Chapter 3

"My Sister's Keeper"

It flashes back to the present day, back in 2013. Dexter and Debra are again back at the convenience store near the family cabin. The ladies room door there is still busted in. With supplies from the store Dexter fixes the ladies room door and lock. They then walk back to cabin, not saying much.

They get inside the cabin. Dexter walks over to the far end of the room, where the kitchen area is. He looks back at the two seater table in the middle of the room. He shakes his head. Debra walks over to the living room area. She looks at the couch and TV. She spreads her open hands apart in presentation of the room. She says, "How could I not remember all this? It was my ninth birthday. We were all here, you, me and Dad. Right here in this cabin."

Dexter walks up the kitchen table from the far side. He presses his pointed finger to it. He laughs, "We played the board game 'Life.' You were so happy to get a car full of kids."

Debra points her hand at Dexter and says, "You told me you started killing at twenty. But that wasn't true. You started killing at twelve. You killed that pedophile/smoker that raped me. It was all happened in that gas station bathroom."

Dexter responses, "I thought I did start at twenty. I didn't remember it either."

Debra walks over to the table where Dexter is. She stands on the opposite side it. She asks, "You've killed other non-killer before? Before you went to kill LaGuerta?"

Dexter says, "The man who raped you. It wasn't the only pedophile I've killed. I killed this other man, Nathan Marten. He was eyeing Astor when she was ten."

Debra quotes Dexter, "'that was eyeing Astor' He didn't touch her?" Debra asks.

Dexter says, "Astor was almost the same age you were, when you got raped. I think that's why I killed Nathan."

Debra asks, "So that excuses you killing someone?"

Dexter shrugs, "He was a registered sex offender. It was a preventative measure."

Debra gawks, "What other non-killers have you killed?"

He stammers, "Ahhh..." Dexter hesitates and looks around the room.

Debra says, "Were there other similar incidents, like the one you just described?"

He shakes his head and looks worried.

She says, "Out with it already. I'm tired of your lies."

Dexter says, "I killed this other guy. It also happened in a bathroom... like before. I didn't know why I killed him at the time."

Debra asks, "Who was this guy?"

Dexter says, "I don't know."

Debra gawks and says, "You don't know?" She asks hopefully, "Was he a pedophile at least?"

Dexter says, "No." He looks up at Debra shamefully, "It was right after Rita got killed. He was yelling and swearing for the key to the bathroom. I followed him into the mens room. I picked up this object, this retractable metal archer, that was sitting by the mirror. I started to tell this jerk about Rita. He said disparaging things about her. I started hitting him over the head. He went to choke me. I beat him to the floor. I kept beating him." Dexter shakes his head.

Debra asks incredulously, "You killed him?" She holds her hands up. "Why did you follow 'this jerk' into the bathroom? Why did you tell him about Rita? Why didn't you just stop hitting him?"

Dexter paces around aimlessly and says, "I was upset about Rita. I was out of my mind. I didn't think about it at the time. I couldn't help it."

Debra cries, "You couldn't help it? Who else?!"

Dexter says, "Well... " now pacing frantically.

Debra inquires, "So... are there others you've killed just because they hurt someone you care about?"

Dexter sighs, "Hannah's father. He was neglectful of her as a child. He verbally abusive... blackmailing her."

Debra asks, "Did you kill Doakes?"

Dexter says, "I kidnapped Doakes. Lilla killed Doakes. I killed Lilla."

Debra runs her fingers through her hair. She groans, "Uhh."

Dexter pats down the air between them. He says, "Could we talk about this tomorrow? You're getting really upset."

Debra takes a deep breath and says, "You've lied to me my whole life. I want the whole truth, right now, or I'm walking out that door." She points at the front door.

Dexter looks fearfully at Debra then the door. He then says, "Okay."

Debra asks, "What other serial killers have you been involved with, besides Lilla. What other murders have you 'caused' in this way?"

Dexter thinks about it and says, "Miguel found out what I did. I trained him in the code. He then went onto kill Evelyn Wolf. So I killed him. I helped Trinity avoid a DNA swab at a police checkpoint. I thought his killing cycle was over. It wasn't. But I planned on killing him before he killed again. I aided and abetted Travis Marshall. I thought he was being manipulated by Gellar."

Debra says, "Travis Marshall?" She suddenly has an epiphany and says, "The sacrificial lamb, the innocent, it was Harrison?"

Dexter looks up at Debra with guilt but doesn't say anything.

Debra follows up, "It was? The lamb was Harrison? Travis kidnapped your son."

He says, "Yes."

Debra roughly rakes her fingers through her hair again. She angrily groans, "Rrr...ahh."

Dexter argues, "But I saved him. I rescued Harrison."

Debra yells, "You put your two year old in danger!"

She goes to rake her hands through her hair a third time. But this time she stops mid way through and grabs clumps of her own hair. She takes the fist fulls of brown tangles and pulls hard away from her head.

Dexter grabs her arms to stop her from hurting herself. He orders, "Stop that."

Debra thrashes her arms down to free herself. She then starts hitting Dexter over the head with her fisted forearms.

Dexter cowers and backs away from her.

Debra looks at the clock that's on the wall. The clock has a third hand for the seconds but it's frozen in place. She asks, "What time is it anyway?"

Dexter quickly goes for his iphone to tell her, "It's 8:02 pm."

She looks at the phone in his hands. She walks over to the luggage where her purse is. She looks for her own phone. It isn't there.

She asks, "Where's my phone?"

He gives her an uneasy smile.

Her hand goes to feel her empty gun holster.

Perplexed, she says, "That's funny, I lost my phone and my gun. All in the same day?"

Dexter reasons, "Well it's been a hectic day. Lots of scrambling around, moving from place to place."

Debra sarcastically sneers, "So therefore multiple possessions of mine, that I normally keep on my person at all times, just happen to magically disappear all at once."

Dexter's nervous smile turns into a worried grimace.

She reaches her hand out. "Do you mind if I see your phone for a second?"

Dexter pulls back his hand with the phone in it. He says, "I prefer you didn't. I got some hardcore porn as a screen saver."

Debra spits out, "Sure you do." She makes a grab for Dexter's phone.

He says, "No you can't have it." He extends his arm far into the air, so the phone's out of Debra's reach.

She yells, "Give me the f***ing phone!" She grabs his arm and jumps to grab the phone out of his hand.

He switches the phone into his other hand. He takes several steps back from her.

She follows him, trying to grab the phone.

He puts the phone on top of the kitchen cupboard, out of her reach. He says, "See now you can't get at it."

She says, "The f*** I can't!" She climbs on top of the kitchen counter. She kneels on the linoleum and reaches up high to grab the phone.

He grabs her forearms to keep her hands outta reach.

She yanks her arms out of his grip by twisting her body and jerking herself back. She eyes Dexter guardedly and stops her pursuit of the phone. She backs up away from him, crawling backwards on the countertop. She whines up sitting in the sink. She looks down at her current location. She then realizing where she's wound up. While keeping a wary eye on Dexter, she crawls her way out of the sink, stepping onto the floor. She then diverts her gaze, keeping her eyes on the tiles. She takes a few cautious steps towards the door.

Dexter quickly side steps in front of her. He gives her a supplicating smile. He asks light heartedly, "Where are you going?"

Debra knits her eyebrows together says, "Just out for a little while. Why?"

Dexter implores, "Can I come with you?"

Debra leans to the side to look at the door behind Dexter. Feeling wary of him, she declines at having his company. She says, "Uhh... no thanks."

She tries to walk around him.

He steps in front of her again and says, "Please."

Her eyes bulge out with anger. She barks at him, "Get the f*** outta my way, right now."

She tries to push past him.

He says, "Please stop."

She violently shoves him as hard as she can.

He calls out, "Hey wait a minute, please!" He shoots his hands out in front of him in a stopping gesture. Then, with great hesitation, he goes to gently grab her arms.

She yells, "Get your f***ing hands off me!"

He lets go of her but still blocks her way to the door. He says, "I'm sorry. I can't let you go. Not if you're going to turn yourself in."

She yells, "Get the f*** out my way!"

He says meekly, "Uhh... no."

She squints her eyes at him and asks, "Doakes isn't the only person you ever kidnapped... is it?"

Dexter says, "I also kidnapped Lumen."

She growls at him furiously, "How dare you pull this f***ing sh** with me. After all I have done for you. I can't f***ing believe you."

Dexter asks, "Well just tell me. Why are you leaving? Is it to turn yourself in or not?"

Debra barks, "It's get the f*** away from you murdering a**."

Dexter says, "I can't let you go. Not if you're going to hand yourself over to the police."

Debra says, "They're the good guys which is more than I can say for you."

She then shakes her head and says, "Dexter, ask yourself this. Who else is gonna died because of who you chose to f***, or befriend, or because you can't help it?"

He defends, "Sometimes it's hard to tell the innocent from the guilty."

She looks Dexter up and down and laughs, "Don't I F***ing know it."

He continues, "I try to stop the bad guys and save the innocent. I try hard."

She shakes her in disbelief and says, "LaGuerta was innocent."

He says, "I just couldn't let you go down for what I've done."

She breathes out, "How many more people are you gonna kill because they even just threaten to harm someone you care about?"

He says, "I don't know. But I'll do whatever I have to do to keep my family safe."

She gawks at him in disbelief and says, "Even kill innocent people?"

He hesitates then whispers, "Yes."

She puts her fingertips to her temples then spreads her hands out into the air.

She vehemently states, "You are an out of control killing machine and I am just enabling you."

Dexter pauses and thinks about what she just said.

She continues, "The biggest mistake I made was stepping outside of the law because I cared for you. But there's something wrong with you. There's something broken inside you that doesn't work right."

He shrugs. He opens his mouth but doesn't say anything.

Debra stomps hard on the ground a couple of times, throwing her fisted arms up and down. She yells, "Just stop this already! Just stop it!"

In a defeated tone he says, "I can't."

She punches him hard across the face then stomps back into the bedroom. She slams the door behind her.

Dexter stands there for a minute looking on after her. He then walks over to the bedroom and presses his ear to the door. He hears some scuffling sounds inside the room. He opens the door. Debra's over at one of the window, trying to pry it open. It wasn't giving way easily. The windows are old and rusty, and seem to be painted shut. Although the paint on it's old and chipping off. She had undone the locks on the window and was trying to wrestle the thing open. Thus far it had given way a hair, cracking the paint along the edge. Paint dust fumes the air. She turns around to see Dexter in the doorway. She looks at him warily.

Dexter looks at back her, grievously, shaking his head.

Debra looks back at the window she had been trying to open. She grumbles to herself then throws herself into bed. She doesn't look at Dexter.

Once she's in bed, Dexter watches her for a few seconds then shuts the door. He stands outside the door for a minute listening, then goes over to the luggage. He sorts through the luggage. He sets aside the bags that are Debra's. He looks through her possessions looking for anything dangerous. He removes belts, shoelaces, cords of any kind, razors, scissors, pills. He takes out Debra's bottle of Xanax. He take one pill out of the bottle and puts the bottle in his pocket. He carries Debra's bags over to her bedroom door. He then goes to the kitchen and pours a cup of water. He takes the pill and water over to the bedroom. He knocks her door. There's no answer.

He says through the door, "Deb, I'm sorry, okay. I don't know what else to do." Again there's no answer.

He quietly turns the knob and cracks the door open.

Debra lying face down on the bed. She on top of the blankets, clothes on. She had kicked off her shoes. They lay thrown across the floor.

He asks, "Deb?"

She presses her hand over her ear.

He says, "I brought you a Xanax and some water. I'll leave it on the dresser." He places the water and pill on the dresser. "I also brought you your bags I'll leave them by the door."

While still lying face down in the bed, she raises her hand up, straight into the air. She gives him the finger.

He says, "Goodnight to you too."

He quietly shuts the door.

He then puts away the food and supplies they lifted from the store. After that he starts unpacking his belongings from the luggage. He looks through cabin assessing what else they may still need. He cleans up the place a little as he goes. He'll go over the cabin more thoroughly later. He goes back to check on Debra. He quietly cracks her door open. She's sound asleep, curled up on her side. The cup of water, he left on the dresser, is now on the nightstand half empty. The Xanax pill is gone. He looks at the windows in the room. There's two windows in the bedroom. One on one wall, the other on the adjacent cornering wall. He shuts the door. He looks over the outside of the bedroom door, assessing it.

Harry appears next to him in the hallway.

Harry says, "What was stopping Debra from driving out the window?"

Dexter says, "Me. I heard her wrestling with the window. The windows are old, rusty and glued shut with the paint. It's no mean feat prying them open."

Harry says, "Debra's asleep. You should take advantage that."

Dexter says while looking at the door. "I need to put a padlock on the door. The windows need bars on them."

Harry asks, "Which do you think she'll do, turn herself in or kill herself?"

Dexter says, "I'm not sure she'll do either. I'm not sure what she'll do."

Harry asks, "You shouldn't of told Debra everything you've done."

Dexter says, "She knew I was holding back. She was threatening to leave if I didn't tell her the whole truth."

Harry says, "But she tried to leave anyway."

Dexter says, "I know. Eventually I'd be force to make her stay. I was just trying to put off the inevitable. Besides, I've lied to her my whole life and I've always felt guilty about it."

Harry says, "But it was to protect her."

Dexter says, "With everything she knows, with everything that's now happened, there's not much reason to keep lying to her. And I promised her before that I'd be honest with her, completely honest."

Harry says, "You just wanted someone you could be honest with. You wanted someone to be supportive. Someone who'd understand. Especially since you've lost Hannah. Hell, you've so pained for the loss of my counsel you recreated me in your mind."

Dexter says, "If only you hadn't killed yourself then I could talk to the real you."

Harry says, "Is that why you need Debra around so bad? Because she's a piece of me still walking around with a beating heart."

Dexter says, "If Debra dies, or goes to jail, then I've failed you."

Harry says, "You can keep Debra around, but she'll never be supportive like Hannah. Debra will never be understanding of your need to kill. Even with you rescuing her from that rapist in the bathroom."

Dexter says, "Yah I know. I should know better than to open my big mouth like that."

Harry says, "Being honest is one thing. Spilling your guts is another. You didn't have to tell her absolutely everything."

Dexter slaps his hand to his own head and says, "God, why did I tell her about the jerk, in the bathroom. I can't believe I told her about the guy I killed right after Rita died?"

Harry says, "It's dangerous for her to know everything you've done. It's dangerous for her to know everything you're capable of doing."

Dexter says, "I'm sure you're right. But once the dam of lies was finally broken, it was hard for me to keep holding back."

Harry says, "It's been hard for you to hold back in general lately. You've been breaking the code more, and more, often. It's because your emotions are resurfacing along with your memories."

Dexter says, "Debra beginning to see that in me. How dangerous I'm becoming."

Harry says, "Well see, the cats outta the bag now. It sure would be nice if you had a big eraser. A big magical eraser that could erase everything from Debra's mind. Like everything you've told her tonight, everything she's seen, everything she knows."

Dexter looks at Harry suspiciously and says, "What are implying exactly? But Debra was already getting suspicious. She was suspicious about everything, about the past, about times I've broken the code."

Harry says, "She was putting the pieces together anyway."

Dexter says, "Maybe. Maybe I'll score points with her by telling her the truth up front. As oppose to her figuring things out on her own."

Harry says, "You think what she fears you've done must be worse than what you've actually done."

Dexter says, "I thought if she knew what I did, and why, she might understand a bit better."

Harry says, "You think it's better she knows, up front, everything you're capable of doing. You think it's best she knows, ahead of time, all of this."

Dexter says, "Yes."

Harry says, "Before you stick the M90 in her neck."

Dexter says, "Yes."

Harry says, "Are you sure it'll come down that?"

Dexter says, "Sooner or later it'll come to that."

Harry says, "Are you sure you should be doing all this?"

Dexter says, "If I don't she'll spend the rest of her life in prison or worse."

Harry says, "Is she better off your prisoner?"

Dexter says, "Maybe she'll come around one way or another. When she calms down I'll try to talk to her."

Harry says, "You think becoming your prisoner will have a 'calming effect' on her?"

Dexter says, "One way or another she'll calm down."

Harry asks, "'One way or another huh?'"

Dexter says, "Well, she can't stay angry forever."

Harry says, "Are you sure about that?"

Dexter says, "I'll see how things go. I'll tell her that there's now nothing to be gained by going to prison. All we can do, at this point, is just try to move forward."

Harry says, "'move forward' What exactly do think awaits you in future?"

Dexter says, "I can't think about that right now. I gotta go get some bars and locks to imprison my sister with."

Harry says, "Seriously, do ever sit there listen to yourself sometimes."

In bedroom, in the cabin, Debra's sleeping in bed. She sleeps just as she flopped into bed earlier that night, clothes on, on top of the blankets.

"Zzzz...zzz," a noise like a drill emanates from the bedroom window.

The noise wakes up Debra with a start. She screams, "What the f***!" She jolts up into a sitting position, in bed. She stares at the wall, in the dark, for a second, disoriented. Then she shuts her eyes and flops abruptly to her side. With the flop she promptly falls off the bed.

She lands on the not-so-carpeted floor. She lets out a sound of pain, "Owe," as rubs her side. While on the floor, behind the bed, Debra hears someone snickering.

"He-he," the snickering emanates from the same location as the drill noise, from the window. Debra instinctively feels for her gun, only to be reminded that it's not there. She peers up from behind the bed. She sees Dexter standing outside cabin, looking into the bedroom. He laughs at her antics through the window. There's a grate in the window and a drill in Dexter's hand. He appears to be drilling a grate into the window pane from the outside. The other window, in the bedroom, is empty with neither Dexter nor a grate in it.

Debra stands up from behind the bed. She yells, "Dexter what the f***!"

Dexter gives her diffident smile and wave.

She walks over to the grated window and starts trying to open it. It takes a good many palm slammings to work through the dried on paint. After a minute it finally gives way and she opens the window.

"Hi Deb," he says awkwardly. He drills in another screw.

"What the f*** do you think you're doing?!" she yells.

"What it looks like? I'm putting grates in the windows." he says and shrugs.

"Why?" she angrily asks.

"You know why." he says while glancing at the ground.

"Dexter, I'm not going to turn myself in. Stop doing this."

"It's just a precaution. We'll revisit the issue later." He says and moves on to the next screw to drill.

She looks back at the door and then back at Dexter. She walks back over to the door. She turns the knob and tries to open the door. It won't open. It's locked or blocked in somehow. She walks back over to Dexter. She asks, "You put a lock on the door?"

He drills in another screw and looks at the ground. He says, "Yes, I did."

Debra sees an opportunity to make a run for it. She quickly dashes over to the other window on the neighboring wall of the bedroom. It's the window that doesn't have the grate in it yet.

"Hey! Stop!" Dexter yells as he sees her doing this. He's on the outside of the cabin. He runs around the corner of the building trying to beat her to the other window.

His foot hits a rain gutter, tripping him. He lands face forward on the ground. He lets out a sound of pain, "Owe."

"Ha!" Debra triumphantly laughs at Dexter's misstep. She desperately scrambles to the ungrated window. This is the same window she tried to open early that evening. It was still open a hair with the paint cracked along the edge. This gave her a decent chance to open the window before Dexter had time to stop her. She whacks the bottom of her palm upward on the window, to unjam it open. The window's opening widens another hair.

By now Dexter's off the ground. He runs over to the window.

They are now looking at each other through the ungrated window.

Debra gives Dexter a malicious grin.

Dexter looks back at her with worry.

Dexter rips open the bottom the screen.

Debra manages to get the window a full inch open.

Dexter finally manages to get his hands on the top of the window pane to slam it shut it.

Just then Debra manages to shoot both of her hands into the cracked open window.

Dexter hesitates. He's apprehensive to slam the window down Debra's fingers. Her fingers are now poking out of the window.

She swats down to give herself leverage. She puts all her force into opening the window.

Dexter gives downward pressure to resist this. He looks down at her, shaking his head.

She stand back up and wedges the toes of her right foot into the crack. She's in her socks. She wedges her foot in as far as it will go. She leans over to grab a book from a nearby shelf. She plans on wedging the book in the crack along with her foot.

Debra's off balance at the moment. Dexter takes advantage of her precarious situation. He tries to shove her back into the room. He lets go of the window to push her inside.

The second he lets go of the window, Debra manages to open the window enough to get her leg out.

When Dexter sees her leg sticking out the window, he gives up. He throws his arms up in the air, signifying defeat.

Debra calls out, "Yes!" She opens the window wide open and crawls out. Once she outside she squeals with delight, "Ehhhh!" and does a little victory dance. She taunts Dexter by waving her pointed finger up in his face while she dances. She sings, "Yahhah, uhhuh."

Dexter rolls his eyes at this ridiculous display.

Debra asks, "Where did you get these window grates? The convenience store doesn't sell them do they?"

Dexter responses, "No the store doesn't 'sell' them. But it 'has' them."

Debra asks surprised, "You ripped these grates off the store's windows?"

Dexter says, "Yes, off it's basement windows around back."

Debra asks, "Won't Gus realize they've been stolen?"

Dexter says, "Gus had a attack and died last year. His son runs the store now."

Debra asks, "Won't Gus Junior realize they've been stolen?"

Dexter says, "G.J. is a total pothead. He wouldn't realize, or care, if the produce section got infested with a family of racoons."

Debra says, "I guess you've thought of everything again. How convenient this convenience store is."

Dexter gives an effete laugh and says, "I guess convenient stores are aptly named."

Debra looks back into the bedroom. She gets a perplexed look on her face. She says, "You know it's funny."

Dexter keeps drilling in screws. Engrossed in his work, Dexter doesn't looks up. He asks, "What's funny?"

She points to the bedroom and says, "Well, look at the bedroom."

He shrugs and asks, "What about it?"

She says, "It's different from the rest of the cabin."

He shakes his head and asks, "How's it different."

She says, "The whole cabin is covered in dust and cobwebs. But this one room is spotless."

He asks, "What? Do you wish you had a nest of spiders in your pillow?"

She says, "Actually, the room's not just spotless. Everything looks brand new."

Dexter taps his fingers off his forehead and says, "You know G.J. has a girlfriend named Stacy. Stacy and G.J. will use this room to crash in sometimes. G.J. a pothead but Stacy's a total neat freak. That explains why this room so clean."

She says, "It doesn't smell like pot."

He says, "Stacy makes G.J. smoke outside. Like I said, she's a stickler for tidiness."

Debra shakes her head and says, "No, it's not just neat and clean. Everything's new. And I don't mean the furniture. The wood floor looks new. The walls look brand new. And everything else in the cabin is old and out of date. What? Did Stacy renovate just this one room?"

He asks nervously, "How can you tell it's new? It's night time. Everything's dark."

She says, "It smells new. It feels new. It's shinny. It's immaculate."

He says, "Again, all accomplished with cleaning, cleaning and more cleaning."

She looks skeptical and says, "It's all just odd. It's all just suspicious." She looks at Dexter. He drills in the last screw into the window grate.

He says, "Well window 'A' is done. Time to move onto to window 'B.' He turns to move onto the next window. He faces Debra. The drill's still in his hand.

She gestures to the drill in Dexter's hand. She says, "Speaking of odd and suspicious? Look at who I'm talking to."

Dexter gestures to the ungrated window with his drill hand. He asks, "Do you mind?"

Debra asks, "Mind what?"

Dexter takes a step towards Debra. He again, with the drill, gestures to the window. He politely asks, "Could you please get back inside now?"

He takes another step towards Debra. In step with him, she backs away, holding up her hands defensively. She asks, "If I won't go in, you'll do what?" With fear, she darts her eyes to the drill.

Dexter looks confused. Then he glances down at the drill in his hand. He shakes his head and tosses the drill on the ground. With one open hand he fences in Debra. With the other he gestures to open, ungrated window. He says, "Please, Deb, just go back inside."

She folds her arms and firmly states, "F*** no."

He hesitates, then he gently grabs one of her arms. While looking at the ground he says, "Please just... "

She looks indignant and thrashes her arm out of his grasp.

He fences her in with both of his open hands.

She briskly pivots, doing a 180, then starts to walk away from him.

He abruptly steps forward, going after her. He lunges across to grab her right arm with his left hand. He gets ahold of her and pleads, "Please stop."

Over her shoulder, she shoots a fierce look at him. She tries to thrash her arm out of his grasp again. This time he won't let go and holds firm. She yells back at him, "Get the f*** off me!"

He looks distraught and shakes his head. He says, "I'm sorry. I can't let you go."

Debra sneers and asks, "How are you going to hold me down and drill in the bars at the same time?" She thinks she's finally caught him in a catch 22. How could he lock her up? The jail wasn't set up yet. He wouldn't tie her up. Would he?

He has her arm in his left hand. With his right hand he pulls out a syringe from his pocket. He presents her with the needle. He says, "This is M90. It's animal tranquilizer. It's what I use it to knockout and apprehend my victims. How difficult do you wanna make this?" He holds the syringe up into the air. He squirts a little juice out of it in a threatening manner.

Calling his bluff, Debra says, "You won't do it."

Dexter says, "I can and I will. Now you're getting back in that room one way or another." He gestures to the open window with his syringe hand. It's the same hand that was holding the drill.

Debra has an epiphany. Her eyes widen with her new realization. She takes a step backward, pulling her elbow up skyward along with Dexter's grabbing hand. She gawks at him and says, "You didn't need a few days to get the paperwork for Mexico. You were planning on this cabin as being my prison. For how long? Forever?"

Dexter says, "It was a plan B. I plan for multiple contingencies. I have to. It's the only way I've been able to get by so far. Doing what I do."

Debra sarcastically sneers, "I'm glad you're always so well prepared."

Dexter asks, "Are you going back in?"

Debra yells, "F*** you!" She turns back to face him. He still has a hold of her arm. She leans back and make a grotesque throat noise.

Dexter knows what's coming. He closes his eyes in preparation for it.

Debra hocks a loogie right in his face.

Dexter wipes the loogie off his face. He uses the back of the hand that holds the syringe. He says, "I'm sorry it has to come to this."

He bites off the cap to the syringe. He turns his head and spits out the cap. He moves the syringe to Debra's throat.

She shakes her head. Her eyes widen with horror. She uses her free hand to grab his syringe hand.

Resisting, she tries to press syringe away from her. Their hands shrake in the struggle. The needle shivers in the air. A drop of M90 bevels the end.

Dexter tries to hold syringe steady as it inches closer to Debra's throat.

She suddenly lets some of the resistant pressure off the struggle.

Unexpectedly, his syringe hand jerks forward.

She pulls his syringe hand towards her teeth and bites down on his fingers viciously.

He blurts out, "Owe." He flinches back and shakes out his hand. He almost drops the syringe.

She growls her teeth at him. She then gives him a villainous grin.

He looks aggravated. He put the syringe back in his pocket and lets go of her right arm.

With the pocketing of the needle, Debra's anger dissolves to fear. She trembles and lets out a shaky sigh. Her eyes close and she puts her hand on her heart. She breathes out, "Oh thank God. For a second I actually thought you were gonna do it."

They're now facing each other, a couple of feet apart. Dexter reaches across, again, with his left hand and grabs Debra's left upper arm. In one swift motion he jerks her body towards him, turning her around. She's now thrown up against him, facing away.

Debra yells out in a panic, "Hey, wait!"

Dexter's hands clamp down on both her wrists. He contracts her arms to her front. He then wraps his left arm around her, locking her in place. With his now free right hand he reaches into his pocket and again pulls out the syringe. He holds the needle up in the air. Remorsefully he says, "Deb, I'm so sorry to do this to you."

She shrieks, "No, don't!"

Dexter hesitates to dope her, giving Debra a chance to fight. She thrashes around violently, desperately trying to get away. She pulls her legs up and off the ground. She kicks her feet into his knees. Unfortunately she's in her socks. The kick doesn't hurt him as she'd like.

He mutters under his breath, "Hold still." To get a better hold, he wraps both arms around her. In the bear hug he squeezes her like a boa constrictor, crushing her. The M90 is still in his right hand.

The snake hug squeezes the air out of her lunges. She wheezes out a short breath, "Ahhh... " The lack of oxygen takes some of the fight outta her.

Dexter releases Debra with his syringe arm, leaving only his left arm to fence her in. He tries to stick the syringe in her throat yet again. He lets out an awkward cry/laugh while doing this. In a quavering voice he mutters, "This'll all be over soon." He says this as if comforting himself. The syringe inches towards Debra's throat. Dexter's hand starts to shake. The shivering needle nearly stabs Debra in the jaw instead of the jugular. Dexter presses his wrist against her collarbone to steady his hand. The needle finally meets it's mark. He still hesitates a second to inject the M90.

Debra cries out in a panic, "Okay, okay! Stop, stop!" She starts crying and whimpers, "I'll go in. Just let go of me."

He tentatively releases her.

She rips herself away from him. She jabs a forceful shove at him. She takes a couple of steps back and cringes, tears streaking down her face.

He shrugs at her while holding the syringe up in the air.

She gawks at him and gnarls her face in anger. She gives him a spiteful whack with her fisted right arm.

"Owe." He whimpers, "Please stop hurting me."

Growling and whimpering she spits out, "I hate you."

He looks hurt and says, "I doing this because I'm your brother and I love you."

She spits in his face again and crawls back into the cabin through the window.

Once inside, she violently slams the window down. She stomps over to the bed. She flops into it face down.

After she's in bed the drill sounds again, "Zzzz... zzz." Debra angrily grabs a pillow and slams it over her head. She curls up on her side and goes back to sleep.

Dexter finishes screwing the screws into the grate. When he's done he goes back to the cabin's kitchen. Mentally and physically exhausted, Dexter trudges back to the table and falls into one of the chairs. Harry appears next to him in the other chair.

Harry says, "Debra might break a window and cut herself with a shard of glass."

Dexter says, "I'd hear the glass breaking. Besides, most people would find that very hard to do to themselves. After all she's a cop. She had a gun for twenty years. But she decided to use sleeping pills instead of her weapon. I remember her talking about the Xanax. She said how it gave her that half second of peace. She just wanted the peace it gave her to last forever."

Harry says, "So now you're sure Hannah didn't poison her again?"

Dexter says, "No. Not entirely sure."

Harry says, "Perhaps you should take greater precautions right now?"

Dexter says, "No. I'm not doing that to her. Not unless I'm absolutely sure I have to."

Dexter pulls out the bottle of Xanax that was in his pocket. He turns over the bottle in his hand. The pills tumble around inside the cylinder.

Dexter says, "Is this what my life in gonna be like from now on? Watching Debra every second while she yells at me and hits me." He puts the pills down on the table and pushes the bottle away from himself. He sighs and says, "Hannah... I miss her so much. I long to see her again? The flowers she gave have long since withered away, like her presents from my life."

Harry says, "That didn't have to be the case. When you visited Hannah, in prison, she talked of running away with you. You could be in Argentina, right now, with her. Hannah would be a mother to Harrison. All of you could be a family together. Just like you so long for."

Dexter says, "If I had done that, back then, Debra would be in jail by now. And it would be all my fault. I made her an accomplice to Travis's murder."

Harry says, "In jail is better than dead. And she'd be in jail for being your accomplice, not killing the captain of Miami Metro."

Dexter says, "You're saying by trying to 'fix' things I keep making things worse. Well it's too late to walk away now."

Harry says, "Is this the best thing for Debra? Is she better off now? Is she safe from herself?"

Dexter says, "I don't even know anymore?"

Dexter puts his head in his hands. Harry pats his shoulder.

I titled this chapter, "My Sister's Keeper" after the book by that same name. It seems a dark joke that in here it refers to Dexter kidnapping Debra.