Adventure in Dubai

I found the mind-blowing lady called Madonna in my cup of tea. Sam, the fortune-teller and my friend told me, “In nine days, you would be riding an elevator. On the ninth floor, a lady would get in, holding the glory of all races in her blood. And that accidental meeting would be an invitation from the universe that you enter the world of adventure and fortune.

I trusted Sam’s talent in reading tea leaves, same as many others do. But that trust didn’t stop me from asking, “sure?” with full attention to hear every single word he would say.

“Very sure,” Sam answered with the confidence of whose most predictions proved to be accurate. Then he gazed again into the cup. Now, Sam looked like something unpleasant caught his attention. He was speechless for a while, then said in a mystery voice like he was hiding something, “Ah, that’s it, you’ll not meet that lady in New York. You’ll meet her in a distant place.”

“Where and how? I don’t have a current plan to travel anywhere.”

“I don’t know; it doesn’t work this way. Readings don’t tell you what you want to hear. It only informs you what you need to know at a particular time.”

I already knew unless the cup tells, Sam could have nothing to say. But I had a strong feeling Sam was a little bit worried, and my curiosity was unbearable. “I am still curious to know more,” I said, staring into the cup of tea.

“Come back in six months. You should be patient and wait for things to change, grow, and develop.”

……………

……………

The same day, Ted, the chief editor in the news magazine where I worked as a reporter, called me to his office. He gave me a mission to fly to Dubai to cover a critical Oil and Gas conference.

“Dubai!” I thundered.

“What’s wrong in Dubai?” The chief editor asked in surprise.

“Oh, no. It’s ok.” I’d no reason to tell the chief editor the prophecy of being in a distant place proved accurate.

………………

………………

The Oil and Gas conference lasted for two days. It was an excellent opportunity to write good articles on the grid modernization for modern technology deployment and the advances in well-completion technology for tight oil.

Ted sent an email appreciating my work. And asked me to stay more days to write an article on Dubai, which benefited from the oil and real-estate boom, and became a hub for trade, tourism, and banking.

My last meeting to write on Dubai was with the head of the economic department. The session was informative, but it did not take long. So, I returned early to the hotel, changed into a smart casual, and took the elevator to go down to the bar. I was really in a mood to have a couple of drinks and congratulate myself on being a good reporter.

A mind-blowing lady came into the elevator on the seventh floor, running her long fingers through her short shiny hair.

“You look fresh,” I almost screamed. I couldn’t hide my admiration for that exceptional lady and her impressive image and presence.

“I just had a shower.” She responded in a warm and inviting voice.

‘She just had a shower; she’s a mind-blowing lady; who is she?’ I thought. ‘May she’s the lady who Sam told me she would take me to the world of adventure and fortune?’

“Hey, excuse my question. Are you from this planet earth or somewhere out of the world?” I dared to ask. I thought if she was my fate, then she was, whatever I would say or do.

She’d no time to respond; we’d already reached the ground floor. She got out of the elevator pulling me from my arm and laughing. “follow me; I’ll tell a lot about where I’m from.” She said in a high feeling style, sounding like she already had a couple of strong drinks.

She headed straight to the bar, “we better sit at the counter to make sure Antonio is fixing us a good cocktail.” She said and ordered two glasses of long island iced tea.

I was stunned to see what the bartender Antonio, who looked Italian, was doing. He added vodka, rum, tequila, gin, triple sec, simple syrup, and lemon juice to a large Collins glass filled with ice, topped the mix with a splash of the cola, and stirred briefly. Then with the delight of someone making love, Antonio garnished the Collins glass with a kiss of lemon wedge.

“Well, you asked me if I were from this planet earth, the answer is yes.” she took a long sip, “I’m Italian.” She took another long drink and said proudly, “from Sicily if you know what I mean.”

I looked at her black and white pinstripe dress and thought about the new rise of the Godmother, “ are you Mafioso?”

“Why not!” She said in a sarcastic tone. “ There has been an increase of women Mafioso. Some of them just as harsh as the men.”

Antonio, who was listening to our chit-chat, warned me with a big smile and apparent Italian accent, “signor, better to be careful.” He paused for a long minute, gazing at me, “the signora is a high-ranking member of the Cosa Nostra. We all call her Madonna as a sign of respect.”

“Madonna,” I said with respect.

“Madonna.” The bartender Antonio repeated, stressing obviously on every letter, “It’s from Old Italian ma donna, literally means, my lady.”

“Antonio, stop it!” Madonna reacted in a bossy tone. Then she looked at me in sympathy, “Did you like this cocktail?”

“It’s solid for him; his head can’t take it.” Antonio, who sounded like not one of my big fans, commented. “ It’s equal to five regular drinks.”

“Ignore him,” Madonna whispered and ordered two more drinks. “ It’s said this cocktail was born out of alcohol Prohibition in America when thirsty scofflaws wanted to disguise their booze.”

“Yes, the golden time. When La Cosa Nostra controlled the bootlegging liquor business in New York,” Antonio remarked proudly.

“Antonio, stop it. I told you to stop.” Madonna said and took a long sip.

“Why does he hate me?” I asked Madonna after Antonio had left us in peace.

“Not really. Maybe Antonio is surprised to see me for the first time talking with a man as a friend. Usually, I come here alone or with people to talk business.”

“I see…” I paused in hesitance.

“Tell me I feel you still have more words in your mouth.”

“ Ah, yes. Excuse my oddity. Are you …”

“Am I Mafioso? Is not that what you want to ask?”

“Yes.”

“Fine, frankly, I am not. I don’t have the same interest as my family; I have my plan,” she looked me in the eyes and sighed, “My interest in the media. I’m here in Dubai to establish my TV station in the media city.”

“Media!”

“I know that caught your interest. You’re also in media, a good reporter for an American news magazine.”

“How do you know?”

“I knew everything about you from day one you checked in. I’m good in my business.” She took the last sip of her drink and stood up, ready to leave, “come on, let us go for a drive.”

“Drive! Drive after the two drinks of the hell!”

She moved her Lamborghini key in front of my eyes and rushed out.”

……………

……………

After the second round of making love, at night, and in Madonna’s luxurious suite, a big decision was made.

“Tell me how much they pay you in New York, and I pay you the double.” Madonna offered me to work for her coming TV station.

I agreed. Yes, I did agree without hesitation. Or better to say, the massive volume of alcohol in my stomach and Sam’s prophecy in my mind who agreed. And without any second thought, I sent an email to Ted telling him I resign from my job.

I slept like I was in a pool of sweetness, warmness, and feminine radiant. I dreamed I was diving oceans climbing mountains speeding in the Lamborghini, traveling with Madonna in private planes and yachts.

I woke up early morning fresh and in love with life. I looked at Madonna sleeping next to me. I wondered if Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of beauty, could be more the epitome of beauty than Madonna.

“Good morning,” Madonna whispered, and smoothly she covered her naked body and went on sleeping again.

I made a good cup of coffee and thought about Sam’s prophesy. There was something not accurate as what he told me. Yes, I met with Madonna in the elevator but on the seventh floor, not the ninth, as he said. I calculated the days and found I met with Madonna on the eighth day of the prophecy, not the ninth as he told me. One more thing was not accurate; Sam had told me I would meet a lady holding the glory of all races in her blood. I’d interpreted what he’d said that I would meet a multiracial lady. Still, Madonna had insisted she was a pure Italian according to her family tree.

‘Is it possible I had mated with the wrong lady?’ I thought. ‘A lady different than the one who my fate had chosen for me.’

I called Sam and told him about my doubts. His answer was confusing; he said, “ The fate has his agenda, but the man should have his own choice.”

‘I need to walk and get fresh air’ I headed to the elevator. A middle-aged lady came into the elevator on the ninth floor. She had smooth brown hair, ebony skin tone, a Roman nose, and Asian eyes. I looked at her, recalling the prophecy of meeting a multiracial lady; ‘she came into the elevator on the ninth floor, and today is the ninth day,’ I thought. ‘And on top of that, the gold Rolex she’s wearing tells she’s rich.’

“Good morning,” the multiracial lady said. “I’m Julia Salem. I heard you’re a reporter, and I need to talk with you some business.”

The elevator reached the ground floor. Julia Salem handed me her business card and asked me to call her in the afternoon.

…………………….

…………………….

I walked for three miles or maybe more. The only issue was in my mind was to choose between being with Madonna, who I admired, or Julia Salem, who most probably the fate had chosen her for me. And in the end, I came to a simple conclusion, ‘there’s no contradiction between being with those two ladies. Julia Salem didn’t show any personal interest as Madonna. She only wanted to talk business, and maybe that was my great opportunity with her.’

On my way back to the hotel, I received a call from Ted.

“Have you heard the latest?” Ted said breathlessly, “Dubai police just stormed the hotel where you’re staying. They arrested a lady called Madonna and the bartender Antonio. The initial news says these two are activists in the Sicilian Mafia.”

“What?”

“Please withdraw your resignation, find me more details on this topic and rush back to New York.

“More details! Ah, damn. Fine, ok, fine, I’ll do it.”

“You sound disappointed!”

“It’s ok.” I paused to collect myself, then and with a firm tone, “but I would not rush back. An important lady called Julia Salem wants to meet with me…”

“Who!” Ted interrupted, “Julia Salem! be away from Julia Salem. She is working for the secret police agency of China. She’d promise a fortune but could still put you in a hell of trouble.”

“Trouble!”

“Yes, trouble.”

Confused enough, I called Sam, who confused me further.

And eventually, it was my choice to challenge my fate and freely make my destiny.