Death in the Woods is a story about Mrs. Grimes, a poor woman who lives on the edge of town with her family. The story is told by an unreliable narrator who believes that Mrs. Grimes was mistreated by her masters when she was an indentured servant and then ran away with Jake Grime, a man whom the townspeople mistrust. One day she goes to town to buy some food and, on her return trip through the woods, dies. A hunter, the narrator and his brother retrieve the body.