Page 2 of Chev's Mate

The shifters prefer to live among nature, and Echo clearly attempted to replicate that here. Besides the large plants stuffed into every corner of the room, there are framed images of forestry hung on the walls.

I wonder if they’re of the shifter realm. I’ve never been there, but I’ve heard great things. There’s a rehabilitation facility on their lands, but I wasn’t lucky enough to be placed there. I got stuck in the elven realm, which was still nice.

I was told the elven lands are most similar to what my home used to look like, but it only served as a reminder that my home no longer exists. The nymphs were decimated during the female decline, and our land was ravaged.

It’s nothing more than ruins now.

I tap my foot against the ground, nervously waiting for Echo to arrive.

She’s kind, and she likes me. I repeat that to myself while I wait. There were thousands of applicants for this role, and the small voice in the back of my head tells me that I was only hired because I was rescued from the ogre realm. The shifters want to use me as an example of how successful rehabilitation can be.

It’s a painful thought, one I try hard to ignore. I got this job because I deserve it.

“I swear, I’m about a second away from cutting off Chev’s—” I stand as Echo bursts into the room, her eyes quickly shifting from her receptionist to me. “Vanessa! You’re here!”

Echo scrambles to collect herself, her angry expression shifting into a welcoming smile. She’s wearing a wide, leather band around her chest and a matching leather skirt, the traditional female shifter attire.

They call it their ‘leathers,’ and they’re incredibly passionate about them.

All shifters have a red design on one of their thighs that depicts the animal they transform into, and Echo’s is a bear. Itfits her. The bears are known to be the loudest and most brutal of the shifters, and Echo’s personality reflects that.

Above the animal design is their mate marking, but Echo’s is covered by her skirt.

It’s well-known what they look like, though. All shifters are born with a thick, white line on one of their upper thighs, and the marking curves over their pubic bone before traveling along the top of their intimate parts.

It turns black when they meet their mates, and the shifters are notoriously protective of them. They take matehood seriously, and their marks are reserved solely for their other half.

“I’m sorry I’m late,” Echo says, hurrying to unlock her office door. “Have you been waiting long? I was meeting with Chev, and he was in a talkative mood.”

I smile, hoping she can’t see my nerves. “I understand. I haven’t been waiting long.”

I was supposed to meet Chev during my second interview, but something came up at the last minute and he couldn’t attend. I’m okay with that. I’ve seen photos of Chev, and despite the hard work I’ve put into being comfortable around men, I’m still terrified of the shifter male. Everybody talks highly of him, and many see him as a hero, but I can’t get past his size.

I much prefer small men, ones who look twiggy and unthreatening.

Chev is not that.

Echo opens her door and gestures for me to enter, and I quickly do so. Her office is just as bright as her reception area, and I glance at her cluttered desk before sitting in one of the chairs in front of it.

“I have some documents I’d like to review with you,” Echo explains, sitting behind her desk. “Afterward, I’ll give you a tour of the building and show you to your office. We encourageall new hires to use their first week getting acclimated to the building and the rehabilitation facility they’ve been assigned to.”

I nod, beyond happy to hear that. I was worried they’d load me immediately with work and deadlines.

“Sounds good,” I say, straightening my spine. “I’m excited to get started.”

I mean it, too. I’m passionate about the females, and working with Echo is a dream come true.

I thought my life ended the day I was purchased. The ogres did unspeakable things to me, and even when I was rescued and brought to the elven facility, I couldn’t imagine a life for myself. I sat in my room, curled up in bed, waiting for the ogres to steal me back.

At one point, I was hospitalized and given a feeding tube, but I’m working hard not to be that woman anymore.

Echo walks me through her paperwork. I struggle to understand some of it, but she’s patient when I have questions. Most of it seems straightforward, and I happily sign my name at the bottom of each page.

She makes copies for me.

“We’re going to start you off in the demon realm, specifically Wrath,” Echo says. She puts the copied paperwork into a folder and slides it across her desk. My hand shakes as I pull it into my lap.

Wrath? I frown.

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