How does Forbes know Jemmy is possibly Bonnet’s son on Outlander?

At the end of Outlander Season 5, Episode 6, Forbes told Bonnet that “his son” is the owner of River Run. Why would he do such a thing?

What an episode of Outlander Season 5! Just before Jocasta’s wedding, she officially signed everything over to young Jemmy. While she’ll be the governor of it until Jemmy is of age, it’s a huge step. And now it could cause major problems for the Fraser/MacKenzie family. Forbes has told Bonnet about Jemmy inheriting River Run, but why would Forbes think Jemmy is Bonnet’s son?

It all comes down to events that would have played out off-screen. Bonnet could have mentioned that he and Brianna have a child together. Of course, there’s no way that Bonnet would have told Forbes the entire truth about how they have a child together—remember that there’s no reason for Bonnet not to think that Bree was telling the truth about Jemmy being his child—but Bonnet would have told him about Jemmy being his.

But why would Forbes believe him? Why would he want to cause problems for Bree?

This all comes down to pride. Remember that Brianna hurt him. Forbes was just about to propose to Brianna when she announced that she and Lord John Grey were engaged. It was embarrassing to him, and men in power don’t like to be embarrassed. Forbes now has a way to cause problems.

By siding with Bonnet, he can make life difficult for Bree. After all, it could affect people’s opinions of Bree if anyone found out that there was a chance someone other than Roger was the father of her child.

Bonnet may feel like he could claim River Run. After all, as the father of the child and a man, he could argue that he should be the one running the estate and not Jocasta. Forbes wouldn’t just blame Bree for the embarrassment but blame Jocasta for setting up the potential embarrassment in the first place. He’ll want to cause as many problems for River Run as possible and then potentially be in a position of power when Bonnet takes over.

At least, that’s my thinking process. It certainly causes problems by Bonnet believing Jemmy is his son and now in a high position in North Carolina society.

What did you think of Forbes telling Bonnet about Jemmy? What trouble do you think it will cause on Outlander Season 5 moving forward? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

Outlander Season 5 airs Sundays on STARZ.