Harold Prochaska wakes in his house in the country one night to the sound of coyote howls. For a moment, neither Harold nor his wife can identify the noise. Even after his wife goes back to sleep, Harold stays awake. He thinks about the coyotes and wonders what would have happened if his life had been threatened. After this incident, Harold often finds himself awake at night, paranoid that he or his wife is in danger. When this happens, he always checks to see if his wife is still breathing. Harold reflects on his life. He remembers his first days as a journalist at the Hartford Courant, where he worked for forty-nine years before his retirement. He loved his job in the newsroom, and when he left work, he felt invisible. At this point in his life, Harold realizes that he can do practically anything he wants and hardly anyone would notice. Ultimately, he feels that he has led a good life. Harold has been married to his wife for sixty years, and they have been happy together. He is terrified of dying, however, and this frustrates him, as he feels that he should have come to terms with death by now. When Harold sees a coyote outside his window with a cat in its mouth, he begins to think of the coyote as death itself. One night, Harold wakes up from a nightmare to a loud, horrible sound. Unable to move or breathe, for a moment Harold believes that he is dying. It turns out to be only the sound of the coyotes. Harold's wife is out of bed, and she yells at the animals to stop howling.