Taibele is married to Chaim Nossen. The couple had three children, who all died in infancy. Grief stricken, Taibele's husband packs up and leaves for Lublin. He never returns. The town scoundrel, Alchonen, hears that she's been abandoned and sneaks into her bedroom one night. Frightened, she asks him to identify himself, and he tells her he is the demon Hurmizah. Alchnen threatens and cajoles Taibele into having sex with him and departs, something he continues to do every Wednesday and Saturday.
Over time, Alchonen gets sick and starts to weaken. Taibele offers to help him, but he refuses since demons aren't supposed to need human assistance. One day, Taibele sees a corpse being hauled through the streets for burial, with its feet sticking out. In addition, her demon lover stops visiting her. She follows Alchonon's corpse to burial and reflects that he must have been as lonely as she.
The Collected Stories of Isaac Bashevis Singer
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