Nicola’s diary (Symbol)
Nicola keeps a diary, where she writes down her thoughts about life and death. However, her diary is not only a symbol of her inner world. When Samson Young accidentally finds the diary in the garbage can, he is amazed. He is intrigued by Nicola’s words about her death of love. When the reader learns that Nicola’s murderer is Sam, it is obvious that her diary is a symbol of the chronicle of her predicted death, because this banal notebook is in the hands of Sam Young and he knows what his victim desires.
Target (Allegory)
At the beginning of the novel, Sam Young assures the reader that Nicola’s murderer will be Keith Talent. Keith, being a bandit, is fond of darts. As is well known, during this game you need to throw darts to get into the target. As it turns out, Nicola’s life is a game. Anyway, she is not a victim – she is a target for her murderer. Nicola wishes to be killed. She is Keith’s target and he should try thoroughly to get right into the target – into Nicola’s heart.
Death (Motif)
The main characters do not think about life or love. They think about death. Dying, a person can choose a strategy for death. It can be soft or aggressive, but then death keeps coming inexorably and decides how it will proceed. It happens at a certain moment before death. This happens to Sam Young, because he is critically ill and does not know when he will die. However, it does not happen to Nicola. She will control her death right up to her last gasp. This motif shows the characters are so interested in death that they do not want to enjoy their life. They just need live.
