Maybe I should be more afraid. I had sex with a guy I barely know. Followed him into the middle of nowhere because of it. Even after I found out about the gun. Even after Lindsey didn't go home. He swears he won't hurt me, but his past tells a different, violent story, and I don't know what to believe. I rationalized everything, telling myself that I earned this time away from home. But now, with too much time to do nothing but think, I wonder if I was just plain selfish. Just ... stupid. 
 That quote says it all. This is a book about a stupid girl. A girl who ignores every warning sign in her head. A girl who ignores all instincts of self-preservation. A girl who ignores her intuition, despite every single warning sign that pops up along the way. 
 And obvious warning signs they are. The reader can clearly see it. It's not even dramatic irony because it is SO FUCKING OBVIOUS even to the main character, it's not hidden at all. I experienced an immense amount of frustration throughout this book because the main character is a dumb twit. I wish I could say she was self-destructive. I wish I could say that she was damaged. She is none of the above. She is just a sad, lonely girl who makes some really, really dumb choices. There is no Sad Tragic Deeply Depressing Traumatic event predisposing her to self-destruction here. It's just plain old idiocy. 
 Cadie has a shitty life. Her mom is dead. Her dad ignores her. Her boyfriend dumped her. She has no future after college graduation. Life is sad and boring. So what is there to do but hang out and maybe take a road trip with two strangers whom she's known since, well...now. But they're really, really hot. Because that's all that fucking matters. 
 He nudges me gently with his elbow. "Maybe you should come with us." 
 Maybe this is my chance for a little forward adventure. A small rebellion with a side of cute boy. I smile back. "Maybe I should." 
 They don't exactly look like the boy next door type. 
 Maybe the Frankenstein scar, white and jagged against his tanned skin, that starts in his hairline and travels down his forehead, slicing his dark eyebrow in half. It's angry. Violent. Probably not the kind of scar that comes with a cute story about how he fell learning to ride his first two-wheeler or got hit with a baseball in Little League. 
 His scars and tattoos...well, let's just ignore that. Everyone has scars and tattoos these days, why stereotype? Even if those scars appear to come from pretty violent encounters. 
 And then let's completely ignore his violent past (which he so conveniently discloses). 
 "I thought he was going to kill me," Noah says. "I was young and stoned and scared shitless and--I don't know--went into kind of a red rage, and when it was over, I was bleeding and he wasn't moving. One of my friends stitched me up with dental floss because I was afraid if I went to the hospital, I'd end up in jail." 
 And then let's just go against your own instincts, which is telling you to RUN THE FUCK AWAY FROM THEM AS FAR AS YOU CAN. 
 I also saw a gun, Cadie. A handgun. Do you know someone with a tattoo like that? Does this mean anything to you?" 
 Noah comes to mind again, but I've seen his tattoos. He doesn't have a Sacred Heart. He doesn't have a heart at all. 
 He doesn't have a heart at all? 
 Then before embarking on the trip with two complete strangers, let's just completely disregard the fact that they have guns. 
 "Cadie, are you okay?" Noah pulls the car onto the shoulder of the road and puts it in park. "You look completely freaked." 
 "Why do you have a gun?" 
 Then, while you're at it, just don't even pay attention to the fact that a guy was shot and murdered nearby just a short while ago. 
 "... and finally, a tragic ending in the search for a Florida man who went missing Tuesday in Georgia's Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge," the newscaster says, as a white banner at the bottom of the screen declares Missing Florida Man Found Dead, and I wonder if that's the missing guy Duane was talking about this morning. "The body of twenty-four-year-old Brian Patrick Clark was discovered this morning by park rangers. The Jacksonville man, who relatives say was camping alone in the park, was reported missing after he failed to return home last weekend. Cause of death has not been issued, but park officials say Clark was found with a single gunshot wound to the head. No suspects have been named, and Clark's death remains under investigation." 
 Because warning signs don't matter when the guys are hot. 
 Running my hand through my hair, I look at Noah standing there looking at me. He's waiting for an answer, and I am a sucker for his face all over again. 
 So I get in the car. 
 Yeah, warning signs all over the fucking place. 
 The date stamp on the receipt puts Noah and Matt there at the same time as the guy who went missing. The coincidence sends a creeping uneasiness down my spine. 
 No, it shouldn't send a "creeping uneasiness" down your spine, it should tell you to get the fuck out of there now. It should tell you to run for your life, save yourself. 
 Fucking idiot.