Meyer Lansky's grandson reflects on late mobster's crime empire, Las Vegas legacy and missing millions

"He never mentioned the names of anybody that he worked with. He was always cautious with that," Lansky told Fox News Digital.

"Growing up in Washington state, I wasn't exposed to those kinds of things anywhere else," Lansky said. "He was always asking me about my grades, my studies and what books I was reading.

"He'd give me basic advice: 'Whatever you do, do a good job. Be honest with people, provide good service and people will come back to you.'"

That reputation carried real-world danger. The younger Lansky recalled a chilling incident from his childhood, when his grandfather's notoriety and perceived wealth nearly led to his kidnapping.

As he grew older, the veil began to slip.

"One day I was listening to the radio and heard that Treasury Secretary John Connally was going to Las Vegas to investigate Meyer Lansky," he said, referencing the decades-long, unsuccessful federal effort to convict his grandfather.

"When my grandfather visited a week later, I told him, 'Hey, I heard your name on the radio.' He looked at me, smiled, and said, 'You did?' He didn't elaborate, but I knew at that point he realized I was going to figure out who he really was."

While mob historians contend that the Polish-born gangster perfected modern money laundering and amassed vast fortunes, a central mystery remains: What happened to the money?

If the elder Lansky stashed away millions, his grandson noted, the family never saw it.

Yet, the physical legacy remains impossible to ignore.

"They took a barren desert and turned it into a sophisticated gambling empire."