A teen from St. Louis has been charged after firing shots at a car in Franklin County and kicking in the door of a cabin near Meramec Caverns campground, police said.

Xavier S. Minden, 18, was charged with discharging a firearm by shooting at or from a vehicle at an inhabitable structure and person, armed criminal action, burglary, first-degree assault and being a persistent offender. He is being held in lieu of $250,000 cash-only bail.

No one was injured, despite several shots being exchanged between Minden and two residents. A woman who was staying at the cabin confronted Minden after he barged in, and he told her to leave. That left the gunman in the cabin alone, and it took hostage negotiators about 15 minutes to persuade him to surrender.

Police aren't sure what sparked the string of crimes.

About 6:20 p.m. Monday, a man, 35, was driving south on Highway W with his two young children in the car, according to Franklin County Sheriff Gary Toelke. The man noticed a car traveling slowly in front of him. He thought it was an elderly couple being cautious. The car pulled off near the KOA Campground.

About a mile later, the man arrived home and pulled into his driveway near his mailbox, authorities said. He heard a pop. A bullet hit his car window.

"There was a bullet hole probably 8 to 10 inches from the baby's car seat," Toelke said.

Another bullet hit the victim's house, in the 400 block of Highway W in Stanton. The gunshots, police said, came from Minden, who they said was driving the car that had pulled over along the highway moments earlier.

The victim put his kids in the house, grabbed a handgun and called a neighbor. The neighbor grabbed a shotgun and both stepped outside.

The victim and the neighbor both fired at the car.

Police found the car abandoned near the gate of the Meramec Caverns property. Nearby, they saw Minden walking while holding a gun to his chin, authorities said.

Minden kicked in the door to a nearby cabin, authorities said, and a woman inside ran out, unharmed.

Franklin County Maj. Mike Copeland said Minden, who has an address on Arendes Drive in St. Louis, has a criminal history. The car he was driving had been stolen from the St. Louis area, authorities said.