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Z ac was hovering. Julep didn't know what he wanted, but it was distracting her from her herbal concoction.

The redfly eye ointment had come out so well, she had decided to make an alternative treatment for sepsis.

Goblins tended to make medicine that worked, and if it had adverse side effects (such as searing pain), that was irrelevant.

Still, if a better version of the medicine was available, they bought it overwhelmingly.

Zac's hovering was interfering with her creative process. Never mind that she was once again set up at the dining room table where anyone could bug her. It was best to get rid of him. “Yes?”

“I have a school assignment, extra credit. It's an independent project, but I'm allowed to ask for help.”

She gave him the side eye. Ever since her visit to school, she'd been very leery about discussing his education. “What about it?”

“I know it makes you uncomfortable...”

“Just tell me,” she said impatiently. The sooner they got this over with, the better.

“Right. So we had a king. Nobody chose him, he was self-appointed. Everyone laughed at him, and nobody took him seriously until he started to amass kingly power.”

She crossed her arms and leaned on the table, giving him her full attention. “I think I heard about that.”

“So a coalition of generals, including general Yal and my uncle, helped bring him down.

“My assignment is to think of a different way to defeat him. I don't have the same resources and tools, so I have to get creative. I thought poisoning would be a good idea, but the king would be watching for poison.

“So I looked at history and thought, what is one of the key ways to make someone fall? Complacency was one of them. So then I thought, what can I do to make him complacent and careless?”

“What did you come up with?” she asked curiously. She was invested in the story now.

“Well, this guy was very paranoid. Usually when you're on the top, you get lazy. When you're young with a lot to accomplish, you're hungry for success and you have the energy to keep an eye on things. This king was middle-aged and he didn't seem to be slowing down. How can I make him be?”

She blinked. “Be what, tired? Sloppy?”

He made a gesture that welcomed ideas.

She hummed in thought, her gaze unfocused.

“If all you want is complacency... You could scent his laundry with something addictive laced with dope.

He'll be in a great mood all the time, gain weight and quit paying attention.

Over time, you would increase the dose. He'll be so happy, he won't know what's going on.” She frowned as the plan got hazy.

“I'm not sure what you would do from there.”

Zac was busily taking notes. “Don't worry about that part, this is great! What herbs would you use to accomplish this?”

She looked at him dubiously, but gave him a list. “Of course whatever you scent it with would have to be appealing to him. Something amazing...”

“What about those mushrooms? The ones that poisoned Rooster? You said they were narcotic over time.”

“Oh! Yes. That would work very nicely.” She peered at him. “Are you sure you don't want to be a herbalist? That was a brilliant idea.”

He snorted. “I don't think so!” He hastily held up a hand, realizing what he'd said. “No offense! You're brilliant. I'm just interested in other things...”

He looked at his paper. “This is great stuff though! A guy like that probably has lots of enemies. If he lets down his guard, they will begin to chip away at him. People would take advantage who wouldn't dare otherwise.”

She grimaced. “Ugh! Your school is messed up.”

He grinned. “It's an excellent school...if you're a goblin.”

If that was the case, she was glad she was human, she thought sourly. “Glad you're happy. Do you have any other questions?”

“No, that was it, thanks.” He sniffed the air. “It smells like lunch is almost ready.”

Julep looked at the dining room table and sighed. “I guess I can take a break. Might as well.” She followed him into the kitchen to see what Gog had made.

Zac spent the whole time eating with one hand and scribbling notes.

At least he was diligent about his schoolwork, she thought. His work ethic was impressive. She wondered if his uncle had rubbed off on him. Artur was just like him when he was working on a difficult problem.

She had no doubt he was going to get an excellent grade on his project.

??

The cleaning lady was old. She was also one of the best in the house at the moment. She showed up to work and didn't loaf. The maids had gotten sluggish lately and even the formerly excellent housekeeper was unkept. It couldn't be helped.

The cleaning lady wore a kerchief over her face when she dusted so she wouldn't sneeze. It was a quirk she's been quizzed about, but she was elderly. People expected old ladies to be a bit odd, and she was an excellent cleaner. No one really cared.

The mask had special properties that kept her from reacting to the scent, but she told people that the laundry perfume made her sneeze, too. At least, that's what she told people.

Old ladies were odd.

She carefully sprinkled the freshly ironed laundry with Zul Kan’s favorite scent. He insisted it be used on everything and spent lots of money on it. He said it helped him sleep and it was relaxing.

Well the boss knew what he liked, she thought with a smirk. She was just the laundress.

Not everyone in the Kan crime family was pleased. His mob boss underlings were upset. Things were being badly run, forgotten. Profits were down and enemies were getting uppity.

They didn't like this new relaxed Zul Kan.

He'd gotten soft, fat. A leader should be feared, looked up to.

Their leader didn't even show up to meetings sometimes.

He just sat around his house being mellow and eating.

His appetite seemed to have increased with his indolence.

It was suspicious, but Zul dismissed anyone who tried to say anything.

He'd had the same cook and kitchen staff for a long time. Underlings were investigated, but there was nothing odd about his food.

Maybe he was just getting old. Maybe, some said quietly, it was time to think about a change in management.

The old lady's knees creaked as she climbed the stairs with her basket of laundry. Time was, she could run up a hill in armor, bellowing war cries and waving a sword.

Well, she might be too old for that, but she liked to keep busy. Living off a pension alone was tiresome, and this job paid well. It let her keep her hand in.

She made the bed and put away the freshly ironed shirts, humming softly to herself about bitter old crones and the bodies they left behind.