A 43-year-old North Carolina woman has pleaded guilty in the death of her stepchild, a cancer survivor, but many of the child's dismembered remains have not been found.

Elisa Baker was sentenced on Thursday to between 14 and 18 years in prison after pleading guilty to second degree murder, with which she was charged in February.

Zahra Baker, a 10-year-old who was born in Australia, was declared missing in October. Authorities conducted an extensive search for weeks, which led them to her scattered remains including a prosthetic leg a few miles from the Bakers' home in Hickory, N.C. Many of Zahra's remains, including her head, have not been found.

As police looked into Zahra's case while the search was on, several neighbors and some family relatives came forward to claim Zahra was mentally and physically abused by her stepmother.

Elisa also pleaded guilty to charges of obstruction of justice, as she admitted writing a ransom note to support her initial claim that Zahra had been abducted.

The Hickory Daily Record reported that Elisa told authorities Zahra died on Sept. 24, 2010, over two weeks before she was reported missing. Elisa testified that she tried CPR after finding Zahra unresponsive in her room. And then she called her husband Adam Baker, whom she later accused of dismembering his own child. Authorities were not able to prove Elisa's allegations.

The biological mother of Zahra, Emily Deitrich, flew in from Australia for the hearing. She begged Elisa to help them find the rest of the child's remains.

"I feel there will be no real justice for Zahra," Emily told ABC news.

"Her life was taken by an evil selfishness ... Part of Zahra is still out there... What I truly want to see is Zahra be given the dignity and respect she deserves."

Adam was not immediately ruled out in the murder of his child, as he issued conflicting statements on when he last saw Zahra. While he is facing criminal charges unrelated to the murder that include identity theft and obtaining property under false pretenses, Adam maintained innocence in the death of his child.

Asked by ABC for a message to Elisa, Adam said, "If at any time you actually cared for Zahra, please tell us where we can find any more of Zahra's remains so she can be laid to rest."