The Moral Ambiguity of Frankie Elkin and the Pierson Sisters

Thematic Claim: The Impossibility of Pure Good or Evil

In Still See You Everywhere, Lisa Gardner constructs a world where every character—protagonist, antagonist, and supporting player—operates in shades of gray. The central moral claim is that justice, survival, and love are not clear-cut concepts; they are shaped by trauma, desperation, and circumstance. Frankie Elkin, who usually rescues the forgotten, finds herself working for a serial killer (Kaylee Pierson) and later confronting a victim who may be more manipulative than she appears (Leilani Pierson). The novel refuses to let readers settle on a simple verdict for any character, instead forcing us to sit with discomfort and uncertainty.

Three Plot Threads That Expose Moral Gray Areas

1. Frankie’s Pact with the Beautiful Butcher

From the prologue onward, Kaylee “Keahi” Pierson is presented as an unrepentant murderer who fed her victims to pigs. Yet she also embodies a fierce, broken love for her missing sister. Frankie’s initial refusal to take the case is grounded in ethical revulsion: “I refused outright, unsettled by the request.” But she relents when she realizes Lea may still be alive and held captive by Sanders MacManus. This decision forces Frankie to align her mission—saving a forgotten child—with the agenda of a serial killer. The moral ambiguity lies in the fact that Keahi’s request is both self-serving and genuinely protective. Frankie herself acknowledges the contradiction: she goes to Hawaii to “infiltrate the island posing as a bartender,” a deception that makes her complicit in a larger scheme. The line between rescuer and accomplice blurs.

2. Leilani’s Betrayal and Victimhood

The chapter 27 and 28 evidence reveals that Leilani Pierson is not merely a captive of MacManus but an active player in a plot to eliminate him. She manipulates Frankie, her sister Keahi, and the entire camp. When Frankie realizes, “She helped your sister escape. This whole thing, it’s been your plan from the very beginning,” the novel forces a reassessment. Leilani’s childhood trauma—being thrown by MacManus at age five—is real, and her desire for freedom is understandable. Yet her methods include sabotaging the plane, disabling communications, and endangering innocent researchers. She smiles “a faint curve” when Frankie uncovers the truth, revealing that her earlier tremulousness was an act. Here, Gardner complicates the archetype of the damsel in distress: Leilani is both a victim and a perpetrator. Her moral standing depends on which lens you use—survival or ethics.

3. Frankie’s Own Dark Past

The chapter 29 evidence plunges into Frankie’s history. She left her lover Paul because she could not accept a conventional life; after she relapsed and called him for help, a child with a gun killed him. Paul had accused her of being a “dry drunk,” substituting obsession with missing persons for alcohol. Frankie admits, “I don’t know any other way to live. / My name is Frankie Elkin. I go where I’m needed most, but I never stay.” Her drive to save others is indistinguishable from self-destruction. She roars “full speed ahead toward total death and destruction.” In the novel’s final chapters, she and Vaughn—both recovering alcoholics—recognize each other’s brokenness. This forces the reader to ask: Is Frankie a hero or an addict using heroic missions to avoid her own emptiness? The novel offers no neat answer.

Character and Symbol Connections

Kaylee and Leilani Pierson: Mirrors of Violence

Both sisters endured abusive father figures. Kaylee killed men to fill a void; Leilani orchestrated a lethal escape plan. The burial mound—a hidden grave on the atoll—represents the bodies their family’s violence leaves behind. The pigs and butchering that Kaylee used to dispose of victims are echoed in the research camp’s pragmatic disposal of waste; the island itself is a place where death is hidden or repurposed. Coconut crabs, scavengers that feed on carcasses, underscore the theme that nothing on this island is purely pristine—violence is woven into the ecosystem. Even Noodles the cat, a domestic comfort, exists alongside these symbols of predation.

Vaughn Austin and Charlie: Compromised Authority

Vaughn is MacManus’s loyal project manager, yet he also secretly supports Frankie and ultimately sides with the evacuees. Charlie, the engineer, turns out to be an undercover FBI agent—his lies are in service of justice, but his deception endangers everyone. Neither man is purely trustworthy. Their moral ambiguity reflects the novel’s insistence that even those who claim to uphold law or order are operating in the same fog as the criminals.

Complexity and Contradiction

The novel’s greatest moral challenge is that it makes us sympathize with a serial killer, distrust a victim, and question a hero’s motives. Kaylee’s prison confession is chilling, yet her love for Lea feels genuine. Leilani’s cruelty is strategic, yet it stems from a childhood terror that the narrative validates. Frankie’s obsession leads her to save lives, yet it also cost Paul his life and continues to risk her own. The climax—where Frankie, Vaughn, and Charlie fight to leave the island—resolves the immediate threat but leaves the moral questions open. The novel does not condemn Kaylee for her past or Leilani for her scheming; instead, it suggests that in a broken world, ethical clarity is a luxury few can afford.

Study Questions and Answers

1. Is Frankie Elkin a hero or an addict using altruism as a coping mechanism?
   Answer: Frankie herself admits she is “roaring full speed ahead toward total death and destruction.” Her need to save others is tied to her inability to confront her own trauma and alcoholism. The novel presents her as both—her actions save lives, but her motives are not purely noble. The text suggests that heroism can coexist with self-destructive drives.

2. Why does the novel make a serial killer sympathetic?
   Answer: Kaylee Pierson’s backstory of abuse and the loss of her sister humanizes her. The novel shows that her murders are a response to a void left by failed love, not random evil. By giving her a voice in the prologue, Gardner forces readers to see her as more than a monster, complicating easy judgments.

3. In what ways is Leilani Pierson both a victim and a villain?
   Answer: Leilani was abused by MacManus and lost her childhood, making her a victim. Yet she manipulates Frankie, disables the island’s communications, and risks everyone’s safety to achieve her goal. The novel does not absolve her; it shows that trauma can produce moral agency that harms innocents.

4. How do the pigs and coconut crabs symbolize moral ambiguity?
   Answer: The pigs consume human remains, turning murder into a mundane act of feeding. The crabs scavenge anything dead. Together, they represent the way violence is absorbed into a natural cycle. Good and evil are not separate; they are digested and repurposed, just as the characters’ justifications blend with their crimes.

5. What does the ending suggest about Frankie’s future with Vaughn?
   Answer: Frankie and Vaughn agree to spend time together in Hawaii, but Frankie admits she “never stays.” The ending—a dream of running on a beach—implies she will continue her restless pattern. The moral ambiguity of her character remains unresolved: she finds connection but cannot commit to a stable life, leaving her journey open-ended.