The Black's hoof marks led down the hill and a short distance away Benearh a few scattered trees, Alec saw a small spring-water pool. His dry tongue ran across his cracked lips and he stumbled forward.
Alec was very dehydrated and only found fresh water by following the trail left by the Black. This is the second time the horse has saved his life, after pulling him to safety out of the ocean after the shipwreck. They are already a team in this regard. Alec survives on the island because time and again the Black saves his life.
Life was settling down to normal again - as normal as it could ever be with the Black.
Everyone expected Alec to fit back into his old routine, but only Henry seemed to make allowances for the experiences Alec had been through. He is young yet has survived alone on a deserted island after being in a shipwreck from which he was the only survivor. He had also forged an incredible bond with an untamable horse and was learning to ride him and was showing signs of being a phenomenal jockey. With all of these experiences, Alec would find it very difficult to slip back into everyday life as a schoolboy as if he were just like all of the other boys his age.
Jake taught me to ride. I was just a kid who loves horses and wanted to ride but I'd never even been on a horse.
Henry is inspired to help Alec because he recognizes himself in the boy. Their dreams of riding horses are the same and both were, on the face of it, unlikely, but thanks to Jake's training both are able to turn a passion for horses into a serious talent for racing horses.Helping Alec also enables Henry to vicariously live his dreams again through Alec and to spend time with horses again, which he misses and is still his passion. By involving Jake in the Black's training and by allowing Alec to wear his jockey uniform he is able to both relive his glory days and also help Alec to have similar glory days of his own.
