The Animals Around David

The deaths and disappearances of animals trace an unsettling pattern around David, revealing both his apparent power and the fear it creates in his family.

increasingBearing stren­gth in each eventdecreasing

The Poisoned Stallion

The Poisoned Stallion Sudden swelling The borrowed stallion becomes grotesquely swollen and struggles to breathe. A warning too late Its suffering alerts Carla that the water may have endangered David as well.

The Buried Ducks

The Buried Ducks A child’s grief Carla sees David burying a dead duck and crying beside the small grave. Unclear responsibility The burial reveals his closeness to the dead animals but does not explain how they died.

The Falling Ducks

The Falling Ducks A repeated death Three more ducks lie dead, and Carla later sees another stagger from the wheat before collapsing. An uncanny connection The animals appear to respond to David, but the mechanism remains beyond the family’s understanding.

The Waiting Dog

The Waiting Dog A silent vigil A dog reaches David’s stairs and remains there for much of the afternoon. A familiar ending After the dog collapses, David drags it away and buries it, repeating the pattern of grief and death.

The Vanished Horses

The Vanished Horses An empty pasture Omar wakes to find the horses gone and only a frightened foal left behind. A household altered The disappearance deepens Omar’s fear of David and joins the animals’ fate to the family’s disorder.

The morning after the stallion drinks from the stream

Several days after David returns from the Green House

The next morning after Carla sees David watching the field

After the ducks die, during the following days

The night before Amanda and Nina’s field exposure