Danielle Thiéry returns to the Lafarge affair which, in 1840, divided the experts and kept France in suspense. Married to Charles Lafarge, Marie was not happy. However, her husband refused a divorce and forced her to live in her rat-infested home. To fight against rodents, Marie obtained large doses of arsenic. In December 1839, she sent a cake to Charles on a trip to Paris. Charles fell seriously ill and died a few days later, in January 1840. No traces of poison were found on Charles' body, but Marie was nevertheless charged with murder. Even today, no one knows if Marie had poisoned her husband.