A seven-year-old boy banged on the windows while the sun turned the van into a furnace. Inside the supermarket, his parents were too busy screaming at each other to notice.

By the time Emma Reynolds, the shopper, returned from grabbing her purse to call 911, Tyler was crying quietly now, more out of exhaustion than hope. She ran to the van, her hands pounding the locked door.

“Sir! Ma’am! Help! The child—he’s trapped!” she yelled.

A crowd began to gather as people from nearby cars stepped out, shielding their eyes from the sun, murmuring anxiously. A man in a janitor uniform approached, whistling loudly to catch the attention of anyone inside the store.

Finally, Jason and Karen emerged, still red-faced, voices fading as they realized what the commotion was about.

Tyler’s little voice trembled: “Mom… Dad… please…”