Ashley went with the other women to eat breakfast; women in Neegan's harem ate better than most of the compound, even his fighters. There wasn't a lot, so the meal consisted mainly of oatmeal for everyone.
A couple of times throughout the meal, Ash caught Neegan's stare as he entered the dining hall. She would always drop her gaze to her oatmeal. It took everything she had in her body to not throw her tray across the room and run.
"Hope my lovies are getting along!" He commented, watching the crowd.
The dishes were gathered, and a group of kids entered to clean the area. Ashley kept back a gasp when she saw Ryan. When it was safe, he came close enough to talk to her without drawing attention.
"Colby's okay! He, Shane, and Zach are working on a plan to get everyone out! Kelly already knows! We're working on our own plan! Just try not to die, okay?" His brown eyes pleaded with her.
Ashley nodded weakly; she hoped he knew that she loved them both and would do anything for them. Even if it meant staying here, where there was only pain for them.
"Is Jenny okay?" Ashley asked; thinking of her baby was the only thing keeping her going.

Ryan nodded. "She's fine..." his voice cracked; he saw the pain on Ashley's face and knew something was wrong, even though he was too young to understand it.
"Stay safe, Ryan! We're counting on you!" Ashley whispered as the boy left.
********
Ryan met with Colby and Shane that night.
"I saw Ashley!" He exclaimed excitedly.
Colby frowned at him. "What did you say, kid? You saw Ashley? What did you see?"
"Well....it was hard to find her because she's in Neegan's building .....but I recognized her! She looked so scared! Like she didn't want to tell me something...."
Colby's stomach turned.
"That sicko! He must have hurt her! " Colby spat.
Shane grabbed Colby's hand to calm him down. "Let's focus first, Colby. This is bigger than all of us.....I'd rather take care of ourselves and try to save as many lives as possible."
"And every day we keep planning that monster is torturing my wife!" Colby fumed.
"We won't give up until we succeed. But right now, we have other people to think about! What about Jenny, your baby? Or Kelly, your and Zach's sister? Or the other people in our group who were taken? Their lives are in the balance too! We need to be focused on those things, or we're going to lose too many lives!"
******
Ashley walked into the room with a few other women. They were all from the group they had been traveling with, so she knew she could trust them.
"Shane, Zach, Colby, and Ryan are all alive! They are working on a plan to rescue us! Everyone needs to be on alert and ready for what's to come." Ashley informed them.
"I don't see any problem with that," Bethany responded.
"Good....because it's going to be tough getting everyone through the gates safely! Spread the word! We have to stash weapons and know where the other supplies are!" Ashley told them. As scared as she was, it was the first time in days that she had hope.
*******
Word of the escape plan made it to the cells with the other prisoners. Men were plotting ways to smuggle weapons while the women and children kept each other's spirits up. They just had to figure out the perfect time, the perfect night, to make their move. The women in the harem knew that they had to be careful who they told; some women were so brainwashed that they were loyal to Neegan. Some of his fighters had wives and children in the cells. It would be easy for one of them to slip up and betray the secret. That was why everyone worked together and did everything they could to stay alive.
*****
Back at the camp, Zach was getting stronger. His leg had healed enough to walk on it and he monitored the compound from his vantage point like a hawk. He knew which guards were thorough, others who were lazy and stupid or incompetent. He had learned that it was impossible to hide from a security guard; if they knew you were there, they'd stop you no matter where you hid; they wouldn't give you the chance to escape.
Zach was grateful that the compound had electricity; the lights helped. He figured out where the homemade zombie hoard was being kept; the place was so huge that it could have been mistaken for another building for prisoners, or maybe livestock. There was also the possibility that the zombies were kept away from humans...if so, that would help protect humans when the survivors got to Jackson.
*******
Jenny toddled around the cell, her moccasins tapping softly against the floor as she played with her bunny and her rag doll on the ground. Kelly would talk to her, telling her about Ashley and Colby.
"You'll see your mommy and daddy soon! And they'll bring you home!" Kelly would reassure her. She would sit down and talk to the toddler while she chewed on an apple slowly, and carefully.
She hoped everyone could stay safe. But in this place no one was immune to death; they were all just waiting to be killed when it finally happened. People were executed for trying to escape, women were raped, and little kids got sick.
It was horrifying to think about but she refused to cry, she had to be strong and look after her little niece.