You guys, seriously, this show is making some pretty interesting choices; it goes to show how much more conducive it is to writing a good story to have the end in sight. So:
LaGuerta stops by to see the old Captain and tells him her theory about the BHB; since he just so happens to own a boat, he's on her list of people to follow up with. Given how she cost him his job, he's understandably snippy at first, but later, he tracks her down and offers her information on the people on her list (of cops who own boats, essentially) if she'll help him get his pension reinstated. It's a classic pairing of people who don't remotely trust each other, with good reason, so it should be fun.
Two charred corpses lead MM (well, Dexter, really) to conclude there's a serial arsonist-murderer out there who's been wearing a protective suit so he can watch his victims burn alive. Could it be the random arson investigator who seems just the right amount of creepy to be a secret killer? Probably!
Dexter goes to Deb and tries to make her feel better about her confession, telling her that he understands since they've been the only constant in each other's lives. This does make Deb feel better, but meanwhile, Dexter's bond with Hannah is growing ever stronger. Also, in the wake of the failed attempt on his life last episode, Isaak Pullo gets a tip that the Brotherhood has sent two more assassins to take him out. These men are known to him to be the deadliest of the deadly, so Isaak Pullo, needing help from a source of whom the assassins are unaware (i.e., not Lurch), goes to the only other killer he knows – Dexter. He offers Dexter his life if he'll help him, and although Dexter initially refuses, the offer does intrigue him. He ends up being forced to accept, though, when Isaak Pullo, having had Lurch keep tabs on Dexter's movements, kidnaps Hannah to use as leverage to insure Dexter's help. Isaak Pullo promises that if Dexter goes along, he'll not only free Hannah but will drop his death mark against Dexter and will walk away from Miami forever.
While they're thrown together, Isaak Pullo, long fascinated by his nemesis, tries to get into Dexter's head, but Dexter's the one who wins their mind games as he realizes that Isaak Pullo secretly blames not Dexter but himself for Viktor's death; still, Isaak Pullo realizes that Dexter is having trouble facing his feelings for Hannah. Dexter ends one of the assassins before he ever knows what hit him; aware that this means Isaak Pullo is on to him, the second assassin goes to Jason Gedrick for help finding Isaak Pullo, and Jason Gedrick gets the bright idea to track down Dexter, with the idea that Isaak Pullo won't be able to stay away from him. Unfortunately for Team Brotherhood, the Dexter/Isaak Pullo alliance accurately anticipates this development and picks off the second assassin, but still, all doesn't quite go according to plan – more on that later.
Despite her assertion that she'll never approve of Dexter's relationship with Hannah, Deb helps Dexter where she can in his efforts to save her – and she's the one, once Dexter points her in the right direction, who tracks down the spot where Lurch is holding her. However, Hannah the secret killer is not one to let the grass grow under her chains, and manages to hoodwink and kill Lurch, but not without suffering a stab wound that would have turned out to be mortal – if Deb hadn't shown up to save her. In the hospital, Hannah points out that Deb could have let her die, but Deb tells her that that's not who she is – she's not like Hannah. I guess if she had to save her life, rubbing that sentiment in her face almost made it worth it.
So, getting back to the second assassin, Dexter and Isaak Pullo's trap works perfectly, and while Dexter mops up the guy's blood, Isaak Pullo heads off, intending to leave Miami and fulfill his promise. Unfortunately for him, Jason Gedrick has been having a really bad day -- annoyed that Quinn wasn't returning his calls, he banged Nadia (well, that part probably wasn't so bad), so Quinn beat the crap out of Jason Gedrick and took Nadia out of the club. Between that and the failure of the assassins, Jason Gedrick decides to put a bullet in Isaak Pullo himself, and although it's not immediately fatal, Isaak Pullo knows that the fact that the bullet is still in him means he's a dead man. His dying wish is to be buried at sea so he can be reunited with his love, so Dexter, kind of touchingly, makes that happen. Isaak Pullo's dying advice is for Dexter to go for it with Hannah; he was like Dexter before he met Viktor – detached and coldly logical – but with Viktor, he never had to hide who he was. So in the end, Dexter crawls into Hannah's hospital bed and tells her he doesn't know where they're going, but he feels safe with her. And like the title says, it's crazy, and it's stupid, but it's love.
As Dexter drives the Slice Of Life at high speeds in what I assume is the Gulf of Mexico, DVO tells us that fear and love are the strongest emotions, and what's more, they can make you do crazy things - like tell your own brother you're in love with him, or put your own life at risk to hunt down the man who took away your "beloved." Well, it's generous of Dexter to equate Deb's gross and wrong feelings with his actions that led to Rita's death, although I suppose he doesn't know just how popular the latter development was with the viewing audience. Having covered love, it's time for fear, and to address that, we pan back to see Hannah cowering in the back of the boat, life jacket clenched so hard it's begging for mercy. DVO goes on that another crazy thing is to do something for the sake of love that scares you to death as Hannah continues to turn shades of green that may not even have names yet; she eventually prevails on Dexter to take a short break.
After he cuts the engine, he sits with her, and after letting us know that Jamie has taken the kids back to Orlando (wonder how Dexter is justifying getting rid of Harrison this time), she apologizes, saying she thought she was over her fear of the water, but it turns out her continued phobia is at least understandable, given that her childhood swimming lessons consisted of her father taking her to the local pond and throwing her in. On top of everything else, this is the backwoods of Alabama we're talking about, right? I'm an expert swimmer and you couldn't pay me to dip a toe in water there. I might not get it back. Dexter, seemingly sincerely, remarks that that's horrible and asks where her mother was, and Hannah admits that she was there, but her father wouldn't let her intervene. "Six years old, and I already knew what it felt like to be dying." I can only imagine Hannah's Barbie endured some interesting experiences after this. Apparently Hannah lost consciousness, coming to later on the dock to discover that her mother's screams attracted a fisherman who saved her life, and I don't know what happened after that but I hope they had CPS in this Podunk town. Hannah asks if Dexter's ever been comparably scared, and he's slow to respond in the negative; Hannah picks up on his hesitation and assures him he can talk to her about stuff like that. He says he knows, and struggles with whether he should spit it out, but his phone beeping allays any decision. He tells Hannah it's work, and he should get back; without further discussion, he walks to the front of the boat and drives off. We get about ten seconds of them riding off, and it's a beautiful shot so I don't begrudge it, but it does get my filler alert tingling.
In a less picturesque part of Miami, Isaak Pullo heavily asks Lurch if he's sure, and Lurch says yes - since Jason Gedrick's assassin failed in his mission, the Brotherhood has taken direct ownership of the issue and have sent two men to kill him - who are most likely already in the city. It seems apparent that Lurch was able to get information from someone inside the Brotherhood, which is borne out when he supplies the names of the two assassins, "Mickic and Caffrey." From Isaak Pullo's sharp intake of breath upon hearing this, these are not the guys to make you think the Brotherhood is fucking around, so it's no surprise when Isaak Pullo once again tries to get Lurch to abandon him; it's even less of a surprise that Lurch once again refuses, adding that Isaak Pullo is safe holed up in their current location, at least for now. Isaak Pullo then decides that a direct appeal to the assassins, whom he made very rich when he was in a position of power, is worth a try, but when he calls Mickic (Caffrey is there with him), Mickic can barely divert enough attention from checking out the sights on the automatic rifle he's holding to tell Isaak Pullo that he's already accepted the contract, so he's SOL. Isaak Pullo knows better than to waste his time arguing, so after he gets off the phone, he tells Lurch they're going to need some help, and if you can't see the buddy-comedy potential here, you're not looking hard enough.
Dexter's just getting ready to head to work as DVO muses that while Hannah wants to get to know the "real" him, he's not so sure there is such a thing. Yeah, yeah, we know that drill. He opens the door to find Isaak Pullo standing there, and if this is how cavalier Dexter is about having a deadly assassin after him he kind of deserves to get his head blown off without further ado. However, Isaak Pullo assures him that he's safe before quickly explaining why he's there; in response, Dexter gives a hilariously wary glance past him like he thinks this is a Punk'd setup. Into the silence, Isaak Pullo remarks that he's feeling a bit exposed, and it'd probably be better for Dexter if the assassins didn't know where he lived, so could they maybe take this inside? His dark look undiminished, Dexter beckons for Isaak Pullo to enter, and once the door is closed, he wonders where Isaak Pullo's trusty assistant is. Isaak Pullo replies that although Lurch is incredibly resourceful, he's known to the assassins, which makes him of limited value - unlike Dexter. Dexter notes that Isaak Pullo is scared, and Isaak Pullo doesn't attempt to hide it, haltingly agreeing by saying that if Dexter knew these men, he would be too. Dexter asks what's in his cooperation for him, and Isaak Pullo responds, "Your life." Dexter sniffs that he'll take his chances, and I wonder, then, why he asked what Isaak Pullo was offering; was there an answer that would have satisfied him? On the other hand, despite his flippancy when Isaak Pullo was there, the look on his face suggests the offer was of some interest...
...which is confirmed when, as we cut to a crime scene on which are several firemen, DVO tells us that he should be rooting for the assassins to take Isaak Pullo out, but he isn't, although he's not sure whether it's merely because he wants Isaak Pullo for himself, or if it's that they're more alike that he cares to admit. For now, though, we have a crime to focus on, as we see a burned-out car with one of the crispier extras from the "Thriller" video in the driver's seat. Dexter finds the MM gang all there, and, squatting down to the driver, he asks Batista if he minds if he takes a look - whereupon a shortish balding guy pops up on the passenger side and says he'd rather Dexter didn't, "at least until I'm done here." Batista giggles - yeah, HILARIOUS gag, dude - and explains that the guy is an arson investigator; the guy pipes up that there's an empty canister of accelerant under the passenger's seat, an oily residue all over the car's interior, and an ID badge.
Deb then turns up, and after the guy once again does his little Whack-A-Mole pop-up, scaring a "Holy fillet of fuck!" out of Deb, he reminds her that his name is "Phil Bosso" and that they met a little while ago. "That church burning?" So this guy has immediate potential to connect to Dexter's secret. Excellent. Deb, of course, has been through so much with Dexter this season that she doesn't even bat an eye at that, instead turning to Batista, and by the way, didn't all the tears shed over the restaurant suggest that Batista was leaving MM? Along with HIM SAYING THAT HE WAS RETIRING? I mean, I don't really care - I barely notice him one way or the other - but there has to be a ghost of a point to all that or I'll be annoyed on GPs.
Anyway, the victim was an Asian paralegal; Whack-A-Phil concludes that it looks like a suicide, whereupon Masuka sighs, "Self-immolation. What is it with my people?" Don't get my hopes up, guy. Whack-A-Phil offhandedly informs Masuka that the term he's looking for is "self-incineration," as "immolation" can refer to any form of sacrifice. Well, that's true, but since one definition of "immolate" is "to destroy by fire," I have to defend Masuka's usage as acceptable, much as it pains me. I wonder, though, if Whack-A-Phil's implication that the death was a sacrifice is significant. Anyway, Dexter notes that the burn rate behind the driver is different from that of the rest of the car, prompting Whack-A-Phil to ask if Dexter's the blood guy; when Dexter affirms that, the guy snarks, "Exactly." Rude! Also, Whack-A-Phil, you can stay.
Without sparing a glance in Dexter's direction, Deb wanders off, so Dexter follows her and tells her he's glad she said what she did the other day. She's like, I don't really know how that could be, considering if I could take one thing back that I've said in my entire life, it would be that, and consider all the things that have come out of my fucking mouth when you evaluate the significance of that statement. Dexter, however, does a job making her feel better that's surprisingly both credible and serviceable (although not without a false start or two), saying that while he's not in love with her like she thinks she is with him, he does love her, and it's totally understandable that they should have deep attachments to each other, given that they've been literally the only constant in each other's lives. "It's like you and I - we endure. Maybe that's what love is. Endurance." You won't find this in the Hallmark section, but it's got the ring of truth. Anyway, through sheer force of will, Dexter succeeds in making Deb feel better, so there's actually some humor in her voice when she speculates that with as effed up as she, Dexter, and Harry were, "it's like Mom got cancer to take the easy way out." She adds that maybe it's better that she's said it so it won't control her anymore, and wonders if Dexter feels that way about his own secret, but Dexter has just gotten a text from Hannah asking him to meet her at his place after work, so he inattentively replies, "Not really." Heh. He types an acknowledgement to Hannah, causing Deb, who probably suspects what's going on, to roll her eyes and walk away. It really never would have worked out, Deb, even if he weren't your brother.
Dexter arrives home and calls to Hannah, saying he saw her van outside, but a boiling kettle on the stove whistles at that moment, which is Isaak Pullo's cue to appear and genially tell Dexter that he's just in time for tea. Dexter starts toward him, but Isaak Pullo drops the amicable act and draws his gun before menacingly informing Dexter he just wants to talk. Dexter asks where Hannah is, whereupon Isaak Pullo tells him that Lurch has been keeping tabs on him, and he knows Hannah must be very important to him, so he figures Hannah's life must be important enough to Dexter for him to help Isaak Pullo, even if his own life isn't. Dexter sighs and says he supposes he'll have some tea, then, but when Isaak Pullo turns to get it, Dexter, quick as a cat, pulls a knife out of the butcher block and holds it to Isaak Pullo's throat as he shoves him against the wall. He asks why he shouldn't just kill him and leave him for the Koshkas to find, but Isaak Pullo tells him that, in that case, Hannah will be at Lurch's mercy, "and I'm afraid he's not as honorable or as forgiving as I am." Actually, he seems like a pretty stand-up guy to me, but the larger point is taken; on the other hand, Dexter's the only one that knows Hannah is a killer too; it wouldn't be the least logical play for Dexter to trust that she'll find a way out of her situation. But Dexter isn't ready to take that chance, so he lets Isaak Pullo go; after taking a moment to seethe quietly, he tells Isaak Pullo that this kind of thing isn't what he does, but Isaak Pullo points out that he not only took care of Viktor but also a trained killer who had a gun to Dexter's mere knife, so he's pretty sure he's come to the right place. Dexter asks what happens if he does help, and Isaak Pullo tells him that not only will he get Hannah back, but Isaak Pullo will leave Miami, never to bother Dexter again. "I'm a man of my word." Dexter asks for proof that Hannah is alive, and we don't see if Isaak Pullo takes offense at the implication...
...but, after we cut to a long chain attached to Hannah's ankle in an apartment somewhere, the phone rings, and Lurch hands it to Hannah; in video mode, Isaak Pullo tells her the reason he's doing this is with him - and the shot cuts to Dexter, who tells her not to worry. She tries to say something more, but Isaak Pullo cuts off the conversation, whereupon Lurch, after noting that Hannah's life is in Dexter's hands, tells her the rules: "Scream, make noise, I hurt you. Try to escape, I hurt you badly. Clear?" Hannah nods, and again, I don't see this is so bad. Not only is he going to leave her alone as long as she obeys the rules, he even tells her to put on the TV! "And none of the American reality shit." Okay, I changed my mind - he's history's greatest monster.
At his place, Isaak Pullo is pulling up photos of the assassins. Dexter asks for anything Isaak Pullo can tell him, and Isaak Pullo tells him that Caffrey, the American, likes it up close and personal - knives, piano wire, that sort of thing - while Mickic keeps his distance with high-powered rifles and is also a slave to ritual, as he'll buy a rifle locally and test it out first. Dexter realizes that the practice range would need to be outdoors to accommodate the required distance, and Isaak Pullo pulls up the specs on Mickic's preferred weapon. Dexter is aware that there are only a few ranges that sell the weapon's particular ammunition, so he'll check them out the day. He turns to go, prompting Isaak Pullo to ask where he's running off to "all helter-skelter?" Dexter informs Isaak Pullo that he's hungry, whereupon Isaak Pullo points out that he's got a nerve-wracking errand to take care of with a loved one's life at risk, and all he can think about is food? Dexter's like, what of it, so Isaak Pullo asks him how many men he's killed. Dexter pauses before answering, "A lot," and given how many blood slides those cases hold, he's not kidding. Isaak Pullo says that he once asked Mickic the same question, and the extremely excited response was sixteen (contradicting Isaak Pullo's assertion earlier in the scene that he's employed Mickic "more times than I can count"). "But you - you don't seem to revel in what you do. Why?" Hilariously, Dexter informs Isaak Pullo, "I don't bond," but Isaak Pullo is undeterred, going on that most men kill for money, some for brutality, some for revenge - but he senses that Dexter could walk away without the need to kill him. Dexter, in that vaguely singsong voice he sometimes gets when he's letting his psycho flag fly, tells him that his needs are different, and if anything happens to Hannah, Isaak Pullo will find out why Dexter is a killer. He leaves, and Isaak Pullo looks almost scientifically curious.
Dexter shows up to Deb's and takes the burrito out of his mouth long enough to tell her he needs a favor - for her to call off the constant surveillance on Isaak Pullo. Deb, of course, is not going to do that without some sort of explanation, so Dexter lays it all out for her, even the Hannah part. Well, I guess his situation is both desperate and intricate enough that he can't come up with a workable cover story. Deb thinks this is a perfect opportunity for him to let Hannah go, as they have no future together, but Dexter doesn't care about that - he just doesn't want Isaak Pullo to kill her. Deb, unable to suppress the cop in her for long, asks who Dexter thinks has her, so Dexter tells her it's Lurch, and if he could find out where they are, he could extricate himself from Isaak Pullo's grasp. Deb goes off on a seeming tangent, telling Dexter that that morning when she woke up, for a second everything was as it used to be - steaks and beer and bad movies on the couch - but then she blinked, "and now it's burritos and hired killers and favors, and fucking Xanax to get me to tomorrow morning so I can have that half-second of peace!" Look, Deb, you've been through a lot and I don't begrudge you some grousing, but I'll thank you to leave burritos out of it. Despite how the words look on the page, her tone isn't overly emotional - maybe it's the Xanax - and she tells him she will pull the surveillance, but she'll never be okay with him and Hannah. He acknowledges that, and when she turns away, presumably to make the call, he sighs yet again at how unmanageable his life has become.
Here's LaGuerta on the dock again (not like THAT), turning up to see...the crusty Captain, whose job she stole. Ooh. Turns out he owns a boat, which is her excuse for showing up (I guess, as damning as her finding out about Dexter's boat seemed last week, she's still methodically covering everyone on the list) and finding him day-drinking (which tempts me, even though his name is Tom, to call him "Captain Jack"), and after he, affably enough, compares her to Godzilla, he, still jovially but pointedly, tells her to get on with her business. And speaking of, it's a nice bit of work that she still seems nervous and intimidated by him, but she plows through it and blurts out that she thinks the BHB is still alive and active. Captain Jack (fuck it) pish-poshes her, but she tells him that Doakes never owned a boat, while all the cops on the list she hands him does. Captain Jack, naturally enough, thinks that she's there accusing him, but he has an alibi, as he was laid up recovering from hernia surgery (OOOOOOWWWWWWW) during the BHB killings. She asks him, while she's there, if any of the names look familiar, but he merely laughs in her face and tells her to go home. "The only help you'll get from me is a lift back to Cuba." He might as well be drinking iced tea instead of Scotch, because that is brisk, baby! There's no comeback for that one, so I respect LaGuerta for not trying to find one.
Dexter's squeezing off some practice rounds as DVO explains how he came to conclude that Mickic would be at this particular range; turns out Mickic is right to him. Dexter is purposely shitty at shooting, which gives him a reason to turn to Mickic and give him a sheepish shrug; Mickic replies with a "this guy is hopeless" shake of his head. He then lies flat, much as he would when taking someone out, which conveniently puts him out of sight of prying eyes. He fiddles with the sights and takes a few shots, unaware that Dexter, after checking to make sure no eyes are upon him, has suddenly dropped out of sight. Mickic takes another shot just as a plane flies over, and then looks up with a bewildered expression on his face - because when he casts his eyes down, blood is coming out of his chest, as Dexter stabbed him clean through from behind. Dexter efficiently slides a gloved hand around his nose and mouth to finish him off by asphyxiation, and that's one assassin down who never even got a look at his killer. I'd say Isaak Pullo's point that he chose his ally well is taken...
...which he says in so many words once Dexter calls to report the news. However, Dexter cautions him not to get cocky, as once Caffrey finds out his partner's dead, he'll be that much harder to kill. He asks what Caffrey knows about Isaak Pullo, and when the reply is essentially "Um, everything," Dexter realizes that he'll know about his obsession with Dexter - which means he can use himself as bait. Clever little twist, no? Isaak Pullo is impressed with Dexter's balls, and I'm sensing if Dexter were even bi-curious Isaak Pullo might flip the script and offer to make him Viktor's replacement.
In a nondescript restaurant parking lot, Dexter pulls up and surreptitiously hops into Deb's car. She tells him that the cops located Lurch's car, but it was abandoned; Dexter replies that she shouldn't be getting involved. Deb, still struggling with the Hannah thing, wonders how Dexter knows that Isaak Pullo isn't going to kill her anyway, and Dexter admits that he doesn't. She then wonders what happens if he succeeds in getting Isaak Pullo out of the way, to which Dexter somewhat sharply reminds her that she said they have no future together. Deb, after ascertaining that the Mickic kill was outside MM jurisdiction, admits - surprisingly, but again, Xanax - that she had no right to say that, but as his sister, she feels protective, and regardless of what's happened between them, Hannah is still a killer. "You will never be safe with her." And I've been thinking all along that's a conflict that's going to have to be addressed; they've done a good job of setting it up, so I'm looking forward to seeing the payoff. Dexter points out that Deb is safe with him, the unstated continuation being "and I'm a killer too," but as Dexter himself has observed, he and Hannah are totally different kinds of killers. Deb doesn't split that hair, instead asking him to promise to consider what she's saying, and he reluctantly yet, I think, sincerely, says he will.
At the club, Jason Gedrick's hair is looking even worse than usual, which possibly foreshadows the day he's about to have. He's not thrilled to see Caffrey, as he's supposed to be out taking care of business, but Caffrey tells him that since he can't reach Mickic, the logical conclusion is that Isaak Pullo took him out. Jason Gedrick seethes that Isaak Pullo will be coming after him if Caffrey fails in his mission, which is a good little explanation for his actions later; he then gets a smile on his face and crows, "Morgan," so someone's going to need to extricate the fishhook from his mouth.
Dexter turns back up to Isaak Pullo's (presumably making sure he wasn't followed) and says he wants to talk to Hannah, brushing off Isaak Pullo's assurances that she hasn't been harmed. DVO lets us know that this is part of his plan to figure out where Hannah is as Isaak Pullo diffidently tells Dexter he's got trust issues, but accedes...
...so the phone rings, interrupting Lurch playing a driving game and Hannah contemplating what looks like a container of red pepper flakes. On Isaak Pullo's order, Lurch hands Hannah the phone, and Hannah steps away as far as her chain will let her to tell Dexter she's sorry they're using her to get to him. While they're talking, Dexter surreptitiously takes a photo of the image on the screen and sends it to himself; I'm surprised Isaak Pullo isn't keeping a closer eye on him, but I suppose he does have reason to think he's got Dexter's cooperation here. Hannah, trying to control her emotions, starts to tell Dexter she loves him but amends it to "I...miss you," and Isaak Pullo listens with interest as Dexter takes a moment before responding, "Likewise." Well, it's better than "Ditto," I guess.
Isaak Pullo grabs the phone away, and, surprisingly overcome, tells Dexter that if he had the chance to talk to Viktor again and he told him he missed him, he hopes he could come up with a better response than "Likewise." He points out that Hannah was trying to comfort him but he couldn't manage to do the same, prompting Dexter to wonder why he cares. Isaak Pullo tries to bluster that he doesn't have anyone because of Dexter, but Dexter puts the pieces together and wonders aloud whether all the questions Isaak Pullo has asked him have really been about him deciding whether he should live or die. Isaak Pullo points his gun at Dexter and yells that Viktor was his life, but Dexter has it all figured out now as he calmly replies, "But still, you sent him to Miami. You put him in over his head. You put all this in motion. And now you're terrified, Isaak - you're terrified that I'm not really responsible for his death. That you are." Isaak Pullo tries to deny that, but his face betrays him, and Dexter tells him that if he really believed that, he'd be dead by now. After a long moment, Isaak Pullo lowers his weapon, turns away, and tells Dexter to go, but Dexter turns back to watch his shaking shoulders for a moment before actually departing.
Jason Gedrick is leaving one of apparently many messages for Quinn, saying that he's having a really bad day and he'd very much appreciate it if he'd get back to him. He then grabs Nadia and tells her to get her stuff, and then I'm confused about what happens, because it sounds like he's telling her that they're going to go down the road to a hotel and bone, and that this has happened before, but on the other hand, she's not immediately projectile vomiting?
Dexter is letting us know that he was able to read Isaak Pullo's guilt because he went through the same thing after Rita's death, and he's worried that the same thing is now going to happen with Hannah; also, he's concerned that even if they do survive this, the human side of him will push her away. He then focuses his attention on the picture, and, zooming in on a soccer ball in the background, sees that it bears the signature of a Colombian soccer player. This leads Dexter quickly to deduce that Lurch is holed up in the apartment of one of the Colombians that Isaak Pullo killed, which is a level of clever worthy of Isaak Pullo. Before Dexter can do anything with the information, though, Batista enters and tells him they've got another burn victim...
...and in a parking structure, Fire Department and MM personnel are bustling about, but Dexter isn't too busy to notice that Caffrey is there watching him. For obvious reasons, Dexter thinks he'll keep, so after we hear Batista complaining about a mold problem in the restaurant, Quinn tells the team the name of the victim, who was a graduate student and was discovered in what looks like a freight elevator; it was definitely a confined space that, according to Whack-A-Phil, is coated in the same oily residue as the car. This time, Whack-A-Phil doesn't think suicide is indicated, although that could be because Dexter's once again there to blow a hole in that theory were it advanced. Seeing a spot by the entrance that looks different from the rest of the floor, Dexter asks if the team can close the doors, which they do, leaving only Dexter and Whack-A-Phil in there. Turns out Dexter wanted to see the inside of the doors because they confirm that there was a person-shaped void where no burning occurred, just like in the car. He concludes they are dealing with a "phantom," and observes that the name "Bobby" is scratched into the door. He wonders if the victim was attempting to reveal his killer, and then observes that Whack-A-Phil has a strange look on his face, and when he asks him what's up, Whack-A-Phil says he's never seen anything like it - the evidence can only be explained by the presence of a person wearing a protective suit. Dexter theorizes that the killer would have blocked the victim from escaping and watched his victim burn alive, but Whack-A-Phil tells him it's not as horrific as he might think - either shock or asphyxiation take over quickly, so the event is "relatively painless." Dexter repeats, "Relatively," with a look possibly fraught with suspicion over the somewhat reverential tone Whack-A-Phil was just employing, and snapping out of his reverie, Whack-A-Phil knocks for the doors to be reopened. He goes to get his camera, Batista and Quinn discuss obtaining security footage, and then Dexter, having concluded that there's no blood, says he's going to head back to the station - but first he pulls Deb, who's just wondering how there can only be one security camera for the entire lot, aside to update her on what he learned. Deb tells him she'll follow up, he thanks her, and then he heads to his car, calling Isaak Pullo on the way to let him know that Caffrey's on his tail, and Isaak Pullo gives him the location of one of the Brotherhood's ships as the spot to which he should lead Caffrey...
...and then Caffrey, driving on Dexter's tail, calls Jason Gedrick for an update. Jason Gedrick wonders if Isaak Pullo is luring Dexter to their boat, but when he hangs up, it looks like he's thinking the situation over carefully. Meanwhile, outside, Quinn shows up to see Nadia, who's obviously got something on her mind; after trying unsuccessfully to get him to go, she asks him to promise he won't be upset at what she needs to tell him, which makes me wonder if they've, like, met...
...because the thing you know, Quinn is storming into Jason Gedrick's office and asking if he screwed Nadia. Jason Gedrick is at his unapologetically gross best here, telling Quinn that he left him high and dry today, and at least Nadia takes her job seriously. That's all Quinn needs to hear to tackle Jason Gedrick through his window (hilariously falling right by a girl dancing on a pole) and beating him into semi-unconsciousness, spitting that he can consider that Nadia's notice. He puts his arm around Nadia and hustles her out of there, and I know they're in a hurry but if he had any cinematic flair he'd carry her out. I mean, he has to have seen An Officer And A Gentleman, right?
Hannah complains about being served Corn Flakes, "again," while a particular camera angle, used for the second time, makes us wonder if she's at least been working on her shackles. She offers to make her grandmother's recipe for fried green tomatoes, adding that she saw some growing in the garden out back. Lurch tells her he can't let her outside, so she suggests he go pick them. He looks suspicious, but he presumably still doesn't know how dangerous she is; also, he probably wouldn't admit it, but I'm guessing he's as sick of Corn Flakes as she is.
Deb calls Dexter and tells him that only one of the Colombians was single, so his place would be the obvious choice and she's going to check it out. Dexter doesn't want her to, but she tells him to shut up, and adds that she's not doing it for Hannah, but to protect him. Dexter sees Caffrey closing on him, so he gets off the phone, and after we note the knife tucked into his waistband, he starts moving again, but soon, he reaches the bow of the ship, which is a dead end, and it's some nice work from him as he realizes that his fate is likely entirely in Isaak Pullo's hands now. He steels himself and gets ready for a knife fight with Caffrey, who's surely planning to kill him too (especially since Jason Gedrick must have filled him in that Dexter is a killer too), but just then, Isaak Pullo's voice rings out from the deck above, "Sweetheart!" and he drops Caffrey with several silenced shots. Dexter looks up at him warily, but Isaak Pullo favors him with a smile: "See? Man of my word." Dexter looks a bit flummoxed...
...while LaGuerta, getting coffee down by the water, turns and runs straight into Captain Jack, who tells her that he said some shitty things to her because she cost him his job only nine months away from a forty-year pension. LaGuerta sniffs that she only got him before he could do the same to her, but he's not there to fight. "That little list of yours? You'd be surprised what I know about some of the names on it." He tells her he'll help her if she'll support his reinstatement - just long enough for him to get his pension bump. He adds that the question is just how bad she wants it, and given that it's literally everything she's been doing all season, it's no wonder that she points out a table that just opened up for them. And as I said in the recaplet, this pairing has real potential.
Hannah's just serving up the tomatoes as Lurch notes that Isaak Pullo hasn't checked in, and hopes nothing has happened to him. "It would be a shame to kill you after such a lovely meal." Heh. The joke's on him, though - the tomatoes aren't poisoned, as Hannah didn't have any aconite handy, but apparently she put enough red pepper flakes on them that Lurch starts gagging, choking out a request for water; Hannah feigns going to get it, but instead grabs the coffee pot and breaks it over Lurch's head. Assuming, I think, he's unconscious, she moves to try to finish him off, but he starts flailing at her; she boots him in the face and crawls away as far as the chain will permit, but he starts trying to reel her in as she attempts to reach a nearby lamp. She succeeds in grabbing it just in time and knocks him in the head, taking him out of the game - but when she gets to her feet, we see that that wasn't just impotent flailing in her general direction - he stabbed her, good. She falls to the ground; looking up, she then sees the key hanging on a large animal figurine just out of reach; she stretches for it, but it's no good, and she passes out from the effort. And those tomatoes are going to waste, too.
Dexter and Isaak Pullo dump Caffrey's body into the water, and then proceed to do the same with their weapons, which I suppose is more symbolic than anything. Dexter then offers to clean up any evidence of the killing, and Isaak Pullo says he'll wait for him below, so I guess he's planning to take the ship out of Miami? Seems unnecessarily risky to use a Brotherhood vehicle. But this quickly becomes irrelevant when Isaak Pullo, unarmed, runs straight into Jason Gedrick, looking much the worse for wear and quite ready to use the gun he's holding in his hand. He wastes no time in plugging Isaak Pullo once in the gut, but before he can finish him, he hears Dexter coming and bails. Dexter rushes to his side and offers to take him to a hospital, but Isaak Pullo croaks that the bullet's still inside him, which is a death sentence. Dexter, looking pretty upset for him, offers to get his kit out of his car to at least ease the pain, but Isaak Pullo tells him he needs Dexter to provide him a different kind of solace...
...while Deb creeps up to a window of the Colombian's place, and once she looks through, she rushes inside. Lurch is pretty clearly dead from the head wounds, but Deb stoops to check Hannah's pulse. She looks at a loss for a moment, and maybe decides to head out the door, but thinks better of it and calls for backup "and a fucking ambulance!" Dispatch confirms that...
...and then Dexter is once again driving the boat out to sea, but this time at night, and with the dying Isaak Pullo as his passenger to the spot where he dumped Viktor. After he tells Isaak Pullo they've arrived, Dexter apologizes for the bumpy ride, but even though Isaak Pullo has more reason to complain than Hannah did, he doesn't; instead, he asks Dexter to indulge a dying man and tell him what he's going to say to Hannah. When Dexter offers a lame reply, Isaak Pullo tells him she needs to know how he feels about her, and wonders how Dexter "can be fearless in the face of death and yet so afraid to live." Dexter finally explains himself, saying that he's always found death calming. "It's soothing, predictable. Inevitable." But with Hannah, he feels like he doesn't have any control, and he's not sure how to handle that. Isaak Pullo tells Dexter he was once like him - so detached - until Viktor. Dexter points out that his feelings for Viktor cost him everything, but Isaak Pullo replies that with him, he never had to hide - he was finally alive. He tells Dexter that there's hope for him yet, and Dexter closes his eyes to take that in - and when he opens them, Isaak Pullo is gone, his open eyes staring out at the water, the light gone from them. Touchingly, Dexter waves a hand over them to close them, and then sits to him as DVO reminds us that in Westerns, we learn that any man out for revenge should dig two graves - one for his enemy and one for himself. "I won't be needing mine. But I'll see to it that Isaak isn't alone in his." Fitting treatment for probably the most nuanced antagonist Dexter has ever faced. Bravo, Ray Stevenson, you did as much to inject new life into this show as anyone, and I wasn't expecting to see you go quite this early, but the lack of predictability on that front is a good thing.
In the hospital, we see that Hannah survived, and Deb is questioning her; she's giving her a pretty hard time for someone who probably needed multiple transfusions just to hang onto life, but given that Deb's the one that saved her, Hannah's probably going to have to endure it. Speaking of that, once Deb lets up, Hannah asks how the rescue came to pass, making it clear that she suspects Deb acted on Dexter's information, and then explicitly asks, given Deb's feelings about her, why she didn't just let her die. Deb doesn't let on that she considered doing just that; instead, she acidly says she was doing her job, and she didn't do it for Dexter. "I think it's about fucking time I start doing things for myself. Maybe you can be fine with being responsible for someone's death, but I can't. That's not who I am." Just then, Dexter arrives and hilariously takes in the sight of the two of them before assuring Deb, in response to her pointed question, that everything is taken care of. She leaves them, but not without telling Dexter that she's going to be fine. Dexter then sits with Hannah, who tells him she'll be out of the hospital the day, but he takes a ragged breath, and she realizes he's shaking. He confesses that he wasn't truthful in response to her question about being as scared as she was; it happened to him twice. "When I was three, seeing my mother murdered, and when I realized these past few days that I might never see you again." Hannah's gratified, and Dexter laughs a human, confused laugh as he says he has no idea what they have, exactly, or what's going to happen, but maybe that's how it's supposed to be. He lies down with her and holds her close, and tells her this: "All I know is that when I'm with you, I feel...safe." But with Isaak Pullo gone, you have to think that whether or not that's true is the question much of the rest of the season will be devoted to settling.