Between

Between is the place is beween the mortal world and the place where spirits go in the Afterlife. First mentioned in Ghost Story.

Description
Between is where a humans spirit goes when there is some sort of irregularity with their death. And maybe for other reasons not mentioned. Harry asked it it was Purgatory and Captain Jack Murphy answered that he wasn't there to "cleanse himself" but he could call it that if it worked for him.

The work Uriel does is "what I ever have done". Uriel explained that he and his colleagues, like Jack Murphy and Ron Carmichael, labor to ensure freedom of choice, of will. It is his duty to "protect and nourish" the freedom to choose between good and evil or the distinction is meaningless.

Chicago Between
It appears like Chicago but different—it contains all the building that could have been as well as the buildings that are. Harry calls it "Chicago-tory."

The Office
The Office is a precinct room and looked a lot like the Special Investigations. There were enclosed desks where several men and women cops worked going over files and talking on phones.

Trains
The trains take souls to What Comes Next. Choosing to take a train to What Comes Next is an act of faith.

Southbound Train
There's a southbound train that heads to somewhere like Hell. It's the train that almost hit Harry when he first got there. Ron Carmichael said that the Southbound Trains run pretty quick lately and that Harry probably didn't want to get hooked up with one. Captain Jack told Harry that with his record, he could just as easily find himself on the Southbound Train as talking to Saint Peter.


 * There are Things there that are worse than death, that have ears everywhere and that are not safe to talk about openly.

What comes next

 * Uriel told Harry that What Comes Next involves things like: forever, eternity, judgment. What Comes Next means accepting "the consequences for all that you have done while alive. When judged, what you have done will be taken into account. Your fate, ultimately, will be determined by your actions in life. You can not escape the consequences of your choices."


 * What Comes Next is about faith, not knowledge.


 * Captain Jack Murphy told Harry that "What comes after isn't for people who are rubbernecking over their shoulders or bitching about how unfair they had it." He said that they have to sort out how Harry got screwed over and then he can move on to "what's next".  Later, Harry paraphrased for Karrin Murphy what Jack said (omitting who said it): "What came next wasn't for whiners or rubberneckers." Karrin said it sounded like something her father would say.


 * Uriel said that Collin Murphy, like the others who work for him in his Between Office, is there because he's not ready to "what comes next". When he's ready, he'll take the next step.

Ghost Story
In Ghost Story, after Harry was shot and died, he found himself in the Between. Ron Carmichael's ghost saved Harry from a train about to run him over then escorted him in his Mustang to the Office. There, Harry uses his Sight and at the elevator is an angel, Amitiel, who was disguised as a guard whose gun was really a sword.

Captain Jack informed Harry that there's an irregularity with his death, that the "opposition" wanted Harry out of the way and broke the law—they cheated. Jack assigns Harry the task of solving his own murder in order to save three people he cares about who are in danger if he doesn't. He's not told which three. It's risky because Harry could be trapped there as a spirit for eternity if he never finds the killer.

Before Harry leaves, he discovers that Captain Jack is really Captain Collin J. Murphy, Karrin Murphy's dad who used to run the Black Cat Investigations.

Later, Uriel confirmed that the Office is his. Uriel reprimanded Ron Carmichael for mis-directing Harry by telling him that three of his friends would be hurt if he didn't return to find his killer. Uriel recruited Sir Stuart Winchester as a part of his team.

When Harry asked Uriel what happens now, Uriel told him that it's up to him, that he could always work for him in Between: it's challenging and he could use Harry's talents. When it was time for Harry to choose, Uriel took Harry to Chicago Between, stopping in front of two doors. One led to the Office where Collin Murphy and Carmichael work and the other led to What Came Next.

Characters

 * Collin Murphy ~ "Jack"
 * Ron Carmichael
 * Amitiel
 * Harry Dresden
 * Uriel
 * Sir Stuart Winchester