Jeffrey Gardiner is the son of a con artist. Growing up on the crowded streets of London, his father was well acquainted with the underground, and often employed his son as a decoy, cutpurse, or, eventually, burglar in his schemes. He never knew his mother, and had only the example of his criminally-inclined father in his childhood.
His father ran afoul of a local band of thieves when he attempted to run his cons on their turf, and was slain in cold blood in a dark alley. Young Jeffrey witnessed the slaying, hidden in the shadows. He learned firsthand that there is no honor among thieves, and turned his talents to the side of the law, hoping one day to see his father's killers punished.
Jeffrey is generally good-humored, and appreciates the finer things in life. His training in con artistry has helped him be able to blend in with many facets of society. Equally at home among the wealthy elite or among the thieves and prostitutes of Whitechapel, he is a social chameleon whose aloof manner often causes people to underestimate him - which suits him just fine.
