Needful Things

There was a new shop in town, run by a stranger. Needful Things, the sign said. The oddest name, a name that caused some gossip and speculation among the good folks of Castle Rock, Maine, while they waited for opening day.

Eleven-year-old Brian Rusk was the first customer, and he got just what he wanted: a very rare 1956 Sandy Koufax baseball card, signed.

Cyndi Rose Martin was next. A Lalique vase. A perfect match for her living room decor.

Something for everyone. "Something you really had to have, and always at a price you could just about afford—the cash price, that is."

Because there was another price. There always is when your heart's most secret, true desire is for sale.