maybe its so obvious that they didn't need to put it down but does the ally making the reaction attack have to be in range or is it just anyone i can see? so if they have a bow they could shoot whoever i see but if they had a sword they would have to be in melee range?

voice of authority

You can invoke the power of law to embolden an ally to attack. If you cast a spell with a spell slot of 1st level or higher and target an ally with the spell, that ally can use their reaction immediately after the spell to make one weapon attack against a creature of your choice that you can see.

If the spell targets more than one ally, you choose the ally who can make the attack.

You cast a spell on an ally. They can then use their reaction to attack a creature that you pick because you can see it. Weapon attack means it can be ranged or melee, yes, as long as you can see it. But I would assume attack rules still apply to the ally, so you wouldn't want to pick a creature your ally can't also see.

so just to make sure i absolutely understand. i  heal my barbarian friend but the only enemy is 10 feet away from him so he would not be able to attack with an axe.

He could throw the axe, but he couldn't do a melee attack on the enemy.

Perfect thanks so much