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They say she helped kill some 500 men. They say her lethal concoction flowed through 17th century Rome like a secret river, carrying away scores of abusive husbands.

The poison was simply known as Aquatifana, the silent killer.

And behind it stood a specter.

Julia Tafana, apothecary, perfumer, poisoner.

But was Julia an angel of the alleyways or the architect of a quiet massacre?

Join us as we follow the supply chain of a legend, from the deadly recipes and a network of helpers

to the papal courts where her name was recorded before the Roman Inquisition.

From the poisonous underworld of 17th century Rome, this is after dark.

It's a dark December night in Vienna, 1791, and while the wind rattles outside, inside,

candles flicker in windows, lighting the face of a fevered genius.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart clutches the bed sheets.

Eyes burning with a terror no music can resolve.

I am poisoned, he murmurs, with Aquatofana.

Whether or not he was the victim of the infamous poison, one thing is certain.

Its name coils through time like a slow, invisible venom. Acua Tafana, a widowmaker's weapon,

the whispered signature of a shadow merchant, Julia Tafana.

But was she a myth, a legend, a serial killer?

...