Against All Odds: the Story of Elinor Powel and Frederick Albert
Copyright© 2025 by Megumi Kashuahara
Chapter 3: “I’m the Man Who’s Going to Marry You”
She walked in with three other nurses, all of them black women in Army uniforms, and Frederick felt as if he’d been struck by lightning.
He’d seen photographs, of course. He’d listened to jazz and imagined the people who created such beautiful, soulful music. But nothing had prepared him for the reality of Elinor Powell—her graceful bearing, her dignified beauty, the way she carried herself despite the indignity of her assignment.
Frederick barely thought. He simply moved, walking straight across the mess hall as if in a trance, ignoring the startled looks from other POWs and guards.
“You should know my name,” he said in accented English, his heart hammering. “I’m the man who’s going to marry you.”
Elinor had stared at him, stunned into silence. Of all the things she’d expected at this godforsaken camp, a German prisoner declaring his intention to marry her was not on the list.
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