What metaphors are used in The Beautiful Side of Evil by Johanna Michaelsen?

On a metaphoric level, the author's search for Pachita in Chapter One can be seen as representing the search for truth undertaken by the author throughout the narrative. In this context, the truth initially encountered by the author (a dirty home, death, the crucifix and statuette of what the author would doubtlessly define as a pagan god) can be seen as representing the truth she believes to be at the core of Pachita's work. This "truth" is that the work is corrupt and unclean, a trigger of spiritual death, and a manifestation of a pagan evil (ie Satanic) entwined with the disguising power of Christianity.