A story about a young boy and his elderly grandfather kept in a constant state of terror by threats of a great evil that exists outside their pathetic refuge. As the boy develops a kind of hopeless mania, the strain also begins to show on the grandfather, who frequently succumbs to violent and unstable outbursts. As the grandfather deteriorates, the boy begins to wonder if the horrors that exist outside are truly worse than the terrible prison he and his grandfather have created for themselves, until he finally makes his escape.