To the ones who journeyed with me through SALT AND BONE,

You came with open hands, with hearts ready to be bruised and mended, with eyes willing to witness love and loss, ruin and resilience. You walked the broken streets of Paraty, felt the salt sting your skin, let the echoes of Onwuka's fate settle in your bones. And for that, I am grateful beyond words.

Every read, every vote, every quiet moment spent in this world I built—I see them, I feel them. They breathe life into these pages, turning a story into something more: a home, a memory, a song carried by the wind. If SALT AND BONE stirred something in you, if it made you ache, made you dream, made you feel—then let it keep traveling. Vote, share, let others step onto this shore, let them hear the ocean's call.

But the journey does not end here. A new road beckons, one paved with speed and recklessness, desire and danger. SHUT UP AND DRIVE awaits you—a story that hums with the thrill of the unknown, the fire of untamed hearts. If you trusted me with one tale, I ask you to take my hand for another.

Thank you, always, for reading, for feeling, for believing. May stories continue to find you in the moments you need them most.

With love and gratitude,
Jesse ヅ