The Girl in a Swing

On a business trip to Copenhagen, Alan Desland hires Karin Foster as his secretary. He is immediately drawn to her quiet sensitivity and guarded charm, and their professional relationship hints at something more intimate. The encounter sets the stage for a rapidly developing romance.

Karin confesses her love for Alan, and they decide to marry before they depart Copenhagen. The confession deepens their bond and signals a swift, all‑consuming romance. Their plans move from attraction to commitment in a short time.

Back in England, Alan's mother voices worry that they know little about Karin's background. The uneasy doubt lingers as their relationship progresses. Alan begins to question whether the romance hides dangerous secrets.

Alan begins noticing Karin's strange behaviors, including a fear of the sound of children and a fear of the dark. These quirks hint at a hidden trauma or past. He wonders what he has truly married into.

During a holiday to the United States, Karin refuses to marry in a church and they wed in a civil ceremony in Florida. The marriage feels unusual and secretive from the start. The couple's legal union becomes a turning point in the unfolding mystery.

On their Florida honeymoon, they swim in a lake where Karin oddly sees a body beneath the water that Alan identifies as a log. The moment unsettles both of them and foreshadows darker undercurrents. Their honeymoon becomes a journey into Karin's enigmatic world.

Returning to England, Karin charms Alan's social circle with discussions of philosophy and religion. Alan shares concerns with his vicar friend about forgiveness and the limits of absolution. The couple's outward life masks deeper tension.

Karin wins a rare statuette of a girl in a swing at auction, and Alan authenticates it as valued over £200,000. The prize becomes a symbol of Karin's perceived innocence and the stakes of their union. The moment intertwines wealth, art, and potential secrets.

Impotence on their wedding night gives way to an unbridled sexuality as Karin openly explores their physical relationship. Conversations with Alan and the vicar hint at her belief in a pagan sense of love that transcends Christian doctrine. The couple's intimacy deepens the bond while blurring moral lines.

Karin's pregnancy brings joy but is shadowed by visions of a green tortoise toy and a child's voice on the phone. The couple senses that something unspeakable lies beneath their happiness. The tension builds as the signs of Karin's past surface.

Karin is disturbed by a sermon on the commandment against killing. At the communion railing she takes the Eucharist in her hand but does not receive it and collapses. Alan's quiet reassurance that the past is behind them is met with her stark reply that nothing is past.

A violent storm erupts as the couple hears a child crying in the garden and finds a doll face down in the water fountain. Alan discovers a receipt for a green tortoise toy, implying Karin bought it for a daughter predating their marriage. The mystery tightens and threatens the fragile illusion of normalcy.

They drive to the beach where Karin performs a baptismal gesture in the surf and tells Alan she knows what she did. She removes her clothes, hands him her wedding ring, and they make love on the beach as the waves crash over them. She faints in his arms, sealing a grim revelation.

In the hospital, Alan watches over Karin as she whispers in German that she had no pity. Doctors reveal she died from an ectopic pregnancy and that she had previously given birth. At the inquest, an apparition of Karin appears in a hooded cloak, and Alan breaks down, realizing his careless words helped drive the tragedy.

Haunted by his earlier words and choices, Alan returns to a quiet house where he hears Karin in the garden. He goes outside and finds her waiting on the swing, suggesting that her presence lingers beyond death. The ending underscores the consequences of trying to keep life tidy and predictable.