Chapter 1 The Summons and the accused

The ceiling fan in Justice Omolara's chambers spun lazily overhead, pushing stale air in a slow circle. Her fingers tapped rhythmically on the polished wood of her desk. The file in front of her, stamped in red: State v. James Adewale, was one of the many that passed her bench-but this one felt different.

In the matter of days, the courtroom would be filled with tension, witnesses, and a young man whose life could be changed forever by a single verdict.

Outside the courthouse, the city of Lagos buzzed with life. But inside these stone walls, time slowed down. Justice was deliberate here-at least, it was supposed to be.

James Adewale was twenty-seven. A recent graduate of Unilag with a degree in economics, he should have been hunting jobs. Instead, he was being hunted by the law.

The charge was robbery with violence-section 402 of the Nigerian Criminal Code. If convicted, James faced life imprisonment.

He sat alone in the courtroom's defendant bench, his shoulders hunched under the weight of expectation, fear, and disbelief. He had pleaded not guilty.

"This is not my life," he whispered, almost inaudibly. His lawyer, Barrister Folake Ojo, placed a firm hand on his arm.

"It won't be, if we prove it."