Outlander Recap: “The Deep Heart’s Core”

Picking up nearly right where last week’s episode left off, Outlander opened with Jamie walking back to the homestead on Fraser’s Ridge with his injured hand (from nearly beating Roger to a pulp) wrapped up. He found Brianna at the gate to the animal pen where she asked him what happened. “A wee accident near the still,” he replied [and while that wasn’t a complete lie, it was still a pretty big white lie to his daughter]. It was then that Jamie told Bree that Claire had explained to him what had happened to her. “Did you ken the man?” he asked of his daughter. “No,” she answered.

Jamie then asked Bree to walk with him while they checked the snares. It was during this scene that Bree asked, “Do you hate me, Da?” Of course, he didn’t hate her because of what happened to her, but that he would see that she was married because “she must.” Naturally, Bree said she didn’t want to be married as she loved someone from her own time; but she didn’t think that he would want her now that she was pregnant. Jamie, of course, said that if this man who she loves was an honorable man, he would still want her.

Brianna expressed to Jamie that she should have fought back against her attacker, but he kept trying to tell her that she would not have been able to fight him off or worse yet she could have ended up dead. Sadly, she wouldn’t listen to his advice so he took a slightly different approach. He started asking her if perhaps she liked it, that maybe she lied about being raped; in fact he said a number of things to make her angry. His words worked as she attempted to fight him and he proved to her – quite easily – that she would have been overpowered. The realization on her face spoke volumes.

Brianna then shared with Jamie that her momma told her about what Jack Randall did to him at Wentworth. She asked Jamie if he killed Randall, and eventually her father told her that he did, finding Randall’s dead body on top of him on the moor of Culloden. Brianna admitted to Jamie that she had been wondering if she killed the man who raped her, if it would help her forget. Jamie, of course, told her that it wouldn’t. “You won’t forget, but time will let you heal,” he shared before holding her in his arms and kissing her forehead and she laid her hand on his knee.

Viewers then got to learn the fate of Roger, who was tied up with rope being led by foot behind the horse of a native. There was also another man who was a prisoner who was in much worse physical shape than Roger whose face was still bruised from the beating he received by Jamie. It was clear that Roger and this other man were in serious trouble from their captors who were making them walk long distances and only resting at night. As the natives told a story around the campfire, Roger shared with the other man that he was tying knots in a piece of rope to log how many days they had been walking, that he had been memorizing the landmarks as they passed them – in order to find his way back – as he planned to escape in order to get back to his wife.

Back on Fraser’s Ridge, Claire and Brianna were talking about her options with the baby. Claire shared that if Brianna decided not to keep the baby that she could help, but it would have to be surgical and it would be painful. But the main thing was Brianna had to decide soon what she was going to do. If she decided to have the baby and attempted to return to her own time, she could return, but it was possible that maybe the baby would not. They already knew based on Claire’s experience traveling forward in time while pregnant with Brianna that she could go while with child, but with an actual babe in her arms, Brianna could potentially lose her child to another time or that perhaps the baby would stay in the 18th century. They also talked about the fact that since the withdrawal method isn’t foolproof that it could be possible that Roger was the father.

Life continued atop Fraser’s Ridge with Ian helping Brianna carry buckets of water, and her father pointing out that the young man was smitten with her. “But he’s my cousin,” she exclaimed. “Can you not be smitten with your cousin in your time,” asked Jamie. Brianna briefly smiled and shared “it’s not encouraged.” They then talked about Claire, who was working nearby in her herb garden. She told her father that her mother seemed at peace there, and Jamie stated “she’d grow roots here if she could,” which caused Brianna to react sharing that her father (Frank, that is) used to say the same thing. We got to see more of their life at the cabin, tending to the animals, trading with the natives and having a family meal together.

Then Brianna and Claire were seen working on laundry, sharing the things they missed about their own time. Claire shared “messy cheeseburgers with all the fixings,” Briana said, “peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.” Claire stated “aspirin” – with Brianna joking with her that only a doctor would say that, but Claire informed her “you tell me that the next time you have a headache.” Brianna then stated “Led Zeppelin” – which puzzled Claire briefly – “it’s a band, you wouldn’t like them,” Brianna commented. Then the ladies talked about being able to listen to music anytime they wanted; and then they agreed in unison about toilets “that flush.”

We then saw Brianna wake up in the night, seeing Roger at the foot of her bed. She reacted with cheer grabbing his face, telling him that she’s pregnant and then Roger morphed into Stephen Bonnet who seemed excited about possibly becoming a father – “perhaps it’ll have my eyes” – and then he attacked Brianna. She woke up to sunlight streaming into the shelter and Lizzie above her trying to wake her from yet another nightmare. It was during this conversation that Lizzie admitted to Brianna that the man she thought hurt her mistress was gone for good. Soon enough, of course, Brianna figured out the mistake that Lizzie made and that Jamie had beaten Roger nearly to death and that Ian was told to send Roger away.

Brianna stormed into the cabin, interrupting Murtagh, Ian and Jamie talking about what they would be able to do with the still very soon, demanding to know “Where is Roger?” During the course of this conversation, Jamie and Ian realized the grave mistake they made because of what Lizzie thought she knew as the truth, and they learned that Stephen Bonnet was the man who violated Brianna. Worse yet, Ian admitted that he sold Roger to the Mohawk who live in Upstate New York – nearly 700 miles from Fraser’s Ridge. Also, Brianna got a few good licks in against her father and Ian as well as calling her father “a savage” because of the way he talked to her and what he did to Roger. Once the truth was all laid out, Brianna was upset, Lizzie and Ian were devastated and Jamie was angry; but after knocking a glass to the floor and flipping a chair on its side, Jamie was yelled at by Brianna stating that “No, you don’t get to be angrier than me.”

That night they needed to figure out what to do about Roger. Ian shared that the Mohawk sometimes adopt people into their tribe to replace those who have died or have been taken by sickness; and the necklace the Mohawk gave Ian in trade for Roger would help them find him. Unfortunately, they were already a week behind the natives and the family could end up being more than a month behind the natives depending on how quickly they were traveling. Before they made plans on who would go where, Brianna shared with her mother that she would be keeping the baby. She said “if there’s the slightest chance that the baby could be Roger’s, I’m going to keep it.” After a bit of arguing, Brianna demanded that her mother go with Ian and Jamie to find Roger – because he would need a doctor and a face that he knew and trusted, as Roger would not trust Jamie and Ian after what happened. Meanwhile, Murtagh would take Lizzie and Brianna to Aunt Jocasta in order for them both to be safe and for the sake of the baby.

After Claire stormed off being angry at Jamie for not telling her the truth, Jamie told Murtagh to go to Wilmington after leaving Brianna and Lizzie at River Run, to find Stephen Bonnet and bring the man to Jamie because he was going to kill him. The next morning the two “teams” said their goodbyes with Brianna giving her mother a sketch of Roger that would hopefully help them find him, and telling her mother to tell Roger everything. “You have to bring him back to me,” Brianna said before Ian made the gross mistake of asking for Brianna’s hand should they not find Roger alive. Jamie yelled at Ian and sent him off before stating that he wouldn’t stop until he found Roger, and Brianna told him that she would hold him to that vow.

Back with Roger the following morning, the other prisoner was dead and Roger was told they would be riding faster than yesterday. Roger clearly was struggling to keep up, but he was still moving. After yet another night being tied to a tree, Roger was led up onto a hillside, offered some water by one of the Natives, only to eventually slip and fall over the hillside. As the natives attempted to pull Roger up – as only one of his hands was still bound – his hand slipped free and he fell to the base of the hillside. That gave him just enough time to start running with all the strength that he had left. He ran and ran from his captors as they raced after him. Luckily for Roger, he got just far enough ahead of them, being able to hide as they ran right passed him.

At River Run, Brianna and Murtagh were taken into the main room to meet with Aunt Jocasta as her man-servant Ulysses was to read the letter written by Jamie. Neither Murtagh nor Brianna really gave Ulysses the chance, however to read the letter, telling Jocasta who they were and why they were there. Naturally, Jocasta remembered Murtagh’s hands from all those years prior when he would always be by her late sister Ellen’s side – holding out a hand to her or giving her flowers. While that didn’t end well for Murtagh, he agreed with Jocasta that he gained a godson out of it. Jocasta then welcomed Brianna into her home.

The final scene found Roger walking up another hillside where he encountered a standing stone [that buzzed like bees] – just like the one at Craigh Na Dun [this was clearly the standing stone that the natives from the opening scene of the premiere episode were seen dancing around]. The emotions that crossed Roger’s face were palpable, as he was astounded to find a standing stone there, he had the gemstones for him and Brianna to return to their own time BUT he didn’t have Brianna with him to make the trip. What would he do? As he reached out his hand to touch the stone, though, the screen went black.

Were you pleased that the truth finally came out among the family despite the circumstances that transpired afterward? What do you think Roger will do? Stay or leave? Do you think it was too easy that Jocasta accepted Brianna into the fold [especially given the clips for next week’s episode]? Please share your thoughts on the episode in our comments section below.

With only three episodes left in season four, the next new episode of Outlander will air on Starz on Sunday, January 13 at 8/7c.

Want to check out all of our Outlander coverage? Check them all out here.

Need to watch any of the Outlander episodes again? You can watch them at Starz.