diff --git a/hermes_state.py b/hermes_state.py
index b25bd60978..07fbcbcd5d 100644
--- a/hermes_state.py
+++ b/hermes_state.py
@@ -5758,13 +5758,26 @@ class SessionDB:
                     like_cursor = self._conn.execute(like_sql, like_params)
                     matches = [dict(row) for row in like_cursor.fetchall()]
         else:
-            with self._lock:
-                try:
+            try:
+                with self._lock:
+                    cursor = self._conn.execute(sql, params)
+                    matches = [dict(row) for row in cursor.fetchall()]
+            except sqlite3.OperationalError:
+                # FTS5 query syntax error despite sanitization — return empty
+                return []
+            except sqlite3.DatabaseError as exc:
+                # A corrupt FTS index raises the malformed / "fts5: corrupt
+                # structure record" class on the MATCH read, the same class the
+                # write path self-heals (#66296). OperationalError (query
+                # syntax) is a subclass caught above; this arm is the corruption
+                # parent. Rebuild the index in place once — the lock is released
+                # here, so rebuild_fts() can re-acquire it — and retry, so
+                # search self-heals for read-only sessions (cron/CLI history
+                # search) that never trigger a write to repair it first.
+                if not self._try_runtime_fts_rebuild(exc):
+                    raise
+                with self._lock:
                     cursor = self._conn.execute(sql, params)
-                except sqlite3.OperationalError:
-                    # FTS5 query syntax error despite sanitization — return empty
-                    return []
-                else:
                     matches = [dict(row) for row in cursor.fetchall()]
 
         # Add surrounding context (1 message before + after each match).
diff --git a/tests/state/test_fts_runtime_rebuild.py b/tests/state/test_fts_runtime_rebuild.py
index 45c7a7c53b..cf91b474e1 100644
--- a/tests/state/test_fts_runtime_rebuild.py
+++ b/tests/state/test_fts_runtime_rebuild.py
@@ -93,6 +93,29 @@ class TestRuntimeFtsRebuild:
         raw.close()
         assert len(hits) == 1
 
+    def test_search_messages_self_heals_after_fts_corruption(self, db, tmp_path):
+        """A read-only session that only SEARCHES (no write after corruption)
+        must self-heal too. The MATCH read raises the corruption class
+        (DatabaseError / 'fts5: corrupt structure record'), NOT the
+        OperationalError that search_messages caught — so before this fix the
+        search crashed until a write or restart rebuilt the index.
+        """
+        if not db._fts_enabled:
+            pytest.skip("FTS5 unavailable in this build")
+        db.create_session("s1", source="test")
+        db.append_message("s1", "user", "a searchable needle here")
+
+        _corrupt_fts(tmp_path / "state.db")
+        # Injected via a raw connection, so no write on THIS instance has
+        # consumed the one-shot rebuild yet.
+        assert db._fts_runtime_rebuild_attempted is False
+
+        results = db.search_messages("needle")
+
+        assert db._fts_runtime_rebuild_attempted is True  # the search rebuilt it
+        assert results  # non-empty: the rebuilt index matched the query
+        assert any("needle" in (r.get("snippet") or "") for r in results)
+
     def test_rebuild_is_one_shot_per_instance(self, db, tmp_path):
         if not db._fts_enabled:
             pytest.skip("FTS5 unavailable in this build")