her mom is kathy menzies. >> she was just a very fun-loving child.s made you laugh. >> reporter: just look at her childhood photos. that silly grin. she loved her dog, her little brother, playing softball. and then it started happening, said kathy. eighth grade or so. >> she was kind of getting, you know, typical teenage. you know, mouthy. and then, you know, high school came, getting around the older kids, she kind of got a little, you know, worse. >> reporter: how did you cope with that? >> just one day at a time. love her as much as i could is -- was about the only thing. >> reporter: after high school kianna went to college, about a three-hour drive from home. a year later, she moved to las vegas. but though far from home now, she got closer and closer to her mom. >> she would call me every day, talk to me every day, you know, text message. >> reporter: she was just a loving daughter. >> yeah. i didn't think anything bad was happening. >> reporter: no idea. even in october 2013, when kianna called to say -- >> she was on the bus towards santa ana