A 14-year-old was hospitalized with a gunshot wound and his family narrowly averted tragedy after someone opened fire on their North Highlands home Wednesday.

The teen was in fair condition following surgery at the UC Davis Medical Center after being struck in the side around 1 a.m. Wednesday at his family's home on 3000 block of Karl Drive.

The teen's mother, Denise Holden, said she and her seven kids had finished celebrating a birthday and had just gone to bed when someone sprayed the house with gunfire.

Holden said her son was on a couch in the living room when the shooting started. The bullet tore through the side of the home and the couch before hitting the teen. The shot was one of more than a half-dozen bullets that peppered the house in the barrage.

"They were trying to kill us," Holden said. "This is no joke at all."

The boy's name is being withheld for fear of retaliation.

Sacramento County sheriff's spokesman Sgt. Tim Curran said at least two other neighboring houses were hit by stray bullets from the gunman. The teen had no apparent gang affiliations and investigators had no obvious motive for the shooting, Curran said.

Curran said community members were encouraged to attend a meeting with Sacramento County sheriff's officials forced on stopping North Highlands violence scheduled for Thursday.

The forum at the North Highlands Recreation Center at 6040 Watt Avenue begins at 5:30 p.m. Thursday.