Page 72 of Be Less Panda
Lucy couldn’t imagine Nancy being annoyed by a phone call announcing her youngest son’s impending marriage, but she’d have that discussion with Mark in a minute. ‘We better go. We’ve got a train to catch,’ she said to Em.
Mark finished his espresso and looked at his watch. ‘We need to get our bags from the hotel.’
They walked across the square arm in arm. ‘I could get used to this.’ Lucy said.
‘Good!’ He smiled. ‘So could I.’
Lucy’s phone buzzed as they walked across the final bridge before their hotel. It was a text from her mother.
GO HOME NOW
She showed it to Mark.
‘Have you upset her?’ he asked.
‘If I have, I don’t know how. She doesn’t normally send shouty texts. I better phone her.’
Lucy’s mother answered immediately. ‘Darling!’
‘Hello, mumsy. What’s up?’
‘Oh, Lucy! I’m so afraid. They’re imprisoning people in their own homes.’
What was she talking about? ‘Who are?’
‘The police.’
‘But why would they do that?’
‘It’s just been on the news. There’s an outbreak of this Wutan Clan thing in northern Italy. They’re stopping people from going out.’
Ah, the new flu virus in China. Lucy wasn’t surprised it had got as far as Europe, but it hardly warranted her mother’s overreaction. She wasn’t normally this flakey.
‘It’s just a different sort of flu, Mum. I’m sure we’ll all be fine.’
‘Fine? Are you mad? Someone’s died already. I’ve sent your father out to get toilet roll.’
‘I didn’t think diarrhoea was a symptom.’
‘It isn’t, but the thought of running out is almost as horrifying as dying. You have to go home now before you catch it. I couldn’t bear it if you got it. Don’t come here. We’ll be like one of those deserted plague villages before you know it. Always remember that I love you.’ She was almost in tears.
‘It will all blow over, I’m sure. It’s just the media exaggerating everything.’
‘Please promise me you’ll catch the next flight back to Birmingham, London, anywhere you can, to get away from here.’
‘Okay. Don’t worry. I’ll check it out. I’ll let you know what we’re doing. Love you.’
Mark looked at her as she ended the call. ‘Did you hear any of that?’ she asked.
‘Bits.’ He looked at the news feed on his phone. He read out the title of the first article in the list. ‘Virus sweeps Europe.’
Lucy looked over his shoulder at the rest of the headlines. There were more variations on the ‘virus sweeps Europe’ theme, and several referred to tourists being quarantined in Tenerife.
Mark looked thoughtful. ‘Rome might not be such a good idea. We should wait a week or two before booking our next trip. See how this all pans out.’
Lucy felt deflated. ‘You’re not getting cold feet, are you?’
’No, of course not. But I don’t fancy being locked up in a hotel full of ill people. Do you?’