Oh, the Weather Outside Is Frightful

S07E11

Okay, we're back on track this episode after last week's misstep. Christmas is coming, and in light of his newfound love with Hannah, Dexter's thinking about the rest of his life. Before then, however, Dexter learns that Hector Estrada, the ringleader and only survivor of the gang that killed his mother, has a parole hearing he's expected to pass based on the fact that he's apparently dying. When he does, Dexter wants to kill him, which he sees as the closing of a chapter too long open; his resolve is only strengthened by his deduction that Estrada was faking his health problems. However, before he can commit to that, Dexter goes to see Captain Jack, who tells him LaGuerta's convinced that the BHB is still at large, and she thinks it might be Dexter. Realizing that Captain Jack is interrogating him, Dexter feeds him a line about Doakes having had a boat, too – even claiming that that's why he moved marinas suddenly -- which Captain Jack seems to buy, but Dexter knows he has to move quickly to give them something to corroborate his story. He tells Deb what's up, and Deb of course throws herself on yet another grenade by planting some choice evidence in LaGuerta's garage, which leads LaGuerta and Captain Jack to a warehouse Dexter had fixed up nice and good with all kinds of Doakes-is-guilty evidence. LaGuerta still thinks Dexter might have planted it, but Captain Jack won't take it any further. This leaves Dexter free to go after Estrada, but, only after he's got him on his table and has revealed his identity, Estrada lets him know that he only made parole due to a big push from – this is awesome – LaGuerta. With LaGuerta only minutes behind him thanks to the tail she put on Estrada, Dexter desperately drags Estrada out of there, but Estrada manages to escape into the river. So while Dexter gets away as well, now he's got a killer who knows his identity after him in addition to an unshakable cop.

Batista tracks down Arlene Schram, who's a trashy former drug addict, and Deb offers her immunity from any involvement she might have had if she'll come forward about Hannah, also threatening her if she doesn't, to which Schram asks for some time to consider. Even in the face of Deb's threats, Schram goes to Hannah and lets her know what's up, and we learn that the counselor who abused Hannah did the same to Arlene, so she's had good reason to protect Hannah's secret. Hannah promises she'll figure out what to do about Deb; she tries talking to Deb first, trying to make her see that Dexter is happy for the first time in a long time because of her, but Deb is like, "It's because I love him that I'm going to take your ass down." Following this, Deb gets in a car accident, and even though a blood test reveals higher-than-safe levels of antidepressants, Deb tells Dexter that she barely had taken any. He doesn't let on to Deb, but the seeds of doubt have been planted, and soon, he's asking Hannah if she's responsible. She convincingly denies it, acting terribly hurt in the process, but when Dexter gets the lab results from the water Deb was drinking in the car, it turns out it was loaded with an anti-anxiety drug. So either Deb set herself up, which seems like it would have been far too risky (and also possibly unnecessary, since she had every reason to believe that she'd be able to break Schram), or Hannah really did poison her. Obviously concluding the latter, in response, Dexter turns over Sal Price's pen – the one Hannah dipped in aconite and still has her prints on it – to Deb. Dexter then goes to see Hannah, and kisses her under the mistletoe before saying he's sorry – just as Deb and the rest of MM comes to take her away. Her last words to him are a whispered "You should have killed me." Merry Christmas!

We open with, in three-quarter speed, Dexter raising a knife over a plastic-wrapped victim in the familiar way... only he's aged up to look around sixty at least, which only makes me want to jump off and watch the Six Feet Under series-ending montage for the jillionth time. I will soldier on though, as DVO tells us he's never thought about the future or growing old, logically enough given that "the future has never been kind to people like me." He stabs his victim and maybe it's the slowed speed, but he seriously looks like he's about to take a nap on his feet, which given his advanced age is kind of hilarious. We then see him loping up to Hannah in her greenhouse (woman has kept herself up, I feel I must point out) and when she sees him, she smiles warmly and comes over for a hug. Someone then emerges from the house holding a basketball and wearing workout gear, and although the character is listed as "17-year-old Harrison," the actor, Lucas Adams, is older, so I don't think I'm breaking any laws by reporting that he's grown up nicely. He and Dexter exchange goodbyes (no words for Harrison to Hannah), and then, as Dexter kisses Hannah and DVO talks about how a real future seems possible now, the camera swirls around them, transporting them and us back into the present, their lips still locked. DVO adds that growing old is looking not only possible, but appealing; any further thoughts on the subject are interrupted by Dexter getting a call from the Department of Corrections reporting that Hector Estrada -- the ringleader of the gang that killed his mother, as Captain Jack told us last episode -- is up for parole and the hearing is that very morning. After she apologizes for the short notice, Dexter gets off the phone and tells Hannah what's up, and a little exposition follows in which Dexter tells her that the other members of the gang are dead (by his hand, it's heavily implied), and Hannah, rather cheerfully and even a bit proudly, speculates that Estrada will be joining them soon. "Look at it this way: Maybe it's the universe giving you a Christmas present." Dexter smiles and notes that only she would see it that way and I'd rip on that were it not for the fact that it sounds about right.

Estrada -- who's doing a bit of an old-man walk as he's led to his spot for the hearing -- is wearing the typical prison-orange jumpsuit as Dexter, sitting in the back, looks at him askance. DVO wonders if killing Estrada could close a chapter in his life and open him up to a future with Hannah, and then the lead panelist announces that they find Estrada meets the requirement for release under the "Compassionate Release Statute," and common sense suggests that means he's dying. The panelist asks Estrada if he understands the terms of his release, and in a somewhat quavery voice, he says he does and that he won't screw up. The panelist then invites any victims present to enter a statement either for or against the board's decision and of course Dexter does not speak up, because while he wouldn't want Estrada to know his identity, he also is interested in, let's say, seeing to it that Estrada won't suffer long from his "terminal illness." No one else speaks, which could be for a lot of reasons, but is also a reminder that people besides Dexter are actually required to be in the office once in a while.

By Couch Baron

Quinn tries to get in touch with Nadia to no avail; Masuka is Masuka. Batista then tells Deb that he found Arlene Schram and she's had two drug arrests since she got out of juvie, which caused her temporarily to lose custody of the two kids she had with different fathers. Deb thinks that's good, as it gives her ammunition with which to threaten Schram, and then Batista asks if she heard anything further from Hannah's father. Deb says no, he just skipped town like it was nothing, and while Batista thinks that fits -- as Clint is a drifter -- you'd think the proximity to a mysterious disappearance given what she knows about Dexter and Hannah would be enough for Deb to raise an eyebrow. Not that she'd let on to Batista obviously and besides, he's got something else on his mind as he pulls her aside and tells her he's not feeling super-awesome about keeping what they're doing from Dexter, given that it could result in his girlfriend going to jail. Deb's like, "Get okay with it and besides, aren't you retiring?" Oh, sorry, I got ahead of myself with that last bit.

Dexter is continuing to collect a paycheck for not working, as now he's stopping by Captain Jack's boat. After DVO notes that Captain Jack is spending Christmas alone, Captain Jack catches sight of him and tells him he's wondering why he bothers putting up his Christmas lights. I mean, since you bring it up, Captain Jack. Dexter, probably wisely not engaging that one, mentions that Captain Jack wanted to see him, so Captain Jack tells him that LaGuerta (he does refer to her as "Captain LaGuerta," interestingly) has an idea that the BHB is still on the loose -- and she thinks it might be Dexter. Dexter does a pretty good job of acting shocked, but while Captain Jack agrees that it sounds crazy, he goes on that she knows about Dexter's history. "Most people, that'd screw 'em up for life." He goes on about his brother the Ice Truck Killer and how he dismembered his victims and continues to lay out evidence, including the bit about the cabin's renters, to the point where Dexter realizes that Captain Jack is interrogating him. Dexter, buying time, says Captain Jack has known him a long time. "Do you think I'm the Bay Harbor Butcher?" Captain Jack holds his gaze a little too long before he replies that of course he doesn't, but he has to ask these questions -- especially because if he doesn't, LaGuerta will. Now having had enough time to get his bullshit story straight, Dexter tells Captain Jack that Doakes sure didn't like him, as everyone knows, but after the BHB case came to light, something happened about which he never told anyone. "I saw Doakes on his boat." Captain Jack is intrigued, and Dexter goes on in his faux-scared voice that Doakes kept his boat at the same marina he did and he moved to get away from him. Captain Jack asks why Dexter never mentioned it before, so Dexter whines that he didn't know what Doakes would do to him -- or to Deb. Captain Jack, after taking a moment to consider, sympathizes that Doakes was a "formidable" guy and guesses Dexter must have been very scared. Dexter agrees, probably not having to dig too deep for that emotion, given how much work he's got ahead of him to make this story stick. Captain Jack gets to his feet and tells Dexter he'll talk to LaGuerta and get her to move on, but Dexter obviously knows that they're going to check into his story and DVO tells us that he's "got to make sure that there's something for them to find."

Deb is sitting with Arlene Schram, whose smoking habit (although she deadpans about having traded one vice for another) and cheap strawberry blonde rinse gives us a shorthanded visual confirmation that we're supposed to view her as trash. Deb tells her she's there to try to keep Schram out of jail as an accessory to murder, as she slides a photo over of the counselor, and it's weird that they show the photo and even weirder that at this distance he looks an awful lot like Josh Malina. Schram reflexively denies any knowledge of the guy's murder, but Deb goes on that she's after Hannah, not her, and if she gives her full cooperation, Deb will get her immunity for her involvement, which will allow her to keep custody of her kids, who I should have mentioned are conveniently frolicking in a little blow-up wading pool close by. This obviously hits Schram where she lives and she asks for some time to consider Deb's proposal; Deb's like, sure, and while you're thinking about it, play with your kids, because a "no" will mean you'll never see them again and I know it's winter but that is COLD, Deb.

Speaking of wintry events, Jamie is standing in line with the kids to sit on Santa's lap as Deb and Dexter look on; when Deb notices how far away her brother is, she asks what's up, so Dexter reluctantly tells her that LaGuerta has pulled Captain Jack into her investigation and they're pursuing him hard as a suspect. Deb, shocked, asks what he's going to do and he tells her he's got to plant evidence that will firm up any doubts about Doakes' guilt, but Deb -- who is watching Harrison take his turn with Santa -- is like, I'm not going to let your boy grow up without a father, so I'll take care of this little felony tampering. Far cry from when she told Dexter his kids needed to be protected from him, no? Dexter offers the usual lame protests whenever Deb offers the help he so desperately needs, Deb just as typically brushes them aside and then the two of them squat down for a photo with Harrison and Santa and I wonder just how many presents the latter would be bringing them if he knew the slightest bit about what these two have been up to this season.

Captain Jack and LaGuerta are arguing; she thinks he's letting personal affection for the Morgans cloud his judgment, while he thinks she's doing the exact same thing vis-à-vis Doakes. "I've heard of people fucking their brains out, Maria, but God Almighty!" I agree with LaGuerta's ensuing statement that that is low even for him, but still: HAHAHA! I have really enjoyed Captain Jack's quick, concentrated return this season. She thinks she would have known if Doakes had owned a boat; Captain Jack points out it might be just the kid of thing a serial killer would cover up. But as enjoyable as these two bickering is, they are going to check on Dexter's story, right?

By Couch Baron

Down by the beach, Hannah is sitting in the passenger seat of Schram's car and Schram swears she never told anyone that she saw Hannah poison the counselor, so Hannah sighs that it was probably her dad who blabbed to Deb, since she wouldn't give him money. I mean, she told him? Their relationship was weird, but that point still clanks a bit. I suppose he would have been contacted when it happened and maybe he insisted on her telling him the truth, but... I don't know. Anyway, the chain-smoking Schram says she can't go to jail, but Hannah reminds her that they always stuck together, "even when that fucking counselor was putting his hands all over us." So at least Hannah has had reason to think Schram would be loyal; that's a point that bothered me last episode, so I'm glad it was addressed. Schram nods (well, twitches is more like it), but says that Deb isn't going to give up, so Hannah assures her that she's going to figure something out about that and I appreciate the restraint in not cueing the ominous music until the start of the scene.

Oh, Quinn comes into the strip club and talks to a dancing Russian stripper who was apparently a friend of Nadia and who tells him she left for Vegas, as she needed a fresh start. The dancer adds that Nadia was really broken up and that she'll never forget what Quinn did for her. Quinn winces at how stupid he is, catching up with the rest of us.

LaGuerta and Captain Jack are keeping up their little version of Who's Afraid Of Virginia Woolf?" when LaGuerta finds, in a Doakes evidence box in her garage, a tackle box that contains deep-sea fishing lures -- and a key. We'll find out there's an address on a label on the tackle box...

...so we cut to them arriving at the very dilapidated seaside warehouse Dexter had up on his computer earlier. Captain Jack speculates that Doakes probably got rid of his boat when he figured the law was on him, which sounds easier said than done if you ask me. LaGuerta agrees with me, at least to the extent that she points out Captain Jack is jumping to conclusions, but soon Captain Jack is telling her to call the forensics team in, as, in a cubby, he's just located a bunch of BHB-looking paraphernalia, including some black trash bags. I'm shocked that no one paid for the product placement on that one. No wimpy trash bag is going to hold the dismembered pieces of a corpse!

Later, someone from the team is holding up a set of knives -- apparently also recovered from the place -- and says that while the blood on them is too degraded to analyze, the print on it belongs to Doakes. Captain Jack is like, "That's a wrap!" but LaGuerta pulls him aside and points out that Dexter is a forensics expert, and as such could have set this up. Captain Jack rebukes her with his customary (and hilarious) lack of tact, but when LaGuerta emotionally asks what's wrong with him, he softens a bit in asking why she can't let this go. She confesses that she feels she owes it to Doakes to clear his name, but their biases are leading them to opposing conclusions here and he tells her that while she's great at the political game, she's not so much an investigator and she should drop it and, by the way, live up to her end of the bargain they made. It is kind of awesome how they've made LaGuerta this Cassandra, how her motivation to clear Doakes makes her tenacity entirely believable yet is also a reason people are quick to dismiss her theory. LaGuerta tells Captain Jack he'll get what's coming to him, which is a choice of words I wouldn't be too thrilled to hear coming from her. After he wishes her Feliz Navidad, he bails.

By Couch Baron

Deb steps out onto her porch for some reason and runs right into Hannah, who tells her she's not there to fight, but to talk about Dexter. Deb is pretty dismissively hostile - shocker! -- but agrees to hear Hannah out, so she says that Dexter is happy and she figures that's a pretty big deal with all the pain he's been through. Deb admits that she can't argue with that, so Hannah plows on that Dexter's been talking about a future with her and she knows it would be very meaningful to him if she and Deb could find some common ground. Deb notes, somewhat sardonically, that this is for Dexter's sake and when Hannah agrees without acknowledging the tone, Deb takes a swig of water from the bottle she's holding and a long moment to consider before saying that Dexter does seem happy, and Hannah replies that she loves him and wonders if they can work out their issues. Deb says sure, she thinks she can, and then steps forward: "It's because I love Dexter that I'm willing to do whatever it takes to protect him from you. I'm not going to give up until your murdering ass is behind bars for good. That's how we're gonna work out our issues." I mean, it's no Roya Hammad almost literally exploding in Carrie Mathison's face, but it's still a pretty good burn. Deb is like, lates, and Hannah, defeated, takes off.

...and then has apparently wasted no time in tracking down Estrada, and, posing as a "Steve," he accosts him on the waterfront and makes up a story about some Honduran sativa he has to move, and how he's totally legit because he's worked with some guys Estrada hasn't heard from in ages, probably because Dexter killed them. Estrada does ask Dexter to affirm he's not a cop, which he does, but didn't DJ Qualls show Badger this routine is bullshit back on Season 2 of Breaking Bad? Anyway, once Dexter affirms that he's not a cop, Estrada is like, sure, white boy, I'm down, so Dexter gives him an address and a time of ten that evening, "unless you got something else to do on Christmas Eve." I was going to let this slide, but since he brings it up, wasn't last episode around Thanksgiving? What have these yahoos been doing for the last month? Did LaGuerta put her investigation on hold due to an online-shopping backlog? Anyway, Batista then calls Dexter with not timeline complaints, but news that Deb is in the hospital...

...and then Dexter rushes into the hospital and sees Deb lying unconscious, but Batista assures him she's fine, other than a broken wrist and some bruising. He then asks if Deb has a prescription for anti-anxiety medication and when Dexter admits that she does, Batista tells him that there was almost three times the normal dose in her system. I was hoping Deb would set Hannah up at some point, but even at this point it seemed far too risky for Deb to drug herself and get behind the wheel of a car. Batista, of course, thinks Deb might just have lost track of how much she took and given how many times we've seen her popping the pills like candy, it's not a crazy theory, but then Dexter hears that Deb was all the way out in some hick burb because she was on her way to chat with Schram. Dexter, fairly mildly, rebukes Batista for not having told him earlier that Deb was after his girlfriend in such a specific way, but only ends up feeling worse when Batista speculates that Deb was on the medication in the first place because she was worried that her brother was dating a killer...

...and his feeling, not unjustified, that he's a dirtbag continues as Deb tells him she doesn't know what happened, but she kept getting sleepier until she woke up in the hospital. He then brings up the Schram business, but gets more than he bargained for when Deb guesses that Hannah told him, as he didn't realize Hannah knew anything about it. Deb tells him that Hannah came to ask her to back off and then they both have a Moment of Realization, after which Dexter tries to tell her that Hannah wouldn't have poisoned her, while Deb wonders what other logical explanation there is. Dexter tells her the doctors speculated that the drugs built up in her system, but Deb informs him that she only took one pill, the night before, and the drug happens to have a very short half-life, so maybe... no? Dexter wonders how Hannah would even have known that Deb was on the medication, but Deb counters that poisoners tend to be fairly sneaky and not in the Connect Four way. Dexter plays defense attorney, shooting down all of Deb's suggestions of how Hannah might have done it, which seems a little unfair since she's ALL DOPED UP AND WAS JUST IN A CAR ACCIDENT HELLO. But it's obvious that Dexter doth protest too much, even as he tries to tell her that maybe she took more pills than she thought, since she's been under a lot of stress. Deb: "No shit, Sherlock." Well, didn't take her long to get her best guilt game back and even though Dexter's face gives nothing away, DVO reveals all: "Hannah wouldn't do that to Debra. Would she?"

Dexter turns up to Deb's place for a little impromptu forensic examination and quickly discovers a blonde hair; he's not sure if he brought it in himself, but he's not getting any less suspicious...

...and then he's at an auto-body shop checking out Deb's totaled car, which is such a mess that Dexter has to go in through the passenger door. He checks around and comes up with a bottle of mostly-drunk water, which DVO declares he's going to have tested. "Hannah didn't poison Debra. All I want for Christmas is for that to be true." Would you settle for a reindeer sweater?

Okay, this is a nice scene, but it doesn't bear too much description: Batista comes in to her office and invites LaGuerta to a little noche buena at the restaurant, but LaGuerta, with a brittle smile, begs off, claiming holiday aversion. Noticing he's not going away, LaGuerta wonders what's really up, so Batista steps further into the office and tells her how he likes the simple life of the restaurant and while I don't know why he's talking about this yet again -- no one seems to have begrudged him this decision -- LaGuerta is a person with whom it actually makes sense for him to have this conversation. LaGuerta gives him an approving smile at what sounds like his final retirement announcement and admits after being prompted that she does sometimes think about what's for her. She doesn't let on that today of all days might be a candidate for such thinking, but as we'll see, she'd be lying if she did. She also tells him she wishes she'd made some different choices, but when Batista asks if she wishes it had worked out between them, she's like, "Uh, no," which is hilarious on many levels. He tells her he's going to put his papers in on the first and she smiles with some emotion: "Happy New Year." I still say he's dead by the season finale.

Dexter arrives home, whereupon Hannah hugs him and says she was worried about him. Jamie then brings Harrison out and as Dexter picks him up and holds him tight, Jamie tells him it's no problem for her to stay with Harrison, as ever since she's gone vegetarian it's been tough to hang out at her brother's carne-loving restaurant. Inquiries are made about Deb, Dexter assures everyone she'll be fine while giving his possible life partner some pointed side-eyes...

...and then it's time for a Christmas dinner montage. Dexter sits morosely (you know, even for him) as DVO muses that Hannah is so beautiful, "but can you ever fully trust a poisoner?" Since she's putting food in front of Harrison, the answer is I hope so? Also, not sure why Dexter bothered to put on a tie if Hannah's just going to wear a tank top she'd garden in, but I didn't set the dress code here. Later, Dexter's entertaining Harrison by playing with his train set when Hannah hands him his present, which is a framed photo of the two of them together looking very happy. Dexter's expression, however, doesn't match the one in the picture...

...and when they get back to Hannah's place, the dark cloud is still over him even as Hannah tells him that with the men in her past, there was a lot of running away on her part, but when she's with him, she doesn't want to go anywhere. She asks him to stay with her, but he begs off and when she guesses that he's going after Estrada (after first asking "Debra?" which is not her best play here), she gives her approval, saying she knows he's wanted this for a long time. She touches his forehead to his and Dexter, with his usual stellar timing involving tender moments, tells Hannah that Deb was on her way to see Schram when she had her accident, hoping to get a statement from her that would let her arrest Hannah. Hannah, realizing where this is going, looks like the Christmas cheer is draining right out of her as Dexter goes on that Deb blacked out behind the wheel, and doesn't that sound a bit familiar, given what she told him about how she expected Price to do the same? From here, Hannah quickly hits all the preliminary marks in trying to convince Dexter she's innocent; the long pauses, the labored attempts to speak, the "I can't believe you'd go there," and then, once she gets going, tells Dexter that yes, she was worried about what Schram could say, but she saw her shoot up many times back in their halfway-house days and having met with her now, she can see she's a mess that "any second-year law student could discredit. She's not a threat to me!" Of course, you may notice that this explanation is less "I wouldn't do that" and more "I wouldn't do that in this particular situation," which while certainly more believable, is also less likely to inspire future trust. Anyway, Dexter takes a long moment and counters that Deb is still a threat to Hannah, and Hannah, starting to get heated, asks if he thinks she'd be so stupid to poison the Lieutenant of Homicide and to think Dexter wouldn't figure it out?

For the first time in this conversation, Dexter looks like he wants to believe her and she presses her advantage, saying in hurt tones she's not sure she believes he loves her anymore. Dexter, not quite ready to be manipulated out of this conversation, breathes that she was at Deb's house the night before, but Hannah tells him she only thought that if Deb knew how much Hannah cares about Dexter, she'd back down a little. Dexter, probably figuring this out for himself as he's talking, blurts that if anything ever happens to Deb now, he's going to wonder if Hannah was responsible, but Hannah yells that this this inability to trust is Dexter's problem and it's like he's got something inside him that's undeserving of love, and whatever happens PLEASE do not call whatever that might be "The Distrusting Passenger" or some shit. Okay good, Dexter tells her not to turn this around on him, because he knows what she's capable of and obviously he wants this relationship to work. Also look who's talking, but still... effing SERIOUSLY. Hannah plays her last card (and by the way, the acting here is great, both from Hannah and Strahovski) by saying that she's never made a mistake, meaning that if she had poisoned Deb, Deb would be dead and this is finally the point with which Dexter finds it hard to argue as he concedes that maybe it was an accident. Hannah, once again sensing the opening, tells Dexter that of course he would want to make sense of the situation, but in doing so, he may cost himself their relationship. Dexter gets emotional now, saying he doesn't want to lose Hannah, but Hannah tells him while she's one hundred percent sure about him being the one for her, he needs to feel the same for things to work. He concedes the point, so she goes on that he needs to figure out what he wants "and what type of future you want to have." Dexter is too worked up to reply, "Um, one where my sister maybe isn't in danger of dropping dead every time she looks at you sideways?" Hannah dramatically trudges to the door and opens it for Dexter and he takes the cue, subtle as it may be, and walks out...

By Couch Baron

...and now LaGuerta is on the scene, getting a report from the tail she had on Dexter. If he's MM, I wonder how she handled that one politically. The guy reports that they had lost Dexter -- oh, that's what all the looks behind him were when he was driving. Can you believe how the show keeps restoring faith? Anyway, the guy goes on that when they heard the gunshot (I neglected to mention that Estrada's gun went off before Dexter subdued him) they called LaGuerta, so, well-armed, they head toward the spot. Creeping up in the usual police-cautious way, they start to become aware of a buzzing noise inside one of the containers, but when they open it up, it's not a swarm of locusts, thank God. Instead, it's the operating chainsaw, which along with the plastic wrap are the only things Dexter's left. He wasn't wearing gloves when he entered the place, because he couldn't have explained them, but I suppose I'll give him the benefit of the doubt that he cleared the place of his DNA before Estrada came to. LaGuerta urgently tells her second to keep looking for Estrada, warning him that he's not alone. When he's gone, she looks around at the evidence of how close she just was...

...while Dexter, nearby, is faced with the unenviable multitask of trying to keep Estrada under control and getting away from the police; not surprisingly, it proves too much for him, as Estrada elbows him in the face and escapes into the river. The bright side is that Dexter's now able to move a lot more quickly, so being careful to evade the searchers, he disappears into the night as DVO muses that it wasn't the universe giving him a gift -- it was LaGuerta. And I know it led to a bad evening for you, Dexter, but how about some props for how completely she played you?

The morning -- on top of what was probably a sleepless night now that he knows LaGuerta is on his heels as well as an Estrada problem -- Dexter gets the news that Deb's water was 40 percent anti-anxiety drug. It occurs to me too, that Hannah couldn't have known that Deb wouldn't die. Especially if she happened to drink a large dose of the water rather than sipping it, she easily could have bought it. Dexter looks at the photo of him and his love as DVO lends some credence to Hannah's earlier theory by saying, "It's not the future I imagined with Hannah. But maybe it's what I deserve." I mean, yes. But still: Aw?

Dexter and Deb arrive at the latter's place from the hospital and Deb wearily notes that Dexter barely spoke the whole ride home. He gives her a long look before telling her he has something for her -- and he hands over the poisoned pen Price left at his place. It's a great development, but didn't Hannah say the poison she used was undetectable this time... in other words, not aconite? Because Dexter goes on that there are traces of aconite on the end, as well as Hannah's prints. It's a fairly minor point that I wish I didn't find distracting. As Deb takes in the fact of how Hannah killed Price, Dexter puts his face in his hands in as defeated a gesture I've ever seen from him before admitting that he found it the morning (nice police work, MM) and kept it out of evidence. Deb can't believe, after all this time and the emotional cost, that Dexter is turning Hannah in, but Dexter intones that as long as she's free, Deb isn't safe. He looks at her, finally, and with nothing but concern in her voice, Deb tells him she knows how hard it must be for him. He can't bring himself to respond...

By Couch Baron

...and then he's driving and as amusingly furtive the glances in the rearview mirror he keeps stealing are, they could have just jumped us to his walking with Estrada. I wouldn't have suddenly concluded that Dexter got to the meeting via, as Wesley from 30 Rock would call it, "foot-cycle." Dexter leads Estrada into a large shipping container... which has the all-too-familiar plastic wrap adorning it. Knowing something's up, though he scarce knows what, Estrada draws a gun, but Dexter gets him in a sleeper hold and successfully knocks him out...

...and then later, Estrada comes to on the table. I have to ding the show for him being clothed -- there's no reason that I can see for Dexter to vary his M.O. in this particular situation. I don't think it's ever happened before, but since the show knows what's coming, it would be inconvenient plot-wise to have him naked. As much as I may appreciate it in this case, it's poor form. On the wall is a picture of Harrison -- I mean, "Dexter as a kid," and it's always hilarious how shows see fit to suggest that TV parents used to look EXACTLY like their children. I mean, on the flipside, the kid playing 17-year-old Harrison couldn't look less like Dexter if he were Inuit. Dexter tells Estrada what he did to the other members of his gang and when he goes on that he butchered them like they did to his mother, Estrada is like, "Holy fuck, you're Dickie Moser!" I'm no psychiatrist but I have to think that the lasting damage done to Dexter's childhood psyche can't have been helped by that nickname. Dexter confirms that he's "Dexter Moser," and then brings forth the tool he's going to be using this evening -- a chainsaw, just like the one used on his mother. Well, I suppose I have to admit that he is planning to vary his routine here, but I think the clothes will only make this particular operation harder, so no points back, show. In any case, it's irrelevant, because Estrada speculates that Dexter is working with her -- you know, the Captain of Miami Metro, who made a big push for Estrada's release? The blood drains from Dexter's face as he breathes, "LaGuerta," and all credit, I did not see this coming despite it being the most logical explanation for Estrada's release and seriously, not only has Dexter been outsmarted yet again -- which is always enjoyable -- but LaGuerta was willing to use Estrada as collateral damage to get him, which is the kind of moral slipperiness you'd expect from the character but have never gotten to see in this context. Remember when LaGuerta told Deb that as cops, they have to follow the law? She didn't do anything illegal -- just got creative. On the other hand, this could come back to bite her, as Estrada seems like the type to hold a grudge. Dexter rips down the photo of "himself" as he tells Estrada he's the one who was set up...

By Couch Baron

...but then we're back with Dexter at Hannah's, bookending the episode, even down to the three-quarter speed with which the scene starts. He finds Hannah in the greenhouse, and she's surprised and hopeful that he's there; she asks if this means he knows what he wants and he flatly replies, "Yes." That one's going to leave a mark in about a minute. She steps forward and he says her name, presumably about to reveal what he's done, but she notes that they're standing under mistletoe, so they have to kiss to avoid bad luck. Their lips touch and the camera very cleverly swings around like it did in the flashback, implying that the future Dexter saw is no longer going to happen, and indeed, when Hannah breaks the kiss, it's because she knows something's wrong. Looking in his eyes, he asks what's the matter, but the only words he can utter are "I'm sorry" before the police arrive on the scene. This is like the third time in the last ten minutes the show has given me chills; it shows how well it built the stakes this season. Deb gets to say the words she's dreamed of -- "Hannah McKay, you're under arrest for the murder of Sal Price" -- although for Dexter's sake, she keeps a clinical tone throughout. As Batista cuffs her wrists behind her back, Hannah, looking impossibly hurt and betrayed, tells him in a voice that's kind of heartbreakingly small: "You should have killed me." Did I mention that it's Christmas Day? Deb's eyes follow Hannah as she's led away and then she looks at Dexter before heading after them. DVO tells us he should know better than to count on the future. All you can ever believe in is now. This moment. Because in a blink, everything can change." And seriously, on the topic of further complications to Dexter's life, will Hannah protect his secrets?