hyder simpson is an elderly mountain man who lives with his wife rachel and his hound dog rip in the backwoods. rachel does not like having the dog indoors, but rip saved hyder's life once and hyder refuses to part with him. rachel has seen some bad omens recently and warns hyder not to go raccoon hunting that night. when rip dives into a pond after a raccoon, hyder jumps in after him. only the raccoon comes up out of the water. the next morning, hyder and rip wake up next to the pond. when they return home, hyder finds that rachel, the preacher, and the neighbors cannot hear or see him, and are tending to the burial of both him and rip.