The male Crossborn heir to the Breatham house in Fang's End, Nigel was trained to be a Warrior from birth, and reached the status of a decorated knight at a young age. Talented in battle, chaste in demeanor, and more inclined to politics than his older sister Ellenor Breatham, he was a family favorite.
When she fled before her wedding, he was the first to volunteer to chase her, as the family did not want to create a scandal. This ended up being a larger task than he initially believed: Ellenor sold off some minor Breatham treasures to buy secrecy for her escape, and he ended up chasing her halfway across Commona. During his journeys, he learned more about the world of thieves than he ever thought possible, and got wind of a talented new Rogue who had joined the Whistledrop Crew.
Nigel tracked down the location of the thieving crew, finding that as he suspected, Ellenor was amongst them. An altercation with them grew heated, and he ended up attacking and killing Devona; however, in the scrum, both Ellenor and her mentor Nessa Nina Quickpick Rumbauld Pennyluck escaped. After she disappeared, he could not keep up with her, and lost her trail somewhere around Cliffsunder.