Venus #14
Fountain of Death
Whitney Hammond and Venus are spending an evening together at the Embassy Club where they spot boastful Baron Franz Heinrich, a German scientist, in attendance. The Baron is bragging about his newly completed atomic powered rocket which he plans to use to fly to Mars. His peers all laugh at his boasts earning his ire. The next day, Venus decides to interview Heinrich to learn more about his invention as a feature for Beauty Magazine. Agreeing to the interview, the Baron shows Venus his rocket and tells her that he intends to be a famous explorer like Ponce de Leon and believes that he will find a Fountain of Youth on Mars. Seeing Venus as a means of showing his peers that he is correct he agrees to take her along on his mission to Mars.
After days of travel, the Baron's ship successfully lands on the surface of Mars. They then begin exploring the planet in search of the Baron's Fountain of Youth. After a fruitless search, Venus suggests that they should give up and return to Earth, but the Baron refuses to give up. The following morning Venus wakes up and finds that the Baron had left in the night. Venus calls upon Jupiter and is transported to Olympus. Jupiter tells her that Heinrich had finally found the Fountain of Youth and tells her what she needs to do to get him back to Earth.
Venus is teleported back to Mars where she finds Heinrich basking in his discovery. Believing Heinrich to have gone totally mad, Venus warns him to stop. Suddenly, the explorers are interrupted by the arrival of a strange man. The man introduces himself as Azrael. Azrael explains that he knows about Heinrich's obsession and is glad to see that he has finally arrived. Azrael explains that he knows all about Franz's life, how he fled Germany during World War II and married an American woman, but deserted her when she interfered with his freedom. Azrael tells Heinrich that the fountain belongs to him and that the German cannot have it. Completely mad, Franz fights Azrael and pushes him over a cliff, seemingly to his death. Venus finally snaps some sense into Heinrich who finally realizes that she is in his presence. Venus then suggests that they return to Earth before other Martians learn about Franz's act of murder.
Days later back on Earth, Venus returns to Whitney Hammond with the story, but she says it's not quite complete just yet. They both return to the Embassy Club, where Heinrich is eager to know if the story of his discovery has been published or not. Venus denies it leading to Franz becoming a laughing stock among his peers and angering Heinrich enough to send him to tears. Venus tries to calm the troubled scientist, asking him if he knows anyone who might believe his story. Suddenly, the German realized something and thanks Venus for her help. Two days later, Whitney is dying to get the ending to the story. Venus takes him to the home where Franz Heinrich lives and they find that he has reunited with his wife and has finally found happiness -- saying that he has found the true fountain of youth: love. Back at the office, Venus explains the whole story to Whitney, including the battle with Azrael, and Whitney decides not to publish the story because it is too incredible to believe.
Recurring Characters
Venus
Whitney Hammond
Jupiter
Hangman's Horror
Venus runs into her friend Sergeant O'Toole and learns that he is investigating a series of apparent suicides by hanging, all three have been done with the same hangman's knot. Learning that O'Toole is not convinced that they were all suicides Venus agrees to assist him in his case. Going over the names of the victims, Venus realizes that they were all members of the jury that convicted murderer Raoul Hamud the previous year. However, Hamud was sentenced to life in prison but they decided to investigate him anyway to see if somehow Raoul is guilty.
Venus begins investigating Raoul Hamud's background and his studies in the Orient and is convinced that he is somehow responsible. She also learns that Hamud had a child born with a strange birthmark that was abandoned at birth. However, Venus founds out that the police has another suspect when O'Toole calls and tells her they caught a young man named Thomas Haddons in the process of making a noose. Venus goes to meet the accused and she questions him about any connection to Raoul Hamud, but the young man claims to have none. The man is put on trial and found guilty and sentenced to death by hanging, but Venus is not convinced the man is guilty.
Interviewing him in prison, Venus notices strange marks on the young man's wrists and learns that they are birthmarks and suddenly she realizes who he is. Spotting Raoul Hamud walking past the cell, Venus asks to be let out. She learns from the guard that Raoul has become a trustee in the prison and acts as a hangman for the executions. Now he has the job of hanging the man who apparently avenged him. Returning to her apartment, Venus finds a package and opens it. From inside spring a hangman's noose that tries to strangle her. She calls to Jupiter for help, who saves her life by teleporting her to Olympus.
Two weeks later at the execution, Venus is in attendance and asks the executioner to check the bonds on the prisoner's wrists. When Raoul looks at them he sees the birthmarks and realizes that the person sentenced to hang is his long lost son. Raoul then confesses that he is the one responsible for killing those who convicted him and that he has the power to control rope with his mind. Horrified that he almost hung his only son, Raoul then uses his powers to hang himself. Later, Venus tells O'Toole off the record why Raoul must have hung himself.
Recurring Characters
Venus
Whitney Hammond
Jupiter
Venus Meets the Lady Killer
At the offices of Beauty Magazine, Whitney Hammond turns Venus' attention to a social story about a foreigner named Don A. Donis who has been breaking the hearts of wealthy women in record numbers. Suspecting Donis to be some kind of fraud, he assigns Venus to investigate him for a story in Beauty Magazine.
Venus goes to Donis' regular hangout, Club 77 and watches as he romances another woman who has fallen completely in love with him and asks Don to visit with her the next day. However, the following evening the woman is stood up by Don Donis. She goes to Club 77 and is heartbroken to find out that Donis is dancing with another woman. Meanwhile, Venus has concluded her interviews with the various women who have had their hearts broken by Donis and decides to teach him a lesson. She gets dressed up and goes to Club 77 and uses her powers to charm Donis who is instantly smitten by her. Donis stands up the woman he is seeing to spend time with Venus and she convinces him to return home with her. Donis does and the pair are unaware that the jilted woman has become insanely jealous and follows them back.
At Venus' apartment, just as Don attempts to romance Venus, his jilted lover bursts in with a gun. Before Venus can stop her, she shoots Don for his transgressions. Venus convinces the girl that she missed and sends her away. The shot to the heart had no effect on Donis, convincing Venus that he is really the god Adonis. Don denies this and leaves, but he cannot get Venus out of his head. He calls her the next day and arranges for a date. When he arrives, he finds that Venus has gathered all the women he has wronged and demands him to confess that he is really Adonis. When he avoids answering, it convinces Venus and she calls on Jupiter to teleport him away. Venus follows after him and finds that now back on Olympus, Adonis has returned to normal after living on Earth with amnesia. With the mystery solved, Venus returns to Earth for a date with Whitney Hammond and tells him the story. Whitney teases Venus about "firing" her by giving him yet another story too fantastic to print.
Recurring Characters
Venus
Whitney Hammond
Jupiter
