A Book of Secrets by Derren Brown

Author:Derren Brown [Brown, Derren]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781473574922
Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd
Published: 2021-09-02T00:00:00+00:00

Virus

TUESDAY, 24 MARCH 2020

I am sat wedged along the length of a tiny sofa, slippered feet pushing against the far arm. My laptop is supported wonkily on my outstretched legs by a cushion bearing the embroidered features of a vigilant beagle, for which we had to settle, as a beagle-basset-cross is hard to find off the shelf. This dwarf settee is the principal resting place offered by a cabin I keep, away from London as a clifftop retreat. My partner and I are here along with said hybrid (Doodle), and our Tibetan terrier (Humbug). A mucky stove fire is slowly toasting the first, who snores and twitches before it, dreaming of the bunny rabbits she only encounters in the country. Other than the questionable five dog beds, there is a kettle, a place to drink coffee and look at the sea, a whimsical relationship with WiFi, and a copper bath which on a good day takes thirty minutes to fill.

Forty-three miles away, my father is dying in his bedroom. I cannot visit him, nor my mother, who says she is looking in every half an hour to study his chest for signs of movement. We are unable to be together because of government-enforced restrictions following the COVID-19 outbreak which is most likely responsible for his sudden decline – an unexpected catalyst for an already dire tally of ailments and terrors. So I am secluded in this cabin, a model of isolation, with only the possibility of FaceTime to offer faint support to Mum or convey a juddery goodbye to Dad. And we are told that any funeral will be only for her, my brother and me to attend, and we would have to remain two metres from each other. Such was today.

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