THANKFULLY, few of us will ever have to endure the pain of a loved one simply vanishing.
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Many parents go through the heartache of seeing a child die before them, and the crippling grief of having to bury their own.
But at least those parents have some comfort in the chance to say goodbye, the chance to tell their child one last time that they love them, and the chance to visit that child’s resting place as the years roll on.
Ricki Small has never had that comfort.
When she last saw her daughter Jessica, she was a fresh-faced 15-year-old trying to find her way in this world. When she last saw Jessica, she had no reason to believe she would have to wait long to see her again.
Almost 17 years on, though, Ricki Small knows that moment is never going to come.
Jessica has not been seen since she was abducted from Bathurst in October 1997 after accepting a ride from the wrong person.
What happened in the minutes, hours, days, months and years after that fateful decision will again be the focus of an inquest continuing this week at Bathurst Court House.
Police investigating the long-running mystery have made significant breakthroughs in recent years but still so much remains unanswered.
Hopefully, this week will bring at least a few more answers for the Bathurst community and for Ricki Small.
The disappearance of Jessica Small and, four years later, Janine Vaughan, remain terrible stains on this city’s history.
An inquest into Janine Vaughan’s disappearance and presumed murder returned an open finding that provided no real comfort for her grieving family and friends.
Jessica Small’s family and friends – and particularly her mother – must be praying the same does not happen this time around.