Written in My Own Heart's Blood

Roger and Buck pass through the stones to the 18th century, but Buck suffers a mild heart attack. Knowing that Jem would head back to Lallybroch if he was alone, Roger plans to travel toward Lallybroch while Buck walks to Inverness in case Robbie tries to take a ship to America.

In 1980, Brianna’s daughter Mandy tells her that she can sense Jem. Brianna drives while Mandy tells her if they are getting warmer or colder. Jem finds a door leading out of the tunnel into the machinery room. Frightened by the noise and vibration in the room, he hurriedly makes his way to the staircase.

In 1739 Lallybroch, Roger meets Jamie’s father Brian and realizes that he has gone too far into the past. He tells Brian that he is searching for his kidnapped nine-year-old son. Brian invites him to stay the night, and they join teenaged Janet Fraser for supper. Roger deduces during the meal that he is somewhere between 1737 to 1739, years that Jamie spent in Paris. When Janet asks about Roger’s wife, he is overcome with despair and leaves the table.

Outside, Roger weeps for his own family and for the Frasers in the house. In a year or two, English soldiers will come to the house and attempt to rape Janet. Jamie will intervene and be sent to prison. When Brian Fraser tries to help Jamie, he will suffer a fatal stroke while witnessing Jamie’s flogging. Roger can’t stop these events from occurring, because Brianna, Jem, and Mandy may cease to exist in the future if he did.

In 1980, Jem reaches the top of the stairs and pounds on the locked door. Jock MacLeod, the night guard, opens the door. Learning Robbie kidnapped Jem, Jock calls Brianna. However, he is assaulted from behind by a man with a cosh, or bludgeon. Jem bites the man and escapes down a hallway. He locates the emergency exit in the lobby and runs outside, setting off the sirens and alarms.

Brianna arrives at the dam as the alarms go off. She sees a man thrashing through the bushes with a stick and yells at him. The man runs off, and Jem appears out of the darkness while the police arrive.

In 1739, Brian questions Roger about when he does for a living, and Roger tells him that he is a minister. As they discuss the morality of men and war, Brian discloses that he fought at Sheriffmuir, and Roger chants a song from the future about that battle which Brian asks him to write down. Brian questions why Robbie kidnapped Jem, and Roger tells him about the gold, admitting that they had once lived in America but returned to Scotland to get medical help for Mandy.

Returning to Lallybroch, Brianna discovers Robbie has escaped with her rifle. The house was locked, meaning that whoever let Robbie out of the hole also has the key to Lallybroch. Jem deduces that there are more people involved than just Robbie, since someone had to let Robbie out while someone else chased Jem at the dam. Brianna decides to take the kids to stay with their Auntie Fiona in Inverness. Fiona, a friend who once was Roger’s housekeeper, is one of two people who knows that Brianna’s family are time travelers.

Roger and Brian ride out the next morning to see if any of the tenants have seen Jem or Robbie. They stop to speak with John Murray, who suggests that Roger go to the British garrison to question the soldiers there. Brian offers to accompany Roger to the fort.

Jem blames himself for Roger's absence, but Brianna reassures him that it is not his fault. Grabbing her shotgun, she and the children drive to Fiona’s bed and breakfast. There, Brianna tells Fiona about their situation, asking if Jem and Mandy can stay while Brianna goes to the hospital to question the nightwatchman. She also makes plans to have a locksmith change the locks at Lallybroch.

Roger and Brian reach Fort William after two days of travel and speak to the commander, Broch Buncombe, who promises to distribute Robbie’s description to his patrols and messengers. While Roger and Brian drink whiskey with Broch, Janet arrives on a large horse. She tells Roger that his kinsman, Buck, has sent word that he is gravely ill.

Roger and Brian ride to the crofter’s cottage where Buck is comatose in the only bed. Brian instructs Roger to bring Buck to Lallybroch if he can travel by the next day and leaves.

Roger awakens the next morning and tries to rouse Buck, who finally wakes and tells Roger that his heart doesn’t feel right. Meanwhile, the crofter farmer leaves to find a healer for Buck.

Brianna visits Jock in the hospital, who describes the man who attacked him while Brianna sketches a picture from the description. When she reaches Lallybroch, she finds that the locksmith has not changed the locks. Suspecting that the house is occupied, she drives up into the hills and comes down to the back of the farm on foot with her shotgun. She settles in the old broch to surveille the farmhouse for trespassers, hoping that the police have captured Robbie.

The healer arrives at the cottage and heals Buck by emitting a strange blue light from his fingers that only Roger can see. Roger follows the healer out of the cottage, quizzing him about the blue light, The healer divulges that he is Dr. Hector McEwan from 1841, another time traveler.

They climb to a burned croft to speak in confidence. Dr. McEwan places hands on the scar on Roger’s throat that marks where Roger was hanged in America, and Roger’s throat immediately feels better. Dr. McEwan hints that the damage may be reparable. He promises to ask his patients if they have seen Jem, then leaves for Cranesmuir, telling Roger he will check on Buck the following day.

In Inverness, Jem sees Robbie Cameron walk into the front foyer from the top of the staircase. Unaware of Jem’s scrutiny, Robbie tells Fiona that he is writing a book about Craigh na Dun. Fiona invites Robbie into the kitchen, then rushes quietly up the stairs and tells Jem to go to the neighbor’s house to call the police.

Before the police arrive, an all-points bulletin comes over the radio for Robbie’s arrest, and Robbie attacks Fiona trying to get out of the house. Returning to the house, Jem finds Mandy safe but Fiona holding a wet rag to her blackened eye. When Fiona’s husband, Ewan Buchannan, comes home, he offers to take everyone out for dinner, but Jem knows that Mr. Buchan wants to be rid of him and Mandy as soon as possible.

Roger returns to the cottage, soaking wet from a sudden rain. The women strip him of his wet clothes and wrap him in a blanket, telling him that the burned croft (farm) is haunted. Mr. MacLaren, the farmer, asks Roger to help him inspect the cattle in the barn, and there tells Roger a man and a woman built the croft but the man disappeared. The woman entertained men at night. One day a local woman found a man hanging from a tree outside the abandoned croft. The villagers burned the croft, thinking it was evil. As MacLaren finishes the tale, he looks up and sees Roger’s hanging scar under the blanket. Roger offers to say prayers to prove he is not a ghost.

The next morning, Roger and Buck see a band of riders heading to the McLaren’s croft.

The leader of the band is Dougal MacKenzie of Castle Leoch, Jamie’s uncle and Buck’s father, although Buck is unaware of this. In the future, Dougal has an affair with the witch and time-traveler Geillis Duncan, and Buck is taken from her before she is burned at the stake and given to a local couple to raise. Upon learning of Roger’s quest to find his son, Dougal gives Roger and Buck horses from his band. Learning from MacLaren that the woman from the burned croft, Geillis Isbister, is in Cranesmuir now, Dougal promises to look in on her. Roger and Buck leave the croft after waiting in vain for Dr. Ewan to return.

After dinner, Ernie Buchan drives Jem and Mandy back to Lallybroch because he doesn’t want a repeat of the earlier violence. Brianna, still hiding behind Lallybroch, sees Ernie arrive with the children. Robbie Cameron drives up in a truck which he rams into Ernie’s. Brianna comes out of hiding and holds off four intruders with her shotgun until Ernie can start his truck again and drive away with her and the kids. A blue Fiat arrives during the gunfight and charges at the villains until Brianna’s family can get away.

When Ernie stops to fix the truck, Brianna takes Jem and Mandy into a diner for ice cream. Lional Menzies, the driver of the blue Fiat, finds them there. Brianna explains to Lionel that Robbie abducted Jem to lure Roger away from Brianna. She convinces him that the kidnapping was staged so Robbie could rape her. Lionel gives them a ride home and suggests to Brianna that while Roger is gone, she may want to visit friends in America.

At home in Lallybroch, Brianna writes a letter to Roger explaining her plans. While hiding it in the hidden compartment in the desk, she discovers a letter from her foster father, Frank Randall. He discloses that he knew Claire’s story about time traveling was true because he found her and Jamie’s marriage certificate. He also discovered the Fraser Prophecy which states, “The last of Lovat’s line will rule Scotland.” He encloses a chart that discloses both Claire and Brianna’s true birthdates, but also shows them as wife and daughter to James Fraser from the 18th century. The chart establishes Brianna as the last of Lovat’s line. He warns Brianna against disclosing to anyone, especially the government, that she is a time traveler because someone who knows their story is trying to track her down.

When Roger and Buck return to Lallybroch, Brian has an object that relates to Jem, hidden in the big desk. Roger tactfully takes Buck out so Brian can get it out without revealing the hiding place. While outside, Roger tells Buck something terrible will happen to Janet and Brian because of Captain Randall, and Buck is incensed by Roger’s inaction.

Back in the house, Brian hands Roger a pair of WWII RAF dog tags with the name J.W. MacKenzie printed on them—the name of Roger’s father who went missing in action during the war.

Roger is sure the dog tags belong to his father, but due to the time travel paradox and unforeseen consequences, he is unsure what to do about it. Outside, he explains to Buck exactly what will happen to Janet and Brian, and how interfering may cause Brianna, Mandy, and Jem never to be born. He decides to go to Fort Williams and talk to Captain Randall about the dog tags.

Roger and Buck go to Fort Williams to meet with Captain Randall. Roger goes in alone. With Captain Randall’s help, he discovers that a private won them from a farmer named Cumberpatch in Perth. Roger plans to travel to Perth to question the farmer. Before leaving, he blesses Captain Randall in the hope it will somehow help Randall to be a better man.

In 1980, Dr. Joseph Abernathy returns home from work to find a letter from Brianna. Joseph Abernathy is Claire’s oldest friend in Boston and is aware that Claire and her family are time travelers. In the envelope is a picture of Jem and Mandy at Disneyland and a note from Brianna stating she is taking the kids to see Jamie and Claire.