For six years, the name Kayla Unbehaun lived in missing-person databases, whispered in news updates, and etched into the hearts of those who never stopped looking. She was just nine years old when she vanished from South Elgin, Illinois, on July 4, 2017 — a day that began with fireworks and ended in heartbreak.
Her father, Ryan Iserka, had no idea that morning’s goodbye would last more than half a decade. Kayla had gone on what was supposed to be a short camping trip with her mother, Heather Unbehaun. But when the weekend ended and they didn’t return, Ryan’s worry turned to panic.
Calls went unanswered. Heather’s home was empty. Her phone was off. Days later, investigators confirmed what he feared — both mother and daughter were gone.
A felony warrant was soon issued for Heather’s arrest on charges of kidnapping and child abduction. Ryan’s face appeared on every local station as he pleaded for help: “She’s my little girl. I just want her home.”
But time has a cruel way of fading even the loudest cries. Days turned to weeks, weeks to years. Leads went cold. Ryan kept Kayla’s room just as she left it — lavender walls, a stuffed fox on her pillow — waiting. Each birthday, he left a new card, a quiet promise that he hadn’t given up.
Then, in May 2023, everything changed.
The Stranger Who Noticed
Six hundred miles away, in Asheville, North Carolina, a woman walked into a store and saw a teenage girl who looked strangely familiar. That night, she couldn’t shake the feeling. Scrolling through Netflix, she stopped at an episode of Unsolved Mysteries about missing children — and froze.
There was Kayla’s face.
The woman immediately called authorities.
Within 24 hours, Asheville police located the teen and confirmed her identity. After six long years, Kayla Unbehaun was alive and safe.
When Ryan got the call, he couldn’t speak for nearly a minute. “Is she okay?” he finally asked. When the officer replied yes, he broke down in tears — the kind that come from both grief and relief.
The Reunion
Father and daughter reunited days later. Kayla, now fifteen, looked older and guarded, but when she saw him, she whispered, “Dad.”
He wrapped her in his arms, and the world seemed to fall away. Six years of loss disappeared in that single moment.
Meanwhile, Heather Unbehaun was arrested and charged with kidnapping. She was initially held in Asheville before being transferred to Illinois, where she remains in custody without bail. Authorities have not shared full details about how she managed to hide for so long, only that they moved frequently and lived under false identities.
Police credited both the Unsolved Mysteries episode and the attentiveness of the woman who recognized Kayla. “Public awareness made this possible,” said Asheville police spokesperson Samantha Booth. “Someone paying attention changed everything.”
Healing After the Storm
For Kayla, the road home isn’t simple. Experts say children abducted by a parent often face emotional confusion and conflicting loyalties. Ryan has handled the reunion quietly, asking for privacy.
In a short statement through the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, he said:
“For years, I prayed for this moment. Kayla is home, and that’s all that matters. We’re just asking for compassion and space as we rebuild our lives.”
The case reignited national attention on parental abduction, a crime that affects more families than many realize. The FBI estimates that more than 200,000 children are taken by a parent or relative each year in the U.S. Most are found, but some never return home.
“These kids don’t just go missing,” one investigator explained. “They grow up under false stories — believing a version of life that isn’t real. Bringing them home is just the first step. Healing takes far longer.”
Coming Home
Kayla is now back in Illinois, surrounded by relatives, friends, and counselors helping her adjust. Neighbors who remember her as a bright little girl say seeing her again feels surreal.
“She used to draw chalk hearts on the sidewalk,” one neighbor recalled. “You can’t get those years back — but thank God she’s home.”
The house that once echoed with silence is full again — music, laughter, footsteps, life.
Ryan doesn’t talk much about anger or revenge. When asked what kept him going all those years, his answer was simple:
“You don’t stop being a father just because someone disappears. You keep hoping. You keep searching. And if you’re lucky, one day, hope answers back.”
For Ryan, that hope did — thanks to one stranger who refused to ignore her instincts late one night.
Kayla’s story is no longer about loss. It’s about the endurance of love, the power of awareness, and the unbreakable faith of a parent who refused to give up.
Because sometimes, finding what’s lost isn’t about chance — it’s about never letting go of the belief that, no matter how long it takes, love will find its way home.