Can I sue for back wages I was not paid if no amount was agreed upon?

I was hired to write software code, but my employer and I never discussed the amount I would be paid (the employer needed the work done urgently and we agreed to work it out later). I know it was stupid, but I actually worked for company X for 10 weeks with no pay, and then got "let go." I want file a claim for unpaid wages, but I don't know the amount I would be owed, because it was never discussed, and I was not responding to an ad that advertised a rate of pay. They will probably claim I was only due minimum wage, since they never agreed to pay any more than that amount. Can they do that? Would my claim for unpaid wages be based on the minimum wage? I know a little about employee vs. ind. contractor and I was an employee, no doubt about it.