A week before their high school graduation, Ellie's boyfriend walked her to her door and kissed her goodnight, just like any other night. But there was nothing ordinary about what followed. Austin disappeared without a trace, never to be seen again...
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15 years earlier
A couple of months after our dad got the promotion and came home with the brand new Mercedes, we moved into a large, freestanding house in one of the nicer neighborhoods outside the city of Las Vegas. It wasn't a mansion, but it felt like it to me and my brother. We had our own spacious rooms on one side of the house and our parents' master was on the opposite end.
But the best part about the new place was that it had a swimming pool. A private swimming pool. Me and my brother spent every chance we had in the water and learned how to swim that summer.
We loved it, and I think it's safe to say that was the happiest I'd ever been, until I met Ellie.
Even our mom appeared happier in the new house. At least in the beginning, when everything was new and exciting and our dad showered her with gifts. She was able to quit her job and, for the first time ever, she seemed to truly enjoy just being able to relax around the house and going shopping.
Me and my brother didn't particularly enjoy getting dragged from store to store, but it was better than it had been. She wasn't at all focused on what was on sale and what the price tags said any longer.
Dad continued to spoil both us and her. He took her out to fancy dinners in the new car while me and my brother got to stay at home by ourselves. We felt so grown up being alone at home, eating junk food and watching scary movies.
Overall, it was a wonderful summer and our parents seemed happy and in love. As much as me and my brother joked about how gross it was to see them kissing and smiling at each other, it was nice that both of them were happy. And it was much better than having them yell and scream at each other. That came later on.
Dad worked a lot, but when he was around, he liked to show off that he had money. Like he was more important because he could afford to buy what he wanted for himself and his family. We didn't realize that part back then, but looking back, that was clear.
He bought our mom a new wedding ring. And it was a big ass diamond that sparkled like a disco ball and man, did she love it.
Me and my brother had to change schools, and we made some new friends in the neighborhood. We even joined a baseball team after school. All around, we were truly happy. But then when fall came, and things changed.
We'd only been in our new school for a couple of months when one day after school we came home to a Police car parked in the driveway. We found a couple of Police officers in our living room with our dad, while our mom was in the kitchen nervously tugging at her new diamond necklace.
"Why are the cops here, mom?" my brother asked as soon as the front door closed behind us.
"I don't know, Andrew," she responded in an unusually high pitch. "But please, whatever you do, stay out of their way."
I watched the officers from the hallway. They stood next to each other, so they faced our dad, and neither their stance nor their facial expressions were relaxed.
"Why are they talking to dad?" my brother asked our mother again.
"I don't know," she repeated.
"But.."
My brother didn't get any further because she put her hand on his shoulder and pushed him towards the hallway. "Please, go with your brother to your rooms."
"But, mom," I tried. I wanted to see what they were doing. Why there were cops talking to Dad?
"Lucas," she snapped. "Not now, okay. Not now."
The desperate look in her eyes and the unusually high-pitched tone made me nod, although a bit reluctantly.
"Come on, Drew," I said and dragged my brother out of the kitchen and down to my room.
"What do you think's going on?" he asked as soon as the door closed behind us.
"I don't know, but I don't think it's anything good."
Little did I know then how right I was.
My brother rubbed his hands over his face and sat down at the bottom of my bed. "You think dad is in trouble?" he asked.
I shrugged my shoulders and reached for the remote to the TV. I had a feeling that cops being at our house was bad news. Really bad news. But I didn't have to tell my brother that. So instead we watched a few episodes of his favorite show. I didn't shut it off until he fell asleep and was snoring on my bed.
I left him in my bed and decided I'd just sleep in his. I was on my way to his room when I overheard our parents talking in the livingroom.
"Oh my god, George," mom groaned. "What is going on?"
"It must be a misunderstanding," our father said. "Don't worry Rose, I'm positive they will have it figured out in no time."
"What if it isn't?"
"They're going to talk to Victor. It will be fine, Rosie. He will sort it out. A tiny misunderstanding, that's all."
"It didn't sound like a tiny anything," my mom went on. "They were talking millions, George. Millions."
I didn't get the full story that night, or any night later on, but it became clear over time that it was a lot more than just a misunderstanding.
Nobody ever explained it to us, and I could never figure out if our dad was just gullible and ignorant, or just plain stupid. But whatever it was, the decisions he'd made changed our lives that winter.
The Police returned several times and after a while agents from the FBI showed up as well.
It turns out that taking a job that was directly connected to the mob was not such a good idea. To this day, I'm still not sure whether our dad knew what kind of job it was when he accepted it.
The operation he'd gotten involved in was a lot more widespread than just taking some extra shifts and working as a floor manager. There was money laundering involved, and the mob's gambling operation went all the way up to the top management. And not just in the one casino where our dad worked. No, they were in control of all the main casinos in Las Vegas.
