The Phantom Stranger (The Phantom Stranger #1)

When Dead Men Walk
Three friends, John Martin, Carson Rand, and Bart Benson, board a plane, bound for San Francisco. A newspaper photographer takes their picture. The plane crashes, killing everyone onboard. The ghost of Carson Rand haunts Edgar Wright, demanding Wright reveal certain documents, being used for blackmail. The Phantom Stranger appears, and beats the "ghost" away. As mysteriously as he appeared, the Phantom Stranger disappears.

"The House of Strange Secrets!"
Taking a wrong turn, in the fog, Neal Hunter enters a house, looking for directions. The owner of the home has been expecting Hunter, waiting for him with a knife behind his back. The Phantom Stranger appears, and prevents Hunter from being murdered. Suddenly, the lights grow dim, and the house becomes aged, and dilapidated. Hunter succumbs to the scent of a drugged candle. The owner, impersonating the magician Robart, reappears. Following the instructions of an ancient tome, this man believes he can gain immortality by murdering others.