(NewsNation) — After a Georgia man disappeared on a trip to California, his mother says the person who was traveling with him has reached out to her.

Caleb Wells, who also went by the name Corey, disappeared in 2021 after flying to California with an acquaintance from high school. The 31-year-old father was seen on surveillance video at a hotel, but what happened after is a mystery.

His mother, Natasha Wells Walker, said she believed Wells had gone to do something illegal, possibly robbing a drug dealer. She said that while her son had made mistakes in the past, the family just wants him home.

“Even on his worst days, his kids were his reason for getting it right,” she said.

Go behind the headlines as NewsNation’s “Missing” investigates missing person cases from across the country, from cold cases to the latest developing stories. Tune into our latest case’s digital show each Friday where we speak to loved ones and examine the case. Subscribe to our newsletter here.

Caleb Wells travels to California in 2021

The last time Walker saw her son was on July 2, 2021, when he left Georgia to go to California. Wells had never missed a birthday call to his family, but in July, he did not contact his mother on her birthday.

“He always either makes me a silly video or calls and acts like he’s Ray Charles, or, you know, he never misses a birthday call or stops in,” said Walker. “My birthday, July 16, when we didn’t get a call, we didn’t get nothing.”

According to Walker, Wells’ daughter, Angeleah was worried about him leaving.

“She said, ‘Daddy, I’ve got a bad feeling. (He) doesn’t care about you,’” Walker said. “They were each other’s nemesis in football, in school, they would like the same girls.” His daughter believed that Wells was asked by this acquaintance to rob someone.

While Wells does have a criminal history, Walker said it was mostly related to his addictions. He started by smoking pot, but eventually developed an addiction to methamphetamines, according to his mother.

When he left for California, he had allegedly relapsed.

“The streets just would not leave him alone. That fast money, that quick money, Caleb was even saved and baptized two weeks before he left,” Walker said. “It was like the devil just wouldn’t leave him alone. And he told his daughter, ‘This will be the last one, and we’ll be set.’ Because [his acquaintance] told Corey they could get up to $100,000 apiece.”

Man who allegedly traveled with Caleb Wells visited his mother

Walker knew that her son had made it to California, but a week after he left, she ran into the acquaintance at his daughter’s birthday party in Georgia.

“It was like he saw a ghost. I could see his body language was as if, ‘Oh crap, there she is,’” she said. “Caleb was supposed to have come back, and our cousin was like, ‘Where’s Corey?’ And he said he didn’t want to come back, and she said, ‘You’re lying.’ He left. Because he knew we knew something was wrong.”

About one week later, Walker reported Wells missing after she didn’t hear from him on her birthday.

Now, Walker said the acquaintance actually visited her right before her interview.

“I was almost late for my interview because he came to my house today,” she said. “It’s like when the fire heats up, the snakes come out, you know.”

Walker said she thinks the coverage is helping stir things up. The man who visited her claimed he hadn’t traveled to California with Wells, although Walker has footage of them together at the hotel.

“He said the last time he saw Corey, that he was alive, that he is not a murderer and that I needed to quit slandering his name or he was going to go to the magistrate and I guess cause a civil suit against me,” Walker said.

She said she told the man she forgave him, but she just wants to know where her son is.

Caleb Wells’ mother traveled to California several times

When it comes to local law enforcement, Walker said she’s had difficulty getting attention on the case from authorities in Georgia. Although she has traveled to California multiple times, the information she can access as a private citizen is limited.

She wants local law enforcement to help her get resources to find Wells. Walker is especially interested in surveillance footage and data from Wells’ two cell phones.

“Request the FBI for help, request GBI, get the resources involved that can do this,” she said.