Chapter 3 - The Uninvited Guest
At 9:00 AM the following morning, the sun beat down brightly over the lawn of the Grand Regency Hotel in downtown Dallas.
The Robles family was hosting an exclusive post-wedding champagne brunch for sixty high-society guests, business partners, and local politicians. Carmen Robles sat at the center table wearing a cream silk dress, sipping mimosa, and holding court like a queen.
Beside her sat Javier, looking immaculate in a tailored linen suit. However, under his slick exterior, his eyes darted nervously toward the entrance every time the heavy glass doors swung open.
"She hasn't answered her phone, Mom," Javier whispered, leaning close to Carmen’s ear. "I sent eight text messages saying I was sorry for leaving her alone last night, but her phone is completely off."
Carmen took a slow sip of her drink, her expression disdainful.
"Stop worrying, Javier," Carmen said softly, adjusting her gold bangles. "She’s a soft, spoiled girl. She’s probably crying in her mother's lap right now. She knows what happens if she doesn't cooperate. By two o'clock today, she will bring the signed property transfer deed right here, or we go back to that house and finish the job."
"Are you sure her mother won't go to the police?" Javier asked, wiping a bead of sweat from his forehead.
"Elena Parker is a nobody," Carmen scoffed softly. "An interior designer with no power and no money. And her father hasn't been in the picture for a decade. They have no leverage, Javier. They are insects."
Suddenly, the ambient chatter in the grand ballroom slowed down.
The heavy mahogany double doors at the main entrance clicked open.
Four men in crisp black tailored suits entered first, positioning themselves quietly along the perimeter of the room. The room grew hushed as the guests sensed the sudden shift in atmosphere.
Then walked in Alexander Parker.
He was flanked by two senior police detectives in plain clothes and his lead corporate legal counsel. Walking right beside him was me. I wore a dark gray dress, my eyes locked directly onto Carmen Robles.
Carmen’s smile faltered for a fraction of a second, but she quickly recovered, placing her napkin on the table and standing up with practiced elegance.
"Can I help you?" Carmen announced loudly, attempting to maintain her air of grand authority. "This is a private private event for the Robles family and our esteemed guests."
Alexander didn't slow his pace. He walked directly up to the head table, stopping two feet away from Javier.
Javier tried to stand, but when his eyes met Alexander’s cold, grey glare, his knees gave out slightly, and he fell back into his chair.
"Javier Robles," Alexander said, his voice echoing cleanly off the high ceilings. "I don't believe we’ve been formally introduced. I’m Alexander Parker. Sofia’s father."
A murmur rippled through the gathered crowd. Several prominent Dallas businessmen at the surrounding tables immediately stood up in shock.
"Alexander Parker?" one guest whispered. "The managing partner of Parker & Vance? The guy who dismantled the city council corruption case?"
Carmen’s face tightened, a flicker of genuine fear passing behind her eyes before she masked it with outrage.
"Mr. Parker," Carmen said, stepping between Alexander and her son. "I understand you haven't been involved in your daughter's life recently, but this is hardly the venue for a surprise family reunion. Sofia is resting at home after a long wedding night."
"Is she?" Alexander asked softly.
He raised his hand. His lead attorney immediately stepped forward and tapped a button on a remote control connected to the ballroom’s central audio-visual system—the same system currently set up to display a slide show of the wedding photos.
The large ceiling projectors whirred to life.
The high-definition screens at both ends of the ballroom flickered, and then brightened.
May you like
The entire room gasped in unified horror.
Projected across forty-foot screens were the high-resolution forensic photographs of Sofia’s body taken six hours ago. Her swollen face, the split lip, the dark, bloody handprints across her shoulders, and the brutal blue-and-black bruises wrapping around her ribs.
