Fear of Frying

middle-aged crazies. That I ought to see a shrink, except it would be a waste of money. Sam wasn’t—“ Her voice caught. “Sam wasn’t a very loving person. Not affectionate. But he wasn’t nasty like that. I was stunned by it. That’s how I knew that he’d been upset about being watched before I ever mentioned it. The only other thing it could have been—“ She stopped.
    “What’s the other thing?“ Taylor asked.
    “It’s so stupid. I thought maybe Sam was the one spying on me. Or somebody he’d hired was doing it. Men his age sometimes get tired of their wives. And it crossed my mind that he might be trying to—to `get’ something on me he could use to divorce me. Something like an affair that he could use against me. Sam...“ She paused and drew a long breath and sat up very straight as if to brace herself against her own words. “Sam didn’t really like me very much, you see. I’m not sure he liked anybody. But I really bored him. I think he only married me because I was pretty when I was a girl. And he wanted a family. Children. When we realized—a long time ago—that I’d never have any babies, he just lost interest.”
    Jane could almost hear her heart breaking for Marge. Such a terrible admission.
    “He wouldn’t let me get a job,“ Marge said. “He felt it would reflect badly on him. Make people think the car dealership wasn’t successful...“ Her voice trailed off.
    “When did Henry plan on approaching your husband directly?“ the sheriff asked.
    “I don’t know. You’ll have to ask him. Where is he?“
    “I don’t know yet. I have my people out looking for him now.“
    “Henry will tell you everything. He meant no harm, he was just nervous about how Sam would act when they met. It was terribly important to him that they get off on the right footing.“
    “And did they ever meet?“ Taylor asked.
    “No,“ Marge said with a shuddering breath. “Not alive. Henry found out about us coming up here to look over the camp. There was a little article in the local paper about this committee, you see. He managed to arrive a day earlier, hide his car, and set up a tent out in the woods somewhere.“
    “Why?“ Jane asked.
    Marge shrugged. “I don’t know. You’ll have to ask him. I guess he was just in the habit of watching Sam, maybe wanting to see what he was like when he was away from work. I don’t know. He was in the woods that night—“
    “The night your husband was killed? The second night you were here?”
    Marge nodded. “Couldn’t you feel it? That we were being watched from the woods?“ she inquired of Jane, who made noncommittal noises. “Sam stayed back after the rest of us left. He didn’t tell me why. Well... I didn’t ask, to tell the truth. I was so uneasy myself that all I wanted to do was get to the cabin. Henry didn’t say so, but I think he might have come out of the woods then and introduced himself, except that someone else came back.“
    “Who?“ Jane and the sheriff said at once. This time he made a rude shushing gesture at her.
    “I don’t know. Henry wouldn’t tell me. He said I was better off not knowing until—“ She started sobbing again.
    “Until what?“ Taylor asked when her crying subsided slightly.
    “Until he could prove what he’d seen.“
    “And what did he see?“
    “He won’t tell me. But he’ll tell you. I know he will. He was only trying to protect me. He just told me he saw someone return and—and kill Sam.”
    The cabin was eerily silent for a long moment.
    “Why didn’t either of you just tell me this at the time?“ Taylor said.
    “Because I was afraid you’d blame Henry,“ Marge said. “Henry wanted to tell you. He knows who killed Sam, but he said the person had on gloves. That there would be no fingerprints on that frying pan.“
    “Did he say if it was a man or woman?”
    Marge shook her head. “He was careful not to. But he’ll tell you now. Now that Sam’s been found.“
    “How did the body disappear?“ Jane asked.
    “Oh, Henry hid it and took Sam’s clothes. He said the person who killed Sam would be so shocked at finding ‘Sam’ was still alive that he or she would get panicked, give himself or herself away.“
    “When did you find this out?“ Taylor asked.
    “Almost right away. Henry hid the body and came to this cabin. When he came in, I thought he was Sam. He was wearing Sam’s clothes, you see. And his voice was the same. He said he had something very important to tell