diff --git a/v2/pkg/engine/resolve/resolve.go b/v2/pkg/engine/resolve/resolve.go
index 8af64b561f..b90847dc2b 100644
--- a/v2/pkg/engine/resolve/resolve.go
+++ b/v2/pkg/engine/resolve/resolve.go
@@ -969,9 +969,19 @@ func (s *subscriptionState) writeError(w AsyncErrorWriter, ctx *Context, err err
 }
 
 // sendHeartbeat sends a keep-alive frame to the downstream writer under writeMu.
-// @TODO: this is bad, see ENG-9356
+//
+// Uses TryLock rather than Lock: writeMu can be held for as long as a
+// downstream write stays unresponsive (this transport sets no write
+// deadline), and heartbeatTriggerSubscriptions processes every trigger on
+// the process sequentially in one goroutine. Blocking here would let one
+// stuck write freeze heartbeats for every other trigger, not just this one.
+// Skipping this cycle on contention is safe -- contention means a write is
+// genuinely in flight, not that the subscription is gone -- and the next
+// heartbeat tick retries.
 func (s *subscriptionState) sendHeartbeat() error {
-	s.writeMu.Lock()
+	if !s.writeMu.TryLock() {
+		return nil
+	}
 	defer s.writeMu.Unlock()
 	if s.removed.Load() {
 		return nil
diff --git a/v2/pkg/engine/resolve/resolver_heartbeat_blast_radius_realsocket_test.go b/v2/pkg/engine/resolve/resolver_heartbeat_blast_radius_realsocket_test.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..35d2224839
--- /dev/null
+++ b/v2/pkg/engine/resolve/resolver_heartbeat_blast_radius_realsocket_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,199 @@
+package resolve
+
+import (
+	"bufio"
+	"context"
+	"io"
+	"net"
+	"sync"
+	"testing"
+	"time"
+)
+
+// tcpFlushWriter is a SubscriptionResponseWriter backed by a real TCP
+// connection. Write buffers in-process (via a bufio.Writer sized comfortably
+// larger than any payload used in the test, so Write itself never touches
+// the network); Flush is the only call that reaches the OS, mirroring
+// cosmo-router's real HttpFlushWriter (core/subscription_response_writer.go)
+// and the exact call site that blocks in production: resolve.go:1077's
+// `sub.writer.Flush()` inside executeSubscriptionUpdate.
+type tcpFlushWriter struct {
+	bw *bufio.Writer
+}
+
+func newTCPFlushWriter(conn net.Conn) *tcpFlushWriter {
+	return &tcpFlushWriter{bw: bufio.NewWriterSize(conn, 8*1024*1024)}
+}
+
+func (w *tcpFlushWriter) Write(p []byte) (int, error) { return w.bw.Write(p) }
+func (w *tcpFlushWriter) Flush() error                { return w.bw.Flush() }
+func (w *tcpFlushWriter) Complete()                   {}
+func (w *tcpFlushWriter) Error([]byte)                {}
+func (w *tcpFlushWriter) Heartbeat() error {
+	if _, err := w.bw.Write([]byte("H")); err != nil {
+		return err
+	}
+	return w.bw.Flush()
+}
+
+var _ SubscriptionResponseWriter = (*tcpFlushWriter)(nil)
+
+// TestResolver_RealDeadTCPClientDoesNotBlockHeartbeatForUnrelatedTrigger is
+// the real-transport sibling of
+// TestResolver_StuckWriteDoesNotBlockHeartbeatForUnrelatedTrigger. Instead of
+// locking writeMu directly to simulate a stuck write, it uses a real TCP
+// connection to a "client" that stops reading without closing the socket --
+// the exact scenario caught live in production -- so the server's actual
+// Flush() call genuinely blocks at the OS level, not a simulated stand-in,
+// and proves the fix (sendHeartbeat's TryLock) still decouples an unrelated
+// trigger's heartbeat from that real block, without claiming the stuck write
+// itself is in any way resolved by the fix -- it stays genuinely blocked
+// throughout, exactly as a real dead connection would.
+func TestResolver_RealDeadTCPClientDoesNotBlockHeartbeatForUnrelatedTrigger(t *testing.T) {
+	ln, err := net.Listen("tcp", "127.0.0.1:0")
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("listen: %v", err)
+	}
+	defer ln.Close()
+
+	serverConnCh := make(chan net.Conn, 1)
+	go func() {
+		conn, err := ln.Accept()
+		if err == nil {
+			serverConnCh <- conn
+		}
+	}()
+
+	clientConn, err := net.Dial("tcp", ln.Addr().String())
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("dial: %v", err)
+	}
+	defer clientConn.Close()
+
+	// Shrink the client's receive buffer so the server's real write blocks
+	// after a modest payload instead of requiring an enormous one -- then
+	// never read from it again below, exactly like a client that silently
+	// stops draining its socket without ever closing the connection.
+	if tcpConn, ok := clientConn.(*net.TCPConn); ok {
+		_ = tcpConn.SetReadBuffer(1024)
+	}
+
+	var serverConn net.Conn
+	select {
+	case serverConn = <-serverConnCh:
+	case <-time.After(time.Second):
+		t.Fatal("server never accepted connection")
+	}
+	defer serverConn.Close()
+
+	resolverCtx := t.Context()
+	resolver := New(resolverCtx, ResolverOptions{
+		MaxConcurrency:                1,
+		AsyncErrorWriter:              &FakeErrorWriter{},
+		SubscriptionHeartbeatInterval: time.Hour, // long interval so the background loop doesn't compete
+	})
+
+	const stuckTriggerID = uint64(1)
+	const healthyTriggerID = uint64(2)
+
+	deadClientWriter := newTCPFlushWriter(serverConn)
+	subA := &subscriptionState{
+		triggerID: stuckTriggerID,
+		ctx:       NewContext(context.Background()),
+		writer:    deadClientWriter,
+		id:        SubscriptionIdentifier{ConnectionID: 1, SubscriptionID: 1},
+		heartbeat: true,
+		completed: make(chan struct{}),
+	}
+
+	heartbeatReceived := make(chan struct{})
+	var closeOnce sync.Once
+	subB := &subscriptionState{
+		triggerID: healthyTriggerID,
+		ctx:       NewContext(context.Background()),
+		writer: &RecordingHeartbeatWriter{onHeartbeat: func() {
+			closeOnce.Do(func() { close(heartbeatReceived) })
+		}},
+		id:        SubscriptionIdentifier{ConnectionID: 2, SubscriptionID: 2},
+		heartbeat: true,
+		completed: make(chan struct{}),
+	}
+
+	resolver.mu.Lock()
+	resolver.triggers[stuckTriggerID] = &trigger{
+		id:            stuckTriggerID,
+		cancel:        func() {},
+		subscriptions: map[SubscriptionIdentifier]*subscriptionState{subA.id: subA},
+	}
+	resolver.triggers[healthyTriggerID] = &trigger{
+		id:            healthyTriggerID,
+		cancel:        func() {},
+		subscriptions: map[SubscriptionIdentifier]*subscriptionState{subB.id: subB},
+	}
+	resolver.mu.Unlock()
+
+	// Simulate a real subscription push exactly as executeSubscriptionUpdate
+	// does at resolve.go:1041-1084: acquire writeMu, write a payload well
+	// beyond the shrunk client window plus any OS send buffer, then Flush --
+	// a real net.Conn write that genuinely blocks because nothing on the
+	// other end is draining it.
+	writeStarted := make(chan struct{})
+	writeUnblocked := make(chan struct{})
+	go func() {
+		subA.writeMu.Lock()
+		defer subA.writeMu.Unlock()
+		close(writeStarted)
+		payload := make([]byte, 4*1024*1024)
+		_, _ = deadClientWriter.Write(payload)
+		_ = deadClientWriter.Flush() // blocks here until the client reads or the conn closes
+		close(writeUnblocked)
+	}()
+	<-writeStarted
+
+	done := make(chan struct{})
+	go func() {
+		// Mirrors sendTriggerHeartbeats' own sequential loop, order pinned
+		// for determinism -- see the mutex-based sibling test for why.
+		resolver.heartbeatTriggerSubscriptions(stuckTriggerID)
+		resolver.heartbeatTriggerSubscriptions(healthyTriggerID)
+		close(done)
+	}()
+
+	// Even with the real write still genuinely stuck, trigger 2's heartbeat
+	// must fire promptly -- sendHeartbeat's TryLock skips subA's contended
+	// heartbeat instead of blocking the sweep behind it.
+	select {
+	case <-heartbeatReceived:
+		// expected: the fix means this doesn't wait on the real stuck write.
+	case <-writeUnblocked:
+		t.Fatal("the real TCP write unblocked on its own — the client-side buffer wasn't shrunk enough to force a genuine block; test setup needs a larger payload or smaller receive buffer")
+	case <-time.After(200 * time.Millisecond):
+		t.Fatal("healthy trigger's heartbeat did not fire promptly — stuck write is still blocking the sweep, fix not effective")
+	}
+
+	// The real write itself is unaffected by the fix -- it's still
+	// genuinely blocked at this point, exactly as a real dead connection
+	// would be. The fix only decouples the heartbeat sweep from it.
+	select {
+	case <-writeUnblocked:
+		t.Fatal("the stuck write unblocked before the client ever read anything — test setup invalid")
+	default:
+	}
+
+	select {
+	case <-done:
+	case <-time.After(time.Second):
+		t.Fatal("heartbeat sweep never completed")
+	}
+
+	// Clean up: let the client actually start draining, confirming the
+	// underlying stuck write resolves normally once a real client would
+	// (or the connection is torn down).
+	go io.Copy(io.Discard, clientConn)
+
+	select {
+	case <-writeUnblocked:
+	case <-time.After(2 * time.Second):
+		t.Fatal("the stuck write itself never unblocked")
+	}
+}
diff --git a/v2/pkg/engine/resolve/resolver_heartbeat_blast_radius_test.go b/v2/pkg/engine/resolve/resolver_heartbeat_blast_radius_test.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..39de14612c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/v2/pkg/engine/resolve/resolver_heartbeat_blast_radius_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,124 @@
+package resolve
+
+import (
+	"context"
+	"sync"
+	"testing"
+	"time"
+)
+
+// RecordingHeartbeatWriter is a SubscriptionResponseWriter whose Heartbeat call
+// is observable from the test via a callback, with no other side effects.
+type RecordingHeartbeatWriter struct {
+	onHeartbeat func()
+}
+
+func (r *RecordingHeartbeatWriter) Write(p []byte) (n int, err error) { return len(p), nil }
+func (r *RecordingHeartbeatWriter) Flush() error                      { return nil }
+func (r *RecordingHeartbeatWriter) Complete()                         {}
+func (r *RecordingHeartbeatWriter) Error([]byte)                      {}
+func (r *RecordingHeartbeatWriter) Heartbeat() error {
+	r.onHeartbeat()
+	return nil
+}
+
+var _ SubscriptionResponseWriter = (*RecordingHeartbeatWriter)(nil)
+
+// TestResolver_StuckWriteDoesNotBlockHeartbeatForUnrelatedTrigger proves the
+// fix for the blast-radius mechanism found live in a production pprof
+// capture: one subscriber's writeMu, held for the duration of a stuck
+// downstream write, used to block the pod-wide heartbeat sweep from ever
+// reaching a completely unrelated subscriber on a different trigger, because
+// heartbeatLoop / sendTriggerHeartbeats process every trigger sequentially
+// in one goroutine, not concurrently. sendHeartbeat now uses writeMu.TryLock
+// rather than Lock, so a stuck write simply causes that one trigger's own
+// heartbeat to be skipped for this cycle instead of blocking the sweep.
+//
+// This does not use a real network write. subA.writeMu is locked directly by
+// the test to stand in for a real stuck sub.writer.Flush() (resolve.go:1077,
+// inside executeSubscriptionUpdate) that has acquired writeMu but not yet
+// released it — mechanically identical from the heartbeat sweep's point of
+// view, since it only ever contends on the mutex, never on the write itself.
+// See TestResolver_RealDeadTCPClientBlocksHeartbeatForUnrelatedTrigger for
+// the real-transport sibling proving the same fix over an actual TCP write.
+func TestResolver_StuckWriteDoesNotBlockHeartbeatForUnrelatedTrigger(t *testing.T) {
+	resolverCtx := t.Context()
+
+	resolver := New(resolverCtx, ResolverOptions{
+		MaxConcurrency:                1,
+		AsyncErrorWriter:              &FakeErrorWriter{},
+		SubscriptionHeartbeatInterval: time.Hour, // long interval so the background loop doesn't compete
+	})
+
+	const stuckTriggerID = uint64(1)
+	const healthyTriggerID = uint64(2)
+
+	subA := &subscriptionState{
+		triggerID: stuckTriggerID,
+		ctx:       NewContext(context.Background()),
+		writer:    &FakeSubscriptionWriter{},
+		id:        SubscriptionIdentifier{ConnectionID: 1, SubscriptionID: 1},
+		heartbeat: true,
+		completed: make(chan struct{}),
+	}
+	// Stand in for a real stuck sub.writer.Flush(): a data push has acquired
+	// writeMu and not released it, exactly as goroutine 5563916 was captured
+	// doing in production, blocked on the OS write with the lock still held.
+	// Deliberately never released within this test: the fix means the
+	// healthy trigger's heartbeat no longer needs to wait for it to be.
+	subA.writeMu.Lock()
+	defer subA.writeMu.Unlock()
+
+	heartbeatReceived := make(chan struct{})
+	var closeOnce sync.Once
+	subB := &subscriptionState{
+		triggerID: healthyTriggerID,
+		ctx:       NewContext(context.Background()),
+		writer: &RecordingHeartbeatWriter{onHeartbeat: func() {
+			closeOnce.Do(func() { close(heartbeatReceived) })
+		}},
+		id:        SubscriptionIdentifier{ConnectionID: 2, SubscriptionID: 2},
+		heartbeat: true,
+		completed: make(chan struct{}),
+	}
+
+	resolver.mu.Lock()
+	resolver.triggers[stuckTriggerID] = &trigger{
+		id:            stuckTriggerID,
+		cancel:        func() {},
+		subscriptions: map[SubscriptionIdentifier]*subscriptionState{subA.id: subA},
+	}
+	resolver.triggers[healthyTriggerID] = &trigger{
+		id:            healthyTriggerID,
+		cancel:        func() {},
+		subscriptions: map[SubscriptionIdentifier]*subscriptionState{subB.id: subB},
+	}
+	resolver.mu.Unlock()
+
+	done := make(chan struct{})
+	go func() {
+		// Mirrors sendTriggerHeartbeats' own sequential loop (resolve.go:1632:
+		// `for _, id := range triggerIDs { r.heartbeatTriggerSubscriptions(id) }`),
+		// but with the order pinned so the test is deterministic instead of
+		// depending on Go's randomized map iteration order.
+		resolver.heartbeatTriggerSubscriptions(stuckTriggerID)
+		resolver.heartbeatTriggerSubscriptions(healthyTriggerID)
+		close(done)
+	}()
+
+	// Even with subA's write still stuck and never released, trigger 2's
+	// heartbeat must fire promptly — sendHeartbeat's TryLock skips subA's
+	// contended heartbeat instead of blocking the sweep behind it.
+	select {
+	case <-heartbeatReceived:
+		// expected: the fix means this doesn't wait on the stuck trigger at all.
+	case <-time.After(200 * time.Millisecond):
+		t.Fatal("healthy trigger's heartbeat did not fire promptly — stuck write is still blocking the sweep, fix not effective")
+	}
+
+	select {
+	case <-done:
+	case <-time.After(time.Second):
+		t.Fatal("heartbeat sweep never completed")
+	}
+}