Someone was attempting to awake me. I wished they would stop. My head was pounding and I felt sick to my stomach. But still they persisted in shaking my shoulder. Reluctantly I opened my eyes to find two young men wearing the same dark blue outfits (constable uniforms?) hovering over me. The nearer one with short dark brown hair was repeatedly calling me sir.

With some effort I pushed myself into a sitting position and said, "Who are you?"

The two men shared a look with each other and the helmet less man said, "Sir, it's me, George." I must have given him a blank stare for he continued, "Do you really not know who we are?"

I shook my head once, instantly regretting this decision for the world began to swim. I held on to George for support, which he readily applied.

"I'm afraid I don't even know who I am."

This realization should have disturbed me but for some reason it didn't. It was as if a weight had been lifted and I was free to start anew and remake myself into whatever form I saw fit.

George glanced over his shoulder and said in a commanding tone, "Henry, get Dr. Ogden in here straight away!"

Henry took off. George returned his worried attentions to me. "It's going to be all right, sir. I'm sure the doctor will sort you out in no time."

Shortly after he said this a beautiful woman entered the bedroom and said, "What's going on?"

I thought her voice was the prettiest thing I had ever heard. Which I suppose wasn't saying much since I had only been self aware for a few minutes. Nevertheless my body seemed to respond to this woman and I suddenly had an almost overwhelming urge to touch her.

George walked over to her and said something in hushed tones. Dr. Ogden appeared very distressed and I longed to comfort her. The two men waited in the doorway as she came over to my side. She opened a black bag and pulled out a flashlight.

"Don't be alarmed now, William, I'm just going to shine this light in your eyes to determine if you are suffering from any neurological damage."

William? I felt no association to the name, only her. I stared at her face trying to take in all the details, wanting them to be the first thing I memorized completely in this new life.

"William? Did you understand what I just said?"

I simply nodded and she got to work. She smiled slightly afterwards. Then she reached into her bag and pulled out a needle. Reflexively I moved away from it. Her smile widened.

"It appears that your instincts have not entirely left you."

If you only knew.

"Do you know what this is?" she asked.

"A needle," I said, confused by the question.

"Good. And that?" she said pointing to the lamp beside my head. I told her what it was.

"Does your head hurt?"

"Yes."

"I'll need to examine it too then."

She gave it a quick once over with her eyes and then started running her hands through my hair and I closed my eyes in satisfaction, sighing in contentment.

"Am I hurting you?"

"No," I said with a smile, "I am quite enjoying myself."

Dr. Ogden removed her hands and looked at me strangely. Then she hastily glanced away and said, "Well everything seems to be in order. There doesn't appear to be any signs of physical or neurological damage. I suspect that you were drugged last night. I will need to run further tests to be sure though."

She was halfway to the door when I called out, "Wait! What is your name?"

Dr. Ogden turned around to face me, looking out of sorts and said, "Julia. My name is Julia."

"Julia," I repeated. "That's a lovely name."

"Thank you...William."

With one last fleeting glance she exited the room. I smiled contentedly to myself, happy in the knowledge that I would get to spend more time with her.

Not long after George came back into the room and said, "The doctor is leaving now, sir, you need to go with her."

I nodded and the man helped me out of the bed, down the stairs and into a waiting carriage. Julia was already in there, as was something (someone?) covered with a white sheet. Once we started moving, I attempted to peek under it and she grabbed my wrist gently, shaking her head. It was then that I noticed the ring on her finger.

"I take it you're engaged then?"

To me? I thought hopefully.

She seemed taken aback by the question and looked away. "Indeed I am."

My heart sunk. Not me then.

"When are you to be married?"

"In a few days time."

Each word hit me like a ton of bricks. How could the only person I felt so incredibly close to, that I didn't even remember, be getting married to another? Had I simply been a coward in my other life? Had I never told her how I felt?

"This may come across as impudent but I just have to know," - she glanced at me curiously with those wonderful bluish green eyes- "were we ever involved, Julia? Romantically?"

Suddenly she became very uncomfortable and stared downwards. "Yes, we were, William." Looking at me hopefully, "Are you starting to remember?"

I shook my head and said, "What happened? Why are we no longer together?"

"It's complicated..."

"Please, Julia, I have to know."

She sighed. "I told you something about myself...and you didn't take very kindly to the knowledge."

If my feelings were half as strong towards her as they currently were, I couldn't believe I would ever have let her go. What kind of damn fool was I in this past life?

We sat in awkward silence the rest of the way to the morgue.

Two constables wheeled the body into the viewing area and I followed them inside. Julia told me to take a seat at her desk.

She pulled out the same needle from before and I couldn't stop myself from flinching yet again.

"This will only hurt for a second, William."

Julia took the blood sample over to her laboratory and got to work. In the meantime I glanced around the room, not recognizing any of it but still somehow knowing what everything was. I caught my reflection in a glass partition and did a double take. What on earth was I wearing? It was utterly ridiculous and further proof of what an imbecile I must have been...was.

I looked across the room and at her and grimaced. It was killing me that she would soon be wed to another. Whatever had happened in the past didn't matter. I was going to fix things between us, I was determined to do so if it was the last thing I ever did.

She stood up and smiled slightly in my direction. "The tests will take some time." Gesturing towards the body she said, "I'm going to have to perform the autopsy now. You might not want to be here for that."

I walked over to her and said, "I don't mind."

Julia seemed a bit uneasy. "Yes, well, the only issue is that, well..."

"Speak your mind, Julia."

"Part of the murder weapon was found under your bed." I raised my eyebrows at that. I didn't think I was capable of killing a man but maybe...

She reached out and touched my forearm. "I don't for one second believe that you did this, William. Once I prove that you were drugged, we will be able to establish a case otherwise. Someone must be attempting to frame you."

"Do I have many enemies then?"

"You're a detective and you've put a lot of men behind bars, so yes, William, I'd say that you have some enemies."

"A detective?" I said looking down at my attire. "Dressed like this?"

Julia smirked a little. "We were at a costume party last night."

We?

"Why were you not with your fiance?"

"Darcy was visiting family in Buffalo and could not attend."

"So you asked me to escort you instead?"

"Not exactly...my sister, Ruby orchestrated the whole thing."

"And why would she have done that?"

Julia glanced away again. She seemed to be doing that awfully frequently.

"Who knows?" she muttered. "Ruby's motivations are often unclear."

It was obvious that she was being less than forthcoming but I didn't push the issue.

"Here, let me help you with the body."

"Thank you."

We lifted the murder victim onto the cold slab and then she stared at me. "I have to warn you, it's a bit gruesome."

I said I would be fine and she lifted back the white sheet. The man had clearly been bashed in the head several times. Whoever had done this had been angry, enraged even.

As Julia was preparing her utensils, a white haired man entered the viewing area. Though I didn't know his name, I felt that I didn't like him very much. The way he was currently looking at me, told me that the feeling was mutual.

"Detective Murdoch," said the Englishman, "I've just been informed of all the particulars." He glanced over at the body. "How convenient that you've managed to get total amnesia...again."

Again? Just how feeble minded am I?

"Who are you?"

"Hilarious, Murdoch. I know that you are faking this. And I intend to prove it."

"Actually, Inspector Giles," said Julia, "I believe that he was drugged and-"

"Come now doctor, have you ever heard of a drug that completely erases a persons memory?"

"Well, no," she replied, giving me an apologetic look, "but there are new drugs synthesized every day, so it is completely within the realm of possibility that-"

"But not very likely I take it?"

She simply shook her head and seemed upset. I wanted very badly to deck Giles but that didn't seem like the best idea, not if I wanted to avoid being locked up; not if I wanted to have a chance to win Julia back before it was too late.

"Come along then, Murdoch, let's get this show on the road."

"How can he answer your questions if he doesn't remember anything?"

"I'll be the judge of that, doctor."