Homeowner currently has house listed with Help U sell

I have a homeowner who has virtually no equity and is currently listed with Help U sell. I want to do a short sale but do I need to have Help U sell involved? Homeowner told me that it would cost 3K to cancel the listing. It’s currently listed for 4 months. Is there any way I can do a short sale or maybe go around Help U sell?

Help U Sell is a franchise consisting of brokers, if the seller has an exclusive listing agreement you will have to work through the broker, with or without your own agent.