A young surgeon, Dr. Nicholas Goodbottom

Nicholas hurried home from the newly opened King's College Hospital, the cool air of the late March evening giving him a chill. His surgery was insufferably stuffy and he had left for home sweaty every evening that month.

It was a good thing his brother had invited him to dine tomorrow, on his day off, so that he could arrive fresh and well dressed. Lady Goodbottom, his brother's wife and their cousin, considered his occupation beneath their family's station and would apply her sharp tongue to any perceived impropriety. In Amelia's mind, work was for lesser people.

That was all well and good but their family's income wasn't nearly what it was a century ago. So when Nicholas saw a glint of gold in the gutter, he stopped to investigate, hoping he might have found a coin of the realm in need of rescue. Instead, he found an intricate pocket watch that glittered in the starlight. It was beautiful!

He would make inquiries about who might have lost such a treasure, of course. But he could hardly leave it there! He would take it home that evening. And if he were to fiddle with it in his bachelor's apartment, it would only be to make sure the thing had not been damaged when its owner lost it.