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Eunice Parchman was a quiet and strange woman who worked as a housekeeper. She came to work for the Coverdale family, who lived in a big house called Lowfield Hall. The family included George Coverdale, a kind and polite man, his wife Jacqueline, and their two children, Melinda and Giles. They were a wealthy and educated family, living a comfortable life in the countryside. When Eunice arrived, she seemed shy and simple, but she did her work well, keeping to herself and never asking for much. The Coverdales thought she was just a little odd but harmless.
No one in the Coverdale family knew Eunice’s secret. She could not read or write. This secret controlled her whole life. She had learned to hide it carefully, fearing shame and humiliation if anyone found out. Eunice believed that people would look down on her if they knew the truth. Her fear made her distrust others and kept her distant. When she had to fill out forms or read notes, she always found excuses. The Coverdales never suspected anything; they just thought she was quiet and private. But inside, Eunice was always anxious, terrified someone would discover her illiteracy.
Eunice lived in a small, messy cottage near the village. She had no real friends, but one day, she met a woman named Joan Smith, who worked at the local post office. Joan was very religious but also bitter and suspicious of others. She believed everyone around her was sinful and wicked. Over time, Eunice and Joan became close friends, even though they were very different. Joan was loud and forceful, while Eunice was quiet and secretive. Still, they found comfort in each other’s company. Joan didn’t care about Eunice’s strange ways, and Eunice liked that Joan never asked her to read or write anything.
Joan often complained about the wealthy families in the area, especially the Coverdales. She said rich people were arrogant and corrupt. Her words filled Eunice’s mind with jealousy and resentment. Joan’s influence made Eunice’s bitterness grow stronger. Together, they began to talk badly about the Coverdales, imagining that the family looked down on Eunice. In truth, the Coverdales were kind to her, but Eunice and Joan twisted everything in their minds, turning simple actions into insults. Their friendship became darker and full of anger toward others.
At Lowfield Hall, Eunice continued working quietly. She listened carefully to every word the family said, storing their habits and routines in her mind. She often spied on them when they weren’t looking. Once, Jacqueline Coverdale tried to teach Eunice to use the television’s remote control, but Eunice panicked when she realized there were written instructions. She quickly made up an excuse and left the room. Jacqueline thought she was just shy and didn’t want to embarrass her by pushing further. Eunice felt a mix of relief and hatred — relief that her secret was still safe, and hatred for being treated kindly by people she thought despised her.
One day, the Coverdales received a note from Melinda’s teacher. Jacqueline asked Eunice to read it aloud, but Eunice froze. She mumbled something and pretended to have a headache. Jacqueline apologized for troubling her and read it herself. This moment terrified Eunice. She thought her secret was almost discovered. That night, she met Joan and told her about the incident. Joan became furious, saying that the Coverdales had tried to humiliate her on purpose. Her words poured poison into Eunice’s mind. Together, they decided that the family needed to be punished.
As days passed, Eunice and Joan’s thoughts became more dangerous. They started talking about revenge. Joan often quoted the Bible in twisted ways, saying that evil people deserved to be destroyed. Eunice listened and began to believe it. She felt that she had been mistreated all her life, laughed at by those who could read and write. She thought the Coverdales were part of that world — the educated people who made her feel small. Slowly, her fear turned into anger, and her anger into hatred. She and Joan began to plan something terrible.
On a cold February day, the Coverdales prepared to celebrate Melinda’s birthday. The house was full of laughter, music, and warmth. Jacqueline had baked a cake, and George had set up a video recorder to capture the celebration. They invited a few friends, and everyone was happy. Eunice acted as usual, calm and silent, serving food and cleaning up. No one could imagine what was going through her mind. She had already made up her decision. Later that evening, when everyone was asleep, Eunice called Joan. Together, they decided that the time had come.
The next day, Joan came to Lowfield Hall while the family was out. The two women made sure everything was ready. They brought a gun that Joan had stolen from her brother’s house. When the family returned home in the evening, they were tired from their outing. Jacqueline and George went to the living room, while Melinda and Giles went upstairs. Eunice pretended everything was normal. She served tea and smiled faintly. Then she went to the door and let Joan in quietly. The two women whispered to each other, their faces hard and cold. Joan clutched the gun tightly.
Without warning, Eunice and Joan began their dreadful act. Joan shouted that they were punishing sinners, and before the family could understand what was happening, she fired the gun. George fell first, then Jacqueline tried to protect her children, but Eunice blocked her way. In minutes, the house that had been full of laughter turned into a place of horror. Melinda screamed and tried to hide, but Eunice showed no mercy. When it was over, all four members of the Coverdale family were dead. The television was still on, and the video recorder captured the entire scene.
Afterward, Eunice and Joan sat in silence. The sound of the television filled the room. They didn’t seem to understand what they had done. Eunice felt strangely calm, as if a great burden had been lifted. Joan prayed aloud, thanking God for helping them “remove the wicked.” Then they left the house, locking the door behind them. They believed they had done something righteous, not realizing the horror of their actions. But their calmness didn’t last long. The next morning, police officers arrived at the house after a neighbor reported that something was wrong. What they found shocked everyone.
The police discovered the Coverdales’ bodies and the video tape that showed everything. The recording revealed the entire crime — every sound, every word, every face. It was clear who had done it. Eunice and Joan were arrested the same day. When questioned, Eunice showed no emotion. She didn’t cry or try to explain herself. She said she didn’t know why people were making such a fuss. Joan, however, shouted at the police, saying she had done nothing wrong and that the Coverdales had been evil. The calm cruelty of their crime shocked the entire country.
During the trial, people tried to understand why Eunice and Joan had done it. The truth about Eunice’s illiteracy came out, and everyone realized that her inability to read or write had shaped her whole life. It had filled her with shame, fear, and anger until it finally exploded into violence. Joan’s influence had made it worse, feeding her hatred with poisonous words. The two women sat side by side in the courtroom, silent and expressionless, while the judge described their act as senseless and cruel. The court found them both guilty, and they were sentenced to prison for life.
Even in prison, Eunice remained quiet and withdrawn. She never admitted regret. When asked if she hated the Coverdales, she said she didn’t hate them — they just didn’t understand her. Joan continued to call herself righteous, saying she had acted under divine instruction. The two women never accepted responsibility for what they had done. They believed they were victims of a world that judged them unfairly. Over time, they became symbols of cold, hidden evil — the kind that grows slowly inside ordinary people who feel rejected and angry at life.
The tragedy at Lowfield Hall became one of the most shocking cases people could remember. It showed how ignorance and isolation could twist a person’s heart. Eunice had never been truly evil; she had been frightened and ashamed, but her fear turned into something monstrous. Her secret — the simple inability to read — became a wall that separated her from the rest of the world. Instead of asking for help, she chose hatred and revenge. Joan’s warped beliefs gave her the push she needed to turn her anger into destruction. Together, they created a nightmare out of a peaceful home.
Years later, people still talked about the Coverdale case. Teachers used it as an example of how education and understanding could change lives. Policemen remembered the quiet face of Eunice, who killed the people that trusted her most. Journalists wrote about how one secret could destroy everything. And in the prison where Eunice spent the rest of her life, she stayed silent, her eyes cold and distant. She never learned to read, and perhaps never wanted to. The story of Eunice Parchman remained a chilling reminder that fear, shame, and ignorance can sometimes lead even the quietest person to do the darkest things.