Outlander Book Club: Written in My Own Heart’s Blood Chapter 58 breakdown
Just the Outlander chapter
The chapter starts with William at camp. He needs to find Zeb and Colenso, but neither of them is anywhere about. It’s only when he starts to think about how he was supposed to meet Jane at the surgeons’ tent that he heads that way.
William is excited about seeing Jane again, and he’s disappointed when she’s not there. It turns out that she was just hiding while she waited for him. This is a woman who is on the run. Of course, she’s going to be hiding.
Jane and Fanny have been looking after Zeb and Colenso. It turns out that Zeb is afraid of surgeons. So is Fanny—who thinks that the surgeons will cut out her tongue because of her speech impediment. This poor sweet girl.
Zeb needs to have his arm cauterized, so he ends up taking the man to the tent. He has a tight grip on Zeb at first, and it’s only when he thinks of Jamie’s grip on himself that he loosens it. Instead, he opts for a soft grip that Rachel once had for him. Interestingly, Rachel also comes up in his thoughts when he thinks of Ian in anger. William is slighted by Rachel’s choice for the “Scot.”
After this, William thinks about how to keep Jane and Fanny safe. When they get to New York, William will give them £5 and see them on their way. Until then, Jane will need to do his laundry. She’s never done that, but she knows that she will need supplies. William gives her money for that, and Jane is shocked by it.
It turns out that all the money she earned in the brothel was taken by her employers for her upkeep. She has no idea how much the items will cost. I do think this says a lot about the world at the time. Everyone was sheltered, and people learned from those around them.
William also learns that they had to leave because there was a threat on Fanny’s virtue. William thinks about Captain Harkness. He now has someone to direct his anger toward, and that’s probably a good thing.
At the end, William realizes that giving Jane the money was a bad idea. Someone will think she stole it, so he needs to find her new clothes so that she doesn’t look like a prostitute. The problem is, Jane knows that that is what she is. She doesn’t see any other life for her, and I find that so sad.