She Was Safe
No other information, such as an explanation of why she left school or even where she was, was provided in Lise’s response of “I’m okay.” That was frigid in a way. She never expressed gratitude to Dale for what he had done or even used the term “dad.”
He Felt Like Lost His Daughter
Dale thought he had just misplaced his daughter at that point. Over the years, he made an effort to get to know her, but he had eventually lost her and didn’t know why! It took him some time to realize his error, and it was another 16 years before he finally spoke to Lise.