Go Tell the Bees That I Am Gone

Ian loads up his family and prepares to leave, and Jamie accompanies them to Salisbury, their first stop.

Jamie meets with Francis Locke, the commander of the Rowan County Regiment of Militia. A young man comes to Francis’s door and asks him to come and help with a dead body. Jamie volunteers.

Jamie is shaken because the dead man resembles the rapist he killed. Jamie tells Ian that Frank Randall’s book says Jamie will die at the Battle of Kings Mountain. Jamie fears this is Frank’s revenge, and Ian assures him that he will return before the battle begins.

Elspeth Cunningham arrives at Claire’s surgery with a dislocated shoulder. Elspeth offers to send two of her son’s lieutenants to Claire’s to help with the chores while Jamie is gone. Elspeth criticizes the excessive size of the house; Claire reminds her that Jamie is responsible for the tenants and needed a space large enough for everyone. Elspeth tells Claire that General Cornwallis is sending an officer to the Carolinas to raise loyalist militias.

In Salisbury, Jamie gives Jenny a gun before saying goodbye. Jamie turns his attention to the shopping list Claire gave him before he left Fraser’s Ridge. The constable tells Jamie of a piece of paper with Hebrew writing on the dead man. Jamie, who learned to read Hebrew in Paris, tells the constable that the writing is a Psalm or hymn with the word “ambidextrous.”

Jamie returns home. Claire tells Jamie about Brianna’s heart issue, and Jamie shows Claire a copy of the Hebrew writing. Jamie tells her the final word in English might be a code word, believing the man was a spy. Jamie decides to align his militia with Cleveland and Shelby. Agnes Cloudtree requests to move in with the Frasers in exchange for work.

Claire takes a few small chunks of sugar to the garden for the bees and speaks to them. Claire overhears a discussion between Fanny and Agnes over the parade of women interested in Bobby Higgins. Claire sees another woman headed to the Higgins’s cabin.

Roger and Brianna arrive in Charles Town. They leave their wagon at an inn and walk to the print shop where Fergus and his family work and live. Germain is relieved when his parents welcome him affectionately. Fergus says he will help Brianna and Roger secure guns for the militia.

Roger contemplates the meaning of becoming an ordained minister on the day of his meeting with the church officials. Fergus tells him he might have found a source for the guns.

Brianna and Marsali are working in the print shop while the children play. Brianna worries about Roger getting minister approval; Brianna worries that she will not make a good wife to a minister.

Roger speaks with Jem before leaving for his meetings, explaining his desire to become ordained.

Marsali, Brianna, and Marsali’s eldest girls go shopping. They witness loyalists throwing tomatoes at a local tavern. One of the men recognizes Marsali as Fergus’s wife. They attempt to throw the women into the water but stop when Brianna hits one with a rock. They tell Marsali to encourage Fergus to stop printing his patriot-leaning paper or they might lose one of their kids.

Fergus tells Roger that he talked to a fisherman who saw a fleet of French ships preparing to come to Charles Town. Roger tells him there will be an American-French attack on Savannah in a few months and they will lose. Roger suggests that Fergus and his family leave Charles Town before that happens. Roger assures Fergus that the Americans will win the war, but not for another two years. Fergus asks Roger where he might take his family, choosing Wilmington.

Roger returns home and tells everyone the happy news about his approval for ordination. They have also secured the guns. Brianna tells Roger about the incident with the loyalists. Brianna says she felt afraid, and Roger explains that it is because she is used to Jamie’s protection. Roger reminds Brianna of her own power.

Fergus takes Roger with him to meet Percy Wainwright, who Fergus knows as Percy Beauchamp. Percy and his lawyer attempt to convince Fergus that he is the son of the Comte Saint Germain and Amelie Elise LeVigne Beauchamp. Percy and the lawyer claim that Fergus can inherit Saint Germain’s estate. Percy wants to use Fergus’s inheritance to establish a foothold in the area. Fergus believes Percy is a conman. Fergus tells Roger that he wants to pack up his family and leave Charles Town with Roger and Brianna, but he wants Brianna to reach out to Lord John Grey and get the British escort he had offered because he must take his printing press with him.

Roger and Brianna wake to smoke in Fergus’s home. Marsali takes the children out front, and Roger goes to the back where he finds Fergus putting out a fire near the back door. Fergus claims it is loyalists trying to scare them away, but it is an awful reminder of the fire that took the life of his son, Henri-Christian. Four days later, the families pack up and prepare for the journey to Savannah.

Jamie has a nightmare and seeks comfort with Claire. Jamie tells Claire he had a nightmare about Frank Randall. Jamie points out the resemblance between Frank and Jonathan Randall, Jamie’s torturer.

Ian goes to the home of Silvia Hartman, finding her children in a shed out back while she entertains a man. The man comes outside at the sound of the children’s voices and threatens to hit them with a belt. Silvia tries to stop him, so he hits her across the face with the belt. Ian and the man get into a fight, and Ian kills the man. Ian gets the body on the back of a horse and takes it to a wooded area, where he places it near the edge of a ravine to make it appear as though the man had a riding accident.

Ian takes Silvia and her three daughters to his family. Silvia expresses her gratitude.

Ian goes to the brothel Claire told him to visit and speaks to a couple of girls. He tells them he wants to know about Jane Pocock.

Rachel takes Silvia to speak to the leaders of the local Quakers and becomes enraged when they refuse to help Silvia because she was a sex worker. Silvia explained how her husband left her alone with children and no money, so she had to do something to support them, but the men had no sympathy. Ian learns at the brothel that Jane was 12 or 13 when she was brought there with Fanny by a sea captain. They tell him the captain’s name was Sebastian Vasquez. At home, it is decided that Silvia and her daughters will travel to New York with Ian and his family.

Jamie and Claire lay in bed and share stories of their day before becoming intimate. Then, in the middle of the night, Jamie wakes Claire to ask the date. When she tells him, he realizes that the American attempt to take Savannah back will happen soon. He worries about Brianna.

Jamie brings several bottles of whiskey to Claire’s surgery, along with a device she asked him to make. Claire sees he put his initials on it and laughs, and then she explains to Jamie that the device is to hold a woman’s uterus in place. He takes the device back so he can sand his initials off it.

Rachel is nervous as they approach the village where Emily lives. Although she trusts Ian, she is afraid of what seeing Emily again will do to him. When they settle at an inn outside the village, they get word that Joseph Brant, or Thayendanegea, a relative of Emily’s and a military leader of the Mohawks, will see them over tea the following day. Ian insists that Rachel and Oggy go with him. At the meeting, Ian introduces his family, and Joseph introduces his wife, Catherine. Rachel tries to follow the conversation, but much of it is in Mohawk. Catherine clarifies the conversation from time to time, telling Rachel that Brant suggested Ian might get back with Emily and keep Rachel as a part of his household. Another man joins them—the Sachem, or the chief. He takes an instant interest in Jenny and she in him.

Rachel feels pressure on her breasts from not feeding Oggy and asks where he is, but Catherine says he has been taken for a walk. Rachel bumps into Silvia’s missing husband, Gabriel. He explains that he was kidnapped by Shawnees and brought north. Then he was sold to the Mohawks and is now a free man. Silvia tells Gabriel she has the children with her, but when he learns about the youngest child and realizes it is not his, he understands what she did to survive. He looks down on her, so she asks for a divorce, to which he responds that he will keep her eldest daughters. Silvia refuses. Ian comes to find Rachel, and she tells him what she overheard between Silvia and Gabriel. She asks him to speak to Joseph on Silvia’s behalf, but he tells her Joseph has gone to arrange a meeting with Emily. Ian leaves to find Silvia.

Ian finds Silvia attempting to take a horse and return to her children at the inn. Ian takes Silvia back to the inn, and she tells him that she was meant to marry someone else but she fell in love with Gabriel. By the time they arrive at the inn, Silvia has decided to allow her daughters to see their father. She insists Ian leave her alone at the inn. He gives her money to hire a wagon to return to Joseph’s home.

Ian goes hunting with Joseph and tells him about Claire’s time-travel abilities and knowledge of the war. He suggests that Joseph should side with the patriots because the Americans will win the war. Joseph tells Ian to tell Sachem. Ian meets Gabriel as well, and Gabriel asks about Ian’s relationship to Silvia, which Ian explains. Gabriel insists he couldn’t have gone back to Philadelphia, but Ian doesn’t respond.

Rachel learned from Catherine how to paint her face and does it in preparation to meet Emily. Rachel, Ian, and Oggy travel to Emily’s farm. Rachel meets Emily’s children. Emily asks Ian to speak to her alone in the longhouse. She takes him to her sleeping compartment and tells him that she has a new lover, and this man wants to marry her, but he does not like her eldest son, Totis. Emily asks if Ian would take Totis with him. Ian agrees. They go together to tell Rachel, and she quickly agrees. Emily asks permission to name Oggy, and she chooses the name Hunter.

Rachel and Ian decide to call their son Hunter James Ohston’ha Ohkwaho, or Little Wolf. They return to Joseph’s home for dinner, where Ian catches Silvia as she brings her eldest daughters to see their father. He stands outside the room with her as the girls greet their father, and Silvia tells Ian she tried to figure out how to leave the girls with Gabriel, but she cannot separate them from their youngest sister. Ian tells Silvia that Gabriel has two children with his new wife. Gabriel asks to speak to Silvia, telling her he wants the girls to stay and that he would allow her to become a part of his household, too, if she wanted. She tells him she will not leave her children, or stay herself, and Ian backs her up.

Brianna and Roger arrive at the home of Mr. Brumby and settle into his impressive home. As they prepare for bed that night, Roger asks Brianna when the Siege of Savannah will begin. She tells him they still have three weeks and makes him promise to stay clear of the action.

Roger goes to the American camp in order to deliver a message to General Lincoln on behalf of Jamie but is told Lincoln is asleep, so Roger asks for Lieutenant Colonel Francis Marion. When Roger finds Marion, he realizes that Marion is planning a siege but is confused because he thought the siege was still several weeks off. When Marion finishes his meeting, Roger approaches him and tells him he is there seeking advice on behalf of Jamie Fraser. Marion recognizes the name and tells Roger that Jamie shouldn’t make any connections with the Continental Army because it could place him in harm. Marion says Jamie’s actions after Monmouth have placed a target on his back. Roger tells Marion he would like to help with the impending siege, asking for a sword over a gun.

Lord John Grey comes to Brumby’s home to warn Brianna that, because of the approaching hurricane season, the Americans and French are speeding up their attack. He gives her an American flag to hang outside the house should the Americans win. John assures Brianna he will come for her if things go badly. Brianna tells him Roger is in the city and asks that he keep an eye out for him.

Roger writes a letter to Brianna but realizes that he’s written so many letters for the soldiers that he has run out of ink and cannot send the letter. He places it inside the pocket of his coat so that someone might get it to her if he dies. Roger joins the soldiers as they prepare for battle. Marion reminds him that he doesn’t have to stay, but Roger insists he will. As the fight begins and men begin to fall, Roger remembers a friend of his father’s telling him that on the battlefield, all he can do is be with the men. So, Roger does just that, over and over, saying prayers over injured, dying, and dead men.

John Grey gets word to Brianna that Roger is with the Americans and has remained behind to help bury the dead. Brianna spends her mornings working on the portrait for Angelina Bramby and her free time working on the painting of Jane. As they work one day, a soldier for the Continental Army is brought to the studio and gives Brianna a note from General Lincoln. Brianna is initially afraid it is news of Roger’s death, but instead it is a request for Brianna to come to the army camp and paint a fallen general named Pulaski. Brianna agrees and begins packing but is disturbed again when two more men come to the door looking for her. When the men insist on seeing her, Brianna goes to the door to discover her visitors are William and John Cinnamon. William goes to the studio to speak to Brianna while she packs and explains the situation. William is shocked to see the painting of Jane but happy to know Fanny is at Fraser’s Ridge. William tells Brianna he will not allow her to go to the American camp alone and insists on accompanying her.

When they arrive at the camp, Brianna, William, and John Cinnamon learn that Pulaski was a Polish noble who led a calvary charge into a line of canons, was injured with grapeshot, and was taken to a ship called the Wasp. He died that morning, so they brought him ashore so his men could pay their respects. They are taken to a tent where Pulaski has been laid out. Brianna asks about Pulaski’s family, wondering if she should do an extra portrait for them, but learns he had no family beyond his soldiers. The soldiers provide Brianna with light and a place to sit, and she promises to make as many sketches as she can.

Brianna works as a line of soldiers comes steadily into the tent to view Pulaski. General Lincoln comes, and Brianna takes out fresh paper but stops to watch this history in the making. A man Brianna believes to be Admiral d’Estaing approaches Pulaski and places a hand on his chest. Pulaski’s body releases a cloud of gas, initially causing nervous laughter and then filling the tent with a terrible stench. William and John Cinnamon pull Brianna out of the tent, but William returns for Brianna’s art box.

Brianna, William, and John Cinnamon are taken to a shelter where they have some food and sleep. Brianna wakes during an attack of her atrial fibrillation to find William asleep. She goes outside and walks with John. She learns about some of William and John’s relationship and John’s desire to send his father a portrait of himself. Brianna agrees to help.

As William escorts Brianna home, he tells her more about John Cinnamon. Brianna then asks William what he plans to do now that he has resigned from the army, but he makes it clear he doesn’t know. They find themselves in an alley near a church in the midst of a funeral for two small children. A boy comes up and tells William that John is hiding in a cave from a French press-gang. William insists Brianna take herself home, but she forces him to listen to her about the caves in that area, telling him the one John is hiding in is likely a tunnel that begins at a tavern. William thanks her for the information and leaves. Moments later, Roger finds Brianna in the alley.

Hal has received a letter informing him that Dottie had a baby girl, but the child died from illness, and Dottie is ill as well. Denzell has broken his parole and taken Dottie somewhere safe, the location of which is hidden in code on the letter. John Grey finds Hal in the midst of an asthma attack and calms him before deciphering the code. John asks William to go find Dottie.

While Roger bathes, Brianna goes through his coat and finds a tooth that doesn’t belong to him and a letter addressed to her. As Brianna reads the letter, she recognizes the words as Isaiah, Chapter 6, Verse 8. She finds a Bible and reads the passage in whole, and she realizes it is a passage about being called to duty. Brianna has always understood that Roger felt the calling but now understands just how deep it goes.

While at a party after the Americans have left the city, John Grey notices William’s attention to Amaranthus and sees that others are aware of it as well. John worries about what it will mean for their reputations since Amaranthus has only been widowed a short time, assuming Benjamin is truly dead. At the same time, John runs into Percy again, and the encounter reminds him of their love affair. Amaranthus and William decide to go outside where they’ll find some privacy. William tells Amaranthus that he will be leaving soon to go find Dottie. They share a kiss.

John Cinnamon helps William load up his horse for the trip east. John makes William promise to be careful, while he promises to be kind to Brianna so that she’ll make him a suitable portrait.

As William travels, he reflects on Hal and his father’s warnings, but his thoughts quickly move to Amaranthus. They came very close to being intimate, and William stops because of the idea that he might produce a child. However, the idea is not as forbidden to him as it once was, and he finds himself honestly considering marrying Amaranthus.

William arrives at the home of the Quaker couple who Denzell’s letter said took in Dottie. However, the couple tells William that Dottie’s brother had come for her over a month ago. William decides to find Denzell instead, assuming whoever came for Dottie took her to her husband. William arrives in Morristown, New Jersey, where Washington is stationed, and hears that the doctors are giving smallpox vaccinations on Washington’s orders. He goes to the church where the vaccines are being given and learns that Denzell is in Jockey Hollow that day at the Wick House. William goes there and barges in, shocked to find Benjamin there with Denzell and Dottie, alive and well.

William immediately understands that Benjamin faked his death in order to join the Continental Army under a false name. William and Benjamin go outside to speak in private. Benjamin explains that he read Thomas Paine’s pamphlet, Common Sense, and it convinced him of the American cause. He also states that faking his death was Amaranthus’s idea. The men begin fighting, and when soldiers come to break it up, Benjamin accuses William of being a saboteur and has him arrested. The following morning, Denzell comes to William and tells him that he and Dottie will help him escape.

It takes three weeks for William to make his way back to Savannah. He considers who he should speak to first. William wants to confront Amaranthus, feeling betrayed that she knew Benjamin was still alive when she proposed marriage to William.

Jamie visits the area where Frank Randall says the battle that will end in Jamie’s death. It reminds him of the war stories his father and Murtagh told him as a child. He imagines the battle as Frank wrote it, telling Frank aloud he refuses to believe he will die. He thinks of a prayer meant to bless a new child, and it brings William to mind. As he retreats, he wonders who will greet him when he dies, thinking of his parents and Murtagh.