enough to go and have dinner. reporter: the next day, the 23rd, marissa s family would join them to celebrate again over a late lunch. on our way there, i remember texting him. texting your uncle. yes. i didn t get a response. but was that unusual that he didn t text you back? yes. reporter: they got to the house around 4:00pm and knocked on the front door. nothing. no answer. reporter: marissa s father, jaime s brother herman, checked around the back of the house. no sign of jaime or sandra. then we thought, okay, well maybe well, maybe they they left. maybe they went to go get something. and then my dad s like, no, but his truck is out there. so finally that s when my dad said, oh, i m just gonna go inside. reporter: herman walked through an open garage door, and entered the house itself through an unlocked interior door. then he comes around and to open up the front door. reporter: the visitors huddled in the dark entrance hall, expecting a greeti
mode. reporter: lizz booked the next flight back to texas. i just knew i had to get there. reporter: had to get back. back to a new reality with a murdered father and a traumatized mother. grieving would have to take a number, while the daughter held everyone together. nothing made sense. coming up were you worried about your mother? that whoever this person was might come back? absolutely. she was traumatized. tips begin to trickle in. who could have done this? they re getting information right away about kind of a sketchy neighbor. that s right. just gettin out of jail, who was suspicious. when dateline continues. ats is skincare from around the world better than olay? olay regenerist faced 131 premium products, from 12 countries, over 10 years. olay s hydration was unbeaten every time. olay, face anything.
mode. reporter: lizz booked the next flight back to texas. i just knew i had to get there. reporter: had to get back. back to a new reality with a murdered father and a traumatized mother. grieving would have to take a number, while the daughter held everyone together. nothing made sense. coming up were you worried about your mother? that whoever this person was might come back? absolutely. she was traumatized. tips begin to trickle in. who could have done this? they re getting information right away about kind of a sketchy neighbor. that s right. just gettin out of jail, who was suspicious. when dateline continues.
point? yes, i was scared. reporter: the voice was coming from inside a walk-in-closet attached to the bathroom. herman moved closer. wedged against the door knob was a dining chair. he tugged it aside, opened the door, and there was sandra on the floor, tied by her arms and ankles, but alive. he said that she did not look well at all. reporter: as marissa s mom cut sandra loose, her dad spoke. where s my brother? where s your uncle? reporter: the answer to that, unspeakable. what had happened on the jaime melgar and his wife? coming up she looked like she had aged ten years overnight. just broken and lost. sandra melgar, the only possible witness to a night of terror. what would she remember? when dateline continues. i get down on my knees
but was that unusual that he didn t text you back? yes. reporter: they got to the house around 4:00pm and knocked on the front door. nothing. no answer. reporter: marissa s father, jaime s brother herman, checked around the back of the house. no sign of jaime or sandra. then we thought, okay, well maybe well, maybe they they left. maybe they went to go get something. and then my dad s like, no, but his truck is out there. so finally that s when my dad said, oh, i m just gonna go inside. reporter: herman walked through an open garage door, and entered the house itself through an unlocked interior door. then he comes around and to open up the front door. reporter: the visitors huddled in the dark entrance hall, expecting a greeting from sandra or jaime. but none came. just as they got ready to leave, they heard something. it sounded like sandra. it was mumbling. where was her voice coming from, marissa? we did not know. my dad i just remember he just r