I turned and stared into the face of a good-looking man. His hair was black, it touched the back of his neck. He was like half a foot taller than I was, and his blue eyes never left mine. They held it the way an animal watches its prey. "Yes?"

"My name is Sigil."

"Sigil?" I said.

"Sigil Alvis, my lady," he replied, and that was when the similarity of the last name hit me.

"Oh, Alvis. The, uhm, older brother, right?"

"Right," he said.

"The one who wanted a dance, I assume."

He said nothing, and I went on. "How come the Commander of the King's army sends his...