The Hand of Fate #13

Jonathan Pearsall returns from Europe with a cursed necklace steeped in ancient myth—a piece of jewelry said to transform its wearer into a serpent and doom all who possess it—hidden in his belongings and his heart. When the beautiful Erda, wife of his friend Marcas, claims the necklace as her own and sets her sights on Jonathan, the American finds himself caught between desire and loyalty, while the artifact's malevolent influence tightens its grip. Now back home with his true fiancée Linda, Jonathan discovers that fleeing Europe was not enough to escape the necklace's reach—or the horror it brings in its wake.

In a remote Pacific island, where legends run deep, a mysterious hitchhiker appears without warning—offering rides and vanishing into thin air. Anyone who’s lived long enough on the island knows better than to laugh at such tales.

In "Demonized Sweetheart," Clint Harkness is pulled into a sinister web surrounding a cursed Chinese jade demon and the ancient forces of evil. As the enigmatic Ming-Loa finds herself caught in the conflict, her fate becomes entangled with darkness she never sought.

In the remote reaches of western Australia, settler Ferris Fitzpatrick meets a sudden and violent end at the hands of his housekeeper. Though dead, his ghost lingers, guiding the police to the scene of his murder with a haunting purpose.

In "Under the Telamone’s Spell," Professor Vachell and his wife Betty uncover an ancient statue of Ajax during an excavation in Italy—only to find the stone figure casts a sinister spell that unravels Betty’s mind. As her grip on reality slips, the past and present blur in a haunting descent that leaves her husband helpless to save her.

In "Fate's Final Scoop," a desperate newspaperman named Dick Palmer gambles everything on a dangerous scheme to make his name in print—only to become the headline of his own twisted story. When his reckless stunts spiral beyond control, fate delivers a chilling twist: one of his own creations becomes his final, inescapable headline.