Well, so much for the theory that Ellen Wolf was inviting a friendly face into her house.
To use the parlance of our times, it would appear that Miguel has “gone rogue.” His friendship with Dexter, we discover in this riveting hour, was merely a friendship of convenience, not the true bond that Dexter had wanted— and allowed himself to think he had discovered. It was a little sad to witness, actually… or at least as sad as the emotional life of a serial killer who befriends another killer could possibly be. Granted, this wasn’t the type of friendship that would appeal to Dexter’s better angels, but his ongoing desire to find someone who can share his secrets—previously manifested in his brother from Season One and Lila from Season Two—is once again thwarted. And like those other two, Miguel will most definitely have to die.
From what we find out about Miguel this episode, getting rid of him won’t be that easy. We can see that he’s a wily character, someone clever enough to ingratiating himself to the highly guarded, highly suspicious Dexter and someone crazy/confident enough to play with fire. He knew what he was getting into with Dexter from the start, and it would not be surprising if he had a contingency plan in place should their relationship go south. While it’s true that Dexter’s knowledge about the blood on the shirt gives him the drop on Miguel, it seems unlikely that he’ll be able to dispose of him as swiftly as his usual victims. But then again, I thought last week that Ellen may have been welcoming Miguel into her home, so what do I know?
The opening bit of narration has Dexter sounding lovestruck after a secret extra-(pre)marital tryst: “Last night there was no pretense. Miguel and I took a life together, and today someone knows my truth, shares my reality. I’m not alone.” It isn’t long before Dexter learns from Miguel’s wife that he didn’t get home until early morning and that Ellen Wolf hasn’t been answering the phone. He correctly divines that Miguel has taken his advice on corpse disposal, and tries to set his independent friend back on track by unearthing Ellen’s body as a lesson. It is, again, not a touching gesture, exactly, but Dexter’s last attempt at bringing his friend back into the fold; he’s upset with Miguel, but seems to understand that Miguel’s betrayal of him and his “code” may be a side effect of discovering the intoxicating power of killing another person. After all, Dexter knows the feeling.