Suspicion Rises

Chapter 1

It was a blazing hot August evening in Los Angeles, California. The air was thick with humidity, and completely unlike most days during this time of month. Generally the temperature was around the mid eighties but today it was damn near one hundred degrees.

Although the A/C was running non-stop the heat was still extreme. The people within the city were either drenched in sweat or ice water they had poured on themselves in order to keep cool. Those lucky enough to have pools couldn't even make use of it, the water was so warm it was basically like taking a bath. With it having rained the night before the humidity was more than heightened.

Emma and her son Henry sat on the tile floor of their mid-sized, two bedroom apartment. They had the refrigerator door open, trying to hog all of the cool air that radiated from within. Even with all of the windows open, It seemed as if nothing was working to keep them cool. The blonde pushed Henry's sweaty hair up and off of his forehead. The (almost) four year old was sweating an extreme amount, and it was almost worrisome to Emma.

She sighed heavily as she laid back onto the floor, the cool tile welcoming to her bare back. She was only in a sports bra and shorts. Though it didn't provide much relief, it kept her from sweating like a pig, to an extent. She patted the white floor next to her motioning for Henry to lay beside her. He happily welcomed the coolness to his body as he laid beside her.

California was hot, yes, but they had not experienced a day this hot yet this summer. Emma hoped and pleaded that this would be the first and last day that it got to this point. Her mind wondered aimlessly trying to think of ways to keep cool until she thought about ice cream. Though, she would usually not allow Henry to spoil his dinner before he even had it, today was an exception. Her cheek pressed against the tile as she looked at her son who was fiddling with his Mickey Mouse stuffed animal. He pulled the arms out and wiggled the lower body of the stuffed toy around.

"Henry, do you wanna go get some ice cream?" The little boy automatically dropped his toy he was so invested in just moments ago and shook his head vigorously. Letting out a large sigh, Emma pushed herself off of the now warm floor, and reached down to pull Henry up as well. With much hesitation the pair got dressed in light clothing and shorts. Henry insisted on taking Mouse with him even though she knew the toy, along with Henry, would most likely needed to be washed afterwards.

Grabbing the leash off of the coast rack near the front door, she hooked it to Pongo's collar. A close friend of Emma's asked for her to dog sit while he went out of town for some convention. Though he didn't specify what exactly it was for she was sure it was for some sort of Star Trek convention. Though she had only been into the therapists house a handful of times, and she had never actually seen any of the science fiction paraphernalia, she had heard enough from Natalie, his ex wife, to know he was practically obsessed.

Hopefully the ice cream trolley man, Albert, would be making his rounds and they would catch him. If not Henry's Ice cream was just about a block or two from the apartment. At least Then they could sit in the air conditioning to keep cool. They hadn't even passed five of the town homes that sat right next to the apartment complex when Emma spotted the neon balloons that were attached to the trolley. Lifting her hand she used the back of it to wipe away the perspiration that had already begun to build on her forehead.

She waved to Albert as she approached the older man. Albert was in is mid forties, and he wasn't always an ice cream man. He started it approximately three and a half years ago, when Emma first moved there, as a side job because he loved the look on the children's faces once he gave them the frozen goodies. She had known him since she moved into the apartment. They could even be considered good acquaintances or friends.

The blonde made light conversation about the scorching weather and how she was watching Pongo for Archie as she waited for Albert to hand them their treats. Emma handed Henry his small vanilla cup. Now, this is where she went wrong. She asked the little boy to hold the lease for a moment as she pulled out her wallet. Once she paid the man she began to unwrap her own chocolaty treat when Henry unknowingly dropped the leash. He had been so into spooning the cream into his mouth he completely forget about the task at hand.