A man slowly emerged from the gloom. He was very tall. His hair was gray. He looked like someone made from a piece of paper that had been folded over and over again until it was creased and worn.
“Good afternoon to you, Miss Lincoln. I see that you’ve brought a friend.” The man bowed in Frank’s direction.
Frank, uncertain of the proper protocol, bowed back.
“Mr. Lamp,” said Eugenia. “I would like to introduce you to my good friend and neighbor, Franklin Endicott.”
“It’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance,” said Buddy Lamp.
“I have come to have a duplicate key made,” said Eugenia. She held out the key to Buddy Lamp, who took it from her and bowed again.
“I have several other errands to attend to,” said Eugenia. “Franklin, I will have you wait here and procure the keys.”
“Wait here?” said Frank. His voice squeaked in alarm. It was so dark in the store, and Buddy Lamp was so odd. Also, Frank felt as if Napoleon Bonaparte were staring right at him. He could feel other things waiting in the shadows — strange things, worrisome things, things that should probably be recorded and indexed in the worry notebook.
“I will return shortly,” said Eugenia Lincoln.
She pushed open the door of Buddy Lamp’s Used Goods. The sleigh bells emitted their festive jingle.
“Humdee dum dee,” said Buddy Lamp. “I will get busy on this key immediately, young Mr. Endicott. In the meantime, if you would like to peruse what is on offer here in the store, I extend you a hearty welcome to do just that. Let your curiosity be piqued. Allow yourself the freedom to explore, to question, to revel in life’s myriad mysteries!”
“Okay,” said Frank, even though he wasn’t all that fond of reveling in mysteries.
Buddy Lamp went behind the counter. Soon, there was the soft whir of a machine, the busy sound of something being made.
Frank stood in the gloom. Truly, he felt a little reluctant to move. Who knew what other wax-figure emperors were waiting to leap out at him?
But deep within the store, Frank saw something glinting, beckoning.
He took a step forward, and then another step.
And soon, Franklin Endicott was swallowed by the shadows.
It turned out that the shelves of Buddy Lamp’s Used Goods were stocked with an amazing assortment of things.
The first item that Frank picked up — the glinting thing that had beckoned him farther into the store — was a large chunk of amber. It was beautiful. Frank held it up to the dim light and saw that inside the golden amber some long-dead insect was suspended, trapped for all eternity.
Wouldn’t it be terrible to be stuck for all eternity inside a piece of amber?
Frank shivered.
He carefully put the amber (and its doomed insect) back on the shelf.
He picked up a magic set. The edges of the box were frayed and held together with yellowed tape.
SWEETLAND’S MAGIC SET. BECOME THE NEXT HOUDINI IF YOU DARE. AMAZE YOUR FRIENDS! PUNISH YOUR ENEMIES! MAKE THINGS APPEAR AND DISAPPEAR AT WILL!
Frank shook the box. Something inside of it rattled in a forlorn way.
Frank had read a great deal about the magician Harry Houdini. Houdini had been able to pick locks and break chains and hold his breath for an incredibly long time. Frank doubted very seriously that the Sweetland’s Magic Set held the necessary materials for a person to become the next Houdini.
He returned the box to the shelf without even looking inside, and then he stood with his hands behind his back and considered a jar that seemed to be filled with eyeballs. But that couldn’t be, could it? How could you put eyeballs in a jar? Who would put eyeballs in a jar?
Next to the eyeball jar, there was a stovepipe hat, the kind of hat that Abraham Lincoln would have worn.
The store had grown suddenly quiet. The whir of the key-making machine had been silenced.
Frank looked up.
“Eeep,” he said. He jumped a small jump.
Buddy Lamp had soundlessly materialized out of nowhere to stand beside Frank.
“I see you are admiring the stovepipe hat,” said Buddy Lamp. “I’m happy to inform you that yes, indeed, it does date from the time of Abraham Lincoln. As to whether Mr. Lincoln wore this particular hat — well, that is a matter for some debate. I myself like to think that Mr. Lincoln did wear it, and that some of his wisdom and humor and kindness still reside within it.”
“Abraham Lincoln was a very great man,” said Frank.
“On that point, you are and I are in perfect agreement.”
Frank stole a glance at Buddy Lamp. The man was so insubstantial that it seemed possible he could go up in a puff of smoke at any moment.
“Humdee dum dee,” said Buddy Lamp.
A profound silence descended.
The items in the gloomy store shifted and sighed.
Frank cleared his throat. He said, “I’m amazed at your selection.”
“I try to aim for a certain eclecticism,” said Buddy Lamp. “Many, many things interest me. Many things fascinate me. The world is filled with marvels.”
“Are those eyeballs in that jar?” said Frank.
“That is exactly what they are,” said Buddy Lamp. “They are not real, of course. They belong to a taxidermist. Or rather, they did belong to a taxidermist. Past tense, past tense. So much here involves the past tense. In any case, there are many varieties of artificial eyes in that jar — eye of leopard, eye of squirrel, eye of duck, even eye of newt, perhaps. Who knows?”
The sleigh bells on the door jingled, issuing their promise of merry and carefree days, and Eugenia Lincoln entered the store.
“Mr. Lamp,” said Eugenia. “I’m assuming my duplicate key is ready.”
“It is,” said Buddy Lamp. He clicked his heels together. “Just one moment, please.”
Buddy Lamp went behind the counter and came back with a brown envelope. “Here you are,” he said. “I’m pleased to have been of service.” He handed the envelope to
