When They Beg I Rise (Lemira) novel Chapter 1

"Lemira, are you going to admit your mistake or not?"

Lemira Langston's mouth and nose were submerged, a burning sensation in her throat as she choked on water.

Gasping for air as if clawing back from the brink of death, she opened her eyes to see her second elder brother, Lucian Langston, on the poolside, and the fourth elder brother, Caspian Langston, holding Evelina Sterling in his arms.

A flash of astonishment crossed her eyes. This scene felt eerily familiar.

Hadn't she died? Could it be she had been reborn three years earlier, on the day Evelina was officially adopted by the Langstons?

At the party, Evelina had set her up, making everyone believe Lemira had intentionally pushed Evelina into the water.

Caspian was the first to reach them, but he only saved Evelina, leaving Lemira, who also couldn't swim, struggling in the water.

Lucian even demanded whether she admitted her mistake or not, implying he wouldn't save her if she didn't.

Desperately struggling in the water, Lemira admitted her mistake, begging her brothers to save her. Only when she was at death's door did they pull her out.

Since then, she dared not provoke Evelina, tiptoeing around, trying to please her brothers. But what did she get in return?

Evelina stole her thesis, and Lucian testified for Evelina, making her the plagiarist who got expelled.

When Evelina needed a kidney transplant due to her frail health, her third elder brother, Rowan Langston, personally took her to the surgery room.

Evelina needed to boost her resume with international competition results, and Caspian, her fifth elder brother Evander Langston, and the sixth elder brother Alaric Langston didn't hesitate to kick Lemira out of the team.

When Lemira found evidence of Evelina's plagiarism and forged medical records, she brought them to her eldest brother Asher Langston, hoping to expose Evelina's true face.

But she only faced anger, no one believed her words, they didn't even look at the evidence closely. Asher kicked her out of the house to reflect on her actions.

She ended up homeless, penniless, enduring hardship on the streets.

As the memories flooded back, Lemira stopped struggling, letting herself sink to the bottom of the pool.