The Hidden Truth

The Hidden Truth

By Patti Vargas

I met Darcy Alexander when she became a volunteer at the Food Pantry where I work. She was a lovely dark-haired young woman with beautiful green eyes and a charming personality.

I found her to be very patient and kind to the people who came in. Most were truly in need of the food that we provide to low-income families. But there were others who are demanding and ask for more than the amount provided. Darcy managed them firmly, but kindly. I was impressed with her manner.

We chatted during our lunch break. She told me that she was recently widowed. She and her husband were travelling back home from a vacation. She was pregnant. She said they were so happy, they had just found out that they were going to have a baby boy.

She said that they were discussing names for him, and she was looking at her phone and googling ideas. They were both excited and laughing. They did not see the truck heading toward them in the wrong direction. They realized that it wasn’t the truck that was in the wrong lane, it was them. Her husband had veered over because he wasn’t paying attention. He quickly turned to the correct lane, but it was too late. The truck driver tried to stop before the truck slammed into them and dragged their car backwards. Her husband was killed instantly. She was brought to the hospital injured and bleeding profusely. She had a broken leg and a broken arm; numerous cuts and bruises and she lost the baby.

She said that this is why she decided to volunteer. To take her mind off the tragic loss of her husband and son. She thought helping other people would help her to recover.

My heart went out to her, and I gave her a hug and told her to let me know if I could help her in any way. She asked me to pray for her. I prayed with her and told her that I would have my Ladies Bible Study Group pray as well.

The next day I saw her talking to Jeff, our good-looking truck driver. I was glad to see that she was getting to know the rest of the staff. Over the next few days, she mingled with other staff members and volunteers. She was getting along well, and they liked her. But often it was Jeff she was talking to.

A couple of weeks later we had lunch break together again. She told me that her and Jeff had started seeing each other. I thought Wow that’s great. Jeff is a nice guy and I’m sure he will treat her well. I hoped they would get along and that a relationship with him would help her to get over her losses.

I also saw her being very friendly with some of the men who came in. sometimes putting her arm around them, caressing their cheek, or rubbing their back or shoulder. I knew that she was a caring person, but I kept my eye on her. I really wondered if those actions were appropriate.

One day I saw a news clip about one of our male clients, he was found dead from an overdose. I was surprised because he didn’t seem to be the type to take drugs. He was a veteran, and he had a job. He wasn’t a bum.

As the weeks passed by, she spent more time with Jeff. She would tell me about the places they went to and the things they did. She seemed to be very happy.

Not long after that she came in one day with a beautiful engagement ring. Jeff had proposed to her the night before. They hadn’t set a date yet, but she would let me know when they did.

I invited her and Jeff to my home for dinner the following week. I had told my husband about her and mentioned many times how much I liked her. I told him about Jeff. Now I told him that they were engaged and that I had invited them for dinner on Saturday.

When they arrived, I introduced them to my husband Tom. Jeff shook his hand. But Darcy kissed him, on the lips. I was not very happy about that, but I let it go. Tom seemed a little taken aback but said nothing. Jeff said nothing but he didn’t look very happy.

It was a pleasant evening. We enjoyed dinner then we went out and sat on the deck and talked about Darcy and Jeff’s plans to get married. She said that she would like to do it very soon. I noticed that during the evening she was eyeing Tom and smiling at him a lot. I thought maybe I was making too much of it or that I was imagining it, but when they were leaving, she wrapped her arms around Tom’s neck and kissed him again.

We had been drinking wine, but I didn’t think we had had enough to make her intoxicated. No one else seemed to be. Tom pulled away and I lost it.” What the hell do you think you’re doing?” I said. Poor Jeff looked angry. She said, “Oh I’m just being friendly and thankful for a fun evening.” “Listen you little bitch that’s being a little too friendly. Get your ass out of here and I will never invite you to my home again” I said. “I really liked you and I thought you were a decent person, but I guess I was wrong.” She said, “this is your home?” I thought it was Tom’s.

After they left, I was still fuming. Tom said “calm down honey, maybe the wine affected her more than us. After all I am irresistible,” he laughed.

When I saw her the next day at work she apologized. She said “I don’t know what came over me. Maybe it was the wine, and I did take medication. Maybe I shouldn’t drink at all.” I asked her how Jeff felt about what happened. She said that he wasn’t very happy, and they had a little “disagreement” over it.

A little later I saw another news clip. Another one of our clients was found dead from an overdose. Again, I was surprised. He was a single Dad who worked to support and raise his son.

Occasionally I would mention her to Jeff. I told him that I was happy that they found each other and that they were getting along so well. He said that he was happy too.

However, one day he said that he wasn’t so sure about her anymore. He said that she’s always wanting him to spend money on her and since he was now her fiancé, she wanted him to give her access to his bank account in case she needed something, and he wasn’t around to give her money. He said that since they were going to get married, he asked her to move in with him to save money. She said that it wasn’t appropriate in God’s eyes. He also said that some nights he didn’t see her. She said that she had plans with girlfriends, whom by the way he had never met.

I was beginning to get suspicious. I didn’t think she was the person that I thought she was. So, I began watching her more closely. She continued cozying up to certain men.

Then one day there was another news clip regarding another of our male clients who died from an overdose. This one was married but was out of work and looking for a job. He seemed to be a respectful, responsible person. As a matter of fact, he had asked me not too long ago if we had any job openings.

I felt bad for the families and children of these men. Why was this happening? Then I started thinking and remembering that they were some of the ones that Darcy had been cozying up to.

Could she possibly have anything to do with this? I didn’t want to believe that it was possible, so I asked her if she had heard about their deaths. She said yes, she had, and she felt really bad because she had gotten to know them outside of the Food Pantry. She said that she had run into one of them while shopping and went out for coffee with him. Another she saw at her church. He was the one who was married, so she also got to know his wife and kids. She said the other one called her and asked her to meet him for coffee. Oh! But how did he get her number?

I was very suspicious, but what should I do? Just because she got friendly with them didn’t mean she would harm them.

A few days later she didn’t show up at work. I asked Jeff if she was OK. He told me that he broke up with her and she refused to give him back the ring.

He also said that he was glad that she hadn’t moved into his house and that he hadn’t given her access to his bank account. He said that he caught her putting something in his drink. When he asked her what it was, she denied doing it. He told her they were done and asked her for the ring. When she refused to give it back to him, he told her to leave. He said that she cried and said that she was sorry, but he had enough. He suspected that she was cheating on him, and he wasn’t happy with the way she was acting. She did leave and he didn’t drink the drink. He said that he had taken it to the police to have it analyzed to find out what was in it. He was waiting for the results.

Not long after, a police officer came to the food bank and asked for Jeff. I had the officer wait in my office while I went to get Jeff. When we arrived back in my office, the officer said that they found over 4 mg. of Fentanyl in the drink. A normal lethal dose is 2 mg. If he had drank it, he would have been dead in a matter of minutes.

Jeff was visibly shaken and seemed to be on the verge of tears. He said that he had really loved her, but she seemed to have changed during the last couple of months and he had a feeling that she was cheating on him.

The officer questioned me about Darcy. How long she had been volunteering and what kind of person I thought she was. I told him about her story of her husband’s death and about her relationships with the three clients who were found dead. I gave him all the information that I had on her and her address.

The next day I found out that she was arrested for attempted murder and was a suspect in the murder of the other three men. And her name wasn’t Darcy Andrews. It was Nancy Murphy. The story about her husband and the accident was untrue. There was no accident and she was not pregnant. He was another of her vicitms.

She was also a suspect in other similar murders in another state. It seems that Darcy coerced men to give her money and gifts, but when they didn’t give her what she wanted she killed them.

So, you see masks are not only for Halloween and Mardi Gras. Many people hide behind them every day. Not all are as dangerous as Darcy aka Nancy. But there are those who have something to hide.