Shock SuspenStories #17
"4-Sided Triangle" in Shock SuspenStories #17 (1954) delivers a chilling tale of greed and deception, where a diamond-smuggling surgeon manipulates his two accomplices into killing each other—only to discover too late that the prize he coveted was nothing but paste. Written by Al Feldstein and illustrated with tense precision by Joe Orlando, with coloring by Marie Severin and lettering by Jim Wroten, the story unfolds with a cold, clinical dread. The cover, by George Evans, captures the story’s grim intrigue in stark, shadowed lines.
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A diamond thief surgeon cuts open his two goons to smuggle diamonds into the country in their bodies. When he gets a big one worth $250,000 he tells the men he will operate on both of them, but place the diamond in only one so that they will not be tempted to disappear. The doctor sends them a note saying he will be delayed because he knows that this will play on their greed and they will turn on each other. They kill each other, but the doctor did not place the stone in either of them but himself. But the diamond was paste and it quickly caused the doctor's death due to poisoning.
Plot details indexed by the Grand Comics Database (CC BY-SA).