Missing

Did you ever hear about the young woman who disappeared 5 years ago? No?! That is surprising; she was the talk of the news for weeks. Twenty-five-year-old Harlow Fay of New Orleans, Louisiana went missing from the nightclub she was at late one summer night on July 7, 2015. I’m Violette Grey and I remember it like it was yesterday.She was my older sister Genevieve's friend growing up. They went to the same school and ran with the same friend group until after high school. That's when Gennie noticed that Harlow, whom people called Harley, started to pull away more and more. Then began going months on end with no communication. We all thought it was weird but everyone had their lives. When Harley showed up missing Gennie was really shocked she didn't believe it was the same girl she went to school with. Her best friend had just been going through a rough spot she couldn’t be missing?.... Right? Gennie was lost for months. I think it was a mix of things that kept her that way: guilt, sadness, anger, and confusion I think were among the top few. My sister never really got over Harley's disappearance but life moved on and people slowly forgot. Gennie still has a hard time but it definitely got worse after a sighting 4 years after Harley went missing. It was shortly after my daughter, Lylyn Grace, was born around late November at a park in Belle Chasse. Gennie sore for months upon months that she had seen her. "That was absolutely Harley" she would say "I'd know her anywhere!" Gennie would sit in her room and stare out the window watching the world go by for weeks on end she was a ghost of my sister. We finally had to intervene when she would starve herself for weeks she got so skinny she legitimately was wasting away. Gennie was 27 so she couldn’t be forced to be admitted to the mental hospital but I think they made an exception for her. When Naomi, our stepmom, and I decided to call Bevlyn Psychiatric Hospital we didn’t know if it would help but something had to be done. The worst part was watching my daughter look for her “aggy” that’s what Lylyn called Aunt Gennie. It was 6 months before she got to be evaluated to be released. She had failed 4 evaluations before this either for fighting or not wanting to take her medications or not eating regularly. I think the only thing that kept her going was me and Lylynn. The only thing my sister loved more than me and food, Ironic I know, was her niece. Lylynn loved her too these past 6 months had been so challenging not just because I didn’t have a babysitter sometimes but because Gennie always without fail came over for dinner every weekend and she would stay and clean up, help Lylynn with her homework and then playtime, bath and then a bedtime story before a kiss tickles and tucking in. Lylynn had this routine since she was little; it just had changed a little through the years. Now for 6 months of my little bright-eyed baby girl, she had to be told for the first time in her 4 years her aggy wasn’t coming over this weekend or the next or the next after that. She adored visits with my sister and I think the day about 3 weeks ago when Lylynn asked Gennie if she could stay with her because she was having nightmares and her aggy wasn’t there to protect her was what got through to Gennie. She had a new hope to get out and better because she had a little girl to go home to. Gennie had lost a lot; she was engaged 2 times and married finally after the second time. She was happy for years and then was attacked and brutally assaulted. After that, she couldn’t be touched for the longest time.Her husband just couldn’t take it he ended up cheating on her but that wasn’t what broke her. She got told after not knowing she was pregnant for months, Gennie was told she lost the baby after the attack. It was a little girl and then a few months later, she found out that she was pregnant again with a baby from the attack. It killed her that after she had lost one so close now she had another and not one she wanted. Gennie had finally come to terms with it and she decided to keep the baby. She had an extra egg that had split but never formed from the last pregnancy which would have made them twins. I took her to the gender reveal and it was the hardest day for her I think. The baby was a little boy but he had died in the womb. I have never seen my sister so lost. That's when she moved in with our stepmom and dad. Our mom had died shortly after I turned 6 and Genie was 8. Mama had gotten into a car accident with a semi-truck. He had been driving all night and fell asleep and pinned Mom's SUV against the wall. One good thing is she didn't suffer: the car exploded from being drugged along the wall. Dad married 4 years later to Naomi; she was the best woman. Our mom would have liked her. She was patient and very caring. She didn't make us call her mom. She didn't want us to for many years, actually. She always helped with homework and she was just a great person. Dad died of heart failure a few years back and it brought us closer. Naomi kept the house and we divided care of the family farm. I cared for the animals and Gennie covered the finances. Naomi met Phil maybe 2 years ago. Phil was a kind man; he wasn't really outgoing but friendly. The kind of person who presented with a friendly conversation would partake but wouldn’t seek it out. He was a patient man and good at just being there when you needed some quiet comfort and support. Gennie stayed with them for some time while she recovered from everything. I felt so heartbroken when she lost both babies. Gennie has always wanted a family but she is wonderful with LyLynn. When I asked her to be her god mom my sister was beside herself. Today we finally get to bring Gen home. She was finally approved for release and Lylynn doesn't know. Mom and I decided to surprise her and Gen so Mom is going to bring Gennie to the playground where I am gonna have a welcome home party for her and surprise ly. It was so pretty today the sun was out and it was cool, not too warm but with a slight chill in the air. I loved the fall air. It was my favorite time.

“Mommy, can I go play with everyone else?” Ly pulled at my shirt as we got out.

“No baby wait for me. Can you help Mommy carry the bags of chips?”

I handed the eager helper her bags

“Ok then can I go play?” she insisted

“Yes, when we get over to the table and you put everything down. Make sure I can see you.”

We walked over to a table under a tall oak tree close to the lake. Some people were fishing. There were boats, jet skis, and my favorite sailboats on the water today. Ly quickly put her bags down and okayed it with me that she ran for the jungle gym. Ly was the kind of girl that always stayed active. She loved most sports and she was smart. She loved to read and hear stories. Her head stayed in the clouds and I made sure if she wanted to she could stay there all her little life. I couldn't believe she had become such a great kid and grown so much. I was snapped out of the thought when Eve and Nova came up. They were Gennie's best friends and I had invited them to welcome her home with us. Novarea's little girl Isis, took off for Lylynn followed closely by Rhea, her twin sister

“Hey girl, I'm glad you came. It will be good for her to have some friends here for her” I hugged both of them as they sat 2 large pans of food down.

“How is she doing?" Nova asked.

“Yeah, I have been worried especially when she was fighting inside.” Eve chimed in.

“She took a bit but she got better or well-tried after ly asked her if she could stay with her because she missed her and her nightmares were coming back. You know Gen lives for Lylynn. So she started putting in work and quit fighting people and the system. Took the meds and talked to the counselor, she really plugged in and I’m so happy her ass did because I have missed my sister.” I replied as I sat out the plates and silverware.