The Beast Within

Willow is ten years old and lives on a farm with her parents, Noah (Kit Harington) and Imogen (Ashleigh Cummings) and her grandfather, Waylon. She’s awoken at dawn by the sounds of commotion, her mother is calling for help. She creeps out of her bedroom and peer’s downstairs. She can just about make out her father’s naked body being dragged inside by Imogen and Waylon. Life on the farm isn’t always easy; Willow suffers with extreme asthma but helps where she can. She’s a resilient and intelligent young girl and keeps herself busy with art projects. She likes to get stuck in, caring for the animals, helping Mum around the house, even learning to drive on the clear country roads. However, since that morning things on the farm haven’t been the same and Willow often takes to hiding in her wardrobe to block out the sounds of her parents shouting at one another. It becomes clear to Willow that her parents are hiding something, after a failed attempt to get her mother to open up, Willow’s curiosity is piqued, so she decides to take matters into her own hands. The next time her father and mother disappear into the truck, she follows them, deep into the woods… She treads carefully behind them, further and further into the dense trees, further and further from civilization. Eventually she reaches a ruin, thick crumbling bricks, and a large iron gate, she clambers up and peers through a gap in the wall. Her face turns white, her breath begins to tighten, her throat closing -- she looks around in panic, she needs her oxygen tank, but she’s deep in the woods and far from home. She gasps and screams, alerting Imogen of her presence. Imogen springs into action, racing back towards the farm. What Willow has seen weighs heavy on the family, and Waylon makes a desperate attempt to keep his granddaughter safe, resulting in a family feud in which Waylon is ordered to leave the farm. Noah decides to come clean to his daughter. Through Noah’s emotional unveiling, Willow comes to realise that the real monster they are hiding from, is him. Despite Noah and Imogen’s best efforts, the inevitable happens and Imogen, Willow and Waylon must run for their lives before Willow is forced to do what her mother never could.