Blackout: The Hexon Code, #3

By Jody Calkins

To survive, you must escape.

Emerson Wesler and Gabriel Marconne lead a fairly normal life, given the circumstances... Until their city's cell towers shut down unexpectedly two months before their high school graduation. Then the next morning, there's an explosion at their home and Gabe's parents are believed to have been inside.

But before social services can arrive to take them away, a mysterious agency shows up at their school, claims terrorists are attacking the nation, and forcibly recruits them along with thirteen other students.

Now they must train to fight for their country…

Only it isn't long before they discover things aren't what they seem. And their best chance of survival is escaping the one facility no one seems to know how to exit... All before they complete the training and advance to field agent. Because if that happens, everything's lost.

Blackout, the third book in The Hexon Code series, is a chilling young adult dystopian thriller/drama.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Jody Calkins
• Release date: Dec 13, 2021
• ISBN: 9781954708150

Jody Calkins

Author of The Hexon Code. Writer of Dystopian Drama. Pilot's Wife. Arborist. Learning Swedish & Turkish. Cat Lover. Book Addict.

Book preview

CHAPTER 1

IF YOU WANT to blow something up, it’s really easy. At least that’s what Gabe always told me. He’d said any materials you could possibly need could be found easily. The only trick was making sure the government didn’t find out about your activities and add you to some watch list.

So far, so good, as far as I knew.

But knowing how the government operated these days, I wouldn’t be surprised if I were arrested and charged as an accomplice to some ridiculous, made-up crime.

Are you sure this is safe? I asked.

Of course it is. Gabe glanced over his shoulder at me and winked before turning back to his work. After a brief moment, he stood up and walked over to me. Do you honestly think I’d drag you all the way out here to blow you to smithereens?

I cringed. I couldn’t help but think he’d have the perfect opportunity if that was his plan. No one else around for miles. The sound would echo across the valley down below, but it would be impossible to pinpoint the origin. Actually, I was just worried about the outcome if things go south.

You know Dad taught me everything I know, right? Can’t be too careful.

He had a point. I sighed and gripped the handle on the fire extinguisher from my fire watch station thirty feet away.

Besides, if anyone’s going to get hurt, it’s going to be me.

That’s what I was most afraid of, but to say that out loud felt like crossing an invisible line. So, I closed my eyes and sucked in a breath instead. What if he got hurt? What if he miscalculated and the explosion was bigger than it was supposed to be? What if it blew his legs or arms off? And right before his parents were taking off on a work trip.

Relax, will you?

I let out the breath and opened my eyes.

It’s going to be okay, Emme. I promise.

And of course he was right. Just like he had been the last five times he had brought me with him on his chemical experiments. When the bomb exploded, the aluminum can flew ten feet straight up in the air and then fell back down to the ground.

Gabe whooped and hollered while I closed my eyes and shook my head.

Boys. What was with their love for blowing stuff up?

I hosed the area down with the fire extinguisher and then helped him gather up his supplies. You know, there’s no way you could twist my arm into coming along if you didn’t review recipes with your dad first.

Gabe’s smile faded. He curled his fingers gently around my arm, his fingertips sending shivers up my flesh and down my spine.

I held my breath and waited for him to say something. Or was it that I wanted him to do something?

But then he spoke.

Why won’t you call him ‘Dad’? His voice was soft and low.

I held his gaze for a brief moment longer and then looked away before tears welled up in my eyes and my throat tightened again. You know why, I replied, my voice hoarse.

My heart was threatening to burst out of my chest and the tears won. I broke free from his grasp, then quickly shoved the rest of the supplies into the duffel bag and hauled it to the trunk of the car.

Gabe sighed. I heard his footsteps behind me crunching on the gravel driveway. I’m sorry. He leaned his hip against the rear of the car and stuffed his hands in his pockets. It’s just that you’re as much a part of the family as I am.

I stared down at the trunk, feeling helpless against the swimming tears that spilled out onto my hands. I tried to wipe them away with the back of my hand but my face was still wet.

In our silence, as the tears kept spilling out and I kept trying to wipe them away, I imagined him watching me with that worried look on his face. The worried look he always got whenever my heart was breaking. But I couldn’t bring myself to look up and meet his gaze. Not this time.

I heard him sigh again and then he draped his jacket over my shoulders, his hands lingering for a moment, before heading up the porch steps.

Through the blur of tears, I watched him disappear into the cabin. I pulled his jacket tighter around me and stared out over the hillside. Barely visible and far off into the horizon was Washington, D.C., what was once the nation’s capital.

After a few minutes, the screen door creaked open.

We should go.

I nodded, still staring toward the east.

I lost cell service.

I sighed then, pulling my gaze away from the darkening horizon, and turned to Gabe. He was looking up at his phone as he held it high over his head.

Time for a new phone, I said weakly.

No way. I just got this thing a year ago.

I turned back to the horizon. I thought about what it was like behind the walls. Was the government right? Did the criminals really kill each other off when left to fend for themselves in an abandoned area? Left with dwindling food supplies and forced to raid former residences and commercial buildings? Was my parents’ killer there?

Gabe touched my arm. Hey, what’s wrong?

You think they’ll ever catch the guy who did it? After all this time? I watched his face for a second and then turned back to stare out toward the east. The reporter didn’t seem too confident.

What does that reporter know anyway? Just a sorry loser, if you ask me.

Gabe always had a way of putting things in perspective for me.

But he talked to the police chief.

He grabbed my shoulders and turned me around to face him. His face was close to mine. That guy knows next to nothing about the case. He’s just trying to entertain the masses.

But he has a point. They were murdered twelve years ago, I replied. How could the police possibly come up with new evidence to convict a killer after all this time?

Gabe shook his head and sighed. Maybe the detectives know more than they’re telling us.

It’s not fair. The guy is probably roaming free while my parents are dead.

Who’s to say he isn’t already there? Gabe asked, pointing toward the east. He’s probably done other horrible things. Maybe he got caught. Or who knows, maybe he’s dead.

Maybe he’s been dead for years.

Exactly.

That was supposed to help me feel better, but I still felt numb. If only the reporter didn’t come on the air every year to discuss the anniversary of my parents’ murder, maybe I’d be able to recover.

It wasn’t like the police were making any progress. And if they were, they weren’t telling me about it. Or maybe they were telling Gabe’s parents, my legal guardians, since I was still under age. Maybe they didn’t want me to worry.

Come on, Gabe said. It’s getting late.

What time is it anyway? I asked, glancing down at my wristwatch before remembering it still read four in the morning.

He raised his eyebrows and smirked. Time for you to get a battery.

CHAPTER 2

THE NEXT MORNING as I was getting ready for school, a knock came at the bathroom door and I jerked my head toward the sound.

Would you hurry it up? Gabe said, sounding annoyed. We’re going to be late again.

I’ll be there in a minute.

He groaned. I’ll be outside.

Running late. Again. Imagine that.

A quick glance at the time on my phone made me quicken my pace. Only ten minutes before the school bell would ring. If we were late, Gabe was going to have a fit.

I made a final pass with my mascara wand, rechecked my makeup in the mirror one last time, being careful to avoid looking at the puffiness under my eyes—if I don’t see it, it doesn’t exist, right?—and then rushed back to my bedroom as I typed a quick text to Gabe to let him know I was on my way. I grabbed my bag off the floor, ran down the stairs, and pushed through the front door.

Bye! I’ll see you guys after your trip, I called out.

Before the screen door slammed shut, I caught a glimpse of Gabe’s dad sitting at the kitchen table. He held a coffee mug in one hand and it looked like he was staring across the room at what seemed like nothing in particular.

Shrugging, I ran down the porch steps. The warmth of the sun washed over me, fending off the cool breeze of the mid-March air. Birds that were perched in the trees in the front yard greeted me with their usual springtime chatter.

Good luck on your exams, Emme, Corinne called out.

I stopped and looked back at the house. Gabe’s mom was leaning out their open bedroom window upstairs and waving. Her long blonde hair swayed with the breeze. I smiled and waved back, then ran to catch up with Gabe.

We’re going to be late, he said, turning on his heel, his pace fast, making me take quicker steps to catch up. I was about ready to leave you behind until I saw you come out the door.

You know we always make it to class in time, I replied, out of breath, already winded from the rush out the door and the jog across the street. Didn’t you get my text a few minutes ago?

Gabe looked at me like I had grown two heads, then rolled his eyes. No, I didn’t get your text. Weren’t you listening to the news last night?

No. I must have zoned it out. What’d I miss?

The city’s cell towers are down.

He pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and then showed me the message on the screen that said the phone was searching for a cell signal. Happened sometime yesterday after eight o’clock. Remember my phone wasn’t getting a signal?

Sorry. Preoccupied yet again. I can’t help it.

Gabe gave me a worried look before shaking his head. Anyway, the reporter wouldn’t say how it happened or when they expect the towers to be back online. Communications can’t nail down one specific cause, but evidently it happened all up and down the east coast. Said something about a possible degradation of the fiber optic cables.

That’s weird. Degradation across an entire region doesn’t seem likely. Maybe it has something to do with the towers’ control system.

Some kind of interference, maybe. But from where?

I shrugged. We walked in silence for a couple minutes and then I said, Walking without me just wouldn’t be the same, you know.

I know. I’d actually be on time, he replied, glancing over at me with an exasperated look on his face and then back down at his watch. He grunted and quickened his pace. My short legs had to take extra strides to keep up.

I don’t know how you’d handle walking by yourself. It would be so boring, just you and your weird thoughts, I said between breaths.

He glared at me but I knew it was only for show. I tried to hide my smile. I knew he’d never leave me behind. He never had.

What goes on inside that head of yours anyway?

Very little, he replied. What goes on inside yours?

It’s top secret.

We tell each other everything.

Yeah, right. I shoved him gently with the heel of my hand. I can’t tell you everything. I’d have to kill you if I did.

Whatever, Gabe said, shaking his head. We continued walking again. You don’t have anything exciting happening in your life that I can’t know about.

How do you know? I asked, glancing over at him. I could be a double agent working for the CIA and you’d have no idea.

He laughed. Yeah, right. We live together, remember? Besides, you can’t keep secrets. Remember that time at summer camp, you were sworn to secrecy about my crush on that girl from Valley United and you spilled the beans? Remember that? You ruined my chances of her ever talking to me. She thought I was creepy.

Are you still blaming me for that? Okay, okay, you got me, I said, raising my hands in surrender. I stuffed my hands back into my coat pockets. I can’t keep a secret to save my life. I was just trying to help and I blew it.

It’s nice to hear you finally taking responsibility.

I rolled my eyes. We waited for a black SUV to drive by so we could walk across the street. My eyes drifted down the street and followed after the vehicle until it disappeared around the corner.

The school bell rang as we ran across Second Street. We had two minutes to get to our first class. We agreed to see each other at lunch and then parted ways. I’ve got my eyes on you, Miss CIA, Gabe had called out, pointing his finger at me.

I breezed through the exam for my first class, Senior English, and caught Gabe’s eye in the hall as we passed each other on our way through the crowds to our next class. I waved and called, How was chemistry?

Earth-shattering, he called back.

I grinned and rolled my eyes. He was a genius when it came to chemistry. I didn’t have the patience for it, but Gabe, he picked it up so quickly. He dreamed about becoming a scientist and making explosives.

I thought he was crazy. I was just glad he didn’t drag me along to every one of his experiments. His parents still owned a hundred acres and a cabin in the mountains about an hour’s drive away, so he had plenty of room and free reign to blow stuff up.

The biggest explosion he had created so far had only sent an aluminum can in the air. That was the condition his parents had had about him experimenting in the woods on their property. He couldn’t build anything that would cause a huge explosion.

And he needed a fire watch.

How he and his dad knew how to build one that was small enough, I didn’t know. I never asked him because I knew he could spend hours giving me every detail. I was doing myself a favor. Call me selfish.

I walked to my next class and stepped into the room just as an announcement came over the intercom. Mary Ellen, the school’s secretary, was telling Gabe and me to go to the front office.

I sighed and caught my teacher’s eye. She nodded and gave me a wave, so I hurried to the front office. Gabe was already there, holding the door open for me. We walked past two younger kids sitting in the waiting room, probably waiting for a parent to pick them up.

Gabe, Emme, Ms. Kelly said, walking across the room toward us. She put an arm loosely around my shoulders and led us toward her office down the hall.

Once inside, I stopped. A man and a woman, both dressed in dark pant suits, were sitting in chairs against a side wall.

Please, have a seat, Ms. Kelly said as she closed the door quietly behind her.

We sat down in the two remaining chairs while our principal propped a hip against the edge of her desk.

What’s going on? Gabe asked, shifting his gaze to the man and woman and then back to Ms. Kelly.

My heart pounded and my stomach felt a little queasy. I clasped my hands together so no one would notice that they were trembling.

The woman leaned forward in her chair, her hands folded on her lap. My name is Detective Anne Miller and this is my partner, Detective Stephen Hendersen. She unclasped her hands as she looked over at her partner for a brief second and then turned back to us. I’m afraid we have bad news about your parents.

CHAPTER 3

I STARED AT the detective, too afraid to ask what had happened. I couldn’t speak. I fought hard to keep my thoughts from all of the possible scenarios that had popped into my head.

Had they been in a car accident on the way to their convention? Were they lying in a ditch somewhere? Were they in the hospital? Had a burglar broken in and killed them?

I took a deep breath and tried to focus on the detectives. They were exchanging a guarded look.

What do you mean? What’s going on? Gabe asked again.

There was a fire at your house, Detective Miller said quietly. Your parents are believed to have been inside the house when an explosion occurred.

I couldn’t move. I couldn’t breathe. Tears started to flow down my face and fall onto my folded hands. Not again. Not now. I felt like my whole world was crashing down on me. I reached out my hand to Gabe. He took it and held on tight like it was his last ditch effort at survival.

I’m so sorry to have to tell you this, Detective Miller said.

How’d it happen? Gabe asked. His voice was strained.

We don’t know yet. Our forensics team is trying to piece everything together. But I need to ask: did your parents have any enemies? Were they having any problems?

Gabe shook his head. I don’t think so.

I sat still in my chair and stared down at my lap.

Ms. Kelly cleared her throat and stood up from the desk. Why don’t we give them some time? I’ll walk you out.

Detective Miller held out a hand. Just one more question before we go.

Ms. Kelly nodded her consent as she sat back down.

Gabe, we need to know if your parents were planning a trip, she said softly. Were they going anywhere?

Gabe lifted his head. They were driving to South Carolina for a business meeting.

Did they say anything at all that might have suggested something was going on?

What do you mean?

Did you get a vibe that anything was off about them? Any strange behavior? Anything you remember could help our investigation.

No, he said, shaking his head.

That’s enough for now, Ms. Kelly said, rising to her feet again.

We’d like to talk to you more when you feel up to it, Detective Miller said as she stood up and handed me a business card. If you two think of anything that might help us find out why this happened, please don’t hesitate to call me. My cell number is on the back of the card.

Once the cell towers are back up and running, I added in my head as I turned the card over. Sloppy handwriting was scribbled on the card, but the numbers were legible.

Again, we’re sorry for your loss, Miller said. She glanced at her partner and nodded toward the exit. Ms. Kelly walked them to the door. I could hear them talking softly but I couldn’t make out what they were saying. Not that I was paying attention.

When I leaned my head against Gabe’s shoulder, he wrapped his arms around me. What were we going to do now? Without Gabe’s parents, who was going to take care of us? See us graduate from high school, send us off to college, walk me down the aisle at my wedding?

I heard the sound of shoes whispering against the carpeted floor. Ms. Kelly sat down in one of the chairs the detectives had just vacated.

I’ve checked your files and talked with the detectives. Do you two have any other family in the area?

Not that we know of, Gabe replied, shaking his head.

Okay, she said. The state will be sending someone to pick you two up and take you to a group home until a judge can determine which of your relatives should get legal guardianship.

No, I exclaimed, staring up at her. My eyes widened as I shook my head frantically. More tears threatened to fall. A group home? No way.

I’m afraid that isn’t for me to decide.

We don’t have any living relatives, Gabe said. It’s just us now.

Unfortunately, there isn’t anything I can do. My hands are tied. If I—

An urgent knock came from the other side of the closed door. Ms. Kelly sighed and walked to the door.

Yes, Mary Ellen, what is it? she asked as she peeked out into the hall.

Mary Ellen hunched in close. She glanced our way for a brief moment and then turned back to the principal. Her voice was low, but still loud enough for me to hear. There is a gentleman here to see you. He’s from a place called Faction 73.

Faction 73? What was that? I looked over at Gabe to see if he had heard it, too. He gave me a quick sidelong look and then turned his gaze back to the door.

I’m with students right now.

Yes, I understand. But he said it was urgent. He wants to discuss the students you had mentioned last week. He’s ready for them now. She crossed her arms over her chest. What should I tell him?

Ms. Kelly suddenly leaned against the doorframe and brought a hand up to her forehead. She looked down at the floor like she was having a dizzy spell.

Principal Kelly? Mary Ellen reached out for her but was shooed away.

After a moment, Ms. Kelly took a deep breath, straightened herself and her suit jacket, and then said, Take him to the conference room. I’ll be right there.

She was about to close the door when she suddenly opened it again and called out, Oh, Mary Ellen? Could you bring me some aspirin? Just bring the whole bottle. To my office.

CHAPTER 4

MARY ELLEN USHERED US to the counselor’s office to wait for someone from the Department of Social Services to arrive. I’m so sorry to hear about your family, she said, clutching us both with her bony, shaky hands.

My head was starting to spin. I didn’t know what was going to happen to us. I didn’t know of any living relatives. Surely I had one or two. But no one had come forward after my parents died twelve years ago. Gabe’s parents had taken me in. And his family I had no idea about. I thought they had family in Maine or somewhere out north but I had never met them.

Why don’t you two take a seat in here, Mary Ellen said, gesturing for us to go inside. Mrs. Sherman doesn’t come in for another hour, so you’ll have the place to yourselves.

As soon as we stepped inside the room, she turned around and walked back down the hall.

Tears welled up in my eyes as I stared down at the floor. How can this be? How did this happen?

Gabe shook his head. We’re not going to find out sitting here. I’m going back to class.

I looked at him closely, my eyes squinting against the bright overhead lights. His avoidance of eye contact, clenched jaw, and closed fists were all signs that he was fighting hard to regain normalcy. He paused at the door, his hand tight around the doorknob.

Gabe, wait.

He turned his head and finally made eye contact for a brief second before turning back to the door. We can’t make them come back, Emme. We can find out who did this, but then we have to move on. He gave the knob a twist and hurried out the door.

I sighed.

Just like that? Didn’t he need time for mourning before moving on? No, he would never forget; he wasn’t going to sit at home without doing anything. And pity the person responsible. If he ever found out who killed his parents, he’d make them pay.

All I wanted to do was put the past behind us. Forget it ever happened. Forget that my parents had been murdered. Forget that Gabe’s parents had just died. Forget that our lives were messed up because of other people, killers who made sport of removing upstanding citizens from their families for no good reason.

I leaned against the desk in the room, crossing my arms over my chest and staring up at the clock. It was almost time for my third class of the day.

As much as I hated to admit it, Gabe was right. We weren’t going to learn anything by sitting around doing nothing. I wasn’t much of a waiter anyway.

When I walked to my next class and took my usual seat on the far side in the first