The Lamanites came and took possession of the land of Helam, and Alma and his people did not resist (23:29). But then the priests of Noah, who were also in the area, feared that the Lamanites would kill them, and so they sent their Lamanite wives to plead for them, which they did.
In that day, women were less able than women today would be to object to their husbands. In fact, the word in Hebrew for husband is baal, which meant lord, as in "my lord," (with a little "l"). The relationship between husband and wife was not as much of an equal partnership as it is meant to be today. Although the wives could probably make life pretty miserable for their husband, there would be a lot of risks in this society for doing that. They were probably normally very obedient. In any case, even if they had once been kidnapped, these women were now their husbands’ loyal wives. This particular story says a lot about how good those women were. They were willing to support their husbands, protect them, and do whatever they could for them.