Unseen Exposure

Max Burns is an amateur photographer. Though his profession is not photography, he does take photos as a hobby. On one of his days off, he received a call to take some photos of an abandoned house.

The person who requested this of him was a friend named Violet Moss.

She is a realtor who flips houses and resells them to make a profit.

Max agreed and went to the address Violet had given him. Upon arrival, the house came into view. He had never seen something so unique.

It was a cliff-anchored house; this type of home is not seen very often due to the frequent landslides in the area. Pulling into a makeshift parking space, he parked his car, grabbed his gear, and walked up to the door.

A note was left on the door telling Max where the key was. At the bottom of the note, Violet apologized for not being there since she had to draw up the final paperwork. Retrieving the key from under a flower pot, he went inside.

Shutting the door behind him, he flipped the light switch for the lights that slowly blinked to life. Setting up his gear, he began to go through each room, taking photos. It was relatively empty and seemed odd to Max since Violet always decorated, especially if she would make a sale.

With the bottom floor done, he headed upstairs, cutting the lights on.

Stepping into the doorway of one of the bedrooms, he snapped a photo, and his camera began beeping at him. Confused, he looked at the screen flashing with the low battery symbol.

He sighed, took out another battery pack, and replaced it. The camera was fully charged, so why did it suddenly become drained? Shaking his head, Max continued finishing up the upstairs, then made his way back down.

Walking to the kitchen counter, he opened his laptop and inserted the memory card from his camera to review and edit the photos he had taken. Looking through the images, he came across the one he had taken of the first upstairs bedroom.

Inside the room, there was a figure. Static and grey, the person was about average height and thin, with their head hanging down.

There was no way this was a ghost. Max didn't believe in the supernatural and blamed the camera for malfunctioning due to the drained battery. So he would retake the photo.

Max sent Violet an email with the photos he approved, and she quickly replied, asking him if he was still inside the house. He replied, telling her he was still inside the house finishing up. Violet, in a panic, told him to get out of there.

A creak from the stairs made him turn as he took out his phone and snapped a picture with its camera. Max cursed, forgetting his flash was on, and tried to take another when footsteps thumped across the floor towards him.

He dropped his phone and backed away from the island counter. What had made its way down to him? Max's phone began to ring, startling him. From where he stood, he could see Violet trying to call him.

Max cursed under his breath. "Okay, Max, don't be such a baby. Ghosts are not real. Just grab your phone and answer it." he said aloud to himself, taking a deep breath before grabbing his phone and quickly answering it.

"V-violet"

"Maxie, is everything okay? I'm on my way to your location. I need you to grab your stuff and go wait in your car." she tells him, trying not to express the rising panic in her voice.

"Is something wrong with the house?" Max asked, looking around and listening to his surroundings as he packed his stuff.

"Just trust me and get out." She ended the call, and Max did as he was told. He put his bag over his shoulder, and his cell phone was the last thing he reached for. The lights in the room flickered before going out, ultimately leaving him in nothing but the darkness of the kitchen.

When Max let out an exhale of air, he could see his breath, making him visibly shiver. Keeping his eyes on the middle of the room, he walked backward, reaching his hand behind him to open the door. Once the door was open, he stepped out, almost tripping in the process, and shut the door.

Moving quickly, he went to his car, opened the door, and sat inside.

Max tossed his bag into the passenger seat and took out his phone to look at his photo of the stairs. What he looked at differed from the one he had taken from the bedroom. There was a man with no head, and his body was covered with something black. It dripped onto the floor, and the ax he carried was covered in dried blood.

Looking up from his phone, he heard the house's front door open.

He watched as it stayed open for a while until it slammed shut.

Could the ghost not leave the house? If that was the case, Max was grateful. Up beside him, Violet parked next to him.

They sat in her car and talked briefly about what had just happened, and Max showed her the photos. "This is just crazy," Violet paused and looked at Max. I'm so sorry this happened to you. I knew strange things were happening, but you got them on camera."

"Didn't anyone else try taking photos or recordings??" he questioned.

Violet shook her head. "No, my crew was scared, so I looked into its history. Once I found out what happened, I looked for a buyer immediately. The person that I found deals with this sort of thing."

Is there a person who deals with those things in there? Did Violet find an exorcist or a medium? Hopefully, that person is both.

"What exactly did you find out about this place?" Max asked, putting his phone and laptop away. Violet gripped the steering wheel, looking over at him with a frown.

"That man in the photo killed his family in that house. His wife had been cheating on him, and he found out." she began to explain.

Violet slowly took her hands off the wheel and placed them in her lap.

"He then hung himself above the stairs. When a family friend found them, he'd been hanging there so long that his head detached. His wife was practically decapitated upstairs. Thankfully, they didn't have children." she added.

Max shuddered, thankful he had taken the pictures and got out of there when he did. He'd hate to think about what would have happened if he had stayed inside a little longer.

"You don't have any more houses like this, do you?" Max asked nervously.

Violet shook her head. "No, but if I do, I'll warn you first."

"I'd appreciate that." he sighs, leaning his head back against the seat and closing his eyes. This was enough excitement for one day. Hopefully, the person who bought this house knows what they're doing.

A week later, Violet contacted him.

"Hey Violet, did the new owners have any luck?" Max asked as he headed inside from his regular nine-to-five job for the day.

"Yes, but I have another favor to ask," she replied, hearing two other people in the background.

"Oh...uh, sure. What do you need exactly?" Max nervously swallowed, tossing his keys onto the dish in the middle of his coffee table.

"How do you feel about doing Spirit Photography?"

"As a profession?"

"The owner says they would pay you a lot."

Max pondered this for a moment. If it paid enough, he could quit his office job, especially if this person bought homes like this often.

"Max Burns?" a deep, gruff voice said on the phone now, making him sit upright. "My name is Andy Graves, and I need your assistance with my business ventures. You'll be paid for your time and will constantly be on the move. Are you okay with these terms?"

Surprised, he visibly nodded, even if Andy couldn't see him. "Yes."

"Good. See you at the airport a few days from now. Monday six in the morning, don't be late." Andy ended the call, and Max sat on his couch in shock. 'I guess this is a full-time profession now,' he thought.

Monday came sooner than expected, and he was rushing out the door. He looked at his apartment from over his shoulder before shutting the door one last time. He had already said his goodbyes to Violet the day before, so there would be no tears. When he arrived at the airport, he didn't know what to expect when looking for Andy Graves, but for some reason, he knew it was him when they met.

"Andy Graves?"

"You must be Max Burns."

"It will be a pleasure working with you, Spirit Photographer."

Max nodded, feeling a shiver go down their spine as they shook hands.

Just what had he gotten himself into?