Special Agent Rosie Cotton walked down the corridor, sensible shoes clicking on the tile. Though she was nervous inside, it did not show though the calm expression on her face. Rosie had her coat in one hand and her briefcase in the other, leaving She tried to listen to Dr. Lobelia's prattling but her mind kept returning to Agent Samwise and his scared face. Sam's face was a warning for Rosie to heed, a warning of what would happen if she let herself forget for a moment that no matter how charming or how seductive Dr. Baggins may seem, he was still a deadly monster. She had seen the pictures of his victims, all ordinary people with nothing similar about them other than the fact that they were all rude. When the Baggins case had gone to court, his lawyer had tried to prove that the sudden change in Baggins diet had been caused by a strange gold ring he came into possession of. However, the jury didn't buy that and they sentenced the cannibal for life.
Dr. Lobelia left Rosie in the hands of a rather large intern. He smiled, trying to put Rosie at ease. 'Hi, I'm Hamfast. She told you, don't get near the glass?'
Rosie extended her hand and shook it. 'Yes, she did. Rosie Cotton.'
'Nice to meet you, Rosie. You can hand your coat up there if you like.'
'Thank you, I will.' Rosie hung the coat on the hanger, glad to be rid of it.
'He's past the others, the last cell. You keep to the right. I put out a chair for you.'
'Oh yes, it's very good. Thank you.' Rosie replied, distracted by her thoughts of Sam. She couldn't get the image of his damaged face from her mind. Part of her wondered why she, among all the Hobbits in the Academy, had been chosen for this job. Rosie knew that her no-nonsense attitude had helped in a lot of places, but would it help a psychopath? She stepped into the corridor and flinched a little as the bars slammed shut behind her.
Hamfast must have noticed her flinch because he gave her another smile, 'I'll be watching. You'll do fine.'
Rosie nodded and continued down the corridor towards Dr. Frodo Baggins's cell.
~