The House Across the Street

Claudia, recovering from cancer and sharing custody of her 12-year-old son Rhys, works as a primary school nurse and struggles to find meaning in her life. She tries in vain to help Imogen, a little girl she fears is being mistreated at home, but when she stumbles upon a search for five-year-old Emily Winter, who's gone missing from the playground on her street, Claudia is inescapably drawn to Emily's parents Owen and Sabine. As Claudia's obsession with the case grows, she forges a relationship with mysterious George, an English teacher at her school and finds herself in the midst of a deepening mystery.

With the devastating news that the search for Emily has become a murder investigation, Claudia watches the neighbours with a suspicious eye. She begins to suspect Joanne, who has a creepy collection of child-like dolls, and her husband Dave, who aggressively refuses to let Owen search for Emily's missing bicycle in their shed.

Claudia sees George turn up for his class as usual and is horrified that he hasn't been arrested. Ejected from the Winter house for giving them false hope, she refuses to believe that George could be innocent and desperately starts digging into his past, choosing to ignore her increasing unease about her son's strange behaviour. Claudia learns from Joanne's wheelchair-bound son Simon that Joanne may have been the last to see Emily alive. At the same time, she discovers that George was involved in another death, and is convinced that he really is the culprit. A confrontation uncovers the truth and Claudia realises the damage she has done — but not before the media announce a suspect has been arrested for the murder of Emily.

As the community turns on the Winters, Claudia is convinced that the police have made a mistake. She convinces Sabine to let her help and moves into the Winter house, taking care of Sabine and her quiet, polite son Dean. Owen maintains his innocence, but Claudia learns he lied about where he was when Emily went missing. As Claudia spends more time with Sabine, she grows disturbed by the stories about Emily. Claudia, desperate to save Owen, to save this family and to do something truly good with her life, takes drastic action.