Dexter Episode 20: Morning Comes

Dexter is under pressure on several fronts: Rita tells him he is no longer welcome to visit her or the children, and Debra’s tensions with Lila keep escalating as Dexter grows more uncomfortable with how attached Lila has become. At the same time, Special Agent Frank Lundy broadens the Bay Harbor Butcher investigation by bringing in more FBI agents and focusing on old Miami Metro cases that were compromised by blood evidence errors, which starts to point suspicion toward someone inside the department.

Lundy questions Doakes about past cases, and the investigation gives Doakes a disturbing realization: the Butcher has been targeting cases he worked on, and the fact that some suspects walked because of blood-test results makes him conclude that Dexter is deeply involved in something criminal. Meanwhile, Debra and Lundy’s growing personal connection continues, and they end up kissing after dinner.

Dexter visits Lila, who is dealing with problems related to her loft fire, and he notices signs that suggest the fire was not the accident she has claimed it was. That same night, after a bowling outing, Dexter is attacked in the parking lot by Santos Jimenez, the man who killed his mother. Dexter survives the stabbing and later tells only Lila about it, keeping the attack private from everyone else.

Dexter then tracks Jimenez to his cabin in Naples and kills him with a chainsaw, mirroring the way Jimenez killed Dexter’s mother. Before he can finish disposing of the body, Dexter learns that Jimenez somehow knew where he was at the bowling alley, which makes him realize Lila must have told him. He also gets a call from Rita and learns that her door is unlocked, revealing that Lila has broken into Rita’s house, so Dexter immediately abandons the body and rushes back to Miami to protect Rita.

Dexter confronts Lila about stealing his key and about the suspicious fire at her loft. When Lila admits what she has done, Dexter breaks up with her and warns her not to threaten Rita or her children again. In parallel, Doakes breaks into Dexter’s apartment and finds his hidden collection of blood slides, confirming for him that Dexter is hiding something very dark.