“Yes, but her weapon of choice is the crossbow.”
“Like I mentioned before, I don’t think my arrow will do much damage against a werewolf,” she said. “Unless, you can get a hold of that poisonous stuff.”
Alex leaned forward. “We’re working on that. When I spoke with Charley, she said she would ask her dad if he has more. If he doesn’t, he can probably whip up another batch. The exact effects on the wolf aren’t totally known, but it will put him out of commission for a while.”
“Are you thinking that Charley and Cassidy can just stand there and pick off the Kitchener Clan one at a time?” Adam Granger asked.
“No. That’s why we’re here, Dad. We need some help with the logistics,” Zach said.
The sheriff turned to Cassidy. “How many men do you think Kitchener will have with him?”
“I wish I knew. He often has ten or twenty men close by. Not when he’s at work, of course, but when his clan needs to do some dirty work—or so I’ve been told.”
“My thought is that after Charley gives Cassidy some lessons in shooting, either with a crossbow or another type of bow, the ladies can climb on the roof of the cabin and shoot from there. Even if they are spotted, the wolves can’t climb up there,” Mason said.
“They might be able to if they shift back to their human form and go up. They could kill the women,” their dad said.
They sat there for a moment. “What if Charley has her assault rifle with her, and what if the bullets are coated in that poisonous stuff?” Alex asked.
The sheriff nodded. “That has potential, but maybe one of you can build a kind of blind that they can hide behind. It might take the wolves longer to realize what they are up against.”
“Mason already thought of that,” Zach said.
Once more their father turned to Cassidy. “Have you seen Doug or his clansmen fight before?”
“Briefly,” she said.
“Are they any good?”
“I know that the town is afraid of them, but I’m no judge of whether a wolf is a good fighter or not.”
“Our Canadian friends won’t be here until tomorrow, but once they arrive, it won’t hurt to have Ian, and possibly Mick, help us train as many of the others as we can. I don’t know how much backup we’ll need, but the Granger men might benefit from strategy lessons at least,” Liam said.
“I like it.”
“You, too, Dad,” Mason said.
“Me? I’m too old. Or are you expecting me to fight this clan? I will if you need me to.”
“Sixty isn’t old. In your line of business, you can never be too prepared, but we’ve got it covered this time.”
The sheriff held up a hand. “I get what you're saying. I’ll be happy to listen to what these fighting experts have to say.”
“I know I suggested I could call Doug and ask him to come pick me up, but I need to come up with a plausible reason as to why I’ve changed my mind,” Cassidy said.
“Maybe say you’re tired of running and hiding,” Mike suggested.
“I can do that, but I’m not sure he’ll buy that. We don’t need him to suspect it’s a trap—even though he probably will anyway.”
Mason snapped his fingers. “Let’s go back to our first idea. We ask Mindy’s mom to spill the beans again. The first time she spoke with Doug, all she said was that you were in Wildwood. Sherman Watts came to check it out but didn’t find you.”
“Because I left town,” she shot back.
“Exactly, but what if this time Mrs. Everwood says you called Mindy and told her exactly where you were staying? She’ll tell Doug that if he gives his solemn promise that no Kitchener Clan member will harm you, Mindy, or your parents, that she’ll divulge your precise location.”
“Doug will never believe Mindy’s mom would tell him where I am.”
“Don't be so sure,” Mason said. “You claimed he has an ego. He might think everyone is so afraid of him and his clan that they will even betray their own family.”