import os
from dotenv import load_dotenv, find_dotenv

def load_env():
    """Load environment variables from the .env file."""
    _ = load_dotenv(find_dotenv())

def get_together_api_key() -> str:
    """Retrieve the Together API key from the environment variables."""
    load_env()
    api_key = os.getenv("TOGETHER_API_KEY")
    if not api_key:
        raise ValueError("TOGETHER_API_KEY is not set in the environment variables.")
    return api_key