The Seagull And The Sheikh

Nelson, a great black-backed gull, lies under an upturned boat on a beach in Dubai. Along his back is a festering deep gash attracting flies that eagerly feed on the ooze running from the wound. Unable to move, the magnificent bird lies there, waiting for death to bring him relief from the pain. But fate intervenes. David, a nine year old South African boy, hears the gull's mournful cries. Unable to leave the bird to die alone on the beach, David convinces his mother, Caroline, and his stepfather, Mario, to take Nelson back to their apartment in the Dubai Marina. However, the constant meddling by an over-zealous concierge at the apartment block causes the family problems. The doorman takes his job very seriously and does his best to winkle out the truth about an animal being kept in an apartment block with a 'no pets' policy. David makes it his personal mission to save Nelson's life. He sleeps on the bathroom floor next to the gull for weeks feeding the bird his favourite food, fresh prawns. Always hungry, the family make a dent in the prawn supply in Dubai until the bird takes a fancy to fried eggs and bacon. However, David's mother secretly harbours the fear that the injury damaged Nelson's spine, making it impossible for him to ever take to the air again. Nelson's illegal presence brings with it other complications. Mario is an electrical engineer who has instructed that work on the massive building project his company is involved in, be stopped. His corrupt boss, Smitty, (who is taking kickbacks on sub-standard wiring for the building) is determined to remove the troublesome employee. Knowing that there is nothing in Mario's private or professional life that would result in him being kicked out of Dubai, his boss solicits the services of a detestable private investigator and the company's slimy lawyer. The snooping P.I. soon finds out the family's secret 'guest' and sets about documenting the evidence to he needs to have Mario removed from company and from the Emirate. But the family are not alone in their determination to save Nelson's life. A silent stranger, who had watched David remove the gull from the beach, is keeping tabs on the gull's progress. Matters come to a head when David and his friend are escorted to the royal palace for trespassing on the royal family's private beach. It is there that secrets are revealed and the guilty are punished. But who is it that is to be banished from Dubai? An employee who values lives over money? An entire family for breaking the rules for the sake of a small life, or a blackmailing boss with enough evidence to destroy a family? And, at the end of the human saga, will a seagull ever be able to join his wild family once again? Only time will tell if a devoted young boy will one day set free his friend and watch him fly out across the Arabian Gulf.

• | Author: Diane Van Der Westhuizen
• | Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform
• | Publication Date: Aug 16, 2016
• | Number of Pages: 350 pages
• | Language: English
• | Binding: Paperback
• | ISBN-10: 153707492X
• | ISBN-13: 9781537074924