Louis E Tagliaferri

In Search of Becca Louis E Tagliaferri

When Scott Morris, associate professor of history at the University of North Florida, met Nita Ramirez, he was attracted to her not only because she was stunningly beautiful, but also because she shared his passion for finding the ruins of the seventeenth century Timucuan village of Becca. Their search for Becca on the shore of the Tolomato River in St. Johns County, Florida, and the history that might be buried there, was stopped dead in its tracks by Aaron Paxton, a greedy and unethical real estate developer. Paxton, who faced a series of lawsuits for previous shoddy and unethical building practices, purchased the tract of land on which Becca was believed to be located and was determined to cover the historical site with residential construction. It seemed that there was no way to stop Paxton from destroying the Becca site until a copy of a mysterious letter from a Franciscan Friar who lived in the Spanish Colonial Period to his superior in Havana, Cuba was discovered. The letter disclosed that a priceless object might have been buried under the soil of Becca to preserve it from the invading forces of Carolina Governor James Moore during the Queen Anne's War in 1702. An urgent flight to San Juan, Puerto Rico, a recluse determined to seek revenge for the destruction of his beloved hunting grounds, the death of an undocumented worker in a foreboding swamp and the deepening love between Scott and Nita lead to an exciting conclusion of this fascinating story.