Free Vampire King of New York by Susan Hanniford Crowley

wearing nothing but boxers.
    Shouting, “No,” David was out the door after him with Laura following. Evelyn was on her heels. She went out the front door and down the steps. Her thoughts stilled a moment, before screaming blasted her into the chaotic scene on the street.
    A crowd gathered around a woman, blood dripping down her face. A man shouted into his cell phone. The bus was crushed in on one side. The cab took the worst of it, crumbled and jagged with sharp edges like knives.
    “My son,” the woman shrieked.
    Max went straight for her. He grabbed her by the shoulders and looked straight into her eyes. Evelyn pushed her way through the mass of agitated, fascinated humanity. She saw what he did even if others didn’t. He kissed her on the forehead. What he really did was apply his tongue to the wound. It happened fast.
    Then in one swift jolt he was away from her. She collapsed in a man’s arms. Max grasped the mangled door. The sun beat down on the rippling muscles in his back. He strained against the metal. Snap! The door broke off.
    Sirens blared in the distance. Max climbed into the cab. David rushed past her. The two came out, David leading Max. Hatcher threw a black coat over his king. An ambulance pulled up and pushed through the crowd. Max stepped away from his escorts, putting his hand on the shoulder of an EMT. The man stopped. Max held his gaze for a moment and then let it go. Even at midday, Max was that powerful. The EMTS went into the cab and got the boy out to a cheering crowd. Hatcher and David led Max through the congested corner to the front door.

    Evelyn was turning when something dark caught her eye. Across the street from the accident, a vampire stood in a store doorway, just inside the shadow of its awning. She knew it was a vampire from the dark long coat and hood. The face was safely concealed in the shadow of the hood. Her vision went surreal awash in a world of black and white and blood.
    A touch disturbed her.
    “Evie, we should get inside.” Laura’s hand on her shoulder awakened her from a sort of film noir daze. The creature across the street was gone.
    Laura put her arm around her sister. Together they entered the house, shutting the door on the people crowding to get a look into the wreck. Police and more ambulances arrived. Evelyn noticed the delicate pattern of bluebell flowers on the wallpaper of the hallway. No one said a word until they had entered the apartment.
    Once the door was shut, David threw up his hands. “Max, please, tell me why you did that.”
    “We will discuss it later.” Max walked back into Evelyn’s room and stretched out across her bed. She followed him inside and shut the door.
    “Max, why did you go out there?”
    “It was the right thing to do.”
    “Max, I apologize.”
    He leaned up on one side to look at her. “Why?”
    “This all started with me making a big deal over the couple that was being mugged. I know the Arnhem Knights have enough on their plate with protecting humans from rogue vampires and aiding supernaturals in trouble. You ran out to help in the sunlight because of me.”

    “Evelyn, I did it because it felt like the right thing to do.”
    “Now you’re going to tell me you have hunches or intuition.” She sat on the bed and squeezed his hand.
    Max chuckled and suddenly she was underneath him. He kissed her eyes and her cheeks before lightly tasting her mouth. “My dearest, I feel everything you feel. Don’t be afraid of me, please. All I want is to hold you and go to sleep.”
    “Max, Laura and David lose their powers during the day, but you don’t. Why?”
    He caressed her hair. “You’re looking at the oldest vampire in New York City, and one of the oldest vampires in the world. After a certain age, you have your powers always.”
    He hugged her. “I’m going to tell you something you should know. Though all vampires, except the daywalkers, cover up in the day, the young ones would take several days to burn to