I took the greatest care with the watch, it was all I had. The nights were cold by the docks, and the people were unforgiving. Hardened by life, they had learned only to care for themselves. A boy without family was no one’s concern but his own.

Ship masts towered along the shoreline. My father left with the Navy, hoping to earn enough money to come back for Mam and I, set our lives on track. That was five years ago. Mam died last year. They told me they were going to take me to Australia, or maybe Canada. The people who took Mam’s body away said people would come for me, they said the best place for me was far away from Liverpool, on another continent. I left that afternoon. If they took me away, how would Dad find me?

The watch was old. It was Dad’s, and probably his Dad’s before him. It was heavy, and probably worth a lot, but I couldn’t sell it. That’s how it all started really. With nothing else to do, I would sit and play with the watch. It was only a matter of time before it started to play with me.