Chapters 8-10

In Chapter 8, Joey enters the battles of war with Trooper Warren and of course his friend, Topthorn. During this heated gruesome battle, Joey and Topthorn were among the very few horses that reached the wire. Joey and Topthorn made it through the wire with no problems and Captain Stewart told Trooper Warren that they “had the best horses in the squadron, and today they showed us they are the best horses in the entire regiment, in the whole confounded army – and there’s not a scratch on them” (60). Soon after, the German soldiers closed in on Captain Stewart, Trooper Warren, Joey, and Topthorn, making them prisoners of war. Then, Joey and Topthorn say a very sad goodbye to their riders. Joey and Topthorn are taken to a hospital tent miles from where they were captured and surpisingly, they are treated with great care and given a rub down, blankets, food, and water. Soon after, Joey and Topthorn and moved to another location and given a new job title – ambulance transport. Their job was to transport wounded soldiers to the field hospital. Joey had no problem doing this because he had been trained on a farm but Topthorn “had never pulled before in his life” and for the first time, Joey was able to help and reassure him. Then, Joey and Topthorn were taken to a comfortable stable with a full rack of hay and buckets of water to rest. This is where they meet little Emilie and her Grandpapa, and the start of a new relationship is in the works for these two warhorses. Joey and Topthorn enjoyed a good summer of hard work and much deserved rest in the stable. Their hard work was appreciated by the soldiers and one particular soldier gave Joey an Iron Cross to share with Topthorn in honor of their service. The Iron Cross was hung on the stable door and people came from all over to admire Joey and Topthorn. Little Emilie and her grandfather spent a lot of time with the horses and took great care of them. On page 73, Joey described the relationship, “Any horse has an instinctive fondness for children, for they speak more softly, and their size precludes any threat; but Emilie was a special child for us, for she spent every minute she could with us and lavished us with her affection.” Things were going really well for Joey and Topthorn until winter arrived and brought new challenges along with the cold. One evening when Joey and Topthorn were done with a hard day’s work, they were led into the stable by Emilie’s grandfather, but little Emilie was nowhere to be seen. Emilie’s grandfather went on to tell the horses that Emilie was very ill with pneumonia and he wasn’t sure if she would wake up the next morning. He told Joey and Topthorn that Emilie prays for them every single night and he asked them for a favor in return, to pray for his precious Emilie to whatever horse god there may be. The next day, Joey and Topthorn continued their hard work in the war and when they were brought back to their stable that night, Emilie’s grandfather had extra food and water waiting for them. He said to them, “It’s a fine night and all’s well. There’s mash and hay and water in there for you – I’ve given you extra tonight, not because it’s cold, but because you prayed. You must have prayed to that horse god of yours because my Emilie woke up at lunchtime, sat up she did, and do you know the first thing she said? I’ll tell you. She said, “I must get up, got to get their mash ready for them when they come back. They’ll be cold and tired.” Emilie’s doctors got her to stay in bed and rest by assuring her Joey and Topthorn would get extra rations as long as the cold weather lasted. Chapter 11 ends here leaving us to wonder what will happen next…