Madalen followed Joe out of the box of madness.

"And now?" she asked him.

"I'll settle here for now." He looked around and saw an empty little tent set up near the circus. He went ahead and entered. "Here's everything you need. Better than a caravan," he commented.

The tent looked abandoned, as if someone had lived there before and left it to its fate. She wondered if it was his before Jio locked him in the cell. Joe dusted off some chairs and motioned for Madalen to sit down as he lit a wick in a lamp. He left it on the dusty little wooden table next to him. The table had some books and papers on it. There was also a bed and a wardrobe.

"Won't they find you here?"

"Jio is terrified. He has already sent the troupe to look for me, but they won't find me."

"How do you know?"

Joe gave a wry smile.

"Trust me, they won't find me," he said with certainty.

"How long were you locked in there?" she continued with the questions.

Joe looked at her but didn't speak right away.

"It doesn't really matter."

"How long?" she insisted.

"Since when Jio's psychological problems started, almost from the beginning, that is."

"I guess that's a long time…" she commented wistfully. "And how did you get here?" she continued, noticing the faded gray-yellow color of the tent.

"I would ask you the same."

"It's a weird and crazy story."

"I'm sure it will fit in with the craziness that's here."

Joe seemed more reasonable than the rest. In some strange way, he seemed normal.

"I was in a circus with my brother, I fell into a hole, and suddenly I was here. Actually, I was following Jio, who took my cell phone."

Joe looked at her with a small smile, noticing her blouse.

"Do you like Alice in Wonderland?" he asked her.

"It's one of my favorite books."

"Don't you think it suits you?"

Now that she thought about it, he was right.

"Yes, but I'm not related to Alice, and this is definitely not Wonderland."

Joe laughed.

"And yet, it is."

"What do you mean?"

"It's Jio's Wonderland."

Madalen once again did not understand. She felt that no matter what she asked, the answers would never be clear.

"And you? Will you tell me how you got here?"

"Jio brought me," he said with a small pause, as if thinking about it.

"You too? Did you come by force, against your will?"

"Not in the same way," he said. "I kind of came on purpose."

"Why? Who would want to come here of their own free will? But right, I forgot, he's your brother."

"Yes, I couldn't leave my brother alone."

The tinge in his voice sounded strange.

For all his logic, he spoke enigmatically like Jio.

"Can you tell me why Jio trapped us here?"

"Because he can. It's a game, you're not the first."

"Yes, I understood something from what Jio said… What happened to the others?"

"What do you think?"

For a moment, Madalen froze in shock.

"Did they die?"

It didn't sound like a question but a realization. Terror and rage began to boil within her. "Did Jio kill them?"

"Hmm… that's a good question… In a way, yes." After a pause, Joe continued, "I feel your rage and that's why I can help you not to be next," he told her.

"How?"

"We'll get Jio to hand over the circus to me. If we can do that, then I can set you free!"

"Really? And how are we going to do it?" she immediately agreed excitedly.

"Leave that to me. All I want from you is that you trust me. Do you trust me, Madalen?"

Madalen hesitated for a moment. But what choice did she have?

"Yes," she said tentatively.

"I am glad. You will see that I am the only one who can put an end to this madness!"

She believed his words, she felt a relief. It was the first time in a while that she felt a bit of hope in this place.

"You can stay with me if you want, but you'll probably be better off in your room."

"Yeah, I'd better go back," she said and immediately thought of Jio. "What am I going to tell Jio?"

"That you changed your mind and that you don't want to be with me. It's better that way. Even if he doesn't believe you, it doesn't matter."

He stood up and gave her his hand to lift her from the chair like a gentleman. She took it and stood up.

"Tomorrow morning, meet me at the gate. If all goes well with my plan, tomorrow I will help you leave."

"So soon?"

"Yes, we don't need to wait. I think the sooner things are done, the sooner we will both be free," he said, looking at her strangely. "See you again, Miss."

He escorted her out of his tent.

"And as we said…" he put his finger in front of his mouth, signaling her to keep quiet. He winked at her and stepped back into his tent.

Madalen went to her room, passing the troupe's rooms. All the doors were closed. Should she go talk to Jio and lie to him about changing her mind and being on his side? No, what was the point? He wouldn't believe her.

She entered her room and lay down on the soft white mattress. She closed her eyes, feeling so tired…