5 | If the World Explodes, it's Not My Fault - Part 1

Summary

Among The Missing - Episode: "If the World Explodes, it's Not My Fault - Part 1"

Host: Troy Taylor
Release Date: April 7, 2025
Podcast Information:
On January 28, 2017, Elaine Park mysteriously vanished. Her car was discovered five days later in Malibu with all belongings intact but no sign of Elaine. Years passed with the case unsolved until new leads emerged, prompting a fresh investigation conducted remotely from over 7,000 miles away.

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Overview

In the premiere episode of "Among The Missing," host Troy Taylor delves deep into the enigmatic disappearance of Elaine Park. The episode, titled "If the World Explodes, it's Not My Fault - Part 1," explores new leads that challenge longstanding theories, highlights overlooked details, and introduces fresh evidence. Central to this investigation are interviews with Elaine's close friends, Sadie and Daisy, whose insights shed light on Elaine's mental state and the events leading up to her disappearance.

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Key Sections

1. Introduction to Elaine Park’s Disappearance
2. Interview with Sadie
3. Host’s Analysis and Discussion
4. Interview with Daisy
5. Mental Health Considerations
6. Conclusion and Next Steps

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1. Introduction to Elaine Park’s Disappearance

Troy Taylor sets the stage by recounting the mysterious disappearance of Elaine Park. On January 28, 2017, Elaine vanished without a trace. Five days later, her car was found on the Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu, with keys in the ignition, lights on, and all personal belongings still inside. The only absence was of Elaine herself. Years of investigations yielded no substantial answers, but recent developments have reignited hopes of solving the case.

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2. Interview with Sadie

Sadie, Elaine’s best friend, provides a detailed account of the days leading up to Elaine's disappearance. The interview begins at [02:52] with Jaden Brandt from Origin Investigations recording the conversation.

Key Points from Sadie:

• Elaine’s Emotional State: Sadie describes Elaine as going through significant changes in early 2017. Elaine was distancing herself from old friends and focusing on her personal issues, including mental health struggles.

  "I've honestly thought everything at one point, but right now, I mean, at one point I thought it was possible it could have been suicide." ([03:01])

• Last Interaction: The last time Sadie saw Elaine was the night she went missing. Elaine was acting differently, possibly upset, and wanted to attend a "kickback" in Glendora alone—a departure from her usual behavior of attending parties with friends.

  "She told me she was driving around LA. So I think it was right after she went to go pick up money from her dad." ([04:21])

• Relationship with Divine (Div): Elaine had a strained relationship with Divine, who did not provide the emotional support Elaine needed.

  "He'd kind of, like, disregard or make a really, like, sarcastic statement... not very nice and, like, caring and, like, trying to, like, help her." ([06:19])

• Behavioral Changes: Elaine exhibited signs of a mental breakdown, expressing beliefs that the world would explode and that she was speaking to God.

  "She was saying I was gonna explode. Like, it's gonna. Like she was saying I was gonna explode." ([09:03])

• Financial Struggles: Elaine was financially unstable, often overdrawing her bank account and relying on friends and family for money, adding to her stress.

  "She was really bad with her money. She would get her money and, like, blow it all in a day." ([12:15])

• Final Days: On the morning of January 28th, despite severe weather conditions, Elaine was seen driving and later left her house without explanation.

  "She was wearing shorts that night, gotten out of her car then if it was like that." ([11:31])

Notable Quotes:

• “Elaine was acting different. Like, I thought maybe she was like mad at me or something...” ([04:36])
• “She was acting pretty different... She was just saying weird things.” ([08:37])
• “Her habits didn't really change, but she was acting different.” ([09:36])

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3. Host’s Analysis and Discussion

After Sadie’s interview, Troy Taylor analyzes the information, highlighting Elaine’s deteriorating mental health and financial instability as significant stressors. He emphasizes the discrepancy between Elaine’s outward behaviors and her internal struggles, pointing towards a possible mental health crisis.

"Sadie says Elaine tried to call her 15 times and text her eight times the night before on the Thursday night in an effort to get Sadie to come with her..." ([19:03])

Troy underscores the importance of understanding Elaine's mental state and the impact of her financial troubles, which could have contributed to her disappearance.

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4. Interview with Daisy

Daisy, another close friend of Elaine, shares her perspective on Elaine's disappearance in a recorded interview starting at [20:50].

Key Points from Daisy:

• Initial Reactions: Daisy initially thought Elaine might have simply wanted space but became increasingly concerned when Elaine stopped responding to messages and calls.

  "I thought she hadn't gone up just because she wanted to. She'll do that sometimes." ([21:03])

• Last Known Activities: Daisy recounts the last time she interacted with Elaine, detailing a movie outing with Divine where Elaine exhibited uncharacteristic behavior, leading to her abrupt departure at 4 AM.

  "They went to the movies... She was just laying there not saying much." ([27:08])

• Elaine's Self-Reliance: Despite her financial and emotional struggles, Daisy portrays Elaine as a resilient individual who would take action, such as picking up her car when it didn’t start.

  "She'll walk and until she'll find somebody to come and help her." ([31:24])

• Access to Personal Devices: Daisy attempted to access Elaine's phone using known passcodes but was unsuccessful, leaving critical information locked away.

  "The codes that you tried were just things you were just trying to remember." ([31:58])

Notable Quotes:

• “She didn't say anything. She'll say something... if she would never leave her laptop. Her laptop is like, her." ([22:55])
• “She just didn't think the world's gonna explode. I was telling her...” ([09:20])

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5. Mental Health Considerations

The episode places significant emphasis on Elaine’s mental health, drawing connections between her beliefs of talking to God and her fears of the world exploding. These factors suggest that Elaine may have been experiencing a severe mental health crisis leading up to her disappearance.

"The idea that she was talking back [to God], that's a whole different thing. And adding to that, this belief that the world was going to explode if she left the house that night..." ([20:28])

Troy posits that Elaine's mental state was fragile, possibly exacerbated by her financial woes and unsupportive relationships, making her vulnerable to drastic actions.

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6. Conclusion and Next Steps

Troy Taylor wraps up the episode by summarizing the key findings from Sadie and Daisy’s interviews. He hints at uncovering a pivotal moment or event that may have triggered Elaine’s disappearance in the upcoming episode.

"I think I might have the answer to exactly what caused that. But that's in Part two of this week's episode of Among The Missing." ([35:24])

Listeners are encouraged to subscribe for early access and bonus content, including unedited interviews with Sadie and Daisy. A reward fund of $25,000 is still available for information leading to Elaine's whereabouts, urging anyone with relevant information to contact the Glendale Police Department or the podcast’s official channels.

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Additional Information

• Contact Information:
  For those with information about Elaine Park’s disappearance, contact Glendale Police Department at 818-548-3135 (Case Number 171512) or visit the podcast’s website at amongthemissingpodcast.com.

• Social Media:
  Follow Among The Missing on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok at @amongthemissingpodcast.

• Support the Investigation:
  A $25,000 reward is offered for information leading to Elaine’s discovery. Contributions and tips can be submitted through the podcast’s website or social media platforms.

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Notable Quotes with Timestamps

• Sadie: “I’ve honestly thought everything at one point, but right now..." ([03:01])
• Sadie: “She was acting pretty different...” ([08:37])
• Sadie: “She was really bad with her money...” ([12:15])
• Daisy: “I thought she hadn’t gone up just because she wanted to...” ([21:03])
• Daisy: “She just didn’t think the world's gonna explode...” ([09:20])
• Host (Troy): “Sadie says Elaine tried to call her 15 times...” ([19:03])
• Host (Troy): “I think I might have the answer to exactly what caused that...” ([35:24])

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Final Thoughts

The first part of "If the World Explodes, it's Not My Fault" sets a compelling foundation for unraveling the mystery behind Elaine Park's disappearance. Through heartfelt interviews and meticulous analysis, Troy Taylor brings to light the complexities of Elaine's life, emphasizing the profound impact of mental health and personal struggles. As the investigation progresses, listeners are poised to gain deeper insights and, hopefully, move closer to uncovering the truth behind Elaine's vanishing.

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Stay Tuned for Part 2:
The next episode will explore potential triggers and pivotal moments that may have led to Elaine’s disappearance, along with further interviews and evidence analysis.

Transcript

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[Troy Taylor]

For details Today's episode of among the Missing contains content that may be distressing to some listeners, particularly those triggered by references to sexual assault. Listener discretion is advised. Making big changes in your life is never easy. You've got to sort through everything piece by piece and figure out what stays and what goes. That means routines, habits. Even people. Sometimes. Especially people. And once you've made those decisions, you have to actually follow through with them. Change the day to day, distance yourself from the people you're trying to move on from. Stay away from anything that might pull you back into old patterns. And at the beginning of 2017, that's exactly what Elaine did. She'd started looking at options to move out of home again into an apartment near the California State University, Northbridge. She left most of her old life behind, committed to partying, less focusing on her own happiness and being better at managing her money. More importantly, she also made the call to leave some of her best friends, including Daisy and Elizabeth and, of course, Divine, behind. But one person she didn't leave behind was Sadie. Elaine and Sadie had known each other since middle school, gotten closer in high school, and by the summer of 2016, they were the best of friends. By early 2017, they were spending almost every single day together. Sadie had become Elaine's go to person, the person she leaned on the most. So it makes sense that when Susan park hired Jaden Brandt from Origin Investigations to look into Elaine's disappearance on February 21, Sadie was one of the first people he Reached out to.

[Jaden Brandt]

This call is now being recorded by Origin Investigations. If you do not wish to be.

[Elaine's Friend]

Recorded, please disconnect at this time.

[Sadie]

I've honestly thought everything at one point, but right now, I mean, at one point I thought it was possible it could have been suicide. At one point I thought it was possible she was abducted. At one point I thought it was possible Div did something. And right now I'm thinking maybe it's possible that she just had a mental breakdown and just wanted to run away or something. But it changes, like every day what I think happens.

[Jaden Brandt]

And when was the last time you saw Elaine?

[Sadie]

I saw Elaine right before she went to dib's house the night she went missing. It was at her house. I went to go pick up my hair curler and my bracelets that I had left at her house earlier in the week. That was at like 7ish, 7 o'clock at night.

[Jaden Brandt]

Okay, and did you go inside or did she meet you?

[Sadie]

No, I pulled up. She wasn't there yet because she was driving somewhere. So I pulled up to her house and she wasn't there. So I called her and she was like, oh, yeah, I'm gonna be there in like one minute. So I waited for her. She pulled up, got out of her car, went inside, got my curler and my bracelet and then handed them to me. And then she got back in her car and I got. And I drove away. And then she drove away.

[Jaden Brandt]

Do you know where she was coming from?

[Sadie]

She told me she was driving around la. So I think it was right after she went to go pick up money from her dad.

[Jaden Brandt]

Okay, did she tell you where she was going when she left?

[Sadie]

No, she didn't say anything.

[Jaden Brandt]

And how did she. How was she acting? How did she seem?

[Sadie]

She was acting different. Like, I thought maybe she was like mad at me or something because the night before she'd called me like 15 times and texted me eight times and I didn't pick up. So obviously now I know that's not. There was something else going on, obviously. But at the time, like, she was acting a little bit different.

[Jaden Brandt]

Did she tell you why she was. Did you ever find out why she was trying to reach you? That I know I did.

[Sadie]

I didn't.

[Jaden Brandt]

Okay, you have any ideas?

[Sadie]

Because she wanted to go out that night to go to this party.

[Jaden Brandt]

What party was that?

[Sadie]

It wasn't a party, but it was like a kickback in Glendora at one of our friend's house.

[Jaden Brandt]

Did she get. Did you know if she ended up going?

[Sadie]

Yeah, she did end up going by herself, which was weird, too, because she normally wouldn't go by herself, but she did.

[Jaden Brandt]

Okay. So then she drove off and. How did you know? You said that she. She left and went to. You saw her right before she went to dibs. Did she tell you that she was going to dim? Okay.

[Sadie]

No, she didn't tell me she was gonna go to divs. I didn't even know that they were talking, so she must have probably. Yeah, she didn't.

[Elaine's Friend]

Okay.

[Jaden Brandt]

Tell me about Div. What do you. What do you know about him?

[Sadie]

I've met him once. I was kind of, like, drinking that night, so I don't really remember meeting him, but I don't really know him. I never talked to him after that night.

[Elaine's Friend]

Okay.

[Sadie]

Based off the things, like, Elaine would say about him, I just feel like he didn't seem like a very nice guy to her. Like, he didn't treat her very well.

[Jaden Brandt]

In what way? What did she tell you?

[Sadie]

Just, like, she would tell him something that was, like, really bothering her inside. And, like, she was like, open up to him and tell him, and he'd kind of, like, disregard or make a really, like, sarcastic statement, like, here's the number to my therapist. Like, just rude. I don't know. It just seemed like he didn't seem very nice.

[Jaden Brandt]

Give me an example of something. What was Elaine upset about?

[Sadie]

Usually I remember one scenario, she told me she told him, which is another thing I was going to let you know. She thought she was talking to God right before she went missing. And she told him that. She told him that she was speaking to God. And he was like, here's the number to my therapist. And it's like. I mean, even if he thought that might sound crazy, like, you probably shouldn't say that. It's not very nice. It's just, like, not a very neat. You know what I mean? But she told him things like she thought she was talking to God. And then, like, another time she called him, like, around the 18th of January, when they weren't talking, when they were broken up, she'd called him when she was drunk. And she's telling him she was really stressed out because, like, at her home life and school. And he was like, okay, well, maybe you shouldn't smoke so much. And then he just kind of was like, I gotta go. Like, not very nice and, like, caring and, like, trying to, like, help her.

[Jaden Brandt]

Okay. All right. So. So that night you spoke with her, you saw her at her house. Did you speak to her anytime later that night or did you text with her or communicate with her at all?

[Sadie]

No, not after that night. The next morning on Saturday, I texted her.

[Elaine's Friend]

Her.

[Sadie]

Because I was like, what are you doing today? I was gonna say we should hang out, but she never replied, So I never spoke to her after that.

[Jaden Brandt]

What time did you text her?

[Sadie]

At the next. Probably, like the afternoon. Between, like, 12 to 2? Probably.

[Jaden Brandt]

Okay. And that was on the 28th of Saturday?

[Sadie]

Yeah.

[Jaden Brandt]

Okay. Anything, you know, other than what we discussed that was bothering Elaine, anything she was concerned about? Anything that was different about her over the last.

[Sadie]

Yeah, she was acting pretty different.

[Jaden Brandt]

In what way?

[Sadie]

She was just saying weird things. She wasn't acting like herself. On New Year's Eve, she told me she thought the world was gonna explode if she went out that night, like, out to go party.

[Jaden Brandt]

Okay.

[Sadie]

And she was just saying, like, things like that.

[Jaden Brandt]

Did she still go out and party?

[Sadie]

Yeah, she went out because I was like. I mean, you know, I was like, I don't think the world's gonna explode. I was telling her. I was like. So she ended up going out that night, but she was like, if the world explodes, like, it's not my fault. Like, it's gonna. Like she was saying I was gonna explode. I don't know.

[Jaden Brandt]

And what do you think was the reason she was.

[Sadie]

I have no idea.

[Jaden Brandt]

Had she changed any of her habits? Was she eating different, partying more, drinking more, using any different type of drugs?

[Sadie]

As far as I'm concerned, she wasn't, like, using any type of drug. Her habits didn't really change, but she was acting different. And she only said those things to me one day. And that was New Year's Eve when she, you know, told me she talked to God and stuff. And before that, she had been just with the whole time. So she'd been, like, three weeks straight, sleeping at his house. And then I thought I saw her for the first time, you know, since, like, she'd been with him for so long. And she was just acting really, like, bizarre and not like herself and saying weird things. And then the next day after that, she went back to normal, broke up with him, and then was acting pretty normal, kind of. I could still tell something was weird was going on with her, but I didn't know what it was.

[Jaden Brandt]

So back to the morning of. Or, you know, that time period when Elaine was last seen on the morning of 28th. Is it like Elaine to drive down to the beach and sit on the beach?

[Sadie]

I mean, I wouldn't say it's out of the norm. Elaine, like, to Drive around. She liked to, like, do stuff like go watch the sunset on the beach. She actually wanted to do that with me like, two weeks before she disappeared. So, I mean, I don't really think it's weird. If it was, like, during the sunrise, I could definitely see her just pulling over, wanting to watch it, especially if she was upset about something or something.

[Jaden Brandt]

You think she'd get out of her car?

[Sadie]

Yeah.

[Jaden Brandt]

Okay. Now, I would say. I would. I would tell you that that morning on the 28th, it was like a hurricane. I mean, the trees were completely blown over. I mean, the wind was blowing 60 or 70 miles an hour. And it was. It was. It was around 40 degrees at that time.

[Sadie]

She was wearing shorts that night, gotten out of her car than if it was like that.

[Jaden Brandt]

Okay. I'm just wondering if she doesn't bother. Isn't bothered by the wind or the cold or. But you think that's. That would be unusual?

[Sadie]

I don't think she would want to be outside in that weather. I mean, she handles the cold pretty well. But if she was wearing shorts, I don't think she would want to stand outside in that weather.

[Jaden Brandt]

Okay. And Elaine was working at Dave and Buster's, but, you know, she got let go other than that for money. How did Elaine get money?

[Sadie]

She got money from her dad. They had this, like, agreement. Yeah, I think it was like 600amonth. But Elaine was, like, one thing me and her always wanted to work on was, like, handling our money better. She was really bad with her money. She would get her money and, like, blow it all in a day.

[Jaden Brandt]

So did she. Did she. Did she get money any other way?

[Sadie]

I mean, as far as I'm concerned, she didn't get her money any other way. She just got it from her dad. And then she would ask her mom if she could borrow money sometimes.

[Jaden Brandt]

Okay. All right, so the last question I've got is related to Elaine's phone and her computer. Obviously, you know, her phone is locked with a passcode. You have any idea what that passcode is?

[Sadie]

I have no idea. Elaine would always just unlock her phone with her fingerprint.

[Jaden Brandt]

Okay. All right. Well, I appreciate you taking the time to talk to me. I probably have some more questions for you at some point. And if you think of anything, however insignificant, feel free to call me, text me, email me, whatever's most convenient for you.

[Elaine's Friend]

Okay?

[Sadie]

Sounds good. Okay.

[Troy Taylor]

Talking to God, fearing the world's going to explode. There was a lot to unpack on the back of Sadie's discussion with Jaden. Thankfully unpacking stuff is kind of my thing. I'm Troy Taylor and this is among the missing. There was definitely something going on with Elaine on the Friday, the day before she disappeared. She was flustered and both Sadie and Divine said she was acting a little out of character. Divine first called her at 11:45am that day. They spoke for around five minutes, and at some point during the call, he asked her to come and pick him up in Calabasas, take him to LA and then head back to his place so they could hang out. It might not sound like much on the surface, but when you actually map that out, it's a big ask. Including her trip home, we're talking close to 145 miles of driving. That's about 230 kilometers. That's nearly half a tank of gas. And based on where she was traveling, around four and a half hours on the road. And here's the thing, Elaine didn't really have the money for that. Her bank balance that day was negative $16. That's why she had to ask Susan to quick pay her $20. Without it, there was no way she'd have been able to buy gas to even get out to see Divine, let alone taxi him around. When that came through, it bumped her account back into the black, but only barely. She had a positive balance of $3 somewhere between 1:20pm and when she picked up $50 in cash from her dad, Ray, at around 5pm, she went to the 76 station near her house and filled her car that cost around $29, and sent her account right back into overdraft, this time down to negative $26.31. She and Divine had made plans to go to the movies that night, and since her bank account was in the red again, she needed actual cash. Which is why she picked up the cash from her dad and to circle back around on something again, because I do think it's important. Right up until her last message to Susan at 9:05pm, Elaine was telling her she'd pay her back that same night with her bank account in Overdraft. The only way that was possible was if she planned to use the cash from Ray to do so. Which tells us pretty clearly Elaine had no plans of staying the night at Divine's. Something happened that night to make her change her mind the rest of the day before showing up at Devine's house at 8:37pm p.m. is a little fuzzy. We don't really know what she was doing. There's not a lot to go on. Sadie says she was driving around la, which lines up with her trip to the gas station, over to Ray's office in downtown la, and then back home to give Sadie her curler and bracelet. Outside of that, we know she was home at around 7:20am that morning, listening to music on her laptop, and that she and Divine were messaging each other back and forth for a lot of the day, with most of those messages coming from Divine checking on how far away she was. And we know she finally left for divines at around 7.15pm Based on her phone records, it looks like she was home for the vast majority of the day, right up until around 4pm when she had to leave to collect the cash from Ray. Sadie says Elaine tried to call her 15 times and text her eight times the night before on the Thursday night in an effort to get Sadie to come with her, text a kickback and Glendora. The phone records do back up some of that. Sadie says she felt something was off with Elaine that night, but reading through their text messages, things seem pretty casual. Elaine was asking Sadie what she was doing if she wanted to hang out, and when Sadie didn't reply, Elaine sent her an angry face emoji. It doesn't look like they ended up connecting that night, but Sadie says Elaine did go to the party in Glendora on her own. I haven't come across anything to actually verify that there's nothing at all in any of her communications to suggest she did. I know she did go to the same place on Wednesday night, but she went with both Sadie and Emily that time. Sadie also mentions that Elaine wasn't great with money, and to be honest, that is an understatement. She was terrible with money. Her bank account was almost always an overdraft. She had a debt with one of those payday loan places who lend you out a chunk of cash and then are forever piling on so much interest you never have any chance of paying back the principal. She owed money to PayPal to the courts for unpaid parking and speeding fines for a fine related to driving without insurance. She had debt collectors chasing her and she was frequently borrowing money from Susan and sometimes from her friends. It's worth thinking about how much stress that kind of financial mess can create. And from her text with Susan, it's pretty clear it was stressing her out big time because anxiety like that can really weigh on a person and potentially impact their mental health. Wow, this house is cute, but can.

[Elaine's Friend]

I really get in the game in this economy? I do have savings and I am responsible.

[Sadie]

Ish.

[Elaine's Friend]

Ugh. I should bury it. I'm being wild. But what if I'm not being wild though? Could I actually Score a kick off.

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[Troy Taylor]

Speaking of which, the other major thing Sadie mentioned is that Elaine believed she was talking to God not long before she went missing. And on New Year's Eve, she was completely convinced the world was going to explode if she stepped outside. We're going to dig into that a bit more soon, but first, here's another interview. Jaden Brandt did this one with Elaine's friend Daisy.

[Jaden Brandt]

Okay. Daisy, you there? I'm okay. Great. So I just want to start with the obvious question is what do you think is going on?

[Elaine's Friend]

When her dad had contacted me, he was asking me like, oh, have you seen Elaine? Or stuff like that. And I told them that I hadn't seen her. And at first I didn't think nothing much about it. I was like, okay, maybe Elaine's just didn't want to come home. Like, she'll do that, you know, like sometimes she doesn't want to come home and, but she'll go to my place. And that's why she was staying with me for a little bit, because she just didn't want to be at her house. And. And I was like, yeah, you can come be with me. Like, you know, I. We used to live together before. So I. She's my best friend. I don't. I don't mind, you know, I was like, oh, maybe she's, like, at Sadie's place or. Or maybe she's with that guy that she's been hanging around with. But she wasn't with me. So I didn't, like, put much, like, thought into it. Like, I just, like, texted her, but, like, my messages didn't go through. So then her dad, like, kept. Keeps calling me and he would, like. So that's what I started worrying. I was like, okay, like, she's not even answering my phone calls. Like, where could she, like, be? So then I called. I called the guy Viv myself, just to ask him, because I was like, may. She didn't want to come home. But then he had told me that she had left and that that was the last time he had seen her. And that's when I started, like, worrying about it. Like, nah. Because at first I did think she hadn't gone. She hadn't gone up just because she wanted to. She'll do that sometimes. But the weird thing is, is, like, she didn't say anything. She'll say something. She'll call me, like. Like, hey, I'm about to do something crazy like, every time. She'll always call me. Like, she didn't tell me something like that, you know? And if she would never leave her laptop. Her laptop is like, her. Like, if something ever would have happened to the left, she would, like, cry. I don't know. Like, but that's. She wouldn't leave it. She loves that laptop. Like, if she. If she were to leave, like, on her own, she would take it. Like, I don't know.

[Jaden Brandt]

So when was the last time you saw her or talked to her?

[Elaine's Friend]

So the last time I had seen her was like, I said she was living with me for a little bit. And then one day, I want to say, like, August. Like, it was with the first semester of school. Like, she did. She didn't want to commute because she lives in, like, clock or center. So she just would come to my place and she'll ask me, like, hey, can I sleep over? I have class these days. And she didn't want to commute because she had, like, an 8am or something. I was like, yeah, you could stay with me for like, a couple of days. Like, just kind of ended up being months. She was with me for, like, three months. And did she do the same thing.

[Jaden Brandt]

When she was living with you? Did she disappear for days at a time?

[Elaine's Friend]

No, no, no. She'll tell me, like. She'll tell me, like, she would go sleep over to. To the guy's house to div. And then she'll. She'll go sleep over his place, but she'll tell me, like, she'll text me because I'll be. I would work a lot. A lot. Like, I would work, like, 80 hours, like. Like every two weeks. So I wouldn't, like, hang out with her as much. Just when I would come back home and we'll, like, hang out. Like, we wouldn't even do much, like, party or anything. We didn't do that. Like, we used to, like, when we were, like, freshmen, but we had come down a lot because we both had jobs and we're just doing. But yeah, she'll go sleep over at Sin's house. She would let me know, like, everything. She does something, she lets me know.

[Jaden Brandt]

Okay, so that was back in. So that was back. So one day.

[Elaine's Friend]

So one day I came home from work and all her stuff was gone. Like, she packed, like, everything. And then I was like, okay. So I didn't say anything. I texted her. She just said, hey. I just. I went home, like, semester is over. And then I was like, okay, I understand. And then after that, she wouldn't. I would call her, like, she's my best friend. I talked to her, like, every single day. Like, five times a day or more. More. And I. After that, like, after she left my place, I tried calling her and texting her, and she wouldn't answer me. So. And then I was like, what's going on? So then she wouldn't reply to me and nothing. I was. I was bugged because she's like, that's my best friend. So I didn't, like, you know, until one day she texted me saying, I'm. I'm just focusing on my life right now. I'm just trying to get everything together. I'm trying to get my life together. Love you. See you soon. And I respected it. And I was like, okay. Like, I was just. I'm gonna let her be. I'm gonna give her her space. And then I haven't seen her for, like, I want to say, a month and a half.

[Jaden Brandt]

Okay.

[Elaine's Friend]

And that was it. And then her dad called me and asked me if I had seen her.

[Jaden Brandt]

So you had.

[Elaine's Friend]

I want to say, like, November.

[Jaden Brandt]

So you hadn't seen her or talked to her in a month and a half?

[Elaine's Friend]

No. Yeah.

[Jaden Brandt]

I mean, that's unusual, though, right?

[Elaine's Friend]

I mean, yeah, that is very unusual, because I talked.

[Jaden Brandt]

And what do you think is the reason for that?

[Elaine's Friend]

I don't. I don't know. Like, you can even ask my. You guys can talk to my friend Elizabeth. She's also one of, like, our, like, close friends. And she was telling me that she. She came over to my place, and she was like, hey, what's wrong with Elaine? Because she's not talking to me. Is she talking to you? And then I was like, no, she's not talking to me either. And I. At first I thought she was, like, mad at me or something.

[Sadie]

I don't know.

[Elaine's Friend]

But then I saw that she wasn't talking to her as well. Someone's like, okay, like, maybe she just doesn't need her. Need her space.

[Jaden Brandt]

Okay, now, aside from drinking alcohol, what. What drugs do you know that she used?

[Elaine's Friend]

She was like, smoke weed. That's about it. Oh, and she started doing lean. She started doing lean because of that. Of Div. Her and her and him would always do that. I don't know. What is it? What's, like, the right term for it? It's promethazine. Codeine, I think. Yeah.

[Jaden Brandt]

Okay. And that was.

[Elaine's Friend]

Started doing that.

[Jaden Brandt]

And that was something that Div was.

[Elaine's Friend]

Yeah, they would do that together.

[Jaden Brandt]

She would always tell me, all right, so what, you know, of the morning that she was last seen? What do you. What. What do you make of that?

[Elaine's Friend]

I don't know. I think it's strange. Yeah. Well, because I called Div. I called to hear it for myself because I needed to know, like, what had happened because Sadie and Emily didn't want to call him. But I. I was like, no, I need to talk to him, because if you guys aren't gonna call him, I'm just gonna call him. So. And I called him. He was like. So Elaine came over around. Around 8ish. Because their movie was at 1045. He didn't tell me where he was. Like, I Uber is there because he.

[Jaden Brandt]

Tell you what movie they went to?

[Elaine's Friend]

No, he didn't tell me, but he said that he Ubered them there to the movies because he didn't want Elaine to drive because she seemed upset. She seemed upset. And I was like, okay. But she didn't tell you why she was upset. Like, she didn't say anything. And he was like, you didn't ask her? And he was like, I did. But, you know, Elaine, she just brushed it off, and she didn't want to say. She said something about Problems at home, problems with her mom and stuff and that she was just upset. Like she, and then he had asked me if that she had ever had a panic attack because it seemed like she was having a panic attack and that they went, they went to the movies and they came back and then she was just laying there. Like, she was just laying there not saying much. She was just kind of like, it seemed like there was something on her mind and, and then they fell asleep. Then they fell asleep. And then she Woke up at 4 in the morning. He told me 4 in the morning. And she just got up and she was just sitting there singing or something like that. He was like, I never seen anybody change so fast in my life. And she just changed, like, got up quick, super quick and left.

[Jaden Brandt]

He said that was at 4:00.

[Elaine's Friend]

Yeah, he told me 4:00 in the morning.

[Jaden Brandt]

Okay.

[Elaine's Friend]

I asked him if he tried to like stop her, like anything, and he was like, yeah, but she just didn't listen.

[Jaden Brandt]

And that was, and so you know that her vehicle was found down on pch. So what, what do you think about that? Do you think she drove down there?

[Elaine's Friend]

No, well, I, I, I don't think so. I don't think so because why would she go like just down there and it was only 19 minutes from his house. So why did she drive? She's trying to go far. Like she's 19 minutes is not far from that guy's house.

[Jaden Brandt]

But is she, does she like to go to the beach? I mean, it was right around sunrise.

[Elaine's Friend]

Yeah.

[Jaden Brandt]

And she maybe had thought that would be a good place to relax.

[Elaine's Friend]

Oh, she would do that, I feel. But not really. We wouldn't really go to the beach. We did love the beach though, during the summer. Like she likes to pan and she loves to swim.

[Jaden Brandt]

Okay.

[Elaine's Friend]

She's a really good swimmer. That's another thing. I don't think Elaine is the type to get taken. Like, she's too, she's too aware of her surroundings. She's too, like, I don't know. She went to New York by herself for a whole summer, like, and she was by herself. She survived. She was okay. Like, she, she explored New York all by herself. Like, she's so, like, I don't know how to explain to you. Like, I don't know. She's very smart. She's not, like, I don't know. Is she a trust taken? Yeah, she's very, she's nice, she's too nice sometimes. Like, she's the type of person, if her friend's in trouble at four in the morning on all the way on in San Diego, she'll drive all the way over there and get her friend. If she only has a dollar left, she'll give it to me. Like she's too nice.

[Jaden Brandt]

Like, what do you think she would do? What do you think she would do if her, if her car, if she went down there? Her car wouldn't start and her car wouldn't start because she had problems with her car. Right?

[Elaine's Friend]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Jaden Brandt]

So what do you think she would do?

[Elaine's Friend]

She'll walk and until she'll find somebody to come and help her. She always do that sometimes? Yeah. Just anybody. She'll just go up to them because like that's what happens sometimes. Like when she'll go pick me up. One time her car didn't start and she just went up to like everybody and asked them okay. To come jump start her car.

[Jaden Brandt]

Okay. All right. And let me ask you one other question. And that relates to Elaine's phone and her computer. I know that. Or at least Elaine's mother indicated that you tried some codes on her phone. You thought maybe it would be. And none of them worked. So had you just. Those were just codes that you had thought to try or those were things that you had seen her be the code.

[Elaine's Friend]

I, I knew her code. I didn't know it. She would always give it to me. Like even my thumb works on her phone. Like that's how closely works. I knew everything. I, it's just, I hadn't seen it. The only reason I knew her code is because it will be like, I'll always be like in the passenger seat and, and she'll be driving and she wants me to play music as stuff. So she'll give me her phone always to like free music. And I, I didn't, I never remembered it. Like she would always tell me and I never remembered it. So at some point she just kind of know it. And she was like, just put your thumb. Like, just put your thumb. It'll be a lot easier. And my thumb works on it. I don't know if she took it off or anything. But since I was trying to do that with the phone. But since you guys, since the phone had turned off already, every time it turns back on, it like needs the password. It doesn't just ask for the thumb.

[Jaden Brandt]

Yeah. You can't use the fingerprint. Okay. So the codes that, the codes that you tried were just things you were just trying to remember.

[Elaine's Friend]

Yeah.

[Sadie]

Okay.

[Elaine's Friend]

I just hadn't seen her in like a month and a Half. So I just don't remember usually. I know it's not much. Every single day and like I would play music and stuff.

[Jaden Brandt]

Okay. And have you heard from Dizzy since she, since you talked to him?

[Elaine's Friend]

No.

[Jaden Brandt]

Okay. All right. If she took off, where would you go?

[Elaine's Friend]

Up for New York. That's literally her dream. That's when she was. She went for a summer because she had like her daughter.

[Jaden Brandt]

Okay. All right, well thank you very much. I appreciate your time and I'll let you know if I have any other questions. Thank you very much, Jasi. I appreciate it.

[Elaine's Friend]

Thank you. Have a good one.

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[Troy Taylor]

Just like in Jaden's interview with Sadie, there's a lot to look at there. But the first thing has to be where Elaine's mental health was at around the time she went missing. It seems like there was a lot going on for Elaine on New Year's Eve 2016. She told Sadie she genuinely believed the world would end if she left the house that night. And she told both Sadie and Devine that she'd started speaking directly to God. But there was also someone else. She messaged that day about how she was feeling. Someone I don't think anyone would have expected her to be discussing those. Those things with Baba, her Tattoo artist. At 8:54pm, Elaine messaged Baba. Hey Baba. He responded almost immediately. Hey you. Elaine says, I'm feeling stuck and it's been the most frustrating thing who I want to be surrounded by tonight. I don't know who to turn to. I should just be with good people and friends that care about me, but I also want to be with my guy. I don't know if it's puppy love, and I don't want to end up getting hurt by choosing to be with him. Bubba asks her outright, do you think he's going to hurt you? And she says, to be honest, I know he's not perfect, but no. And Bubba replies, then go kick it with him. That's the end of their exchange for that night, and we know Elaine didn't take his advice. She ended up going out with Sadie and Emily. But what's interesting about their chat is that it's clear that Elaine didn't feel like there were many people in her world to turn to. Most of Elaine's messages with Bubba are around scheduling appointments to get tattoos done and eventually agreeing to a date where Elaine had money. Elaine went and had both her butterfly and dagger tattoos done by Bubba on Christmas Eve 2016. But it seems during that appointment, Elaine began seeing Bubba as someone she could confide in, maybe as somewhat of a father figure. And a couple of days after the appointment, Bubba messaged her to ask how she was feeling. Elaine replied to say she's going through waves of clarity, but that she's mostly confused and feeling a little lost. She goes on to say she feels like everybody wants something from her, and it's hard to figure out what the right thing to do is. Baba asks her what she thinks he wants from her, and she replies, to embrace myself, maybe to be happy, I don't know. And he confirms her thoughts. That's exactly what he wants. He just wants her to be happy. Elaine responds, thanks for everything, Bubba. It won't be easy, but I'm starting to get my peace of mind back. Love you. And Bubba says, feel free to come and hang out. Or if you just want to talk, I'll drive up there. Just let me know. But let's get back to Elaine talking to God for a second. Elaine was religious. At one point, she and Susan had even talked about maybe going to church together. So the idea that she was talking to God, well, there's nothing particularly unusual with that. But the idea that he was talking back, which is what Sadie seems to be getting at, that's a whole different thing. And adding to that, this belief that the world was going to explode if she left the house that night, well, it all points to one thing, that there's every chance Elaine might have been in the middle of a serious mental health crisis. And you know what? Between what Sadie told Jaden and what Daisy told Jayden, I think I might have the answer to exactly what caused that. But that's in Part two of this week's episode of among the Missing. Thanks for listening to among the Missing. Part two of this week's episode will drop this coming Thursday. If you'd like to listen earlier, it's available right now to subscribers on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, where you can sign up for a seven day free trial. There's also some really great bonus content there, including the full, unedited conversations with Sadie and Daisy. If you know anything about what happened to Elaine or where she is, a Reward fund of $25,000 cash is still on offer. If you'd like any more information on the reward or you have any information relating to Elaine's disappearance whatsoever, please visit our website@ among themissingpodcast.com where you can send us a message or leave us a voicemail. You can find us on Facebook, Instagram and TikTok at among themissingpodcast. If you've got any questions you'd like to be addressed in our Q and A episodes, please visit our [e-mail] and either send us a message or leave us a voicemail. Among the Missing is a production of FTM Media, produced by Troy Taylor, Mark Tarulli and Fred Scherzer, written by Troy Taylor. Our theme song is Lucid Symphony by Dirty Freaks. Elaine park is still a missing person and her case is still open with the Glendale Police Department. If you have any information about her whereabouts, please contact them on 818-548-3135 and mention Elaine's case number 171512.