Alleged kidnapping victim Abigail Hernandez says she's 'better every day'

CONWAY, N.H., Aug. 1 (UPI) -- Abigail Hernandez, the New Hampshire teenager allegedly held captive for nine months, says she's "feeling better every day."

Abigail, 15, accompanied by her mother, Zenya Hernandez, stopped by her local newspaper, the Conway Daily Sun, to thank its staff. The newspaper ran a box every day with Abigail's picture, the number of days since she disappeared and a telephone number for the FBI, and Zenya Hernandez said the feature gave her daughter hope.

"Thank you guys, so, so much, I really appreciate it more than I could possibly put in words," Abigail said. "I'm taking it a little at a time but I'm feeling a lot better every day."

Abigail vanished Oct. 9 on her way home from Kennett High School. Nathaniel Kibby, 34, who attended Kennett in the 1990s and now lives in Gorham 30 miles to the north, was arrested this week and charged with kidnapping her.

"As sad as it was to see the days growing and increasing, we truly thank you," Zenya said. "Abby saw that off and on. She didn't see it every day. It gave her hope that people were looking."

Police have released few details about the case, and Abigail and her mother also kept away from what happened during the months she was missing.

Abigail's disappearance, her reappearance in July and the charges against Kibby have rocked Conway, a town of 10,000 on the southern edge of the White Mountain National Forest, and Gorham, an even smaller town surrounded by mountains and crossed by the Appalachian Trail.