Contest to Hell

Amy has been living in NYC her whole life and has dreamt of her modeling career going big. She came across an ad in her favorite fashion magazine of a huge contest and decided to enter. The contest grand prize is the cover of October's issue, an agency contract and $10,000 to start up their own business. Amy must build her own team to do it and has just the right people! Her photographer, Mike had suggested shooting on this deserted block, with an empty Victorian home.

Amy laughed at the idea. "What are you trying to get us killed in a haunted house?" she asked Mike.

"Not at all, there have been reports of ghosts, but nothing serious." Mike tried comforting Amy, but Amy wasn't too comfortable with messing around with spirits. "The fixtures and design of the house is even more stunning on the inside," he added. "I think it will set you apart from other models and show you're serious about winning this thing."

"I'd have to see it," Amy responded reluctantly. "But I'll have my stylist look into some gown-like pieces and classic looks since you said the home was sort of Victorian."

A week goes by and Amy and her team have solidified the looks she agreed to shoot in the deserted house. After all her options were limited and she couldn't afford to rent locations listed for shoots and events. She was trying to win money, not lose it. Mike had agreed to bring holy water as a joke in order to keep the crew safe just in case anything went down.

"Yeah this is huge," Amy said as they pulled up to the front of the house.

"Right?" said Mike excitedly squeezing Amy into a sideways hug. The house sat at the bottom of a hill that passed the path with a metal gate.

As Amy thought to herself how cliche this all seemed, Mike interrupted her thoughts again. "I think we should set up quickly inside and grab some shots out on the lawn before the sun sets in two hours."

Amy and her glam team, Lucy the hairstylist, Tom the makeup artist and Xander her wardrobe stylist made their way down the hill with Mike and his assistants, who were Film students.

The crew walked up the front steps of the porch to the front door. It was large and detailed with gargoyles on the door for knock knobs. Mike tried opening the door but it was locked.

"Are we allowed to even be here?" Amy asked annoyed with the locked door and highly aware that no one lived here in at least fifty years.

Mike ignored her question as he searched the patio for a key. Everyone looked at each other, quietly until Mike broke the silence as he found a key under a dead potted plant. To everyone's surprise, it worked.

"If we weren't allowed in, the doors would be boarded and this wouldn't have worked," Mike said as he opened the doors and the crew went inside.

It had three stories with floor to ceiling windows in the great hall where the sun shined onto sheet covered furniture. There was a spiral staircase to the left that led up to the bedrooms.

"Wow,” said Amy, taking in the old fixtures, spiderwebs, and details of the home around her.

“This is wild,” said Xander.

“Yeah this is def some next level exorcist shit,” replied Lucy. Amy shot her a look. “Really?”

"Okay well let’s start setting up in the hall,” said Mike to his assistants. Amy cautiously walked further into the house only to find that it was freezing. Yes, it was autumn and it’s normally chilly in Oregon around this time, but it seemed colder than usual. As Lucy and Tom set up their hair and makeup station, Xander organized the wardrobe and Mike’s assistants set up the lights.

“Is there a heat box or something? A fireplace maybe?” asked Amy, her body tense and shivering from the cold.

“I think there’s a fireplace, but we’d have to get wood. I mean, no ones lived here for ages,” said Mike as he began looking around. “Look, there’s a candle by the window over there. Maybe you can use that.”

Everyone looked in the direction. Why would there be a random candle in the window if no one had lived here? Were there groundskeepers?

“Maybe the Sanderson sisters are to return when you light it,” joked Xander.

“That’s one candle, in one house, on the opposite side of the country,” replied Lucy matter-of-factly. “Plus, that’s a myth. That stuff doesn’t exist.”

“So, you don’t believe in witches and ghosts?” asked Tom.

“No, but I believe in spirits and if you leave them alone, you’ll be left alone.”

Amy chimed back in. “Well if there aren’t any ghosts and shit, can you light the candle and bring it here so I’m not shivering through hair and makeup?”

Mike took the candle off the windowsill and brought it over towards Amy. As he lit the candle, a swoosh of air swam through the hall, hitting the crew and blowing the candle out.

Amy jumped out her seat, shrieking while everyone else froze with stunned looks on their faces.

“What the fuck was that?!” asked Amy, shook. “I thought you said this place checked out Mike!”

“I mean yeah, I didn’t see any real articles of scary shit or anything like it,” he replied nervously.

“Nah we’re leaving,” said Amy.

“Really?” asked Mike. “What about the contest?”

“Fuck the contest!” screamed Amy. "I ain't tryna die!"

"Word," said Tom.

“Wait wait,” interjected Xander. “I did not come all this way not to get the work done. This publication means something to the rest of us too.”

Amy looked at him and then the others. They nodded with tight lips.

"Y'all I hear you guys, but what the hell was that? A ghost? A demon? It's literally a sign to keep out. We can just shoot on the grounds outside."

"But we already have most of the equipment set up here so let’s just get this one look in and then we can quickly move on out," said Mike.

Amy was scared. She could leave, but she would feel guilty as she felt responsible for everyone there. She would feel like a coward for turning down the perfect opportunity to win a deal that could save her in so many ways. She was scared shitless, but she was taught to always rise from fear, not run from it.

"Okay, fine but let’s hurry up," Amy apprehensively agreed.

"Plus, the studio lights will keep you warm once they're set up," added Mike. Amy darted him a look. He quietly understood and everyone went to back to work.

"Um, we have a problem," said Mike's assistant Ethan, holding the power switch. "No electricity."

"Seriously?!" said Amy. "No one thought about that?"

"There's gotta be a power box in the house," said Mike to his assistants. "One of you two look for it while the other helps me finish setting up."

They both deeply sighed. "I'll go since I'm a guy," said Ethan.

"That's pretty sexist," said the other assistant, Sarah.

"What? I wasn't trying to---

"Save it," said Sarah as she went to find the door to the basement.

As Xander put a nervous Amy into her first gown, Sarah found the door to the basement near the kitchen. Using her flashlight on her iPhone, she opened the door and slowly walked downstairs. The stairs creaked as she walked down bravely, her heart beating fast. She could still hear the rest from downstairs so that comforted her a bit, but she had to stop at the bottom of the stairs to look for the power box.

It was way colder down here. And it smelled of mold. She instantly regretted that she spoke to soon. She slowly but nervously scanned the room from right to left and stops when she sees it. There it is, in the far-left corner. She sees the distance is about six feet from her and takes a deep breath.

"Did you find it?" hollered Mike.

"Yeah! I think so!" she replied.

Sarah took another deep breath and pointed her phone toward the floor to watch her step as she approached the power box. When she reached it, she opened it and scanned the box. She pulled on the lever once.

"Anything?" she called out.

"No," yelled Mike. "Try again!"

She sighed and flipped the lever again. Nothing. She did it twice in a row. Nothing.

"Fuck," she said to herself. "It's not working!"

She proceeds to walk back to the stairs, muttering to herself when a hooded figure knocks her out and catches her fall. He drags the unconscious Sarah away from the steps.

***

"How's hair and makeup looking? Ready? Almost?" asked Mike.

"If you want to shoot real dark, scary, Halloween yeah," replied Tom looking at Amy's face with a brush in hand. "I still have to do some blending and finishing touches for this look though."

"And I need at least 15," said Lucy, teasing away at Amy's roots.

"Okay cool," said Mike. "Can you check on that girl and make sure she gets this box working, will ya?" he asks Ethan.

Ethan scratches his head and runs his hand through his hair quickly as he sighs but goes on to check.

He’s reached the door to the basement and takes his phone out only to remember the flashlight is broken like the shattered screen. “Fuck man, I really need a new phone,” he disappointingly says to himself as he put the phone away. He pulls his lighter out his other pocket. He smiles to himself and says, “And they say quit smoking. Ha!”

As Ethan walks down the steps, Mike checks on Amy.

“How are we feeling?”

Amy looks at Mike, unable to move her lips as Tom paints away. She sighs and Tom pulls the lip brush back for a second.

“This shit is scary Mike,” she said. “But without the lights we still have to get it done and do it quickly. I wanna get out of here.”

“We will. Let’s get you in position just to start with the sunlight then,” said Mike. “Sunset is almost near.” Amy moves out the chair and onto the set location where the equipment is set up. She stands in frame with Lucy and Tom by her side finishing up. Behind her are the stairs and the sun shines golden through the windows. Mike adjusts his tripod to her height and shoots a few test shots.

“Yeah these are actually really good,” said Mike looking through the lens. “Okay I think you look great the way you are so let’s get some of these. Let’s get you in character, yeah? Maybe sad, maybe retched, you know? Really pull this elegant but deadly look.”

“Okay,” replied Amy. Tom and Lucy walk off set as Mike begins shooting Amy in natural light.

***

Ethan is at the bottom of the stairs. “Sarah?” Nothing. “Girl, where are you?” Ethan walks further in using his lighter. “Sarah, this isn’t funny man. Look I didn’t mean to sound sexist. I was just trying to be a gentleman. Shoot. I’m a feminist too.”

Still nothing. “Sarah?”

Ethan turns around sees the walls are covered with blood. “What the fuck went down here?” he whispered to himself.

He stops scanning when he finds Sarah behind the boarded wall, bleeding from her head. She suddenly wakes and screams for help through the boarded wall.

“Sarah?!” he says loudly. “What the fuck?”

“Ethan get me out of here. We have to go!”

Ethan tries to pull the boards off the wall when Sarah screams his name. “Ethan look out!”

Ethan has been knocked to the ground.

“No! Mike! Amy!” shouted Sarah.

Lucy, Tom, Amy and Mike all look at each other.

To be continued.