Tate
In 1945, a fateful meeting took place in the life of Fyodorova: at a reception in honour of the Day of the Red Army, she met the head of the US military mission, 46-year-old Jackson Tate. Their relationship lasted only a year, but Tate became the father of the actress's only child, daughter Victoria. In 1946, Tate was expelled from the USSR. Zoya did not have time to inform him about the pregnancy, and Tate only found out about his daughter in 1964. Meanwhile, Zoya realized that after the expulsion of Jackson, the danger was threatening her: the role in the stage play was given to another actress, and the portrait of Fyodorova was removed from the theatrical foyer.
Soon the actress was accused of espionage in favor of the United States and was placed in the Lefortovo detention center. There, Zoya was scalded with boiling water in the shower, and then her fingers were broken, suspecting that she was planning to commit suicide.
By a court verdict in 1947, all property and money were confiscated from Zoya and, despite her poor health and the existence of an infant daughter, was sent to Temlag for 25 years. After a short time, she was transferred to a prison in Chelyabinsk, and then to the famous Vladimir Central. Among the actress's cellmates was the singer Lydia Ruslanova, who was imprisoned because of the sensational "Trophy Case" (The campaign of the state security bodies of the USSR aimed at identifying abuses of power by the generals. One of the defendants was Marshal of the Soviet Union Georgy Zhukov).
Despite Lydia's support, Zoya had a hard time in prison. Out of despair, she tried to ask for help from Beria, but the vengeful People's Commissar remained indifferent to the pleas of the former favourite. The fragment of one of Fyodorova's letters: "I am asking you for help, save me. Difficult moments have come for me, even more than difficult, I would say - deadly... Save me! I understood my mistakes well and I appeal to you as to my own father. Bring me back to life ... Why should I die?" During her imprisonment, she continued to perform in the Gulag theatres.
The sad fate of Fedorova was shared by her two sisters. Maria was sentenced to ten years of work at a brick factory in Vorkuta; she died in 1952, having served half of her sentence. Alexandra was exiled to the Kazakh village of Poludino. She took into the care of Zoya's daughter Victoria, whom she raised with her children as her own.
