Is there a way of adding columns to a section inside a left column?

Question

I have my Microsoft Word document already broken down into two vertical columns. It currently looks like this

Left Section 1                      |  Right Section 1
Left Section 2                      |  Right Section 2
Left Section 3                      |  Right Section 3

I need to break only the first section on the left (Left Section 1) into three columns. The first and last columns will contain a small image, and the middle column will contain some text.

It needs to be broken down into columns, because I need the images to align with the text. The only solution I can think of is using nested columns.

The layout should look like this

Left Image |    Text     | Right Image    | Right Section 1
Left Section 2                            | Right Section 2
Left Section 3                            | Right Section 3

I am not trying to apply multiple columns to the entire left column, only the first section inside my left column. Here is one thing I've tried.

1. Tried selecting the area I wanted, and going to Page Layout -> Columns, selecting 3. The top section appeared across the entire page, messing up the entire formatting.

Is this possible? I've been trying this quite a while, but can't find a solution. Any tips or advice will be greatly appreciated.