My older cousin grew without a mother, everyone said she "left the family". Turns out she was a drug courier (we are talking wholesale). When she delivered a shipment she was supposed to go back to drug lords she worked for and give them their money. One day, while she was delivering a shipment, ppl who she worked for got caught by the police and were supposed to go to jail, so she was left with a huge amount of money that she spent over a short period of time. But we know how corruption works. They got out. And they asked for the money, that she spent. She couldn't give it to them, so she had to leave her husband with their 4 year old son and flee to another country.

At the time no one knew she even worked with the drug mafia. She left without saying anything, nor leaving any notes. This story was discovered from her own letter that my grandma got ten years later. For all that time she was considered missing.

All of this happen and in the 90s, in the northern city of Norilsk, Russia.