Dexter (episode)
Dexter is contacted by his foster sister Debra (Jennifer Carpenter), a vice officer in the Miami Metro Police Department. Dexter, a blood spatter analyst for the department, assists Debra in investigating an apparent serial killer targeting prostitutes. Dexter examines the latest victim and is shocked to find no trace of blood on the dismembered corpse. At the police station, Dexter discusses another murder case being handled by James Doakes (Erik King), a detective who dislikes him. Later, Dexter watches Jamie Jaworski, a murderer who escaped justice due to a faulty warrant, and breaks into his home to find evidence. Once he confirms that Jaworski is guilty, Dexter meets with his girlfriend Rita Bennett (Julie Benz), a former victim of domestic abuse victim; Rita has two young children, Astor and Cody. While on a date with Rita, Dexter finds another murder scene with no traces of blood, this time with the victim's head missing. Dexter theorizes that the killer murders his victims in extreme cold, explaining the absence of blood, and might be using a stolen refrigerated truck. Dexter allows Debra to pitch the theory, but their superior officer, Lt. María LaGuerta (Lauren Vélez), dismisses it.
Rita Bennett
In "Darkly Dreaming Dexter", the two are already together, but it is explained that Dexter started dating her solely to improve his "disguise" as a normal person. Because she was brutalized by her now-jailed ex-husband, Rita fears intimacy and does not expect much of Dexter; this suits the asexual Dexter perfectly. By the novel's climax, Dexter admits that he is fond of her children, Astor and Cody, the closest he can get to feeling love. By a humorous misunderstanding, the couple become engaged in "Dearly Devoted Dexter" and married at the end of "Dexter in the Dark". In the books, Rita is scatter-brained and easily upset, prone to speaking in disjointed, rambling sentences that Dexter often finds incomprehensible. The only quality that Dexter truly appreciates about her is that she is an excellent cook. She is a physical fitness buff; she and Dexter regularly go for runs, long bike rides, and weightlifting sessions together. In the fifth book, "Dexter is Delicious", she gives birth to Dexter's daughter Lily Anne. In "Dearly Devoted Dexter", Dexter discovers that Cody and Astor are budding sociopaths and decides to provide them with the same "guidance" that his adoptive father Harry gave to him; namely, to teach them how to be careful, efficient killers of those who "deserve it". Rita is kept in the dark about the true nature of their relationship. She suspects that something is wrong with the children when she discovers them torturing a cat, but Dexter is able to reassure her that they didn't understand what they were doing. The television series is based on "Darkly Dreaming Dexter". In "Dexter's Final Cut", Dexter has an affair with TV star Jackie Forrest, and briefly considers leaving Rita. At the end of the novel, however, both Rita and Jackie are murdered by Robert Chase, a pedophile intent on kidnapping Astor.