The Doorman

Altenir Silva

For five days a week, Felipo Catalunha, 45, an American of Colombian descent, embarks on 1 Train in a station Marble Hill–225th Street, Bronx to 79th Street station in Manhattan and walks until 202 West 81st Street on the Upper West Side, where he works as doorman at one building.

On a typical day, he was stationed in the lobby when little Thomas, a 10-year-old resident of apartment 236, came over wearing his Yankees cap and holding a souvenir bat for their conversations. If the Yankees had won their last game, the talk would have revolved around that, but since they had lost, the chit-chat shifted to another subject. While they were talking, an old man wearing a black coat entered and went up to his apartment. Immediately, Thomas asked who the man was.

In a low voice, Felipo began to speak to the little boy: "His name is Liam MacGrath from apartment 528. He worked as a jeweler on 47th Street, in the Diamond District, for many years. But it's all fake. Actually, his real name is Anatoly Borodin. Maybe he's descended from the family of Alexander Borodin, the Russian opera composer. Maybe! I don't know. But, in fact, Mr. MacGrath is a Russian spy."

Thomas was enchanted by the story of Mr. MacGrath or Borodin, whoever he might be. The kid wanted to know how Felipo knew all of this. The doorman took a breath and said that all doormen in the world are the ones who know the absolute truth. He then explained that one day, he went up to the fifth floor to fix an electrical problem and overheard a phone conversation. Mr. MacGrath was talking about secret papers or something like that.

The clever boy asked if Felipo understood Russian. The doorman took a breath and replied, "Of course not! A good spy always speaks the native language!" Thomas, visibly upset, wanted to know how Felipo had discovered it was espionage. Discussing documents didn't prove anything, unless the papers dealt with government matters. The doorman then turned to the boy and said, "I'll tell you everything another day. But not today. I have work to do." Then, Felipo pleaded with Thomas to keep the matter discreet. No one could know about it, just like spies handle their secrets.

Four days later, Thomas was swinging his bat in an imaginary game in the lobby when a couple was escorting Mr. MacGrath or Borodin or whatever his name was out of the building. What caught the attention of Thomas was the sad look on the face of the old man from apartment 528.

Many thoughts filled Thomas's mind. Felipo approached him, placed his hands on Thomas's shoulder, and said they were from the FBI and that the poor man would be arrested and deported, perhaps replaced by some American tied to Moscow. Thomas asked why the couple wasn't wearing FBI vests like the ones seen in TV series. Felipo explained that when the matter involved national secrets, they didn't use them.

The boy asked if Felipo had a master key to access all the apartments. Felipo replied, "Yes." Thomas suggested, "We could go up there!" Felipo responded firmly, "No! Never! Not at all! Absolutely not! Under no circumstances! Not in a million years! No way!" and every other negative phrase the language allows.

But soon after, Felipo and Thomas were inside apartment 528, searching the place for evidence to uncover the double identity of Mr. MacGrath, something concrete to prove that the old man was a Russian spy.

Meanwhile, at the coffee shop next to the building, Mr. MacGrath reunited with the same couple who had just left the building. He listened as they talked about the great deal they had secured on a nursing home in Florida. Although Mr. MacGrath seemed to accept it, he didn't share the same enthusiasm as Jane and Carl, his adult children.

Thomas and Felipo checked all the rooms, and as they were finishing in the bedroom, they suddenly heard the sound of a key turning. OMG! The old man had entered the apartment. They ran and hid under the bed. Mr. MacGrath came into the bedroom, picked up his smartphone, opened the MLB app, and, seated on the bed, started following the play-by-play of the Mets game.

Beneath the bed, Felipo, visibly disturbed, whispered to Thomas that Mr. MacGrath would probably leave only tomorrow morning to walk in the park. They could only escape after that or perhaps when he fell asleep.

Thomas asked if this would take too long because he needed to get back home. Felipo remained silent for a moment before Thomas asked what they could do while the old man was still awake. Felipo replied that they could use their imaginations. "But what if Mr. MacGrath doesn't sleep and never leaves?" Felipo concluded, "Well, then we'll be happy because, fortunately, we'll be condemned to use our imaginations forever."

 

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Altenir Jose Silva is a Brazilian playwright and screenwriter working in mass media and communications, including Cinema, Theater, Television and the Web. His texts and scripts - both fiction and reality-based - have been presented , produced and performed in the US, the UK, and Brazil. He is a Senior Writer for Scene4.
For more of his writings check the Archives.

©2025 Altenir Silva
©2025 Publication Scene4 Magazine

 

 

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