A then 24-year-old Bone Crawford held her up at gunpoint until the next morning, explaining that they were in a stash house. They waited for Bone’s lieutenant; ███████, so they could decide what to do with her. ███████ would mention he was aware of her through the Schulz and how they paraded her around back in ‘97, he knew where she lived and who her family was. Rust, pulling out all stops, would negotiate her life with the men, and it was decided she would be utilized. No cop would be on the lookout for little white girls while investigating organized crime. Rust would start running drugs across state lines.
Rust, not particularly upset over the incident, was enjoying the newfound freedom and the money that the job was making her; Bone and her lieutenants would set her up in one of the stash houses, and she was able to afford whatever she wanted without having to steal it. Dropping out of school was out of the question however, concerned teachers meant nosy cops. In school, her attitude was noticeably different, she felt there was no benefit to masking in front of her peers anymore. After school, she was all over the state dealing with sometimes violent men, sometimes violent women. Crellin and the wider county of Moriah would experience an uptick of crime in general around this time; odd deaths were occurring in the deep woods of the state.
Rust was pushed to start selling to her peers when she was around 15. She was against it, but not in a position to refuse. Rust would start going by Rust around this time for the sake of identity preservation, she was getting older and wouldn’t be able to get away with the same stuff. It was initially a bad joke made by Bone. Drug seekers would be clued in to hit up “old rusty” for a fix instead of Meadow. Sissy and her developing troupe would somehow become aware of Rust’s dealings and demand to be sold to, but Rust would deny it and refuse. Annoyed, Sissy would tattle on Rust, not for drugs but for her distant behavior, which led to Rust being made to do mandatory counseling. It was a display of power from Sissy. From then on, Rust understood that the longevity of her lifestyle meant she needed to be strategic. She would start building self-discipline regarding her impulses, and the time she spent at school was dedicated to things she actually had interests in and wanted to get better at- some for the sake of survival, some out of pure fixation; gunsmithing, chemistry, engineering.
Ash Ayers, a shy girl from California would move into one of Rust’s designated stash houses with her family. At school, Ash was quiet but desperate for friends, trying to be a part of any clique she could, but ultimately being rejected by the school. Ash’s parents worked out of state and were often not home, or vacationing, adding to her loneliness. Rust would sense Ash's naivety and desperation, and would formulate a plan around these facts to retrieve her lost stash. It didn’t take a lot of effort for Rust to convince Ash to trust her, a few days of half-hearted calls and talking was enough to be invited over. After retrieving her stash, Rust’s facade would drop and she would immediately return to dismissing and ignoring Ash. Regardless, Ash would constantly call, text and try to speak to her whenever she saw her at school. Rust realized there was an opportunity here, and made the decision to clue Ash into her world. Ash, eager for friendship, started letting Rust sleep over more often and let her essentially use her house to carry more weight.
