The Corruption of Chris Miller

Ruth discovers a drifter sleeping in the barn and, with her husband away, allows him to stay in the home for a short time. She remains wary but pragmatic, treating his stay as a temporary arrangement. The quiet rhythm of the rural house is unsettled by this unfamiliar presence.

Barney is allowed to stay and work as a handyman on the property, and Ruth grows curious about him. He begins to charm Ruth while also setting his sights on Chris. The arrangement creates tension as the two women weigh the risks of his presence.

Barney begins to pursue Chris, while also flirting with Ruth. Chris remains fragile due to her recent trauma, and Barney's presence intensifies the uneasy mood in the house. The dynamic between the three of them grows complicated and dangerous.

Storms and running water trigger Chris's traumatic memories of her rape, sending her into a dissociative, violent state. The distress is painful and destabilizing, affecting her perception of those around her.

Barney witnesses Chris's flashback in the basement during the rainstorm, observing her from a vulnerable, altered state. The moment plants seeds of suspicion and fear about what is happening in the house.

Ruth blames Barney for Chris's violent episode and orders him to leave the house at gunpoint. The confrontation clears the space, but the undercurrent of danger remains as the drifter departs into the night.

A mysterious man in a black rain shawl arrives at a nearby farm and steals a sickle from the barn. The boy at the farm mistakes him for a monk and unlocks the door for him, allowing a brutal murder to unfold as the killer slaughters the family.

The following morning, Ruth and Chris see news footage of the farm murders and immediately suspect Barney as the killer. Their fear about his presence escalates as they try to make sense of the events.

Barney breaks into the Millers' home and Ruth alarmed, Chris investigates. A flashback drives Chris to stab Barney in the back, and Ruth joins in, stabbing him multiple times. The drifter dies, and the women are left to contend with what they've done.

The women frame the murder as self-defense and begin to drive to the police. En route, they learn that Barney has been apprehended and that he was not the killer after all.

They discover Barney was recently released from prison and was an acquaintance of Chris's father. Ruth suspects that Chris's father sent him to surveil them and steal family heirlooms.

Ruth and Chris bury Barney's corpse at a construction site where a road is being built. They choose a remote location and ensure the burial is hidden as workers continue with the project.

The next morning, construction crews notice a sinkhole at the burial site and begin digging, hinting at the hidden consequences of the earlier actions. The discovery unsettles them and foreshadows exposure of the truth.