Swamped

First things first. Make it harder for him to run.

You shut the door as you come in. This gets his attention, but you quickly rush behind a chair and grab it before he finishes turning around. If he makes a move, you'll be ready for him.

"Who are you?" he shouts angrily. He seems to be looking you over. It's a bit hard to tell with the bandages covering so much of his face, though.

"No mask," he mutters, after a while. You aren't entirely sure how he's reacting to that fact.

"Nobody important. I just thought it best that you get back to the hospital."

"Yeah, and then they'll just grab me again. No thanks."

Hmm. That's a little odd.

"And what if they decide to go after your family instead?"

"Waste of time. They're tryin' to get to my Pops, not Uncle Leo. They figure he's finished soon anyways. Pops ain't gonna give two shits about him or my cousins and they know it."

Oh. Well, that clarifies some points about how the various Flames are related, though you have some other questions. But he still seems fairly hostile, so he's not going to be inclined to clarify.

"They might go after them to get to you."

"Too bad for them I'm a whiny brat who only cares about himself. What do you even want with me?"

"I told you. I want you to get back to the hospital. That, and I'm a bit curious about what exactly happened at the blacksmith's."

That's gotten him really upset. He starts running towards you. You push him away with the chair.

"I'm not that curious," you say. But it doesn't seem to have helped. He tosses the chair aside, giving you barely enough time to get behind another one.

In fact, something more than simple anger seems to be at work here. When you look into his eyes, there's a strange lifelessness to them. As though he's not acting on his own any more.

You only have one idea at this point. You reach into your pocket and pull out the Oak Crest.

For just a moment, you think you see a flicker of understanding in him, and he seems to stand in place. But it's quickly gone. He's moving towards you again.

What now?