"What do you think? Is this outfit good enough for the date? I want Luca to be blown away when he sees me. Are you even listening, Clara?" I could hear Delilah, but her words were indistinct.

My calculations suggested Aurora's poison had affected Damon's mother. If so, I was in serious trouble.

"Clara, you're not listening!" Delilah exclaimed, stamping her foot like a child. This snapped me back to reality.

"I'm sorry, I'm preoccupied. It suits you," I said, gesturing to her outfit. She frowned and sat beside me on the bench.

"Are you okay? You've been spacing out since we got here. What's wrong? Did Damon do something?" she asked anxiously. I shook my head and offered a small smile.

"It's nothing serious. I'm just tired and my stomach hurts from all that food." It wasn't entirely untrue; we'd been walking for hours, and my feet ached.

"Yeah, you did eat a lot. If I didn't know better, I'd think you were pregnant," Delilah said. My body tensed.

I laughed awkwardly, changing the subject. Delilah seemed oblivious.

We shopped a little longer, then left. In the car, Delilah received a call from Luca.

"Hello, baby. You miss me?" she said into the phone, but her face fell after Luca sighed.

"Your mother's been rushed to the hospital, Delilah. Your father said her heart stopped," he informed her. Delilah gasped, tears welling up.

"What? When? Why? What's going on?" she cried, and I took her hand to comfort her.

Luca tried to calm her, and after a while, she ended the call. I hugged her and told the driver to take us to the hospital.

"I can't bear it if Mom dies, Clara. I don't want her to die," she sobbed into my chest. I sighed, speechless.

Traffic was light, and soon we arrived at the hospital. My nerves frayed as we were directed to the family room.

I knew things were about to get messy, but there was no avoiding it.

As we entered, Delilah ran to hug her father. I stood frozen, my eyes fixed on Damon, whose expression was unreadable.

"What's she doing here?" Aurora was the first to speak, and I frowned at her.

"Aurora…" Dimitri began, but she cut him off.

"What? It's her fault your mother is fighting for her life! She might not make it. Clara killed your mother!" The Alpha King punched the wall, letting out a menacing growl before turning to me.

My eyes widened. He was shifting, his eyes turning red. His wolf was taking over, and he wanted me dead for harming his mate.

He lunged, but Damon intercepted him, placing himself between us. "Get out of my way, Damon," the Alpha King growled, glaring at me.

"Touch my wife, and I'll end you, regardless of who you are. Sit down and let me deal with my wife," Damon said firmly, but the Alpha King refused to back down.

"Damon…"

"I'll talk to her. Sit down. Don't cause a scene while Mother's fighting for her life. Leave my wife to me." After a moment, the Alpha King's eyes returned to normal. He glared at me before returning to his seat.

"I don't understand. Why are you blaming Clara?" Delilah asked, confused. I didn't look at her, but at Damon as he approached.

"Damon…"

"Is this yours?" He held up the small container I'd used.

"Yes," I replied truthfully. He nodded.

"What was in it?"

"Poison," I said. Everyone gasped. My heart shattered at the hurt in his eyes.

"Damon…"

"So you… you poisoned my mother?" he asked softly. I nodded slowly.

"Yes, I did." Delilah screamed and lunged towards me, but Luca restrained her.

"Let me go! How dare you, Clara? How could you do this? Why?!" she cried. I looked at Damon.

"Damon, you promised to trust me," I said, reaching for his hand, but he stepped back.

"Trust you? You poisoned my mother, and you're asking me to trust you?" he yelled. I flinched.

Dimitri stepped in front of me, shielding me from Damon's wrath.

"Get away from her," Damon said slowly. Dimitri shook his head.

"I won't let you hurt her." Damon scoffed and punched Dimitri, sending him to the ground. "Damon!" I cried.

"I would never hurt Clara," Damon said through clenched teeth, turning to me.

"You betrayed us all," he said softly. I sighed.

"Damon, please trust me," I pleaded, looking into his eyes.

"I will, after you tell me why. Why did you poison my mother? Why did you betray everyone?" His face was pained, but he wouldn't believe me yet. Everyone knew I'd poisoned her.

"I can't… I can't explain now, but please trust me. You promised." His eyes turned cold.

"You poisoned my mother, and she may not survive, and you want me to trust you? If you can't tell me the truth, I won't go easy on you. You're banished from my life and this pack. Leave immediately." I gasped. I'd expected this, but it still hurt.

"Damon…"

"Get her out of here," he ordered. Before Luca could move, Dimitri took my hand.

"Let's go," he said. I shook my head, turning back to Damon.

"You don't mean that. You…"

"Leave Clara. Get out of my face!" He said, and tears streamed down my face.

I turned to Delilah, her anger burning in her eyes. I didn't blame them. I just wished they trusted me.

Author's Note: I know some of you are angry, but please be patient. Thank you for reading!