"Greg?" Greg's head whipped round at the sound of his name. Nick was standing in the doorway, and Greg immediately stood up, his gaze dropping to the floor.
"Please look at me," Nick tried to keep the desperation out of his voice, but this was starting to freak him out. Greg looked up obediently.
"I need to ask you some things." Greg nodded but remained silent. "What's your last name?"

"Stokes," Greg didn't even hesitate in his answer. He seemed to have accepted that his life was now with Nick.

"I mean," Nick sighed a little; trying not to get frustrated. None of this was Greg's fault. "What was your last name? Before you were indentured." This question seemed harder to answer, but Greg was dutifully still looking at Nick.

"Sanders," He answered after a short pause. Nick smiled in approval, and Greg visibly relaxed. Nick's bright, inviting smile was definitely something he could get used to.

"Alright Greg," The smile was still in place as Nick crossed the room and perched on the edge of Catherine's desk. "Do you feel like telling me how all this happened?" At this, Greg couldn't stop his head from falling.

"I don't know," His voice was barely a whisper. "I was too young to remember. Mr Miller always told me I was better off with them, but he wouldn't tell me why, and Mrs Miller always scowled when I mentioned my family. I think she was mad at them." The room fell silent, and it was only then that Greg realised he was looking at the floor. His head rose quickly; a little panic in his eyes.
"I'm sorry," He mumbled. Nick was smiling softly and shook his head.

"It's ok. I've gotta go see Catherine for a minute; will you be ok here?" Greg nodded, and Nick got up to leave.

(~*~*~)

Catherine was waiting in the break room for Nick. He sat down heavily in the chair next to hers.

"He tell you anything useful?" She asked carefully.

"His birth name is Sanders, but he doesn't know how it happened. Said he was too young."

"That probably means it was his family that gave him up for the debt." This made Nick sigh heavily again.

"How could someone do that?" Catherine shrugged a little.

"It's not uncommon; especially in Vegas. You get a gambling addict who can't pay his debt; add in a small child he can't afford to keep…" She trailed off with a soft sigh.

"I need to find out what happened," Nick said with determination. Catherine looked at Nick with a soft smile.

"Run a search on the lab computers. See if you can find a copy of the original contract." Nick nodded gratefully, looking at Catherine.

"What do I do about Greg? I can't just leave him in your office. This is just as unsettling for him, I'll bet."

"Maybe you should take him home; get him settled in. I can run the search and call you with what I find." This thought scared Nick a little, but he nodded. Standing slowly, Nick turned grateful eyes on Catherine.

"Thanks," He smiled. "I'm just gonna finish up the cataloguing on this case, and I'll take him right home." Catherine nodded with a soft smile and Nick turned to leave.

(~*~*~)

Nick sighed heavily, hitting enter on the last document he needed to save. A soft tap on the glass door had him looking up to see Archie waiting patiently.

"Hey Archie," Nick tried to smile. "You need something?"

"I heard you have a new… friend?" Nick laughed softly at Archie's attempt to choose his words. Slowly, he shook his head.

"Does everyone know by now?" Archie walked into the room.

"It seems like, maybe, you could use some advice." Nick looked up at Archie, who was sitting next to him.

"Something you wanna tell me?" Nick didn't remember Archie ever talking about having an indentured.

"I'd just finished college," Archie began to explain. "Got good grades; felt pretty invincible. I came to Vegas for a graduation weekend. Next thing I know, I'm being charged and handed over to Ms Richards. I was indentured for five years." Nick looked shocked, but tried to hide it.

"How did you…" Nick didn't really know what he was asking, and Archie seemed to understand.

"It's a weird feeling. Suddenly, you're life isn't yours anymore. You belong to someone else. It takes a while to get into that mindset." Nick nodded. "But it's even harder to get out of." Nick looked confused, and Archie sighed a little.
"This guy has been indentured a long time, right?" Nick nodded.

"His whole life, from what we can tell."

"I was only indentured for five years, and I still keep in touch with Ms Richards. Your guy's not only been indentured for as long as he can remember, but he's lost the only two people he ever depended on. He's gonna be needing some stability about now."

"So, what am I supposed to do?" Nick asked, a little exasperated.

"You need to let him know you're not giving him away. He needs to know that his life means something." Nick nodded seriously.

"I'll take care of him," He assured. "But Greg's debt isn't mine. It feels…" Nick sighed.

"I know," Archie sighed, standing up. "But right now, you need to act sure of yourself. Greg needs a strong influence. It's possible he doesn't know how to live independently; depending on how much freedom he was given." Nick nodded again as Archie turned to leave.

"Thanks Archie."

"No problem."