The House That Vanished

Valerie Jennings, a London fashion model, travels with her photographer boyfriend Terry into the countryside in search of an abandoned house. Terry hopes to find something of interest to photograph, and the trip sets a tense tone from the start. The couple leaves the city behind as they pursue a mysterious project.

They locate the house at nightfall and begin to explore its dusty rooms. Valerie discovers numerous women's passports hidden in a bedroom, suggesting a dark past connected to the house. The discovery deepens the sense of danger surrounding their expedition.

A man and a woman enter the house, triggering panic. Valerie and Terry hide in a closet as the killer strikes, murdering the woman with a switchblade and washing his hands in the bathroom. Valerie flees, unaware that Terry is not following behind.

Valerie exits into the woods, pursued by the killer who drives her into an abandoned wrecking yard. She evades capture by slipping into a car and hiding inside it, leaving the killer nearby in the darkness. The night ends with her hidden and shaken.

The next day, Valerie reaches a road and sticks out her thumb, hoping to return to London. A passing driver stops and ferries her toward the city, ending the rural danger for the moment. The journey marks a shift from rural peril to urban uncertainty.

Valerie returns to her apartment and sees Terry's car parked on the street, but his whereabouts remain unknown. She discovers her modeling portfolio, with one photograph missing, hinting that Terry may be involved in something dangerous. The unresolved mystery deepens her fear and confusion.

Worried, Valerie visits her friend Mike and his girlfriend Stella for help. They urge her not to go to the police, fearing that reporting Terry could implicate her in a burglary he may have attempted. The conversation leaves her feeling isolated at a critical juncture.

During a modeling shoot, Mike introduces Valerie to Paul, a shy artist who makes masks. Paul invites Valerie to his home for dinner, where his domineering Aunt Susanna is also present. After Valerie leaves, Paul and Susanna engage in an incestuous encounter, revealing a troubling dynamic behind Paul and his family.

Valerie brings Mike and Stella back to the wrecking yard to look for Terry, hoping to find him or his car. They locate Terry's ravaged car, but the house itself remains elusive and unseen. The group departs with more questions than answers.

Valerie is unsettled by the arrival of Mr. Hornby, an eccentric new neighbor who keeps pigeons in his home. His odd presence adds to the sense that she is being watched in her own building. The atmosphere grows increasingly claustrophobic.

Lorna, Valerie's flatmate, is murdered by an intruder who breaks into the apartment while Valerie is out with friends. She is raped before being killed, heightening the sense that danger has infiltrated Valerie's circle. The crime shatters any remaining safety Valerie felt in her building.

Valerie agrees to go out of town with Paul to a remote manor house owned by his family. Inside, Paul confesses that his father committed suicide in the home, foreshadowing the dark history of the place. Valerie discovers a taxidermy animal matching one seen before and a blood stained bed, then hides as Susanna enters, calling Paul. She finds the bodies of Terry and the first victim in a closet, and Paul attacks Valerie as Susanna is killed by Paul; the police arrive as Valerie escapes, with Paul sitting silently in the hallway.