Chapter 12

"Seems Like Old Times"

It's now back in the modern day. Hannah's walking the streets of a foreign land. She pushing a stroller with Laura in it. Laura's now four months old. As Hannah walks the street you can see the Taj Mahal in the background. Hannah and Laura are in India. They returned to their hotel room.

Hannah pushes the stroller into the room. Laura's asleep in the stoller. Hannah puts her purse and keys down on a table.

Dexter's in the background, needle in hand, lying in wait. He silently rushes up behind Hannah. He sticks the needle into her upper back with one hand. With the other hand he covers Hannah's mouth so she can't scream. The second Dexter's on top of Hannah the TV comes on. The box flickers on in the background. The volume of it increasing immediately. But the remote is not seen in Dexter's busy hands.

Hannah's eyes bug out of her head.

She lets out a muffled scream, "Mmmum!, mmmum!"

Wild-eyed Hannah tries to turn her head to look behind her. The hand Dexter muzzles her with, also presses her head into his shoulder. Her legs give out from under her. Her arms go limp at her sides.

Dexter sinks down to the floor with Hannah. He cradles her body on top of him, in a sitting position. He tosses the needle, in his hand, onto the floor. He puts his arm around her to hold her up against him.

In a hushed voice, Dexter speaks into Hannah's ear, "Scream and I'll end this quick."

Hannah tries to shake her head. But the hand over her mouth inhibits such action.

She gives another muffled scream. "Mmmum!, Mmmum!"

Dexter has a hunting knife, in a harness, around his waist. He takes out the knife and places the tip of it over Hannah's heart. The sharp blade pierces her soft skin. A drop of blood beads up, then trickles, down in between her breasts. The trail of red ends its journey at her black bra. The bright crimson of it stains her pale seethrough top.

Dexter says while poiseing the knife, "Last chance to live a little longer."

Hannah hesitates and desperately darts her eyes around the room. She looks at the TV that came on a few seconds ago. She knits her eyebrows together while looking at it. She realizes Dexter needed the TV to come on at just the precise moment. He needed to muffle any noise she made. But his hands were very preoccupied at the moment. He needed to multi task subduing her while muzzling her.

Hannah wonders, "Is there someone else in the room with us, beside Laura? Was this person working with Dexter? This could prove disastrous for me? But perhaps a civil tongue from me will melt Dexter's murderous intentions?"

Hannah nods. Or nods as much as Dexter's muzzling hand will allow.

Dexter says, "I'll unmuzzle you. But remember the knife is poised over your heart."

Hannah nods again.

Dexter lifts his hand off Hannah's mouth. He lowers her limp body the rest of the way to the floor. He keeps the knife poised over her heart.

Hannah lies limp on the ground. Dexter kneels besides her. He now holds the knife with both hands. The tip of the blade still pierces her flesh.

Hannah looks at Dexter and says, "I can't move. The needle in my back?"

Dexter says, "Its a spinal pederal. This won't hurt a bit. You don't even feel the blade piercing your flesh right now."

Hannah looks to her chest. A drop of blood now runs the other way. Gravity now draws the red liquid across her collarbone, down to the nape of her neck. Hannah gasps at the sight of it.

Dexter says, "This is a courtesy I pay to all my lovers that I end up killing."

Hannah asks, "There have been others beside me?"

Dexter says, "Just one other. She was a killer like you."

Hannah says, "That other woman. She may of been your lover but you weren't in love her. Nor was she the mother of your child I presume. Unless you're the one that killed the late misses Rita Morgan. Was it her?"

Dexter says, "No. It wasn't Rita. Her name was Lilla. She loved fire."

Hannah gazes at Dexter wistfully. She says, "We've been through this before. You won't kill me. You won't leave your child motherless. You know first hand what that loss will do to her."

Dexter says, "I'll find a wife eventually. My future wife will be Laura's mother. Laura won't remember you. This will be for the best. The trail of innocents you kill could prove quite detrimental to our daughter."

Dexter looks over to Laura. She's still sleeping in the stroller. Dexter looks back down to Hannah.

Dexter says, "For Laura's sake I hope you go quite."

Hannah says, "But still, you're in love me. You can't kill me. How many times have you tried to kill me and failed to follow through."

Dexter says, "Fortunately many others long for the chance to kill you. I brought one of them here to do the deed for me. You know her well. She's your sister-in-law."

Dexter looks across the room, above Hannah's head.

Hannah hears the floor creak behind her, above her head. Its the sound of someone stepping on the wooden floor. The floor that Hannah currently lies limp on. Someone else is in the room with them beside Laura. Just as Hannah suspected earlier. This is how the TV got turned on when Dexter's hands were preoccupied. Hannah tries to look over her head to see who it is. But she only has use of her head and neck. She can't see right above her own head. She stares at her eyebrows and cranes her neck to no avail.

Hannah gives up on getting the visual. She says, "You can't mean Debra. She's dead. And we were never married."

Dexter says, "Debra's not dead. That gun she used had blanks in it."

Hannah looks confused and asks, "Then why are you killing me?"

Dexter says, "I know you'll never let my sister live. Not if it means my loyalty to you is comprised and my sending-you-to-prison goes unpunished."

Hannah says professedly, "Oh please spare me. I'll let your sister be. I swear."

Dexter looks at her ruefully, "I so wish I could believe you."

She smiles at him tearfully and says, "You can believe me."

He retorts, "No I can't. Like you said before, one way or another, my sister would always be a problem for you. You won't live your life on the run from the lieutenant of homicide. You'll always solve your problems, nice and easy, your way."

Hannah says, "Is it Debra above me?"

Dexter says, "No, not Debra."

Dexter looks at the person above Hannah. He says to that person, "Okay its time."

The floor creaks again. This time the sound is now closer by. The hidden person now walks into Hannah's field of vision. Hannah sees a familiar face. Its Lori. The sister of Hannah's late husband, Jake. Lori's middle aged. She was three years younger than her brother. She's two years older than him now. Her complexion is dark. Her long hair is black. She slightly heavy set. She looks similar to someone Hannah once called husband.

Lori kneels beside Dexter. Dexter hands off the knife to her. The tip of the blade never leaves Hannah's heart. The tip of the knife skewers Hannah's flesh slightly as the blade's handle changes hands. After the knife leaves Dexter's hands he grabs a black human sized duffle bag. He places Hannah's limp body in bag. Lori helps Dexter but keeps the knife at Hannah's heart the whole time.

Lori glares down at Hannah with the knife now in her hands.

Hannah looks up at Lori pitifully. She begs her, "Oh please don't kill me. We were friends. Don't you remember. I loved your brother, Jake. I would never of harmed him."

Again, Lori glares down Hannah. She says, "Dexter showed me all the evidence of all the people you've killed, including evidence of you killing Jake. I consider it an honor to kill you. I'll stop you from killing more innocent people. This will bring justice to the many you've wronged. I was selected from many who would wish to do the deed themselves. It is an honor indeed to kill you."

Hannah says, "Oh please. I have a baby. She's in that stroller there now. Just look at her little face. How could you take her mother away from her."

Lori says, "What about all your victims? When you ended their lives, did you think of all of their loved ones? All the monourns you would leave behind. No. Because you only care about yourself and who you love. You could care less about who you hurt in the wake of your misdeeds."

Dexter's kneeling beside Lori. Lori bares the knife at Hannah's heart. Hannah looks at Dexter with pleading eyes, She whimpers, "Dexter... "

At hearing Hannah say his name, Dexter's eyes glisten over. Hannah and Dexter look at each other longingly. Tears run down Hannah's temples.

Lori raises the knife high in the air.

Hannah cries bitterly to Dexter, "You're destroying everything you want in life."

Dexter squeezes his eyes shut and turns away. Tears roll down his cheeks.

Lori plunges the knife deep into Hannah's heart.

Hannah lets out is a grunt of pain, "Uhh." Hannah is dead.

Just then the baby, Laura, rolls over in the stroller. Dexter rushes over to Laura and picks her up. Dexter walks Laura away from Hannah's body. Dexter carries Laura into the next room. Lori follows him.

Lori says with concern, "What about the baby?"

Dexter says, "She's my baby now."

Lori says, "Thanks so much for letting me do this. My brother Jake can finally rest in peace."

Dexter says, "You can leave now. I'll take care of Hannah's remains."

Lori says, "I'll never tell a soul what we've done here today."

Dexter says, "Neither will I. Thank you for helping me with this. I could never kill the mother of child no matter how much she deserved it. Laura's better off with me. It was only a matter of time before Hannah's misdeeds came to haunt our daughter as well. I can keep Laura safe. I know what I'm doing."

Lori says, "I'll go now. I'm sure your daughter's in good hands."

Dexter says, "That she is. Goodbye."

Lori leaves.

Dexter has Laura in his arms. He brings her to the window. They both look out at the Taj Mahal. It's evening. The backdrop to the majestic city is a starry sky. The window mirrors a pale image of Dexter and Laura. Their faces seem loom above of city. He says to Laura, "I'm sorry about your mother. I loved her. But I could never trust her. Not even with you. Hannah was right about one thing. I do have to let things go and move forward. And I'm gonna need your help to do that little Laura." He kisses the baby on cheek and presses her close to him. He twists side to side, rocking her. He looks longingly out the window while doing this. His forlorn gaze searches the city for something that isn't there.

A haggard man walks into the frame. The pale image of Harry's face appears in the window. At spotting his father's reflection, Dexter turns around.

Harry says, "You just watched Hannah get killed. Are you sure you're up to taking care of Laura right now?"

Dexter says, "I already shed enough tears for Hannah. I knew Hannah life was coming to an end long before hand. Hannah gave me time to grieve. And grieve I did. Just not for Debra."

Harry says, "At least now Debra's safe from Hannah."

Dexter says, "I've done my duty. I just killed the love of my life to appease the memory of you."

Harry asks, "You wouldn't choose to trade Hannah's life for Debra's?"

Dexter says, "No. Now Laura's lost her mother. Just like me. Just like Harrison."

Harry says, "Nonetheless you had to choose, Debra or Hannah. Both women have lead you down far different paths. Debra made you tow line. Hannah, on the other hand, took a machete to whatever stood in her way. Debra made you 86-ed the blood slides and to stop taking cases from the police. Hannah was gonna bring you even further away from my teachings. You were already straying away from the code more and more. Your life with Hannah would leave trail of fallen innocents behind you. Mourners don't grieve for the wicked, but Hannah's victims were far from that. The loved ones of the your victims would continue to look for the accountable party. Just like LaGuerta did for Doakes, Bastista did for LaGuerta and Lori did for Jake."

Dexter says, "I've made a lotta mistakes over the years. But Debra has since expanded and refined the code for me. Tightening things up, in this way, should prevent those mistakes from recurring."

Harry says, "But now Debra's forgotten everything. You don't have to answer to her anymore."

Dexter says, "It's always possible she could again find out about me. It's a possibility I will be guarding against the rest of my life. Hopefully the refining of the code will keep my secret safe from her."

Harry disappears. Laura starts to cry in Dexter's arms. He fishes a pacifier out of the diaper bag. He puts it in her mouth. This calms the baby down. He then puts her in the baby bouncer. The vibration of it soothes her. He turns on the Teletubbies. Laura stares, mesmerised, at the TV. After Dexter has Laura settled, he goes into the other the room where Hannah's body is. He takes rolls of plastic out of a bag.

It's a week later back in Miami. Dexter's over Debra beach house. Debra's car wouldn't start this morning. Dexter's driving her to work. He's sipping coffee in Debra's breakfast nook. She's in her bedroom getting ready for work. She comes out of the room. She's wearing a hot pink fishnet leotard with stiletto heels.

Dexter catches a glimpse of Debra in the hooker outfit. Shocked, he spurts coffee out of his mouth.

He exclaims, "Why are you dressed like that?!"

She's confused by Dexter's reaction to her outfit. She asks, "What?" She looks down at leotard and heels. She explains, "I'm wearing this for work. Vice squad waits for no man."

Dexter stands up and waves his hands, gesturing "No." He says, "Deb I told you. You're lieutenant of homicide now. You no longer dress like a hooker for work."

Confused, Debra says, "Oh." In a daze she turns around and heads back to the bedroom to change.

Dexter's left standing there, shaking his head. The electroshock therapy had worked well. It stopped Debra's suicide attempts. It erased Dexter's secret from her memory. It also erased the memory of her killing LaGuerta. But treatment had also ravaged Debra's life history. The last ten or so years of Debra's memories seemed to be gone from her mind. On and off, since the treatment, she seemed disoriented to place and time, but she continued to improve.

On the upside, Debra's swearing had stopped all together. This was quite the relief to Dexter. He hadn't heard a clean sentence out of his sister's mouth in thirty years. The last time she left the Mexican psych ward she came home with a mouth full of dirty words. This time around the therapy had actually cleaned up her potty mouth. And Dexter was glad of it. Three solid decades of hearing his sister say the "f" word was enough for him.

A few minutes later Debra walks out of her bedroom again. This time she's more appropriately dressed for work.

Debra presents herself in her business suit. She says, "So how's this ensemble? Do I look more like a lieutenant?"

Dexter looks at her change of attire. He nods and says, "Yes. Indeed. This outfit is a great improvement over the last one."

Debra joins Dexter for a cup of coffee. They have some time before work to finish their mugs.

Debra looks discouraged and says, "I guess I'm still not better from the treatment yet."

Dexter says, "Remember to keep that fact just between the two of us. We don't want anyone else to know that you're having a hard time. If other people at work found out about you, it would jeopardize your job."

She says, "It must be exhausting for you, covering for me at work. It's now like you have two jobs. Babysitting me and forensics."

He says, "Oh I don't mind. And you'll continue to adjust. You'll see. It'll get better." He nods at her with encouragement. He's been briefing her for the morning briefings, trying to keep her sharp and on task. Dexter always had hunches about killers and shared these hunches with Debra. This was as helpful as ever in terms of boosting her career.

She looks worried and says, "You said I had a nervous breakdown because of my job. You said all that pressure pushed me over the edge. Are sure I should still be doing this job? Maybe I should demote myself."

He says, "Well things were really tough for you back then. You more recently got promoted to lieutenant. LaGuerta was your captain. She was really tough on you. Mike's murder hit you really hard. And then LaGuerta got murder on top of all of that. That could drive anyone over the edge."

She says, "But what's different now?"

He says, "Lots of things are different. You swore off all your old vices. You stopped drinking, smoking, and swearing. You changed your dating habits. All of those negative things fed into your anxiety and depression. And you've turned all that around."

She hiccups a short bitter laugh and says, "Geez... and the drinking almost caused me to slit my own throat." She mindfully touches the scars on her face and neck. Dexter told her she had drunkenly stumbled into a pane glass door, cutting herself on her face and neck. Dexter's the only one who knows the true origin of the scars. He consider telling her the truth about the scars, that they were from suicide attempts. But the window pane story seemed to keep the bottle outta her hand.

He says, "That's true. The night you got scarred up almost cost you your life. But now that won't happen. All your self destructive habits have vanished with your treatment. The changes in you have been remarkable."

Sounding uncertain, she says, "Yah, but the pressure is all still there. Mike and LaGuerta are still dead. And I lost a decade of my work history when I got the therapy."

He says, "Well I can help you with your job and you feel fine now right?"

She says, "I guess. I mean, I don't feel suicidal. I'm not gonna cram down a hand full of sleeping pills again or anything. You said before that I kept trying to kill myself. And that's why you got me electroshock therapy in the first place."

He says, "That's right. I say you should just take things one day at a time and see how you feel. I just don't want you to lose your livelihood over this." Dexter told Debra that her suicide attempts were all from just taking sleeping pills, not by knife or by gun.

She sounds unsure and says, "Alright."

He says, "Otherwise it seems like such a waste. I mean the whole reason I got you the therapy in Mexico was to hide all this from Miami Metro. If the police department ever knew about this, it'd ruin your career forever."

She says, "And once the damage is done there's no undoing it."

He says, "Exactly. Keep that in mind." Dexter had Debra tell Captain Mathews, and everyone, she's a recovery alcoholic. Dexter knew if Debra admitted she had a problem, and sought help, she couldn't be fired. (Just as Quinn had once proposed to Bastista.) But it was less likely a recovering suicidal psych patient could be lieutenant of homicide. So Dexter kept that fact a secret between the Morgan siblings.

Dexter takes a breath and says, "Anyway, to change the subject. Do you wanna get together after work and go over the cases? I think I have some more insights for you."

Debra says, "No thanks. Not today. Jacob wants to take me someplace fancy tonight."

Debra's back together with her boyfriend Jacob Elroy, the private eye. This is the same private eye Bastista hired to look into LaGuerta's murder. Debra and Jacob have been back together for a few months now. This last time around anyway. They broke up the first time around because Jacob was looking into LaGuerta's murder and Debra's the one who murder her. This caused tensions to arise between the private eye and the lieutenant. Especially when the police department started to zero in on the truth of what happened. But Dexter had since refixed the evidence back in Debra's favor. And, after the treatment, Debra forgot all about who she killed. So the tension, of that dynamic, was no longer an issue between Jacob and Debra.

Everyone, including Jacob, had noticed Debra's a new lack of profanity in her speech. Her constant use of the "F" word went out the window along with her drinking and smoking. The morgan siblings told everyone the rehab story. They also told everyone Debra got hypnotherapy at rehab to explain all the miraculous changes going on in Deb. In their story, they also said Debra was turning over a new leaf in her dating habits. Hence why she gave Jacob another chance. Jake's a single father of two and dating a single Dad was new territory for Debra. The rehab story also helped explained Debra's sudden disappearance to everyone at the station. Dexter had called work with this story when he initially kidnapped her.

The lieutenant and P.I. are pretty serious, but aren't living together. Jacob has joint custody of his kids with his ex-wife, Tammy. He has two daughters that are ten and eight years old. Their names are Bridget and Sarah.

Dexter asks, "Is Jacob taking you to that fancy new restaurant in town?"

Debra says, "Yah that's right."

Dexter says, "You know I was planning on taking Cassie there sometime."

Dexter, too, is dating someone new. He's with, of course, yet another young hot blonde. Her name's Cassie Fife. Cassie's thirty five. She was a teen mom. She has an eighteen year old son in college. Her son's name is Scott. Scott's in Toronto State University. He's studying criminal justice there.

Cassie has proved an excellent choice, in girlfriend, for Dexter. Like Rita, Cassie's oblivious to what Dexter really is. But, unlike Rita, Cassie appreciates having one's own private time, space, and independent life. This is a much needed dynamic in Dexter's life. Like with Debra, Dexter realizes no one should ever know his secret. Through trial and error, Dexter now knows, compartmentalization is a vital component, to making his lifestyle work.

Debra says, "I'm sure Cassie will love the restaurant. I hear it's a great place. So how's Cassie adjusting to life with Laura?"

Dexter says, "Oh great. Cassie loves babies and she certainly has child rearing experience. Plus the fact that she's a pediatric nurse is also plus. She was surprised to learn about Laura though and surprised I suddenly got full custody of her."

Dexter rigged it to look like Hannah fled the country. He also made it look like Hannah had given Dexter full custody of Laura.

Dexter asks, "How about I bring Cassie to that restaurant tonight? We could double date."

Debra says, "Oh, no. Lets not double date tonight. Jacob's making a big deal out of the evening. He says he has something special planned."

Dexter asks, "Do you think he's going to propose?"

Debra's surprised and says, "Oh, I dunno. Maybe."

Dexter says, "I guess you'll find out tonight."

Debra concurs, "I guess I will."

The doorbell rings.

I named this chapter when comparing scenes of Hannah's death to that of Lila's. Also, later on, things seemed to rebooted back to the beginning with regards to Dexter's and Debra's relationship. They're back to double dating just like they did back in season one. Hence why this chapter "Seems Like Old Times."