AN: For the guest reviews that I can't PM, thank you so much! That was totally amazing what you guys felt about the last chapter, and I really appreciate the support, guys! Also, a bunch of you seem to like Dominic, so I'll explore him a bit more in this chapter.

"Come on, Dom, you've got this!"

"Mmph…"

"Don't pout, big guy," I tell him, folding my arms across my chest as he stares at the pebbles in front of him. "I'm not gonna help you this time – you can figure this one out on your own. Okay, if I have five rocks, and I take two away, how many do I have left?"

Dominic sits there and stares at the tray in front of him as I push two of the five rocks to the side. He frowns in concentration, scratches his head thoughtfully, and stews there; trying his hardest to figure this out.

I wait patiently beside him, having done this sort of thing for the past few days. I'd manage to help him after we finish slaving away out in the field, since it's not like we'd have anything better to do after-hours. He still hasn't said a word to me yet – the only responses that I get are grunts, nods or him shrugging his shoulders. At least he can sort of understand what I'm saying (half the time, anyways).

After looking at it for another thirty seconds or so, Dominic groans in frustration and flips the tray over; sending all of the rocks to go flying around the prison cell. I'm guessing that's his version of giving up on the math problem.

"Dominic!" I complain, laying on my back as I tiredly rub my hands along my face. "It was three! The answer was three, you big lug! Now we've gotta put the rocks back together again…"

"No!"

Immediately sitting upright, I look towards the mountain with wide eyes as he punches a wall – actually causing a small dent. I don't even think the man felt the impact of the blow.

"You… you can talk?" I ask in amazement as he sits down on the edge of his bed with his head in his hands. "Do you… understand me?"

"Me no speak good," he says, and it takes me a minute to understand him through the heavy Spanish accent. I doubt very much that he speaks a whole lot of his native language, let alone English.

Mikael wasn't kidding – the guy's a big, old teddy bear; a gentle giant as long as you don't get on his nerves. As far as I'm aware I haven't done that yet, otherwise he probably would've flattened me into a pancake by now.

"That's okay," I tell him with a small smile, "I think that I speak enough for the both of us, don't you?"

When he cocks his head to the side, completely puzzled, I wave my hand out dismissively.

"Forget it," I say, walking over to sit on the bed with him. "Why are you here, anyways? I mean, where do you live?"

"Home," he replies simply, poking the bed as I shake my head.

"No, I mean like before all of this stuff happened. Where did you live?"

"Home!" he repeats himself, smacking the wall behind him with vigor.

This is sad – from what he's telling me, it sounds as though he's been trapped in this prison for quite some time now. How long exactly is a mystery, since there's no way that Dom will be able to tell me – the highest he can count to right now is five, and that's still with my help. I wonder what he did to deserve ending up in a place like this?

"Do you want to try it again?" I ask, sighing as he shakes his head. Looks as though he's had enough for one night, but at least we've gotten somewhere. Dom actually spoke! If that's not a step in the right direction, then I seriously don't know what is.

"Well, we'd better get some sleep then. It's gonna be a long day tomorrow," I mention, making a sleep motion with my hands so that he understands. Walking over to my corner of the room, I lay down and try to get as comfy as I can on this lumpy, springy mattress. The sooner that Lilly comes up with a plan to get out and pick up Jane (wherever she might be), the better.

I tell myself that that's going to be my first priority tomorrow – finding Jane and making sure that she's alright. The last thing I remember is her getting a bullet put in her leg, but after that it's all just a blur.

She better be alright… She just better be…

…

It's especially hot out today as the sun beats down our backs – some are feeling it more than others.

It's been literally an hour since we've left the prison barracks, and there have already been three cases of heat stroke. Instead of helping the poor guys out, the guards have shot two of them in the head and tried making an example of the third by sending him out into the desert without any weapons or anything.

The man lasted about ten seconds before getting his arms and legs chewed off.

"That might just be a record…" Mikael mutters to me as everyone gets back to work. I stand and stare at the gate for a few seconds more – wondering how we could've possibly fallen so low – before joining him back in the field.

In the row sits me, Lilly (who's made sure to stay close to me ever since we reunited), Mikael, Dominic and that Marcus fellow who I tend to shy away from. He still thinks that I'm some useless kid who's going to get the rest of them killed if I don't have a gag in my mouth or something. He's the asshole of this row, I'm almost certain.

"Try thinking about the coldest places you know," I advise to Lilly, who simply chuckles dryly and rolls her eyes. "I'm serious! Just imagine that you're swimming in the ocean with some penguins while also riding on the back of a polar bear. It works like a charm!"

"You've got some imagination there, Clem," Lilly shakes her head before turning back to her work. She may have just brushed me off, but I still hear her mutter "Penguins" before placing her haul in the bag. I grin mischievously as I wipe the sweat from my eyes.

At least I've still got my hat to keep me cool. The others aren't so fortunate.

"We need to get out of here as fast as possible," Lilly remarks as the both of us hear Mikael (along with a couple of strangers) snort and chuckle. "Something funny, fellas? I wasn't joking, you know."

"The chances of you getting out of here alive are slim to none," Mikael states his opinion, not caring that Lilly glares intensely at him. "Many have tried to break out before you… all of them, fools. They think there's some magical refuge awaiting them – some even believe that the gated fence is the holy gate to heaven and freedom. But as soon as they step out of line, El Diablo comes to snatch them away."

"You're speaking figuratively, right?" Lilly questions as she looks over at Marcus. He's sweating enough to fill a couple of buckets, as his lips look parched and dry. "The devil? Seriously?"

"The fucker's name is Sandro…" Mikael remarks bitterly, shaking his head in anger. "He is the self-proclaimed ruler of this place, and what he says goes around here. Some say that hell sent him back because of how ruthless and cruel he can be."

"What did he do?" I inquire, smiling appreciatively at Dominic as he helps me cut off a tough branch.

Mikael closes his eyes tightly and exhales sharply before muttering that he doesn't want to talk about it.

"I refuse to live back on that memory; to dwell on that grief… It pains me every day."

"Which is why we should all bolt!" Lilly argues, cutting off a branch and tossing it carelessly behind her. "If this asshole's as bad as you say he is, then what's the point in staying here?! We outnumber him and his goons by at least three to one!"

"Don't you get it? This has already been attempted!" Mikael hisses, telling Marcus to shush when he begs for nourishment. "This place has been a prison long before the cursed ones came."

"Walkers?" I ask, to which he shrugs his shoulders.

"Around here, we call them the cursed ones – the people who've lost their way, and are trapped inside the bodies of those beasts."

"Walkers aren't people. Whoever they were in a past life is dead," Lilly deadpans, moving over to the next plant. Seriously, how many of these crops do they need?

"I am not going to debate philosophy with you, American," Mikael sighs, "but regardless, this place has housed criminals for generations. I myself have been here for five years, but Dominic over there was born into this hell. Sandro has been the overseer for some thirty years now."

Looking over at the big guy, Dominic simply ignores the fact that people are talking about him and continues to work. He may not be the brightest bulb on the Christmas tree, but he's got nerves of steel, I'll give him that.

"Well I'm not going to sit here and be a slave to some fucking twisted asshole! I thought we were past this sort of shit!"

"To them, it is as if the world did not change at all," Mikael shakes his head sadly. At least he's civil enough for now. "To them, it just means that they will have less customers for their plantation."

"So you're telling me this whole prison is some sort of plantation business? And they were getting away with it?" Lilly asks in disbelief, finding the whole concept a bit hard to grasp. Mikael nods his head.

"The town nearby would allow it as long as some of the profits were donated to the local economy. Instead of money these days, they trade the crops we pick for weapons and ammunition from the States. Every prisoner they brought in through that gate would be forced into labour – just like we are now."

"But we didn't even do anything!" I retort, suddenly feeling even angrier about this than I was before. "All we did was show up at some guy's house and get kidnapped! We're survivors, not slaves!"

"Call it what you will," Mikael grimaces, "but you are here now, and that's all that matters in the end. No matter what road you may have taken, you are still a part of the system. Face it, Clementine – you're one of us."

"Not for long…" Lilly mutters, to which I nod in agreement. Staying here will just be a death sentence.

Mikael rolls his eyes and gets back to work whilst shaking his head in disapproval. Clearly he knows more about this place than he's letting on.

"I'll believe that escape is possible when I see it with my own eyes."

BANG!

Another person is dropped dead some four rows behind us – a woman, by the looks of things. The sad part is that none of us really flinch at this anymore. It's sad, but that's just how the world works these days.

"Water…" Marcus mumbles, his voice and body getting weaker by the second as he drops the plyers uselessly to the ground. In an instant, Mikael tells him to stand up, and it's not hard to see why. Given the current track record, anyone who isn't able to work is seen as a liability in their eyes.

Suddenly we all hear shouting, as a grey-haired, stern-looking bastard of a man comes storming outside; muttering profanities in his native language. He's got a pair of shades on, but he quickly puts them in his pocket as he furiously gives the security guards a tongue-lashing.

This must be Sandro.

"What's he saying?" I whisper as the man verbally abuses the team of guards; scolding them and poking them right in the chest. The guy's got one hell of a temper, that's for sure.

"He is telling the guards not to kill us…" Mikael utters, which confuses me greatly. Didn't he say that the man was a ruthless villain? What kind of evil guy tells the guards not to kill people?

"Water… water…" Marcus says a little louder, attracting the attention of Sandro as everyone seem to stop what they're doing all at once. Mikael, in one vain last attempt to get him to shut up, smacks him on the arm, but it doesn't work. "Water! AGUA! Please!"

Sandro glares at me sharply before casually strolling over to Marcus, who's practically dying at his feet and grovelling.

Before he addresses the man though, Sandro turns around and glares; rage clearly painted on his face.

"ARE YOU ALL PREPARED TO MEET YOUR END?! NO?! WHO TOLD YOU TO STOP WORKING?!"

The man clearly holds some form of command over the workers, as most look down steadily and continue to work. I know, and so does he, however, that they're all still watching to see what happens next.

"Agua… Agua…" Marcus pleads as Sandro bends down on a knee in front of him; tipping Marcus' chin upwards and maintaining a neutral expression.

"You want water?" he questions, to which the man furiously nods. Sandro whistles for two of the security guards as they come sprinting over to him. "Agua! Our friend here needs nourishment! You know what to do…"

Nodding quickly, the guards hustle back into the office buildings while Sandro orders the man to follow him over to a telephone pole – obviously no longer working properly. Marcus sits upright against the pole as Dominic closes his eyes and encourages me to do the same. I stubbornly refuse, so he just grunts and reluctantly watches the exchange with me.

Maybe I should've listened to him…

Sandro places a cloth over Marcus' face and orders two of the guards to hold him down as he squirms underneath it. The security personnel who left have now come back with a big bucket of… steaming water – it's boiling hot, and… Oh dear god…

"You want water?" Sandro asks loudly, attracting the attention of everyone in the prison. "Let's give it to him."

He takes the bucket and grasps it with the handles, walks back over to Marcus and dumps the bucket onto Marcus' covered face; his screams sending shivers down my spine as I sit there shocked at the cruelty. Sandro tilts the bucket again on top of the man as he struggles to breathe through the cloth.

This is water torture at its absolute worst.

Tossing the bucket aside, Sandro rips the cloth off of his burned flesh as the rest of us look on, completely disgusted at the transformation. He doesn't even look like the same guy anymore, as the boiling water practically melted his face away.

"Would you like some more?"

Marcus still screams and whimpers in sheer agony, but he manages to shake his head as he tries his hardest to crawl away. Sandro puts a stop to that by kicking him right in the face before dragging him by the collar back to our row of tobacco pickers.

"I will not kill you here today – you are a lucky man!" Sandro proclaims menacingly. "I need my workers alive, but I swear to motherfucking Christ, if you step out of line or complain to me again, I will not hesitate to shoot you until you look like fucking Swiss cheese! Comprende?!"

I drop the plyers that I was holding as Sandro glances over my way, before turning to address the rest of the camp.

"Let this be a lesson, and let this man be an example for you all!" he bellows, commanding unwavering loyalty and fear to all. "I do not tolerate insolence! I do not accept any less than your fucking BEST! Fail to do so, and the consequences will be severe!"

He then walks down the aisle towards me, but I glower at him as he faces me. For a split second I imagine that it's Carver standing there instead, but the image is torn from my mind as I match his stare. Maybe they were distant relatives or something.

"Know this," he starts lowly, before smacking me roughly across the cheek as I crash into the plant behind me. Lilly looks enraged, but Dominic knows better than to try anything.

"TO THOSE WHO SERVE, YOUR LIVES MEAN NOTHING!" he roars as I see him walk off, leaving me with a bruised cheek and a fire burning in my heart. He won't get away with this shit.

Rubbing a hand through his slicked-back, greying hair, Sandro walks away with a slew of guards trailing him. The rest go back to patrolling in quiet nervousness. Even his own people are afraid of him.

"Get the American woman out here," I hear him bark as my ears perk up. It couldn't be…

"But sir, she's not yet fit to move…" one of the guards advise, but immediately shut up when Sandro gives him a look.

"If Jonathon hadn't fucked up, then she wouldn't be in that situation!" he yells angrily, steam practically pouring out of his ears. "And if she hadn't resisted, then I wouldn't have had to discipline her! We're on a tight schedule, and we're behind on our quota. I need workers, Corvo! Bring the American out here, and don't argue back to me again!"

"Yes, padre," Corvo (who I'm assuming is his second in command) responds, before bellowing to an officer to release their prisoner out into the fields.

"Clem, you alright?" Lilly asks as she and Dominic help me stand back up. I rub my cheek sorely, but I nod in appreciation as I wipe some tobacco leaves off of my back. It's a good thing that I've got some people willing to watch my back. I'm sure Mikael would as well, but he's too busy trying to tend to Marcus over there. Poor guy…

What Lilly and I see next makes us both sigh in relief…

…but also tremble in fear, anger and shock.

It's sure as hell Jane, alright, as she's forcibly shoved over to where we're all standing. She collapses onto the dirt beside us as Lilly and I try to help her stand. When that doesn't work, we simply have her sit upwards as she groggily looks between the two of us.

She just gives a slow nod towards Lilly, but she actually says something to me; face all bruised and cut up as I see a bandage wrapped around her leg where she was shot before.

"Nice to… see you in one piece… Clementine…" she makes out, her head rolling lazily as she tries to keep herself from toppling over. When I see that she's hiding her left hand behind her back, I carefully move her arm forward despite her insisting that I don't.

I try to overcome a feeling of nausea as I look upon Jane's bloody hand… with two less fingers attached than there are supposed to be.

"Oh my god… Jane…" I whisper as Lilly covers her mouth in shock. Dominic lifts Jane up into his arms and sets her down in between Lilly and I, with her not really arguing as she's gently released. "I'm so sorry…"

"Whatever plan you're creating…" Mikael mutters lowly as he looks over at us, "it better be a good one."

Looking towards Lilly, she simply nods her head before running her fingers through her hair.

We've got some work to do.