An investigation into the circumstances surrounding Sophia Cover’s disappearance remains ongoing

NEED TO KNOW

After a 16-year-old girl was found safe after she disappeared in the middle of the night, her dad says they’ll find a way back to regular life now that she’s back home.

“Her and me are just going to start over,” Rick Cover tells PEOPLE after flying from New Jersey to their home in Golden Gate Estates, Fla., with his daughter Sophia. “We’re going to figure things out and go from there.”

Almost two weeks earlier, the teen left their house in the middle of the night on July 31.

Surveillance footage reviewed by ABC affiliate WZVN showed Sophia leaving her house on 62nd Avenue Northeast while wearing a dark hoodie and backpack. She was found safe about a week later, which police announced without sharing any additional details.

What prompted the teen to leave home, as well as what happened in the days before she was found, has not been publicly shared, but the family has previously said they did not believe she would run away.

Speaking with PEOPLE, Rick — a 54-year-old consultant and a dad of 9 — said he “got a pretty good understanding of what happened and how it happened,” but went on to note that he’s unable to go into additional detail due to the ongoing investigation.

When reached for comment, a spokesperson for the Collier County Sheriff’s Office had no further updates about the case, but did confirm that after Sophia was found, she was released back into her father’s custody.

When his daughter was missing, Rick tells PEOPLE that he and his girlfriend, Nana, put in 18-hour days looking for Sophia.

While he communicated with investigators and helped look through the teen’s social media and phone records, Nana posted on his social media accounts to raise awareness of her disappearance. They even created a video series featuring family members and friends pleading for Sophia’s safe return.

In one emotional video, the 16-year-old girl’s great-grandmother spoke out.

“Sophia, this is Grandma. I love you, I love you, I love you,” said the elderly woman in a video posted on social media. “Please, come home. I want to see you again. Okay?”

When Rick finally received a call from a detective that his daughter had been found safe, he was overcome with emotion.

“She goes, ‘We got her,’ ” remembers Rick of the call on Aug. 10. “And I lost my s— and started crying.”

The next day, he was on a plane to pick up his daughter in New Jersey after the FBI located her. Twenty-three hours later, the pair was back home in Florida, which Rick says is an “amazing” feeling.

“I know my daughter’s safe. She’s with us now,” he says.

The rest of their large, blended family — which includes children from Rick’s previous relationships, Nana’s two children and their son together, 1-year-old Mason — is ecstatic to have her back, too.

When Sophia first returned home, she surprised her two youngest siblings at after-school pickup, her dad says. Later that night, the family celebrated with a swim in the pool and a movie.

Now that she’s home, Rick says he’s determined to help his daughter ease back into “life as normal,” especially since they’re still adjusting to living in Florida. (They moved to the area about five months ago to be closer to Rick’s 8-year-old daughter, Sophia’s sister.)

“I just want to get her back to a routine and put her back in a good life,” says Rick, who plans on taking Sophia to therapy appointments that were recommended by the Florida Department of Children and Families.

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

Days after the father and daughter returned to Florida, Rick shared a statement from their family’s attorney, Brian Fritz.

“The Cover family is extremely grateful to the FBI, Collier County Sheriff’s Department, and all the law enforcement officials for their efforts in finding their daughter, Sophia, and bringing her home safely,” Fritz said in the statement shared on Rick’s Facebook page.

“The family’s primary focus now is on Sophia’s well-being. They await the conclusion of the authorities’ full investigation,” he continued. “There will be a time to address this matter more fully. For now, the family respectfully asks for privacy, compassion, and understanding as they work through this difficult time.”