The Sins of Lost Bridge Island

By Vincent Roberts

In the tiny community of Lost Bridge Island, a homeless man bursts in on the middle of Sunday service, warning the residents that the purest form of evil has been unleashed and, until they identify and eliminate it, they will fall one by one. Hours later, a violent car accident kills two of the congegation and injures two others. Soon, the island begins to experience bizarre and horrific happenings. Weather conditions change. Radios and cell phones stop working. Residents receive visits from the dead. Then, the Oak Shadows Bridge collapses and cuts them off from the rest of the world. As Satan's reign takes control, each person must fight for their own survival.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Vincent Roberts
• Release date: Jun 7, 2019
• ISBN: 9781393469704

Book preview

THE RESIDENTS

Todd Calhoun- 32, is a lifetime resident of Lost Bridge and the island’s only full-time police officer.

Jenna Skidmore- 37, lives with her husband Scott and works part-time at Autumn Jenkin’s restaurant.

Scott Skidmore- 42, owns a roofing company in the nearby town of Packard Springs.

Bill Everett- 64, is the owner of the Lost Bridge RV and campground. Married to Nancy.

Nancy Everett- 63, is a retired ER nurse. Her spirituality and bible knowledge are extensive.

Morgan Aldrich-18, is young and beautiful. She’s taken a year break before leaving for college. Is living in her parents’ home with two friends.

Tobias Parker- 60, is nicknamed Toby. Ex-military man who has lived on the island most of his life. Runs the Curious Cabinet store.

Alice Parker- 57, is quiet and reserved. Runs the Riverview Inn and post office. Married to Toby.

Autumn Jenkins- 25, is the owner of Autumn’s Country Kitchen and is a new resident. She lives at the Inn with her ex-girlfriend Candy Lewis.

Donna Rice- 48, has been the reverend of the Garden Worship Center for ten years.

Jasper Twigg- 50, was born on the island. Has many attention seeking manners. Runs the general store.

Reggie Sanders- 28 is a new resident. Red haired and fair skinned Reggie runs Reggie’s Collectibles.

Sarah Munroe- 35, is the owner of Sarah’s Horse and Rescue Ranch. She’s the most private person on the island.

Chuck Miller- 45, is the owner of Miller’s Garage and Service Station. He and Lorrie have a strained marriage.

Lorrie Miller- 41, runs Lorrie’s Antiques store in the downtown area.

THE VISITORS

George Compton- 50, Lorrie’s coldhearted brother.

Camille Compton- 30, George’s very young wife.

Dennis Everett- 60, Bill’s underhanded brother.

Maureen Hudson- 40, Chuck’s narrow-minded sister.

Candy Lewis- 28, Autumn’s money hungry ex-partner.

Liz Rafferty- 19, Morgan’s best friend and confidant.

Austin Strode- 18, Good friend to Morgan and Liz.

LOST BRIDGE ISLAND’S FOUR MAIN AREAS:

Walnut (west side and central part of the island, takes up almost half of the island’s total land area)

Important Places—Sarah’s Horse and Rescue, The Aldrich Orchard, Oak Forest Cemetery, Todd Calhoun’s home.

Lost Bridge Village (small area, southeastern part of the island)

Important Places—The Riverview Inn, Lost Bridge Island Post Office, Autumn’s Country Kitchen, Reggie’s Collectibles, The General Store, Garden Worship Center, Lost Bridge Police Station, Antiques by Lorrie, The Curious Cabinet, Miller’s Garage and Service Station, Jasper Twigg’s home.

Prairie Creek (tiny northwestern part of the island)

Important Places—Oak Shadows Bridge, the Skidmore home, the Miller home.

Avoca (large area, northeastern part of the island)

Important Places—Lost Bridge Island RV and Campground

INTRODUCTION

Tucked away deep in the Ozarks of northern Arkansas, surrounded completely by the White River, was a quiet, uneventful place named Lost Bridge Island with a total population of seventeen residents during the winter months. When summer rolled around, the island, connected to the rest of the world by the narrow two-lane Oak Shadows Bridge, was busy with tourists and campers and curious sightseers. The island itself was divided into sections: Lost Bridge Village, Prairie Creek, Walnut and Avoca.

The small picturesque downtown area was named Lost Bridge Village. It had several antique and collectible shops run by Reggie Sanders, Lorrie Miller and Tobias Toby Parker, respectively. The town even had an old-fashioned general store that was owned and run by Jasper Twigg. His store had been in operation for more than twenty-five years.

Across the street from Jasper’s store was Autumn Jenkins’s brand-new restaurant, Autumn’s Country Kitchen. It had enough seats for twenty-eight diners and served breakfast and lunch five days a week. Jenna Skidmore helped Autumn out when the town was in season.

It was Toby’s wife Alice who took care of the Riverview Inn. The two-story building was a one-hundred and twenty-five-year-old hotel with a miniature post-office in its lobby, and sat adjacent to the restaurant next door.

At the south end of the downtown area was The Garden Worship Center. The building had the distinction of being the oldest structure erected in the area nearly one-hundred and fifty years before. The small white building with its original steeple was still the meeting place for more than just Sunday services. It was a gathering place for the town council, pot luck dinners and various other purposes. Most of these summits were led by the church’s minister, Reverend Donna Rice.

On the north end of town was Miller’s Garage & Service Station. During the winter months, Chuck Miller would only keep the shop open on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays. Not far from the garage was an unattractive, two-room brick structure that Officer Todd Calhoun occasionally used as the Lost Bridge Island’s police station.

The island itself sprawled across several hundred acres populated with some newcomers and a few of the area’s original descendants still living there. Jasper, the owner of the general store had a riverfront home, on ten acres, just south of the downtown area.

The very private Sarah Munroe lived on a working ranch and horse rescue in the Walnut section of the island. She had inherited the one-hundred- and fifty-acre property after her parents passed away.

The Aldrich Place, located on the eastern side of the island in Walnut, sat in the middle of their fifty-acre orchard of peach, apple and plum trees. Eighteen-year-old Morgan Aldrich lived there with two of her closest friends, Austin Strode and Liz Rafferty, while her parents were away on another extended European vacation.

Scott and Jenna Skidmore, Chuck and Lorrie Miller, and Officer Todd each lived on properties that ranged from ten to fifteen acres. Todd was Lost Bridge Island’s only police officer. He alone, with the sporadic help of his part-time co-worker, David Gorga, handled all of the daily problems that occurred on the island. David wasn’t a resident of Lost Bridge Island. He lived in the nearby town of Rogers that was located twenty-one miles to the west.

On the northside of the island, in Avoca, Bill and Nancy Everett owned and ran the Lost Bridge Campground. It was a thirty-acre compound open to RVs and primitive tent campers from Memorial Day to Labor Day. Otherwise, Bill and Nancy were happily retired for the rest of the year. Their ranch-style home was located at the front of the property.

Scott Skidmore was the only resident of Lost Bridge Island who didn’t work on the island itself. His highly successful Skidmore Construction and Roofing Company was located fifteen miles south in Packard Springs.

In town, Autumn Jenkins, her ex-girlfriend Candy Lewis, Reggie Sanders and Reverend Donna, had become permanent residents of the Riverview Inn, each occupying a room on the first floor. Toby and Alice Parker lived in the proprietor’s suite on the second floor.

September had finally arrived on the little island. The leaves were changing color and a crisp, fall briskness was in the air. After the busiest summer Lost Bridge Island had ever experienced, each of the residents looked forward to a calm and restful winter. Bill and Nancy Everett said Goodbye to the last of their campers while Reggie, Toby and Lorrie posted their off-season hours on the front windows of their shops. Reverend Donna looked forward to the first smaller, more intimate Sunday church service in nearly four months.

I. IN THE BEGINNING

The front door of the tiny struggling church swung open and crashed against the wall next to it. The parishioners and their guests, partaking in their normal routine of Sunday communion, were startled by the surprising sound. The intense morning sun outside the door created a peculiar, almost blinding, haze around the stranger who was standing in the entryway.

Reverend Donna was a short woman in her late forties with mousy light brown hair. She glanced over at the congregants to examine each of their reactions before her eyes shifted back to the man as he began to stumble into their sanctuary toward her. Donna took one tiny step back from the pulpit and stood in front of the hand-made, six-foot wooden cross.

Twenty-five-year-old Autumn Jenkins with long black hair and olive skin was seated next to her ex-girlfriend, Candy Lewis. Autumn swiftly stood up and closed the door once she determined that the stranger was a safe distance away from her.

As the bright sunlight disappeared from behind him, it was clear to see he was unbathed and outfitted in worn, filthy blue jeans and a tattered black t-shirt. His face and beard were almost as dirty as the shabby black boots he wore. Each person noticed that the man was staggering, making them wonder if he was injured or possibly even drunk. There was a moment of complete stillness in the sanctuary.

As the reverend took a few cautious steps toward him, she could smell the foulness of his body odor but didn’t let him know. Softly, she said, Hello, my child. My name is Reverend Donna Rice and everyone is welcome here at The Garden Worship Center.

The man stared deeply into Donna’s eyes as his body began to shudder. She could see the shadowing of his skin that created an almost ashen complexion. His voice seemed a bit gravelly as he opened his mouth and announced, I’m not here to be welcomed into your garden. I’ve come here to warn you, all of you, of a looming danger that awaits each and every one of you if you don’t heed my words immediately. Your garden is contaminated and rotting away.

The congregation gasped and cast puzzled expressions at each other as he continued, There is one amongst you ... one who is truly evil ... one, who is evil in its purest form that has risen from the bowels of hell with a plan to destroy each of you one by one.

Reverend Donna felt outraged at the fact that this man had stumbled in and disrupted her entire service with his absurd rantings. She asserted, Now see here, young man. You can’t just walk into our church and begin babbling this kind of nonsense. That’s not what we’re here for. The Garden Worship Center is a place of celebration and healing. I can’t ... I won’t believe that there’s some sort of evil lurking within these walls, our walls! Can’t you see that we were just in the middle of our communion service?

As if he didn’t hear a word that she said, he inquired while he pointed at everyone, How well do each of you really know each other? How long have you been fooled by the one? Your husband, your wife, your neighbor, your sister, your brother? What evil lies in your pasts ... in your hearts? Satan will take those sins and use them against you.

The congregants looked around at each other for a moment, questioning his words as he continued to speak. I promise you. There are the workings of the devil in this room and one of you is responsible for that.

The members of the church huffed in disbelief, but still wondered about just how well they actually did know each other, as they self-consciously glimpsed at each other from the corners of their eyes. They whispered comments like This guy must be crazy, and Someone needs to show him back to the door he came in.

The stranger heard the whispering and wanted complete silence. His arm snapped up and then straight out, as his hand pointed toward the people, sending a noiseless warning for their murmuring to halt. The congregants, some frightened, some irritated, some confused, became hushed, anxious to find out what he was going to say next.

He pointed his finger at them as if he was accusing everyone and anyone in the room. His voice became louder and clearer when he pronounced, One of you is the child of Satan! One of you is not here to seek deliverance but instead to create devastation! I smell death and greed and a perverse hunger for the ultimate power! One of you reeks of all these things! They originate from your very core! The rest of you must heed my words and know that what I am saying is the truth before it’s too late to change what’s already been set into motion! It will become a domino effect! That is guaranteed! I’ve already risked too much by coming here to warn you today. Not one of you would understand how much I gave up when I secretly escaped the perfect world to selflessly come here to help you.

The haggard man suddenly collapsed onto his knees as he stared up at the stark white plaster ceiling, tears flowing down his cheeks. The reverend rushed to his side to assist him back to his feet but he refused her help, pushing her hands away. No Reverend! Thank you but I don’t need your help! I’ll remain here on my knees where I know I’m safe. As a matter of fact, I’m sure that I’m the only one who’s safe in this room right now!

Several people whispered back and forth to each other as they watched the bizarre display. The man continued, The rest of you are too blind to see it, too deaf to hear it, and too numb to feel Lucifer’s presence as he takes a seat right next to you and sings your sanctified hymns with you. Believe me. He will tempt you as he, the serpent, tempted Eve at the forbidden tree. Beware of that tree. Remember, Satan was there and is the master of deception and trickery.

The man pointed directly at nervous Sarah Munroe, then at Chuck and Lorrie Miller, then at ex-marine, Toby Parker and his quiet, introverted wife, Alice. Then, his gaze swept across the other seventeen church-goers that were in attendance that morning. He screamed, If you don’t identify this force of evil and extinguish it, this grim reaper will strike each one of you down until your precious sanctuary sits as cold and empty as a mausoleum!

Suddenly, he jerked as his eyes slowly began to roll back in his head. The man muttered, The lord saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time.

He slouched forward and continued. God saw how corrupt the earth had become, for all the people on earth had corrupted their ways.

The attendees’ eyes widened and skittered back and forth at each other and then back to the man who was now experiencing horrific tremors. The lord regretted ... that he made human beings on the earth ... and his heart was ... deeply troubled.

The man lurched forward toward the chairs, his elbow bumping several and shoving them closer to the congregation. Sarah and Alice, who were closest to those chairs, pushed their own chairs back in fright. Now the earth was corrupt ... in God’s sight, and was ... full of violence. You must heed ... my ... words ... I’ve risked everything. I’ve ... risked my ... place ... in ...

His head jerked back several times before he fell face down onto the old, shabby tile floor. Reverend Donna, Nancy Everett and her husband Bill rushed over and knelt down alongside his motionless body. Others stood up and watched but still maintained a safe distance from the man. Scott Skidmore bellowed, Be careful! You don’t know who this man is! It could be a trick!

Calm and sensible Nancy, who had worked as an emergency room nurse for thirty years before finally retiring, turned him on his back and grabbed the filthy man’s wrist to check for a pulse. She listened closely for several minutes before Donna questioned, Is he ...?

His odor was so strong, Nancy had to cover her nose with her other hand as she grimaced and whispered, He’s alive but his pulse is very weak ... extremely weak. I’m afraid to tell you, Reverend Donna, that he may be dying.

Always-eager-to-help, Jasper Twigg, with long sideburns, large round glasses and colorful suspenders, stood up from his corner seat and announced, No need to worry, folks. I got this. I’m going to call for an ambulance right now, as he pulled his cell phone from his pants pocket.

Everyone else watched and waited fretfully until Jasper’s call was completed. That was around the time that they gradually began to filter into the kitchen