A long time passed without her leaving the room. She waited for the show to start. She could explore the place, but she didn't dare yet. Yellow brought her food on a silver tray, entering after knocking on the door. He left the tray on the nightstand.

"Jio said to keep an eye on you until the show. Eat it, it's delicious," he said simply.

When he was gone, she opened the plate, and a wonderful smell wafted through her nose. It was meat with a red sauce, served with rice and salad. She cut and tested a piece. It was delicious. She let some time pass before taking a second bite, suspecting it might be poisoned. She felt paranoid, but rightfully so. After seeing that the meat had no effect on her body, she ate it all. Soon, she began to feel drowsy; her muscles relaxed, and in a paradoxical way, she fell asleep.

Damn, they drugged me, she thought.

"Madalen," came a gurgling voice. She opened her eyes. Jio was standing over her.

"Okay, you're awake. It's time for the show."

Madalen stood up and rubbed her eyes. "You put a sleeping pill in my food!"

It didn't sound like a question but an accusation.

"Yes, it's true. Otherwise, you wouldn't sleep; and you need strength."

She examined herself carefully. Everything was in place, and she didn't feel different. Of course, she thought something might have been done to her while she slept.

"There's no way I'll come!"

"Oh, but why? We've prepared a very good show, especially for you," he said, implying that the previous shows were not good. Madalen was mad about the hypnotic and wasn't going to take it kindly.

"I said no. I'll wait for the gate to open, that's it!" she said firmly and stood up.

  Going out, she saw people. She was so happy she couldn't describe it. She ran to the gate but was disappointed to find it closed again. What had happened? Why did they close the gate while people were coming to the amusement park? She sighed, thinking that the gate would open again when the people left.

Soon, the amusement park was empty. Everyone was going to see the show. Madalen stopped short and looked at the long line of people forming to enter the majestic circus. She stood last. Maybe she would go to the show after all, just to pass the time. There was no way they knew she was there with so many people.

As people settled into the plush seats, Madalen felt a strange sensation. She hadn't noticed it before, but everyone looked a bit pale, as if vitality was missing from them. She sensed something was wrong but couldn't pinpoint exactly what. She wondered if she was becoming paranoid.

Once everyone was seated, the place fell completely silent. Then Jio emerged from backstage and headed to the circular area in the middle of the circus. The spotlight fell on him. He was wearing a kimono with strange shapes.

"Welcome, ladies and gentlemen, to our show once again." Everyone broke into applause, but not Madalen.

"Today we had planned a different show to honor one of our guests, Madalen, but she is not with us tonight. So, the show will go on as usual," he continued. "Let the show begin, ladies and gentlemen."

There were loud applauses and whistles of excitement. Madalen was surprised that he spoke to the audience so familiarly, as if they came all the time. But such a thing would be very strange. Not that everything she's experienced so far has been normal. She tried not to think about it. A show it was; she would pass the time and then leave this place for good, and no one would stop her.

The curtain opened, and Purple walked in, wearing his classic white suit with the carnation. On his head was a tall black hat, like the ones magicians hide rabbits in. Along with him, he dragged two large boxes with wheels underneath, big enough to fit a person inside. One was vertical, and the other horizontal. Jio sat at the back edge of the stage so he wouldn't be seen as the spotlight fixed on Purple at center stage.

"For the start of the show, we're going to begin with the classic vanishing box and splitting box," Purple said. The audience broke into applause and cheers again.

"Who in our audience wants to be today's victim?"

Victim? Madalen thought. He was obviously joking, but his expression didn't show it. A girl from the third row behind Madalen raised her hand.

"Okay, my little miss, come," he urged, preparing the disappearing box. The girl, pale with no trace of life about her, entered the box. Purple closed it, spun it three times, then opened it. The girl had disappeared through the box.

"Our first victim is gone," he said. The audience started clapping and whistling as before. Purple continued with his second trick without the girl reappearing.

"Who will be next?"

A lady in her fifties raised her hand. Purple beckoned her over. She went speechless and entered the separation box. She lay down with her legs and head sticking out of the box. Purple took a huge saw out of a suitcase. Another chainsaw was visible inside the suitcase.

"And now it's time to split," he said emphatically and began sawing the box in half. For some reason, Madalen had a bad feeling. She immediately pushed her thoughts away, but when the saw reached almost the middle of the box, her fears returned. Her stomach tightened just as the woman inside the box started to scream. Her screams were heartbreaking, but Purple continued to cut the box in half, ignoring her. The audience also seemed unruffled. An expression of horror covered Madalen's face when she saw that red liquid began to flow from the bottom of the box, staining the ground. She couldn't believe it; it wasn't possible. She was definitely being pranked!

The woman began twitching as the saw reached the end of the box, cutting it in half. Purple moved the boxes away from each other. In one was the woman's head, her eyes rolling without opening or closing. In the other were her legs, still moving tensely up and down. The red juice oozing from the box had stained the entire area under Purple's feet along with his suit. Purple looked at the audience and smiled. The audience started whistling and clapping again.

"And that was the last trick from me," he said, bowing before disappearing backstage, leaving the box containing the dismembered woman behind.

What had just happened? Was she hallucinating? Were they lying about it? What kind of barbaric joke was this? He had just cut a woman in half, and no one seemed to care. Was it red paint to make it more believable? She wasn't sure. She sat tight in her chair as the twins, Red and Blue, came out from behind the curtains, pulling a large wheel of fortune. They placed the wheel in the center and called someone from the audience. This time it was a chubby, gray-haired man. They tied him to the wheel and began to spin him. Then the twins blindfolded themselves with black handkerchiefs and began blindly throwing their knives at the wheel. At first, it seemed they could see. Then Red said to Blue, "Right hand." Blue threw the knife, and it lodged in the man's right arm. The man cried out, grimacing in pain. Blue then said to Red, "Left eye." Red threw the knife, and it struck true. Red blood began to flow from the gray-haired man's injured eye. The audience continued to applaud.

"Heart," Red said, and Blue threw his last knife, driving it right into the man's heart. His head tilted down, a sign that he was dead.

No, it cannot be...