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Chapters 22 and 23

Miss Emily tells them that there is no truth to the rumour and that 'deferrals' do not exist. She also tells them that the point of the Gallery was to prove that the students of Hailsham, who were clones, “had souls at all.” Miss Emily admits that many people believed clones were second-class citizens and should be treated accordingly.

She tells Tommy and Kathy that the point of Hailsham was to provide some clones or students with wonderful surroundings and to prove that given the right start, clones could be capable of behaving in a moral way and be intelligent and artistic beings. However, people found it easier not having to face where their donations came from or having to consider the possibility that their donors had valuable lives of their own to lead. At the same time society was reluctant to give up its cures for cancer and other terminal diseases.

Miss Emily also mentions the Morningdale scandal, which involved a scientist called James Morningdale creating a superior species of being. He was forced to finish his work as people did not want children who were superior to everyone else. Ultimately people decided they preferred to have their organs from clones who apparently had no feelings or creativity and so Hailsham was forced to close.

Kathy realises that Madame behaved in the way that she did at Hailsham because she was afraid of them. She tells Miss Emily, Madame never liked us. She’s always been afraid of us. In the way people are afraid of spiders and things. Miss Emily admits all the guardians were afraid of the students, herself included, There were times I’d look down at you all from my study window and I’d feel such revulsion.

Madame also tells Kathy that when she saw her dancing to the song Never Let Me Go whilst clutching a pillow, she was not crying because Kathy would never have children but because she believed the pillow represented the older world, a world which lacked scientific progress but which was much kinder and she did not want to let it go.

Once back at Tommy’s Recovery Centre, Tommy begins to grow closer to the other donors and pushes Kathy aside. He receives notification that he will be making his fourth donation and tells Kathy he no longer wants her to be his carer. Kathy is hurt but agrees and they part. She later hears he has 'completed' and the novel ends with Kathy driving in her car to “…wherever I was supposed to be.”