Outlander Book Club: Besieged Section 12 breakdown

Lord John Grey works on saving Malcolm Stubbs in Besieged Section 12. Here's our breakdown of the chapter.
Outlander Season 4 -- Courtesy of Aimee Spinks/STARZ
Outlander Season 4 -- Courtesy of Aimee Spinks/STARZ

It’s time for the battle at the fortress in Besieged Section 12. This section sees some betrayals and action.

It’s a busy and big part of the story. Lord John Grey leads the siege in the fortress, and it doesn’t all quite work out to plan. It looks like there is some betrayal going on, but can Lord John Grey get to Malcolm Stubbs and save him?

Breaking down Besieged Section 12

The section starts outside of the fortress. Inocencia is inside drugging the guards. By the time John and the slaves get in, Inocencia is bloody and injured. It’s clear that while the drugging worked, it didn’t happen as quickly as initially planned.

However, the siege can take place. The slaves rush in, but it doesn’t all play out as initially intended. There are some guards ready for them, and it’s not clear which cannons are armed and which ones aren’t.

Things take a turn when Inocencia starts to pull Lord John Grey into the fortress. Cano attacks them, and he’s able to hit Inocencia in the head. Lord John Grey has to kill Cano, and then he’s able to check on Inocencia. She’s still alive, but she has a nasty gash on her head. It looks like her ear could end up being removed.

Inocencia continues to pull Lord John Grey into the fortress. She needs to get to Malcolm Stubbs, and she even has the key to the room that he is locked in. However, she drops the keys. There is just so much going on that John thinks he may need to break down the door. What he does do is shout through the door to make sure Malcolm is dressed and ready to go. They need to get out right away.

Could this chapter be used in a TV series adaptation?

There is no way that this section couldn’t be used in Besieged was every turned into a TV series or episode. It’s packed with drama and action. This is a huge climax to the story, as it’s the part where Lord John Grey is able to get into the fortress and save Malcolm Stubbs. Again!

This also brings us some of the betrayal. I was always confused at why Cano attacked Inocencia in this fight. It wasn’t like he was confused. I would like to see all that play out, with John having no choice but to kill the slave revolt leader. It did make me wonder what the slaves were actually doing and whether John, Inocencia, and Malcolm would even get out.

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