Texas ? A mother and two children were killed in a predawn attack at their remote East Texas ranch, which burned to the ground, and three high school students who knew the family will be among those charged with murder, authorities said.

The father was in critical condition with a gunshot wound, Rains County Sheriff David Traylor said at a news conference.

Three high school students, including one juvenile, and an adult were arrested and booked into the Rains County jail. The two males and two females will be charged with three counts each of capital murder, Traylor said.

The family had a teenage daughter, but Traylor did not provide information on her whereabouts. The dead were a 39-year-old woman and two boys, ages 8 and 13, Traylor said.

“It’s the scariest thing,” Traylor said. “You don’t know what to make. I guess you imagine the worst and hope for the best.”