Episode 706: Do the Wrong Thing

Do the Wrong Thing is the sixth of twelve episodes in Season Seven of DEXTER, and the seventy-eighth overall episode of the series. Directed by Alik Sakharov and written by Lauren Gussis, it first aired 4 November 2012.

The estimated number of viewers for the episode during its original airing was 1.99 million.

Debra gets to know a local crime writer who has dug up some incriminating dirt on Hannah McKay - Dexter's newest obsession. Quinn gets an offer he tries to refuse and LaGuerta keeps digging into the Bay Harbor Butcher Case.

Summary
Ever since Hannah McKay lied to Dexter, all he can think about is "giving her what she deserves." He sits at a beachside café near a flower mart reading a book about Hannah titled "Love on the Run" written by true crime author Sal Price. He watches her from a distance, as she unloads flowers from a van. He argues with "Harry" that Hannah is a killer and believes that she murdered her husband. Harry insists that he doesn't have enough evidence to be sure. When Dexter starts to go talk to her, Harry reminds him that he called her a murderer so he stops, thinking, "I need a peace offering."

Back at Miami Metro, Deb and LaGuerta brief the homicide division on the Isaak Sirko case. The arraignment went well, and Sirko was denied bail, though his lawyers will put his bail up for review. Even with the blood evidence proving that Isaak was at the bar scene, both are concerned that he might claim self-defense and the jury will acquit him.

To show Hannah that he's not a threat, Dexter fudges the blood report and omits running the blood on the victim's dress for her DNA. He rationalizes that Hannah has immunity anyway and it would just make Deb crazy.

During yard time at the jail, Isaak is alone at a picnic table when inmate Quinones, a Colombian, sits down across from him. He threatens Isaak, claiming they will retaliate because he killed three of their cartel members. Suddenly, Isaak grabs his wrist and twists it until bones crack. Grunting in pain, Quinones orders his gang to stay back. Isaak then warns him that if anything happens to him, it would be a mistake since the Koshka Brotherhood is more powerful and smarter than the Colombians. When Quinones agrees to stay away, Isaak takes his phone and releases him. Isaak then calls George Novikov and leaves a message that it’s urgent that he pay him a visit.

When Hannah doesn’t answer her door, Dexter walks to the back of the house and finds her with a dead rabbit. She explains that she kill rabbits because they kill her plants, adding, "I do what I have to do." He apologizes to her, claiming that his blood evidence was inconclusive and he shouldn’t have accused her. He hands Hannah a copy of the blood report and she thanks him. When he wipes off a smudge of dirt on her face, she tells him that she can get pretty dirty.

Dexter then asks for advice on a plant for his apartment. Hannah asks him to describe his place and he says it's "one bedroom, on the water, lots of sunlight", and admits that he lives alone.

During the conversation, Hannah mentions that her husband died of a heart attack and Dexter tells her that his wife was murdered. Hannah asks to change the subject from "doom and gloom." He learns that she's lived there about a year and the previous owner, Beverly Grey, died. Before he leaves, Hannah picks out a plant for him as a gift.

Dexter researches Beverly Grey and discovers that Hannah was her sole beneficiary. Because Beverly and Hannah's husband both died of heart attacks, he suspects that Hannah killed them since she has a knack for poison.

As Sal Price is leaving the homicide department, Dexter recognizes him and asks Deb why he was there. She says he wants to update and reissue his book now that more of Wayne Randall's victims have been found. At the moment, she’s making copies of the case files for him while he’s getting coffee. Dexter rushes outside to the coffee truck and asks Sal to sign his book, claiming to be a big fan. Since Dexter’s last name is "Morgan," Sal asks if he's related to the Lieutenant and if she's single. When Sal says that he plans on having his own blood expert examine the evidence, Dexter is concerned  because he fudged the blood report for Hannah. After some careful coercion, Sal reveals that Hannah may have committed another murder. While she was in a halfway house, she accused a counselor of sexually abusing her, but the guy only got a slap on the wrist. Then, a couple of weeks later, he drops dead from rat poisoning. Sal tells Dexter that he will have to read his book to learn more, and asks him to put in a good world for him with his sister.

Sal returns to Deb's office for the files and asks her out for a drink as a token of his appreciation. She becomes defensive when he says he's not trying to write a story about her being engaged to the Ice Truck Killer. Debra refuses the date, saying that she's not in a "dating mode" and her life is complicated. Sal gives her his card and tells her to call him if she changes her mind.

Nadia finds the bag of cash in Quinn's glove compartment and confronts him. Quinn informs her that when he was working in Narcotics, he used to take payoffs from George to look the other way. However, now he doesn't know what they want him to do. Nadia asks him to give the money back, fearing that he will end up dead. She warns him that the Koshka Brotherhood is dangerous. Quinn hesitates because there is ten grand in the bag. Later, he returns the cash to George, stating, "I'm not for sale."

Dexter breaks into Sal Price's house to find out what evidence he has compiled against Hannah. Dexter transfers Sal's computer files to a flash drive. Then he takes a quick look at his paper files, noticing that there is one on the Bay Harbor Butcher. As Dexter looks through the source material for Hannah, it seems Sal is preparing for a book named Poisonous Beauty: the Hannah McKay Story. Dexter takes a photo of a blood test for Beverly Grey which could prove that Hannah poisoned her.

While they are out at lunch, Batista asks Jamie her opinion of the restaurant in which they are eating. She thinks it's cute but kind of a dive. He tells her of his intention to retire and buy the restaurant, but disapproves, thinking it would be a serious financial mistake. Jamie reminds him that he is very impulsive and give examples.

Accompanied by Jurg, George visits Isaak in jail. Isaak insists that he needs to get him out of there as soon as possible before he kills someone. George informs him that Quinn gave the money back, which he's never done before. Isaak takes a deep breath and warns, "George…do not disappoint me."

Quinn arrives at La Vida restaurant to meet Nadia for a date. The hostess tells him that his other party has already arrived. However, when Quinn is escorted to his table, he finds George Novikov instead of Nadia waiting for him. Quinn leans over and threatens to put a bullet through George's head if he hurts Nadia. George says he won't hurt her unless he has to because she’s a "valuable commodity." He demands that Quinn lose the blood evidence linking Isaak to the Colombian murders or Nadia will be sent to a sex club in Dubai where she will be horribly treated. George tells him to keep the cash and leaves the bag of money on the table. Nadia doesn't answer when Quinn calls her.

Maria and Debra discuss the open cases of missing persons. Maria now thinks the Bay Harbor Butcher killed the Barrel Girl Gang. Deb, concerned about exposing Dexter, attempts to dissuade her, but Maria insists it's worth looking into.

At home, Dexter goes over Sal's files, learning that he bribed the funeral director to get access to Beverly Grey's body and stole a blood sample before she was cremated. When Sal ran it for Aconite, a poisonous plant that causes a heart attack, it came back positive. Sal notes that Aconite grows on Hannah's property so Dexter decides to have a conversation with her long-time handyman.

Unexpectedly, Hannah shows up at his apartment, carrying a flowering plant with red spots that look like blood spatter. To find the proper place for it, Hannah checks out Dexter's bedroom. Just then, Deb calls. insisting that Dexter immediately meet at her beach house to talk about Maria's latest suspicions. He agrees to meet her in twenty minutes.

During their conversation, Deb realizes that Dexter's former tenant Lumen Pierce was his lover and they were the vigilante couple who murdered the Barrel Girl Gang. She blasts him for moving his girlfriend into the house where Trinity murdered his wife. Dexter tells her not to worry about him, Lumen, or LaGuerta. When he advises her to go on a date with Sal Price, Deb orders him out of her house.

Dexter goes to Hannah's house when she’s not at home. He spots her handyman and casually questions him. The handyman describes how Hannah took care of the nursery's previous owner without any help. Dexter believes this implicates Hannah since she was the only one who had access to poison her. Dexter asks where the purple wildflowers grow and the handyman directs him to the southwest corner.

Dexter finds the Aconite, and notices some have been recently harvested. Just then, Hannah appears and invites him inside for coffee. She glances at the Aconite where Dexter was standing.

Inside the house, Hannah hands Dexter a cup of coffee, warning him that it's hot. "And potentially deadly," he thinks. Hannah catches Dexter off guard when she asks why he keeps coming around. All he can think of is to ask her out on a date. She refuses, saying that she doesn't date because she gets too attached. Dexter remarks that she doesn't seem the type and Hannah says that she's not what people think of her. She explains that she went with Wayne because he promised to take her to Disney World and Santa's Holiday Adventure, the only place in Florida where you can see snow. They were then going to live in Argentina on a farm and it was all she could think about. So now she does whatever it takes to not lose herself like that again or do the wrong thing, Dexter advises Hannah to "do the wrong thing" and again asks her out, promising to not land her in jail. Hannah finally agrees to just one date.

Quinn repeatedly calls Nadia but with no response. He leaves another message to call him back.

Masuka overhears Angel talking to Quinn about retirement, When Masuka tells Deb about it, she asks Angel where this idea is coming from. He answers, "I don't date. I hardly see my kid. I'm so focused on work that I forgot to have a life. And I know this may sound crazy, but the idea of buying this restaurant actually makes me happy." Deb then calls Sal Price and takes him up on his offer of a date, explaining that she changed her mind because she needs to get a life.

Quinn cons his way into the evidence room, claiming he is there to review another case. He finds the blood evidence against Isaak and, despite his apprehension, sneaks it out of the room.

While on the date with Sal, Deb persuades him to talk about his new project. He believes that after Hannah killed her first victim, she kept right on killing. He shows Deb the blood spatter evidence from his own expert, explaining how the void pattern on Linda Johnson indicates a killer much smaller than Wayne Randall – like Hannah. Deb realizes that Dexter might have intentionally written a false report to go after Hannah.

Dexter takes Hannah to a closed holiday amusement park and shows her a light attraction complete with snowfall. While she's distracted, he injects her with M-99 and sets up a kill room. When she wakes up, he explains, "When I said I wanted to take you out, this is what I meant. You said you wanted to see the snow. This is what keeps me up at night. This is what I long for. This is what I need to do to fill my emptiness." When Hannah calmly replies, "Do what you gotta do," he realizes that she isn't afraid. Seemingly mesmerized, Dexter cuts her free and has sex with her.

Quotes

 * "So you've accused me of murder, animal cruelty. Anything else?" - Hannah to Dexter
 * "I do what I have to do." - Hannah to Dexter
 * "It takes a real gentleman to admit when he's wrong." - Hannah to Dexter
 * "I guess I'm kind of, maybe, a morbid guy." - Dexter to Hannah
 * "I'm a good cop. I also like money." - Quinn to Nadia
 * Aconite. Beautiful and dangerous. Just like Hannah. - Dexter (voiceover)
 * "But for the record, studies show that men who retire are usually dead in five years." - Vince Masuka to Angel Batista
 * "Do what you gotta do." - Hannah to Dexter, while on the kill table

Related Pages

 * Aconite
 * Beverly Grey
 * Dexter's Apartment
 * The Fox Hole
 * Hael Baker
 * Hannah McKay's House
 * Koshka Brotherhood
 * La Vida Restaurant
 * M99
 * Papa's Cafe
 * Sal Price's Apartment
 * Santa's Holiday Adventure

Trivia

 * Santa's Holiday Adventure references a real place in Miami called Santa's Enchanted Forest that has since relocated to Hialeah, FL.
 * While discussing the prevalence of heart disease, Dexter's projection of Harry tells Dexter "it got me." Although Dexter has been told (by Thomas Matthews) that his father committed suicide, the line doesn't conflict with that plot development because Harry actually did have heart disease. That's why he was in the hospital the first time when Nurse Mary tried to kill him.
 * The deadbolt lock on the door to Sal Price's apartment had the keyhole facing inside, making the doorknob lock the only effective one.