Erica Hayes loved her idyllic upbringing in rural Missouri.
The youngest of five kids, Hayes fondly remembers family outings with her mother and father.
“My mom and dad were always so happy,” said Hayes, a 41-year-old truck driver.
“We would all go hunting, fishing, camping. I love that part of my childhood.”
Then, in an instant, Hayes’ memories of her childhood turned dark.
Her mom, Alice Uden, was arrested on Sept. 26 for the murder of her third husband nearly 40 years ago in Wyoming.
And, if that weren’t startling enough, Hayes’ stepdad, Gerald Uden, was busted a short time later for allegedly killing his ex-wife and his two adopted daughters in Wyoming in 1980.
Hayes said she’s struggling to reconcile her pleasant childhood memories with the shocking revelations that her folks could be coldblooded killers.
“It’s the most bizarre feeling in the world to find out your parents are different people. But at the same time, they’re still the people I love.”
Gerald Uden, 71, pleaded guilty to three counts of murder and was sentenced to life behind bars.
Alice Uden, 74, remains in custody, suspected of killing ex-hubby Ronald Holtz, 25, in either 1974 or 1975. She will go on trial next month in Wyoming.
Hayes said she found out about her mom’s possible crime in 2004, when Alice Uden went to Catholic confession and came out shaken. “She sat me down and said she had killed someone . . . ‘I did do this,’ ” Hayes quoted her mom.
“She said Holtz was abusive and threatened to kill both of us and she did it to protect me. She was very calm until she saw the panic in my face. She started crying and then wrapped me up in her arms and told me, ‘Whatever happens, happens.’ ”