then , and the horrible part was that he knew he was not yet fully delirious , he was back in his office and his secretary had just rushed in with a sheaf of papers like a flower in her pink-nailed hand and she was talking and talking and talking , excitedly , and he was answering and nodding , shaking his head and gesturing , pushing hold buttons on his telephones , stroking his nose , tugging his earlobe , and talking and not hearing or understanding a word that either of them was saying , not even hearing the ringing of the telephones , under whose buttons the little lights kept winking on and off , and there was a sense of urgency and a strange feeling of separation , removal , futility , while dolly reiber -- that was her name -- talked until suddenly he noted , quite academically , that she had the head of a dog and was beginning to howl ( this he was able to hear , though faintly ) , and he smiled and reached out to stroke her muzzle and she became alice-at-his-bedside .