Ryan Foster's Watch

Ryan Foster's Watch is a piece of evidence in the Showtime original series Dexter: Resurrection.

Following the murder of Ryan Foster, his watch became a key piece of evidence that was used to implicate Mia LaPierre of the murder (and an attempt to free Harrison Morgan from suspicion).

History[]

While In Harrison's Hands[]

Ryan Foster wore this watch during his stay at the Empire Hotel, only removing it when he hands it to Harrison Morgan because "this fucker quit on me" and he needed it repaired. Harrison assured him he knew a spot and ran the watch to this shop before finishing out his day.

Later that evening Harrison would murder Ryan after he attempted to rape a woman named Shauna and he chopped up the body, disposing of it with the trash. Foster's body is discovered at the dump and an investigation leads them to the hotel, with Harrison suffering intense hallucinations including being haunted by the mutilated visage of Ryan himself. When Harrison ends up questioned by the police and nearly coerced into a confession to Claudette Wallace and Melvin Oliva (leading to Harrison admitting that he's homeless and has been staying in vacant hotel rooms thanks to Elsa Rivera), his mental state's taken a hefty toll - escaping nearly being arrested for the murder he committed and also getting someone he cares about in trouble.

The next morning after Elsa cheers him up, he gets a call from Quentin's Jewelry Repair (which was the spot Harrison took the watch to) telling him that his watch was ready. The news shocked Harrison, remembering now that Ryan had asked him to do that and he initially declines saying he's tied up at work until the woman on the other end says they'll send someone to drop it off. Harrison chooses to go to the shop himself and returns with the watch, with the ticking channeling his hallucinations as it becomes loud in his head.

Over the next couple days the watch haunts him - constantly ticking and giving him no sense of relief especially when Angel Batista finds him at the hotel and questions him about his father Dexter Morgan. Later that night the watch ticks so much that he can't deal with it, locking it away in a safe...yet the ticking resumes and it forces him to leave a hotel room he was staying in to head to Elsa's place that night (though he ends up returning to the room after things get awkward there). A couple days later Batista finds him at the hotel and they move to a cafe to talk, where he expresses his theory about what Dexter taught him to do when it came to Ryan Foster's body and how it was found chopped up. He tells him about the people that died because of Dexter, mentioning Maria LaGuerta among them as well as his mother Rita Morgan. As he gets up to leave Batista tells him that he hopes Harrison won't end up like his dad and he lets him go.

Harrison ends up outside where the sound of the watch's ticking and Batista's words echo in his head. At one point he calls Detective Wallace which goes to voicemail and he hangs up, deciding that he needs to head to the New York Police Department to turn himself in: thinking back to what happened with his father in Iron Lake. As he makes his way to the front his father appears, stopping him from entering and the two head back to his place where he explains a bit about what happened since Harrison thought he was dead. At one point Dexter assumes that by killing Ryan he found release but Harrison tells him that he's "in hell" and among the hallucinations he's suffered he talks about the watch and its constant ticking that is driving him insane. Dexter, wanting to help his son, offers to take it to carry it for him. When he hands him the watch Dexter closes his fingers around it and the ticking finally leaves Harrison's mind...giving him peace.

Framing Mia LaPierre[]

Dexter wasn't exactly sure what he could do to help his son beyond this point, as the two of them still had a strained relationship. He keeps the watch on him as he goes to meet with a fellow serial killer Mia LaPierre, whom he assumes has a code (like his Code of Harry) and an ally in his efforts. Instead he learns that she's a ruthless serial killer like any other and has plans to kill someone that night - which she tries to rope him in as he's supposed to be the Dark Passenger known as "Red" but Dexter ends up splitting off from her as she desires to go do her own kill.

Realizing her plan Dexter breaks into her apartment and places Ryan's watch within her trophy collection, while also planting a bottle of oxygen bleach which was used to clean up the murder scene for Ryan Foster. After she comes home with a man named Marc, she knocks him out and straps him to a harness where she intends to torture him to death. Dexter calls the cops and they arrive in time to stop her - arresting her on the spot. Later as forensics and Detective Minniti go over the scene he opens the box containing her trophies and finds the watch among them. At the scene are Detectives Wallace and Oliva, with Minniti bringing her the watching saying it's the hotel victim's. After confirming Mia LaPierre's identity and that the watch was found with items belonging to other victims of hers, she is implicated in the murder of Ryan Foster.

Despite the watch being in her apartment, Claudette has trouble believing that LaPierre could have done the kill and Angel Batista agrees with this - believing the watch was planted by Dexter Morgan in order to clear his son. As they all go to meet with LaPierre in prison however...she's found dead, a murder disguised as a suicide - hitting a dead stop on the investigation. However, when Batista continue to press the subject, Claudette admits that there's one strange thing: all of the trophies but the watch have Mia's fingerprints on them.

Notes[]

With Mia Lapierre dead, the watch could be the crucial piece of evidence that links back to Harrison. Here's some information as to how:
- Claudette notes the absence of Ryan's watch from his wrist in the first episode but does not mention it again as of the sixth episode.
- Of the various cameras in the hotel the lobby in particular has several operating at all angles that would have seen Ryan Foster remove and hand over his watch to Harrison - this has not been addressed, with the footage only being focused on the night of the murder. Going back earlier would allow them to figure out that the missing watch was handed to Harrison and asking Harrison's boss Stefan Pike or the brunette who was there with Ryan earlier that day why he handed the watch to him would confirm that he needed it repaired.
- Given the fact that a shop was handed this watch the day of Ryan Foster's murder by Harrison the store had his contact information - as well as a record of the sale (there may also be security footage inside the store showing Harrison both days). Speaking with people in the store about who brought the watch in and when it was picked up would confirm that Harrison came to get the watch days after the murder - which renders it inadmissible as evidence against Mia LaPierre (indicating that it was planted after all).
If Mia was actually responsible she would have taken the watch and put it with her trophies as per her M.O. (not go get it fixed) but since it was being repaired at the time, had she actually killed him she would instead take one of his expensive rings still left on his corpse.

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