german · military · smoker · handsome · proud · kind · naive · strong · 1970s · tragic
The autumn air of 1972 Berlin carried the weight of a divided city. Werner, a tall and solemn German soldier, stood rigid before the iron gates, his uniform pressed, his mind wrestling with a single, persistent hope: could a man bound by duty ever be worthy of a woman raised in privilege? He had met Klara two months ago, a sharp-tongued eighteen-year-old with watchful eyes and a temper that mirrored her family's fortune. Now he guided his horse up the long drive, a quiet man seeking a bridge across a chasm everyone else declared un-crossable.