Page 4 of Chev's Mate

I’d love to meet the human, Charlotte. She’s the only female in the group and, along with Echo, she led the efforts to save us. She’s an inspiration, and everybody in the elven facility I was in looked up to her.

I was so excited to meet Echo, and I’m pretty sure our entire first interview was spent with my jaw on the floor. It feels almost surreal to be surrounded by such influential people, let alone getting to work with them.

Echo turns down a hallway, and the foot traffic thins out.

“Your office is this way,” she says.

I’m relieved it’s out of the way, and I clasp my hands behind my back as she leads me down another corridor and eventually comes to a halt in front of a door. There are several lining the hallway, probably all offices.

My door is a dark wood, and a black number twelve is engraved in the center of it. I commit that number to memory.

Echo claps. “This is it!”

I smile, my pulse racing as I push open the door and step inside. My office is small, barely fitting a desk and a filing cabinet, but it’s perfect. There’s a large window along the backwall, letting in so much sunlight, and I happily spin around and take it all in.

Echo said we’re encouraged to make the space our own, and I very much intend to do so. I’m going to fill it with plants and posters. I’m not sure which posters I’ll hang, but I enjoy the look of the human ones from before the decline. They were creative.

“The closest portal is the one in Chev’s office,” Echo says. “I’d recommend using that one when you need to travel.” She peers into my doorway, a soft smile toying at the corners of her lips. “He’s rarely here, so you shouldn’t run into him too often.”

I dip my chin, hoping my nervousness isn’t too noticeable.

“Good to know. Thank you.”

Echo nods. “Make yourself comfortable. I’ll come and check on you in a few hours. The password to your laptop is on the sticky note there.” She points to my desk. “And the files on the Wrath facility have already been downloaded.”

I turn and glance at the laptop sitting on my desk. It’s sleek, and I’m excited to use it.

“Do you have any questions?” Echo asks.

I shake my head, and she disappears. This is truly happening.

Chapter Two

VANESSA

I PINCH MY nose, more than a little overwhelmed.

I’ve been working here for almost three full days now, and I’m starting to worry the files I’m expected to review are endless. I’ve been staring at my laptop for hours, trying and failing to absorb every little piece of information I can find about the Wrath facility. I failed to realize just how many files I’d have to familiarize myself with, and it’s intense.

I know I’m not expected to get through everything right away, but I’d still like to make a good dent before the week ends. I want to impress—especially before I leave for Wrath tonight. I could commute here from my new placement in Wrath, but most facility managers choose to live and work out of the realm of their placement. It makes sense since I’ll be spending most of my time there. The portals are easy enough to use, but they take a lot of energy to operate.

It’s not as if I’m unfamiliar with living on facility land, and I admittedly enjoy the security and safety that being there offers. It’s the one good thing about being placed in Wrath. I know I’ll be safe.

I tap my foot against the ground as I click through the files on my computer. I find one discussing meal plans, and I rest mychin in my palm as I scan it. I try to remain focused, but my eyes continually flicker toward the door.

Chev hasn’t visited me yet, but I know it’s inevitable.

I want to get this introduction over with, and not knowing exactly when he’s coming is driving me insane. Every time I get in the groove of things, I hear a sound in the hallway and clam up.

I’d much rather have a set time for his visit, but I know better than to complain about how he runs his company. If Chev wants to be a pop-in kind of guy, I’m not really in a place to ask him to change.

At this point, though, I’m unsure if he’s even coming. The day is almost over.

I don’t want to do this again tomorrow. Although maybe if I’m lucky, he’ll never stop by. I intend to begin working out of the Wrath facility next week, so he’s running out of time to make his introduction. I doubt he ever visits the Wrath facility, so once I’m there, I’ll be free of him.

That, admittedly, sounds nice.

I sigh, moving on to my next file.

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