The Smiling Ghost

An unemployed engineer, Lucky Downing, is approached after Mrs. Bentley's lawyer spots a newspaper ad. He is offered $1000 to pretend to be engaged to Elinor Bentley Fairchild for one month and, needing the money, he accepts. The meeting unfolds in the lawyer's office and leads to the arrangement.

Elinor's three former fiancés have met horrific fates: Johnny Eggleston drowned, Paul Myron is paralyzed in an iron lung, and Alan Winters died from a cobra bite on the 18th floor of a Boston hotel. Public fear grows as newspapers dub Elinor the 'Kiss of Death Girl' and hint at a haunting figure called the Smiling Ghost. The eerie pattern sets the tone for the danger surrounding her.

Paul Myron, despite his condition in an iron lung, pressures Lil Barstow to warn Downing about the risks of the engagement. Lil agrees to try to talk Downing out of it before he becomes another victim. Their concern foreshadows the peril looming over the arrangement.

Lil Barstow attempts to intercept Downing at the train station where he and his valet Clarence are to meet Elinor. Before she can warn him, Elinor shatters Lil's camera and hustles Lucky and Clarence off to the Bentley mansion. The move pulls Downing into the house's perilous orbit.

Upon arrival, Downing is introduced to Ames Bentley, Tennant Bentley, Uncle Hilton Fairchild, Rose, and the others who orbit Elinor's fortune. He senses a web of motives and watched politeness masking darker ambitions. The mansion atmosphere hints at a carefully laid trap.

Tennant objects to Lucky sleeping in his room because of his drunken state, so Lucky agrees to switch rooms with him. The swap places Lucky in a potentially vulnerable, secluded space, setting up later tension. The change intensifies the eerie, lock-free environment of the house.

That night, a man appears through a secret wall panel and attacks Tennant, presumably the Smiling Ghost. In the ensuing confusion, Downing encounters Lil outside and learns of the fates that have beset Elinor's former fiancés. Fear begins to crystallize into a plan to trap the killer.

Downing questions whether the previous deaths were mere accidents. Lil emphasizes that it takes more than chance, invoking the famous cobra incident on the 18th floor of a Boston hotel to illustrate deliberate malice. The argument deepens the mystery and the sense of looming danger.

Convinced of real danger, Downing decides to stay and help Elinor and proposes that they pretend to marry to draw the killer out of hiding. The ruse becomes a central strategy to expose the true perpetrator. The couple commits to the ruse as the house tightens around them.

To gather intelligence, Downing and Lil visit Paul Myron, who recounts his ghost story and notes that the image of the ghost resembles Eggleston. Myron believes Eggleston faked his death to pursue revenge on Elinor. The intersection of truth and illusion deepens the investigation.

Lil and Downing visit Eggleston's crypt in the cemetery and find it empty, which heightens suspicion. The 'ghost' then attacks Downing, driving him into a form of entombment. Lil rushes to his aid as danger intensifies and the mystery tightens its grip.

Lil rescues Downing from the tomb, reigniting his determination to uncover the truth. They resolve to see the danger through, planning to trap the killer and bring the ghost to light. The alliance strengthens as the clock ticks toward a confrontation.

Back at the mansion, Downing and Elinor renew the engagement pretense to lure the Smiling Ghost into the open. The plan hinges on timing and the killer's need to reveal himself under the false security of a 'marriage' agreement. Tension climbs as the trap is set.

In the denouement, the Smiling Ghost is unmasked as Paul Myron, whose motive traces back to revenge and control over Elinor. An unexpected espousal follows as Lucky and Elinor's relationship is cemented, bringing the peril to a close. The truth is finally laid bare, and the couple's future is secured.