diff --git a/go-backend/internal/gateway/wsclient.go b/go-backend/internal/gateway/wsclient.go
index 9500809..db7f3b9 100644
--- a/go-backend/internal/gateway/wsclient.go
+++ b/go-backend/internal/gateway/wsclient.go
@@ -229,7 +229,29 @@ func (c *WSClient) connectAndRun(ctx context.Context) error {
 	c.connId = helloOK.ConnID
 	c.connMu.Unlock()
 
-	// Notify REST client that WS is live so it stands down
+	// Step 2b: Start the read loop in a goroutine so that Send() in
+	// initialSync can receive responses. The read loop goroutine will
+	// continue running after initialSync completes, routing live events
+	// and any future RPC responses.
+	readLoopErrCh := make(chan error, 1)
+	go func() {
+		readLoopErrCh <- c.readLoop(ctx, conn)
+	}()
+
+	// Step 2c: Initial sync — fetch agents + sessions from gateway.
+	// This now works because the read loop is active and will route
+	// response frames back to Send() via handleResponse.
+	if err := c.initialSync(ctx); err != nil {
+		c.logger.Warn("initial sync failed, will continue with read loop", "error", err)
+	}
+
+	// Step 2d: Register live event handlers (read loop is already
+	// active, so events will be dispatched immediately)
+	c.registerEventHandlers()
+
+	// Notify REST client that WS is live so it stands down.
+	// This must happen AFTER initialSync so that the REST poller
+	// doesn't start polling while we're still syncing.
 	if c.restClient != nil {
 		c.restClient.MarkWSReady()
 		c.logger.Info("ws client notified REST fallback to stand down")
@@ -238,16 +260,9 @@ func (c *WSClient) connectAndRun(ctx context.Context) error {
 	// Reset wsReadyOnce so MarkWSReady can fire again after a reconnect
 	c.wsReadyOnce = sync.Once{}
 
-	// Step 2b: Initial sync — fetch agents + sessions from gateway
-	if err := c.initialSync(ctx); err != nil {
-		c.logger.Warn("initial sync failed, will continue with read loop", "error", err)
-	}
-
-	// Step 2c: Register live event handlers
-	c.registerEventHandlers()
-
-	// Step 3: Read loop
-	return c.readLoop(ctx, conn)
+	// Step 3: Wait for the read loop goroutine to finish (blocks
+	// until the connection drops or context is cancelled).
+	return <-readLoopErrCh
 }
 
 // readChallenge reads the first frame from the gateway, which must be a
diff --git a/go-backend/internal/gateway/wsclient_test.go b/go-backend/internal/gateway/wsclient_test.go
index 92a1d66..300a32d 100644
--- a/go-backend/internal/gateway/wsclient_test.go
+++ b/go-backend/internal/gateway/wsclient_test.go
@@ -11,6 +11,7 @@ import (
 	"testing"
 	"time"
 
+	"code.cubecraftcreations.com/CubeCraft-Creations/Control-Center/go-backend/internal/handler"
 	"code.cubecraftcreations.com/CubeCraft-Creations/Control-Center/go-backend/internal/models"
 
 	"github.com/gorilla/websocket"
@@ -466,6 +467,104 @@ func TestAgentItemToCard(t *testing.T) {
 	})
 }
 
+// ── 6. Test: Initial sync ordering (readLoop active before Send) ──────────
+
+// TestConnectAndRun_InitialSyncOrdering verifies that the WS client
+// completes initial sync successfully. This test would hang/timeout if
+// readLoop were NOT started before initialSync, because Send() relies on
+// readLoop→routeFrame→handleResponse to deliver RPC responses.
+func TestConnectAndRun_InitialSyncOrdering(t *testing.T) {
+	repo := &mockAgentRepo{agents: make(map[string]models.AgentCardData)}
+	broker := handler.NewBroker()
+	capture := newBroadcastCapture(broker)
+	defer capture.close()
+
+	srv := newTestWSServer(t, func(conn *websocket.Conn) {
+		// Handshake
+		handleHandshake(t, conn)
+
+		// After handshake, respond to RPCs
+		for {
+			var req map[string]any
+			if err := conn.ReadJSON(&req); err != nil {
+				break
+			}
+			reqID, _ := req["id"].(string)
+			method, _ := req["method"].(string)
+
+			var result any
+			switch method {
+			case "agents.list":
+				result = []map[string]any{
+					{"id": "otto", "name": "Otto", "role": "Orchestrator", "channel": "discord"},
+					{"id": "dex", "name": "Dex", "role": "Backend Dev", "channel": "telegram"},
+				}
+			case "sessions.list":
+				result = []map[string]any{
+					{"sessionKey": "s1", "agentId": "otto", "status": "running", "totalTokens": 500, "lastActivityAt": "2025-05-20T12:00:00Z"},
+				}
+			default:
+				result = map[string]any{}
+			}
+
+			res := map[string]any{
+				"type":   "res",
+				"id":     reqID,
+				"ok":     true,
+				"result": result,
+			}
+			if err := conn.WriteJSON(res); err != nil {
+				break
+			}
+		}
+	})
+	defer srv.Close()
+
+	client := NewWSClient(WSConfig{URL: wsURL(srv), AuthToken: "test-token"}, repo, broker, slog.Default())
+
+	ctx, cancel := context.WithTimeout(context.Background(), 10*time.Second)
+	defer cancel()
+
+	done := make(chan struct{})
+	go func() {
+		client.Start(ctx)
+		close(done)
+	}()
+
+	// Wait for initial sync to complete by checking repo state.
+	// The agents should be persisted from the RPC responses.
+	deadline := time.Now().Add(5 * time.Second)
+	for time.Now().Before(deadline) {
+		repo.mu.Lock()
+		_, ottoOK := repo.agents["otto"]
+		_, dexOK := repo.agents["dex"]
+		repo.mu.Unlock()
+		if ottoOK && dexOK {
+			break
+		}
+		time.Sleep(50 * time.Millisecond)
+	}
+
+	repo.mu.Lock()
+	_, ottoOK := repo.agents["otto"]
+	_, dexOK := repo.agents["dex"]
+	repo.mu.Unlock()
+
+	if !ottoOK {
+		t.Error("otto not found in repo after initial sync — readLoop may not have been active before Send()")
+	}
+	if !dexOK {
+		t.Error("dex not found in repo after initial sync — readLoop may not have been active before Send()")
+	}
+
+	cancel()
+	select {
+	case <-done:
+	case <-time.After(3 * time.Second):
+		t.Fatal("WSClient did not shut down cleanly")
+	}
+}
+
 func TestStrPtr(t *testing.T) {
 	s := "hello"
 	p := strPtr(s)