In an interview with48 Hoursas part of the CBS program’s “Jayme Closs Comes Home” special on Saturday, the 13-year-old girl’s aunt Jennifer Smith opened up about the deep pain she felt when she learned her niece had gone missing.
“My heart was shattered. Left a hole in our heart and we just wanted to find her,” Smith remarked. “I just had to hope that she was alive out there somewhere.”
“I knew she was close and I never gave up that hope,” she said.
And even though Christmas came and went without any signs of Jayme, Smith insisted on keeping the teen’s presents under the tree. “I said these presents are going to sit right here and wait for Jayme to come home,” Smith recalled.
Jayme Closs and aunt Jennifer Smith.Jennifer Halvorson
Smith, who was seen with a smiling Jayme in thefirst photoof the teen since her escape, has also vowed to do whatever it takes tokeep Jayme safe.
“As a family we will get through all of the healing process Jayme has. It will be a long road but we are family strong and we love this little girl so much!!” she wrote, adding that her “beloved sister” and brother-in-law can rest in peace knowing that their daughter “is safe.”
“We will make sure forever,” she added.
PEOPLE has obtained a photograph, which was taken on Saturday, of Smith and Jayme smiling together. Alongside the image, Smith wrote, “Love her so much!!!! What a glorious day !!”
Courtesy of Jennifer Halvorson
“She told us that she was very well-hidden,” Kasinskas, who lives with her husband Peter close to where Jayme was found, explained. “She said that other people would come to the house but she would have to be hidden. I don’t know how he kept her so under wraps for long.”
“It just kills me that she was just four doors down and we didn’t know,” Kasinskas added. “Not that we would have ever known or could have ever known, but it kills me that she was that close.”
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When Jayme wasreunited with her familyon Friday, she was also reunited with her beloved dog, Molly.
Jennifer Halvorson, who has become close friends with Jayme’s aunts, told PEOPLE on Friday that the teen “is glad to have her dog back and get settled.”
Jayme Closs.Jennifer Halvorson
Family friend Michelle Saffert tells PEOPLE that Jayme “looks good” after her time with loved ones.
“She really is doing well,” Saffert adds, remarking how nice it is to see Jayme smiling after all that she’s been through. “I’m glad she feels safe again.”
“It’s mind-blowing. When we first found out, it kind of sent everybody into a tailspin. It’s hard to go through 88 days of a cloud hanging over your community and all of a sudden it’s reversed. We’re very happy in Barron,” he says.
“Everybody I meet and talk to are very happy,” Fladten adds. “They’re very grateful that Jayme has come back to us alive and we have high hopes for her recovery and adjustment back into school. Hopefully, she’ll have a good future.
Barron County Sheriff’s Dept; Abducted - Find Jayme Closs/Facebook
Police announced on Friday that they’d arrested 21-year-old Jake Thomas Patterson, of Gordon, and charged him with two counts of first-degree intentional homicide and one count of kidnapping.
While not much is known about Patterson, during the48 Hoursspecial, it was revealed that he was voted the quietest person in his high school class.
“This is a very tragic situation,” the two lawyers said in a joint statement, according tolocal media reports. “There is a substantial amount of information, interest, and emotion involved in this case. Mr. Patterson’s legal team will be relying on the integrity of our judicial system to ensure that everyone’s rights are protected and respected.”
PEOPLE has reached out to the two lawyers for additional comment.
Patterson is currently in the Barron County Jail and is scheduled to appear in court on Monday to enter a plea.
source: people.com
