A widow who went missing on the day she was due to give birth faked her own pregnancy, her family believe.
Elizabeth Jasso was last seen leaving her house on Thursday morning and heading towards the cemetery where her late husband Milko is buried.
Her mother-in-law Blanca Gonzalez put the word out after she failed to reappear, concerned that she was on her own while due to give birth to twins.
Baytown Police Department in Texas released a statement and said they believe Jasso may be experiencing a crisis.
On Friday night most of her family members including in-laws made an emotional public appeal urging the woman to come home.
A day later, after allegedly discovering new information, the family spoke out for a second time.
They said they had found out Jasso had faked the entire pregnancy by buying ultrasounds online, and may not be able to naturally have children at all, ABC 13 reported.
"To me it was like a novella. A Lifetime movie," Jasso's cousin-in-law Victoria Cruz-Ramirez told the publication.
"The sister and the father said that, 'You know she wasn't pregnant'. They figured that she was faking the pregnancy. She couldn't even have kids."
Gonzalez said she feels betrayed by her daughter-in-law and wants to know why she did what they say she's done.
The family said they are still grieving the loss of Jasso's husband, who was shot and killed during a winter storm in Baytown earlier this year.
The 29-year-old was shot in the early hours of a February day according to Baytown Assistant Police Chief Eric Freed.
An preliminary investigation showed he had started a physical confrontation with a 20-year-old woman and her 36-year-old boyfriend inside their home, the Baytown Sun reported at the time.
A worker at the cemetery where Milko is buried said he saw Jasso there on Thursday.
Cruz-Ramirez hopes Jasso is safe and urged her to "get evaluated somehow."
Before the family made their revelation, Blanca Rubio, the mother of Jasso's husband, said: "They took my son, but I was going to be blessed with two boys."
The last time she talked to Jasso, she said they were looking forward to the twins' arrival.
"I had talked to her Wednesday night saying, 'Little mija, I can't wait until tomorrow. You better not have them babies until I get home.'"
Jasso's hospital bag is still sitting at her door.
An active missing person's case is still in place for Jasso.
