Frodo opened his eyes, discovering he was in a dark room with very dim lighting. The fragrant scent coming off from the Salvia plant was in this room, making it harder for Frodo to concentrate on anything in particular.

His eyes adjusted to the light, finding he was inside a bedroom, in an inn. But which inn? Why couldn't he find that part out? And that hobbit lass with the curly, light brown hair… Silvia was her name… she had to be somewhere around here, right?

But where was she? And what about that hobbit in the shadows, wearing the grey clothes and the black hooded cloak? Was he here, too?

"Hello, Frodo." It was Silvia. She cracked a smile, glad to see him. Frodo looked around, discovering he was bound to a chair. At least, his arms and legs were bound. What was going on?

"Release me!" Frodo said, annoyed. "I'm warning you!" He struggled to break free, but he couldn't. His wrists hurt as did his ankles. "Please, my bonds are too tight!"

"Oh, shush!" Silvia said, placing an index finger on his lips to quiet him. "Don't struggle. You'll make things worse."

Frodo glared at her. All the joys in the world seemed to have vanished within this moment! If he had one chance to redo the past, he would have chosen to leave the poor lass alone. And yet, he had chosen to dance with Silvia and didn't regret it.

Well, there was still regret, but it wasn't as bad as he thought. He just wished he had known the outcome sooner, no matter how badly it turned out to be.

He turned his head to the left, stunned to find the hooded, cloaked hobbit man sitting in the corner, admiring his dagger. Oh, Frodo was going to regret this!

"What am I doing here?" Frodo asked, calming down.

"Why? Isn't it obvious?" The hobbit man said, presenting himself before the lad. "You're my prisoner. It's only fitting that we treat you as such. We wouldn't want you to tell anyone about me."

"You – you're the Bearer of Secrets," Frodo said, surprised. "What are you doing here, in Bree of all places?"

"Ah!" the hobbit in shadows pounced on the poor lad. "You see, I am the Bearer of Secrets and, for that, my identity must remain hidden. If you promise to keep my secret, I can guarantee you will be kept safe."

"And why would I want to do that?" Frodo asked, alarmed.

"Oh, because if you don't, it could mean the end to your reputation. I will let you go, but you must swear not to tell a soul about me," the Bearer of Secrets shook his head. In his hand was a lilac flower. He admired the flower in intrigue, delighted in its many uses. "You can tell them that the Salvia plant has its many uses, far more than you care to imagine."

"I'd like to be free," Frodo repeated himself. He asked out of suspicion, "Why should I trust you?"

The hobbit man shrugged. "Because you want to live. I can guarantee that you will. If you swear not to tell a soul about me." He repeated in admiration.

"No!" Frodo groaned in agony, getting another whiff of the Salvia flower. "NO!" He didn't want to smell it any longer!

"You're still a boy in many ways," Silvia said, intrigued.

Frodo looked at Silvia, wondering what her ploy was about. Should he trust her? Should he even dare answer that question. Silvia was like the Salvia flower: beautiful but dangerous; at least, that's what he thought. So, why couldn't he stop thinking about her? He wanted to help her, but what more could he do?

How could he get out of here?

Silvia was too willing to assist him and the Bearer of Secrets wanted him to keep quiet about his activities. Surely, there must be something to be done about them! But what? Frodo hardly knew. He just knew he needed to leave, before his friends were in danger!

"Time's up!" The Bearer of Secrets said, covering Frodo's mouth again with the cloth, dripping in that golden honey-like liquid substance. He shook his head as Frodo fainted, admitting bluntly, "Oh, potions work wonders on one's self. Too bad you won't be around to see it." He gestured to Silvia, helping her untie Frodo from the chair. "Let's get rid of him. He'll awaken in a couple of hours."

"Yes Thomas," Silvia said, curtly, watching Frodo's sleeping form. "Do you think he'll wake up, knowing what we did to him?"

"He better not. I don't want anyone knowing where we're taking him. He needs to learn the truth about me before I send him back to his friends," Thomas said, kissing Silvia on the cheek. He smiled at her, telling her, "You are a wonder to behold."

Silvia giggled. "I'm always admired that about you." She smiled, moving a curly lock of brown hair out of Frodo's eyes. "He's handsome. It's a shame he has to go to that cave we so desperately want to keep hidden."

"Don't worry. He'll find out soon where we're going," Thomas said, covering Frodo up in a burlap sack, before taking him out of his room and onto a wagon. By the time Thomas made it out of Bree-town, it was already dawn.