The narrator recounts an unsettling experience with a mysterious and beautiful woman named Mohini. He first meets her in the forest, where he saves her from a man attempting to harm her. As she stays with him and his family, he becomes increasingly infatuated with her, but also begins to notice strange and disturbing occurrences.
It eventually becomes clear that Mohini is a supernatural being who preys on children. The narrator discovers her true nature and is horrified by what he finds in the basement of his home. In a fit of rage, he kills Mohini and buries her in the forest.
However, as the story concludes, it becomes clear that the narrator is now under Mohini's spell, and that he is doomed to repeat the cycle of violence and infatuation with her. The ending is left ambiguous, with the narrator seemingly trapped in a supernatural loop, forever bound to Mohini's dark powers.
Here are the key facts from the text:
1. The narrator, his wife, and their one-year-old child went to a farmhouse with a dense forest behind it.
2. The farmhouse had a basement with a hidden door.
3. The narrator went hunting in the forest and encountered a man with an ax and a woman in a black saree.
4. The narrator shot the man, who was threatening the woman, and helped the woman to safety.
5. The woman, who was introduced as Mohini, stayed with the narrator and his family.
6. Mohini wore black sarees and mostly kept to herself, but the narrator became infatuated with her.
7. The narrator's wife became suspicious of his behavior around Mohini.
8. Four people came to the farmhouse, searching for missing children.
9. The narrator discovered Mohini in the basement, holding a dead child and surrounded by human remains.
10. The narrator realized that Mohini was a cannibal who had been eating children.
11. The narrator tried to kill Mohini with an ax, but she seemed to be unharmed.
12. Mohini was still alive and seemed to be smiling at the narrator.
13. The narrator was unsure what was real and what was a dream.
14. The narrator decided to kill Mohini again, but she seemed to be anticipating his actions.
15. The narrator was still unsure about Mohini's true nature and his own reality.