an effort.

- The car?

Matteo glanced at the smoking carcass.

- Busted.

Of course it is. My gaze sweeps the dark alleys around us. I don't have the luxury of waiting for reinforcements. If my enemies have had the audacity to attack here, it's because they know what they're doing. This isn't a warning, it's a botched execution.

- Hospital?" asks Matteo.

- Out of the question.

No doctors. No records. No evidence. If I set foot in a hospital, it will take an army to get me out alive. I have to disappear before this attack becomes an official declaration of war.

But I need a doctor. And I have an option. One I don't like.

Matteo stares at me, waiting for a decision.

- I have someone.

His eyebrows furrow.

- Confidence?

I don't answer immediately. Trust? No. But she's the only one who can patch me up, no questions asked.

I spit out a trickle of blood, inhale slowly. My voice is hoarse, sharp.

- Take me to Alba Ricci.

Alba Ricci

The silence of the night is a lie.

In the darkness of my apartment, I put my ear to the ground. I've learned to listen beyond the apparent calm. An engine slowing down too close to my building. Footsteps stopping in front of my door. Breath held behind a wall. The warning signs of danger are often imperceptible. Until it's too late.

I close my hand over the scalpel handle on the table. I never really sleep, not deeply, not since I ran away from what was supposed to be my life. Fear is a habit, an old friend.

Then, three sharp knocks against my door.

Not just a visitor. Someone who knows where to find me.

I stand still, the blade cold between my fingers.

- Alba. Open the door.

The voice is husky and low, but instantly recognizable. Gabriel Moretti.

My heart misses a beat. He shouldn't be here. He's never been to my house. He never comes in person. When one of his men is wounded, he sends someone else. Yet here he is, behind this door, and that can only mean one thing: he's in bad shape.

I put down the blade and unlock the door.

The first thing I see is blood.

His black shirt is sticky, stuck to his torso, a dark liquid spreading from the fabric to his skin. His right arm hangs slightly, stiff, unusable. He's been shot. His eyes, as cold as steel, lock with mine. He's pale, but he's standing. I should be relieved he hasn't fainted. But I'm not.

Gabriel crossed the threshold with a heavy step.

- Close the door.

I close behind him, cross my arms.

- Who did this to you?

His expression doesn't change.

- Does it matter?

I sigh. He won't tell me anything. I don't ask questions, that's our unspoken agreement.

I guide him to the examination table I use for my clandestine patients. He drops onto it, one hand clutching his injured shoulder.

- Take off your shirt.

A fleeting smile twists his lips, a glint of defiance in his eyes.

- If you wanted to see me shirtless, all you had to do was ask.

- If I wanted to see you shirtless, I wouldn't choose a night when you're pissing blood on my floor.

His smile fades, replaced by a rictus of pain as he slowly undoes the buttons on his shirt. He doesn't grimace, but I can see the tension in his jaw, the way he holds his breath. He's used to pain.

When he pulls aside the cloth, the wound is revealed. A clean wound, a clean entrance. The bullet is still lodged in his flesh. I frown.

- You were lucky. It passed right by an artery.

- I'm always lucky.

I look up at him.

- That's not what your condition tells me.

He doesn't answer. His gaze catches me, daring me to dig deeper. I grab a pair of gloves and get my gear ready. He can't stay here too long.

- Do you want an anaesthetic?

Gabriel sneers.

- Make it quick.

Continue Reading

Other books by Leo003

More
Raya, broken by love

Raya, broken by love

Adventure

5.0

Raya Morphon had just transferred to the prestigious new S-town high school after receiving a scholarship to her old one. Determined to make her poor father proud by educating her after her mother's death, Rania didn't expect her dream and determination to crumble after the most influential boy in high school stood in her way - Gregory Faerber. Rania returned home after school to find several people gathered in their plot, and the aunts and uncles she hadn't seen in years were present. Her heart missed a beat. "What's going on here?" she asked, her heart racing, but instead of receiving an answer, she received a slap from her aunt who knocked her straight down. "We congratulate you on the forfeit you've won, you dirty whore. My brother just died because of you and you dare show up here?" "What... My father's dead? I left him in good health before I left and I didn't do anything wrong." "Oh yeah? Look at this!" Her aunt handed her the phone and what she saw paralyzed her. "San-city high school student Raya Morphon is porn actress of the year." That was the headline on the viral video of her in the middle of a pornographic scene. She trembled with all her soul, tears streaming from her eyes. She didn't want to imagine her father's shock after seeing this." "Where's my father?" "You're not even allowed to see him even after he's dead, you're a disgrace to the Morphon family and you must leave the premises as I speak, don't you dare show your face at his funeral." Raya was chased out of her father's house, all because of Gregory. Barely an hour since she told him she was pregnant with his child, she hadn't expected him to go viral with the video he recorded. Now that she had nowhere else to go, would she have an abortion? Or will she go to the man who caused her unhappiness and take charge of her pregnancy?

You'll also like

While I Was Bleeding Out, He Lit Lanterns For Her

While I Was Bleeding Out, He Lit Lanterns For Her

Katie Oettgen

As I lay on the floor of our manor, bleeding out from a ruptured ectopic pregnancy, I used my last ounce of strength to call my husband, Cole. I begged him for help, my vision blurring. But the only thing I heard was the clinking of champagne glasses and his mistress's giggle in the background. "Stop the drama, June," Cole snapped, his voice cold. "We're about to go on stage. Don't call again." He hung up, leaving me to die alone on the Persian rug while he accepted an award with another woman on his arm. I woke up in the hospital days later. My baby was gone. They had removed my fallopian tube. Cole finally arrived, smelling of expensive scotch and his mistress's perfume. He didn't hug me. He didn't cry. Instead, he leaned over my hospital bed, pressing his knee into the mattress until my fresh stitches tore open and bled. "You embarrassed me by calling an ambulance," he hissed. "My mistress, Alycia, says you're faking it. Clean yourself up." He left me bleeding again to go announce a $10 million donation to Alycia's "groundbreaking" medical research. I stared at the TV screen, numb. The research Alycia was taking credit for? It was mine. I wrote that patent years ago under a pseudonym. They thought I was just a poor, orphan housewife who needed Cole's money to survive. They had no idea I was actually a billionaire scientist hiding my identity. I pulled the IV needle out of my arm. A drop of blood fell onto the divorce papers I had been hiding. I didn't wipe it off. I signed my name right over it. Then I walked into the bank, reactivated my dormant account with $128 million, and bought the penthouse directly overlooking Cole's house. The mourning widow is dead. The avenger is born.

Secret Triplets: The Billionaire's Second Chance

Secret Triplets: The Billionaire's Second Chance

Roderic Penn

I stood at my mother's open grave in the freezing rain, my heels sinking into the mud. The space beside me was empty. My husband, Hilliard Holloway, had promised to cherish me in bad times, but apparently, burying my mother didn't fit into his busy schedule. While the priest's voice droned on, a news alert lit up my phone. It was a livestream of the Metropolitan Charity Gala. There was Hilliard, looking impeccable in a custom tuxedo, with his ex-girlfriend Charla English draped over his arm. The headline read: "Holloway & English: A Power Couple Reunited?" When he finally returned to our penthouse at 2 AM, he didn't come alone-he brought Charla with him. He claimed she'd had a "medical emergency" at the gala and couldn't be left alone. I found a Tiffany diamond necklace on our coffee table meant for her birthday, and a smudge of her signature red lipstick on his collar. When I confronted him, he simply told me to stop being "hysterical" and "acting like a child." He had no idea I was seven months pregnant with his child. He thought so little of my grief that he didn't even bother to craft a convincing lie, laughing with his mistress in our home while I sat in the dark with a shattered heart and a secret life growing inside me. "He doesn't deserve us," I whispered to the darkness. I didn't scream or beg. I simply left a folder on his desk containing signed divorce papers and a forged medical report for a terminated pregnancy. I disappeared into the night, letting him believe he had successfully killed his own legacy through his neglect. Five years later, Hilliard walked into "The Vault," the city's most exclusive underground auction, looking for a broker to manage his estate. He didn't recognize me behind my Venetian mask, but he couldn't ignore the neon pink graffiti on his armored Maybach that read "DEADBEAT." He had no clue that the three brilliant triplets currently hacking his security system were the very children he thought had been erased years ago. This time, I wasn't just a wife in the way; I was the one holding all the cards.

He Thought I Was A Doormat, Until I Ruined Him

He Thought I Was A Doormat, Until I Ruined Him

SHANA GRAY

The sterile white of the operating room blurred, then sharpened, as Skye Sterling felt the cold clawing its way up her body. The heart monitor flatlined, a steady, high-pitched whine announcing her end. Her uterus had been removed, a desperate attempt to stop the bleeding, but the blood wouldn't clot. It just kept flowing, warm and sticky, pooling beneath her. Through heavy eyes, she saw a trembling nurse holding a phone on speaker. "Mr. Kensington," the nurse's voice cracked, "your wife... she's critical." A pause, then a sweet, poisonous giggle. Seraphina Miller. "Liam is in the shower," Seraphina's voice purred. "Stop calling, Skye. It's pathetic. Faking a medical emergency on our anniversary? Even for you, that's low." Then, Liam's bored voice: "If she dies, call the funeral home. I have a meeting in the morning." Click. The line went dead. A second later, so did Skye. The darkness that followed was absolute, suffocating, a black ocean crushing her lungs. She screamed into the void, a silent, agonizing wail of regret for loving a man who saw her as a nuisance, for dying without ever truly living. Until she died, she didn't understand. Why was her life so tragically wasted? Why did her husband, the man she loved, abandon her so cruelly? The injustice of it all burned hotter than the fever in her body. Then, the air rushed back in. Skye gasped, her body convulsing violently on the mattress. Her eyes flew open, wide and terrified, staring blindly into the darkness. Her trembling hand reached for her phone. May 12th. Five years ago. She was back.

Chapters
Read Now
Download Book
The empire of Darkness The empire of Darkness Leo003 Mafia
“The Empire of Darkness In the shadows of the city, Gabriel Moretti reigns over one of Europe's most feared criminal empires. Cold, ruthless, and dangerously intelligent, he controls everything-until he meets Alba Ricci, a woman with a fiery gaze and a past shrouded in secrets. Once a brilliant surgeon, Alba now operates as an underground doctor for criminals, hiding from the life she abandoned. But fate has other plans. When Gabriel is ambushed and left for dead, she is forced to save him. From that moment, their fates are entangled. Gabriel is drawn to her in ways he can't explain. She challenges him, resists him, and refuses to submit. He doesn't believe in weakness-but Alba becomes his greatest obsession. Meanwhile, Alba is running from a past even darker than Gabriel's. Her father, Don Ricci, one of the most powerful mafia leaders in Italy, is hunting her down, determined to reclaim the daughter who betrayed him. As war erupts between rival factions, betrayal lurks within Gabriel's own ranks. Enemies strike from all sides, and trust becomes a dangerous gamble. But amid the bloodshed and deception, a passion ignites between Gabriel and Alba-one that could destroy them both. They are fire and ice, power and defiance. In a world where love is a liability and death is a constant shadow, they must decide: will they destroy each other, or will they rewrite the rules of the underworld together? In the mafia, love is always a dangerous game... and every passion has a price.”
1

Chapter 1 The meeting

17/03/2025

2

Chapter 2 It's her

17/03/2025

3

Chapter 3 Wounded

17/03/2025

4

Chapter 4 The shadow of the past

17/03/2025

5

Chapter 5 Invisible chains

17/03/2025

6

Chapter 6 The price of freedom

17/03/2025

7

Chapter 7 The walls are closing in

17/03/2025

8

Chapter 8 A trap in the shadows

17/03/2025

9

Chapter 9 Pride and injury

17/03/2025

10

Chapter 10 The moment before the storm

17/03/2025

11

Chapter 11 The silence before the storm

18/03/2025

12

Chapter 12 Shadows never sleep

18/03/2025

13

Chapter 13 The calm before the storm

18/03/2025

14

Chapter 14 Shadow and fire

21/03/2025

15

Chapter 15 Blood heritage

21/03/2025

16

Chapter 16 Milan, enemy territory

21/03/2025

17

Chapter 17 Shadows from the past

21/03/2025

18

Chapter 18 The hunt begins

21/03/2025

19

Chapter 19 One step closer to hell

21/03/2025

20

Chapter 20 The shadow of a brother

21/03/2025

21

Chapter 21 Heirs to chaos

21/03/2025

22

Chapter 22 Pact of Ashes

21/03/2025